The 1st Kent Artillery Volunteers was a part-time unit of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

from 1860 to 1956. Primarily serving as coastal artillery defending the

Port of Dover The Port of Dover is a cross-channel ferry, cruise terminal, maritime cargo and marina facility situated in Dover, Kent, south-east England. It is the nearest English port to France, at just away, and is one of the world's busiest maritime pa ...

and other harbours in South-East England, the unit's successors also served in the heavy artillery role on the Western Front during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and as anti-aircraft artillery during

the Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

and later in the

North African North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

campaigns of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Volunteer Force

Many

Volunteer Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

units were raised in Great Britain as a result of an invasion scare in 1859. These small independent units were quickly organised into larger groupings, and the 1st Administrative Brigade of Kent Artillery Volunteers was formed on 15 August 1860. It comprised the following Artillery Volunteer Corps (AVCs):Frederick, pp. 660–1.Litchfield and Westlake, pp. 98–102.1st KAVC at Regiments.org.
/ref> * 1st Kent AVC formed at

Gravesend Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the Bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames and opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Ro ...

on 20 October 1859; second

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

formed 5 March 1860 * 2nd Kent AVC formed at

Faversham Faversham is a market town in Kent, England, from London and from Canterbury, next to the Swale, a strip of sea separating mainland Kent from the Isle of Sheppey in the Thames Estuary. It is close to the A2, which follows an ancient British t ...

on 15 November 1859 ; second battery formed 27 August 1861 * 3rd Kent AVC formed at

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a port town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour and shipping port for most of the 19th and 20t ...

on 7 November 1859 (transferred to the

1st Cinque Ports Artillery Volunteers The 1st Cinque Ports Artillery Volunteers was a part-time unit of the British Army's Royal Artillery from 1860 to 1956. Raised as coastal defence artillery, the unit later served as field artillery in Mesopotamia during World War I, and as anti-ai ...

in April 1860) * 4th Kent AVC formed at

Sheerness Dockyard Sheerness Dockyard also known as the Sheerness Station was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the Sheerness peninsula, at the mouth of the River Medway in Kent. It was opened in the 1660s and closed in 1960. Location In the Age of Sail, the R ...

on 9 January 1860 (absorbed by the 13th Kent AVC 23 January 1867) * 5th Kent AVC formed at

Blackheath Blackheath may refer to: Places England *Blackheath, London, England ** Blackheath railway station **Hundred of Blackheath, Kent, an ancient hundred in the north west of the county of Kent, England *Blackheath, Surrey, England ** Hundred of Blackh ...

on 28 February 1860, augmented by a half battery 25 March 1862; to two full batteries after September 1863 * 6th Kent AVC appeared in the Army List in March 1860 but was never formed * 7th Kent AVC formed at

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

in March 1860 but no officers were ever gazetted and it was removed from the Army List in 1862 * 8th Kent AVC was never formed * 9th Kent AVC formed at

Plumstead Plumstead is an area in southeast London, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich, England. It is located east of Woolwich. History Until 1965, Plumstead was in the historic counties of England, historic county of Kent and the detail of mu ...

as a sub-division 13 February, increased to a battery 15 August 1860; attached to the 10th Kent AVC June 1870. Renumbered 2nd in 1880. * 10th Kent AVC formed at the

Royal Arsenal The Royal Arsenal, Woolwich is an establishment on the south bank of the River Thames in Woolwich in south-east London, England, that was used for the manufacture of armaments and ammunition, proofing, and explosives research for the Britis ...

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

on 28 February 1860. Renumbered in 1880 as 3rd Kent (Royal Arsenal) * 11th Kent AVC formed at Sandgate as a sub-division 25 February; increased to a battery 2 March 1860 * 12th Kent AVC formed at Gillingham on 6 March 1860 * 13th Kent AVC formed at Sheerness Dockyard on 1 March 1860 as two batteries; took over 4th Kent AVC as third battery 23 January 1867 * 14th Kent AVC formed at

Woolwich Dockyard Woolwich Dockyard (formally H.M. Dockyard, Woolwich, also known as The King's Yard, Woolwich) was an English Royal Navy Dockyard, naval dockyard along the river Thames at Woolwich in north-west Kent, where many ships were built from the early 1 ...

on 29 March 1860; disbanded in 1870 when the dockyard closed

Reorganisation

A reorganisation in May 1880 saw the Plumstead and Woolwich units become independent, and the remaining Corps were consolidated as the 1st Kent Artillery Volunteer Corps (1st KAVC) with HQ at Gravesend and eleven batteries provided as follows:''Army List'' * Nos 1 and 2 Batteries at Gravesend from 1st Kent AVC * Nos 3 and 4 Batteries at Faversham from 2nd Kent AVC * Nos 5 and 6 Batteries at Blackheath from 5th Kent AVC * No 7 Battery at Sandgate from 11th Kent AVC * No 8 Battery at Gillingham from 12th Kent AVC * Nos 9–11 Batteries at Sheerness from 13th Kent AVC All artillery volunteers were attached to one of the territorial divisions of the

(TA) in 1882 with the 1st KAVC joining the Cinque Ports Division. In 1887 the unit was redesignated the 3rd Volunteer (Kent) Brigade, Cinque Ports Division, RA, but this title only lasted until the Cinque Ports Division was disbanded in 1889, when the unit transferred to the Eastern Division and became the 1st Kent Artillery Volunteer Corps (Eastern Division, RA). By 1892, the Kent Artillery Volunteer Corps were organised as follows: * 1st Kent Artillery Volunteers – Headquarters at Gravesend *

2nd Kent Artillery Volunteers The 2nd Kent Artillery Volunteers, later 4th London Brigade, Royal Field Artillery, popularly known as the Lewisham Gunners, was a volunteer unit of the British Army from 1860 until 1967. Initially raised in suburban West Kent, its recruiting are ...

