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2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade
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2nd Canadian
Armoured Brigade
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Authorized:
26 January 1942
Disbanded: 1945 |
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The 2nd Canadian
Armoured Brigade was an armoured formation formed for service
the Second World War. It was one of only two Canadian
independent armoured brigades to see combat.
Army Tank Brigade
The 2nd Canadian Army Tank Brigade was authorized on 26 January 1942, formed
from units surplus to the 4th Canadian Infantry Division which had recently
converted to an armoured division. As it turned out, this brigade would be able
to train on tanks from the time of its formation. One unit was the 24th Army
Tank Battalion (Les Voltigeurs de Québec), which was reroled as a reconnaissance
unit for service in Canada. The Brigade trained at the newly opened Meaford AFV
range on Georgian Bay beginning in the autumn of 1942.
The brigade was originally composed of the following units:
The units were renamed Canadian
Tank Regiments (CTR).
There were three Canadian Army
Tank Brigades in existence by late 1942; British experience in the Western
Desert however was showing that there was a need for a combined-arms approach to
operations.
At this time the
organization of armoured divisions was being materially altered. The
(British) War Office had decided to abandon that based on two armoured
brigades and a support group in favour of a single armoured brigade, an
infantry brigade, and two field regiments of artillery; and General
McNaughton (General Officer Commander in Chief of 1st Canadian Army) advised
conforming to this change. This involved disbanding one armoured brigade
from each of the two Canadian armoured divisions, and although three of the
armoured regiments of these brigades were needed for other tasks in the new
organization three others were left surplus. More infantry and artillery
would be required. McNaughton desired to utilize the surplus armour to form
a third army tank brigade, and in his cable of 21 December (1942) he wrote,
"As a long term objective I propose that Cdn Army should comprise two corps
with three Infantry Divs (three Inf Bdes), two Armd Divs (one Inf and one
Armd Bde) and three Army Tank Bdes." This objective, however, was never
attained. The (British) Chief of the General Staff queried the suggestion of
a third tank brigade, in view of a current shortage of Armoured Corps
reinforcements. General McNaughton replied that completing this formation
was a matter for later discussion; the extra armoured regiments would be
made available for reinforcement purposes unless and until adequate
reinforcements were in sight. As it turned out, by March 1943 it was
apparent that the formation of the third tank brigade would not be
practicable, and in any case experience in Exercise "Spartan" convinced the
Army Commander that two such brigades would be enough.
...The 2nd Army Tank
Brigade arrived in the United Kingdom from Canada in June 1943. A 3rd Army
Tank Brigade had been formed overseas on a temporary basis, out of the
surplus armoured regiments, in January 1943. As both brigades could not be
retained, and the units which had been overseas longest were reported as the
most efficient, those from Canada, and the brigade headquarters which had
come with them, were in due course disbanded; but since the authorized army
tank brigade was designated by order in council as the 2nd, this number was
used for the formation which continued to exist and which fought in the
North-West Europe campaign. In June 1943 the decision was taken to
reorganize the Canadian army tank brigades as independent armoured brigades.
The reason given was the desirability of being able to "replace" them in the
armoured divisions if required (presumably, in the event of a return to the
older establishment of armoured divisions, on a basis of two armoured
brigades, or if temporary operational conditions called for such an
arrangement). The brigades, however, remained without an important part of
the armoured brigade in an armoured division-the motor battalion ofinfantry.2
The 3rd Army Tank Brigade had
been created after the 5th Canadian (Armoured) Division reorganized from two to
one armoured brigades. The 1st Hussars and The Fort Garry Horse had both trained
in the U.K. as part of that division between February 1941 and December 1943. On
1 January 1943, they were reorganized as the 3rd Army Tank Brigade, joined by
The Sherbrooke Fusilier Regiment, which had mobilized in the summer of 1940 as
infantry and converted to armour in January 1942, training in Debert, Nova
Scotia until November and moving to England for another year of training with
the 4th Canadian (Armoured) Division.3
In June 1943, the 2nd Canadian
Army Tank Brigade arrived in the U.K. and a decision had to be made as to
whether retain it, or the much more experienced 3rd Canadian Army Tank Brigade.
Despite General McNaughton's wish to have one dedicated tank brigade for each
infantry division, British tank losses in North Africa motivated the Government
to veto the plan out of fear there would not be enough manpower to keep that
many formations reinforced, and the great political fear of conscription would
be realized.
