1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, Legacy
During the war the efforts of Filipino and American defenders during the Battle of Bataan were widely covered by the press, as were the actions of the 100th and 442nd Infantry. After the war, the efforts of the 442nd continued to be lauded, with the 1951 film Go for Broke! portraying their endeavors. By contrast, the activities of the Filipino Infantry Regiment and her sister units were largely unpublicized; it was not until the documentaries Unsung Heroes and An UnTold Triumph that any significant visual media covered the history of the Regiment. In 1984 an association of veterans of the Regiment erected a marker in Salinas in honor of their former unit.


1st Filipino Infantry Regiment, Legacy
The War Brides Act of 1945, and subsequent Alien Fiancées and Fiancés Act of 1946, continued to apply until the end of 1953, allowing veterans of the Regiment, and other Filipino American veterans, to return to the Philippines to bring back fiancées, wives, and children. In the years following the war, some sixteen thousand Filipinas entered the United States as war brides. These new Filipino American families formed a second generation of Filipino Americans, significantly expanding the Filipino American community.


1st Filmfare Awards
The 1st Filmfare Awards were held on 21 March 1954, honoring the best in Hindi cinema in 1953.


1st Filmfare Awards
That year they were known as the Clare Awards, after Clare Mendonça, a film critic of The Times of India who had died in the same year.


1st Filmfare Awards
Baiju Bawra & Do Bigha Zamin won 2 awards each - with the former winning Best Actress for Meena Kumari and Best Music for Naushad for 'Tu Ganga Ki Mauj' and the latter winning Best Film and Best Director for Bimal Roy. Dilip Kumar won Best Actor for Daag.


1st Filmfare Awards, The Awards
In a short ceremony held at Metro Cinema in Bombay (now Mumbai), awards in only 5 categories were handed out. The Chief Guest of function was George Allen, US Ambassador to India. The ceremony was compared by actor David, and it started with actress Nalini Jaywant singing the national anthem. This was followed by song and dance performance by various actors, musical performances by Talat Mehmood, Geeta Roy and Mohammed Rafi. Next two performances were classical dance performances by Vyjayanthimala and Surya Kumari. The finale of the performance section was a folk-dance performance, "Lure of Rajasthan" by Kamini Kaushal and her troupe.


1st Filmfare Awards, The Awards
This led to the section where David announced the awards. No nominations were announced, just the winners. Keep with the voting process, where the readers of the magazine, decided the winners through postal votes, even the awards were given away by readers, chosen via a lucky draw. For example, the Best Film trophy was given by Ambassador Allen to a reader, Saijuddin from Hyderabad, who in turn presented it to Bimal Roy. This was followed by Best Actress which was won by Meena Kumari for Baiju Bawra and Best Actor went to Dilip Kumar for Daag. Next, ace music director Naushad won his first and only Filmfare Award, for Best Music for Baiju Bawra. The final award, the Best Director was won by Bimal Roy, present by Sonny Cordiero, a reader from Mumbai.


1st Filmfare Awards, The Awards
Incidentally, Bimal Roy and Dilip Kumar were the first winners of Best Director and Best Actor respectively, and remained almost 6 decades later, the ones with the most wins in either category, with 7 and 8 awards respectively. Additionally, Meena Kumari, who was the first winner for Best Actress, held the record for the most wins in the category (4) for 13 years, till her record was broken by Nutan with her 5th win at the 26th Filmfare Awards. Fearing similar mob of fans as outside Metro Cinema, the venue of the award party was not announced publicly. Later, around hundred invitees gathered at Wellington Gymkhana Club.


1st Filmfare Awards, The Awards
Hollywood star Gregory Peck was invited to be the guest of honour at the awards but couldn't make it to the function since his flight from Colombo got delayed. However, Peck did attend the after-party banquet that followed the award night at Wellington Gymkhana Club, Mumbai.


1st Filmfare Awards East
1st Filmfare Awards East ceremony, presented by the Filmfare Magazine, honoured the best Bengali language Indian films of 2013. The ceremony was held on 29 March 2014.


1st Filmfare Awards East, Winners and nominees
The nominees for the 1st Filmfare Awards East were announced on 21 March 2014. The winners are listed first and highlighted in boldface.


1st Fleet (Imperial Japanese Navy)
The IJN 1st Fleet (第一艦隊, Dai-ichi Kantai) was the main battleship fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy.


1st Fleet (Imperial Japanese Navy), History
First established on 28 December 1903, the IJN 1st Fleet was created during the Russo-Japanese War when the Imperial General Headquarters divided the Readiness Fleet into a mobile strike force of cruisers and destroyers to pursue the Imperial Russian Navy's Vladivostok-based cruiser squadron (the Imperial Japanese Navy's 2nd Fleet), while the remaining bulk of the Japanese fleet (the IJN 1st Fleet) continued to blockade Port Arthur in hopes of luring the battleships of the Russian Pacific Fleet out into a classic line-of-battle confrontation. The two fleets were combined into the Combined Fleet for the final Battle of Tsushima.


1st Fleet (Imperial Japanese Navy), History
The decisive victory of the Japanese fleet over the Imperial Russian Navy at the Battle of Tsushima validated the doctrine of the "decisive victory", or kantai kessen as stipulated by naval theorists such as  Alfred Thayer Mahan and Satō Tetsutarō in the eyes of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff, and future naval procurement and deployment was centered on refinements of this doctrine.


1st Fleet (Imperial Japanese Navy), History
The Mahanian objective was to build a fleet in being, a naval force kept deliberately in strategic reserve, as secondary forces based on cruisers and destroyers waged a campaign of attrition against an approaching enemy, who would then be destroyed in a climactic final battle similar to the Battle of Tsushima. As a result of this doctrine, although individual ships and task forces were dispatched on occasion for specific combat operations, the main force in the Imperial Japanese Navy was mostly held in reserve from the time of its inception until near the end of World War II.


1st Flight Training Squadron (JASDF 11th Wing)
The 1st Flight Training Squadron (第1飛行教育隊 (dai-1-hikō-kyōiku-tai)) is a unit of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. It is also sometimes known as the 11th Flying Training Squadron. It comes under the authority of 11th Flight Training Wing of Air Training Command. It is based at Shizuhama Air Base in Shizuoka Prefecture.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers
The 1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, later 5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers, was a Welsh unit of the British Army's auxiliary forces. First raised in 1860, it fought as infantry at Gallipoli), in Egypt and Palestine during World War I. Converted to the anti-tank role, it fought in the Battle of France, the Western Desert and Italy in World War II. It continued in the postwar Territorial Army until amalgamated with a neighbouring unit in 1956.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
An invasion scare in 1859 led to the emergence of the Volunteer Movement, and Rifle Volunteer Corps (RVCs) began to be organised throughout Great Britain, composed of part-time soldiers eager to supplement the Regular British Army in time of need. The following units were raised in Flintshire, North Wales:


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
These units were grouped into the  1st Administrative Battalion, Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, formed at Rhyl in August 1860. William Henry Gladstone, son of the future Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone who lived at Hawarden Castle, was commissioned as an ensign in the Hawarden Corps. Viscount Feilding, heir of the Earl of Denbigh, was the first captain-commandant of the 4th RVC; he became major in command of the 1st Admin Bn in 1862.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
The 1st Admin Bn moved its headquarters (HQ) from Rhyl to Holywell in 1863, but returned in 1874. In that year the 1st Admin Bn of Carnarvonshire RVCs was disbanded and the Flintshire battalion incorporated the surviving RVCs in that county:


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
After the corps at Pwllheli was disbanded it was replaced by a new 5th Carnarvonshire RVC raised from Llanberis in 1878.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
When the RVCs were consolidated in February 1880 the admin battalion became the 1st Flintshire and Carnarvonshire Rifle Volunteers with the following organisation:


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
Under the 'Localisation of the Forces' scheme introduced by the Cardwell Reforms of 1872, Volunteers were grouped into county brigades with their local Regular and Militia battalions – Sub-District No 23 in Western District for the Flintshire Battalion, grouped with the 23rd Foot (Royal Welch Fusiliers). The Childers Reforms of 1881 took Cardwell's reforms further, and the Volunteers were formally affiliated to their local Regular regiment, the 1st Flint & Carnarvon becoming a volunteer battalion of the RWF on 1 July 1881; it was redesignated 2nd Volunteer Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers in June 1884.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
While the sub-districts were later referred to as 'brigades', they were purely administrative organisations and the Volunteers were excluded from the 'mobilisation' part of the Cardwell system. The Stanhope Memorandum of December 1888 proposed a more comprehensive Mobilisation Scheme for Volunteer units, which would assemble in their own brigades at key points in case of war. In peacetime these brigades provided a structure for collective training. Under this scheme the two Volunteer Battalions of the RWF formed part of the Welsh Brigade, later moving to the Welsh Border Brigade (renamed the North Welsh Border Brigade in the 1900s).