– Headquarters at Plumstead *

3rd Kent Artillery Volunteers (Royal Arsenal) The 3rd Kent Artillery Volunteers (Royal Arsenal) was a unit of the British Volunteer Force from 1860 to 1920. Originally raised from the workers of Woolwich Arsenal, near London, it later became a London unit of the Territorial Force and served on ...

– Headquarters at Woolwich In 1889, the Artillery Volunteers became part of the

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

(RGA), and when the territorial divisions were abolished the 1st KAVC was designated 1st Kent Brigade RGA (Volunteers) from 1 January 1902.

Territorial Force

When the

Volunteers Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

were subsumed into the new

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry i ...

(TF) under the

Haldane Reforms The Haldane Reforms were a series of far-ranging reforms of the British Army made from 1906 to 1912, and named after the Secretary of State for War, Richard Burdon Haldane. They were the first major reforms since the " Childers Reforms" of the ...

of 1908, the 1st Kent Brigade provided the Home Counties (Kent) Heavy Battery, RGA, including its ammunition column, and three companies of the Kent and Sussex Royal Garrison Artillery. However, this unit was broken up in 1910, the Kent batteries becoming the Kent RGA and the Sussex batteries forming a separate Sussex RGA.Litchfield, pp.107–11. The Home Counties (Kent) Heavy Battery was based at Beaton Street, Faversham, with its ammunition column at

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

. Equipped with four 4.7-inch guns it formed part of the

Home Counties Division The Home Counties Division was an infantry division of the Territorial Force, part of the British Army, that was raised in 1908. As the name suggests, the division recruited in the Home Counties, particularly Kent, Middlesex, Surrey and Sussex. ...

of the TF.Frederick, pp. 699–701. Becke, Pt 2a, pp. 49–54.44 Division at Long, Long Trail.
/ref>
/ref>Kent RA at Kent Fallen.
/ref> The Kent RGA was a 'defended ports' unit organised as follows:Frederick, pp. 646, 698.Frederick, pp. 205, 697. * HQ at Sheerness * No 1 Company at

Fort Clarence 300px, The archway by the fort's drawbridge was demolished in the 1930s. The fort, on the left, is now converted into flats. Fort Clarence is a now defunct fortification that was located in Rochester, Kent, England. History The fort was built b ...

Rochester, Kent Rochester ( ) is a town in the unitary authority of Medway, in Kent, England. It is at the lowest bridging point of the River Medway, about from London. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Chatham, Rainham, Strood and Gillin ...

* No 2 Company at Gravesend * No 3 Company at

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

Nos 1 and 2 Companies formed part of Eastern Coast Defences at Chatham, while No 3 Company was in South Eastern Coast Defences at Dover.

World War I

Mobilisation

On the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, the Kent RGA went to its war stations manning the coast artillery and the Heavy Battery mobilised at Faversham. After mobilisation, units of the TF were invited to volunteer for Overseas Service, and on 15 August the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

issued instructions to separate those men who had signed up for Home Service only, and form these into reserve units. On 31 August, the formation of a reserve or 2nd Line unit was authorised for each 1st Line unit where 60 per cent or more of the men had volunteered for Overseas Service. The titles of these 2nd Line units would be the same as the original, but distinguished by a '2/' prefix. In this way duplicate companies, batteries and divisions were formed, mirroring those TF formations being sent overseas. Thus were formed the 2/1st, 2/2nd and 2/3rd Companies of the Kent RGA and the 1/1st and 2/1st Home Counties (Kent) Heavy Btys. The Home Counties Division accepted the liability for service in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

to release the regular units of the garrison there for active service on the Western Front. However, heavy artillery was not required for India, so when the division departed on 30 October, the 1/1st Bty stayed behind with the 2nd Home Counties Division that was being formed.Becke, Pt 2b, pp. 75–82.67 Division at Long, Long Trail.
/ref> NLS Haig - Heavy gun in action

1/1st Kent Heavy Battery

The Home Counties Division accepted the liability for service in

to release the regular units of the garrison there for active service on the Western Front. However, heavy artillery was not required for India, so when the division departed on 30 October, the 1/1st Home Counties (Kent) Bty – usually referred to as the 1/1st Kent Bty – stayed behind with the 2nd Home Counties Division that was being formed.Becke, Pt 2b, pp. 75–82. It went out to the Western Front on 29 December 1915 and joined Third Army.'Allocation of Heavy Batteries RGA'
The National Archives (TNA), Kew, file WO 95/5494/2. The battery supported 56th (1/1st London) Division in the

Attack on the Gommecourt Salient The Attack on the Gommecourt Salient was a British operation against the northern flank of the German 2nd Army. The attack took place on 1 July 1916, on the Western Front in France, during the First World War. The attack was conducted by the Br ...

on 1 July, the first day of the Battle of the Somme. The Gommecourt attack was a disaster but it had only been a diversion from Fourth Army's main

Somme offensive The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place be ...