With hindsight, however,
we can see that conditions in North Africa were the opposite of those found
in North-West Europe. Once the fighting had left the open spaces of the
Western Desert for the close country of Europe, the high armoured and low
infantry casualty rates were reversed. Canada did have to enforce
conscription, but was because of a shortage of infantry; there would be a
surplus of trained crewmen for the remainder of the war.4
An inspection of the six
regiments by Lieutenant-General Harry Crerar, General Officer Commanding 1st
Canadian Corps, resulted in the 3rd Army Tank Brigade being retained, and on
paper the regiments were transferred to become the 2nd Canadian Armoured
Brigade, which also involved the individual units being redesignated as Armoured
Regiments.5
Organization August 1943
20th Army Tank Bn
(16/22 Sask Horse) |
23rd Army Tank Bn
(Halifax Rifles) |
26th Army Tank Bn
(Grey & Simcoe For.) |
6th Army Tank Bn
(1st Hussars) |
10th Army Tank Bn
(Fort Garry Horse) |
27th Army Tank Bn
(Sherbrooke Fus.) |
| Mobilized 24
May 1940 |
Mobilized 1
Jan 1941 |
Mobilized 24
May 1940 |
Mobilized 1
Sep 1939 |
Mobilized 1
Sep 1939 |
Mobilized 24
May 1940 |
| Converted to
armour 22 May 1942 from recce |
Converted to
armour 26 Jan 1942 from infantry |
Converted to
armour 15 May 1942 from infantry |
Converted to
armour 11 Feb 1941 from mech cavalry |
Converted to
armour 11 Feb 1941 from mech cavalry |
Converted to
armour 26 Jan 1942 from infantry |
| Embarked for
UK 16 Jun 1943 |
Embarked for
UK 17 Jun 1943 |
Embarked for
UK 16 Jun 1943 |
Embarked for
UK 13 Nov 1941 |
Embarked for
UK 10 Nov 1941 |
Embarked for
UK 27 Oct 1942 |
| Scored 67.9%
in Crerar inspection |
Scored 65% in
Crerar inspection |
Scored 60.6%
in Crerar inspection |
Scored 69.1%
in Crerar inspection |
Scored 71% in
Crerar inspection |
Scored 69.6%
in Crerar inspection |
| Disbanded 1
Nov 1943 |
Disbanded 1
Nov 1943 |
Disbanded 1
Nov 1943 |
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History
In the summer of 1943, the
brigade received notice that they would be used for a beach invasion "somewhere
in Europe" in the future. Along with 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, the brigade
was transferred from Canadian to British command and moved to Scotland for
Combined Operations Training. The regimental history wryly notes such pleasant
foreshadowing as "Exercise BLOODBATH" in this period. Valentine tanks appeared
in unit lines, which were to eventually permit the crews to being training on
Duplex Drive equipment - modifications to allow tanks to swim from landing craft
to shore. Training continued in the south of England until mid-April, when it
was learned that DD Shermans would equip the assault regiments. Sherman Vc
17-pounder variants were also received (the so-called "Firefly" tanks).6
During this long process
of training the 2nd Armoured Brigade worked closely with the (3rd Canadian
Infantry) Division and the individual units with which the armoured
regiments were to cooperate. Equipment posed special problems for the
tankmen. The brigade was to use Sherman tanks in the operation, but as late
as 23 January 1944 it possessed only 10 of these. The changeover from the
Rams and Valentines which were used for training was not in fact quite
complete until the end of May, and many of the new tanks received required
modification. The units' fitters and the brigade Electrical and Mechanical
Engineers had to put in "Trojan work" to ensure that the regiments would go
into action with battleworthy equipment.
Two of the armoured
regiments—the 6th Armoured Regiment (1st Hussars) and the 10th (The Fort
Garry Horse), which were to lead the assault on the 7th and 8th Brigade
beaches respectively–were equipped with amphibious tanks, one squadron of
each regiment however retaining the normal Shermans. The "D.D." (Duplex
Drive) tank was an ordinary Sherman equipped with flotation gear. The tank,
floated by means of a thick canvas screen which could be raised, was pushed
through the water by two propellers. While thus swimming it could not fire
its guns. On landing the struts supporting the screen were broken and the
tank became an almost normal land tank. Until after the assault, the D.D.
tank was a very closely guarded secret. The regiments' training with it took
place at Great Yarmouth under the supervision of the 79th British Armoured
Division, the formation which had been set up to provide "special armour" of
various types for the 21st Army Group.7
D-Day and First
Actions
The brigade landed with two
regiments (the 1st Hussars and the Fort Garry Horse) equipped as assault
regiments on D-Day; avoiding the catastrophe of the American beaches by
launching the amphibious tanks too far to sea, Canadian tanks provided close
support to the infantry, even in at least one case landing ahead of the infantry
and clearing the way with close-range high explosive fire against enemy
strongpoints. One troop of tanks from the brigade made the furthest inland
advance of any of the Allied troops on D-Day. Tough fighting in the next few
days against German armoured formations highlighted deficiencies in equipment
and doctrine; 17-pounder Shermans were decentralized from four-vehicle troops so
equipped. After actions at Authie, Buron and Le Mesnil-Patry, the brigade went
into a static period of training for three weeks, which was spent in training.8
Normandy and
Beyond
By the time of the arrival in
Normandy of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division at the start of July 1944, the
role of the brigade as infantry support seemed firm. The brigade saw action in
the first battles of the 2nd Division, at Verrières Ridge, and later action in
Operation TOTALIZE. By the time the brigade was supporting the 3rd Canadian
Division to Boulogne and Calais, additional 17-pounder tanks were available,
enough to provide two per tank troop. The brigade supported various units in the
Scheldt, rested with 1st Canadian Army in the Nijmegen Salient over the winter,
and fought through the Rhineland in February 1945. Crossing the Rhine at the end
of March, the brigade ended the war in northern Germany.
