2nd Anti-Aircraft Brigade (2 AA Bde) was an air defence formation 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 Gurk ...

during the

Second World War 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 ...

, seeing active service in the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

and 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.

Origin

During the 1930s the development of airpower led the British Army to expand its anti-aircraft (AA) defences. 2nd Anti-Aircraft Group was formed at

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west of B ...

on 1 October 1936 as part of Northern Command. Initially it comprised the two senior

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 ...

(RA) AA gun 'brigades' (at that time an RA 'brigade' was a regimental-size unit). Brigadier Edward Chadwick, MC, former Commanding Officer (CO) of 1st AA Bde (Rgt) was brought back from commanding the Mediterranean Air Defence Group in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

to lead the new Group, which was composed as follows:Frederick, p. 1048.''Monthly Army List'' various dates.Farndale, Annex J. * 1st AA Bde ** 1, 2, 17 AA Batteries, 4 Machine Gun (MG) Battery * 2nd AA Bde ** 4, 5, 6 AA Batteries, 2 MG Battery Terminology changed frequently: for a while the new group was termed 2nd Air Defence Brigade, and by July 1937 the MG batteries were termed Light Anti-Aircraft (LAA) batteries. In January 1938 the RA changed the designation of a

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

's command from 'brigade' to 'regiment' allowing the AA groups to take the more usual designation of 'brigade'. By the outbreak of the

in September 1939, 2 AA Bde at Lichfield came under Western Command, but its wartime role was to support the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) that was to be sent to France.

Second World War

Phoney War

The prewar planning for the BEF had envisaged two AA brigades, one for forward defence and one guarding the bases and lines of communication, but this was quickly expanded, new headquarters (HQs) were created and the Regular Army AA units were supplemented by part-time units of the Territorial Army (TA) that had been mobilised for war service under

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 ...

. The order to mobilise was received by 2 AA Bde HQ on 1 September and the advance party disembarked at

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

on 5 September, followed by the main body aboard SS ''Manxman'' on 11 September. 1st and 2nd AA Regiments crossed to France the following day. 2 AA Bde HQ remained at Nantes throughout September organising disembarkation of searchlight units and awaiting the arrival of its signals, workshop and transport companies. 1st AA Regiment moved up to the forward area on 8 October, where it joined another brigade, as did 2nd AA Rgt. By November, 2 AA Bde HQ was established at

Beauval, Somme Beauval (; pcd, Bieuvo) is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Beauval is north of Amiens, towards Doullens, on the national road N25. Population Places and monuments * Magnificent church; th ...

, with the following units under command:2 AA Bde War Diary, France 1940, The National Archives (TNA), Kew, file WO 167/427. 3inch20cwtAAGunsBEF19October1939

* 60th (City of London) AA Rgt (TA) – 24 x 3-inch guns * 210 Bty of 73rd AA Rgt (TA) – 8 x semi-mobile 3-inch guns * 51st (Devon) LAA Rgt (TA) – 12 x

Bofors 40 mm gun Bofors 40 mm gun is a name or designation given to two models of 40 mm calibre anti-aircraft guns designed and developed by the Swedish company Bofors: *Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun - developed in the 1930s, widely used in World War II and into the 1990s ...

s, 48 x

Light machine gun A light machine gun (LMG) is a light-weight machine gun designed to be operated by a single infantryman, with or without an assistant, as an infantry support weapon. LMGs firing cartridges of the same caliber as the other riflemen of the sam ...

s (LMGs) * 1st Searchlight Battalion,

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

(Regular) – 96 x searchlights (S/Ls) * 2 AA Bde Signals,

Royal Corps of Signals The Royal Corps of Signals (often simply known as the Royal Signals – abbreviated to R SIGNALS or R SIGS) is one of the combat support arms of the British Army. Signals units are among the first into action, providing the battlefield communi ...

(RCS) * 2 AA Bde Workshop,

Royal Army Ordnance Corps The Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC) was a corps of the British Army. At its renaming as a Royal Corps in 1918 it was both a supply and repair corps. In the supply area it had responsibility for weapons, armoured vehicles and other military equip ...

(RAOC) * 2 AA Bde Company,

Royal Army Service Corps The Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) was a corps of the British Army responsible for land, coastal and lake transport, air despatch, barracks administration, the Army Fire Service, staffing headquarters' units, supply of food, water, fuel and dom ...

(RASC) A new 5 S/L Bde took over responsibility for all the BEF's searchlights in February 1940, and there were several changes in 2 AA Bde's composition and locations. Its HQ moved to

Villers-Bretonneux Villers-Bretonneux () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Villers-Bretonneux is situated some 19 km due east of Amiens, on the D1029 road and the A29 motorway. Villers-Bretonneux border ...

in April, by which time its responsibilities were to defend

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

(RAF) airfields of the BEF's Air Component, together with certain French power stations.

Battle of France

The so-called

Phoney War The Phoney War (french: Drôle de guerre; german: Sitzkrieg) was an eight-month period at the start of World War II, during which there was only one limited military land operation on the Western Front, when French troops invaded Germ ...

was a monotonous period of watching and training. It ended on 10 May 1940 with the German invasion of the Low Countries, and surprise attacks on RAF airfields in France.

Order of Battle 10 May 1940

At this point 2 AA Bde's dispositions were as follows: * 2nd AA Rgt ** 6, 21 AA Btys – 16 x 3.7-inch defending Arras airfield * 60th (City of London) AA Rgt ** 168 AA Bty – 4 x 3-inch at each of

Abbeville Abbeville (, vls, Abbekerke, pcd, Advile) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the chef-lieu of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of ...

and Poix airfields ** 169 AA Bty – 4 x 3-inch at each of Vitry and

Seclin Seclin () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is part of the Métropole Européenne de Lille. Population Notable residents * Andre Ayew, Ghana national football team footballer *Victor Mollet, architect *Jonathan Roussel ...

airfields ** 194 AA Bty – 4 x 3-inch at each of Amiens–Glisy and Rosieres-en-Santerre airfields ** 210/73 AA Bty – 6 x 3-inch at Mons-en-Chaussee, 2 x 3-inch at Péronne Civil Airport * 51st (Devon) LAA Rgt ** 151 LAA Bty – 4 x Bofors at each of Abbeville, Poix and Amiens Glisy ** 152 LAA Bty – 4 x Bofors at Mons-en-Chaussee, 8 x AA LMGs at each of Rosieres and Vitry ** 153 LAA Bty – 4 x Bofors at Vitry, 4 x Bofors and 8 x AA LMGs at Seclin * 58th (

Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

) LAA Rgt ** 172 LAA Bty – 4 x Vickers Mk VIII 2-pounders at each of Pont-à-Vendin,

Lomme Lomme (; nl, Olm) was a commune in the Nord ''département'' of northern France. It was absorbed as a '' commune associée'' by the city of Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in ...

and Comines ** 173 LAA Bty – 4 x 2-pounders at each of

Douai Douai (, , ,; pcd, Doï; nl, Dowaai; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord département in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe some from Lille and from Arras, D ...

and

Dechy Dechy () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Population Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic. The communes coo ...