, and Third Army closed it down at the end of the first day. In August the battery transferred to support Fourth Army in the continuing Somme offensive. Lack of ammunition and the worn state of the old 4.7-inch guns reduced its effectiveness.18th Heavy Artillery Group War Diary May 1915–October 1918, TNA file WO 95/540/1.
/ref> Over the next two years, the 1/1st Kent Bty was moved from one Heavy Artillery Group (HAG) to another as circumstances demanded. On 12 February 1917, the battery was joined by a section of 118th Heavy Bty RGA to make it up to a strength of six guns. This was a regular unit formed at

shortly after the outbreak of war and had been in France with 4.7-inch guns since 6 November 1914. By now, the heavy batteries on the Western Front were adopting the modern

60-pounder The Ordnance BL 60-pounder was a British 5 inch (127 mm) heavy field gun designed in 1903–05 to provide a new capability that had been partially met by the interim QF 4.7 inch Gun. It was designed for both horse draft and mechanical ...

in place of the obsolete 4.7-inch. The_Hundred_Days_Offensive,_August-november_1918_Q6995

Fourth Army followed the German retreat to the

Hindenburg Line The Hindenburg Line (German: , Siegfried Position) was a German defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to Laffaux, near Soissons on the Aisne. In 191 ...

in March 1917, then 1/1st Kent Bty transferred to Fifth Army for the Third Ypres Offensive, which culminated in the mud of the

Battle of Passchendaele The Third Battle of Ypres (german: link=no, Dritte Flandernschlacht; french: link=no, Troisième Bataille des Flandres; nl, Derde Slag om Ieper), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele (), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by t ...

in October–November 1917. In late 1917 the HAGs became permanent brigades. 1/1st Kent Bty joined 92nd (Mobile) Brigade on 13 January 1918 and remained with it until the end of the war.92nd Bde War Diary March 1917–March 1919, TNA file WO 95/397/3.
/ref> On 1 February 1918, the HAGs became Brigades once more, and 92nd became 92nd (Mobile) Brigade, RGA, composed of four six-gun batteries of 60-pounders.'Allocation of HA Groups', TNA file WO 95/5494/1.
/ref>Farndale, ''Western Front'', p. 265 and Annex M. During the German Spring Offensive of March 1918, 92nd (M) Bde was sent from GHQ Reserve to reinforce the hard-pressed Third Army. 1/1st Kent Bty was caught up in the 'Great Retreat', saving its guns but losing the rest of its equipment. After refitting, the brigade remained with Third Army until the

Armistice with Germany The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...

on 11 November 1918, having supported it in the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

' victorious

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allies of World War I, Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (1918), Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Wester ...

, including the battles of

Albert Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Alber ...

Bapaume Bapaume (original Dutch name Batpalmen) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. The inhabitants of this commune are known as ''Bapalmois'' or ''Bapalmoises''. Geography Bapaume is a farmi ...

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department and in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, regio ...

and the Selle.1/1st Kent War Diary 21 March 1918–1919, TNA file WO 95/397/4.
/ref> After the Armistice the battery went to the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

with the Army of Occupation until it was

demobilised Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and militar ...

in May 1919.

2/1st Kent Heavy Battery

The battery formally separated from 1/1st Bty on 26 December 1914, but it was January 1916 before it received its guns. Even then, vital equipment such as sights were still lacking. 67th (2nd Home Counties) Division had a dual role of training drafts for units serving overseas and at the same time being part of the mobile force responsible for home defence. From November 1915 it formed part of Second Army,

Central Force In classical mechanics, a central force on an object is a force that is directed towards or away from a point called center of force. : \vec = \mathbf(\mathbf) = \left\vert F( \mathbf ) \right\vert \hat where \vec F is the force, F is a vecto ...

, quartered in Kent with 2/1st Bty at

Ightham Ightham ( ) is a village in Kent, England, located approximately four miles east of Sevenoaks and six miles north of Tonbridge. The parish includes the hamlet of Ivy Hatch. Ightham is famous for the nearby medieval manor of Ightham Mote (Nation ...

. In September 1916, the battery moved to

Mundesley Mundesley /ˈmʌndz.li/ is a coastal village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is north-north east of Norwich, south east of Cromer and north east of London. The village lies north-north east of the town of Nort ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

, where it joined 4th Provisional Brigade. Provisional brigades were TF home defence formations composed of men who had not signed up for overseas service, but after the

Military Service Act 1916 The Military Service Act 1916 was an Act passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom during the First World War to impose conscription in Great Britain, but not in Ireland or any other country around the world. The Act The Bill which became ...

swept away the Home/Foreign service distinction all TF soldiers became liable for overseas service, if medically fit. The Provisional Brigades' role thus expanded to include physical conditioning to render men fit for drafting overseas. The 4th Provisional Brigade became the 224th Mixed Brigade in December 1916 ('mixed' in this context indicating a formation of infantry and artillery with supporting units). At the time of the Armistice, 2/1st Battery was still at Mundesley as part of 224th Mixed Bde.

Kent Royal Garrison Artillery

The

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the Imperial Navy () was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for coast defence. Wilhel ...

only carried out 12 bombardments of British coastal targets during World War I, so most of the extensive coastal defences were never tested. Kent was, however, an exception to the inactivity, and the ports of

Margate Margate is a seaside resort, seaside town on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. The town is estimated to be 1.5 miles long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay, UK, Palm Bay and Westbrook, Kent, ...

Broadstairs Broadstairs is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the Thanet district of east Kent, England, about east of London. It is part of the civil parish of Broadstairs and St Peter's, which includes St Peter's, and had a population in 2011 of ...

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

and Dover were bombarded in April 1917 (the Second Battle of the Dover Strait), and Dover was shelled again (the last such bombardment of the war) on 16 February 1918. The batteries at Ramsgate and Dover were engaged on these occasions. Nos 1 and 2 Companies of the Kent RGA, together with Regular RGA companies, manned the Kent side of the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

and

Medway Medway is a unitary authority district and conurbation in Kent, South East England. It had a population of 278,016 in 2019. The unitary authority was formed in 1998 when Rochester-upon-Medway amalgamated with the Borough of Gillingham to for ...

