The Northland Regiment was a territorial

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

regiment of the

New Zealand Military Forces , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

. The Regiment was formed in 1911 and provided service companies to the Auckland Infantry Regiment during the

First World War 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 ...

. Men from the Regiment also served with the

18th 18 (eighteen) is the natural number following 17 and preceding 19. In mathematics * Eighteen is a composite number, its divisors being 1, 2, 3, 6 and 9. Three of these divisors (3, 6 and 9) add up to 18, hence 18 is a semiperfect number. ...

, 21st, 24th and 29th battalions of the

2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

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 opposi ...

. The regiment was amalgamated with the Auckland Regiment (Countess of Ranfurly's Own) in 1964, becoming 3rd Battalion (Auckland (Countess of Ranfurly's Own) and Northland),

Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment is the parent administrative regiment and corps of regular and reserve infantry battalions in the New Zealand Army. It was originally formed in 1947 with a singular Regular regiment and multiple reserve r ...

History

The 15th (North Auckland) Regiment was formed on 17 March 1911 as part of a reorganisation of New Zealand's military which saw the old

Volunteer Force The Volunteer Force was a citizen army of part-time rifle, artillery and engineer corps, created as a popular movement throughout the British Empire in 1859. Originally highly autonomous, the units of volunteers became increasingly integrated ...

converted into a Territorial Force based on compulsory military training. The regiment was completely new and had no lineage to units of the Volunteer Force. At the outbreak of the

in August 1914, the decision was made to form a New Zealand infantry brigade of four battalions from the existing territorial regiments. The 15th (North Auckland) Regiment provided the 15th (North Auckland) Company to the Auckland Battalion, which saw service in the Gallipoli Campaign. Following the evacuation from Gallipoli in 1916, the Auckland Battalion was expanded to a regiment of two battalions. The Auckland Infantry Regiment would see action on the western front, engaging in the battles of the Somme, Messines, Passchendaele, German Spring Offensive and the Hundred Days Offensive. A third battalion was also raised in 1917, but was disbanded in 1918 due to manpower shortages. Both the 2nd and 3rd Battalions were organised along the same lines as the 1st Battalion, each with their own 15th (North Auckland) Company. The Auckland Infantry Regiment was disbanded at the end of the war. In 1921, the New Zealand territorial regiments were reorganised into larger regiments, similar to those of the First World War, with the 15th (North Auckland) Regiment becoming the 3rd Battalion, Auckland Regiment. The amalgamations were short lived and in 1923, the previous organisation was reverted to, although the ordinals were dropped and the 3rd Battalion was redesignated as the North Auckland Regiment. Another reorganisation occurred in 1937 when the North Auckland Regiment was reduced to a depot and supplied a single rifle company to the 1st Composite Battalion. The battalion also had rifle companies from the

Hauraki Hauraki is a suburb located on the southern North Shore of Auckland, the largest metropolitan city in New Zealand. It is under the local governance of the Auckland Council. History The traditional name for the western coastline in Hauraki wa ...

and

Waikato Regiment The Waikato Regiment was a territorial infantry regiment of the New Zealand Military Forces. The Regiment was formed in 1911 as the 16th (Waikato) Regiment and provided service companies to the Auckland Infantry Regiment during the First World W ...

s. The composite system was abandoned in May 1939, just prior to the outbreak of the

and the territorial regiments were brought up to full battalion strength. During the

, the North Auckland Regiment remained in New Zealand for home defence. A 2nd, 3rd and 4th Battalion were formed in February 1942 by redesignating the 6th, 7th and 8th Battalions of the National Military Reserve respectively. The 3rd Battalion was redesignated as the

2nd Māori Battalion The 2nd Māori Battalion was a territorial battalion of the New Zealand Military Forces during the second world war. The battalion was formed in February 1942 as the 3rd battalion, North Auckland Regiment by converting a battalion of the Nation ...

in June 1942. The 1st and 3rd Battalions (later 2nd Maori Battalion) became part of 12th Infantry Brigade of the 1st New Zealand Division and were expected to provide a mobile response to any invasion throughout the country. The 2nd and 4th Battalions remained stationed in Northland as stationary "fortress troops". The territorial forces were stood down in June 1943 and the 2nd and 4th Battalions were formally disbanded in April 1944. Men from the regiment saw active service overseas with the

, 21st, 24th and 29th battalions of the

. The 18th, 21st and 24th battalions formed part of the 2nd New Zealand Division and saw action in

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and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. The 29th Battalion was deployed to the Pacific with the

3rd New Zealand Division The 3rd New Zealand Division was a division of the New Zealand Military Forces. Formed in 1942, it saw action against the Japanese in the Pacific Ocean Areas during the Second World War. The division saw action in the Solomon Islands campaign durin ...

and saw combat at the

Treasury Islands Treasury Islands () are a small group of islands a few kilometres to the south of Bougainville and from the Shortland Islands. They form part of the Western Province of the country of Solomon Islands. The two largest islands in the Treasuries ...

. The North Auckland Regiment was redesignated as the Northland Regiment in 1951 to better reflect its recruiting area and in 1955 Princess Margaret was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of the regiment. A reorganisation of the Territorial Force in 1961 saw the number of infantry battalions reduced from nine to six. To avoid the disbandment of any regiments, three regiments, including the Northland Regiment, became "recessed". The recessed regiments would not raise a battalion and only consist of a regimental headquarters, a band and two rifle companies. The two companies would wear the cap badge of the recessed regiment, but be operationally part of a battalion of one of the non-recessed regiments. The Northland Regiment therefore formed C and D companies of the Auckland Regiment. In 1964 all of the territorial infantry regiments were merged into the

. The Northland Regiment was amalgamated with the Auckland Regiment (Countess of Ranfurly's Own) in 1964, becoming 3rd Battalion (Auckland (Countess of Ranfurly's Own) and Northland).

Battle Honours

The North Auckland regiment was presented a stand of

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by the Governor-General,

Viscount Galway Viscount Galway is a title that has been created once in the Peerage of England and thrice in the Peerage of Ireland. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1628 in favour of Richard Burke, 4th Earl of Clanricarde. He was made Earl ...

, at

Dargaville Dargaville ( mi, Takiwira) is a town located in the North Island of New Zealand. It is situated on the bank of the Northern Wairoa River in the Kaipara District of the Northland region. The town is located 55 kilometres southwest of Whangāre ...

in 1937. The following battle honours earned during the First World War were authorised to be emblazoned on the colours: The regiment also inherited the battle honours of the

(until 5 October 1942), 21st, 24th and 29th Battalions. The following battle honours were authorised to be emblazoned on the colours:

Alliances

The Northland Regiment was allied with the following regiment: * –

Northamptonshire Regiment The Northamptonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1960. In 1960, it was amalgamated with the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment to form the 2nd East Anglian Regiment (Duchess of Gloucester's O ...

References

{{New Zealand Great War Infantry Regiments Infantry regiments of New Zealand Military units and formations established in 1911 Military units and formations disestablished in 1964