58th (Middlesex) Searchlight Regiment, Royal Artillery

58th (Middlesex) Searchlight Regiment, RA
Active 1938–4 July 1955
Country  United Kingdom
Branch Territorial Army
Type Searchlight Regiment
Infantry Battalion
Anti-Aircraft Regiment
Role Air Defence
Garrison/HQ Harrow, London
Engagements Battle of Britain
The Blitz
Operation Diver

58th (Middlesex) Searchlight Regiment, Royal Artillery was an air defence unit of Britain's Territorial Army (TA) raised just before World War II. It defended the East Midlands of England during The Blitz, and later served as infantry in North West Europe at the end of the war, converting to the anti-aircraft (AA) artillery role postwar.

Origin

This searchlight unit was formed as part of the doubling in size of the TA at the time of the Munich Crisis in late 1938. Formally, it was a duplicate of 36th (Middlesex) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, Royal Engineers, based on 344 AA Company at Harrow, which was transferred from 36th AA Battalion to provide a cadre of trained men. Two new companies were then formed to give the unit the following organisation:[1][2]

58th (Middlesex) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, Royal Engineers

The first commanding officer was Lt-Col Edward Boggis, MBE, who had been officer commanding 344th AA Company.[1]

World War II

Mobilisation

In February 1939 the existing AA defences came under the control of a new Anti-Aircraft Command. In June a partial mobilisation of TA units was begun in a process known as 'couverture', whereby each AA unit did a month's tour of duty in rotation to man selected AA and searchlight positions. On 24 August, ahead of the declaration of war, AA Command was fully mobilised at its war stations.[3] The outbreak of World War II saw 58 AA Battalion forming part of 40th Anti-Aircraft Brigade in 2nd AA Division. Based at RAF Duxford, the brigade was responsible for providing AA defence for RAF airfields in East Anglia.[2][4][5][6]

Battle of Britain and Blitz

On 1 August 1940 the Royal Engineers' AA battalions were transferred to the Royal Artillery (RA), being redesignated searchlight regiments.[7][8][9] By this time 58th (Middlesex) had been moved to 32nd (Midland) Anti-Aircraft Brigade, still in 2 AA Division, but now responsible for AA defence of the East Midlands during the forthcoming Blitz.[5][10][11][12]

In 1941 the searchlight layout over the Midlands was reorganised, so that any hostile raid approaching the Gun Defended Areas (GDA) around the towns must cross more than one searchlight belt, and then within the GDAs the concentration of lights was increased.[13]

344th Battery

In April 1943, 344th Bty received orders to train for a mobile role, and after this training it joined 100 AA Bde on 30 June. 100 AA Bde was one of the formations slated to participate in Operation Overlord (the Allied invasion of Normandy planned for 1944) and shortly afterwards the battery became formally independent of 58 S/L regiment.[14] 344th Independent S/L Bty proceeded to Normandy in July 1944 where it pioneered the use of searchlights to create artificial moonlight, otherwise known as movement light or 'Monty's Moonlight', to aid movement in night operations by 21st Army Group.[15] In February 1945 it changed its title to 344th Independent Moonlight Bty and split off a separate 581st Independent Moonlight Battery.[16]

Operation Diver

Meanwhile, the rest of 58th S/L Regt (425 and 426 Btys) had remained with AA Command. Soon after D-Day in June 1944 the bombardment of London by German V-1 flying bombs began, and AA Command was engaged in the efforts to combat them (Operation Diver). Much of AA Command's strength was repositioned on the South Coast of England to engage the V-1s as they came in over the sea. In the centre of the line at Dungeness were four Z Batteries, each of 64 twin 3-inch rocket-launchers. Z Batteries defending towns were by 1944 largely manned by shifts of part-time members of the Home Guard, but for these frontline batteries the detachments were provided by 58th S/L Regiment, which had been hastily trained in the new role.[17][18]

