1.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
2.
British Army
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The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
3.
Field artillery
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Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, long range, short range and this was in contrast to horse artillery, whose emphasis on speed while supporting cavalry units necessitated lighter guns and crews riding on horseback. Modern artillery has also advanced to rapidly deployable wheeled and tracked vehicles, thus, their role was limited to such functions as breaking sieges. Following the beginning of the era, the first field artillery came into being as metallurgy allowed thinner cannon barrels to withstand the explosive forces without bursting. However, there was still a risk of the constant changes of the battlefield conspiring to leave behind slow-moving artillery units - either on the advance, or more dangerously. Artillery units were particularly vulnerable to assault by light cavalry, which were used in this role. Only with a number of inventions, did the concept of field artillery really take off. One of the earliest documented uses of field artillery is found in the 14th-century Ming Dynasty treatise Huolongjing, the text describes a Chinese cannon called a thousand ball thunder cannon, manufactured of bronze and fastened with wheels. The book also describes another mobile form of artillery called a barbarian attacking cannon consisting of an attached to a two-wheel carriage. Before World War I, field artillery batteries fired directly at visible targets measured in distances of meters. Today, modern field batteries measure targets in kilometers and miles, most field artillery situations require indirect fire due to weather, terrain, night-time conditions, distance or other obstacles. Modern field artillery has three sections, All batteries have a Fire Support Man, Fire Direction Control. The FOs are forward with the infantry where they can see the targets and they call the FDC on the radio and transmit a request for fire in the format of CFF. The FDC calculates the CFF and send a deflection and elevation to the gun line, the gun line cranks the specified elevation and deflection on the howitzers, punch the artillery shell followed by the bag. Depending on the CFF, the gunline will fire the round when they are ready or when the FO calls and tells them to fire, the FO spots the round and sends a correction back to the FDC and the process starts all over again until its done. The batteries are many kilometres behind the FLOT and they plan a location where they can be Fire Capability for some certain amount of time and do multiple fire missions before needing to displace. In normal operations the FOs locate targets and transmits the CFF to the FDCs and they can also calculate defensive fire tasks. Because the calculations have already been done, the fire can be called down very quickly when it is needed, the advance party consists of the battery commander, his driver, first sergeant, gunnery sergeant, FDC guide, gun guides, and communications representatives
4.
Regiment
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A regiment is a military unit. Their role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, in Medieval Europe, the term regiment denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted in one geographical area, by a leader who was often also the feudal lord of the soldiers. By the 17th century, a regiment was usually about a thousand personnel. In many armies, the first role has been assumed by independent battalions, battlegroups, task forces, brigades and other, similarly-sized operational units. By the beginning of the 18th century, regiments in most European continental armies had evolved into permanent units with distinctive titles and uniforms, when at full strength, an infantry regiment normally comprised two field battalions of about 800 men each or 8–10 companies. In some armies, an independent regiment with fewer companies was labelled a demi-regiment, a cavalry regiment numbered 600 to 900 troopers, making up a single entity. With the widespread adoption of conscription in European armies during the nineteenth century, the regimental system underwent modification. Prior to World War I, a regiment in the French, German, Russian. As far as possible, the battalions would be garrisoned in the same military district, so that the regiment could be mobilized. A cavalry regiment by contrast made up an entity of up to 1,000 troopers. Usually, the regiment is responsible for recruiting and administering all of a military career. Depending upon the country, regiments can be either combat units or administrative units or both and this is often contrasted to the continental system adopted by many armies. Generally, divisions are garrisoned together and share the same installations, thus, in divisional administration, soldiers and officers are transferred in and out of divisions as required. Some regiments recruited from specific areas, and usually incorporated the place name into the regimental name. In other cases, regiments would recruit from an age group within a nation. In other cases, new regiments were raised for new functions within an army, e. g. the Fusiliers, the Parachute Regiment, a key aspect of the regimental system is that the regiment or battalion is the fundamental tactical building block. This flows historically from the period, when battalions were widely dispersed and virtually autonomous. For example, a regiment might include different types of battalions of different origins, within the regimental system, soldiers, and usually officers, are always posted to a tactical unit of their own regiment whenever posted to field duty
5.
15th (Scottish) Infantry Division
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The 15th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that served with distinction in both World War I and World War II. In the Great War the 15th Division was formed from men volunteering for Kitcheners New Armies, the division was later disbanded, after the war, in 1919. The division was a New Army unit formed in September 1914 as part of the K2 Army Group, the division moved to France in July 1915 and spent the duration of the First World War in action on the Western Front. The division fought in the Battle of Loos, the Battle of the Somme which included the battles of Pozières and Flers–Courcelette, the Battle of Arras 1917 and it merged with the 6th Battalion in May 1916 to form the 6th/7th Battalion. The 15th Infantry Division subsequently came into being as an exact duplicate of the 52nd Infantry Division. The division, under the command of Major General Roland Le Fannu, was composed of the 44th, 45th and 46th Infantry Brigades, together with supporting artillery, engineer. As a result of the German Armys invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939, the Second World War began two days later and the division was mobilised for full-time war service. The division was serving in Scottish Command, alongside its parent 52nd Division, however, it was raised back to Higher Establishment in March 1943 and was reorganised as a Mixed Division, consisting of a single armoured brigade and two infantry brigades. Epsom did not achieve its overall objective but forced the Wehrmacht to abandon their offensive plans, to be certain of anticipating any German attack, Epsom was launched on 26 June. Further to their left the 43rd Division also gained ground, on 27 June, after repulsing small armoured counter-attacks, the 15th Division gained more ground and captured a bridge over the River Odon. The 11th Armoured Division passed through to capture Hill 112, a mile to the southeast and this deep penetration alarmed the German command and General Hausser was ordered to commit his units to contain and eliminate the Allied salient. German armoured counter-attacks from 27 June–1 July were repulsed and the foothold over the Odon was consolidated, during the operation, the 15th Division had suffered heavy losses of over 2,300 casualties, nearly a third of the total infantry strength of the entire division. Total strength of this battalion was approximately 35 officers and 786 other ranks, thus one days losses amounted to 34% of their officers, the British forces included the men of the 15th Division, 11th Armoured Division, 43rd Division and 53rd Division. Principal among the fighting on Hill 112, and the tanks of 7th and 9th Royal Tank Regiments. Approximately 63,000 men over a period of seven weeks fought on, Hill 112 was only an intermediate objective on the way to the Orne River crossings but such was the German reaction that the 23rd Hussars were only able to capture and hold the hill with difficulty. The main attack on Hill 112 was strategically designed to FIX the German panzers, the German defenders survived naval bombardment, air attack and artillery fire but held their ground, crucially supported by Tiger tanks from the 101st SS Heavy Panzer Battalion. These mighty tanks armed with the 88 mm gun had both greater protection and firepower and outclassed the opposing British Churchill tank and Sherman tank, even though the hill was not captured and was left as a no-mans-land between the two armies, important surrounding villages had been taken. Above all, however, the 9th Hohenstaufen SS Panzer Division, therefore, on the strategic level Operation JUPITER was a significant success
6.
Operation Epsom
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Operation Epsom, also known as the First Battle of the Odon, was a British Second World War offensive that took place between 26 and 30 June 1944, during the Battle of Normandy. The offensive was intended to outflank and seize the German-occupied city of Caen, preceded by Operation Martlet to secure the right flank of the advance, Operation Epsom began early on 26 June, with units of the 15th Infantry Division advancing behind a rolling artillery barrage. Air cover was sporadic for much of the operation, because poor weather in England forced the cancellation of bomber support. In response to powerful German counter-attacks, by 30 June some of the British forces across the river were withdrawn, the British retained the initiative, attacked several more times over the following two weeks and captured Caen in Operation Charnwood in mid-July. Interpretations of the intention and conduct of Operation Epsom differ widely, the Norman city of Caen was a D-Day objective for the British 3rd Infantry Division that landed on Sword Beach on 6 June 1944. The capture of Caen, while ambitious, was described by the historian, L. F. Ellis, as the most important D-Day objective assigned to Lieutenant-General John Crocker. Immediate follow-up attacks failed as German resistance solidified, abandoning the direct approach, Operation Perch—a pincer attack by I and XXX Corps—was launched on 7 June, to encircle Caen from the east and west. To force Panzer-Lehr to withdraw or surrender and to keep operations fluid, part of the 7th Armoured Division pushed through a gap in the German front line and captured Villers-Bocage. Another attack by the 7th Armoured Division and other operations were abandoned when a severe storm descended on the English Channel on 19 June. The storm lasted for three days and delayed the Allied build-up, planning began for a second offensive, codenamed Operation Dreadnought, to be launched out of the Orne bridgehead by the British VIII Corps, outflanking Caen from the east. Dreadnought was cancelled following objections from OConnor and an attack towards Évrecy was considered and this was also cancelled, either by Montgomery, the Allied ground forces commander in Normandy, or Dempsey, the Second Army commander. Dempsey, in a interview with Chester Wilmot, claimed that he told Montgomery that he was going to cancel the proposed operation on 18 June. 7088 mm guns in hedgerows and woods. On 20 June Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, commanding German forces in Normandy, was ordered by Hitler to launch a counter-offensive against the Allies between the towns of Caumont-lÉventé and Saint-Lô. The objective was to cut a corridor between the American and British armies by recapturing the city of Bayeux and the coast beyond, four SS Panzer Divisions and one Heer Panzer Division were assigned to the task. Their assault was to be spearheaded by the 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen and 10th SS Panzer Division Frundsberg of the II SS Panzer Corps, the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich and 2nd Panzer Division would be supporting the attack. The initial plan called for I and XXX Corps to attack west of Caen for four days before VIII Corps launched the main out of the Orne bridgehead, east of Caen. However, it was realised that VIII Corps would not be able to assemble within the small perimeter of the Orne bridgehead. The revised plan called for an operation to take place three days before the main assault
7.
Operation Bluecoat
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Operation Bluecoat was an offensive in the Battle of Normandy, from 30 July until 7 August 1944, during the Second World War. The geographical objectives of the attack, undertaken by VIII Corps and XXX Corps of the British Second Army, were to secure the junction of Vire. After Goodwood, Ultra revealed that the Germans planned to move the 21st Panzer Division out of the line, on 25 July, after a false start the day before, the United States First Army began Operation Cobra. Dempsey planned to attack on 2 August but the speed of events forced him to advance the date, the British XXX Corps was to lead the attack with the 43rd Infantry Division to advance to the top of Bois du Homme. The left flank was to be protected by the 50th Infantry Division, a raid by over 1,000 bombers in preference to a preliminary artillery barrage was to prepare the way for the attack. Visibility was poor but the bombers accurately placed 2,000 long tons of bombs, the advance of the left flank units of the 11th Armoured Division through Area A made rapid progress. Many British units were held up by minefields, sunken roads, thick hedges and steep gullies but in the centre the attackers gained 5 miles. On 31 July, the 11th Armoured Division of VIII Corps exploited a German inter–army boundary weakness, reinforcing the opportunity quickly with Cromwell tanks followed by further support units, they broke up the first German armoured units sent to counter-attack. British forces advanced to about 5 mi from Vire by 2 August, there was confusion as to who had the rights to use certain roads and the British attack was restricted and diverted south-east. The British advance was held up by these reinforcements, VIII Corps also had to protect its eastern flank, because XXX Corps had not kept up the same rate of advance. The commander of XXX Corps, Lieutenant-General Gerard Bucknall, was dismissed on 2 August, lieutenant General Brian Horrocks, a veteran of North Africa replaced Bucknall on 4 August. The 2nd Army advance was brought to a halt on 4 August. Vire fell to an American night attack by the 116th Regiment of the US 29th Division against the defenders of the 363rd Division on 6 August, on the same day, the 43rd Division and tanks of the 13th/18th Royal Hussars captured Mont Pinçon. Operation Bluecoat kept German armoured units fixed on the British eastern front, the breakthrough in the centre of the Allied front surprised the Germans, when they were distracted by the Allied attacks at both ends of the Normandy bridgehead. During Bluecoat and later operations in Normandy the VIII Corps had 5,114 casualties, German defensive fire restricted the advance on the eastern flank to 400 yards. The British advance continued towards Point 242 north of Chênedollé, where a German counter-attack knocked out six Shermans for a loss of two Panthers and an assault gun, to the west, the 2nd Irish Guards–5th Coldstream tank-infantry group made faster progress and reached the west side of Chênedollé. When the village was attacked it was found that the garrison had withdrawn and as the bombers had failed to arrive, Chênedollé was consolidated and further attacks were postponed, from Moncy, the attack was to be continued to Point 260 on Mont de Cerisi 5 kilometres further on. German resistance was as determined as that in the east, to the north of La Personnerie, minefields covered by fire from the 3rd Fallschirmjäger Division, held up the advance
8.