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
By 1896 the battalion had 16 companies, but on 26 May 1897 the eight Carnarvonshire companies were separated to form a new 3rd VB of the RWF, when the 2nd VB moved its HQ to Hawarden.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Volunteer Force
After Black Week in December 1899, the Volunteers were invited to send active service units to assist the Regulars in the Second Boer War. The War Office decided that one company 116 strong could be recruited from the volunteer battalions of any infantry regiment that had a regular battalion serving in South Africa. The RWF's VBs accordingly raised a service company that joined the 1st Battalion and earned the volunteer battalions their first Battle honour: South Africa 1900–02. The 2nd VB was expanded to 11 companies during the war, but reduced to 10 in 1904.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Territorial Force
When the Volunteers were subsumed into the new Territorial Force (TF) under the Haldane Reforms of 1908, the 2nd VB became the 5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Royal Welch Fusiliers,organised as follows:


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Territorial Force
The battalion was jointly administered by the Denbighshire and Flintshire TF Associations. It formed part of the North Wales Brigade of the TF's Welsh Division.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, Mobilisation
On 3 August 1914 the Welsh Division's infantry brigades were at their annual camps when all training was cancelled and the battalions were ordered back to their HQs; war was declared next day. The 5th RWF mobilised on 5 August under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel B.E. Phillips, and the units had concentrated at their war stations (at Conway in the case of the North Wales Brigade) by 11 August.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, Mobilisation
On that date TF units were invited to volunteer for Overseas Service and on 15 August the War Office issued instructions to separate those men who had signed up for Home Service only, and form these into reserve units. On 31 August, the formation of a reserve or 2nd Line unit was authorised for each 1st Line unit where 60 per cent or more of the men had volunteered for Overseas Service. The titles of these 2nd Line units would be the same as the original, but distinguished by a '2/' prefix. In this way duplicate battalions, brigades and divisions were created, mirroring those TF formations being sent overseas. Later 3rd Line units were formed to train drafts for the 1st and 2nd Line.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion
The Welsh Division moved to Northampton at the end of August 1914, where on 18 November it was warned for service in India, but this was subsequently cancelled. Training was interrupted by periods spent digging trenches for the East Coast defences. In December the division moved to Cambridge, then to Bedford in May 1915, where it was numbered as the 53rd (Welsh) Division, and the North Wales Brigade became the 158th (North Wales) Brigade. By July the battalion was at Higham Ferrers in Northamptonshire. On 2 July the division was ordered to refit for service in the Mediterranean. The first battalions to move were the 1/5th and 1/6th RWF, who entrained at Irchester for Devonport during the night of 13 July. The two battalions embarked on the Caledonia and sailed on 14 July.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gallipoli
The transports sailed via Gibraltar, Malta, Alexandria and Lemnos, and the 1/5th Bn arrived at Mudros on 28 July, where it disembarked and went into bivouacs. It re-embarked on the Rowan for Imbros on 8 August. Next day the division took part in the Landing at Suvla Bay, an attempt to break the Trench warfare deadlock in the Gallipoli Campaign. The battalion landed at 'C' Beach at 06.00 and bivouacked at Lala Baba, apart from A Company, which was detailed to carry equipment up to the front line.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gallipoli
158th Brigade supported 159th (Cheshire) Brigade in an attack towards Scimitar Hill on 10 August and 1/5th RWF as the brigade's leading battalion moved forward at 04.45. The officers had no maps and confusion reigned, but the battalion advanced across the Salt Lake under heavy shrapnel and rifle fire, passing through the retreating battalions of 159th Bde at 11.30. ' Gallantly led' by Lt-Col Phillips, the battalion penetrated to within a few hundred yards of Scimitar Hill before getting broken up into small parties in the scrub.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gallipoli
They took cover and opened fire on the Turkish front line at a range of 200 yards (180 m). Phillips sent back a message urging the 1/6th RWF to come up and help complete the job, but he was killed soon afterwards. The battalion was later withdrawn to 160th (South Wales) Bde's line; further attempts to take Scimitar Hill during the afternoon all failed. The battalion's casualties were 6 officers and 13 other ranks (ORs) killed, 6 officers and 116 ORs wounded, and 39 missing, though many reported missing straggled back later.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gallipoli
The corps commander, Lt-Gen Sir Frederick Stopford, had lost confidence in 53rd (W) Division, and would not use it in the subsequent phases of the battle. Over the following days the battalion was engaged in reorganising and improving the trenches facing Scimitar Hill, taking casualties from Turkish rifle fire. It also had 160 sick men evacuated to hospital by the end of the month, another 180 by the end of September.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gallipoli
In October the 1/5th Bn's strength had been reduced to 18 officers and 355 ORs and it was temporarily amalgamated with the 1/6th Bn, under the command of Lt-Col Rome of 1/6th Bn. Turkish artillery became more active during November, adding to the toll of casualties from trench-holding, the trenches were flooded, and later there was a blizzard. So many men were evacuated suffering from frostbite and exposure that only 88 ORs remained in the line. The effective strength of 53rd (W) Division was very low and it was decided to evacuate the remnants. On 12 December the battalion moved to 'C' Beach to embark on the El Kahirah to Mudros. The division was then shipped to Alexandria, where it landed between 20 and 23 December.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Egypt
On arrival in Egypt the division went by rail to Wardan to recuperate. In mid-February 1916 158th Bde was sent to guard the water supplies at Wadi Natrun, where reinforcement drafts were absorbed and training was carried out. In May the brigade moved to Zeitoun, Cairo, where it rejoined the rest of 53rd (W) Division in the Suez Canal defences.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Egypt
By July 158th Bde was near Moascar, digging defences, but when it became clear that the Turks were crossing the Sinai Desert to attack the canal line, the brigade was sent by train and route march to Romani to reinforce 52nd (Lowland) Division in No 3 Section of the Canal Defences, arriving on 21 July. 1/5th Royal Welch Fusiliers were attached to 156th (Scottish Rifles) Brigade in reserve at Romani Station. The Turks attacked on 4 August (the Battle of Romani) and 1/5th RWF was ordered up at midday. However, the attack was virtually over by then. The following morning 8th Bn Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) advanced with the bayonet, D Company 1/5th RWF in support, and the Turks in front began to surrender while those behind were in full retreat.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
158th Brigade returned to the canal on 14 August and spent the next three months at Ferdan. By the end of the year it was back at Romani, the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) having cleared Sinai of the enemy. On 20 January 1917 53rd (W) Division began the march across the Sinai Desert, reaching Wadi el Arish at the end of the month. It moved up to Rafah on 21 March. After an approach march beginning on 24 March, the EEF attacked Gaza on 26 March, launching the First Battle of Gaza.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
53rd (W) Division in the Desert Column was ordered to cross the Wadi Ghuzze towards Gaza itself, masked by the mounted divisions sweeping round the flank. The division was led by 160th Bde, followed by 158th, 1/5th RFW leading. The battalion's guide got lost and there was an overnight fog, so 158th Bde was late crossing the wadi that morning, but by 06.30 it reached the edge of the Mansura ridge overlooking the plain of Gaza. At 11.30 the division was hurriedly ordered to attack, even though the artillery had not yet established communications.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
158th Brigade set out shortly after 11.45 to attack Ali Muntar, with 1/5th RWF leading, preceded by a strong patrol. The whole advance, watched by the mounted divisions, was 'a model in precision and steadiness'. After leaving the protection of Mansura the battalion immediately came under shrapnel fire as it marched across open ground parallel to the Ali Muntar defences before wheeling left and moved down to a small cactus garden about 800 yards (730 m) from the crest of Ali Muntar.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
Here Lt-Col Borthwick waited for the other battalions to catch up, and firing became general, with the battalion troubled by enemy fire coming in from Green Hill to the left as well as in front. The brigadier reinforced the battalion with machine guns and sent another battalion to take Green Hill. The whole line then advanced again. About 40 men of 1/5th RWF dashed through the machine gun fire and made a lodgement in the trenches east of Ali Muntar mosque, capturing Turks, Austrians and Germans, and held it fast despite enemy counter-attacks.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
By 18.30 the whole Ali Muntar position was won, and by nightfall Gaza was almost completely surrounded, with patrols from 53rd (W) Division in the eastern streets linking up with the ANZAC Mounted Division. However, the senior British commanders were unaware of the success, and had already ordered the mounted troops to withdraw to water their horses. 53rd (W) Division was ordered to dig in on a line near Wadi Ghuzze next day; isolated at Green Hill, 1/5th RWF also had to fall back. At the end of the day the whole division was withdrawn across the wadi, 158th Bde arriving at 01.15 on 28 March. The battalion's casualties were 2 officers and 33 ORs killed, 9 officers and 186 ORs wounded, and 9 ORs missing.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
Both sides brought up reinforcements and carried out reconnaissances while the EEF prepared for a Second Battle of Gaza. 53rd (W) Division dug a new line well forward on sand dunes along the coast. When the attack was made on 18 April, 158th Bde held this new line, the other brigades passing through and assaulting Samson Ridge with tank support. As the attack developed, 158th Bde moved up in support, but the division was still held up at Samson Ridge at the end of the day, and dug in where it stood.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
Trench warfare now set in for the summer, while the EEF was reorganised under new command and intensive training was carried out behind the lines. On 20 October 158th Bde moved up to the concentration area for the new offensive (the Third Battle of Gaza), taking over the front line and reconnoitring the ground over which they were to attack. On 25 October the brigade moved into No man's land and established an outpost line.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
On 27 October the division advanced to take over a line of hills already occupied by the Yeomanry of the 8th Mounted Brigade, the movement being covered by 1/5th RWF. Later the battalion was sent with a field artillery battery 8 miles (13 km) to occupy Hill 630 on the left. When the battalion was still 4 miles (6.4 km) away the Yeomanry outpost on the hill was overwhelmed by a Turkish attack.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
The Turks then had perfect observation over the plain where 1/5th RWF was moving up, followed by the rest of 158th Bde and then 160th Bde, and began shelling the concentration of troops. Once the division was re-organised for an attack, the Turks slipped away and the line of hills was easily reoccupied.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
The main attack, a turning movement (the Battle of Beersheba), began on 31 October; 53rd (W) Division on the left flank was hardly engaged, though part of 158th Bde in 'Smith's Group' made a demonstration with 1/5th RWF advancing to keep touch with the attacking troops to the right. The battalion engaged the enemy with long-range machine gun fire, and ended the day on outpost duty.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
After the capture of Beersheba, the EEF thrust into the hills beyond, with 53rd (W) Division marching through Beersheba to occupy a line beyond without any fighting. On 3 November the division advanced into the hills in a series of columns, 1/5th RWF escorting the artillery along a track over relatively flat ground towards Tell el Khuweilfe. Later in the day the battalion was diverted to assist in the attack on the heights (the Battle of Tel el Khuweilfe), which pinned the Turkish reinforcements arriving on the battlefield.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Gaza
On Lt-Col Borthwick's initiative the battalion 'jumped' the lower hills during the night. There was a two-day lull during a sandstorm. Then, after a difficult assembly close up to Tell el Khuewilfe, 158th Brigade carried out a fullscale assault on the position at 04.20 on 6 November, with 1/5th RWF in reserve. 1/6th Battalion pushed over the heights but  then got into difficulties as the Turks counterattacked, until a company of 1/5th Bn moved up to support them. Deadlock then set in, but next day the Desert Mounted Corps (DMC) swept round the flank of the pinned enemy. 53rd (W) Division was ordered to stand fast, though 1/5th RWF used rifle grenades to bombard  and then rush a troublesome Turkish machine gun and sniper post. But that night the enemy in front pulled out as the entire Turkish army began a headlong retreat.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Jerusalem
From 10 November 53rd (W) Division remained in the same area, so as not to overload the supply lines for the advancing parts of the EEF. It did not move forward again until early December, and even then limited supplies meant that 158th Bde was left at Beersheba. It was not brought forward until 21 December, by which time the Battle of Jerusalem was over. On 22 December 1/5th RWF was sent forward to take over part of the outpost line under 159th Bde; the path was so steep that the relief was not completed until the following morning.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Jerusalem
At Christmas the rest of 158th Bde relieved 159th Bde, and 1/5th RWF became the reserve battalion. Late on 26 December the Turks launched a major counter-attack aiming to recapture Jerusalem, and the fighting spread to 53rd (W) Division's front on 27 December, though 158th Bde was hardly engaged, merely supporting 160th Bde on its flank and reoccupying a captured village that was only held by Turkish outposts. As the Turkish attacks faded away, the division went over to the attack itself, 158th Bde attacking the villages and high ground in its front.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Jerusalem
1/7th Battalion's attack failed at first, but reinforced by two companies of 1/5th Bn and with renewed artillery support it took its objective at midnight. The brigade took further ground on 28 December. 53rd (W) Division held its line throughout the bad weather of January 1918, with 158th Bde providing working parties to improve the roads for the EEF's next advance, aimed at Jericho. This began on 14 February, supported by 53rd (W) Division, and the town was captured by 22 February.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Tell 'Asur
In March the EEF began an advance in the Jordan Valley. 53rd (W) Division's next objective was Tell 'Asur, the highest point of Judaea north of Jerusalem, and it had to tackle the most difficult terrain in the whole operation. The division occupied No man's land in the preceding days, then after a heavy bombardment on 9 March the 1/5th RWF captured the hill at about 09.30, despite morning fog. A Turkish counter-attack regained the summit, but 1/6th RWF came up in relief and drove them off it.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 1/5th (Flintshire) Battalion, Tell 'Asur
In the next four hours the Turks launched four more fierce attacks on the hill, but failed to recapture it. During the night 1/6th Bn moved down to take another hill a mile in front, while 1/5th Bn held Tell 'Asur itself. The division completed its objectives by 12 March. 158th Brigade was not engaged in the various raids across the Jordan carried out by the EEF during Spring 1918.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 5/6th Battalion
In the summer 53rd (Welsh) Division was changed to the Indian Army establishment: only one British battalion was retained in each brigade, the remainder being sent as reinforcements to the Western Front. Initially, 1/5th and 1/6th Bns RWF continued in 158th Bde alongside Gurkha and Indian battalions from June, then on 1 August the two battalions merged to form the 5th/6th Battalion, Royal Welsh Fusiliers under the command of Lt-Col Borthwick of the 1/5th. This continued as the sole British battalion in 158th Bde for the remainder of the campaign.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 5/6th Battalion, Megiddo
At the climactic Battle of Megiddo 53rd (W) Division was tasked with advancing across the Samieh Basin towards Nablus, to threaten the Turks' communication centre and block the exits to the Jordan Valley (the Battle of Nablus). It attacked in moonlight late on the first day (18 September), after a 20-minute bombardment. 158th Brigade was in reserve, but a company of 5th/6th RWF was attached to the leading Indian unit of 160th Bde (17th Infantry (The Loyal Regiment)) and covered the left flank of the advance, occupying Keen's Knoll and Table Hill.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 5/6th Battalion, Megiddo
Next day 5th/6th RWF relieved 4th/5th Welch Regiment (159th Bde) and secured the plateau in front ready for the advance to continue on 20 September, with Lt-Col Borthwick of 5th/6th RWF commanding the whole operation until the rest of the brigade caught up. Because of difficulties in making a road, 158th Bde was not ready until late on 20 September, but when it advanced at 23.00 it found the Turks had retired. It continued advancing through the night with 5th/6th RWF leading until 05.30 on 21 September when it found the road blocked.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 5/6th Battalion, Megiddo
The roads were very bad, and the Royal Engineers struggled to make a path for the guns, but the advance continued at 08.30, with 5th/6th RWF picquetting the hills as it went. By the end of the next day the Turkish army was shattered, and its retreat was being.harried by artillery and aircraft.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 5/6th Battalion, Megiddo
The advanced troops of the division were now south-east of Nablus, but 53rd (W) Division was ordered to stand fast and did not take part in the pursuit of the defeated Turkish army. For the next few days it was employed in clearing the battlefield and repairing the Nablus road. On 26 September it moved back to Tell 'Asur, and by 12 October it had moved to Ramle, where on 27 October it began entraining for Alexandria. The Armistice of Mudros ended the fighting in Palestine on 31 October.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 5/6th Battalion, Megiddo
On 20 December demobilisation instructions were received and the first parties left for home on 22 December. The Indian battalions left in early 1919 as transport became available, and the British units were reduced to cadres. The last details left for Port Said and shipment home on 15 June. The 5th/6th RWF was officially disembodied on 4 August 1919.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 5/6th Battalion, Commanding officers
The following officers commanded 1/5th and 5th/6th RWF during the war:


