6th Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery was a

Regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

of the

Royal Horse Artillery The Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) was formed in 1793 as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery (commonly termed Royal Artillery) to provide horse artillery support to the cavalry units of the British Army. (Although the cavalry link ...

that acted as a training formation during

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 ...

. It was the last RHA unit to serve 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 ...

between December 1945 and April 1947, before being redesignated as 6th Field Regiment,

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 ...

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

in 1948. The regiment had an earlier incarnation as F Brigade, RHA, formed from the 2nd Brigade of the

Bengal Horse Artillery The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company (EIC) until the Govern ...

in 1862 before being broken up in 1877. It was reestablished in 1901 as VI

Brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Br ...

, RHA but was broken up at the outbreak of

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 its constituent batteries were posted to other formations.

History

F Brigade, RHA

The

Bengal Army The Bengal Army was the army of the Bengal Presidency, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the East India Company (EIC) until the Govern ...

of the

Honourable East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

formed its first battery of

Horse Artillery Horse artillery was a type of light, fast-moving, and fast-firing artillery which provided highly mobile fire support, especially to cavalry units. Horse artillery units existed in armies in Europe, the Americas, and Asia, from the early 17th to t ...

, the ''Experimental Brigade, Bengal Horse Artillery'' on 4 December 1800 (still in existence as F Battery, RHA). By the time the

Indian Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

broke out, the Bengal Horse Artillery had grown to 13 batteries, organized as three brigades. Four of these batteries were manned by

sepoy ''Sepoy'' () was the Persian-derived designation originally given to a professional Indian infantryman, traditionally armed with a musket, in the armies of the Mughal Empire. In the 18th century, the French East India Company and its oth ...

s (native Indian soldiers) and two mutinied: 4th Troop, 1st Brigade at

Neemuch Neemuch or Nimach is a town in the malwa region. Neemuch crowns the north western part of MP. It has been also referred to city of Nature and Peace. The town shares its northwestern border with the state of Rajasthan and is the administrati ...

and 4th Troop, 3rd Brigade at

Multan Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab. Multan is one of the List ...

. All four batteries were promptly reformed as European units. As a result of the Rebellion, the

British Crown The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories, overseas territories, Provinces and territorie ...

took direct control of India from the East India Company on 1 November 1858 under the provisions of the

Government of India Act 1858 The Government of India Act 1858 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (21 & 22 Vict. c. 106) passed on 2 August 1858. Its provisions called for the liquidation of the British East India Company (who had up to this point been ruling ...

. The

Presidency armies The presidency armies were the armies of the three presidencies of the East India Company's rule in India, later the forces of the British Crown in India, composed primarily of Indian sepoys. The presidency armies were named after the presidenc ...

transferred to the direct authority of the British Crown and its European units were transferred to 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 ...

. Henceforth artillery, the mutineers most effective arm, was to be the sole preserve of the British Army (with the exception of certain Mountain Artillery batteries). On 19 February 1862, the Bengal Horse Artillery transferred to the

as its 2nd and 5th Horse Brigades. On transfer, 5th Horse Brigade, Royal Artillery comprised: *A Battery, 5th Horse Brigade (A/5) - formerly 1st Troop, 2nd Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery at

Rawalpindi Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...

*B Battery, 5th Horse Brigade (B/5) - formerly 2nd Troop, 2nd Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery at

Meerut Meerut (, IAST: ''Meraṭh'') is a city in Meerut district of the western part of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The city lies northeast of the national capital New Delhi, within the National Capital Region and west of the state capital ...

*C Battery, 5th Horse Brigade (C/5) - formerly 3rd Troop, 2nd Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery at

Ambala Ambala () is a city and a municipal corporation in Ambala district in the state of Haryana, India, located on the border with the Indian state of Punjab and in proximity to both states capital Chandigarh. Politically, Ambala has two sub-area ...

*D Battery, 5th Horse Brigade (D/5) - formerly 4th Troop, 2nd Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery at

Mian Mir Baba Sain Mir Mohammed Sahib (c. 1550 – 22 August 1635), popularly known as Mian Mir or Miyan Mir, was a famous Sindhi Sufi Muslim saint who resided in Lahore, specifically in the town of ''Dharampura'' (in present-day Pakistan). He was a d ...

*E Battery, 5th Horse Brigade (E/5) - formerly 3rd Troop, 3rd Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery at

*F Battery, 5th Horse Brigade (F/5) - formerly 4th Troop, 3rd Brigade Bengal Horse Artillery at

The 1st Brigade with 10 batteries was much larger than the other four (with four to seven batteries each). A reorganization of the Horse Artillery on 13 April 1864 saw 1st Brigade split as A and B Brigades, 2nd Brigade become C Brigade, 3rd become D Brigade, 4th become E Brigade, and 5th become F Horse Brigade, Royal Artillery. As battery designations were tied to the brigade the battery was assigned to, the batteries were also redesignated. The new designations were in order of seniority. F Horse Brigade, RA now comprised: *A Battery, F Horse Brigade (A/F) - formerly A/5 Battery at

*B Battery, F Horse Brigade (B/F) - formerly B/5 Battery at

Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...