Defences (No 12 Fire Command at

Sheerness Sheerness () is a town and civil parish beside the mouth of the River Medway on the north-west corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 11,938, it is the second largest town on the island after the nearby town ...

and No 13 Fire Command at

Grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legum ...

, while No 3 Company, Kent RGA, along with Nos 40 and 46 Companies, RGA, manned the Dover Defences (No 11 Fire Command). These were developed as the war progressed, until by April 1918 they comprised:

Dover Defences * Dover Turret: 2 x 6-inch Mk VII guns * Admiralty Pier Battery: 2 x 12-pounder QF guns * South Breakwater Battery: 2 x 6-inch Mk VII guns * Knuckle Battery: 3 x 4-inch QF guns * Citadel Battery: 2 x 9.2-inch Mk X guns *

Langdon Battery Langdon may refer to: Places Australia * Langdon, Queensland, a neighbourhood in the Mackay Region Canada * Langdon, Alberta, a hamlet United Kingdom * Langdon, Cornwall, a hamlet * Langdon, Kent, a civil parish * Langdon, Pembrokeshir ...

: 3 x 9.2-inch Mk X, 2 x 6-inch Mk VII Ramsgate Defences * Harbour Battery: 2 x 12-pounder field guns Meanwhile, although TF defended ports units never served overseas, those that had volunteered were supplying trained gunners to RGA units that were, and providing cadres to form complete new units for front line service.Maurice-Jones, pp. 200–1. 62nd and 134th Siege Batteries formed at Sheerness in 1915 and Dover in 1916 are known to have had nuclei of men from the Kent RGA (and Sussex RGA in the case of the 134th). This may also have been the case for some of the numerous other siege batteries formed in the two garrisons during the war.Frederick, pp. 702–8. This process meant a continual drain on the manpower of the defended ports units and in April 1917, the coastal defence companies of the RGA (TF) were reorganised. By this stage of the war, the Dover and Newhaven Defences of Eastern Command consisted of 1/3 and 2/3 Companies of the Kent RGA and 1/1, 1/2, 2/1 and 2/2 Companies of the Sussex RGA. These six companies were reduced to just two (Nos 1 and 2 Companies, Sussex RGA), given a slightly higher establishment (five officers and 100 other ranks (ORs)), and the 1st and 2nd Line distinction was abolished. Nos 1 and 2 Kent Companies remained at

Grain Fort Grain Fort is a former artillery fort located just east of the village of Grain, Kent. It was constructed in the 1860s to defend the confluence of the Rivers Medway and Thames during a period of tension with France. The fort's location enabled ...

and

Grain Battery A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legumes ...

respectively.

HoltTractorTowing6inchHowitzerMesopotamia1918

62nd Siege Battery

62nd Siege Battery, RGA, was formed at Sheerness on 21 September 1915 with a nucleus of Territorials drawn from the Kent RGA. Equipped with four 9.2-inch howitzers it was sent out to the Western Front on 9 March 1916.'Allocation of Siege Batteries RGA'
TNA file WO 95/5494/4.] It saw active service on the Western Front at the Battle of the Somme, Somme and on the

Ancre The Ancre (; ) is a river of Picardy, France. Rising at Miraumont, a hamlet near the town of Albert, Somme, Albert, it flows into the Somme (river), Somme at Corbie. It is long. For most of its length it flows through the departments of France, ...

, at

Bullecourt Bullecourt () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region in France. Geography Bullecourt lies on the Upper Cretaceous plain of Artois between Arras and Bapaume and east of the A1 motorway. Thisatellite photographs ...

, Messines and Passchendaele. The battery was overrun and lost its guns during the German Spring Offensive, but was re-equipped and took part in the final

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

. 62nd Siege Battery was disbanded in 1919.

134th Siege Battery

134th Siege Battery, RGA, was formed at

on 3 May 1916 with a nucleus of Territorials drawn from the Kent and Sussex RGA units. The battery was equipped with four modern 6-inch 26 cwt howitzers and was sent to the

Macedonian front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of German ...

, arriving at

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

on 20 August 1916. It served with

XII Corps 12th Corps, Twelfth Corps, or XII Corps may refer to: * 12th Army Corps (France) * XII Corps (Grande Armée), a corps of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * XII (1st Royal Saxon) Corps, a unit of the Imperial German Army * XII ...

in the

Vardar The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...

and Struma valleys. In 1917 it fought in the Second Battle of Doiran, but was then moved to the Palestine Front, where it fought with XXI Corps in the

Third Battle of Gaza The Third Battle of Gaza was fought on the night of 1–2 November 1917 between British and Ottoman forces during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I and came after the British Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) victory at the B ...

, the capture of Jerusalem and the victorious Battle of Megiddo. 134th Siege Battery was disbanded in 1919.