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 2/5th (Flintshire) Battalion
The 2/5th (Flintshire) Bn formed at the RWF's depot at Wrexham on 11 September 1914. It was assigned to 203rd (2nd North Wales) Brigade in 68th (2nd Welsh) Division, which began to assemble at Northampton in April 1915. It replaced the 53rd (W) Division at Bedford in July. Training was made difficult by the lack of arms and equipment, and the need to supply drafts to the 1st Line units. At first the men were issued with obsolete .256-in Japanese Ariska rifles for training.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 2/5th (Flintshire) Battalion
In July the battalions were reorganised and the Home Service-only men were transferred to Provisional units (47th Provisional Bn, later 23rd Bn RWF, in the case of the RWF's TF battalions). By November the 2nd Line battalions were so weak that their establishment was reduced to 600 men. On 22 November the 2/5th (Flintshire) Bn absorbed the 2/6th (Glamorgan) Bn, Welsh Regiment. Late in 1915 the 68th (2nd W) Division's battalions handed over their Japanese rifles to the provisional battalions and were issued with some old Lee–Enfield rifles converted to charger loading.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 2/5th (Flintshire) Battalion
68th (2nd Welsh) Division was assigned to Home Defence duties and in November 1915 it joined First Army in Central Force. By September 1916 the division was in General Reserve for Central Force, and in November the 2/5th Bn was at Westleton in Suffolk. By May 1917 the division had transferred to Northern Army (Home Forces), and the battalion was at Henham Park in Halesworth, Suffolk, for its summer station. In October 1917 it moved to Great Yarmouth where it transferred to 204th (2nd Cheshire) Brigade. 2/5th (Flintshire) Bn was disbanded on 16 March 1918 and replaced in 204th Bde by a training unit.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War I, 3/5th (Flintshire) Battalion
The 3/5th (Flintshire) Bn formed at Flint on 23 March 1915. It was redesignated as 5th (Reserve) (Flintshire) Bn, RWF, on 8 April 1916 and on 1 September 1916 it was absorbed into the 4th (Reserve) (Denbighshire) Bn, RWF, in the Welsh Reserve Bde at Oswestry.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Interwar
The TF was reconstituted on 7 February 1920 (reorganising as the Territorial Army (TA) the following year) and both the 5th and 6th RWF were reformed. 5th (Flintshire) Bn established its HQ at the Drill Hall, Rhyl, with a cadet battalion attached. It formed part of 158th (Royal Welch) Bde in 53rd (Welsh) Division. A new drill hall for the Connah's Quay detachment was built in 1936.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Interwar, Anti-tank conversion
By the late 1930s a need for specialist anti-tank (A/T) artillery had been recognised, and the battalion was one of the first batch of TA units converted to the new role, on 16 November 1938 as 60th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti -Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery, with the following organisation:


