The 1st Mountain Battery was an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

battery formed in July 1942, that served during the Second World War, seeing action against the Japanese during the

Battle of Buna–Gona The battle of Buna–Gona was part of the New Guinea campaign in the Pacific Theatre during World War II. It followed the conclusion of the Kokoda Track campaign and lasted from 16 November 1942 until 22 January 1943. The battle was fought by ...

and the

Salamaua–Lae campaign The Salamaua–Lae campaign was a series of actions in the New Guinea campaign of World War II. Australian and United States forces sought to capture two major Japanese bases, one in the town of Lae, and another one at Salamaua. The campai ...

in 1942–43. The unit was added to the 1st Parachute Battalion in August 1944 providing an organic indirect fire support, equipped with Short 25-pounder guns, but did not see further action in this role. The battery was disbanded in 1946.

History

Formation

The 1st Mountain Battery was formed in July 1942 in response to an urgent request from

New Guinea Force New Guinea Force was a military command unit for Australian, United States and native troops from the Territories of Papua and New Guinea serving in the New Guinea campaign during World War II. Formed in April 1942, when the Australian First Arm ...

. Captain Martin O'Hare, an officer of the Regular Army, was appointed battery commander, while personnel were drawn from artillery units in

I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...

and from the 6th Motor Regiment, which had previously been converted from the light horse role. Equipped with 3.7-inch pack howitzers hastily obtained from the

Royal New Zealand Navy The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN; mi, Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa, , Sea Warriors of New Zealand) is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of nine ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act ...

, it was formed as a four-gun battery with a strength of four officers and 209 other ranks. Initially it was intended that the guns would be moved by pack horse; however, following the unit's arrival in

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New Z ...

in early October it soon became clear that horses would be unsuited to the humid conditions in New Guinea with the guns to be moved by

jeep Jeep is an American automobile marque, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with remaining assets, from its previous owner American Moto ...

s and native carriers instead. It took about 90 porters to move one gun without ammunition.

Battle of Buna–Gona

USA-P-Papua-VI Map VI milner Closing in on Japanese Beachhead 16-21 November 1942

The battery supported the Australian and

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

forces during the

. It was the only artillery in place to support 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 ...

during the opening engagements on 19 November 1942. On 15 November, a detachment of the left section, with one gun was flown into

Kokoda Kokoda is a station town in the Oro Province of Papua New Guinea. It is famous as the northern end of the Kokoda Track, site of the eponymous Kokoda Track campaign of World War II. In that campaign, it had strategic significance because it had the ...

to support the Australian 7th Division, which had driven the Japanese back along the

Kokoda Track The Kokoda Track or Trail is a single-file foot thoroughfare that runs overland – in a straight line – through the Owen Stanley Range in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The track was the location of the 1942 World War II battle between Japanese ...

. By 16 November the division was preparing to cross the

Kumusi River The Kumusi River (also known as the Kamusi River) is a river located in the Oro Province of Papua New Guinea. Known for its width and its strength, the Kumusi has had a significant impact on the history of the Oro Province. It was a significant fac ...

and advance against Japanese positions at Gona and

Sanananda Sanananda is a village on the coast of Oro Province, Papua New Guinea. History Sanananda was occupied by the Imperial Japanese in 1942 during World War II and became a heavily fortified defensive area. It was liberated by the Australian Army and US ...

. Meanwhile, the right section, with two guns, was also provided to support the US 32nd Division which was preparing to seize Buna. The section was flown to Pongani, on the north coast of New Guinea, on 12 November. It was then moved along the coast by barge. During the battle, the section initially deployed to a position about north of

Cape Sudest Cape Sudest is a cape in Papua New Guinea, next to Oro Bay. There was an important U.S military base there in World War II. It was situated in Oro Province Oro Province, formerly (and officially still) Northern Province, is a coastal province of P ...

on 16 November. The following day, it moved to a position about 600 yards (600 m) north of Hariko. It later moved to a position on the Dobodura–Buna track. This was about 2,000 yards (1,800 m) south of the bridge between the two strips. On 5 December, the detachment from Kokoda joined the right section at Buna. On 26 December, the howitzers ran out of ammunition and took no further part in the fighting.

Advance towards Salamaua

In late February 1943, a section of 1st Mountain Battery was flown into Wau to support the advance to Salamaua. The section accompanied the 17th Brigade from Wau. As the terrain and thick jungle prevented additional guns being moved forward, this was the brigade's only artillery support. By June, the 3rd Division was finally approaching Salamaua, with the 17th Brigade advancing from the south-south-west. The brigade was supported by two 3.7 inch howitzers from the 1st Mountain Battery as well as one US field battery. Forward observers from the battery often directed fire from positions as close as from Japanese positions due to limited observation as a result of the thick jungle canopy and low cloud; however, the battery's guns proved highly accurate. They were subsequently involved in the successful attack on Komiatum on 16 August, which saw the divisional artillery concentrated to support the brigade.

Parachute role

In August 1944, the battery was added to the 1st Parachute Battalion, providing an organic indirect fire support, equipped with Short 25-pounder guns. Although the battalion was warned for deployment on a number of occasions, the battery saw no further action before the war ended. It ceased to exist in 1946 when the 1st Parachute Battalion was disbanded.

Notes

;Footnotes ;Citations

References

* * * * * * * {{Refend Artillery units and formations of Australia Military units and formations established in 1942 1942 establishments in Australia Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 1946 disestablishments in Australia