Interwar

Kent Heavy Brigade

When the TF was reconstituted as the new Territorial Army (TA) in 1920, the Kent RGA was reformed in 1920, becoming the Kent Coast Brigade, RGA in 1921 and the Kent Heavy Brigade in 1924 when the RGA was subsumed into the Royal Artillery:Frederick, pp. 205, 601, 615.''Titles & Designations'', 1927. * HQ at Fort Clarence, Rochester * 166 Hy Bty at Fort Clarence (166 (City of Rochester) Bty from 1925) * 167 Hy Bty at Pelham Road, Gravesend * 168 Hy Bty at Northampton Street, Dover * 169 Hy Bty at High Street, Sheerness * 170 Hy Bty at Willson's Road, Ramsgate The brigade was assigned to 44th Home Counties Divisional Area. In 1926 it was decided that the coastal defences of Great Britain should be solely manned by part-time soldiers of the TA. This entailed some reorganisation of units, and the scheme reached its final form in 1932. As a result, the brigade was split up on 1 October 1932. 166 (City of Rochester) Battery became an independent anti-aircraft (AA) battery, later joining 55th (Kent) AA Bde. 167 and 169 Batteries joined the Essex Heavy Brigade to form the Thames and Medway Heavy Brigade, RA, based at Rochester. The rest of the brigade merged with the single-battery Sussex Heavy Brigade to form the Kent and Sussex Heavy Brigade, RA:Litchfield, p. 234. * HQ at

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

, later at Liverpool Street, Dover * 159 (Sussex) Bty at

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, later at North Street, Lewes * 168 (Kent) Bty at Liverpool Street, Dover * 170 (Kent) Bty at Willson's Road, Ramsgate

205 (Chatham and Faversham) Battery

Meanwhile, the Home Counties (Kent) Heavy Battery was reconstituted as 205 (Chatham and Faversham) Medium Battery at

Sittingbourne Sittingbourne is an industrial town in Kent, south-east England, from Canterbury and from London, beside the Roman Watling Street, an ancient British trackway used by the Romans and the Anglo-Saxons and next to the Swale, a strip of sea separa ...

, later at the Drill Hall, Chatham. It formed part of 13th (Kent) Medium Brigade (formerly 4th Home Counties Brigade, Royal Field Artillery). This unit was soon redesignated 52nd (Kent) Medium Brigade, and in 1935 became 58th (Kent) Anti-Aircraft Brigade. The following year, 205 (Kent) AA Battery was transferred to 55th (Kent) AA Brigade (''see above''). Early in 1939, as part of the doubling of the strength of the TA after the

Munich Crisis The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...

, 205 (Kent) Battery left 55th AA Regiment (as RA brigades were now termed) to join a new 89th (Cinque Ports) AA Regiment, which was forming as a duplicate of 75th (Cinque Ports) AA Regiment. It served with

Anti-Aircraft Command Anti-Aircraft Command (AA Command, or "Ack-Ack Command") was a British Army command of the Second World War that controlled the Territorial Army anti-aircraft artillery and searchlight formations and units defending the United Kingdom. Origin ...

at the start of the war, but sailed for Egypt in December 1939. It then served with the Eighth Army in

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and Italy until it was placed in suspended animation in September 1944.Frederick, p. 777.

166 (City of Rochester) Battery

At the start of World War II, 55th AA Regiment, including 166th (City of Rochester) Bty, was serving in

in the Heavy AA (HAA) role with

28th (Thames and Medway) Anti-Aircraft Brigade 28th (Thames and Medway) Anti-Aircraft Brigade (28 AA Bde) was an air defence formation of the British Territorial Army created in 1925 to command anti-aircraft units in Kent and around the militarily important Medway Towns, which it defended du ...

. During

The Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

28th AA Bde guarded the

, Chatham and Dover in 6th AA Division.AA Command 3 September 1939 at Patriot Files
/ref>Routledge, Table LX, p. 378. In 1941, the regiment left AA Command and became part of the

Reserve before sailing for the Middle East. It took part in the

Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis powers ( Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany). It bega ...

in 1943 and the subsequent Italian Campaign, where in the absence of air attacks it frequently engaged ground targets in a medium artillery role. 55th (Kent) HAA Regiment was placed in suspended animation in 1946.

World War II

Kent and Sussex Heavy Regiment

On the outbreak of

, the regiment went to its war stations manning coastal guns under Dover Fire Command. After the

Dunkirk evacuation The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied soldiers during the Second World War from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the ...

, the coastal defence of South East England became a critical priority. On 14 July, the Kent and Sussex Heavy Regiment was split into three separate coast regiments, each of three batteries.Farndale, ''Years of Defeat'', Annex M.Farndale, pp. 96-8.Frederick, pp. 205, 602–11, 628–9.Order of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 20: Coast Artillery, 1 June 1941, with amendments, TNA file WO 212/117.Order of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 20: Coast Artillery, 16 December 1941, with amendments, TNA file WO 212/118.Order of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 30: Coast Artillery, Defence Troops, Royal Artillery, and AA Defence of Merchant Ships, 14 May 1942, with amendments, TNA file WO 212/122.Order of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 30: Coast Artillery, Defence Troops, Royal Artillery, and AA Defence of Merchant Ships, 12 December 1942, with amendments, TNA file WO 212/123.Order of Battle of Non-Field Force Units in the United Kingdom, Part 7: Coast Artillery, Defence Troops, Royal Artillery, and AA Defence of Merchant Ships (July 1943), with amendments, TNA file WO 212/124.

519th (Kent & Sussex) Coast Rgt

* RHQ at Dover519 Coast Rgt at RA 1939–45.
/ref> * A Bty at Langdon, later at Mill Point – redesignated 291 Bty 1 April 1941; transferred to 550th Coast Rgt 15 June 1942 * B Bty at Eastern Arm – redesignated 292 Bty 1 April 1941; transferred to 534th (Orkney) Coast Rgt by 13 April 1943 * C Bty at South Breakwater – redesignated 293 (6-inch) & 294 (6-pdr) Btys 1 April 1941 * D Bty at Ramsgate – formed 14 December 1940; redesignated 297 Bty 1 April 1941; disbanded by June 1943 * 411 Bty at St Margaret's – joined 31 December 1940; transferred to 26th Coast Artillery Group 5 April 1941 * 418 Bty at Knuckle, then