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Interwar, Anti-tank conversion
With the expansion of the TA after the Munich Crisis, the regiment quickly formed a duplicate unit, 70th Anti-Tank Regiment at Mold, with 277, 278, 279 and 280 A/T Btys.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Interwar, Anti-tank conversion
The establishment of an A/T battery at this time was 12 x 2-pounderguns organised in Troops of four guns.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 60th (RWF) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA
When war broke out on 3 September 1939 60th (RWF) Regiment was the anti-tank component of 53rd (Welsh) Division, but on 22 December it was assigned to 1st Support Group (1st Sp Gp) in 1st Armoured Division, which was preparing to join the British Expeditionary Force in France.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 101st Light Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, RA
On 14 February 1940, Regimental HQ (RHQ) of 60th (RWF) A/T Rgt was converted into 101st Light Anti- Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, consisting of 237 and 239 A/T Btys and two light anti-aircraft (LAA) batteries, 43 from 11th (City of London Yeomanry) LAA Rgt and 44 from 12th (Finsbury Rifles) LAA Rgt. This composite unit, the first of its kind, provided the bulk of 1st Sp Gp, the other artillery units having already gone to France.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 101st Light Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Battle of France
1st Armoured Division was ordered to France on 11 May after the German invasion of the Low Countries ended the Phoney War. It began landing at Cherbourg and Le Havre on 15 May and was immediately ordered to advance and hold the crossings over the River Somme.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 101st Light Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Battle of France
101st LAA/AT Regiment, with 20 x 2-pounder A/T guns and 96 Lewis guns as AA light machine guns (the LAA batteries' Bofors 40 mm guns not having arrived) was ordered to seize the crossings over the Seine and hold them until the armour arrived to push on to the Somme (the infantry of 1st Sp Gp had been diverted to the defence of Calais and were not available). Brigadier Archibald Beauman, who had been put in charge of the scattered mobile forces south of the Somme ('Beauforce'), recovered 10 Bofors guns from various abandoned airfields, and these were given to 44 LAA Bty.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 101st Light Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Battle of France
The division's 2nd Armoured Brigade and Beauforce got within four miles of the Somme by 01.00 on 24 May, but then began to meet opposition and mines. Attempts by 1st Armoured and 51st (Highland) Division under French command to break through to the encircled BEF at Dunkirk led to fighting round Abbeville on 27–28 May and were unsuccessful. By early June the BEF had been evacuated, but fighting continued. On 4 June 1 Sp


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 101st Light Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Battle of France
Gp provided flank protection for another attempt by 51st (H) Division to destroy the German bridgeheads at Abbeville, but the Germans had had two weeks to dig in, and the attack failed. Next day the Germans renewed their offensive, surrounding and capturing 51st (H) Division at St Valery-en-Caux, while 1st Sp Gp was 'out on a limb' facing German Panzer divisions and was driven back across the Seine. An operation to evacuate the considerable numbers of British forces left in France from the western ports (Operation Aerial) began. The survivors of 1st Sp Gp were shipped out of Cherbourg on 16 June.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 101st Light Anti-Aircraft/Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Battle of France
After returning to the UK, the remnants of 1st Armoured Division were stationed in Surrey in VII Corps, as part of the mobile reserve to defend against the feared German invasion (Operation Sealion). The division was one of the first in line for re-equipping.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA
While it refitted in the UK, 1st Sp Gp was reorganised again, with 101st LAA/AT Rgt broken up at Godalming on 1 November to form 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) A/T Rgt and 61st LAA Rgt. 76th A/T Regiment formed a new C Battery from a cadre of experienced officers and gunners supplied by 237 and 239 Btys and a draft of 136 infantry machine gunners (C Battery was redesignated 310 A/T Bty on 24 June 1942).


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
After completing its refitting and training in the UK, 1st Armoured Division sailed for the Middle East, 1st Sp Gp leaving on 27 September 1941, arriving in Egypt on 5 December and shortly afterwards moving up into Libya to join Eighth Army's Operation Crusader. 1st Armoured Division was committed to battle piecemeal before it had time to prepare for desert warfare; 1st Sp Gp found itself operating in appalling hummocky country, and many of its vehicles were not desert-worthy. At first, 76th A/T Rgt was sent up to the front with 2nd Armd Bde, but then reverted to 1st Sp


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
Gp which relieved 7th Sp Gp with the experienced 7th Armoured Division on 19 January. General Erwin Rommel's counter-attack on 21 January broke through Eighth Army's screen, 1st Sp Gp finding itself in difficulties in the bad country and under attack by Junkers Ju 87 Stuka divebombers. Only by withdrawal did 1st Armd Division escape destruction.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
Eighth Army retired to defensive positions at Gazala, consisting of a series of fortified 'boxes', each defended by a brigade group, with the armoured divisions deployed behind for counter-attack. There was then a pause while both sides trained and re-equipped for the next phase. Some of the new 6-pounder A/T guns began to arrive for the British, but most batteries continued to be equipped with the outclassed 2-pdr. From March until December 1942, 239 A/T Bty was attached to 11th Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery (Honourable Artillery Company), the mobile field artillery regiment working with 2nd Armd Bde.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
Rommel attacked the Gazala Line on 27 May, swinging round the two southern boxes. 1st Armoured Division, positioned behind the line, was ordered south. The division's 22nd Armd Bde was ambushed and retired into the 'Knightsbridge' box, while 2nd Armd Bde attacked the German flank from the east; both brigades delivered some sharp blows to the enemy as they followed up. On 29 May the two brigades were involved in a violent tank and artillery action in a sandstorm.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
Over the following days the division was involved in fierce tank battles in what became known as the Battle of the Cauldron. 22nd Armoured Brigade was badly mauled on 5 June, while 2nd Armd Bde Group with 11th (HAC) RHA and attached units had been sent to reinforce 7th Armd Division. Once Rommel had reduced the southernmost box at Bir Hakeim,stubbornly defended until 10 June by the 1st Free French Brigade, he resumed his advance.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
On 12 June Eighth Army made a fresh attempt to move its armoured brigades south to attack the enemy, but although 2nd Armd Bde achieved its objective, the day was costly for the British. Next day 2nd and 22nd Armd Bdes held onto their positions east of Knightsbridge, but that night some of the remaining boxes had to be evacuated.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
By 14 June Eighth Army began to withdraw to the Egyptian frontier with 1st Armd Division supporting 2nd South African Division in a rearguard action. The South African division was trapped in Tobruk and captured, but 1st Armd Division made it back to the desert south of Mersa Matruh inside Egypt (2nd Armd Bde had been completely withdrawn from the battle). But the Axis forces renewed their attacks on 27 June and Eighth Army Eighth Army was forced to retreat to its fall-back defences at El Alamein.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
Once behind the Alamein defences the exhausted armoured divisions were withdrawn into reserve. On 30 June Rommel closed up to the Alamein defences and decided on an immediate attack (the Battle of Ruweisat). 1st Armoured Division was sent up to counter-attack, hindered by shortage of petrol and soft sand, but 18th Indian Infantry Brigade held out at Deir el Shein on 1 July and dislocated the enemy attack, allowing 1st Armoured to launch its counter-attack south of the Ruweisat Ridge on 2 July.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Western Desert
The disorganised fighting continued until 5 July when Rommel paused his advance, and Eighth Army began to counter-attack in the north. By 21 July Eighth Army was ready to launch its own attack, with 1st Armd thrown in on 26 July to support the attack. However, both sides were now exhausted and there was a lull in the fighting. 1st Armoured Division was not engaged in the Battle of Alam el Halfa, when the Axis forces were decisively stopped.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Alamein
Eighth Army, now under the leadership of Gen Bernard Montgomery, prepared carefully for its next offensive. 76th (RWF) Anti -Tank Rgt was out of the line during August, but on 8 September it was joined by ZZ A/T Bty, which had been formed within 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery. The regiment was back in the line with 1st Armd Division in time for the Second Battle of El Alamein. It was by now fully equipped with 64 x 6-pdrs; 239 A/T Bty was still attached to 11th (HAC) RHA, (whose batteries were now equipped with M7 Priest self-propelled guns).


