In 1881 The 37th North
Hampshire Regiment & The 67th South Hampshire Regiment
where united to form the 1st & 2nd Battalions The
Hampshire Regiment. The 37th to be known as the 1st
Battalion and the 67th to be the 2nd Battalion. Below
is a time line of 2nd Hampshire Regiment from 1885-1946
It shows the Date, Campaign, and Battles, some have pictures.
Click on the blue links to read about the Battle itself,
see the pictures, and the role the Regiment played. I
am trying to research all the battles and as I do I will
be updating the Information I have. For
WW1 I have created a special section it is not complete
but contains alot of information.
2nd Battalion. WW
II
The regular army got
the order to mobilize in September 1939 and the 2nd
Battalion of The Hampshire's were first British Battalion
to disembark in France as part of the British Expeditionary
Force and were among the last to get away from Dunkirk
on the 2nd of June 1940 and returned to England with
its equipment complete.
North African Campaign.
On the 11th of November
1942 the 2nd Bn. Left Liverpool England and arrived
in Algiers on the 21st of November. Once there they
began a general advance towards Tunis on the 24th of
November, First Medjez-el-Bab was captured and then
Tebourba, but on the 29th the advance slowed and the
2nd Bn received new orders and would take part in Tebourba.
Tebourba.
The four day action of
the 2nd Battalion at Tebourba twenty miles west of Tunis
was the pivot on which the First Army turned. On November
29th the Germans began violent counter attacks to regain
Tebourba which was being defended by the 6th Northamptonshire's.
The 2nd Hampshire's 689 men strong took over there positions,
outnumbered four to one by the Germans who also had
heavy armour and air support. The British positions
were ill suited for defence, being over looked by high
ground to the right and front. On the 30th the Bn was
under heavy shelling and the Brigade Commander came
up and said that the Bn must hold the ground it stood
on. A mortar detachment scored a direct hit on a lorry
full of enemy infantry.
On Tuesday morning December
the 1st considerable enemy activity was observed on
the Bn front, and early in the afternoon the enemy attacked
with mortars, and machine guns giving covering fire.
The Germans tried to dislodge two forward companies.
In front of 'X' company they advanced into a wood but
were driven out and 'Y" company repelled an attack
on its lines. Again the enemy tried and were counter
attacked by a single platoon which took heavy casualties
and withdrew to its original positions. The Germans
brought tanks into the action and shot up the Battalion
headquarters, then headed for the wood. Captain CL Thomas
a Company Commander rallied his men all five of them,
who then charged the tanks and supporting troops which
they began to bayonet. Captain Thomas received the D.S.O.
Le Patourel's V.C. (See
V.C.)
His company was faced
with enemy machine gun and mortar positions on the high
ground to there left, it was essential to clear these
to avoid giving up the vital Tebourba area Le Patourel
had four volunteers and led them through heavy machine
gun fire towards the hill and took out several positions.
All four of his men killed or wounded he continued on
with only a pistol and grenades but he too was seen
to fall. His V.C. Being awarded posthumously, later
it was learned that he had been wounded and taken prisoner.
The Germans eventually
got behind the Hampshire's and at dusk the C.O. Lieutenant
Colonel Lee took his few remaining men and defended
his Headquarters, and waited for the cover of darkness,
he gave the order to fix bayonets and charged the enemy
positions, 194 men survived from 210 ( all that remained
of a Battalion of 689 ) who went into action at Tebourba.
The remaining men fought there way back to the outskirts
of the village and reported to Brigade Headquarters.
Finding the enemy had cut the road leading back to Medjez
El Bab where all the remaining troops of the Brigade
had been withdrawn too, the C.O. gave the order to disperse
in groups of two or three.
ROYAL
In 1945-46 The Hampshire's received
the freedoms of Aldershot, Bournemouth, Southampton,
and Winchester. Then in 1946 an order dated 28th November
gave the Hampshire's its highest accolade. The battalions
did not wear the Cap badge with the Kings Royal crown
upon it until sometime after 1946.
The Citation Read.
"In Recognition of past services
His Majesty. The King has been graciously pleased to
approve that the following Regiments shall in future
enjoy the distinction "ROYAL."
The regimental honours list was short
and the Hampshire's were one of them. Meredith's had
finally been crowned.
After Demobilization the 37th and
67th went back to its two regular Battalions 1st and
2nd, and in 1949 they were amalgamated, numerically,
the
1st Battalion The Royal
Hampshire Regiment.
