The 6th (Manawatu) Mounted Rifles was formed on March 17, 1911. They were mobilised 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 ...

as a squadron of the

Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment The Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment from New Zealand, raised for service during the First World War. It was assigned to the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade, part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. Th ...

. They served in the

Middle Eastern theatre of World War I The Middle Eastern theatre of World War I saw action between 29 October 1914 and 30 October 1918. The combatants were, on one side, the Ottoman Empire (including the majority of Kurdish tribes, a relative majority of Arabs, and Caucasian ''T ...

and first saw action during the Battle of Gallipoli. As a part of the larger New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade (of the ANZAC Mounted Division), they went on to serve in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign.

Great War battles

* Battle of Gallipoli *

Battle of Romani The Battle of Romani was the last ground attack of the Central Powers on the Suez Canal at the beginning of the Sinai and Palestine campaign during the First World War. The battle was fought between 3 and 5 August 1916 near the Egyptian town ...

Battle of Magdhaba The Battle of Magdhaba took place on 23 December 1916 during the Defence of Egypt section of the Sinai and Palestine Campaign in the First World War.The Battles Nomenclature Committee assigned 'Affair' to those engagements between forces small ...

Battle of Rafa The Battle of Rafa, also known as the Action of Rafah, fought on 9 January 1917, was the third and final battle to complete the recapture of the Sinai Peninsula by British forces during the Sinai and Palestine campaign of the First World War. T ...

. *

First Battle of Gaza The First Battle of Gaza was fought on 26 March 1917 during the first attempt by the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF), which was a British Empire military formation, formed on 10 March 1916 under the command of General Archibald Murray from th ...

Second Battle of Gaza The Second Battle of Gaza was fought on 17-19 April 1917, following the defeat of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) at the First Battle of Gaza in March, during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of the First World War. Gaza was defended by ...

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 ...

* Battle of Beersheba *

Battle of Megiddo (1918) The Battle of Megiddo ( tr, ), also known in Turkish as the ("Rout of Nablus") or the ("Breakthrough at Nablus"), was fought between 19 and 25 September 1918, on the Plain of Sharon, in front of Tulkarm, Tabsor and Arara in the Judean Hil ...

Between the wars

Admiral of the Fleet

John Jellicoe Admiral of the Fleet John Rushworth Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, (5 December 1859 – 20 November 1935) was a Royal Navy officer. He fought in the Anglo-Egyptian War and the Boxer Rebellion and commanded the Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutlan ...

was appointed honorary colonel of the Regiment in 1923. The regiment was renamed the 6th New Zealand Mounted Rifles (Manawatu) in 1921 and later to the simple

Manawatu Rifles The 6th (Manawatu) Mounted Rifles was formed on March 17, 1911. They were mobilised during World War I as a squadron of the Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment. They served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I and first saw action during t ...

, which was absorbed into 2nd Armoured Regiment on 29 March 1944.

Notable unit members

* Major Norman Frederick Hastings, DSO, mid,

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

, Officer Commanding the 6th (Manawatu) Squadron,

who died of wounds after the attack on Chunuk Bair, Gallipoli in August 1915.

Alliances

* –

5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards The 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment of the British Army formed in 1922 by the amalgamation of the 5th Dragoon Guards (Princess Charlotte of Wales's) and the 6th (Inniskilling) Dragoons. It served in the Second World ...

References

{{New Zealand Great War Mounted Regiments New Zealand in World War I Cavalry regiments of New Zealand Military units and formations established in 1911 Military units and formations disestablished in 1921 Military units and formations of New Zealand in World War I History of Manawatū-Whanganui 1911 establishments in New Zealand