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Alamein
The division's role in the first phase (Operation Lightfoot) of the forthcoming battle under X Corps was to follow the advancing infantry during the night of 23/24 October, cutting corridors through the Axis minefield defences, and then deploy behind an anti-tank screen before attacking the enemy positions in daylight. In the event, only two tank squadrons got through the single corridor that 1st Armd achieved that night, and work continued during the day. On 25 and 26 October the division made little progress against the enemy anti-tank defences but held off several Axis counter-attacks during the phase of battle dubbed 'the dog-fight' by Montgomery.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Alamein
During the night of 26/27 October the 2nd King's Royal Rifle Corps and 2nd Rifle Brigade of 1st Armd Division's 7th Motor Bde seized two strongpoints codenamed 'Woodcock' and 'Snipe'. Next day they dug in while a confused armoured battle continued. On Snipe the 13 6-pdr A/T guns of 2nd Rifle Brigade were reinforced by six more from 239 A/T Bty, and together stood their ground when Rommel's main counter-attack fell on their position at 16.00. Against the waves of attacking tanks the A/T guns 'did great execution, particularly among enemy tanks advancing against the 24th Armoured Brigade. More than once it seemed that the Battalion must be overrun. Coolness and courage averted this fate and led, instead, to the decisive defeat of the enemy at this important point'.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Alamein
The break-out phase of the battle was codenamed Operation Supercharge. For 1st Armd Division this was a repeat of Lightfoot, with a night crossing of a minefield on 1/2 November, followed by an armoured battle on the far side, in which the Axis tank strength was badly depleted. The breakthrough came on 4 November, when 1st Armd Division began a pursuit across the desert that continued through the night of 5/6 November until its fuel ran out. Refuelled, X Corps and 1st Armd Division then led the pursuit as far as the Jebel el Aktar before XXX Corps passed through to fight the Battle of El Agheila.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Tunisia
1st Armoured Division spent the winter of 1942–43 near Benghazi and did not move up to rejoin Eighth Army until 27 February, when it began a 1,300 miles (2,100 km) drive with X Corps to Tripoli, completed by 14 March. By now 76th (RWF) A/T Rgt was equipped with 6-pdrs, new 17-pounders (on the stop-gap Pheasant carriage converted from the 25-pounder gun carriage) and Deacon self-propelled 6-pdrs (in ZZ Bty).


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Tunisia
On arrival, 1st Armd Division went into reserve for the Battle of the Mareth Line, beginning on 20/21 March. When XXX Corps' frontal attack was held up, 1st Armd Division was sent with X Corps at 19.30 on 23 March to join New Zealand Corps on a long flanking move, which became 'a first rate tangle' in front of the Tebaga Gap. The defile was blocked by 21st Panzer Division.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Tunisia
A new attack (Operation Supercharge II) was quickly planned: on the night of 25/26 March 1st Armd made a fast approach march in moonlight, passed through 2nd New Zealand Division and 8th Armd Bde, which had broken the front line, and went straight into action in the afternoon. With a sandstorm blowing into the enemy's eyes, the division blasted its way through the defile and continued towards El Hamma during the following night. At dawn on 27 March its tanks contacted a hastily-organised German anti-tank gun screen and took up hull-down positions.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Tunisia
Meanwhile, 15th Panzer Division attempted to attack the rear of the division's column, but it was quickly repulsed by the 17-pdrs of 76th (RWF) A/T Rgt. (It is also reported that the regiment successfully used its Deacons against Panzer IIIs at El Hamma.) There was now a short stalemate, but the Battle of Mareth was over and the enemy were pulling back to their next defensive position at Wadi Akarit. On 29 March 1st Armd Division began probing these defences, and on the evening of 5 April it made a demonstration while 4th Indian Infantry Division seized the heights during the night. Otherwise the division played little part in the Battle of Wadi Akarit.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Tunisia
On 15 April, 1st Armd Division transferred to IX Corps under First Army, which had  now linked up with Eighth Army and had better terrain for armoured warfare. 1st Armoured Division moved north to take part in the final assault on Tunis (Operations Vulcan and Strike). The division failed to break through against 10th Panzer Division at El Kourzia on 23 April, but it inflicted unsustainable tank losses on its opponents. The division executed a feint on 5 May to draw attention away from the main thrust towards Tunis, then on 8 May it relieved 7th Armd Division and swung east to Creteville. On 13 May the last Axis troops in Tunisia surrendered.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Tunisia
At the end of the Tunisian campaign 76th (RWF) A/T Rgt was reorganised. On 10 May 1943 239 A/T Bty left again, this time permanently, to help form a new 106th A/T Rgt; it was replaced by a newly formed 199 A/T Bty. 1st Armoured Division remained in North Africa for the next year, missing the early part of the Italian campaign. 76th (RWF) A/T Regiment reverted to its old title of 60th (RWF) Anti -Tank Regiment on 1 April 1944.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Italy
1st Armoured Division began arriving in Italy in May 1944. In August it concentrated around Altamura in preparation for Operation Olive, the planned assault on the Gothic Line. When the operation began on 25 August, the division was in reserve, ready to lead the exploitation of any breach in the German line. The initial assault went so well that the division was warned on 27 August for its forward move for the Battle of Coriano, and on 31 August it began its difficult approach march along mountain roads.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Italy
The formation became so spread out that 2nd Armd Bde had to attack the Coriano ridge almost unsupported on 4 September, and failed in its first attempt. A second attempt next day was only partially successful. The attack was renewed on 12 September after heavy artillery and air bombardment of the objective, and the village of Coriano was finally cleared on 14 September. 1st Armoured Division attempted to take the next heights (Point 153 on the Ceriano  ridge) on 20 September, and failed with heavy casualties. Nevertheless, Eighth Army had broken the Gothic Line.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 76th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA, Italy
British forces in Italy were by now suffering an acute manpower shortage. In September 1944 Gen Harold Alexander decided that 1st Armoured Division would have to be broken up to reinforce other formations, with its divisional troops turned into Army Troops for general employment. 60th (RWF) Anti -Tank Rgt left the division on 26 September and served with Eighth Army through the winter. Eventually, it was placed in suspended animation on 1 April 1945 (some weeks before the end of the war) with 199, 310 and ZZ Btys;  237 A/T Bty survived until it was disbanded on 1 September 1945.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 70th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA
70th A/T Regiment (which was granted the RWF subtitle on 17 February 1942) was in Western Command, assigned to 38th (Welsh) Infantry Division, the 2nd Line duplicate of 53rd (Welsh) Division. The division was still forming when war broke out in 1939 and only assumed full control of its units on 18 September. It remained training in South Wales during the early part of the war, then moved to North West England under III Corps. By May 1941 it was in reserve just behind the invasion-threatened coast of Sussex.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, World War II, 70th (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti-Tank Regiment, RA
However, at the end of the year it was placed on a lower establishment, as a static coast defence formation with no prospect of active service overseas. It spent 1942–44 in various locations in Southern England. By 15 August 1944 most of its personnel had been drafted as reinforcements to 21st Army Group fighting in Normandy, and the divisional HQ ceased to command any units. However, on 1 September the division was recreated in a training role as 38th Infantry (Reserve) Division, and 70th (RWF) immediately rejoined as its A/T regiment until after the end of the war.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Postwar
The TA was reconstituted on 1 January 1947, when 70th (RWF) A/T Rgt was formally disbanded and 60th (RWF) A/T Rgt was reformed at Rhyl as 384 (Royal Welch Fusiliers) Anti -Tank Regiment, RA, providing the divisional A/T component for the reformed 53rd (Welsh) Division. The regiment was reorganised as a Light Regiment, RA, on 1 March 1951.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Postwar
On 31 October 1956 384 (RWF) Lt Rgt amalgamated with 361 (Carnarvonshire & Denbigh Yeomanry) Medium Rgt as 372 (Flintshire & Denbighshire Yeomanry) Field Rgt. When the TA was reduced into the Territorial and Army Volunteer Reserve (TAVR) in 1967, the regiment became the Flintshire & Denbighshire Yeomanry, RA, with P (Flintshire) Bty at Holywell. It was reduced to a cadre on 1 April 1969, but on 1 April 1971 the cadre was converted to infantry and expanded to form B Company in 3rd (Volunteer) Bn, Royal Welch Fusiliers. This battalion was merged into 2nd Bn, Royal Regiment of Wales, in 1999.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Honorary Colonels
The following served as Honorary Colonel of the 1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers and its successors:


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Uniforms and Insignia
The uniform of the 1st Flintshire RVC was scarlet with green facings, changing to the RWF's blue facings in 1888. In 1925 TA battalions were allowed the battle honours of their parent regiments; in addition the RWF battalions were granted the privilege of wearing the regiment's back flash (five black ribbons below the back of the collar).


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Uniforms and Insignia
When 5th RWF was converted into 60th A/T Rgt it adopted Royal Artillery cap badges but retained the old brass shoulder title of a grenade above the letters RWF, and also retained the black RWF flash below the back collar of the service dress tunic. In 1947, 384 A/T Rgt was authorised to wear the cap badge, buttons and back flash of the RWF, with RA collar badges and shoulder titles.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Memorials
The RWF's regimental memorial for World War I and World War II, a sculpted group by Sir William Goscombe John, stands at the junction of Bodhyfryd and Chester roads in Wrexham.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Memorials
A memorial to the 5th Battalion's casualties during World War I was unveiled on 13 July 1922 at the Drill Hall in Rhyl.


1st Flintshire Rifle Volunteers, Memorials
The battalion's colours, presented in 1909 and subsequently amended to carry the RWF's battle honours, were no longer carried after it was converted to the Royal Artillery; they were finally laid up in St Asaph Cathedral in 1967.