The gunsites of 2nd and 60th AA Rgts and 51st LAA Rgt were each supported by a S/L Troop or half-Troop from 5 S/L Bde. Guns of 2 AA Bde were in action from the beginning: 151 LAA Bty at Abbeville airfield claimed a number of hits and suffered a few casualties as the first air raids began on 10 May.Farndale, pp. 63–4. As the campaign developed, the BEF followed the pre-arranged

Plan D A plan is typically any diagram or list of steps with details of timing and resources, used to achieve an objective to do something. It is commonly understood as a temporal set of intended actions through which one expects to achieve a goal. F ...

and advanced into Belgium to take up defences along the Dyle. 2 AA Brigade's role was to defend the Air Component's airfields in its rear. Brigade HQ had moved up to

Anzin-Saint-Aubin Anzin-Saint-Aubin () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. Geography A suburb located 2 miles (3 km) northwest of Arras, at the junction of the D341, D60 and D64 roads, by the banks of the river Scarpe. History ...

near

Arras Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department, which forms part of the regions of France, region of Hauts-de-France; before the regions of France#Reform and mergers of ...

by 14 May, and GHQ gave it an AA Operations Room (AAOR) to control AA engagements. Arras was badly bombed on the night of 14/15 May. Afterwards, three GL Mk I gun-laying radar stations were moved to 2 AA Rgt there and the S/L allocation was increased to introduce a S/L Illuminated Zone round the town and airfield. However, the German Army's rapid breakthrough in the

Ardennes The Ardennes (french: Ardenne ; nl, Ardennen ; german: Ardennen; wa, Årdene ; lb, Ardennen ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Be ...

soon threatened the BEF's flank. On 17 May, as the situation worsened, 2 AA Bde's forward units were ordered to withdraw, while others prepared for ground defence of their airfields and established roadblocks on the main roads. 210 AA Battery and its accompanying S/L Trps were re-positioned at Conteville and Crécy airfields as Péronne fell on 18 May. By the night of 18/19 May enemy columns were approaching Arras. 60th AA Regiment was sent to

Béthune Béthune ( ; archaic and ''Bethwyn'' historically in English) is a city in northern France, sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department. Geography Béthune is located in the former province of Artois. It is situated south-east of Calais, ...

, while the rest of the brigade was initially ordered cooperate in the defence of Arras. The CO of 60th AA Rgt was ordered to assume command if 2 AA Bde HQ was cut off, and the brigade's staff captain was sent away with the main body of the HQ. Later the brigade was ordered to withdraw towards

Hazebrouck Hazebrouck (, nl, Hazebroek, , vls, Oazebroeke) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France. It was a small market town in Flanders until it became an important railway junction in the 1860s. West Flemish was the usual language until 1 ...

. Its RASC lorries took as many rations as possible from the abandoned stores, but came under fire from ''

Panzer This article deals with the tanks (german: panzer) serving in the German Army (''Deutsches Heer'') throughout history, such as the World War I tanks of the Imperial German Army, the interwar and World War II tanks of the Nazi German Wehrmacht, ...

s'' as they withdrew. Clearly, the enemy had almost surrounded Arras, and on 21 May as the brigade continued its retreat, the BEF counter-attacked in the Battle of Arras.Ellis, Chapter VI.
/ref> Brigade HQ was re-established at

Renescure Renescure (; nl, Ruisscheure) is a Communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department in northern France. Renescure is the village where Bonduelle S.A. opened its first cannery. Heraldry See als ...

, outside

Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; vls, Sint-Omaars) is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Saint Audomar, ...

. Meanwhile, 2nd AA Rgt and 58th LAA Rgt had been redeployed to defend Hazebrouck and the Channel ports of

Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the ...

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. Th ...

and

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Merville, inland of Dunkirk; most of these units had S/L detachments with them. As well as AA defence, the brigade had to organise its troops to defend the Canal de l'Aa. The RAF's fighter squadrons were withdrawing from France, and 2 AA Bde was allowed to withdraw all its units from Abbeville, Conteville and Crécy airfields along with the RAF ground crews. The static 2-pounders had to be abandoned and there was a shortage of towing vehicles for the semi-mobile 3-inch guns, so 60th AA Rgt and 2nd S/L Rgt lent their lorries. 210 AA Battery and its accompanying S/L Trps were ordered west to

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

to join 3 AA Bde, but they found that

2nd Panzer Division The 2nd Panzer Division ( en, 2nd Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army, the Heer, during World War II. Created as one of the original three German tank divisions in 1935, it was stationed in Austria after the Anschluss an ...

was already in Abbeville, and they had to disable their guns and fight a rearguard action to get back to Boulogne and then to Dunkirk.Ellis, Chapter X.
/ref>

Order of Battle 22 May 1940

On 22 May the brigade reorganised into ''ad hoc'' groups under regimental commanders: * 'Huntforce' – Merville airfield ** RHQ 60th AA Rgt ** 169 AA Bty (less 1 Trp) ** 1 Trp 194 AA Bty ** 151 LAA Bty * 'Hammondforce' – Saint-Omer and Clairmarais ** RHQ 51st LAA Rgt ** 168 AA Bty ** 194 AA Bty (less 1 Trp) ** 155 LAA Bty from 52nd (East Lancashire) LAA Rgt * 'Forbesforce' – Hazebrouck ** 21 AA Bty (with a pool of 13 gun tractors for the whole brigade) ** 152 LAA Bty ** 1 Trp 1 Independent LAA Bty ** 1 Trp 173 LAA Bty ** 3 and 4 S/L Btys of 1st S/L Rgt * 2nd S/L Rgt less 1 Btys – Point de Jour ** 5 S/L Bty with Huntforce On the evening of 22 May, 2 AA Bde HQ was divebombed and three drivers and signalmen were killed. That night the HQ moved to Droglandt, near

Cassel Cassel may refer to: People * Cassel (surname) Places ;France * Cassel, Nord, a town and commune in northern France ** Battle of Cassel (1071) ** Battle of Cassel (1328) ** Battle of Cassel (1677) ;Germany * Cassel, Germany, a city in Hesse renam ...