Geel
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Geel is a city located in the Belgian province of Antwerp, which acquired city status in the 1980s. It comprises Central-Geel which is constituted of 4 old parishes a/o towns, Sint-Amand, Sint-Dimpna, Holven, further on around the center are the parish-towns of Ten Aard, Bel, Winkelomheide, Stelen, Oosterlo and Zammel, Punt and Larum. On January 1,2006, Geel had a population of 35,189. The total area is 109.85 km2 which gives a density of 320 inhabitants per km². Geel’s patron saint, the Irish Saint Dymphna, inspired the town’s pioneering de-institutionalized method of care for the mentally ill, the city is also a regional hub of commerce and industry due to its location alongside the Albert Canal. Geel is also featured in Ciarán Carsons novel Shamrock Tea, archeological finds in the area point to iron-age settlements, but the name of Geel hails from a Germanic root meaning “yellow” and dates from the early Middle Ages. A hamlet already existed in the century, at which time a certain Petrus Cameracencis, canon of Cambrai. The cult of the saint attracted numerous pilgrims to the area, in the 12th century, the extended territory around Geel was given to the Grimbergen Abbey. It then became property of one family after another throughout medieval times. The noble lords or dames were masters of their community, some form of municipal government was granted to Geel as early as the first half of the 13th century. Throughout the Middle Ages to the end of the 18th century, during all this time, the economy of the city depended on the breeding of sheep for the cloth industry, complemented by the cultivation of flax for the manufacture and trade of linen. A cloth hall was built at the beginning of the 15th century, the Eighty Years War greatly damaged the Geel economy as well as its buildings and churches. The textile industry recovered to last until the early 19th century, but the economy was now supported by agriculture, specifically rye, oat, barley. Geel was also known at time for its Latin School. In 1795, the Duchy of Brabant was dissolved and Geel made part of the French department of Deux-Nèthes, the nobles and clerics of the Ancien Régime gave way to a mayor, who was now answerable to the town’s people. Geel actively participated in the Belgian Revolution of 1830, resulting in the award of a flag from King Leopold II. The 19th century also saw the building of new churches at the demand of the various parishes. A major occurrence in the history of Geel is the battle of Geel in September 1944, eventually the territory of Geel, and the smaller villages around it, were finally liberated on September 23, but it had claimed numerous military and civilian casualties
9.
's-Hertogenbosch
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S-Hertogenbosch, colloquially known as Den Bosch, is a city and municipality in the southern Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant, the citys official name is a contraction of the Dutch des Hertogen bosch—the Dukes forest. The duke in question was Duke Henry I of Brabant, whose family had owned an estate at nearby Orthen for at least four centuries. He founded a new town located on some forested dunes in the middle of a marsh, at age 26, he granted s-Hertogenbosch city rights and the corresponding trade privileges in 1185. This is, however, the date given by later chroniclers. The original charter has been lost and his reason for founding the city was to protect his own interests against encroachment from Gelre and Holland, from its first days, he conceived of the city as a fortress. It was destroyed in 1203 in a joint expedition of Gelre and Holland, some remnants of the original city walls may still be seen. In the late 14th century, a larger wall was erected to protect the greatly expanded settled area. Artificial waterways were dug to serve as a city moat, through which the rivers Dommel, until 1520, the city flourished, becoming the second largest population centre in the territory of the present Netherlands, after Utrecht. The city was also a center of music, and composers, such as Jheronimus Clibano, the wars of the Reformation changed the course of the citys history. During the Eighty Years War, the city took the side of the Habsburg authorities and it was besieged several times by Prince Maurice of Orange, stadtholder of most of the Dutch Republic, who wanted to bring s-Hertogenbosch under the rule of the rebel United Provinces. The city was defended by Claude de Berlaymont, also known as Haultpenne. In the years of Truce, before the fighting after 1618. The surrounding marshes made a siege of the conventional type impossible, after a siege of three months, the city had to surrender—an enormous blow to Habsburg geo-political strategy during the Thirty Years War. This surrender cut the town off from the rest of the duchy, after the Peace of Westphalia, the fortifications were again expanded. In 1672, the Dutch rampjaar, the city held against the army of Louis XIV of France. In 1794, French revolutionary troops under command of Charles Pichegru took the city with hardly a fight, in the Batavian Republic, from 1806, the city became part of the Kingdom of Holland and from 1810, it was incorporated into the First French Empire. It was captured by the Prussians in 1814, the next year,1815, when the United Kingdom of the Netherlands was established, it became the capital of North Brabant
10.
Asten, Netherlands
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Asten is a municipality and a town in the southern Netherlands. It is home to the Royal Eijsbouts bell foundry and also a carillon museum, the spoken language is Peellands, an East Brabantian dialect. Asten Heusden Ommel Asten has a history going back to the Roman period. In the swamp of the national park De Peel an ancient Roman centurion helmet was found. Silhouets of Hunter-Gatherer and Agricultural societies were also found in the area, the village has a castle dating back to the 12th century, at the south of the current village. It has also given its name to the village, Aa-Stein, a second stone-built fortified building was suspected at the north, at the site of the current Slotweg to be precise. Some stone fragments have been excavated, although no evidence of a fortified building has been produced here. The village was pillaged and burnt twice in the 17th century, by Austrian and Swedish army troops
11.
Operation Veritable
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Operation Veritable was the northern part of an Allied pincer movement that took place between 8 February and 11 March 1945 during the final stages of the Second World War. Ninth Army was incorporated into the 21st Army Group, the objective of the operation was to clear German forces from the area between the Rhine and Maas rivers, east of the German/Dutch frontier, in the Rhineland. It was part of General Dwight D. Eisenhowers broad front strategy to occupy the entire west bank of the Rhine before its crossing, Veritable had been planned for execution in early January,1945 when the ground had been frozen and thus more advantageous to the Allies. Second, Veritable was the arm of a pincer movement. The southern pincer arm, Operation Grenade, by Lieutenant General William Hood Simpsons U. S, ninth Army, had had to be postponed for two weeks when the Germans released the waters from the Roer dams and river levels rose. No military actions could proceed across the Roer until the water subsided, Veritable started on schedule, with XXX Corps advancing through the forest and the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, in amphibious vehicles, clearing enemy positions in the drowned Rhine flood plain. The Allied advance proceeded more slowly than expected and at greater cost, the fighting was hard, but the Allied advance continued. On 22 February, once clear of the Reichswald, and with the towns of Kleve and Goch in their control, ninth Army near Geldern on 4 March. Fighting continued as the Germans sought to retain a bridgehead on the west bank of the Rhine at Wesel and evacuate as many men, finally, on 10 March, the German withdrawal ended and the last bridges were destroyed. This first required that Allied forces should close up to the Rhine along its whole length, one such proposal, Valediction - an assault south-eastwards from Nijmegen between the Rhine and Maas rivers, initially had been shelved by Montgomery. A conference was convened at Maastricht on 7 December 1944 between Allied generals, to consider ways of maintaining pressure on the Germans throughout the winter, consequently, Valediction was brought forward and allocated to the 1st Canadian Army. British XXX Corps were attached to the Canadians for the operation, at this point, the name Veritable was attached to the operation in place of Valediction. In the event, Veritable was delayed by the diversion of forces to stem the German attack through the Ardennes in December, at this stage, 21st Army Group consisted of the British Second Army, First Canadian Army and the U. S. In ‘’Veritable’’, the reinforced British XXX Corps, under Lieutenant-General Brian Horrocks, would advance through the Reichswald Forest, ninth Army was to execute Operation Grenade, the southern part of the pincer. The First Canadian Army had had a severe time clearing the approaches to Antwerp during the previous autumn and it was, numerically, the smallest of the Allied armies in northern Europe and, despite its name, contained significant British units as part of its structure. For Veritable, it was strengthened by XXX Corps. Guards Armoured Division – Part of XXX Corps reserve at the start of the operation, 11th Armoured Division – transferred across the Maas from the British Second Army as the operation progressed. Assessments by the German High Command were that an Allied advance through the Reichswald would be too difficult, reserves were therefore placed to respond to this
12.
Operation Plunder
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Beginning on the night of March 23,1945 the 21st Army Group under Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery launched Operation Plunder, as a part of a coordinated set of Rhine crossings. The crossing of the River Rhine was at Rees, Wesel, dempsey, and the United States Ninth Army, under Lieutenant General William H. Simpson. Preparations were hidden by a smoke screen from 16 March. The operation commenced on the night of March 23,1945 and it included the Varsity parachute and glider landings near Wesel, and Operation Archway, by the Special Air Service. The landing areas were flooded, deserted farmland rising to woodland, four thousand Allied guns fired for four hours during the opening bombardment. British bombers contributed with attacks on Wesel during the day and night of 23 March 1945, Bridge construction started at 9, 45am and by 4, 00pm the first truck crossed the floating Pontoon bridge. Over 1,152 feet of M2 treadway and 93 pneumatic floats were used in just six hours and fifteen minute construction project and it took twenty-five 2-and-a-half ton GMC CCKW trucks to transport the bridge parts to the construction site, part of the Red Ball Express. Three Allied formations made the assault, the British XXX and XII Corps. These were the transports for the spearhead infantry, at 02,00 on 24 March, the 15th Infantry Division landed between Wesel and Rees. At first, there was no opposition, but later ran into determined resistance from machine-gun nests. On the same day the 51st Divisions commander, Major General Tom Rennie, was killed by mortar fire, the British 1st Commando Brigade entered Wesel. The U. S. 30th Infantry Division landed south of Wesel, the local resistance had been broken by artillery and air bombardment. Subsequently, the U. S. 79th Infantry Division also landed, German resistance to the Scottish landings continued with some effect, and there were armored counter-attacks. Landings continued, however, including tanks and other heavy equipment, US forces had a bridge across by the evening of 24 March. Operation Varsity started at 10,00 on 24 March, to disrupt enemy communications, despite heavy resistance to the airdrops and afterward, the airborne troops made progress and repelled counterattacks. The hard lessons of Operation Market Garden were applied, in the afternoon, the 15th Division linked up with both airborne divisions. Fierce German resistance continued around Bienen, north of Rees, where the entire 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade was needed to relieve the Black Watch, the bridgehead was firmly established, however, and Allied advantages in numbers and equipment were applied. By 27 March, the bridgehead was 35 miles wide and 20 miles deep, the Allied operation was opposed by the German 1st Parachute Army, commanded by General Alfred Schlemm, a part of Army Group H
13.
Uelzen
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Uelzen is a town in northeast Lower Saxony, Germany, and capital of the county of Uelzen. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, a Hanseatic town, Uelzen is characterised by timber-framed architecture and also has some striking examples of North German brick Gothic. But the county town earned pan-regional fame when Friedensreich Hundertwasser was selected to redesign the station, the final work of the celebrated Viennese artist and architect was ceremonially opened in 2000 as the Hundertwasser Station, Uelzen and has since been a popular tourist magnet. The Polabian name for Uelzen is Wilcaus, possibly derived from wilca or wilsa alder, Uelzen lies on the edge of the Lüneburg Heath. The town is a hub on the north–south axis from Hamburg to Hanover as well as the east–west axis from Bremen to Berlin. Also of economic importance is its location on the Elbe Lateral Canal, the towns has a charming setting, situated as it is on the heath river, the Ilmenau, with its grassy river banks, small parks and water meadows. Furthermore, there are four other places that have the status of special parishes, Borne, the town was founded about 1250. In 1270 Duke John of Brunswick-Lüneburg, a Welf who ruled the Principality of Lüneburg from 1252 to 1277, in the Middle Ages became an active member of the Hanseatic League. The town fortification, built in the 14th century, originally had 3 gates, a wall, parts of the wall are still standing. While Uelzen only played a role in the Hanseatic League, there is evidence that it traded with Livonia. At the Schnellenmarket, a London trading office purchased Uelzener linen, earthenware pitchers were offered for sale, on 21 October 1470, Uelzen was the venue for a Hanseatic League Convention. A special honour as these resolutions of the association of cities only took place annually - primarily in Lübeck. The town became part of the Electorate of Hanover in 1708, the Kingdom of Westphalia in 1807, the Kingdom of Hanover in 1814, Uelzen was the site of a Nazi concentration camp which was established in Uelzen until 17 April 1945. The camp was a subcamp of the Neuengamme concentration camp, Uelzen belongs to the Bundestag constituency of Celle-Uelzen. In 2009 Henning Otte was directly elected, having been on the state list since 2005, kirsten Lühmann was elected in 2009 via the state list. In the years 1998,2002 and 2005 Peter Struck, former defence minister, the mayor of Uelzen since 2014 is Jens Markwardt. In the 2014 election he was confirmed in office with 64. 4% of the vote, the deputy mayors are Karsten Jäkel und Ariane Schmäschke. The multitude of cinemas, the theatre on the Ilmenau, the Jabelmann Events Hall, worthy of mention is the Holdenstedt Castle Museum which is the towns local history museum
14.