1st Florida Cavalry Regiment
The 1st Florida Cavalry Regiment was a Confederate army unit during the U.S. Civil War, originally organized in July 1861 at Tallahassee. Members of the regiment came primarily from Alachua, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Leon, Levy, Nassau and Suwannee counties. It left for the western theater in 1862.


1st Florida Cavalry Regiment, Battles
The 1st Florida Cavalry Regiment surrendered in North Carolina in April 1865.


1st Florida Cavalry Regiment (Union)
The 1st Florida Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment from Florida that served in the Union Army from October 29, 1863 – November 17, 1865 during the American Civil War.


1st Florida Cavalry Regiment (Union), Service
The regiment was formed by General Nathaniel P. Banks on October 29, 1863, and organized at Fort Barrancas from December, 1863 – August, 1864. It was attached to the 2nd and 3rd Brigades, District West Florida, Army of the Gulf until January 1865, and to the 2nd Brigade of John P. Lucas' Cavalry Division until May 1865.


1st Florida Cavalry Regiment (Union), Service
The regiment saw action in the surrounding area of Fort Barrancas. In 1864, such action included a July 21–25 expedition to Pollard, Alabama, a September 18 – October 4 expedition to Marianna, Florida, an October 25–28 expedition up Blackwater Bay, a November 16–17 expedition to Pine Barren Creek, and a December 13–14 expedition to Pollard. In 1865, the unit went on a February 22–25 expedition to Milton, Florida before taking part in the March 18 – April 9 campaign against Mobile, Alabama and its defenses. This campaign included action at the Battle of Newton and the Battle of Fort Blakely. After the occupation of Mobile on April 12, the regiment marched towards Montgomery, Alabama. It served in Alabama until May when it was ordered back to Barrancas, from where the regiment continued to serve in Western and Middle Florida. The regiment was mustered out on November 17, 1865.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment
The 1st Florida Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised by the Confederate state of Florida during the American Civil War. Raised for 12 months of service its remaining veterans served in the 1st (McDonell's) Battalion, Florida Infantry from April 1862 on. In August the depleted battalion was consolidated with the 3rd (Miller's) Battalion into the reorganized 1st Florida Infantry Regiment again. In December 1862 it merged with the 3rd Florida Infantry Regiment and received the form it kept till the war's end as the 1st and 3rd Consolidated Florida Infantry Regiment. Fighting as part of the Army of Tennessee in the Western Theater of the American Civil War it was surrendered on April 26, 1865.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Organization
When the civil war erupted in 1861 Florida hastened to raise a regiment of infantry. In March, at Chattahoochee Arsenal, men from the counties of Leon, Alachua, Madison, Jefferson, Jackson, Franklin, Gadsden, and Escambia assembled, and on May 5, 1861, the 1st Florida Infantry Regiment was mustered into state service. Like all regiments mustered in the early days of 1861, it enlisted for twelve months. Because of the haste the regiment totaled about 700 men in 9 companies with an insufficient number of uniforms and weapons.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Organization
The elected staff officers were James Patton Anderson, of Jefferson County, colonel; William K. Beard, of Leon County, as lieutenant colonel, and Thaddeus A. McDonell, of Alachua County as major. Upon the completion of the organization the regiment was ordered to Pensacola where it arrived April 12, 1861. There it was mustered into Confederate service on April 19.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1861 and 1862
In June the regiment received its tenth company, the local Pensacola Guards. Now the regiment was part of the Army of Pensacola under command of Brigadier General Sam Jones. On October 9, 1861, a detachment of 180 men from all companies of the regiment participated in the unsuccessful attempt to capture Fort Pickens. Under command of Colonel Anderson, leading a column with his Floridians and men from Louisiana and Alabama, the regiment lost 7 dead, 8 wounded and 12 men captured. The regiment joined General Braxton Bragg on his westbound journey in March 1862, and went to Corinth.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1861 and 1862
When the service time of the regiment came to its end it failed to reorganize in early 1862 when only 300 of the remaining 600 men, enough for four companies, reenlisted. Those were organized into four companies under the command of Major McDonnell, as Lt. Col. Beard was appointed Inspector General of  Bragg's II Corps. The 1st (McDonell's) Florida Infantry Battalion, as it was now known, and its 328 men were just in time for the Battle of Shiloh.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1861 and 1862
Patton Anderson, the regiments former Colonel, was commanding the brigade since October 1861 and was promoted to brigadier on February 10, 1862. The brigade was part of Ruggles' division. On April 6, 1862, the 250 present men participated in the morning advance as part of the second line. Advancing along the Pittsburgh-Corinth Road the regiment suffered heavy fire from Ohio troops and artillery. When Major McDonell fell, wounded by an artillery fragment to the tight, the command advanced on Captain William G. Poole. Anderson's brigade, and the 1st Florida, belonged to the force that stormed the Hornet's Nest. The exhausted troops were periodically bombarded through the night by Union gunboats; and retreated with the rest of the army on April 7. Poole, turning over command to Captain W.C. Beard on the 7th, was cited by Anderson for his gallant leadership throughout the two-day battle.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1861 and 1862
Afterwards the battalion, that lost 14 dead and 57 wounded at Shiloh, was consolidated with the Confederate (Louisiana) Guards Response Battalion under overall command of Major William Clack. The consolidation proved to be only temporary as the Guards Battalion was transferred in August 1861. Going north in the Confederate Heartland Offensive the 1st Battalion fought in the Battle of Perryville, suffering 12 dead, 54 wounded and 6 missing from a total of 167 men. The depleted battalion was consolidated with the 3rd (Miller's) Florida Battalion. Miller's 6 companies and the veterans of the 1st Battalion were reorganized as 1st


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1861 and 1862
Florida Infantry Regiment again. William Miller was elected Colonel, McDonell became lieutenant colonel and Glover A. Ball became major. In December 1862 the regiment, now part of the brigade of Brigadier William Preston, was loosely paired with the 3rd Florida Infantry, under the overall command of Miller. The 531 men of the 1st and 3rd Regiments fought distinctively at Stones River, taking high losses including Colonel Miller, who was wounded on the last day of the battle. Overall command then went to Colonel William S. Dilworth of the 3rd Florida. Due to the casualties both regiments took before, this consolidation became permanent; Dilworth stayed in command for the rest of the war while Miller commanded reserve forces (becoming a brigadier general in 1864).


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1863
The 1st-3rd Florida spent the winter near Tullahoma, Tennessee, with drilling new arrived recruits and holding target practice. In March 1863 The regiment saw combat around the siege of Vicksburg. Detached to participate in the Jackson Expedition, General Joseph Johnston's relief action, it fought as part of Adams' brigade in the Siege of Jackson. By summer the returned regiment was in the brigade of Marcellus A. Stovall.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1863
On September 19, 1863, General John C. Breckinridge's division was on the left of the entire Confederate line along the Chickamauga Creek. Stationed near Glass' Mill; the 1st-3rd Florida was detached with an artillery battery as observation force when the rest of the division moved southwards. During the night to the 20th, D.H. Hill's whole corps was shifted to the extreme right of the Confederate lines. The 1st-3rd, relieved by cavalry from Wharton's division, had to march the whole night till it reached its position on the right; not locating its brigade till 8 a.m.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1863
When the advance against the Union positions around Horseshoe Ridge started in the morning the brigade was on the right of the second line, and marched against elements from Thomas' XIV Corps. Advancing towards Kelly Field along the Lafayette Road in a southern move, the 1st-3rd Florida, together with the 47th Georgia Infantry, was separated from the rest of the column and drifted rightwards. Here it faced elements from King's Regular Brigade. Nearly losing its colors during the retreat it reunited with the brigade after the later was repulsed.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1863
Then the division shifted its northern elements to the east due to the advance of Gordon Granger's Reserve Corps from the north. Another local advance towards Kelly Field in the afternoon brought in a number of prisoners but could not break the enemy's lines. The regiment lost 9 killed, 70 wounded and 13 missing.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1863
When the battle ended in a victory for the South, the Army of Tennessee received the gratitude of their superiors; and the 1st-3rd Florida had 18 of its men put on the Confederate Honor Roll. In early November the Army of Tennessee, still besieging the Union at Chattanooga, Tennessee, to where the federals retreated after Chickamauga, all infantry units from Florida were gathered together into one brigade. Colonel Dilworth, the senior Colonel of the Florida regiments, was on a furlough he was passed for command.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1863
Likewise the recommendations for his promotion to brigadier, issued by General Breckinridge and endorsed by General William J. Hardee, was not followed  Instead Jesse J. Finley, till now commander of the 6th Florida Infantry, was promoted and assigned. The Florida Brigade consisted of the 1st-3rd, 4th, 6th and 7th Florida Infantry Regiments, as well as the 1st Dismounted Florida Cavalry.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1863
Taking position on Missionary Ridge, the brigade was stationed next to Bragg's headquarters, half in the second line and half in the forward position below the crest. As the army was overwhelmed by the reinforced Union army it tumbled out of position. Parts of the brigade fought in General William B. Bate's makeshift rear-guard and Brigadier Finley receive praise for his command. The brigade continued its service through the rest of 1863, taking part in the moves of General Johnston. When Colonel Dilworth temporarily took command of a brigade, the regiment was commanded by Lt. Col. Elisha Mashburn.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1864 and 1865
In early 1864, the beginning of the Atlanta Campaign, the hardships of winter and constant marches took its toll. The regiment, commanded by Mashburn as Dilworth was on sick leave, was no exception. Within months the command changed to Major Ball and in June to Cpt. Matthew H. Strain before Ball took command again. At Resaca the regiment had to endure its worst artillery barrage during the war.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1864 and 1865
Later in the campaign, during the Battle of Marietta, the regiment was in position when corps commander General Leonidas Polk was killed, Col. Dilworth asking the General to search cover only seconds before he was hit by an artillery shell. By this time the 1st-3rd Florida had just 120 men ready for duty.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1864 and 1865
When the 1st-3rd Florida went with General John Bell Hood into the terrible winter campaign of Franklin-Nashville the command quickly went to Cpt. Strain again, but later developed upon Cpt. A.B. McLeod. When General Nathan B. Forrest and his cavalry were dispatched to raid the area it was accompanied by Bate's division, including the Florida Brigade. At the Third Battle of Murfreesboro the Floridians, who lost their acting brigade commander Colonel Robert Bullock, had to give way; and the numerically inferior and unsupported brigade were pushed back for nearly a mile before the Union troops stopped their advance.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1864 and 1865
After the retreat from Nashville, the six small regiments were sent to North Carolina where they fought one more battle, the Battle of Bentonville, on 19 March 1865. On the same day General Lee surrendered in Virginia, April 9, 1865, Johnston reorganized his army. The Western Florida Brigade was consolidated and their six regiments were put into a single unit, being the last form of the 1st Florida Infantry Regiment. Under command of Lt. Col. Mashburn the 1st