. By now, rear area troops were being evacuated back to the UK and German forces were advancing on the Channel ports from the south. Early on 23 May, a Troop of 2nd AA Rgt at Boulogne lost all its guns, but destroyed two tanks of 2nd Panzer Division. The evacuation from Boulogne went on steadily through the day, and most of the garrison were taken off by

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

destroyers during the night of 23/24 May. 172 LAA Battery of 58th LAA Rgt and the detachments of 2nd AA Rgt and of 1st and 2nd S/L Rgts in Calais were less lucky, for having fought alongside the garrison until the evening of 26 May they were forced to surrender. As the German net round Dunkirk tightened, the AA units moved back towards the port. On 24 May Brig Chadwick and 2 AA Bde HQ was given control of all AA gun defences in Dunkirk, and two days later the decision was made to evacuate the isolated BEF through that port (

Operation Dynamo Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

).Farndale, pp. 77–8.Routledge, pp. 117–9. The_British_Evacuation_From_Dunkirk_in_1940_HU2286

The brigade still had 60th AA Rgt and 51st LAA Rgt under its command, and was joined by 85th (Tees) AA Rgt, which had been withdrawn from Belgium with two batteries of 3.7-inch guns. 85th AA Rgt took the eastern sector, with 174 Bty at

Téteghem Téteghem (; Dutch and vls, Tetegem) is a former commune in the Nord department, northern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune Téteghem-Coudekerque-Village.Leffrinckoucke Leffrinckoucke (; nl, Leffrinkhoeke; vls, Leffrinkoeke) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Heraldry Population Twin towns Leffrinckoucke is twinned with: * Węgorzewo in Poland In popular culture The end scenes of ...

, while the 3-inch guns of 60th AA Rgt were disposed in a dual AA/Anti-tank role at the bridges across the Colme Canal south of Dunkirk. 51st LAA Regiment deployed its Bofors guns to cover the road, rail and canal entrances to

Bergues Bergues (; nl, Sint-Winoksbergen; vls, Bergn) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is situated to the south of Dunkirk and from the Belgian border. Locally it is referred to as "the other Bruges in Flanders". Bergues ...

. Brigade HQ was near

Rosendaël Rosendaël ( nl, Rozendaal, vls, Rozendoale, French Flemish: ; meaning "rose valley") is a former commune in the Nord department in northern France. In 1971 it was merged into Dunkirk. It currently has 18,272 inhabitants (an almost ten-fold incre ...

in the suburbs. Dunkirk was heavily bombed and machine-gunned from 24 May onwards, but only 28 rounds of 3.7-inch ammunition were available until more arrived by sea on 26 May and again on 31 May. The AA guns were ordered to remain in action while the BEF passed through them, until forced to withdraw themselves after direct contact with enemy ground forces. From 26 May non-essential AA personnel were sent off for embarkation, and heavy equipment such as transport and the secret GL radar sets was destroyed. Casualties among the AA gunners increased as the ''

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

'' bombed the town constantly. By 28 May Bde HQ and most of its units were on the beaches. Part of 173/58 LAA Bty had already been at Dunkirk for several days and its guns were the first in action on the beach. 'A' Troop of 151/51 LAA Bty was still at Cassel on 29 May where it was attacked by tanks and aircraft: one gun was hit and another had to be abandoned. The remaining two crews were never heard of again and only one Non-Commissioned Officer and 22 men eventually got out through Dunkirk. The last three guns of 'B' Trp had been constantly in action at

Bray-Dunes Bray-Dunes (; vls, Bray-Duunn) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is situated on the Belgian border, with Adinkerke being the closest Belgian town. It is the northernmost commune and the northernmost point in all of Fran ...

, where one gun was destroyed by a direct hit. It was joined by 152/51 LAA Bty at Dunkirk Docks, and both were in continuous action from 21 to 25 May, bringing down a number of aircraft but losing two battery commanders. By 27 May the battery had expended all its ammunition, destroyed its guns and made for the evacuation beaches. 53rd (King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry) LAA Rgt reached the beachhead on 28 May with 16 Bofors guns still serviceable: 157 and 159 Btys were placed under 2 AA Bde on the beach and 158 Bty went to

La Panne De Panne (; french: La Panne ) is a town and a municipality located on the North Sea coast of the Belgian province of West Flanders. There it borders France, making it the westernmost town in Belgium. It is one of the most popular resort town dest ...

, where all three were in action against low-flying attacks on 30 and 31 May, claiming 9 'kills'. Ammunition was running low, but 157 Bty salvaged boxes that had been dumped in a dyke. 54th (

) LAA Rgt had also made its way back from Belgium, and its guns were in action on Dunkirk Mole itself, protecting the embarkation of many of the troops. The brigade was ordered to destroy its remaining guns and instruments and prepare for evacuation, which was carried out gradually by thinning out the gun crews. 51st and 53rd LAA Regiments remained in action until near the end, eventually embarking on 1 June.

Home Defence

On arrival in England the AA troops were sent to various AA training camps to reform. 2 AA Brigade HQ was re-established at

Perranporth Perranporth ( kw, Porthperan) is a seaside resort town on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is 1 mile east of the St Agnes Heritage Coastline, and around 8 miles south-west of Newquay. Perranporth and its long beach f ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

on 14 June. It had nothing to command, but on 27 June it was ordered to

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...

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 ...

to take over from 'N' Mobile AA Bde. This was a temporary formation organised to support the field army in the event of invasion of Southern England. Under the command of Brig D.J.R. Richards of 49 AA Bde, it could call on the following units of AA Command (but they were only to move from the fixed defences if the situation required):2 AA Bde War Diary, Home Forces May–October 1940, TNA file WO 166/2221. * 250 and 251 Btys of 80th (Berkshire) AA Rgt – 3.7-inch guns at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

* 235 Bty of 89th (Cinque Ports) AA Rgt – 3.7-inch guns at Allhallows, Kent * 284 Bty of 90th AA Rgt – 3-inch guns at

Littlehampton Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort, and pleasure harbour, and the most populous civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the mouth of the River Arun. It is south sout ...

* 31 LAA Bty of 11th (City of London Yeomanry) LAA Rgt AA Command had decided that the AA brigade HQs returned from the BEF with their experience of mobile warfare should take over these mobile forces. Although 2 AA Bde was attached to 6 AA Division of AA Command, it would operate under Eastern Command. Brigade HQ was established at

Pembury Pembury is a large village in Kent, in the south east of England, with a population of 6,128 at the 2011 Census. It lies just to the north-east of Royal Tunbridge Wells. The village centre, including the village green and High Street area is a ...

outside Tunbridge Wells and began reconnoitring possible AA positions in Kent and

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 ...

in a scheme codenamed '

Bovril Bovril is the trademarked name of a thick and salty meat extract paste similar to a yeast extract, developed in the 1870s by John Lawson Johnston. It is sold in a distinctive bulbous jar, and as cubes and granules. Bovril is owned and distribut ...

'. These covered

Ashford Ashford may refer to: Places Australia *Ashford, New South Wales *Ashford, South Australia *Electoral district of Ashford, South Australia Ireland *Ashford, County Wicklow *Ashford Castle, County Galway United Kingdom * Ashford, Kent, a town ** ...