Elbe
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The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Krkonoše Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia, then Germany and its total length is 1,094 kilometres. The Elbes major tributaries include the rivers Vltava, Saale, Havel, Mulde, Schwarze Elster, the Elbe river basin, comprising the Elbe and its tributaries, has a catchment area of 148,268 square kilometres, the fourth largest in Europe. The basin spans four countries, with its largest parts in Germany, much smaller parts lie in Austria and Poland. The basin is inhabited by 24.5 million people, the Elbe rises at an elevation of about 1,400 metres in the Krkonoše on the northwest borders of the Czech Republic near Labská bouda. Of the numerous small streams whose waters compose the infant river, here the Elbe enters the vast vale named Polabí, and continues on southwards through Hradec Králové and then to Pardubice, where it turns sharply to the west. At Kolín some 43 kilometres further on, it bends gradually towards the north-west, at the village of Káraný, a little above Brandýs nad Labem, it picks up the Jizera. At Mělník its stream is more than doubled in volume by the Vltava, or Moldau, upstream from the confluence the Vltava is in fact much longer, and has a greater discharge and a larger drainage basin. Some distance lower down, at Litoměřice, the waters of the Elbe are tinted by the reddish Ohře, in its northern section both banks of the Elbe are characterised by flat, very fertile marshlands, former flood plains of the Elbe now diked. At Magdeburg there is a viaduct, the Magdeburg Water Bridge, from the sluice of Geesthacht on downstream the Elbe is subject to the tides, the tidal Elbe section is called the Low Elbe. Within the city-state the Unterelbe has a number of streams, such as Dove Elbe, Gose Elbe, Köhlbrand, Northern Elbe, Reiherstieg. Some of which have been disconnected for vessels from the stream by dikes. In 1390 the Gose Elbe was separated from the stream by a dike connecting the two then-islands of Kirchwerder and Neuengamme. The Dove Elbe was diked off in 1437/38 at Gammer Ort and these hydraulic engineering works were carried out to protect marshlands from inundation, and to improve the water supply of the Port of Hamburg. The Northern Elbe passes the Elbe Philharmonic Hall and is then crossed under by the old Elbe Tunnel, a bit more downstream the Low Elbes two main anabranches Northern Elbe and the Köhlbrand reunite south of Altona-Altstadt, a locality of Hamburg. Right after both anabranches reunited the Low Elbe is passed under by the New Elbe Tunnel, the last structural road link crossing the river before the North Sea. At the bay Mühlenberger Loch in Hamburg at kilometre 634, the Northern Elbe and the Southern Elbe used to reunite, leaving the city-state the Lower Elbe then passes between Holstein and the Elbe-Weser Triangle with Stade until it flows into the North Sea at Cuxhaven. Near its mouth it passes the entrance to the Kiel Canal at Brunsbüttel before it debouches into the North Sea, the Elbe has been navigable by commercial vessels since 1842, and provides important trade links as far inland as Prague
15.
Royal Artillery
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The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery, is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name Royal Regiment of Artillery it actually consists of 13 Regular Regiments and 5 Reserve Regiments, the introduction of artillery into the English army came as early as the Battle of Crécy in 1346. Henry VIII made the armys artillery semi-permanent in the sixteenth century, before the 18th century, artillery traynes were raised by royal warrant for specific campaigns and disbanded again when they were over. On 26 May 1716, however, by warrant of George I two regular companies of field artillery, each 100 men strong, were raised at Woolwich. The title Royal Artillery was first used in 1720, in 1741 the Royal Military Academy was formed in the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich to provide training for RA and Royal Engineers officers. The regiment expanded rapidly and, by 1757, had 24 companies divided into two battalions, as well as a company formed in 1741. During 1748, the presidential artilleries of Bengal, Madras and Bombay were formed,1756 saw the creation of the Royal Irish Regiment of Artillery. In 1762 the Royal Artillery Band was formed at Minden, by 1771 there were 32 companies in four battalions, as well as two invalid companies comprising older and unfit men employed in garrison duties. During 1782, the regiment moved to the Royal Artillery Barracks on Woolwich Common, in January 1793, two troops of Royal Horse Artillery were raised to provide fire support for the cavalry, augmented by two more in November 1793. The Royal Irish Artillery was absorbed into the RA in 1801, during 1805, the Royal Military Academy moved to Woolwich Common. In 1819, the Rotunda was given to the regiment by the Prince Regent to celebrate end of the Napoleonic Wars, in 1832, the regimental motto, Ubique Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducunt, was granted. The motto signified that the regiment had seen action in all the conflicts of the British Army. The regiment was under the control of the Board of Ordnance until the board was abolished in 1855, thereafter the regiment came under the War Office along with the rest of the army. The School of Gunnery established at Shoeburyness, Essex in 1859, the third group continued to be titled simply Royal Artillery, and was responsible for ammunition storage and supply. Which branch a gunner belonged to was indicated by metal shoulder titles, the RFA and RHA also dressed as mounted men, whereas the RGA dressed like foot soldiers. In 1920 the rank of Bombardier was instituted in the Royal Artillery, the three sections effectively functioned as separate corps. This arrangement lasted until 1924, when the three amalgamated once more to one regiment. In 1938, RA Brigades were renamed Regiments, during the World War II there were over 1 million men serving in 960 gunner regiments
16.
World War II
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World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, although related conflicts began earlier. It involved the vast majority of the worlds countries—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing alliances, the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, and directly involved more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. Marked by mass deaths of civilians, including the Holocaust and the bombing of industrial and population centres. These made World War II the deadliest conflict in human history, from late 1939 to early 1941, in a series of campaigns and treaties, Germany conquered or controlled much of continental Europe, and formed the Axis alliance with Italy and Japan. Under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union partitioned and annexed territories of their European neighbours, Poland, Finland, Romania and the Baltic states. In December 1941, Japan attacked the United States and European colonies in the Pacific Ocean, and quickly conquered much of the Western Pacific. The Axis advance halted in 1942 when Japan lost the critical Battle of Midway, near Hawaii, in 1944, the Western Allies invaded German-occupied France, while the Soviet Union regained all of its territorial losses and invaded Germany and its allies. During 1944 and 1945 the Japanese suffered major reverses in mainland Asia in South Central China and Burma, while the Allies crippled the Japanese Navy, thus ended the war in Asia, cementing the total victory of the Allies. World War II altered the political alignment and social structure of the world, the United Nations was established to foster international co-operation and prevent future conflicts. The victorious great powers—the United States, the Soviet Union, China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival superpowers, setting the stage for the Cold War, which lasted for the next 46 years. Meanwhile, the influence of European great powers waned, while the decolonisation of Asia, most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards economic recovery. Political integration, especially in Europe, emerged as an effort to end pre-war enmities, the start of the war in Europe is generally held to be 1 September 1939, beginning with the German invasion of Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later. The dates for the beginning of war in the Pacific include the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War on 7 July 1937, or even the Japanese invasion of Manchuria on 19 September 1931. Others follow the British historian A. J. P. Taylor, who held that the Sino-Japanese War and war in Europe and its colonies occurred simultaneously and this article uses the conventional dating. Other starting dates sometimes used for World War II include the Italian invasion of Abyssinia on 3 October 1935. The British historian Antony Beevor views the beginning of World War II as the Battles of Khalkhin Gol fought between Japan and the forces of Mongolia and the Soviet Union from May to September 1939, the exact date of the wars end is also not universally agreed upon. It was generally accepted at the time that the war ended with the armistice of 14 August 1945, rather than the formal surrender of Japan
17.
Infantry
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Infantry is the general branch of an army that engages in military combat on foot. As the troops who engage with the enemy in close-ranged combat, infantry units bear the largest brunt of warfare, Infantry can enter and maneuver in terrain that is inaccessible to military vehicles and employ crew-served infantry weapons that provide greater and more sustained firepower. In English, the 16th-century term Infantry describes soldiers who walk to the battlefield, and there engage, fight, the term arose in Sixteenth-Century Spain, which boasted one of the first professional standing armies seen in Europe since the days of Rome. It was common to appoint royal princes to military commands, and the men under them became known as Infanteria. in the Canadian Army, the role of the infantry is to close with, and destroy the enemy. In the U. S. Army, the closes with the enemy, by means of fire and maneuver, in order to destroy or capture him, or to repel his assault by fire, close combat. In the U. S. Marine Corps, the role of the infantry is to locate, close with, and destroy the enemy fire and maneuver. Beginning with the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century, artillery has become a dominant force on the battlefield. Since World War I, combat aircraft and armoured vehicles have become dominant. In 20th and 21st century warfare, infantry functions most effectively as part of a combined arms team including artillery, armour, Infantry relies on organized formations to be employed in battle. These have evolved over time, but remain a key element to effective infantry development and deployment, until the end of the 19th century, infantry units were for the most part employed in close formations up until contact with the enemy. This allowed commanders to control of the unit, especially while maneuvering. The development of guns and other weapons with increased firepower forced infantry units to disperse in order to make them less vulnerable to such weapons. This decentralization of command was made possible by improved communications equipment, among the various subtypes of infantry is Medium infantry. This refers to infantry which are heavily armed and armored than heavy infantry. In the early period, medium infantry were largely eliminated due to discontinued use of body armour up until the 20th century. In the United States Army, Stryker Infantry is considered Medium Infantry, since they are heavier than light infantry, Infantry doctrine is the concise expression of how infantry forces contribute to campaigns, major operations, battles, and engagements. It is a guide to action, not a set of hard, doctrine provides a very common frame of reference across the military forces, allowing the infantry to function cooperatively in what are now called combined arms operations. Doctrine helps standardise operations, facilitating readiness by establishing common ways of accomplishing infantry tasks, doctrine links theory, history, experimentation, and practice
18.
King's Shropshire Light Infantry
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The Kings Shropshire Light Infantry was a light infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in the Childers Reforms of 1881, but with antecedents dating back to 1755. The Kings Light Infantry was formed on July 1,1881 and it was renamed as The Kings in March 1882. The regiment was an amalgamation of the 53rd Regiment of Foot and the 85th Regiment of Foot, the 1881 reforms also redesignated the militia and rifle volunteers units within the regimental district as battalions of the regiment. The 1st Herefordshire Rifle Volunteer Corps was also affiliated as a volunteer battalion, the KSLI served with distinction in the Anglo-Egyptian War, the Eastern Sudan, 1885–86 and the Second Boer War. In 1908, as part of the Haldane Reforms, the two battalions were merged to form the 3rd Battalion and the 1st and 2nd VBs were merged to form the 4th Battalion Territorial Force. At the same time, the Herefordshire RVC became independent as the Herefordshire Regiment, the 1st Battalion landed at Saint-Nazaire as part of the 16th Brigade in 6th Division in September 1914 for service on the Western Front. The 2nd Battalion landed at Le Havre as part of the 80th Brigade in the 27th Division in December 1914 also for service on the Western Front. The 1/4th Battalion served in India before landing at Le Havre as part of the 159th Brigade in the 53rd Division in July 1917 for service on the Western Front. It made an important counter-attack against the Germans at Bligny in June 1918 during the Spring Offensive for which it was awarded the French Croix de Guerre. The 10th Battalion landed at Marseille as part of the 231st Brigade in the 74th Division in May 1918 also for service on the Western Front. The 5th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 42nd Brigade in the 14th Division in May 1915 also for service on the Western Front. The 6th Battalion landed at Boulogne-Sur-Mer as part of the 60th Brigade in the 20th Division in July 1915 also for service on the Western Front. The 7th Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 76th Brigade in the 25th Division in September 1915 also for service on the Western Front. The 8th Battalion landed in France as part of the 66th Brigade in the 22nd Division in September 1915, in 1921, the regiment was renamed as The Kings Shropshire Light Infantry. After its Irish posting, the Second Battalion was moved away in December 1922 to Tidworth, bandmaster Burnell was the last to conduct the National Anthem before the withdrawal of British troops from the area in November 1927. The 1st Battalion would serve with the 3rd Infantry Brigade, part of 1st Infantry Division for the entire war, the battalion fought in the Battle of Dunkirk, the Tunisia Campaign and the Italian Campaign including the Battle of Anzio. The 2nd Battalion began the war in Jamaica, with a company detached to the Bermuda Garrison, the battalion would eventually join the 185th Infantry Brigade, which included the 2nd Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment and the 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment. The battalion took part in the D-Day landings of Operation Overlord, the 2nd Battalion fought in the Normandy Campaign, Operation Market Garden and the rest of the North West Europe Campaign with the British Second Army
19.