Commanders
| Commander |
Date |
Biographical Information |
| Brigadier N.A. Gianelli |
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Brigadier Norman
Angelo Gianelli was born in 1895. He commanded the 2nd Canadian
Army Tank Brigade before its conversion to an Armoured Brigade,
then led the new brigade as it trained for D-Day, until being
told he was too old, at age 49, to go into action. He was
relieved in March 1944. He later commanded E Group Canadian
Reinforcement Units, then became Brigadier Royal Armoured Corps
(BRAC) of 1st Canadian Army. He left the military in 1946, and
passed away in 1974.9 |
| Brigadier R. A. Wyman, E.D10 |
15 Apr 1944 - 8 Aug
1944 |
Brigadier Robert
Andrew Wyman was born in 1904 and commanded the 1st Canadian
Armoured Brigade in Sicily and Italy, as well as acting as
Brigadier, Royal Artillery for First Canadian Army in the UK
before going on to command the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade.11 |
| Brigadier J.E. Bingham |
9 Aug
1944 - 8 Dec 1944 |
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| Brigadier G.W. Robinson |
9 Dec
1944 - VE Day |
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Uniform Insignia
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At the start of
the Second World War, it was felt that colourful unit and
formation insignia would be too easily seen, and a very austere
set of insignia was designed for the new Battle Dress uniform,
consisting solely of rank badges and drab worsted Slip-on
Shoulder Titles. In 1941, however, the trend was reversed, and a
new system of formation patches, based on the battle patches of
the First World War, was introduced. However, the use of
lettered unit titles (at first won as Slip-on Shoulder Titles
and later, as more colourful designs worn directly above the
divisional patches) was also introduced - a privilege previously
extended only to the Brigade of Guards in England, and in the
Canadian Army to just four units: Governor General's Foot
Guards, Canadian Grenadier Guards, Princess Patricia's Canadian
Light Infantry and the Canadian Provost Corps.
The new formation patches were made from three materials mainly;
felt and wool being most common, and canvas patches were adopted
in the late war period as an economy measure.
Members of various corps serving in support units came to wear
formation patches with letters added directly to the patch. A
formation patch with a maroon coloured strip in the middle was
worn by some members of the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps (RCAMC).
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Photo courtesy Bill Alexander |
Soldiers of the 2nd Canadian Tank
Brigade/Armoured Brigade wore the following Formation Patches on their
uniforms; unlike the 1st Tank Brigade, soldiers serving in the brigade's
armoured regiments wore "plain" formation patches in conjunction with
regimental shoulder insignia. A Cross of Lorraine badge was also
selected to be worn on the upper left sleeve by all ranks of the brigade
on Service Dress and Battle Dress uniforms. The badges don't appear to
have been worn overseas, being adopted in July 1942, and few were
issued.
The diamond shaped formation patches were adopted in late 1942. Unlike
the other Tank and Armoured Brigades, unit titles don't appear to have
been combined with the formation patches.
Artifacts and images courtesy Bill
Alexander.
Notes
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Hughes, David The British Armies
in World War Two: An Organisational History Volume Six: The Canadian
Army (The Nafziger Collection, Inc., West Chester, OH, 2003)
ISBN 1-58545-105-3 p.57
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Stacey, C.P.
Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War:
Volume I: Six Years Of War (Queen's Printer, Ottawa, ON,
1956) pp.102-104
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McNorgan, Michael R. The Gallant
Hussars: A History of the 1st Hussars Regiment 1856-2004
(The 1st Hussars Cavalry Fund, Aylmer, ON, 2004) ISBN 0-9694659-1-2
pp.95-96
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Ibid, p.99
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Hughes (Ibid) presents a bizarre
interpretation of events, claiming that "the fix was in" by "senior
and very influential cavalry regiments", yet a look at the
mobilization dates, training time, time spent overseas, and the
inspection results tends to support the conclusion that the 3rd Army
Tank Brigade would if nothing else be expected to have outperformed
the 2nd, who was junior in everything but name. See p.57 for Hughes'
discussion.
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McNorgan, Ibid, pp.98-107
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Stacey, C.P.
Official History of the Canadian Army in the
Second World War: Volume III: The Victory Campaign (Queen's
Printer, Ottawa, ON, 1960) p.37
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Hughes, Ibid, p.59
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McNorgan, Ibid, pp.99-104
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Nicholson, Gerald
Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War:
Volume II: The Canadians in Italy (Queen's Printer, Ottawa,
ON, 1957), p.168
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Some biographical info on commanders from Blatherwick,
John and Hugh Halliday. Courage & Service: Second World War
Awards to Canadians (Service Publications, Ottawa, ON) ISBN
1894581229
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