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

Edenbridge Edenbridge may mean: * Edenbridge (band), a symphonic metal band from Austria *Edenbridge, Kent, a town in England *Edenbridge, Saskatchewan, a former Jewish settlement in Canada *Humber Valley Village Humber Valley Village is a neighbourhood lo ...

Sevenoaks Sevenoaks is a town in Kent with a population of 29,506 situated south-east of London, England. Also classified as a civil parishes in England, civil parish, Sevenoaks is served by a commuter South Eastern Main Line, main line railway into Lon ...

and

Tenterden Tenterden is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. It stands on the edge of the remnant forest the Weald, overlooking the valley of the River Rother. It was a member of the Cinque Ports Confederation. Its riverside today is not ...

, while the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

raged overhead. For some time the brigade only had 260 HAA Bty of 84th (Middlesex, London Transport) HAA Rgt under its command. (AA units equipped with 3-inch, 3.7-inch or larger guns were redesignated 'Heavy AA' (HAA) in the summer of 1940 to distinguish them from LAA units with Bofors or LMGs.) In mid-July Bde HQ was joined in these reconnaissances by RHQ of 6th AA Rgt, also returned from Dunkirk, together with 181 HAA Bty from 65th (Manchester Regiment) HAA Rgt and 251/80 HAA Bty. The brigade was joined by 3 AA Bde Signals (3 AA Bde having reverted to AA Command) which was redesignated '2 AA Bde Signals'.Lord & Watson, p. 174.

Order of Battle, August 1940

At the end of August the brigade's composition was as follows: * RHQ 6th HAA Rgt ** 12/6 HAA Bty ** 251/80 HAA Bty ** 260/84 HAA Bty ** 152/51 LAA Bty * 2 AA Bde Signals, RCS * 2 AA Bde Company, RASC As the ''Luftwaffe'' switched to bombing London in September (the start of

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 ...

) 6th HAA Rgt was sent to man AA positions around the city.

Egypt

On 5 October 1940 the brigade was warned that it was earmarked for overseas service in tropical kit and was ordered to mobilise by 5 November. Brigade HQ accompanied by its RAOC Workshop moved to

Paignton Paignton ( ) is a seaside town on the coast of Tor Bay in Devon, England. Together with Torquay and Brixham it forms the borough of Torbay which was created in 1998. The Torbay area is a holiday destination known as the English Riviera. Paignt ...

and Brigadier Edward Wilson, MC, from 37 AA Bde took over command on 11 November. On 15 November Bde HQ entrained for

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

and sailed on 17 November. After travelling via

Freetown Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, educational and p ...

and

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

it arrived at

Suez Suez ( ar, السويس '; ) is a seaport city (population of about 750,000 ) in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez (a branch of the Red Sea), near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boun ...

and detrained at

Giza Giza (; sometimes spelled ''Gizah'' arz, الجيزة ' ) is the second-largest city in Egypt after Cairo and fourth-largest city in Africa after Kinshasa, Lagos and Cairo. It is the capital of Giza Governorate with a total population of 9.2 ...

on 31 December. On 1 January it set up office in the

Semiramis Hotel Semiramis InterContinental Hotel is a skyscraper and hotel complex located in Garden City, Cairo, Egypt. The 32-story building completed in 1987, and houses an InterContinental hotel. The modernist building replaced the historic Semiramis hotel, ...

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

and on 8 January 9th (Londonderry) and 74th (City of Glasgow) HAA Rgts came under command.2 AA Bde War Diary, Middle East, 1941, TNA file WO 169/1560. The brigade's task was to build up the permanent defences at the harbours of

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

Port Said Port Said ( ar, بورسعيد, Būrsaʿīd, ; grc, Πηλούσιον, Pēlousion) is a city that lies in northeast Egypt extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal. With an approximate population of 6 ...

and Suez, along the Suez Canal, and to defend the landing grounds and supply dumps formed in the desert to support

Western Desert Force The Western Desert Force (WDF) was a British Army formation (military), formation active in Egypt during the Western Desert Campaign of the World War II, Second World War. On 17 June 1940, the headquarters of the 6th Infantry Division (United ...

(soon to become XIII Corps). The intention was to have an integrated joint-service control and reporting system on the

Air Defence of Great Britain The Air Defence of Great Britain (ADGB) was a RAF command comprising substantial army and RAF elements responsible for the air defence of the British Isles. It lasted from 1925, following recommendations that the RAF take control of homeland air ...

model that had proved successful during the Battle of Britain. Together with early warning radar and an RAF sector operations room, the AA Defence Commander (AADC) in each major defended area would have a Gun Operations Room (GOR). Unfortunately, little of the necessary equipment was available. AA gun positions were still without gun-laying radar and there was an acute shortage of Bofors guns, so that even the most important vital points (VPs) were allocated no more than two or three each.Routledge, p. 129.

Order of Battle, January 1941

The brigade HQ took control of all AA and coast defence artillery units in No 1 Line of Communication District in the

Nile Delta The Nile Delta ( ar, دلتا النيل, or simply , is the delta formed in Lower Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Po ...

under

British Troops in Egypt British Troops in Egypt was a command of the British Army. History A British Army commander was appointed in the late 19th century after the Anglo-Egyptian War in 1882. The British Army remained in Egypt throughout the First World War and, after t ...

(BTE), but a number of sub-units were detached elsewhere. At the end of January the AA troops in the Delta were as follows: * 9th (Londonderry) HAA Rgt **24, 26 HAA Btys, 5 LAA Bty at Alexandria ** 25 HAA Bty at

Port Sudan Port Sudan ( ar, بور سودان, Būr Sūdān) is a port city in eastern Sudan, and the capital of the state of Red Sea. , it has 489,725 residents. Located on the Red Sea, Port Sudan is recognized as Sudan's main seaport and the source of 90% ...

** 28 HAA Bty at

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

* 74th (City of Glasgow) HAA Rgt on the Canal and at Suez ** 230, 231, 232 HAA Btys, 6 LAA Bty * 15th (Isle of Man) LAA Rgt ** 41 LAA Bty in the Sudan ** 42 LAA Bty ** 129 LAA Bty in Crete * 5 LAA Bty

Royal Malta Artillery The Royal Malta Artillery (RMA) was a regular artillery unit of the British Army prior to Malta's independence. It was formed in 1889, having been called the Royal Malta Fencible Artillery from 1861 until 1889. Initially on the British Esta ...

* S/L Dets of 37 & 38 LAA Btys of 13th LAA Rgt However, during the Spring, AA troops were drawn away to the campaigns in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

and

Crete Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...

and to the defence of

Tobruk Tobruk or Tobruck (; grc, Ἀντίπυργος, ''Antipyrgos''; la, Antipyrgus; it, Tobruch; ar, طبرق, Tubruq ''Ṭubruq''; also transliterated as ''Tobruch'' and ''Tubruk'') is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near th ...