Dover Western Heights The Western Heights of Dover are one of the most impressive fortifications in Britain. They comprise a series of forts, strong points and ditches, designed to protect the country from invasion. They were created in the 18th and 19th centuries to ...

by March 1943 – joined 31 December 1940, regimented 22 October 1941 * 217 Bty at Dover Pier Extension – joined from 520th (K&S) Coast Rgt 22 October 1941 * 414 Bty at Western Heights, Knuckle by March 1943 – joined from 520th (K&S) Coast Rgt 22 October 1941 * 296 Bty at Dover Turret – joined from 520th (K&S) Coast Rgt 22 October 1941; transferred to 563rd Coast Rgt 12 January 1943 * 412 Bty at Mill Point – joined from 550th Coast Rgt 15 June 1942 * 337 Bty at Deal – joined from 563rd Coast Rgt 12 January 1943 * 142 Bty – joined from 534th (Orkney) Coast Rgt by 13 April 1943 * 100 Coast Observer Detachment (COD) – joined by October 1942; disbanded by May 1943 The Coast Observer Detachments (CODs) began to appear in February 1941. They were equipped with early warning radar to detect surface ships and low-flying aircraft, and were later placed in direct communication with the coast artillery plotting rooms.Maurice-Jones, p. 234.

520th (Kent & Sussex) Coast Rgt

* RHQ at Dover520 Coast Rgt at RA 1939–45.
/ref> * A Bty at Dover Citadel – redesignated 295 Bty 1 April 1941; transferred to 516th (Thames & Medway) Coast Rgt 16 April 1943 *B Bty at Dover Turret – redesignated 296 Bty 1 April 1941; transferred to 519th (K&S) Coast Rgt 22 October 1941 * C Bty at Dover Pier Extension – redesignated 169 Bty 1 April 1941; transferred to 533rd (Orkney) Coast Rgt 22 May 1941 * 414 Bty at Western Heights – joined 31 December 1940; transferred to 519th (K&S) Coast Rgt 22 October 1941 * 423 Bty at

Lydden Spout Battery Lydden Spout Battery is a World War II coastal defence battery built in 1941 west of Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English ...

– joined from 551st Coast Rgt 4 March 1941 * 217 Bty (12-pdr) at Dover Pier Extension – joined from 72nd Coast Artillery Training Rgt 15 May 1941; transferred to 519th (K&S) Coast Rgt 22 October 1941 * 424 (Independent) Bty (6-inch) at Capel – joined 21 December 1941 * 428 Bty (6-inch) at

Hougham Battery Hougham Battery is a World War II coastal defence battery built in 1941 between Dover and Folkestone in southeast England. It is on the cliff-edge between Abbot's Cliff and Shakespeare Cliff. The battery is equipped with three 8-inch (203&nbs ...

– joined from Coast Artillery Training Centre 21 December 1941 * 289 Bty at Fletcher – joined from 516th (T&M) Coast Rgt 16 April 1943 * 6 COD – joined by June 1941; disbanded by May 1943 * 21 COD – joined by June 1941; transferred to 540th Coast Rgt by January 1942 * 101 COD – joined by October 1942 * 22 COD – joined by November 1943 In the autumn of 1940, 520th Rgt was stationed at

Landguard Fort Landguard Fort is a fort at the mouth of the River Orwell outside Felixstowe, Suffolk, designed to guard the mouth of the river. It is now managed by the charity English Heritage and is open to the public. History Originally known as Langer ...

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...

, but had returned to Dover Citadel by the end of 1941.Farndale, ''Years of Defeat'', Annex D.

521st (Kent & Sussex) Coast Rgt

* RHQ at Newhaven521 Coast Rgt at RA 1939–45.
/ref> * A Bty at Newhaven – redesignated 100 (6-inch) & 101 (12-pdr) Btys 1 April 1941 ** 100 Bty later at Ringborough; joined 512th (East Riding) Coast Rgt 6 July 1943 ** 101 Bty disbanded 15 March 1944 and new A Bty formed * 343 Bty at Seaford, later Eastbourne – joined 31 December 1940 * 342 Bty at Eastbourne – joined from 552nd Coast Rgt 14 September 1942 * 359 Bty at Brighton – joined from 553rd Coast Rgt 14 September 1942 * 160 Bty at Newhaven – joined from 566th Coast Rgt 1 May 1943 * 193 Bty at Newhaven – joined from 512th (ER) Coast Rgt 6 July 1943 * 11, 12 CODs – joined by June 1941 * 29 COD – joined by June 1941; transferred to 544th Coast Rgt by January 1942 * 5, 13, 15, 109 CODs – joined by December 1942 * 14 COD – joined by December 1942; transferred to 532nd (Pembroke) Coast Rgt by January 1943 * 3 COD – joined by November 1943; transferred to 516th (T&M) Coast Rgt by March 1944 * 10 COD – joined by November 1943

Defence of Dover

Dover was in range of German batteries mounted on the French coast and their first shells fell on Dover on 12 August 1940. Prime Minister

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...

ordered the emplacement of long-range guns and by September two long-range Counter Bombardment (CB) fire commands were being added to the harbour defences, manned by the Royal Artillery and

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

. Eventually, the coast artillery at Dover was developed as follows: BL6inchGunMkVIINewhavenFort1March2008

''Western CB Fire Command'' * Lydden Spout Battery: 3 x 6-inch guns installed May 1941 *