*C Battery, F Horse Brigade (C/F) - formerly C/5 Battery at

*D Battery, F Horse Brigade (D/F) - formerly E/5 Battery at

*E Battery, F Horse Brigade (E/F) - formerly D/5 Battery at

*F Battery, F Horse Brigade (F/F) - formerly F/5 Battery at

Sialkot Sialkot ( ur, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Sialkot District and the 13th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined with Jammu (the winter capital of Indian administered Jammu and Ka ...

From 1866, the term "

" appeared in Army List hence the brigade was designated F Brigade, Royal Horse Artillery from about this time. Another reorganization on 14 April 1877 saw the number of brigades reduced to three (of 10 batteries each) and F Brigade was broken up. Its batteries were mostly transferred to C Brigade and redesignated again, for example, A/F Battery becoming F Battery, C Brigade. The number of brigades was further reduced to two (of 13 batteries each) in 1882. The brigade system was finally abolished in 1889. Henceforth, batteries were designated in a single alphabetical sequence in order of seniority from date of formation.

VI Brigade, RHA

First formation

The brigade system was revived in 1901. Each brigade now commanded just two batteries and a small staff (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. ...

in command, an

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

and a brigade

sergeant major Sergeant major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's infantry, and ranked about third in the ...

). Initially, batteries were not assigned to brigades in any particular order, but in 1906, at the insistence of

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...

, brigades were redesignated so that batteries were roughly in order of seniority (hence I Brigade commanded

A Battery A generic triode vacuum tube circuit showing "A", "B" and "C" batteries">vacuum_tube.html" ;"title="triode vacuum tube">triode vacuum tube circuit showing "A", "B" and "C" batteries In the early days of electronics, vacuum tube (called ''valves' ...

and B Battery). VI Brigade, RHA was formed on 1 March 1901 as the VII Brigade-Division, RHA with H Battery and K Battery. In 1903 it was redesignated as VII Brigade, RHA and was stationed at

. On 1 October 1906, it was redesignated as VI Brigade, RHA. By the time

broke out, the brigade was stationed at

Trowbridge Trowbridge ( ) is the county town of Wiltshire, England, on the River Biss in the west of the county. It is near the border with Somerset and lies southeast of Bath, 31 miles (49 km) southwest of Swindon and 20 miles (32 km) southe ...

attached to 2nd Cavalry Brigade. H Battery was at Trowbridge and on 28 September was assigned to VII Brigade, RHA in 1st Cavalry Division as a permanent replacement for L Battery which had been almost destroyed at

Néry Néry () is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. The commune includes the hamlets of Huleux, Vaucelles, and Verrines. The Church of Saint-Martin in Néry dates from 1140 with later additions. The Manoir de Huleux was built in 15 ...

. K Battery was at

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

and on 1 October was assigned to XV (later IV) Brigade, RHA in 3rd Cavalry Division. With the departure of its batteries, the brigade HQ was dissolved.

Second formation

By October 1919, VI Brigade, RHA was reformed at Shorncliffe in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

with * V Battery, RHA from

7th Indian Cavalry Brigade The Meerut Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army formed in 1904 as a result of the Kitchener Reforms. It was mobilized as 7th (Meerut) Cavalry Brigade at the outbreak of the First World War and departed for the We ...

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...

in May 1919 * W Battery, RHA from

11th Indian Cavalry Brigade The 11th Indian Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry brigade of the British Indian Army that saw active service in the Indian Army during the First World War. It took part in the Mesopotamian campaign and was broken up soon after the end of the war. ...

in May 1919 * X Battery, RHA from XVII Brigade, RHA in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in early 1919 This new incarnation was short-lived, however. On 8 January 1920, the

Headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

was absorbed into the HQ of

8th Brigade, Royal Field Artillery 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of the ...

. On 4 May 1920, V, W, and X Batteries were converted to 137th, 138th and 139th Batteries, RFA in 8th Brigade, RFA.

6th Regiment, RHA

6th Regiment, RHA was formed on 1 November 1940 at

Bulwick Bulwick is a village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 152 people, including Blatherwycke and increasing to 171 at the 2011 census. It is about six miles north-east of Co ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

from a cadre of 5th Regiment, RHA. Initially, it commanded 1, 2 and 3 batteries until they took on the identities of N, O and P batteries. In March 1941, P Battery, RHA left 3rd Regiment, RHA and returned to the UK. In February 1942, O Battery, RHA was unlinked from B/O Battery of 1st Regiment, RHA and returned to the UK. In April 1942, N Battery, RHA was unlinked from I/N Battery of 2nd Regiment, RHA and returned to the UK. The regiment did not see active service in

, instead it remained in England as a training formation to provide officers and men to the other regiments. On 4 December 1940 it was assigned to the 9th Support Group of 9th Armoured Division and remained with the division when 9th Support Group was disbanded on 12 June 1942. It remained under command of 9th Armoured Division until 10 July 1944. 9th Armoured Division was disbanded shortly thereafter. In December 1945 the regiment was posted to India, the last RHA unit to serve there. On 29 April 1947, the regiment departed

Bombay (Mumbai) Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

for

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 ...

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 ...

arriving on 8 May. It was posted to the

Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terri ...

, serving there until October, before moving to

on internal security duties. In 1948, 6th Regiment RHA reverted to RA status as

6th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. N Battery transferred to 4th Regiment, RHA just before conversion, with W Battery, RHA replacing it.

Notes

References

Bibliography

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External links