Welsh Marches
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The Welsh Marches is an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods, in modern usage, the Marches is often used to describe those English counties which lie along the border with Wales, particularly Shropshire and Herefordshire, and sometimes adjoining areas of Wales. Over the next few centuries, the Angles, Saxons and others gradually conquered and settled in eastern and southern Britain, the kingdom of Mercia, under Penda, became established around Lichfield, and initially established strong alliances with the Welsh kings. However, his successors sought to expand Mercia further westwards into what is now Cheshire, Shropshire and Herefordshire. Campaigns and raids from Powys then led, possibly around about AD820, to the building of Wats Dyke, the Dyke still exists, and can best be seen at Knighton, close to the modern border between England and Wales. In the centuries which followed, Offas Dyke largely remained the frontier between the Welsh and English, by the mid-eleventh century, Wales was united under Gruffudd ap Llywelyn of Gwynedd, until his death in 1063. The process took a century and was never permanently effective, the term March of Wales was first used in the Domesday Book of 1086. Over the next four centuries, Norman lords established mostly small marcher lordships between the Dee and Severn, and further west, military adventurers went to Wales from Normandy and elsewhere and after raiding an area of Wales, then fortified it and granted land to some of their supporters. One example was Bernard de Neufmarché, responsible for conquering and pacifying the Welsh kingdom of Brycheiniog, the precise dates and means of formation of the lordships varied, as did their size. By about AD1100 the March covered the areas which would later become Monmouthshire and much of Flintshire, Montgomeryshire, Radnorshire, Brecknockshire, Glamorgan, ultimately, this amounted to about two-thirds of Wales. During the period, the Marches were a society in every sense. Hundreds of small castles were built in the area in the 12th and 13th centuries, predominantly by Norman lords as assertions of power as well as defences against Welsh raiders. The area still contains Britains densest concentration of motte-and-bailey castles, the Marcher lords encouraged immigration from all the Norman-Angevin realms, and encouraged trade from fair haven ports like Cardiff. Peasants went to Wales in large numbers, Henry I encouraged Bretons, Flemings, Normans, many new towns were established, some such as Chepstow, Monmouth, Ludlow and Newtown becoming successful trading centres, and these tended also to be a focus of English settlement. At the same time, the Welsh continued to attack English soil, the Norman lords each had similar rights to the Welsh princes. The lordships were geographically compact and jurisdictionally separate one from another, Marcher lords ruled their lands by their own law—sicut regale as Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester stated— whereas in England fief-holders were directly accountable to the king. However, Welsh law was used in the Marches in preference to English law. The Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284 followed the conquest of the Principality by Edward I of England
20.
Scotland
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Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain. It shares a border with England to the south, and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the North Sea to the east. In addition to the mainland, the country is made up of more than 790 islands, including the Northern Isles, the Kingdom of Scotland emerged as an independent sovereign state in the Early Middle Ages and continued to exist until 1707. By inheritance in 1603, James VI, King of Scots, became King of England and King of Ireland, Scotland subsequently entered into a political union with the Kingdom of England on 1 May 1707 to create the new Kingdom of Great Britain. The union also created a new Parliament of Great Britain, which succeeded both the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of England. Within Scotland, the monarchy of the United Kingdom has continued to use a variety of styles, titles, the legal system within Scotland has also remained separate from those of England and Wales and Northern Ireland, Scotland constitutes a distinct jurisdiction in both public and private law. Glasgow, Scotlands largest city, was one of the worlds leading industrial cities. Other major urban areas are Aberdeen and Dundee, Scottish waters consist of a large sector of the North Atlantic and the North Sea, containing the largest oil reserves in the European Union. This has given Aberdeen, the third-largest city in Scotland, the title of Europes oil capital, following a referendum in 1997, a Scottish Parliament was re-established, in the form of a devolved unicameral legislature comprising 129 members, having authority over many areas of domestic policy. Scotland is represented in the UK Parliament by 59 MPs and in the European Parliament by 6 MEPs, Scotland is also a member nation of the British–Irish Council, and the British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly. Scotland comes from Scoti, the Latin name for the Gaels, the Late Latin word Scotia was initially used to refer to Ireland. By the 11th century at the latest, Scotia was being used to refer to Scotland north of the River Forth, alongside Albania or Albany, the use of the words Scots and Scotland to encompass all of what is now Scotland became common in the Late Middle Ages. Repeated glaciations, which covered the land mass of modern Scotland. It is believed the first post-glacial groups of hunter-gatherers arrived in Scotland around 12,800 years ago, the groups of settlers began building the first known permanent houses on Scottish soil around 9,500 years ago, and the first villages around 6,000 years ago. The well-preserved village of Skara Brae on the mainland of Orkney dates from this period and it contains the remains of an early Bronze Age ruler laid out on white quartz pebbles and birch bark. It was also discovered for the first time that early Bronze Age people placed flowers in their graves, in the winter of 1850, a severe storm hit Scotland, causing widespread damage and over 200 deaths. In the Bay of Skaill, the storm stripped the earth from a large irregular knoll, when the storm cleared, local villagers found the outline of a village, consisting of a number of small houses without roofs. William Watt of Skaill, the laird, began an amateur excavation of the site, but after uncovering four houses
21.
Western Front (World War II)
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The Western Front of the European theatre of World War II encompassed Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Germany. World War II military engagements in Southern Europe and elsewhere are generally considered under separate headings, the Western Front was marked by two phases of large-scale combat operations. The second phase consisted of ground combat, which began in June 1944 with the Allied landings in Normandy. The Phoney War was a phase of World War II marked by a few military operations in Continental Europe in the months following the German invasion of Poland. Although the great powers of Europe had declared war on one another, neither side had yet committed to launching a significant attack and this was also the period in which The United Kingdom and France did not supply significant aid to Poland, despite their pledged alliance. While most of the German Army was fighting against Poland, a much smaller German force manned the Siegfried Line, there were only some local, minor skirmishes. The British Royal Air Force dropped propaganda leaflets on Germany and the first Canadian troops stepped ashore in Britain, while Western Europe was in a strange calm for seven months. In their hurry to re-arm, Britain and France had both begun to buy large numbers of weapons manufacturers in the United States at the outbreak of hostilities. The non-belligerent United States, contributed to the Western Allies by discounted sales of military equipment, German efforts to interdict the Allies trans-Atlantic trade at sea ignited the Battle of the Atlantic. However, when the Allies made a counter-landing in Norway following the German invasion, the Kriegsmarine, nonetheless, suffered very heavy losses during the two-months of fighting required to seize all of mainland Norway. In May 1940, the Germans launched the Battle of France, the Western Allies soon collapsed under the onslaught of the so-called blitzkrieg strategy. The majority of the British and elements of the French forces escaped at Dunkirk, with the fighting ended, the Germans began to consider ways of resolving the question of how to deal with Britain. If the British refused to agree to a treaty, one option was to invade. However, Nazi Germanys Kriegsmarine, had suffered losses in Norway. With the Luftwaffe unable to defeat the RAF in the Battle of Britain and these were built in anticipation of an Allied invasion of France. Because of the massive logistical obstacles a cross-channel invasion would face, on 19 August 1942, the Allies began the Dieppe Raid, an attack on Dieppe, France. Most of the troops were Canadian, with some British contingents, the raid was a disaster, almost two-thirds of the attacking force became casualties. However, much was learned as a result of the operation – these lessons would be put to use in the subsequent invasion
22.
Rhine
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The largest city on the river Rhine is Cologne, Germany, with a population of more than 1,050,000 people. It is the second-longest river in Central and Western Europe, at about 1,230 km, with an average discharge of about 2,900 m3/s. The Rhine and the Danube formed most of the inland frontier of the Roman Empire and, since those days. The many castles and fortifications along the Rhine testify to its importance as a waterway in the Holy Roman Empire, in the modern era, it has become a symbol of German nationalism. The variant of the name of the Rhine in modern languages are all derived from the Gaulish name Rēnos, spanish is with French in adopting the Germanic vocalism Rin-, while Italian, Occitan and Portuguese retain the Latin Ren-. The Gaulish name Rēnos belongs to a class of river names built from the PIE root *rei- to move, flow, run, the grammatical gender of the Celtic name is masculine, and the name remains masculine in German, Dutch and French. The Old English river name was variously inflected as masculine or feminine, the length of the Rhine is conventionally measured in Rhine-kilometers, a scale introduced in 1939 which runs from the Old Rhine Bridge at Constance to Hoek van Holland. The river length is shortened from the rivers natural course due to a number of canalisation projects completed in the 19th and 20th century. The total length of the Rhine, to the inclusion of Lake Constance and its course is conventionally divided as follows, The Rhine carries its name without distinctive accessories only from the confluence of the Vorderrhein and Hinterrhein near Tamins-Reichenau. Above this point is the catchment of the headwaters of the Rhine. It belongs almost exclusively to the Swiss Canton of Graubünden, ranging from Gotthard Massif in the west via one valley lying in Ticino, traditionally, Lake Toma near the Oberalp Pass in the Gotthard region is seen as the source of the Vorderrhein and the Rhine as a whole. The Hinterrhein rises in the Rheinwald valley below Mount Rheinwaldhorn, the Vorderrhein, or Anterior Rhine, springs from Lai da Tuma, near the Oberalp Pass and passes the impressive Ruinaulta formed by the largest visible rock slide in the alps, the Flims Rockslide. A multiday trekking route is signposted along the young Rhine called Senda Sursilvana, the Hinterrhein/Rein Posteriur, or Posterior Rhine, starts from the Paradies Glacier, near the Rheinwaldhorn. One of its tributaries, the Reno di Lei, drains the Valle di Lei on politically Italian territory, after three main valleys separated by the two gorges, Roflaschlucht and Viamala, it reaches Reichenau. The Vorderrhein arises from numerous source streams in the upper Surselva, one source is Lai da Tuma with the Rein da Tuma, which is usually indicated as source of the Rhine, flowing through it. Into it flow tributaries from the south, some longer, some equal in length, such as the Reno di Medel, the Rein da Maighels, and the Rein da Curnera. The Cadlimo Valley in the Canton of Ticino is drained by the Reno di Medel, all streams in the source area are partially, sometimes completely, captured and sent to storage reservoirs for the local hydro-electric power plants. In its lower course the Vorderrhein flows through a gorge named Ruinaulta through the Flims Rockslide, the whole stretch of the Vorderrhein to the Rhine confluence near Reichenau-Tamins is accompanied by a long-distance hiking trail called Senda Sursilvana
23.