, and 2nd AA Bde was left with just five batteries of 9th and 74th HAA Rgts, three independent LAA batteries (one of them Palestinian), and S/L detachments manned by a squadron of the

Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry (RWY) was a Yeomanry regiment of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the United Kingdom established in 1794. It was disbanded as an independent Territorial Army unit in 1967, a time when the strength of the Territorial ...

. HQ and two sections of 2 AA Bde Signals merged into Eighth Army Signals, and 3 Section went to

Paiforce Iraqforce was a British and Commonwealth formation that came together in the Kingdom of Iraq. The formation fought in the Middle East during World War II. Background During World War I, the British Army defeated the Ottoman Army in the Middl ...

(Persia and Iraq Force). Slowly the AA manpower and equipment shortages were addressed. 27th (London Electrical Engineers) S/L Rgt took over the S/L provision, though two of its own batteries were detached to Crete and Tobruk. Improved GL Mk II radar arrived for HAA batteries, but this had technical difficulties, so 2 AA Bde retained barrage fire as the prime method of defending the harbour at Alexandria. The GL sets were used to plot an accurate course and height for an incoming raid, and this was then projected forward to intersect with one of the pre-arranged barrage lines; gun sites then fired on this line. In mid-June 1941 there were heavy bombing raids on Alexandria and Port Said. The batteries of 2 AA Bde were supplemented by a

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 ...

Mobile Naval Base Defence Organisation (MNBDO), bringing the armament state at Alexandria up to 40 x 3.7-inch, 24 x Bofors, and 9 x 150 cm S/Ls. The mixture of predicted shoots and barrages proved effective in keeping the harbour in action, though there was damage in the town and a mass exodus of inhabitants.Routledge, pp. 134–5. 2 AA Brigade's attention now switched to defending the Suez Canal and the harbours of Port Said and Suez at either end, which were vital to the flow of supplies and reinforcements to the Western Desert. Apart from bombing the ports,

Axis An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to: Mathematics * Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis *Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinate ...

aircraft could interdict the canal by dropping

Parachute mine A parachute mine is a naval mine dropped from an aircraft by parachute. They were mostly used in the Second World War by the Luftwaffe and initially by the Royal Air Force (RAF) Bomber Command. Frequently, they were dropped on land targets. Hist ...

s. Defending against this was an obvious role for S/Ls and LAA guns, but the numbers required for complete coverage were excessive. The compromise plan involved siting single S/Ls on either side of the canal at intervals, with additional rows on the flanks spaced at 5-6000-yard intervals. Thus illumination was restricted to a belt along the length of the canal. Fighter aircraft were to provide the main defence, but the problem of intercepting low-level raids led to the deployment of single Bofors guns spaced at intervals of about yards on the banks of the narrow stretches of the canal. By October 1941, the Suez Canal defences had absorbed 72 HAA and 96 LAA guns, and 66 S/Ls.

Order of Battle, June 1941

In June 1941 the brigade attained the following strength: * 74th (City of Glasgow) HAA Rgt * 68th (North Midland) HAA Rgt * 89th (Cinque Ports) HAA Rgt * 15th (Isle of Man) LAA Rgt * 25th LAA Rgt * 27th (LEE) S/L Rgt Brigadier Wilson left on 23 August to join HQ BTE as AA Defence Commander (AADC) Egypt and was replaced by Col J.S. Muirhead, the CO of 74th HAA Rgt, but on 3 September Brig Murray McIntyre became brigade commander and Muirhead went to command 4 AA Bde at Tobruk.

Order of Battle, October 1941

The_British_Army_in_North_Africa_1941_E3870

In October 1941, 2 AA Bde had the following dispositions: * Brigade HQ: Moascar * Alexandria ** HQ AA Defences, Alexandria ** GOR Alexandria ** GOR

Aboukir Abu Qir ( ar, ابو قير, ''Abu Qīr'', or , ), formerly also spelled Abukir or Aboukir, is a town on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt, near the ruins of ancient Canopus and northeast of Alexandria by rail. It is located on Abu Qir Penins ...

** 9th HAA Rgt, less 1 Bty – 16 x 3.7-inch ** 277/68 HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** 283/88 HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** 5 Royal Marine (RM) HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** 38/13 LAA Bty, less 1 Trp – 8 x Bofors ** 22 RM LAA Bty – 12 x Bofrs ** Trp 155/52 LAA Bty – 4 x Bofors ** Trp 390/27 S/L Bty – 8 x 150 cm * Port Said and

Port Fuad Port Fuad or Port Fouad ( ar, بورفؤاد ', ) is a city in Port Said Governorate, Egypt. Port Fuad is located in northeastern Egypt at the northwesternmost tip of the Sinai Peninsula on the Asian side of the Suez Canal, across from the city ...

** AA Sector Operations Room, Port Said ** AA Sector Operations Room, Fayid ** 74th HAA Rgt – 24 x 3.7-inch * *305/27 S/L Rgt – 24 x S/L * Suez and Shallufa ** 88th HAA Rgt – 24 x 3.7-inch ** 205/89 HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** 5 Australian HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** 100/52 LAA Bty – 12 x Bofors ** 9 Australian LAA Bty – 12 x Bofors ** 81/25 LAA Bty – 12 x Boforsm ** Trps of 1, 38/13, 41/15 LAA Btys – 12 x Bofors ** 390/27 S/L Bty less 1 Trp – 18 x S/L * Suez Canal ** 200/ 69 HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** 37/13 LAA Bty – 12 x Bofors ** 42/15 LAA Bty – 12 x Bofors ** 41/15 LAA Bty less 1 Trp – 8 x Bofors ** 155/52 LAA Bty less 1 Trp – 8 x Bofors ** Trp 23 RM LAA Bty - 4 x Bofors ** 1 (Ind) LAA Bty less 1 Trp – 8 x Bofors ** 304/27 S/L Bty – 24 x S/L

Alamein

The AA defences of Egypt remained relatively static for the next year while the great battles of the Western Desert Campaign were fought –

Operation Crusader Operation Crusader (18 November – 30 December 1941) was a military operation of the Western Desert Campaign during the Second World War by the British Eighth Army (United Kingdom), Eighth Army (with Commonwealth, Indian and Allied contingents) ...

(November–December 1941),

Gazala Gazala, or ʿAyn al-Ġazāla ( ), is a small Libyan village near the coast in the northeastern portion of the country. It is located west of Tobruk. History In the late 1930s (during the Italian occupation of Libya), the village was the site of ...