: 3 x 8-inch guns installed September 1942 * Capel: 3 x 8-inch guns installed May 1942 ''Harbour Fire Command'' * Langdon Battery: 2 x 6-inch guns prewar; 1 gun added September 1940 * Dover Turret: 2 x 6-inch prewar * Breakwater: 2 x 6-inch and 2 x 9.2-inch prewar; 1 twin 6-pounder added May 1940 * Dover Western Heights: 2 x 6-inch installed September 1940 * Eastern Arm: 2 x twin 6-pounder installed September 1939 * Pier Extension: 2 x 12-pounder guns prewar; 1 gun added February 1940 * Knuckle: 2 x 4-inch installed August 1940 ''Eastern CB Fire Command'' * Wanstone Battery: 4 x 5.5-inch guns installed September 1940; 2 x 15-inch guns installed September 1942 ''Newhaven'' *

Newhaven Fort Newhaven Fort is a Palmerston fort built in the 19th century to defend the harbour at Newhaven, on the south coast of England. It was the largest defence work ever built in Sussex and is now open as a museum. History Design and construction ...

had 4 x 6-inch and 2 x 12-pounder guns. Two further batteries were added later ar Dover: *

Fan Bay Battery Fan commonly refers to: * Fan (machine), a machine for producing airflow, often used for cooling ** Hand fan, an implement held and waved by hand to move air for cooling * Fan (person), short for fanatic; an enthusiast or supporter, especially wit ...

: 3 x 6-inch, completed February 1941 * South Foreland Battery: 4 x 9.2-inch, completed October 1941 By May 1942, 519th and 520th Coast Rgts in Kent came under the command of

Coast Artillery HQ (CAHQ), while 521st Coast Rgt in Sussex came under

Canadian Corps The Canadian Corps was a World War I corps formed from the Canadian Expeditionary Force in September 1915 after the arrival of the 2nd Canadian Division in France. The corps was expanded by the addition of the 3rd Canadian Division in December ...

CAHQ. By July 1942, CA Plotting Rooms (later termed Army Plotting Rooms) had been created for the most important coast defences, with No 1 at Dover under the Corps Commander, Coast Artillery (CCCA), XII Corps and No 2 at Newhaven under CCCA Canadian Corps. In May 1943, when XII Corps and Canadian Corps were assigned to

21st Army Group The 21st Army Group was a British headquarters formation formed during the Second World War. It controlled two field armies and other supporting units, consisting primarily of the British Second Army and the First Canadian Army. Established in ...

for the forthcoming Allied invasion of Normandy (

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The operat ...

), their coastal defence role was taken over by East Kent and Sussex Districts respectively under South Eastern Command.

Late war

By 1942 the threat from German attack had diminished, the coast defences were seen as absorbing excessive manpower and there was demand for trained gunners for the fighting fronts. A process of reducing the manpower in the coast defences began. However, the Dover guns remained in commission in order to deny the straits to hostile shipping. The manpower requirements for the Allied invasion of Normandy,

, led to further reductions in coast defences in April 1944. By this stage of the war many of the coast battery positions were manned by

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting wi ...

detachments or were in the hands of care and maintenance parties. On 1 April, 520th and 521st (K&S) Coast Rgt absorbed the batteries of 550th–553rd Coast Rgts, which were being disbanded, giving the three Kent & Sussex regiments the following organisation:Frederick, pp. 635–8.Order of Battle of the Forces in the United Kingdom, Part 7, Coast Artillery and AA Defence of Merchant Ships (1 April 1944), with amendments, TNA file WO 212/120. * 519th (K&S) Coast Rgt ** 217, 292, 293, 294, 337, 412, 414, 418 Btys ** 289 Bty – from 520th (K&S) Rgt * 520th (K&S) Coast Rgt ** 423, 424, 428 Btys ** 194, 335, 340, 415, 416 Btys – from 550th Coast Rgt ** 213, 230, 233, 235, 291, 374, 413 Btys – from 551st Coast Rgt ** 101 Coast Observer Detachment ** 16 Coast Observer Detachment – from 551st Coast Rgt * 521st (K&S) Coast Rgt ** 160, 193, 342, 343, 359 Btys ** 221, 237, 301, 360, 375 – from 552nd Coast Rgt ** 149, 344, 345, 346, 403 – from 553rd Coast Rgt From now on the regiments were effectively holding units for the remaining cadres of coast units in south east England, and most of the CODs were disbanded. South Eastern Command was abolished at the end of 1944 and the regiments came under Eastern Command. On 1 June 1945, after

VE Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the official end of World War II in Europe in the Easter ...

, the three regiments were consolidated (together with 540th and 549th Coast Rgts) into a single regiment, with many batteries disbanded (or placed in 'suspended animation' (S/A) in the case of established TA units):Order of Battle of the Forces in the United Kingdom, Part 7, Section A – Coast Artillery (November 1945), TNA file WO 212/119. * 519th (K&S) Coast Rgt ** RHQ, 217, 292, 294, 337 Btys ** 289, 293 Btys S/A ** 412, 414, 418 Btys disbanded ** 160 Bty transferred from 521st (K&S) Coast Rgt ** 185 Bty transferred from 549th Coast Rgt ** 203, 410 Btys transferred from 540th Coast Rgt ** 233, 335, 340, 413, 423 Btys transferred from 520th (K&S) Coast Rgt ** 6, 101, 102 CODs disbanded by October 1945 * 520th (K&S) Coast Rgt ** RHQ & 428 Bty ** 291 Bty S/A ** 194, 213, 235, 415, 416, 424 Btys disbanded * 521st (K&S) Coast Rgt ** RHQ & 193 Bty S/A ** 342, 343, 359 Btys disbanded 519th (K&S) Coast Rgt and all its batteries passed into S/A on 10 January 1946, and 520th (K&S) Coast Rgt and its one remaining battery did likewise in March 1946.