British Expeditionary Force (World War II)
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The British Expeditionary Force was the name of the British Army in Western Europe from 1939 to 1940, in the early stages of the Second World War. During the 1930s, the British government planned to deter war by rearming from the low level of readiness of the early 30s. The bulk of the money went to the Royal Navy. The BEF began moving to France in September 1939, the British assembled along the Belgian–French border on the left of the French First Army as part of the French 1er groupe darmées of the Front du Nord-est. Most of the BEF spent the Phoney War digging field defences on the French–Belgian border before the Battle of France began on 10 May 1940, the BEF constituted 10 percent of the Allied forces on the Western Front. The BEF, French and Belgian forces were evacuated from Dunkirk on the French North Sea coast in Operation Dynamo, Saar Force, the 51st Infantry Division, had been detached for service along the Maginot Line as part of a plan for the BEF units to gain experience. At the beginning of the 1930s, the Ten Year Rule had reduced war spending from £766 million in 1920 to £102 million when it was abolished on 23 March 1932. The British army had fewer men than in 1914, no organisation or equipment for a war in Europe and in three weeks, the War Office could only mobilise an infantry division and a cavalry brigade. The committee urged the creation of a Field Force of four infantry divisions, expenditure of £71 million was recommended, half to go in the army, which would be the defence against an invasion. The government accepted the report apart from the price and cut 1⁄3 from the estimate, in March 1937, the Regular Army stood at 121,000 men at home and 89,000 overseas, with some 716 tanks, of which 200 were obsolete First World War models. By the later 1930s, the despatch of an Expeditionary Force to France of Belgium might increase British security, the government also announced that the twelve TA divisions would be brought up to establishment and then another twelve. Anti-Aircraft Command formed seven divisions and early steps were taken to requisition the necessary to carry the Expeditionary Force to France. According to the 1939 Army Estimates, Britain had home forces of 230,000 men in the army,183,000 in reserve and 270,000 part-timers in the TA a total of 683,000 men. One lieutenant stuffed his holster with paper because he had no pistol, there were immense pressures to produce equipment, which led to a rapid increase in output. Clothing items were one example of this, greatcoats and boots being produced at up to fifty times the normal peacetime rates, twenty-five years of greatcoats were produced in six months and 18 months army boots were turned out in one week but shortages remained. Following the German invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939, the BEF was despatched to France, German submarines had been limited by Hitlers orders to avoid provoking the Allies and only a few mines were laid near Dover and Weymouth. By 19 October, the BEF had received 25,000 vehicles to complete the first deployment, Belgium and the Netherlands were neutral countries and no troops were stationed in them. Morale was high amongst the British troops but the actions of the Germans by 9 May, had led many into assuming that there would not be much chance of a big German attack in that area
24.
Dunkirk evacuation
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The operation was decided upon when large numbers of Belgian, Canadian, British, and French troops were cut off and surrounded by the German army during the Battle of France. In his We shall fight on the speech on 4 June. After Nazi Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, France and the British Commonwealth, the British Expeditionary Force was sent to aid in the defence of France. After the Phoney War, Germany invaded Belgium and the Netherlands on 10 May 1940, by 21 May, the German forces had trapped the BEF, the remains of the Belgian forces, and three French armies in an area along the northern coast of France. On 22 May 1940, an order was issued by the German High Command. This gave the trapped Allied forces time to construct defensive works and pull back large numbers of troops toward Dunkirk, to fight the Battle of Dunkirk. On the first day of the evacuation, only 7,669 men were evacuated, but by the end of the eighth day, the BEF lost 68,000 soldiers during the French campaign and had to abandon nearly all of their tanks, vehicles, and other equipment. In his speech to the House of Commons on 4 June, wars are not won by evacuations. By May 1940 the force consisted of ten divisions in three corps under the command of General John Vereker, 6th Viscount Gort, working with the BEF were the Belgian Army and the French First, Seventh, and Ninth Armies. During the 1930s, the French had constructed the Maginot Line and this line had been designed to deter a German invasion across the Franco-German border and funnel an attack into Belgium, which could then be met by the best divisions of the French Army. Thus, any war would take place outside of French territory avoiding a repeat of the First World War. He believed that any enemy force emerging from the forest would be vulnerable to a pincer attack, the French commander-in-chief, Maurice Gamelin, also believed the area to be of a limited threat, noting that it never favoured large operations. With this in mind, the area was lightly defended. The initial plan for the German invasion of France called for an encirclement attack through the Netherlands and Belgium, avoiding the Maginot Line. Erich von Manstein, then Chief of Staff of the German Army Group A, prepared the outline of a different plan and submitted it to the OKH via his superior, Generaloberst Gerd von Rundstedt. Mansteins plan suggested that Panzer divisions should attack through the Ardennes, then establish bridgeheads on the Meuse River, the Germans would thus cut off the Allied armies in Belgium and Flanders. This part of the later became known as the Sichelschnitt. Adolf Hitler approved a version of Mansteins ideas, today known as the Manstein Plan
25.
Shrewsbury
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Shrewsbury SHROOZ-bree is the county town of Shropshire, England. It is on the River Severn and has a population of approximately 72,000. and is nicknamed the heart of shropshire. Shrewsbury is a town whose centre has a largely unaltered medieval street plan and over 660 listed buildings. The town has historically been a centre for the wool trade, horticulture remains popular, and the Shrewsbury Flower Show is one of the largest horticultural events in England. The A5 and A49 trunk roads cross near to the town and its later Welsh name Amwythig means fortified place. Over the ages, the important town has been the site of many conflicts. The Angles, under King Offa of Mercia, took possession in 778, nearby is the village of Wroxeter,5 miles to the south-east. This was once the site of Viroconium, the fourth largest cantonal capital in Roman Britain, as Caer Guricon it is a possible alternative for the Dark Age seat of the Kingdom of Powys. The importance of the Shrewsbury area in the Roman era was underlined with the discovery of the Shrewsbury Hoard in 2009, Shrewsburys known history commences in the Early Middle Ages, having been founded c.800 AD. It is believed that Anglo-Saxon Shrewsbury was most probably a settlement fortified through the use of earthworks comprising a ditch and rampart, There is evidence to show that by the beginning of the 900s, Shrewsbury was home to a mint. The Welsh besieged it in 1069, but were repelled by William the Conqueror, Roger de Montgomery was given the town as a gift from William, and built Shrewsbury Castle in 1074, taking the title of Earl. He founded Shrewsbury Abbey as a Benedictine monastery in 1083, the 3rd Earl, Robert of Bellême, was deposed in 1102 and the title forfeited, in consequence of rebelling against Henry I and joining the Duke of Normandys invasion of English in 1101. In 1138, King Stephen successfully besieged the castle held by William FitzAlan for the Empress Maud during the known as the Anarchy. It was in the late Middle Ages when the town was at its height of commercial importance. This was mainly due to the trade, a major industry at the time, with the rest of Britain and Europe, especially with the River Severn. The Shrewsbury Drapers Company dominated the trade in Welsh wool for many years, Shrewsburys monastic gathering was disbanded with the Dissolution of the Monasteries and as such the Abbey was closed in 1540. However, it is believed that Henry VIII thereafter intended to make Shrewsbury a cathedral city after the formation of the Church of England, but the citizens of the town declined the offer. Despite this, Shrewsbury thrived throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, largely due to the towns fortuitous location, as a resultant a number of grand edifices, including the Irelands Mansion and Drapers Hall, were constructed
26.
Kitchener's Army
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It originated on the recommendation of Horatio Herbert Kitchener, then the Secretary of State for War. Kitcheners original intention was that it would be formed and ready to be put into action in 1917, the first use in a major action came at the Battle of Loos. Contrary to the belief that the war would be over by Christmas 1914, Kitchener predicted a long. He believed that arrival in Europe of a force of new. In the early days of the war, the Territorial Force could not reinforce the army, as it lacked modern equipment. In addition, it took time to form First-Line units composed only of men who had volunteered for General Service and those recruited into the New Army were used to form complete battalions under existing British Army Regiments. These new battalions had titles of the form xxth Battalion, <regiment name>, the first New Army divisions were used at the Battle of Loos in the autumn of 1915, and they were sorely tested in the Battle of the Somme. All five of the army groups were made up of volunteer recruits. Due to the numbers of men wishing to sign up. There were many problems in equipping and providing shelter for the new recruits, rapidly the Government added many new recruitment centres, which eased the admissions burden, and began a programme of temporary construction at the main training camps. Almost 2.5 million men volunteered for Kitcheners Army, by the beginning of 1916, the queues were not so long anymore. Information about the nature of the war had reached Great Britain. Great Britain had to resort to conscription like the great powers involved in the war. The first conscripts arrived in France in late 1916 to fill the gaps in the volunteer units, roughly half of those who served in the British Army throughout the war, including more than half of the five million men serving in the British Army in 1918, were conscripts. A recruit accepted into the army was first sent to his Regimental depot, next he was sent to the main training camps to join his battalion. In practice, no Regiment had the required stocks of equipment, or the manpower to train the flood of recruits, to mitigate this problem, the army issued old stored uniforms, including First Boer War–vintage red jackets. Some regiments bought their own uniform and boots with money paid from public collections, many regiments were also issued with emergency blue uniforms, popularly known as Kitchener Blue. Whilst this crisis went on, the soldiers wore regimental and unit badges or patches on their clothing, many photographs from the era show uniformed soldiers drilling alongside civilian clothed soldiers, perhaps led by red-jacketed NCOs
27.
World War I
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World War I, also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history and it was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. The war drew in all the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war, Italy, Japan, the trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. This set off a crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia. Within weeks, the powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world. On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July, the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia, Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise, and when this was refused, declared war on Russia on 1 August. Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France, after the German march on Paris was halted, what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition, with a trench line that changed little until 1917. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army was successful against the Austro-Hungarians, in November 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers, opening fronts in the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Sinai. In 1915, Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Romania joined the Allies in 1916, after a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918, the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives. By the end of the war or soon after, the German Empire, Russian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, national borders were redrawn, with several independent nations restored or created, and Germanys colonies were parceled out among the victors. During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the Big Four imposed their terms in a series of treaties, the League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict. This effort failed, and economic depression, renewed nationalism, weakened successor states, and feelings of humiliation eventually contributed to World War II. From the time of its start until the approach of World War II, at the time, it was also sometimes called the war to end war or the war to end all wars due to its then-unparalleled scale and devastation. In Canada, Macleans magazine in October 1914 wrote, Some wars name themselves, during the interwar period, the war was most often called the World War and the Great War in English-speaking countries. Will become the first world war in the sense of the word. These began in 1815, with the Holy Alliance between Prussia, Russia, and Austria, when Germany was united in 1871, Prussia became part of the new German nation. Soon after, in October 1873, German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors between the monarchs of Austria-Hungary, Russia and Germany
28.
Conscription in the United Kingdom
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Conscription in the United Kingdom has existed for two periods in modern times. The first was from 1916 to 1920, the second was from 1939 to 1960, conscription during the First World War began when the British government passed the Military Service Act in 1916. The act specified that men aged 18 to 40 years old were liable to be called up for military service unless they were widowed with children or ministers of a religion. The law went through several changes before the war ended, married men were exempt in the original Act, although this was changed in June 1916. The age limit was eventually raised to 51 years old. Recognition of work of national importance also diminished, and in the last year of the war there was support for the conscription of clergy. Due to the situation in Ireland, conscription was never applied there, only in England, Scotland. Only single men 20 to 22 years old were liable to be called up, to emphasise this distinction, each man was issued with a suit in addition to a uniform. The intention was for the first intake to undergo six months of training before being discharged into an active reserve. They would then be recalled for short training periods and attend an annual camp, at the outbreak of war, on 3 September 1939, the Military Training Act was overtaken by the National Service Act, and the first intake was absorbed into the army. This act imposed a liability to conscription of all men 18 to 41 years old, men could be rejected for medical reasons, and those engaged in vital industries or occupations were reserved at a particular age beyond which no one in that job would be enlisted. For example, lighthouse keepers were reserved at 18 years old, from 1943, some conscripts were directed into the British coal mining industry and become known as the Bevin Boys. This included their own children, legitimate or illegitimate, stepchildren, pregnant women were not exempted, but in practice were not called up. Men under 20 years old were not liable to be sent overseas. People called up before they were 51 years old but who reached their 51st birthday during their service were liable to serve until the end of the war. People who had retired, resigned or been dismissed from the forces before the war were liable to be called if they had not reached 51 years of age. Britain did not completely demobilise in 1945, as conscription continued after the war and those already in the armed forces were given a release class determined by length of service and age. In practice, releases began in June 1945, and the last of the conscripts had been released by 1949
29.
