The Ruahine Regiment was a Territorial Force

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 marine i ...

Regiment of the

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. It was briefly raised in the 1910s and saw service in 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 ...

as part of the Wellington Infantry Regiment. It was formed for a second time during the Second World War and was deployed overseas as part of the 3rd Division but never saw combat.

History

First World War

In early 1914, the 17th (Ruahine) Regiment was formed by redesignating the 2nd Battalion, 9th (Wellington East Coast) Regiment (the 1st Battalion was retitled as the 9th (Hawke's Bay) Regiment). 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. Men from the 17th (Ruahine) Regiment formed the 17th (Ruahine) Company of the Wellington Battalion, which saw service during the Gallipoli Campaign. Following the evacuation from Gallipoli in 1916, the Battalion became a regiment of two battalions. The Wellington Infantry Regiment would see action on the western front, engaging in the battles of the Somme, Messines, Broodseinde, Passchendaele, German Spring Offensive and the

Hundred Days' Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Western Front, the Allies pushed the Central Powers ...

. 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 eponymous 17th (Ruahine) Company. The Wellington Infantry Regiment was disbanded at the end of the war. Sir Walter Buchanan, a former MP for

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service ...

, was appointed honorary colonel of the Regiment in 1916. In 1921, the 17th (Ruahine) Regiment was amalgamated with the 9th (Hawkes Bay) Regiment and became the 3rd Battalion, Wellington Regiment, which was later redesignated as the Hawke's Bay Regiment in 1923. The Ruahine Regiment received a stand of

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in 1923 which were immediately laid up in St Matthews Church in

Masterton Masterton ( mi, Whakaoriori), a large town in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand, operates as the seat of the Masterton District (a territorial authority or local-government district). It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a r ...

as the Regiment no longer existed.

Second World War

The Hawke's Bay Regiment remained in New Zealand for home defence 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 ...

and raised a 2nd Battalion in November 1940. The 2nd Battalion was detached in 1941 to form the Ruahine Regiment for a second time. The Ruahine Regiment was initially based in New Zealand as part of the 4th Division, but in October 1942 it was decided that the regiment would join the 3rd Division in the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. The regiment was deployed to

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in December and initially joined 8th Brigade. The Ruahine Regiment was later transferred to the 15th Brigade in April 1943, however due to manpower shortages, the brigade was disbanded in July 1943 and never saw action. The Ruahine Regiment continued to exist on paper until its formal disbandment in 1948. The Ruahine Regiment was affiliated with the 19th, 22nd and 25th of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force and inherited their battle honours.

References

{{New Zealand Great War Infantry Regiments Infantry regiments of New Zealand Military units and formations established in 1914 Military units and formations disestablished in 1921 Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1948