The 4th Artillery Regiment or RA4 (''Regimento de Artilharia n.º 4'' in
Portuguese)
OTE is a
base unit of the
Portuguese Army
The Portuguese Army ( pt, Exército Português) is the land component of the Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its ...
, stationed in
Leiria
Leiria (; cel-x-proto, ɸlāryo) is a city and municipality in the Central Region of Portugal. It is the 2nd largest city in that same region, with a municipality population of 128,640 (as of 2021) in an area of . It is the seat of its own distr ...
. Presently, the RA4 is dependent on the
Rapid Reaction Brigade
The Albanian Rapid Reaction Brigade was created on 6 January 2001. It is the core unit of the Albanian Land Forces. In January 2003 there was the first structural reorganization and since November 2006 we have the current organization. It is consi ...
, whose charges towards Operating System Component Forces.
History
:1917 - The current RA4 was created in
Castelo Branco as the Field Howitzers Regiment or ROC (''Regimento de Obuses de Campanha'') through the integration of the old field howitzer battalions from 5th Artillery Regiment from
Viana do Castelo and from the 6th Artillery Regiment from
Porto.
:1926 - The ROC was transferred to Leiria, being renamed 4th Artillery Regiment or RA4.
:1927 - The unit was renamed 4th Light Artillery Regiment or RAL4 (''Regimento de Artilharia Ligeira n.º 4).
:1955 - The regiment received the task of organizing the divisional artillery headquarters and two of the three field artillery groups (battalions) of the 3rd Division of the Portuguese Expeditionary Corps, the Portuguese main land forces contribution to
NATO.
:1961 - With the beginning of the
Portuguese Colonial War, the regiment organizes and sends, to
Angola, three artillery companies (''
caçadores'' type), to act as infantry but composed of military gunners: the 101st, the 119th and the 178th artillery companies.
:1963 - The RAL4, while retaining the same name, becomes a training center for military secretariat, especially for personal to be deployed to the Portuguese overseas territories in Africa.
:1975 - The unit is renamed Artillery Regiment of Leiria or RAL (''Regimento de Artilharia de Leiria''). Since 1977, the RAL receives the task of organizing the Field Artillery Group (GAC) of the new 1st Independent Mixed Brigade. For that task it is equipped with 155 mm M109 self-propelled and with M101 towed 105 mm howitzers.
:1993 - The unit is again renamed "4th Artillery Regiment" being responsible for the organization and maintenance of the Field Artillery Group of the
Independent Airborne Brigade, equipped with M101 and later with M119 Light Gun howitzers.
:2005 - As part of the reorganization of the
Portuguese Army
The Portuguese Army ( pt, Exército Português) is the land component of the Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its ...
, the
Rapid Reaction Brigade
The Albanian Rapid Reaction Brigade was created on 6 January 2001. It is the core unit of the Albanian Land Forces. In January 2003 there was the first structural reorganization and since November 2006 we have the current organization. It is consi ...
(ex-Airborne Brigade) ceased to have organic field artillery, and its Field Artillery Group is transferred to the
Intervention Brigade (BrigInt). Following this reorganization, given the deactivation of the old BrigInt's artillery unit, the RA4's Field Artillery Group's became the sole towed field artillery operational unit of the Portuguese Army.
:2009 - The 5th Artillery Regiment raised a new Field Artillery Group, which is attributed to the BrigInt. The RA4's Field Artillery Group is re-integrated in the Rapid Reaction Brigade.
Equipment
Infantry equipment
*
Glock 17 Gen 5
*
FN SCAR L STD
*
FN Minimi Mk3
*
Browning M2
*
FN40GL Grenade launcher
A grenade launcher is a weapon that fires a specially-designed large-caliber projectile, often with an explosive, smoke or gas warhead. Today, the term generally refers to a class of dedicated firearms firing unitary grenade cartridges. The mos ...
*
L16A2 mortar
*
Carl Gustav M3
Artillery
*
L118 light gun
*
Ordnance QF 25-pounder (used on ceremonial roles)
Tactical vehicles
*
Mitsubishi L200 4x4
*
Land Rover Defender'90 TDI 4x4
*
Toyota Land Cruiser HZJ73
Transport vehicles
*
Iveco 40.10 WM
*
Iveco 90.17 WM
*
DAF YA 4440 D
*
Unimog U1100L
*
Unimog 1750L
*
MAN 10.224
Awards and decorations
* 2 Decorations of Officer of the
Military Order of the Tower and Sword of Valour, Loyalty and Merit
* 3 1st Class Honours War Cross
* Gold Distinguished Service Medal
* Gold Medal of the City
Gallery
File:Firing Range of the Portuguese Field Artillery, Trident Juncture 15 (22386843100).jpg, Firing Range of the Portuguese Field Artillery
File:Portuguese Army Artillery Forces, Trident Juncture 15 (22472978131).jpg, Portuguese Army Artillery Forces
File:Portuguese Army Artillery Forces, Trident Juncture 15 (21839277604).jpg, Portuguese Army Artillery Forces during Trident Juncture 15
File:Portuguese Army Artillery Forces, Trident Juncture 15 (21839268894).jpg, Portuguese Army Unimog towing a L118 light gun.
File:Portuguese Army Artillery Forces, Trident Juncture 15 (22448760202).jpg, Portuguese 4th Artillery Regiment soldiers
References
Sources
Regimento de Artilharia n.º 4 - ''translated''
http://www.exercito.pt/SITES/RA4/Paginas/default.aspx - ''translated''
https://web.archive.org/web/20150924020310/http://www.g-sat.net/showthread.php?444233-Historia-Regimento-de-Artilharia-n%C2%BA-4-(Leiria) - ''translated''
{{coord missing, Portugal
1917 establishments in Portugal
Military units and formations established in 1917
1927 establishments in Portugal
Military units and formations established in 1927
Army regiments of Portugal
Military of Portugal
Military installations in Portugal