Shropshire
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Shropshire Council was created in 2009, a unitary authority taking over from the previous county council and five district councils. The borough of Telford and Wrekin has been a unitary authority since 1998. The county has many towns, including Whitchurch in the north, Newport north-east of Telford. The Ironbridge Gorge area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, covering Ironbridge, Coalbrookdale, there are other historic industrial sites in the county, such as at Shrewsbury, Broseley, Snailbeach and Highley, as well as the Shropshire Union Canal. The Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty covers about a quarter of the county, Shropshire is one of Englands most rural and sparsely populated counties, with a population density of 136/km2. The Wrekin is one of the most famous landmarks in the county, though the highest hills are the Clee Hills, Stiperstones. Wenlock Edge is another significant geographical and geological landmark, the River Severn, Great Britains longest river, runs through the county, exiting into Worcestershire via the Severn Valley. Shropshire is landlocked and with an area of 3,487 square kilometres is Englands largest inland county, the county flower is the round-leaved sundew. The area was part of the lands of the Cornovii. This was a tribal Celtic iron age kingdom and their capital in pre-Roman times was probably a hill fort on the Wrekin. Ptolemys 2nd century Geography names one of their towns as being Viroconium Cornoviorum, after the Roman occupation of Britain ended in the 5th century, the Shropshire area was in the eastern part of the Welsh Kingdom of Powys, known in Welsh poetry as the Paradise of Powys. It was annexed to the Angle kingdom of Mercia by King Offa in the 8th century, in subsequent centuries, the area suffered repeated Danish invasion, and fortresses were built at Bridgnorth and Chirbury. Many defensive castles were built at this time across the county to defend against the Welsh and enable effective control of the region, including Ludlow Castle, the western frontier with Wales was not finally determined until the 14th century. Also in this period, a number of foundations were formed, the county largely falling at this time under the Diocese of Hereford. The county contains a number of historically significant towns, including Shrewsbury, Bridgnorth, additionally, the area around Coalbrookdale in the county is seen as highly significant, as it is regarded as one of the birthplaces of the Industrial Revolution. The village of Edgmond, near Newport, is the location of the lowest recorded temperature in England, the origin of the name Shropshire is the Old English Scrobbesbyrigscīr, which means Shrewsburyshire. The name may, therefore, be derived indirectly from a name such as Scrope. Salop is an old name for Shropshire, historically used as a form for post or telegrams
30.
Herefordshire
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Herefordshire is a historic English county in the West Midlands. It is a county and a unitary non-metropolitan county and district, also named in legislation as the County of Herefordshire. The Welsh unitary county covering the part of Gwent next to Herefordshire is Monmouthshire, Hereford is a cathedral city and is the county town, with a population of approximately 55,800 inhabitants it is also the largest settlement. The county is one of the most rural and sparsely populated in England, the land use is predominantly agricultural and the county is well known for its fruit and cider production, and the Hereford cattle breed. From 1974 to 1998, Herefordshire was part of the former county of Hereford. Herefordshire was reconstituted both as a new district and as a new county by Statutory Instrument as defined in The Hereford and this Order established Herefordshire as a unitary authority on 1 April 1998, combining county and district functions into a single council. Herefordshire is also called a unitary district, but this is not official nomenclature. Herefordshire is officially known as an authority for local government purposes. The Lieutenancies Act 1997 made Herefordshire a ceremonial county, covering the area of the unitary district. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire NUTS2 region. The River Wye, which at 135 miles is the fifth-longest in the United Kingdom and it flows through both Hereford and Ross-on-Wye before returning to Wales. Leominster is situated on the River Lugg, a tributary of the Wye, there are two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the county. The Wye Valley is located in the valleys south of Hereford, while the Malvern Hills are in the east of the county. Herefordshire is one of the 39 historic counties of England, in 1974 it was merged with neighbouring Worcestershire to form the Hereford and Worcester administrative county. Within this, Herefordshire was covered by the government districts of South Herefordshire, Hereford. However, the county was dissolved in 1998, resulting in the return of Herefordshire and Worcestershire as counties, the current ceremonial county and unitary district have broadly the same borders as the pre-1974 historic county. However this has been from a base, with only Northumberland. The population is White 98. 2%, Asian 0. 8%, Mixed 0. 7%, Black 0. 2%, gypsies and Travellers have historically been Herefordshires largest minority ethnic group
31.
Staffordshire
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Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands of England. It adjoins Cheshire to the north west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the south east, West Midlands and Worcestershire to the south, and Shropshire to the west. The largest city in Staffordshire is Stoke-on-Trent, which is administered separately from the rest of the county as an independent unitary authority, Lichfield also has city status, although this is a considerably smaller cathedral city. Major towns include Stafford, Burton upon Trent, Cannock, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Leek, smaller towns include Stone, Uttoxeter, and Rugeley, and large villages Eccleshall, Wombourne, Kinver, Penkridge, Tutbury and Stretton. Cannock Chase AONB is within the county as well as parts of the National Forest, Wolverhampton, Walsall, West Bromwich, and Smethwick were historic Staffordshire towns until local government reorganisation created the West Midlands county in 1974. Historically, Staffordshire was divided into the five hundreds of Cuttlestone, Offlow, Pirehill, Seisdon, the historic boundaries of Staffordshire cover much of what is now the metropolitan county of West Midlands. The Act also saw the towns of Tamworth and Burton upon Trent united entirely in Staffordshire, in 1553 Queen Mary made Lichfield a county separate from the rest of Staffordshire. Handsworth and Perry Barr became part of the county borough of Birmingham in the early 20th century, Burton, in the east of the county, became a county borough in 1901, and was followed by Smethwick, another town in the Black Country in 1907. In 1910 the six towns of the Staffordshire Potteries, including Hanley, a major reorganisation in the Black Country in 1966, under the recommendation of the Local Government Commission for England led to the creation of an area of contiguous county boroughs. Meanwhile, the county borough of Dudley, historically a part of Worcestershire, expanded. County boroughs were abolished, with Stoke becoming a district in Staffordshire. On 1 April 1997, under a recommendation of the Banham Commission, in July 2009 the largest hoard of Anglo-Saxon gold ever found in Britain was discovered in a field near Lichfield. The artefacts, known as The Staffordshire Hoard have tentatively dated to the 7th or 8th centuries. Some nationally and internationally known companies have their base in Staffordshire. They include the Britannia Building Society which is based in Leek, JCB is based in Rocester near Uttoxeter and bet365 based in Stoke-on-Trent. The theme park Alton Towers is in the Staffordshire Moorlands and several of the worlds largest pottery manufacturers are based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire has a completely comprehensive system with eight independent schools. Most secondary schools are from 11–16 or 18, but two in Staffordshire Moorlands and South Staffordshire are from 13–18, there are two universities in the county, Keele University in Newcastle-under-Lyme and Staffordshire University, which has campuses in Stoke-on-Trent, Stafford, Lichfield and Shrewsbury. The modern county of Staffordshire currently has three football clubs – Stoke City and Port Vale, both from Stoke-on-Trent, and Burton Albion, who play in Burton upon Trent. They were among the 12 founder members of the Football League in 1888, in 1972, the club finally won a major trophy when they lifted the Football League Cup, but after relegation from the First Division in 1985 they would not experience top flight football for 23 years
32.
The Midlands
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The Midlands is a cultural and geographic area roughly spanning central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders South East England, South West England, North West England, Yorkshire and Humber, East of England and its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important location for the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries. The greater part of the area is formed of two English statistical regions, the West Midlands and East Midlands, the Midlands does not correspond to any current administrative area, and there is therefore no strict definition. With more restricted boundaries than the area known as the Midlands. These are also constituencies of the European Parliament, the East Midlands region comprises the shire counties of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire and the unitary county of Rutland. The two regions have a population of 10,135,000, and an area of 11,053 sq mi. The largest Midlands conurbation, which includes the cities of Birmingham, various part of the Midlands are somewhat poetically referred to as the Heart of England, especially in tourist literature. The various areas of the Midlands have their own character, giving rise to a high number of local history. Nottingham played a part in the English Civil War, which is commemorated in a number of place names. Areas such as Derbyshires Amber Valley and Erewash combine attractive countryside with industrial heritage and are home to historic canals, the Black Country, broadly the boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Wolverhampton and Walsall, played an important part in the Industrial Revolution. The Midlands is predominantly low-lying and flat in character, although isolated hills such as Turners Hill have extensive views. Upland areas lie in the west and north of the region with the Shropshire Hills to the west, close to the Welsh border, the Shropshire Hills reach heights of over 500 m, including the Long Mynd, Clee Hills and Stiperstones ridge. Wenlock Edge, running through the middle of the Shropshire Hills AONB, is a long, low ridge, the Peak District reaches heights of between 300 m and 600 m with Kinder Scout being the highest point at 636 m. Further south, the Welsh border reaches over 700 m high, at Black Mountain, other small areas of lower hills in the Midlands include Cannock Chase in Staffordshire, Charnwood Forest in Leicestershire, and the Lincolnshire Wolds in Lincolnshire. The Cotswolds – designated an AONB in 1966, – extend for over 90 miles through six counties, but centred on Gloucestershire. They reach a highest point of 330 m at Cleeve Hill, the Malverns are formed of some of the oldest rock in England and extend for some 13 km through two West Midlands counties as well as northern Gloucestershire in the southwest. The highest point of the hills is the Worcestershire Beacon at 425 m above sea level, the Midlands has a temperate maritime climate. With cold, cloudy, wet winters and comfortable, mostly dry, the temperature usually ranges from −0.4 °C during winter nights to 24.1 °C during summer days
33.
Military Cross
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The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and used to be awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC is granted in recognition of an act or acts of gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land to all members. In 1979, the Queen approved a proposal that a number of awards, including the Military Cross, the award was created on 28 December 1914 for commissioned officers of the substantive rank of Captain or below and for Warrant Officers. In August 1916, Bars were awarded to the MC in recognition of the performance of acts of gallantry meriting the award. In 1931 the award was extended to Majors and also to members of the Royal Air Force for actions on the ground, the MC now serves as the third-level award for gallantry on land for all ranks of the British Armed Forces. 46 mm max height,44 mm max width, ornamental silver cross with straight arms terminating in broad finials, suspended from plain suspension bar. Obverse decorated with crowns, with the Royal Cypher in centre. Reverse is plain, but from 1938 the name of the recipient, the ribbon width is 32 mm and consists of three equal vertical moire stripes of white, purple, and white. During World War I, Acting Captain Francis Wallington of the Royal Field Artillery was the first person to be awarded the MC, during World War II Captain Sam Manekshaw, Indian Army, was leading a counter-offensive operation against the invading Japanese Army in Burma. During the course of the offensive, he was hit by a burst of machine-gun fire, Major General D. T. Cowan spotted Manekshaw holding on to life and was aware of his valour in face of stiff resistance from the Japanese. Fearing the worst, Major General Cowan quickly pinned his own Military Cross ribbon on to Manekshaw saying, the first posthumous Military Cross was that awarded to Captain Herbert Westmacott, Grenadier Guards for gallantry in Northern Ireland during the period 1 February 1980 to 30 April 1980. The first woman to be awarded the Military Cross was Private Michelle Norris of the Royal Army Medical Corps, Norris was awarded her medal personally by Queen Elizabeth II on 21 March 2007 as the result of her actions in Iraq on 11 June 2006. Able Seaman Kate Nesbitt, second woman, first in the Royal Navy, sergeant Michael Lockett MC was the first holder of the MC to be killed in action since World War II. Database of Australian Awardees at the Australian Government Honours website Search recommendations for the Military Cross on The UK National Archives website, the Kings Own Royal Regiment Museum, Military Cross
34.
Nottinghamshire
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Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditional county town is Nottingham, though the county council is based in West Bridgford in the borough of Rushcliffe, the districts of Nottinghamshire are Ashfield, Bassetlaw, Broxtowe, Gedling, Mansfield, Newark and Sherwood, and Rushcliffe. The City of Nottingham was administratively part of Nottinghamshire between 1974 and 1998 but is now an authority, remaining part of Nottinghamshire for ceremonial purposes. In 2011 the county was estimated to have a population of 785,800, over half of the population of the county live in the Greater Nottingham conurbation. The conurbation has a population of about 650,000, though less than half live within the city boundaries. Nottinghamshire lies on the Roman Fosse Way, and there are Roman settlements in the county, for example at Mansfield, the county was settled by Angles around the 5th century, and became part of the Kingdom, and later Earldom, of Mercia. However, there is evidence of Saxon settlement at the Broxtowe Estate, Oxton, near Nottingham, the name first occurs in 1016, but until 1568 the county was administratively united with Derbyshire, under a single Sheriff. In Norman times the county developed malting and woollen industries, in the 18th and 19th centuries, mechanised deeper collieries opened and mining became an important economic sector, though these declined after the 1984–85 miners strike. Until 1610, Nottinghamshire was divided into eight Wapentakes, sometime between 1610 and 1719 they were reduced to six – Newark, Bassetlaw, Thurgarton, Rushcliffe, Broxtowe and Bingham, some of these names still being used for the modern districts. Oswaldbeck was absorbed in Bassetlaw, of which it forms the North Clay division, Nottinghamshire is famous for its involvement with the legend of Robin Hood. This is also the reason for the numbers of tourists who visit places like Sherwood Forest, City of Nottingham, to reinforce the Robin Hood connection, the University of Nottingham in 2010 has begun the Nottingham Caves Survey with the goal to increase the tourist potential of these sites. The project will use a 3D laser scanner to produce a three dimensional record of more than 450 sandstone caves around Nottingham. Nottinghamshire was mapped first by Christopher Saxton in 1576, the first fully surveyed map of the county was by John Chapman who produced Chapmans Map of Nottinghamshire in 1774. Nottinghamshire, like Derbyshire and South Yorkshire, sits on extensive coal measures, up to 900 metres thick, there is an oilfield near Eakring. These are overlaid by sandstones and limestones in the west and clay in the east, the north of the county is part of the Humberhead Levels lacustrine plain. The centre and south west of the county, around Sherwood Forest, principal rivers are the Trent, Idle, Erewash and Soar. The Trent, fed by the Soar and Erewash, and Idle, composed of many streams from Sherwood Forest, run through wide and flat valleys, the lowest is Peat Carr, east of Blaxton, at sea level, the Trent is tidal below Cromwell Lock. Nottinghamshire is sheltered by the Pennines to the west, so receives relatively low rainfall at 641–740 mm annually, the average temperature of the county is 8. 8–10.1 degrees Celsius
35.