Postwar

On 1 January 1947, when the TA was reconstituted, 520th Regiment was disbanded, while 519th and 521st were reformed as 410th (Kent) Coast Regiment and 411th (Sussex) Coast Regiment respectively. The Kent unit was organised as follows:Frederick, p. 1011.372–413 Rgts at British Army 1945 on.
/ref> * RHQ Dover * P Bty Dover * Q Bty at Folkestone * R Bty at Ramsgate * S Bty at Dover 410 (Kent) Coast Regiment formed part of 101 Coast Brigade in Eastern Command. The coast artillery branch was disbanded in 1956, and the regiment was converted to the infantry role, becoming 5th Battalion

The Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment) The Buffs (Royal East Kent Regiment), formerly the 3rd Regiment of Foot, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army traditionally raised in the English county of Kent and garrisoned at Canterbury. It had a history dating back to 1572 and ...

. This battalion later became 7th Bn

Queen's Regiment The Queen's Regiment (QUEENS) was an infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1966 through the amalgamation of the four regiments of the Home Counties Brigade. Then, until 1971 the regiment remained one of the largest regiments in the arm ...

(East Kent).Frederick, p. 345.

Honorary Colonels

The following served as Honorary Colonel of the unit: * J.B. White, appointed to 1st KAVC 20 October 1887 * J.D. Palmer, appointed to 1st KAVC 5 November 1892 * Sir Horatio G.G. Palmer, appointed to 1st Kent RGA (V) 18 September 1904 and to Kent TGA (TF) 14 June 1911 * Sir Henry Lennard, 2nd Bt, appointed to Kent Coast Bde 5 Apr 1922''Burke's'' * Maj the Hon J.J. Astor, MP, appointed to Kent Heavy Bde 23 November 1927, then joint Hon Col of Kent and Sussex Heavy Bde * E.L Beves, VD, appointed to Sussex Heavy Bde 6 August 1929, then joint Hon Col of Kent and Sussex Heavy Bde

Footnotes

Notes

References

* ''Army List'', various dates. * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 1: The Regular British Divisions'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1934/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2a: The Territorial Force Mounted Divisions and the 1st-Line Territorial Force Divisions (42–56)'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1935/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 2b: The 2nd-Line Territorial Force Divisions (57th–69th), with the Home-Service Divisions (71st–73rd) and 74th and 75th Divisions,'' London: HM Stationery Office, 1937/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, . * Maj A.F. Becke,''History of the Great War: Order of Battle of Divisions, Part 4: The Army Council, GHQs, Armies, and Corps 1914–1918'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1944/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2007, ISBN 1-847347-43-6. * Ian F.W. Beckett, ''Riflemen Form: A Study of the Rifle Volunteer Movement 1859–1908'', Aldershot, The Ogilby Trusts: 1982, . * ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage,'' 100th Edn, London, 1953. *

Basil Collier John Basil Collier (1908–1983) was a British writer of books of military history, particularly military aviation, World War II and military and political strategy. Collier became a full-time professional writer in 1932. Before the war he was a ...

of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Defence of the United Kingdom'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1957/Uckfield: Naval & Military, 2004
ISBN 978-1-84574-055-9. * Col John K. Dunlop, ''The Development of the British Army 1899–1914'', London: Methuen, 1938. * Gen Sir

Martin Farndale General Sir Martin Baker Farndale, (6 January 1929 – 10 May 2000) was a British Army officer who reached high office in the 1980s. Military career Educated at Yorebridge Grammar School, Askrigg, and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Farnda ...

, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: Western Front 1914–18'', Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1986, . * Gen Sir Martin Farndale, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: The Forgotten Fronts and the Home Base 1914–18'', Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1988, . * Gen Sir Martin Farndale, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: The Years of Defeat: Europe and North Africa, 1939–1941'', Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1988/London: Brasseys, 1996, . * J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol I, Wakefield, Microform Academic, 1984, ISBN 1-85117-007-3. * J.B.M. Frederick, ''Lineage Book of British Land Forces 1660–1978'', Vol II, Wakefield: Microform Academic, 1984, ISBN 1-85117-009-X. * Brig E.A. James, ''British Regiments 1914–18'', London: Samson Books, 1978/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2001, ISBN 978-1-84342-197-9. * * Norman E.H. Litchfield, ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, . * Norman Litchfield & Ray Westlake, ''The Volunteer Artillery 1859–1908 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1982, . * Alan MacDonald, ''Pro Patria Mori: The 56th (1st London) Division at Gommecourt, 1st July 1916'', 2nd Edn, West Wickham: Iona Books, 2008, . * Col K. W. Maurice-Jones, ''The History of Coast Artillery in the British Army'', London: Royal Artillery Institution, 1959/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2005, ISBN 978-1-845740-31-3. * Brig N.W. Routledge, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: Anti-Aircraft Artillery 1914–55'', London: Royal Artillery Institution/Brassey's, 1994, * Edward M. Spiers, ''The Army and Society 1815–1914'', London: Longmans, 1980, . * ''Titles and Designations of Formations and Units of the Territorial Army'', London: War Office, 7 November 1927.

External sources

Mark Conrad, ''The British Army, 1914'' (archive site)

British Army units from 1945 on

Kent History Forum

Kent Fallen: Kent War Memorials Transcription Project

The Long, Long Trail

Orders of Battle at Patriot Files

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20100118221541/http://warpath.orbat.com/index.htm The Regimental Warpath 1914–1918 (archive site)
Royal Artillery 1939–1945

{{refend

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Military units and formations in Kent Gravesend, Kent Military units and formations in Dover Military units and formations in Rochester, Kent Military units and formations established in 1860 Military units and formations disestablished in 1956