(May–June 1942), First Alamein (July 1942) and Alam el Halfa (August–September 1942). After Eighth Army had stabilised the El Alamein line and prepared to go over to the offensive, it organised its AA forces into two brigades, with 2 AA Bde to advance directly under Army HQ for line of communication protection while 12 AA Bde was assigned to advance with the

Desert Air Force The Desert Air Force (DAF), also known chronologically as Air Headquarters Western Desert, Air Headquarters Libya, the Western Desert Air Force, and the First Tactical Air Force (1TAF), was an Allied tactical air force created from No. 204 ...

. Other AA Bde HQs would come into play as the Army advanced.Routledge, pp. 155–60.

Order of Battle, October 1942

For this new mobile role, 2 AA Bde had the following organisation: * 69th HAA Rgt ** 61, 199 HAA Btys – 16 x 3.7-inch * 2nd LAA Rgt ** 6, 155 LAA Btys – 48 x Bofors * 21 AA Bde Co, RASC * 2 AA Bde Workshop,

Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is a corps of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's Professional Engineers". History Prior to REME's for ...

(REME) * 2 LAA Regt Workshop Sec, REME * 101 AA Defence HQ (AADC Railways) – remaining btys The

Second Battle of El Alamein The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...

opened on 23 October 1942 and went on for 11 days before the final breakthrough ( Operation Supercharge). 2 AA Brigade then followed the pursuit, leap-frogging forward to Tobruk,

Benghazi Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...

and later

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

Order of Battle, January 1943

At Tripoli in January 1943, supporting XXX Corps 2 AA Bde had the following composition: * 9th HAA Rgt ** 24, 25, 26 HAA Btys – 24 x 3.7 * 94th HAA Rgt ** 261, 291, 292 HAA Btys – 24 x 3.7 * 40th LAA Rgt – on loan from

51st (Highland) Division The 51st (Highland) Division was an infantry division of the British Army that fought on the Western Front in France during the First World War from 1915 to 1918. The division was raised in 1908, upon the creation of the Territorial Force, as ...

** 105, 140, 268 LAA Btys – 35 x Bofors * 53rd LAA Rgt ** 157, 158, 159 LAA Btys – 36 x Bofors * 166/ 56, 167/56 LAA Btys – detached from 8th Armoured Division * 274/52 LAA Bty – 12 x Bofors * 306/27 S/L Bty – 24 x S/Ls * 2 AA Bde Signals – ''joined Tripoli Signals'' In February 1943, as Eighth Army fought its way westwards towards Tunisia to join up with the Allied forces that had landed in Algeria (

Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – Run for Tunis, 16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of secu ...

), Tripoli became an important supply point and a target for ''Luftwaffe'' attacks, They found the AA defence too intense for low-level attack and switched to medium-level bombing. By now the 'tail' of AA commitments in Eighth Army's rear came under RAF control and the Army's commander, Sir Bernard Montgomery, complained bitterly when his ammunition stocks at Tripoli were destroyed in a bombing raid. In March the rear area AA defences were reorganised again, with 2 AA Bde relieving 12 AA Bde of its airfield commitments behind Tripoli. The_British_Army_in_North_Africa_1943_E21873

The_British_Army_in_North_Africa_1943_E21873

Order of Battle, May 1943

When the North African Campaign ended in May 1943, 2 AA Bde was responsible for AA Defence Area Tripolitania with the following composition: * 9th HAA Rgt * 69th HAA Rgt * 93rd HAA Rgt * 2nd LAA Rgt * 30th LAA Rgt * 38th LAA Rgt * 83/25 LAA Bty * 274/52 LAA Bty * 306/27 S/L Bty * Two AAORs

Sicily

For the following

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 ...

(Operation Husky), AA batteries were included in the assault waves to defend the landing points. Although the plan was successful in getting guns ashore, coordination and communication was poor, there being no overall AA commander on the spot. Brigadier McIntyre landed with 2 AA Brigade's Tactical HQ at

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

on 13 July, three days after the initial landings, together with RHQ and one battery of 73rd HAA Rgt (the other two batteries having been among the beach groups) and 66th LAA Rgt. Together with the lightly-equipped assault batteries, the brigade took up defence of Syracuse harbour and the captured airfields at

Pachino Pachino (; scn, Pachinu ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily (Italy). The name derives from the Latin word ''bacchus,'' which is the Roman god of wine, and the word ''vinum'', which means wine in Latin; originally the ...

and Cassibile, which suffered numerous dive-bombing and strafing attacks, and high level bombing by night and day. After the landings, Eighth Army made rapid progress up the east coast of Sicily and the follow-up AA forces began to land. 62 AA Bde HQ arrived in Syracuse on 17 July, taking over responsibility for the harbour and airfield defence while 2 AA Bde moved on to Augusta, which was also heavily attacked. By early August, 2 AA Bde had moved up with Eighth Army to

Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...

with 51st (London) HAA Rgt and 40th and 74th LAA Rgts under command.Routledge, pp. 258–64; Table XLII, p. 267.

Italy

After the remaining Axis forces evacuated Sicily, Eighth Army regrouped to invade mainland Italy. The opening phase was

Operation Baytown Operation Baytown was an Allied amphibious landing on the mainland of Italy that took place on 3 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy, itself part of the Italian Campaign, during the Second World War. Planning The attack was ...

, an assault crossing of the

Strait of Messina The Strait of Messina ( it, Stretto di Messina, Sicilian: Strittu di Missina) is a narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily (Punta del Faro) and the western tip of Calabria ( Punta Pezzo) in Southern Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian Se ...

by XIII Corps supported by 2 AA Bde. Brigade HQ began reconnoitring sites to cover the operation on 18 August, the day after

Messina Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...

fell, and sent forward two batteries of 51st HAA and two of 74th LAA Rgts for the first deployment. 298 HAA Battery of 97th (London Scottish) HAA Rgt also went forward to support XIII Corps in the medium artillery role. The crossing was to be made with a variety of landing craft and these required AA protection as did the assembly and embarkation points and supply dumps. 2 AA Brigade left 298/97 HAA Bty and two LAA batteries, 13/40 and one from 2nd Canadian LAA Rgt, to defend these areas, and embarked with 51st and the rest of 97th HAA Rgts, 53rd and 74th LAA Rgts to deploy on the Italian side. For the three beach 'bricks', 2 AA Bde allotted 1 batteries of 97th HAA Rgt and 158/53 LAA Bty, a total of 12 x 3.7-inch and 18 x Bofors guns. After an extensive bombardment, XIII Corps began landing during the night of 2/3 September. There was little serious ground resistance, but enemy aircraft were active and the beaches were dive-bombed. The landing programme went smoothly, the AA batteries reached the town of

Reggio Calabria Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popul ...

on 4 September and by 5 September the brigade was fully deployed: The_British_Army_in_Italy_1943_NA9841

