The Royal New Zealand Signals Corps (RNZSigs) provides, co-ordinates and operates the

communications network A telecommunications network is a group of nodes interconnected by telecommunications links that are used to exchange messages between the nodes. The links may use a variety of technologies based on the methodologies of circuit switching, messa ...

s of the

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

. The role of RNZSigs is to support other Arms by providing Communication Information System required for Command and Control of Units, Formations and Administrative installations in a theater of Operations and in the New Zealand support area. Modern signal equipment is essential to the

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

, demanding skilled operators and technicians. Because communications must be maintained even under the worst of conditions, signallers must be expert tradespeople. They must also accept a high degree of personal responsibility because the lives of soldiers can often rely on the fast and accurate transmission of battlefield information. The Corps comprises

systems engineer Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their life cycles. At its core, systems engineering utilizes systems thinking p ...

s who configure and implement networks, information systems operators who maintain and operate networks, and communication system operators who operate all sorts of communications equipment and process signals traffic over

voice The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound production in ...

and

data In the pursuit of knowledge, data (; ) is a collection of discrete values that convey information, describing quantity, quality, fact, statistics, other basic units of meaning, or simply sequences of symbols that may be further interpreted ...

circuits. The Corps consist of three regular squadrons and one reserve force squadron.

History

Military signals became a component of the New Zealand Army in 1905 when signals detachment were attached to the Infantry and Cycle Corps. From that the Cycle and Signalling Corps was established in 1909 from the College Rifles Company in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

. On 5 October 1911, the Post and Telegraph Corps was formed from personnel in the Post and Telegraph Department. On 1 June 1921, the Post and Telegraph Corps became the New Zealand Corps of Signals, with attached depots in various parts of the country. New Zealand had the following signal units that operated 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 ...

: *1st Divisional Signals *2nd Divisional Signals (served 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 re ...

) *3rd Divisional Signals (served in the Pacific Theatre) *4th Divisional Signals *5th Divisional Signals *Northern District Signals *Southern District Signals *Central District Signals *Army Signal Company In 1945, J-Force Signal Company was sent to

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

as part of the

British Commonwealth Occupation Force The British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) was the British Commonwealth taskforce consisting of Australian, British, Indian and New Zealand military forces in occupied Japan, from 1946 until the end of occupation in 1952. At its peak, t ...

. King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...

gave the "Royal" prefix to the unit on 12 July 1947. The principal unit of the RNZCS from 1948 to 1964 was the 1st Divisional Signals Regiment, from which the following units were established after its disbandment: *1st Infantry Brigade Group Squadron *2nd Communication Zone Signal Squadron *3rd Infantry Brigade Group Squadron *1st Communication Zone Signal Squadron A notable member of the RNZCS was Lieutenant Colonel Cyril Bassett, who was the only soldier serving with the

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 ...

(NZEF) to be awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

(VC) in the Gallipoli Campaign of 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 ...

. Upon his death, his VC was gifted to the RNZSigs and is displayed at the

Auckland War Memorial Museum The Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira (or simply the Auckland Museum) is one of New Zealand's most important museums and war memorials. Its collections concentrate on New Zealand history (and especially the history of the Aucklan ...

Structure

The RNZSig has the following structure: *1st Command Support Regiment **1st Signal Squadron (Army Reserve) – It is based in Palmerston North, Wellington and Christchurch. The Squadron consists of two troops from throughout the North and South Islands, many of which are ex regular force soldiers and officers. The primary role of the 1st Signal Squadron is to supplement the Regular force squadrons on exercises and operations. **2 Signal Squadron (Regular Force) – It is based in

Linton Linton may refer to: Places Australia * Linton, Victoria Canada * Linton, Ontario * Linton, Quebec United Kingdom England * Linton, Cambridgeshire * Linton, Derbyshire * Linton (near Bromyard), Herefordshire * Linton (near Ross-on-Wye), Her ...

and includes three troops, Headquarters, and a Q-Store made up of Regular Force personnel.; **3 Signals Squadron (Regular Force) – It is based in Burnham. It specializes in electronic warfare. **4 Signal Squadron (Regular Force) – It is based in Burnham. **25 Cypher Section (Regular Force) – It is based in Linton . The corps school is known as the School of Signals and is located at

Linton Military Camp Linton Military Camp is the largest New Zealand Army base and is home to the Headquarters 1(NZ) Brigade. It is located just south of Palmerston North. History The land that the present Linton Military Camp stands on was purchased by the Governme ...

, where both the Regular Force and Army Reserve personnel attend to attain qualification as a Royal New Zealand Signaller.

Pipe Band

The Pipe Band of the Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals Association, known simply as the Pipe Band of the Signals Association is a traditional Scottish

pipe Band A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of Bagpipes, pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common. The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland b ...

of the RNZCS, based in

. It is part of the

Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...

(Territorial Force), and is composed of part-time musicians. It is one of the only pipe bands in New Zealand that is allowed to parade in full traditional

highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...

military uniform. The band was formed as the Band of the 1st Divisional Signal Regiment, which was approved on 15 October 1957. When the regiment was disbanded in 1964, the band became a civilian band and continued its association with the RNZCS, becoming the pipes and drums of the Signals Association based out of

. The pipe major carries a banner that depicts the corps badge with gild scrolls that carry the title of Pipes and Drums of the Signal Association.

Traditions and customs

The badge of The Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals consists of the Roman god

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

, holding a

caduceus The caduceus (☤; ; la, cādūceus, from grc-gre, κηρύκειον "herald's wand, or staff") is the staff carried by Hermes in Greek mythology and consequently by Hermes Trismegistus in Greco-Egyptian mythology. The same staff was also ...

and standing on a globe, with a Royal crown above and two scrolls below bearing the Corps motto "Certa Cito" (meaning "swift and sure"). The Corps wears a rifle green beret and a signals pattern belt on its uniform.

Order of precedence

References

{{Reflist Administrative corps of New Zealand Military units and formations established in 1921 Military communications corps Organisations based in New Zealand with royal patronage