Thoresby Hall
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Thoresby Hall is a grade I listed 19th-century country house in Budby, Nottinghamshire, some 4 km north of Ollerton. It is one of four neighbouring houses and estates in the Dukeries in north Nottinghamshire all occupied by dukes at one time during their history. The hall is constructed of rock-faced ashlar with ashlar dressings and it is built in four storeys with a square floor plan surrounding a central courtyard, nine bays wide and eight bays deep. The Queens Royal Lancers and Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Museum occupies part of the courtyard, robert Pierrepont, 1st Earl of Kingston-upon-Hull acquired the Thoresby lands in 1633, but was killed in the Civil War in 1643. His son Henry Pierrepont, the 2nd Earl, built the first grand house, attributed to the architect Talman, the 5th Earl was created the 1st Duke of Kingston in 1715. The estate passed to Evelyn Pierrepont, 2nd Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull, twenty years later the architect John Carr during 1767–1772 built a new house on the same site. Humphry Repton landscaped the park at the same time, when the 2nd Duke died in 1773 he left the estate to his wife, Elizabeth Chudleigh, the former wife of the Earl of Bristol. After a very public court case, she was declared married bigamously to the duke and obliged to surrender the property on her death in 1786 to the nephew, Charles Medows. He adopted the name Pierrepont and later became the 1st Earl Manvers and it measures 55 metres on its east and south fronts and 48 metres on its west front. The impressive Great Hall, with gallery at the west end, is 19 metres long and 14 metres high. The house descended to the 6th Earl who died in 1955 without a male heir, the house remained with the family. To minimise a perceived threat from mining subsidence the buildings were sold to the National Coal Board in 1979. After a number of owners it was acquired by Warner Leisure Hotels, the core of the Thoresby furniture collection was retained by the family, while the remainder was sold at auction by Sothebys in 1989. The 8, 400-square-metre Salvin house had a new wing added before opening as a 200-room country house hotel with spa facilities. The house was the birthplace of Lady Mary Pierrepont, wife of Edward Wortley Montagu, history from Worksop Heritage Trail A short history from nottshistory. org A longer history from the same site The official Warner website about the hotel
36.
Welbeck Abbey
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It is one of four contiguous ducal estates in North Nottinghamshire and the house is a grade I listed building. The estate was mentioned in the Domesday Book, where it is recorded as belonging to Hugh FitzBaldric, thomas de Cuckney founded the religious house in 1140. It was an abbey of Premonstratensian canons, dedicated to St James the Great, the abbey was enriched by gifts from the Goushills, D’Eyncourts, Bassets, and other families from Nottinghamshire and it received a considerable grant from King Edward I. In 1393 the abbey came under investigation by King Richard II. With so much wealth at his disposal, the Abbot of Welbeck was an influential man, in 1538, the abbot, Richard Bentley was awarded a pension of £50, and the 17 canons received pensions of between £40 and £4, and, a year. At the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the site was granted by Henry VIII to Richard Whalley and it passed to his son William Cavendish, later first Duke of Newcastle, it became the seat of the dukes. Members of the Cavendish family converted it into a house and added a riding house in the 17th century to the design of Robert Smythson. Only basements and inner walls were retained from the fabric of the old abbey buildings. In the 18th century, it passed through an heiress into the Bentinck family and became the seat of the Earls, the houses Oxford Wing which contained some of the oldest parts of the building, burned down in October 1900 although most of the contents were saved. The wing was rebuilt to the designs of Ernest George by 1905, Archduke Franz Ferdinand accepted an invitation from the 6th Duke of Portland to stay at Welbeck Abbey and arrived with his wife, Sophie, by train at Worksop on 22 November 1913. This was almost a year before his assassination, which triggered the First World War, the Archduke narrowly avoided being killed in a hunting accident during his stay when a loader fell and caused a shotgun to go off within feet of the Archduke and his host. Over the course of the First World War itself, between 1914 and 1919 the kitchen block was used as an army hospital. After the Second World War, Welbeck was leased by the Dukes of Portland to the Ministry of Defence and was operated as Welbeck College, an army training college, until 2005. Lady Anne Cavendish-Bentinck, the elder daughter of the 7th Duke, lived at Welbeck Woodhouse. William Henry Marcello Parente, son of her sister, Lady Victoria Margaret Cavendish-Bentinck who married Gaetano Parente, Prince of Castel Viscardo. Since the Ministry of Defence moved out in 2005, Welbeck Abbey has been his home, pedestrian access across the Welbeck estate is confined to footpaths forming part of the Robin Hood Way. The first No Direction Home Festival was held at Welbeck Abbey over the weekend of 8 to 10 June 2012, the End of the Road affiliated festival was headlined by Richard Hawley, The Low Anthem and Andrew Bird. In 2016 it was used as the location for the BBCs baking series Bake Off, the 5th Duke of Portland undertook the most substantial building works at Welbeck
37.
204th Independent Infantry Brigade (Home)
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204th Independent Infantry Brigade was a Home Defence formation of the British Army during World War II. The 204th Independent Infantry Brigade was formed for service in the United Kingdom on 12 October 1940 by No 4 Infantry Training Group in the West Midland Area of Home Forces and it was commanded by Brigadier G. McI. Bruce and comprised four newly raised battalions from the North. The brigade moved from West Midlands Area to the Lincolnshire County Division when that was formed on 27 March 1941, on 1 September 1942, the Brigade headquarters was re-designated 185th Infantry Brigade and its units transferred to other formations. 7th South Lancashires, 12th Foresters and 7th Leicesters went to India while 8th South Lancashires was disbanded, formation Badges of World War 2 Britain, Commonwealth and Empire. Don Neal, Guns and Bugles, The Story of the 6th Bn KSLI – 181st Field Regiment RA 1940–1946, Studley, Brewin,2001, land Forces of Britain, the Empire and Commonwealth The Royal Artillery 1939–45
38.
Lincolnshire
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Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It also borders Northamptonshire in the south for just 20 yards, Englands shortest county boundary, the county town is Lincoln, where the county council has its headquarters. The ceremonial county of Lincolnshire is composed of the county of Lincolnshire. Therefore, part of the county is in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. The county is the second-largest of the English ceremonial counties and one that is predominantly agricultural in land use, the county is fifth largest of the two-tier counties, as the unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire are not included. The county can be broken down into a number of geographical sub-regions including, Lincolnshire derived from the merging of the territory of the ancient Kingdom of Lindsey with that controlled by the Danelaw borough of Stamford. For some time the county was called Lindsey, and it is recorded as such in the 11th-century Domesday Book. In 1888 when county councils were set up, Lindsey, Holland and these survived until 1974, when Holland, Kesteven, and most of Lindsey were unified into Lincolnshire. A local government reform in 1996 abolished Humberside, and the south of the Humber was allocated to the unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire. These two areas became part of Lincolnshire for ceremonial such as the Lord-Lieutenancy, but are not covered by the Lincolnshire police and are in the Yorkshire. The remaining districts of Lincolnshire are Boston, East Lindsey, Lincoln, North Kesteven, South Holland, South Kesteven and they are part of the East Midlands region. Lincolnshire is home to Woolsthorpe Manor, birthplace and home of Sir Isaac Newton and he attended The Kings School, Grantham and its library has preserved his signature, applied to a window sill when he was a teenager. Lincolnshire is an area, growing large amounts of wheat, barley, sugar beet. In South Lincolnshire, where the soil is rich in nutrients, some of the most common crops include potatoes, cabbages, cauliflowers. Most such companies are long gone, and Lincolnshire is no longer an engineering centre, however, as a result of the current economic climate some food production facilities have closed down, this has caused some reduction in the levels of migrant workers. The large number of people from Portugal is still obvious in the town of Boston. A coalition of Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Independents currently controls Lincolnshire County Council, the Conservative Party comfortably controlled the County Council following the 2009 local elections, in which they increased their majority to 43 seats. The Labour Party lost a total of 15 seats including 7 in Lincoln, the Lincolnshire Independents gained a total of four seats, although one of their number moved to the Conservative group during 2010, increasing the number of Conservative seats to 61
39.
Lincolnshire County Division
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The Lincolnshire County Division was a short-lived formation of the British Army, formed in World War II on 24 February 1941, becoming operational on 27 March. It ceased to function on 25 November and was disbanded on 3 December, list of British divisions in World War II Cole, Howard. Formation Badges of World War 2 Britain, Commonwealth and Empire, orders of Battle, Second World War, 1939–1945
40.
Melton Mowbray
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Melton Mowbray is a town in Leicestershire, England,19 miles northeast of Leicester, and 20 miles southeast of Nottingham. The town is on the River Eye and the River Wreake and has a population of 25,554, the town is best known for its culinary speciality, the Melton Mowbray pork pie, and it is also one of the six homes of Stilton cheese. Melton Mowbray is promoted as the Rural Capital of Food, the name comes from the early English word Medeltone – meaning Middletown surrounded by small hamlets. Mowbray is a Norman family name – the name of early Lords of the Manor – namely Robert de Mowbray, there is industrial archaeology including the Grantham Canal and the remains of the Melton Mowbray Navigation. Windmill sites, ironstone working and smelting archaeological evidence suggest that Melton borough was densely populated in Bronze, many small village communities existed and strategic points at Burrough Hill and Belvoir were fortified. There is also evidence to suggest that the site of Melton Mowbray in the Wreake Valley was inhabited before Roman occupation. Other Roman track ways in the locality passed north of Melton along the top of the vale of Belvoir scarp, they linked Market Harborough to Belvoir, evidence of settlement throughout Anglo-Saxon and Danelaw period is reflected in many place names. Along the Wreake Valley, the Danish suffix -by is common, in addition, a cemetery of 50–60 graves, of Pagan Anglo-Saxon origin, was found in Melton Mowbray. All the original crosses were removed or destroyed during the reformation, the effects of the Norman conquest are recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book. The water mills, still in use up to the 18th century, are remembered by the present names of Beckmill Court, Melton Mowbray has been a market town for over 1,000 years. Recorded as Leicestershires only market in the 1086 Domesday Survey, it is the third oldest market in England, tuesday has been market day ever since royal approval was given in 1324. The market was established with tolls before 1077, legacies from the Medieval period include consolidation of village and market town patterns, in Melton Mowbray, Bottesford, Wymondham, and Waltham-on-the-Wolds. The latter had a market in times that continued until 1921. Many buildings in Melton Market Place, Nottingham Street, Church Lane, King Street, alterations to number 16 Church Street revealed a medieval circular stone wall subjected to considerable heat. This is probably the Manor Oven mentioned in 13th century documents, surveys of 5 King Street show it to be part of an early medieval open-halled house. It may be part of the castle or fortified Manor of the Mowbrays, King Richard I and King John visited the town and may have stayed at an earlier castle. In 1549 following the Dissolution of the chantries, monasteries and religious guilds, church plate was sold, resulting rents were used to maintain Melton School, first recorded in 1347 and one of the oldest educational establishments in Britain. Funds were also used to maintain roads, bridges and to repair the church clock, Anne of Cleves house, now a Public House, is a Grade II* listed building
41.