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Service history, 1864 and 1865
Florida marched in Brigadier James A. Smith's brigade in the division of General John C. Brown, who was their brigade commander at Perryville. When Johnston surrendered at Bennett Place on April 26 the 1st Florida, and so all Floridian units in the Army of Tennessee, had fewer than 200 men present and fit for duty (with just over 400 total). The troops were paroled on May 1, 1865.


1st Florida Infantry Regiment, Other regimental data, Confederate Honor Roll for Chickamauga
10 soldiers of the 1st and 8 soldiers of the 3rd were inscribed into the Confederate Roll of Honor for their services during the Battle of Chickamauga:


1st Florida Special Cavalry Battalion
The 1st Florida Special Cavalry Battalion, nicknamed Cow Cavalry, was a Confederate States Army cavalry unit from Florida during the American Civil War. Commanded by Charles James Munnerlyn; it was organized to protect herds of cattle from Union raiders. The hides and meat from Florida cattle was a critical supply item for the Confederacy.


1st Florida Special Cavalry Battalion
James McKay wrote to the state of the need to protect Florida cattle after the Battle of Olustee, and a group of Florida crackers was organized near Plant City, and were based out of Fort Myers, taking part in the Battle of Fort Myers. They would drive cattle to Baldwin. John T. Lesley, Francis A. Hendry, and W. B. Henderson were all in the Cow Cavalry.


1st Flying Training Centre
1st Training Centre  (Polish: 1 Osrodek Szkolenia Lotniczego - 1.OSL) is a training unit of Polish Air Force directly under command of Polish Air Force Academy. Unit is stationed on 6th Air Base in Dęblin and operates various training aircraft.


1st Flying Training Squadron
The 1st Flying Training Squadron is part of the 306th Flying Training Group based at Pueblo Memorial Airport, Colorado. It conducts flight training for all USAF Pilot and Combat Systems Officer  trainees, regardless of commissioning source.


1st Flying Training Squadron, Mission
The squadron mission is to screen Air Force aviator candidates for entry into Undergraduate Flight Training as well as to develop outstanding officers through the application of positive life habit patterns and the Air Force Core Values.


1st Flying Training Squadron, History
The 1st provided pilot and navigator proficiency training to all Air Force rated personnel assigned to headquarters in the Washington, D.C. area from, 1969–1971. It conducted the USAF flight screening program for pilot training candidates between 1990 and 1994 and flew the initial T-3 Firefly operations in early 1994.


1st Flying Training Squadron, Notes
This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website .


1st Fominovka
1st Fominovka (Russian: 1-я Фоминовка) is a rural locality (a village) in Novoselskoye Rural Settlement of Kormilovsky District, Russia. The population was 160 as of 2010.


1st Fominovka, History
The town was founded in 1907. In 1928, the village of 1st Fominovka consisted of 72 households, the main population being Russians. It was a part of Novoselskoye village council of Kormilovsky district of Omsk region of Siberian territory.


1st Fominovka, Geography
1st Fominovka is located 26 km south of Kormilovka (the district's administrative centre) by road.


1st Foot Cavalry Division (France)
The 1st Foot Cavalry Division (French: 1re Division de Cavalerie à Pied) was a French Army formation during World War I.


1st Foot Cavalry Division (France), First World War
The 1st foot cavalry division was formed in December 1917, in the region of Vic-sur-Aisne, with parts of the 81st D.I.


1st Foot Cavalry Division (France), First World War, Attachments
Organic attachment: 1st Cavalry Corps from January to November 1918


1st Foot Guards (German Empire)
The 1st Foot Guard Regiment (German: 1. Garde-Regiment zu Fuß) was an infantry regiment of the Royal Prussian Army formed in 1806 after Napoleon defeated Prussia in the Battle of Jena–Auerstedt. It was formed by combining all previous Foot Guard Regiments and was, from its inception, the bodyguard-regiment of Kings of Prussia. Save William II, who also wore the uniforms of other regiments, all Prussian Kings and most Princes of Prussia wore the uniform of the 1st Foot Guard Regiment. All Princes of Prussia were commissioned lieutenants in the 1st Foot Guards upon their tenth birthdays.


1st Foot Guards (German Empire)
The King of Prussia was also the Colonel-in-chief of the regiment, as well as the Chief of the 1st Battalion and 1st Company of the regiment. Therefore, the regiment held the highest rank within the Prussian Army, which, among other things, meant that the officer corps of the regiment marched before the princes of the German Empire and the diplomatic corps in the traditional New Year's reception. Unofficially, the regiment was known as the "First Regiment of Christendom" (German: Erstes Regiment der Christenheit).


1st Foot Guards (German Empire)
The regiment was disbanded in 1919 when the Imperial German Army was dissolved, with the Infantry Regiment 9 Potsdam of the new Reichsheer bearing its tradition. The Wachbataillon continues the tradition of this regiment in the Bundeswehr of the Federal Republic of Germany.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company
1st Force Reconnaissance Company conducts deep reconnaissance and direct action raids in support of I Marine Expeditionary Force requirements across the range of military operations to include crisis response, expeditionary operations and major combat operations. 1st Force Recon Company was deactivated 26 October 2006 and the majority of the personnel were used to create 1st Marine Special Operations Battalion.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company
Prior to the deactivation, General James Mattis, the MEF Commanding General at the time, transferred two Force Recon platoons to 1st Reconnaissance Battalion and activated the Deep Reconnaissance Company. In 2008 Delta Company, 1st Recon Company was redesignated the I MEF Force Reconnaissance Company and given its own Marine Command Code (MCC). It continues to provide I Marine Expeditionary Force and its subordinate MAGTFs with Corps level reconnaissance, battlespace shaping and direct action raids.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, Mission
The 1st Force Reconnaissance Company of the United States Marine Corps was a Force Reconnaissance unit that organized, trained, and equipped reconnaissance units to support the I Marine Expeditionary Force.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, Mission
1st Force Recon Company conducted nine Mission Essential Tasks (METs).