Order of Battle, September 1943

* Reggio ** 242/51 HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** 186/74 and Canadian LAA Bty – 16 x Bofors * Beaches ** 299/97 and 319/97 HAA Btys – 16 x 3.7-inch ** 53rd LAA Rgt – 54 x Bofors *Airfield ** 152/51 and 153/51 HAA Btys – 16 x 3.7-inch ** 225/74 LAA Bty – 18 x Bofors ** 150 AAOR, 6 x GL radar, 1 x Local Warning radar ** Smoke units * Messina ** 298/97 HAA Bty – 8 x 3.7-inch ** Canadian LAA Bty – 18 x Bofors There was only one raid of importance on Reggio, when four

Focke-Wulf Fw 190 The Focke-Wulf Fw 190, nicknamed ''Würger'' (" Shrike") is a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank at Focke-Wulf in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, ...

s bombed the harbour and attacked the AA positions: 319/97 HAA Bty had a command post destroyed, suffering nine dead and eight wounded. XIII Corps worked cautiously and methodically through

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, 2 AA Bde following up to cover the small harbours and airfields, and being rejoined by 298/97 HAA Bty from Messina. In late September the brigade was warned to concentrate for a long move across Italy to defend the captured

Foggia Airfield Complex The Foggia Airfield Complex was a series of World War II military airfields located within a radius of Foggia, in the Province of Foggia, Italy. The airfields were used by the United States Army Air Force Fifteenth Air Force as part of the stra ...

. 2 AA Brigade reached Foggia and the port of

Bari Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy a ...

by 30 September, where it was joined by 88th HAA Rgt, 47th and 117th LAA Rgts. 62 AA Brigade HQ arrived on 2 October and took over responsibility for Bari, but 2 AA Bde remained at Foggia for another two weeks, with 1st Airlanding LAA Rgt from 1st Airborne Division temporarily under command to boost the low-level defences. On 27 October the brigade moved forward to a fresh set of landing-grounds and a railhead in support of

1st Canadian Division The 1st Canadian Division (French: ''1re Division du Canada'' ) is a joint operational command and control formation based at CFB Kingston, and falls under Canadian Joint Operations Command. It is a high-readiness unit, able to move on very short ...

. Brigadier McIntyre was an enthusiast for using the versatile 3.7-inch HAA guns for ground support tasks, and two batteries of 51st HAA Rgt were allotted to the Canadians in this role while the rest of the brigade was split up into small packets at airfields and on Corps tasks. The crossing of the

Sangro The Sangro is a river in eastern central Italy, known in ancient times as Sagrus from the Greek ''Sagros'' or ''Isagros'', ''Ισαγρος''. It rises in the middle of Abruzzo National Park near Pescasseroli in the Apennine Mountains. It flows ...

and

Biferno The Biferno is a river of Molise, in southern Italy. Its source is in the ''comune'' of Bojano and during the first few kilometres of its course, it receives the waters of numerous streams which flow from the Matese mountains. It runs through seve ...

rivers involved long artillery fire programmes at the end of November, for which 51st HAA was assigned to

6th Army Group Royal Artillery 6th Army Group Royal Artillery (6 AGRA), was one of number of Army Group Royal Artillery units developed by the British Army to add weight of fire and increased artillery flexibility to the battlefield. It was one of the main AGRAs to fight in th ...

(6th AGRA), after which it switched to protecting the assembly and bridgehead areas for the actual assault. During the winter of 1943–44, when Eighth Army faced the German

Winter Line The Winter Line was a series of German and Italian military fortifications in Italy, constructed during World War II by Organisation Todt and commanded by Albert Kesselring. The series of three lines was designed to defend a western section of ...

, McIntyre disposed two-thirds of his HAA guns in the forward area, the rest at landing grounds as far back as Foggia, and he rotated batteries between the tasks. For 'Operation Kishan', carried out by 10th Infantry Brigade in May 1944, 84th and 88th HAA Rgts deployed 44 guns and fired 9881 rounds in bombardment and harassing fire in one week. In one occasion, three Troops (12 guns) of 84th HAA broke up a concentration of 300 German troops forming up for an attack. When the Adriatic coast campaign began moving again in May 1944, 2 AA Bde moved up with

V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to: France * 5th Army Corps (France) * V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Ar ...

and in July it reached

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic S ...

.Routledge, p. 282.2 AA Brigade, 'History of the Italian Campaign for the Period August 1944–April 1945', TNA file WO 204/7240. After a short period of refitting and re-training at

Anzio Anzio (, also , ) is a town and ''comune'' on the coast of the Lazio region of Italy, about south of Rome. Well known for its seaside harbour setting, it is a Port, fishing port and a departure point for ferries and hydroplanes to the Pontine I ...

in August, 2 AA Bde's units returned to the line between

Arezzo Arezzo ( , , ) , also ; ett, 𐌀𐌓𐌉𐌕𐌉𐌌, Aritim. is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of above sea level. ...

and

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

in September, a journey across mountains that was unusually carried out as a single road convoy. Between September and December, as the Allied armies closed up to the

Gothic Line The Gothic Line (german: Gotenstellung; it, Linea Gotica) was a German Defense line, defensive line of the Italian Campaign (World War II), Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Generalfeldmarschall, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's la ...

, its units were widely distributed, some supporting XIII Corps with

Fifth US Army The United States Army North (ARNORTH) is a formation of the United States Army. An Army Service Component Command (ASCC) subordinate to United States Northern Command (NORTHCOM), ARNORTH is the joint force land component of NORTHCOM.

, others with

X Corps 10th Corps, Tenth Corps, or X Corps may refer to: France * 10th Army Corps (France) * X Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * X Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army * ...

and

II Polish Corps The Polish II Corps ( pl, Drugi Korpus Wojska Polskiego), 1943–1947, was a major tactical and operational unit of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Władysław Anders and fought wit ...

under Eighth Army. In late 1944 the ''Luftwaffe'' was suffering from such shortages of pilots, aircraft and fuel that serious air attacks were rare. At the same time the British Army was suffering a severe manpower shortage. The result was that a number of AA units were deemed surplus and were disbanded to provide reinforcements to other arms of service. 84th HAA Regiment was the unit selected from 2 AA Bde, and it was broken up in October and formally placed in 'suspended animation' in November 1944, with its drivers converted into 84th General Transport Company. Some units such as 51st HAA Rgt had already been 'diluted' (as it was termed at the time) by soldiers of the African Pioneer Corps to be trained as gunners to release British other ranks for other duties. Other units now retrained as infantry or in the case of LAA units re-equipped some of their Bofors batteries with 3-inch or 4.2-inch mortars for infantry support. For the first part of this period, the brigade held a section of the line as an independent formation, with two of its LAA regiments deployed as infantry. Its HAA regiments were now entirely committed to ground targets and during the battle of the Gothic Line two regiments fired over 22,000 rounds in ground support. These tasks included

counter-battery Counter-battery fire (sometimes called counter-fire) is a battlefield tactic employed to defeat the enemy's indirect fire elements (multiple rocket launchers, artillery and mortars), including their target acquisition, as well as their command a ...

