The East Surrey Regiment
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| The East Surrey Regiment | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1881 - 1959 |
| Country | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| Branch | British Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Two Battalions |
| Battles/wars | Sobroan (10th Feb.) Ypres (23rd April) |
The East Surrey Regiment was a regiment in the British Army formed in 1881 from the amalgamation of the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot and the 70th (Surrey) Regiment of Foot .
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[edit] History
[edit] Early history
The 1st Battalion, after formation, was based in various garrisons around the British Empire but did not see major action until the First World War in 1914.
The 2nd Battalion on the other hand was in action soon after formation, being part of the British expedition to the Sudan in 1884. This battalion also took part in the Anglo-Boer War that started in 1899. They took part in the Relief of Ladysmith , the Battle of Tugela Heights and Laing's Nek . After South Africa the battalion was shipped to India in 1903 where they remained until the out break of World War I.
[edit] First World War
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[edit] Second World War
[edit] 1st Battalion
The 1st Battalion was based in England at the out break of the Second World War as part of the 4th Infantry Division . It was sent to France with the British Expeditionary Force in 1940. After returning to the Untied Kingdom after the evacuation from Dunkirk the 1st Battalion was reformed and attached to the 78th Infantry Division for the operations in Tunisia during the North African Campaign in 1943. The battalion then served in the Italian Campaign and later the re-occupation of Greece from 1944 to 1945.
[edit] 2nd Battalion
In 1940 the 2nd Battalion was shipped from China to Malaya where it was attached to 11th Indian Division based in North West Malaya. In December 1941 the Japanese Army invaded Malaya after landing in southern Thailand . The 2nd East Surreys suffered tremendous casualties during the defence and retreat from this part of Malaya. The battalion was amalgamated with the 1st Battalion, The Leicestershire Regiment to form the British Battalion on the 19th December 1941 . This unit fought gallantly through out the rest of the short campaign until the surrender of the British Army at Singapore in February 1942.
In May 1942 the 2nd Battalion was reformed from the redesignation of the 11th Battalion. It did not see further action in the Second World War.
[edit] Amalgamation
The 2nd Battalion was disbanded in 1948 and its personnel joined the 1st Battalion. In 1959 the East Surreys were amalgamated with The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) to form the The Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment .
[edit] External links
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