The most severe phase of V1 attacks on the UK ended in September 1944 after the launching sites were overrun by the advance of 21st Army Group along the coast of France and Belgium.[17][19]

Infantry role

By the end of 1944, the German Luftwaffe was suffering from such shortages of pilots, aircraft and fuel that serious aerial attacks on the United Kingdom could be discounted and the War Office began reorganising surplus anti-aircraft regiments in the UK into infantry battalions for duties in the rear areas.[17][20] In November, 58th Searchlight Regiment was one of the units selected for conversion, and redesignated 58th (Middlesex) Garrison Regiment, RA.[5][7][8][9][21]

Meanwhile, 21st Army Group fighting in North West Europe was suffering a severe manpower shortage, particularly among the infantry.[22] In January 1945, the War Office accelerated the conversion of surplus artillery into infantry units, primarily for line of communication and occupation duties, thereby releasing trained infantry for frontline service.[23][24] 58 Garrison Regiment was redesignated again, becoming 611 (Middlesex) Infantry Regiment, RA in February. It went to North West Europe the following month and did duty with Second Army until VE Day.[5][7][8][21][25][26]

Postwar

In 1947 the regiment was reconstituted in the TA as 593 (Middlesex) (Mixed) Heavy AntiAircraft Regiment, RA at Harrow, ('mixed' indicating that it was composed partly of members of the Women's Royal Army Corps). Its title was later changed to 593 (Harrow) HAA Regiment.[7][8][27] It was assigned to 82 AA Bde based at Heston[28][29][30]

In March 1955 Anti-Aircraft Command was disbanded, and many of its TA regiments were reduced: 593 HAA Regiment was placed in suspended animation, and completely disbanded in July that year.[8][27]

Badge

During 1941, the regiment adopted as its arm badge a blue Cornflower embroidered on a khaki disc. The cornflower is the traditional buttonhole worn by supporters of Harrow School at the Eton-Harrow match, the annual cricket match against Eton College held at Lord's Cricket Ground. The regiment and its successors continued to wear the badge until disbandment in 1955.[8][31]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Monthly Army List January 1939
  2. 1 2 2 AA Division 1939 at British Military History
  3. ↑ Routledge, pp. 65–6, 371.
  4. ↑ AA Command 3 September 1939 at Patriot Files
  5. 1 2 3 4 2 AA Division 1940 at British Military History
  6. ↑ Routledge Table LX, p. 378.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Farndale, Annex M, p. 339.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Litchfield, p. 178.
  9. 1 2 58 S/L Rgt at RA 39–45.
  10. ↑ Routledge Table LXV, p. 396.
  11. ↑ Farndale, Annex D, p. 258.
  12. ↑ 2 AA Division at RA 39–45. Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine.
  13. ↑ Routledge, p. 399.
  14. ↑ 344 S/L Bty War Diary, 1943, The National Archives (TNA), Kew file WO 166/11549.
  15. ↑ Routledge, p. 314.
  16. ↑ 344 M/L Bty War Diary 1945, TNA file WO 171/5095.
  17. 1 2 3 Pile.
  18. ↑ Routledge, p. 413.
  19. ↑ Routledge, p. 415.
  20. ↑ Routledge, p. 421.
  21. 1 2 58 Garrison Rgt at RA 39–45.
  22. ↑ Ellis, pp. 141–2.
  23. ↑ Ellis, pp. 369, 380.
  24. ↑ Infantry Regiments RA at RA 39–45 Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  25. ↑ 611 Infantry Rgt at RA 39–45.
  26. ↑ Joslen, p. 463.
  27. 1 2 592-638 Rgts at British Army 1945 on.
  28. ↑ 67-106 AA Bdes at British Army 1945 on. Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine.
  29. ↑ TA 1947 Archived December 5, 2013, at the Wayback Machine.
  30. ↑ Litchfield, Appendix 5.
  31. ↑ 58 S/L Regimental insignia at RA 39–45.

References

Online sources

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