(CB), defensive fire (DF) and harassing fire (HF) shoots, but also air-burst shoots against entrenched positions, and destruction of hard targets such as buildings. The regiments suffered some casualties from retaliatory fire. Having spent December 1944 to March 1945 facing the German

, dispersed from XIII Corps to the Adriatic coast, with occasional AA engagements, the brigade came back fully under Eighth Army command as it broke through into the

Po Plain The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...

. The brigade now had a medium artillery regiment and a composite heavy battery of 7.2-inch howitzers and 155mm guns under its command, and was expanded with units from

10th Indian Division The 10th Indian Division was an infantry division of the British Indian Army during World War I. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914 with three infantry brigades of Indian Expeditionary Force F. After taking part in the Actions on the Sue ...

to form 'Macforce' (named after Brig McIntyre). Initially Macforce operated under 6th AGRA, then the brigade's AAOR began to operate as an AGRA in its own right and brigade signals took responsibility for a communication hub linking Fifth Army and IV US Corps to X Corps and Macforce. In April Macforce drove down Route 9 in pursuit of the retreating Axis forces, firing in support of the

Friuli Friuli ( fur, Friûl, sl, Furlanija, german: Friaul) is an area of Northeast Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity containing 1,000,000 Friulians. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli Venezia Giulia ...

and Folgore Combat Groups of the Italian Co-belligerent Army.

Order of Battle, August 1944–April 1945

The brigade had the following units under its command between August 1944 and April 1945: * 1st HAA Rgt * 51st HAA Rgt – ''returned to the line after 'dilution' October 1944, less one bty at Anzio'' * 84th HAA Rgt – ''disbanded in October 1944'' * 97th HAA Rgt – ''left in September 1944'' * 11th LAA Rgt – ''operating in defence, mortar and heavy machine gun roles'' * 26th LAA Rgt – ''joined November 1944; one bty on smoke-making duty'' * 51st LAA Rgt – ''operating in defence, mortar and heavy machine gun roles'' * 52nd LAA Rgt – ''left in September 1944'' * 53rd LAA Rgt – ''serving as infantry in September 1944'' * 47 AAOR * 400 (Independent) S/L Bty * 66th Medium Rgt * One Battery 75th Heavy Rgt * 169 Line Section, RCS

Macforce

'Macforce' comprised the following units in April 1945: * 2nd Battalion

Loyal North Lancashire Regiment The Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) (until 1921 known as the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that was in existence from 1881 to 1970. In 1970, the regiment was amalgamated with the Lancashire Reg ...

* 4th Battalion, 11th Sikhs * Jodhpur Sardar Infantry *

Lovat Scouts The Lovat Scouts was a British Army unit first formed during the Second Boer War as a Scottish Highland yeomanry regiment of the British Army. They were the first known military unit to wear a ghillie suit and in 1916 formally became the British ...

* 2nd Battalion

Highland Light Infantry The Highland Light Infantry (HLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army formed in 1881. It took part in the First and Second World Wars, until it was amalgamated with the Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1959 to form the Royal Highland Fusi ...

* 85th Mountain Rgt Group: ** 85th Mtn Rgt – ''less 1 bty'' ** 57th Field Rgt ** 11th LAA Rgt – ''less 1 Bty'' * 66th Medium Rgt * One Trp 11th LAA Rgt * 51st LAA Rgt – ''including counter-mortar organisation'' 2 AA Brigade's last action was on 20 April 1945, when a battery of 1st HAA Rgt fired on a high-flying

Messerschmitt Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Germa ...

. It then went into reserve with X Corps, and hostilities ended on 2 May with the

Surrender of Caserta Surrender may refer to: * Surrender (law), the early relinquishment of a tenancy * Surrender (military), the relinquishment of territory, combatants, facilities, or armaments to another power Film and television * ''Surrender'' (1927 film), an ...

. At the end of the campaign, the brigade with 1st and 51st HAA and 11th and 53rd LAA regiments was reorganised as a motor transport group based at

Forlì Forlì ( , ; rgn, Furlè ; la, Forum Livii) is a ''comune'' (municipality) and city in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, and is the capital of the province of Forlì-Cesena. It is the central city of Romagna. The city is situated along the Via E ...

and

Faenza Faenza (, , ; rgn, Fènza or ; la, Faventia) is an Italian city and comune of 59,063 inhabitants in the province of Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, situated southeast of Bologna. Faenza is home to a historical manufacture of majolica-ware glazed eart ...

. Brigadier McIntyre was awarded a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

for his work, particularly for his use of the 3.7-inch gun for field and medium artillery tasks. The brigade was disbanded in June 1946. When the Regular Army's AA units were reorganised in 1947, 2 AA Brigade did not re-appear in the order of battle.Routledge, Table XXIV, p. 441.

Commanders

The following officers commanded 2 AA Bde: * Brigadier E.W. Chadwick, MC (1 October 1936 – 11 November 1940) * Brigadier E.W.G. Wilson, MC (11 November 1940 – 23 August 1941) * Brigadier J.S. Muirhead, DSO, MC, TD (23 August–3 September 1941) * Brigadier H.M.J. McIntyre,

, DSO (from 3 September 1941)

Footnotes

Notes

References

Major L.F. Ellis, ''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The War in France and Flanders 1939–1940'', London: HM Stationery Office, 1954/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004.
* 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: 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 II, Wakefield, Microform Academic, 1984, . * Ashley Jackson, ''The British Empire and the Second World War'', London: Hambledon Continuum, 2006, . * * Norman E.H. Litchfield, ''The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges)'', Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, . * Cliff Lord & Graham Watson, ''Royal Corps of Signals: Unit Histories of the Corps (1920–2001) and its Antecedents'', Solihull: Helion, 2003, . * Brig C.J.C. Molony,''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Mediterranean and Middle East'', Vol V: ''The Campaign in Sicily 1943 and the Campaign in Italy 3rd September 1943 to 31st March 1944'', London: HMSO, 1973/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004, . * Maj-Gen I.S.O. Playfair & Brig C.J.C. Molony, ''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: The Mediterranean and Middle East'', Vol IV: ''The Destruction of the Axis forces in Africa'', London: HMSO, 1966/Uckfield, Naval & Military Press, 2004, * Brig N.W. Routledge, ''History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: Anti-Aircraft Artillery 1914–55'', London: Royal Artillery Institution/Brassey's, 1994, . * Patrick Walker, ''6th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery'', Rev Edn, Gloucester: Choir Press, 2013, .

External sources

Generals of World War II

Orders of Battle at Patriot Files
{{Use dmy dates, date=September 2018 Military units and formations established in 1936 Air defence brigades of the British Army Anti-Aircraft brigades of the British Army in World War II Military units and formations disestablished in 1945