33rd (Western) Anti-Aircraft Brigade
| 33rd (Western) Anti-Aircraft Brigade | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1936–1955 |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  Territorial Army |
| Type | Anti-Aircraft Brigade |
| Role | Air Defence |
| Part of | 2nd AA Division 4th AA Division 4 AA Group |
| Garrison/HQ | Chester Liverpool Warrington |
| Engagements | The Blitz |
The 33rd (Western) Anti-Aircraft Brigade was an air defence formation of Anti-Aircraft Command of the Territorial Army, part of the British Army, formed shortly before the outbreak of World War II. It defended Merseyside and West Lancashire during The Blitz.
Origin
The 33rd (Western) Anti-Aircraft Group (later Brigade) was formed on 1 November 1936 at the Drill Hall, Chester, as part of 2nd AA Division, with the following AA units of the Royal Artillery (RA) and Royal Engineers (RE) under command:[1]
- 65th (The Manchester Regiment) Anti-Aircraft Brigade RA (TA) – Heavy Anti-Aircraft (HAA) unit formed at Hulme in 1936 by conversion of 6th/7th Battalion Manchester Regiment
- 181, 182, 183, 196 AA Batteries
- 38th (The King's Regiment) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, RE (TA) – Searchlight unit formed at Liverpool in 1936 by conversion of 6th (Rifles) Battalion, King's Regiment (Liverpool)
- 350, 351, 352, 353 AA Companies
- 39th (The Lancashire Fusiliers) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, RE (TA) – Searchlight unit formed at Salford in 1936 by conversion of 7th Battalion, Lancashire Fusiliers
- 354, 355, 356, 357 AA Companies
- 41st (The North Staffordshire Regiment) Anti-Aircraft Battalion, RE (TA) – Searchlight unit formed at Stoke-on-Trent in 1936 by conversion of 5th Battalion, North Staffordshire Regiment
- 362, 363, 363, 365 AA Companies
The 33rd AA Brigade was reassigned to 4th AA Division when that formation was created in Western Command on 1 September 1938. AA Command took over all TA air defences in 1939.[1][2]
World War II
Mobilisation
AA Command mobilised in August 1939, and its units were already at their war stations on the outbreak of war on 3 September 1939. 33rd AA Brigade was responsible for the air defence of Liverpool and West Lancashire, controlling the following units:[2][3][4]
- 70th (3rd West Lancashire) AA Regiment, RA – HAA unit formed in 1937 by conversion of 89th (3rd West Lancashire) Field Brigade, RA
- 81st AA Regiment, RA – HAA unit formed in 1938 by conversion of 60th (6th Cheshire & Shropshire) Medium Brigade, RA
- HQ, 253, 254 (Cheshire) AA Batteries at Stockport
- 255 (Cheshire) AA Battery at Stalybridge
- 93rd AA Regiment, RA – New HAA unit raised in 1939
- HQ, 288, 289 AA Batteries at Oxton, Birkenhead
- 267 (Wirral) AA Battery at West Birkenhead
- 290 AA Battery at Chester
- 38th (The King's Regiment) AA Battalion, RE – As above
- HQ, 350, 351, 352, 353 AA Companies at Liverpool
- 4th Battalion, Loyal Regiment (North Lancashire) (62nd Searchlight Regiment, RA) – Converted 1938
- HQ, 435, 436, 437 S/L Batteries at Preston
- 33rd AA Brigade Company, Royal Army Service Corps
The Blitz
During the early part of the war the brigade's searchlight regiments were transferred to other formations and were replaced by new HAA and Light Anti-Aircraft (LAA) regiments. By the time of the Liverpool Blitz of 1940–41, 33 AA Bde had its headquarters at Liverpool in 4 AA Division, with the following units under command:[6][7] [8][9]
- 103 HAA Regiment – formed May 1940[10]
- 106 HAA Regiment – formed August 1940[11]
- 33 LAA Regiment (132 LAA Battery) – from Western Command at Liverpool[12]
- 42 LAA Regiment – formed September 1939 from batteries of 17 and 36 LAA Regts[13]
- Part of 65 LAA Regiment – formed November 1940[14]
Postwar
On 1 January 1947, 33 AA Bde was redesignated 59th Anti-Aircraft Brigade' in the reformed TA, constituting part of 4 AA Group based at Warrington:[15][16]
- Brigade HQ at Woolton, Liverpool
- 360 HAA Regt – formerly 81 HAA Regt; see above
- 493 HAA Regt, Birkenhead – formerly 93 HAA Regt; see above
- 515 (Isle of Man) LAA Regt, Douglas –formerly 15 (Isle of Man) LAA Regt
- 521 LAA Regt, Chester – formerly 21 LAA Regt; merged into 349 Regt 30 September 1950
- 596 (South Lancashire) LAA Regt, St Helens – from 612 (South Lancashire) Infantry Regt RA, formerly 61 Searchlight Regt and originally 5th Bn South Lancashire Regiment
AA Command was disbanded on 10 March 1955 and there was a series of reductions and mergers in the TA's AA units. 59 AA Brigade was itself placed in suspended animation on 31 October 1955 and formally disbanded on 31 December 1957.[16]
A new brigade
A new 33rd AA Bde was formed on 1 November 1955 at Shepherd's Bush, London, by redesignation of X AA Bde (formerly 63 AA Bde). It had no links with Western Command or Merseyside. This brigade was reorganised on 1 May 1961, becoming 33 Artillery Brigade in 56th (London) Division.[16]
Notes
- ^ a b 2 AA Division 1936 at British Military History
- ^ a b 4 AA Division 1939 at British Military History
- ^ AA Command 3 September 1939 at Patriot Files
- ^ Routledge, Table LVIII, p. 376; Table LX, p. 378.
- ^ Monthly Army List, May 1939.
- ^ 4 AA Div 1940 at British Military History
- ^ 4 AA Div at RA 39–45
- ^ Routledge, Table LXV, p. 396.
- ^ Farndale, Annex D, p. 258.
- ^ 103 HAA Rgt at RA 39–45
- ^ 106 HAA Rgt at RA 39–45
- ^ 33 LAA Rgt at RA 39–45
- ^ 42 LAA Rgt at RA 39–45
- ^ 65 LAA Rgt at RA 39–45
- ^ Litchfield, Appendix 5.
- ^ a b c AA Brigades 30–66 at British Army Units from 1945 on
References
- Gen Sir Martin Farndale, History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: The Years of Defeat: Europe and North Africa, 1939–1941, Woolwich: Royal Artillery Institution, 1988/London: Brasseys, 1996, ISBN 1-85753-080-2.
- Monthly Army List.
- Norman E.H. Litchfield, The Territorial Artillery 1908–1988 (Their Lineage, Uniforms and Badges), Nottingham: Sherwood Press, 1992, ISBN 0-9508205-2-0.
- Brig N.W. Routledge, History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery: Anti-Aircraft Artillery 1914–55, London: Royal Artillery Institution/Brassey's, 1994, ISBN 978-1-85753-099-5.