Royal Pioneer Corps
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The Royal Pioneer Corps was a British Army combatant corps used for light engineering tasks. It was formed in 1939 and amalgamated into the Royal Logistic Corps in 1993, under Royal Engineers supervision they constructed airfields and roads and erected bridges, they constructed the Mulberry Harbour and laid the Pipe Line Under the Ocean. The first record of pioneers in a British army goes back to 1346 at Calais where the pay, traditionally, there was a designated pioneer for each company in a regiment, when, about 1750, it was proposed that a Corps of Pioneers be formed. Nothing came of this for two hundred years, until the Army Works Corps was established during the Crimean War in 1854. The Labour Corps was formed in 1917 during World War I and employed 325,000 British troops,98,000 Chinese,10,000 Africans, a large number of Pioneers served in France with the British Expeditionary Force. During the Battle of France an infantry brigade was improvised from several AMPC Companies under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel J. B. H. Diggle. Known as Digforce, the became part of Beauman Division and fought in defence of the Andelle. Digforce brigade and thousands of other BEF Pioneers were evacuated to England in Operation Ariel, an unknown number of AMPC troops were killed when the HMT Lancastria was sunk off St Nazaire on 17 June. On 22 November 1940 the name AMPC was changed to Pioneer Corps, in March 1941 James Scully became the only member of the Pioneer Corps to be awarded the George Cross. Corps members have won some 13 George Medals and many other lesser awards, a total of 23 pioneer companies took part in the Normandy landings. The novelist Alexander Baron served in one of these Beach Groups and later included some of his experiences in his novels From the City From the Plough and The Human Kind. He also wrote a play about the experience of being stranded on a craft attempting to land supplies on the beaches of Normandy. Nos.85 and 149 Companies, Pioneer Corps served with the 6th Beach Group assisting the units landing on Sword Beach on D Day,6 June 1944. On 28 November 1946, in recognition of their performance during the Second World War, in the early part of World War II the Pioneer Corps was apparently the only British military unit in which enemy aliens could serve. Thousands of German and Austrian nationals joined the Pioneer Corps to assist Allied war efforts and they typically were Jews and political opponents of the Nazi Regime who had fled to Britain, including film production designer Ken Adam, writer George Clare, and publisher Robert Maxwell. Later, some members of Pioneer Corps—often dubbed The Kings Most Loyal Enemy Aliens—transferred to serve in fighting units. Some were recruited by the Special Operations Executive to serve as agents and were parachuted behind enemy lines. Still, the number of German-born Jews joining the British forces was high, by the end of the war
42.
North Yorkshire
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North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan county and larger ceremonial county in England. It is located primarily in the region of Yorkshire and the Humber, created by the Local Government Act 1972, it covers an area of 8,654 square kilometres, making it the largest county in England. The majority of the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors lie within North Yorkshires boundaries, the largest settlements are York, Middlesbrough, Harrogate and Scarborough, the county town, Northallerton, has a population of 16,832. The area under the control of the county council, or shire county, is divided into a number of local government districts, Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough, the changes were planned to be implemented no later than 1 April 2009. This was rejected on 25 July 2007 so the County Council, the largest settlement in the administrative county is Harrogate, the second largest is Scarborough, while in the ceremonial county, the largest is York. The largest urban area within the county is the Middlesbrough built-up area sub-division of Teesside. Uniquely for a district in England, Stockton-on-Tees is split between North Yorkshire and County Durham for this purpose, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, and Redcar and Cleveland boroughs form part of the North East England region. The ceremonial county area, including the authorities, borders East Riding of Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cumbria. The geology of North Yorkshire is closely reflected in its landscape, within the county are the North York Moors and most of the Yorkshire Dales, two of eleven areas of countryside within England and Wales to be officially designated as national parks. Between the North York Moors in the east and the Pennine Hills in the west lie the Vales of Mowbray, the Tees Lowlands lie to the north of the North York Moors and the Vale of Pickering lies to the south. Its eastern border is the North sea coast, the highest point is Whernside, on the Cumbrian border, at 736 metres. The two major rivers in the county are the River Swale and the River Ure, the Swale and the Ure form the River Ouse which flows through York and into the Humber estuary. The River Tees forms part of the border between North Yorkshire and County Durham and flows from upper Teesdale to Middlesbrough and Stockton and to the coast, North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan county that operates a cabinet-style council, North Yorkshire County Council. The full council of 72 elects a council leader, who in turn appoints up to 9 more councillors to form the executive cabinet, the cabinet is responsible for making decisions in the County. The county council have their offices in the County Hall in Northallerton, the county is affluent and has above average house prices. Unemployment is below average for the UK and claimants of Job Seekers Allowance is also very low compared to the rest of the UK at 2. 7%, agriculture is an important industry, as are mineral extraction and power generation. The county also has high technology, service and tourism sectors. This is a chart of trend of gross value added for North Yorkshire at current basic prices with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling
43.
Ordnance QF 25-pounder
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The Ordnance QF 25-pounder, or more simply 25-pounder or 25-pdr, was the major British field gun and howitzer during World War II. It was introduced into service just before the war started, combining high-angle and direct-fire, relatively high rates of fire, and it remained the British Armys primary artillery field piece well into the 1960s, with smaller numbers serving in training units until the 1980s. Many Commonwealth of Nations countries used theirs in active or reserve service until about the 1970s and ammunition for the weapon is currently being produced by Pakistan Ordnance Factories. The design was the result of extended studies looking to replace the 18-pounder field gun and the 4. 5-inch howitzer, the result was a 3.45 inches weapon firing a shell weighing 25 pounds. It was mounted on late model 18-pounder carriages, one of these used a circular firing platform and this was adopted for the new guns. The firing platform was attached to the gun and when lowered the gun was pulled onto it and this platform transferred most of the recoil forces to the ground, instead of using the spade at the end of the trail, making the gun very stable when firing. It also provided a smooth surface for the carriage to rotate on using the road wheels. Unlike the 18-pounder, the 25-pounder used howitzer-type variable-charge ammunition, the 25-pounder was separate-loading, the shell was loaded and rammed, then the cartridge in its brass case was loaded and the breech closed. The use of shell and cartridge allowed the charge to be changed for different ranges. For the Mk 1 Ordnance on an 18-pounder carriage there were three charges, charges one, two and three, all of which could be used in the cartridge design. The Mk 2 Ordnance on Mk 1 carriage added a charge in a different cartridge. In 1943 a separately bagged increment charge was added, used with the Super it provided higher velocity for anti-tank use, the introduction of the increment to super was only possible following the addition of the muzzle-brake in the previous year. Subsequently another type of increment was introduced to be added to charges one, however, this fire required a dial sight adaptor, removal of the platform and some excavation of the ground. In common with all British guns of the period the indirect fire sight was calibrating and this meant that the range, not elevation angle, was set on the sight. The sight compensated for the difference in the guns muzzle velocities from standard, the gun was also fitted with a direct-fire telescope for use with armour-piercing shot. It also used one-man laying in accordance with normal British practice, an important part of the gun was the ammunition trailer. The gun was hooked to it and the trailer hooked to the tractor for towing, the gun did not need a limber and could be hooked directly to a tractor. The trailer provided the brakes as only a hand-brake was fitted to the gun carriage, the trailer carried ammunition, thirty-two rounds in trays in the trailer protected by two doors
44.
44th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)
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The 44th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both World War I and World War II with 15th Division. The brigade was raised, as 44th Brigade, in 1914 as part of Kitcheners New Armies shortly after the outbreak of the First World War, with the 15th Division, the brigade saw active service on the Western Front in Belgium and France. Throughout the war the brigade went through changes and reorganisations. It failed with heavy casualties but forced the Germans to abandon their plans in Normandy. A preliminary attack, Operation Martlet, was launched on June 25 by the 49th Infantry Division of XXX Corps, the attack gained some ground but the weather was still foul and the attackers were hampered by muddy ground and lack of air support. Some dominating terrain on the flank of the intended attack by VIII Corps was still in German hands. Nevertheless, to be certain of anticipating any German attack the main attack was launched on June 26. Although held up on parts of the front by infantry of 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend, the 15th Infantry Division, further to their left the 43rd Infantry Division also gained ground. As each brigade also attacked two up, however, this meant there were in only four battalions on the start line. On June 27, after repulsing small armoured counter-attacks, the 15th Infantry Division gained more ground, the 11th Armoured Division passed through to capture Hill 112, a mile to the southeast. This deep penetration alarmed the German command and Hausser was ordered to commit his units to contain, the British forces included the men of the 11th Armoured Division, 15th Infantry Division, 43rd Infantry Division and 53rd Infantry Division. Principal among the fighting on Hill 112, and the tanks of 7th and 9th Royal Tank Regiments. Approximately 63,000 men over a period of seven weeks fought on, the main attack on Hill 112 was designed to fix the German panzers and gain elbow room in what was still a tight beachhead. The German defenders endured naval bombardment, air attack and artillery fire but held their ground and these tanks armed with the 88 mm gun had both greater protection and firepower and outclassed the opposing British Churchill and Sherman tanks. Even though the hill was not captured and remained in no-mans-land between the two armies, important surrounding villages had been taken. Above all, however, the 9th Hohenstaufen SS Panzer Division, therefore, on the strategic level Operation Jupiter was a significant success. Casualties during that period amounted to approximately 25,000 British troops and 500 British tanks, Operation Bluecoat was an attack by the British Second Army in the Battle of Normandy, from 30 July 1944 to 7 August 1944. The objectives of the attack were to secure the key road junction of Vire, strategically, the attack was made to support the American exploitation of their breakout on the western flank of the Normandy beachhead
45.
Royal Scots
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The regiment was first raised in 1633 as the Royal Regiment of Foot by Sir John Hepburn, under a royal warrant from Charles I, on the Scottish establishment for service in France. It was formed from a nucleus of Hepburns previous regiment, formerly in Swedish service, when in France it absorbed the remnants of a number of other Scottish mercenary units which had fought in Swedish service, and by 1635 had swelled to some 8,000 men. Lord James Douglas was appointed the new colonel, and the name of the corps was altered to the Régiment de Douglas, numbering some 1200 Scotsmen. The regiment fought with distinction under Douglas until he was killed in a skirmish near Douai in 1645 and his elder brother Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus, was appointed in his place. In all the regiment served in France from 1633 to 1661, because the regiment had been formed by Royal Warrant, it was legally part of the Crowns armed forces, even though it had been out of the country for three decades. As such, it was recalled to secure the coronation of Charles II. 1678 marked the end of French service, with the regiment placed permanently on the English establishment. It was posted to Ireland in 1679, and in 1680 the regiment was sent to Tangier, in 1684, the regiment was titled His Majestys Royal Regiment of Foot, and withdrawn to England. In 1685 they fought for James II in the Monmouth Rebellion, at the Battle of Sedgemoor, in 1688, they were the only regiment of the army to remain loyal to James in the Glorious Revolution. During the War of the Grand Alliance, the regiment fought at the Battle of Walcourt, the Battle of Steenkerque, the Battle of Landen and they spent the late 1690s on garrison duty in Ireland. During the War of the Spanish Succession, the regiment fought at the Battles of Schellenberg and Blenheim, the Battle of Ramillies, the Battle of Oudenarde and the Battle of Malplaquet. In 1751, the regiment was titled the 1st Regiment of Foot, the 2nd Battalion was sent to Nova Scotia in 1757, and saw service in the Seven Years War, capturing Louisburg in 1758, Guadeloupe in 1762 and Havana in 1763, returning home in 1764. Both then served as garrisons in the Mediterranean, the 1st in Gibraltar from 1768–75, and the 2nd in Minorca from 1771–75. The 1st Battalion was sent to the West Indies in 1781, fought in the capture of Sint Eustatius that year, and was itself captured at St. Kitts in January 1782 but exchanged later in the year. The 1st Battalion had returned to the West Indies as a garrison in 1790, the West Indies were hotbeds of disease, and the battalion lost more than half its strength to disease in this period. It was reformed from militia volunteers in Ireland in 1798, This year saw a major rebellion erupt in Ireland after years of simmering tension, the Lothian Fencibles fought with distinction at the Battle of Vinegar Hill, one of the more important engagements of the rebellion. After the rebellion was over in Ireland they were used in raids on the coast of Spain in 1800. Meanwhile, from 1793 to 1801, the 2nd Battalion was based in the Mediterranean, both battalions were subsequently dispatched to the West Indies, the 1st from 1801 to 1812, and the 2nd from 1803 to 1806
United Kingdom
British Army