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, Organization
1st Force Recon Company's table of organization consisted of a headquarters and service platoon and six Force Reconnaissance platoons. 1st Force would often be augmented by reserve forces from 3rd and 4th Force Recon Companies for combat deployments.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History
First Force Reconnaissance Company was activated on 19 June 1957 at Camp Margarita (Area 33), Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It was formed from the Reconnaissance Platoon of Marine Corps Test Unit#1 that was assigned to take over the guideon of 1st Amphibious Reconnaissance Company, that was under command of Captain "Cycle" Michael Sparks. Many Marines from the amphib recon company and 1st Reconnaissance Battalion augmented the new Fleet Marine Force-level reconnaissance capabilities to force commanders.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History
The Company's first company commander was Major Bruce F. Meyers, with Captain Joseph Z. Taylor as his executive officer. Meyers was MCTU#1's project test officer that led the development and refinement of submarine insertions/extractions techniques, low level static line and military free fall parachute insertion, the closed-circuit SCUBA procedures and capabilities developed the initial deep reconnaissance capability within the Department of Defense. 1st Force Recon pioneered the High Altitude Low Opening (HALO) parachuting technique in 1958 that allowed for a more secure and accurate insertion of a deep reconnaissance team.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History
By 1958, approximately half of the 1st Force Reconnaissance Company was reassigned and transferred to Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina to form the 2nd Force Reconnaissance Company; under command of Joseph Z. Taylor, promoted to Major.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History
1st Platoon, Sub Unit #1, embarked onto the USS Cook (APD-130) and sailed for southern Thailand, to the Royal Thai Navy base of Sattahip, in December 1964. The 1st Platoon conducted reconnaissance patrols with the Royal Thai Marine Corps, with one Thai Marine attached to each of the 4-man force recon teams. By the end of January, they finished their recon operations in Thailand and sailed for Vietnam for the planned amphibious landings in March 1965.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Vietnam War
Prior to the first of many Marine amphibious landings made by the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade throughout March 1965, 1st Platoon, Sub Unit #1, 1st Force Reconnaissance Company (-), conducted preliminary reconnaissance of the planned amphibious beach landing sites. The sub unit was the first Force Recon unit to serve in Republic of Vietnam and was led by Captain David Whittingham. Their first mission was to reconnoiter the area around Cam Ranh Bay for its selection as the major port for the U.S. forces in south Vietnam, they also carried out reconnaissance and survey of the beaches around Da Nang prior to the Marine Battalion landing.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Vietnam War
By early May 1965, the 2nd Platoon had joined 1st Platoon with the Subordinate Unit #1 and both platoons were assigned to the United States Special Forces A-Team, A-103, conducting specialized reconnaissance and combat raiding missions. They operated from Da Nang, Phu Bai, Chu Lai, Gia Vuc and Kham Duc, in the I Corps Tactical Zone (ICTZ). Their mission was to collect any enemy intelligence in the mountain approaches to the Marines' tactical area of operation along with the Laos border, and to report any findings directly to the general staff of the III Marine Amphibious Force.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Vietnam War
November 1965, 2nd Platoon was attached to the Special Forces team A-106 at Ba To. A combined patrol from Ba To was attacked on the night of 16 December and three Marines, a Green Beret Sergeant, and 10 members of the Civilian Irregular Defense Group (CIDG) were killed. By mid-December 1965, 3rd platoon arrived in the Republic of Vietnam and was attached to Special Forces team A-107 at Tra Bong. The rest of the Force Recon Company (its remaining two platoons, 4th and 5th Plt.) arrived in June 1965. The men of 1st Force Reconnaissance Company stayed in Vietnam until 1970 and conducted more than 2,200 reconnaissance patrols and participated in numerous operations, including the battle for Hue City. 1st Force was deactivated on 30 September 1974 and its personnel rolled into the deep reconnaissance company of 1st Reconnaissance Battalion.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) MEU(SOC)
General Alfred M. Gray, the 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps, pioneered a Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) (SOC) concept in 1987 and reactivated 1st, 2nd and 5th Force Reconnaissance Companies to support these newly formed MAGTFs with direct action raids and reconnaissance operations. On 11–13 November 1994, the Force Recon Marines aboard the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit conducted a Maritime Interdiction Operation/Visit Board Search and Seizure (MIO/VBSS) mission aboard the Honduran-flagged merchant vessel Ajmer, which was in violation of United Nations sanctions on Iraq.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) MEU(SOC)
The 11th MEU Force Reconnaissance Platoon supported a Non-combatant evacuation operation in Asmara, Eritrea, on 6 June 1998. Operation Safe Departure was conducted as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of American citizens in the midst of a heated border dispute between Eritrea and Ethiopia. All total, 172 persons, including 105 Americans, were safely evacuated to Amman, Jordan, via KC-130 aerial transport. The Force Recon platoon provided embassy reinforcement and security for the MEU forward command element.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) MEU(SOC)
Force Reconnaissance Marines on the 11th MEU, 13th MEU and 15th MEU supported humanitarian assistance operations in East Timor in 1999 and 2000.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm
In 1990 1st Force Reconnaissance company was deployed to Kuwait in support of Operation Desert Shield. Force Reconnaissance Marines established observation posts and conducted motorized patrols along the Kuwaiti Border. Operation Desert Storm was launched in January 1991. Force Recon teams located enemy armored units and utilized artillery and Close Air Support to interdict them


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Operation Restore Hope
In 1993 7th Platoon deployed with the 15th MEU and conducted amphibious reconnaissance along the Somali coastline. Two teams infiltrated the Mogadishu port facility, established observation positions at the Mogadishu airport, and supported a raid company from 1st Battalion, 7th Marines with fire support. The remainder of 1st Force flew into the airport and conducted reconnaissance and raids in support of the United Task Force (UNITAF). They also provided Personal Security Detachments for high-ranking officials to include General Johnston, the UNITAF Commanding General, and Colonel Wilhelm who commanded the Marine component of UNITAF.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Global War on terrorism
In 2001, 2nd Platoon was deployed in support of the 15th MEU and participated in the invasion of Afghanistan,


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Global War on terrorism
In 2003, 1st Force Recon Company, augmented with platoons from 3rd Force Reconnaissance Company and 4th Force, participated in the invasion of Iraq. 3rd Platoon, deployed in support of the 15th MEU went ashore during the invasion and participated in the battle of Nasiriyah and supported the rescue of PFC Jessica Lynch


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Global War on terrorism
In 2004 a Force Recon Platoon deployed in support of the 11th MEU participated in the Battle of Najaf and a platoon was attached to Regimental Combat Team 1 for Operation Phantom Fury, commonly known as the Battle of Fallujah.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Global War on terrorism
In 2005–2006, 1st Force Recon Company, augmented with platoons from 3d and 4th Reconnaissance BN, participated in the Operation Iraqi Freedom. Platoons participated in numerous campaigns during this time to include Operation Matador in the city of Al Qaim, and Operation Sword in the town of Hit.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, History, Global War on terrorism
In 2010, 2nd Platoon was deployed to the Gulf of Aden along the Somali coast to assist the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit in recapturing the MV Magellan Star.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, Training
During its beginning formation within the 1st Marine Division, 1st Force Recon conducted sustainment training in obstacle clearing for landing zone preparation in support of early-Marine Corps helicopter-borne operations; and other mission-essential amphibious reconnaissance, parachute insertion, and pathfinder tasks. Because of the efforts made by Meyers and his other adjoining Marine and Navy parachute testers, they developed the Helicopter Rope Suspension methods, plus invented the Special Personnel Insertion/Extraction (SPIE) rigging that are widely used by Special Operations Forces services worldwide.


1st Force Reconnaissance Company, Training
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, 1st Force Recon Company trained in a variety of locations during their Unit Training Phase.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment
The 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment (French: 1er Régiment Étranger de Cavalerie, 1er REC) is the only cavalry regiment in the French Foreign Legion. As of 2009 it was the only armoured cavalry regiment of the 6th Light Armoured Brigade. The regiment recently moved camp after being stationed at Quartier Labouche for 47 years in Orange, Vaucluse, France since it moved from Mers-el-Kébir, Algeria in October 1967.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Levant and Morocco from 1921
The 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment (1er REC) was created on March 8, 1921 at Sousse from elements of the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment. The title of the 1er REC would not become official until January 20, 1922, under Decree n°6330-1/11 of January 20, 1922. The cadres of the new unit were drawn from existing French cavalry regiments. Only one junior officer (Second Lieutenant Antraygue) had had previous Legion experience while one non-commissioned officer had been in service with the 1st Foreign Regiment 1er RE.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Levant and Morocco from 1921
Of the 156 other ranks of the newly formed 1er REC, 128 were Russians. A significant contingent hailed from the White Army of Wrangle. These included thirty officers (one a former general of the Imperial Russian Army and one a former colonel); 14 non-commissioned officers and 33 Cossacks. Most of the remainder had served as regular cavalrymen with the Wrangle forces. Beginning in 1925, the 1er REC was engaged as mounted cavalry in Syria (4th Squadron ) and in Morocco (3rd Squadron).


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Levant and Morocco from 1921
In both theatres of operations, the Foreign Cavalry Regiment served with distinction, notably in the Levant at Messifre (September 17, 1925) and at Rachaya (from November 20 to 24, 1925). The fanion of the 1er REC received the Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures with 2 palms, the fourragère of the colors of the Croix de Guerre and the 1st Class Lebanese Order of Merit Medal.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Levant and Morocco from 1921
From 1927 to 1934, the 1er REC saw active service in Morocco (3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th Squadrons), followed by patrol work along the northern border of the Sahara. In 1934 the 5th squadron was equipped with White-Laffly and Panhard armored cars. The remainder of the regiment retained horses and sabers.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, World War II and Indochina War
In 1939 the two existing regiments of Foreign Cavalry were still only partially motorized. However, in 1940, the 1e REC was dispatched to France as part of the 97th Reconnaissance Group of the Infantry Division (97e GRDI). As such it was engaged in combat from May 18 (at the Somme) until the Armistice. A citation issued at the orders of the Armed Forces praised the heroism of the Legionnaires during this period. Following the Battle of France the 1er REC took up garrison duties in Tunisia. In 1943, the regiment was re-equipped with U.S. material, consisted of one light tank squadron and four armored car squadrons. Its new role was that of divisional recce regiment of the newly raised 5th Armored Division (5e DB).


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, World War II and Indochina War
In 1943, the 1er REC was engaged against the Germans in Tunisia. In 1944, the 1er REC landed on the côtes de Provence as one of the French armored units participating in the Liberation of France. At the end of World War II, the regimental colors were decorated with two new palms and the fourragère of the Croix de Guerre. In 1946, the 1er REC embarked for Indochina. The regimental squadrons plus two autonomes groups (detached units) served for nine years in Cochinchina and Tonkin. Three new citations and the fourragère of the Croix de Guerre of TOE were added to the regimental colors, while the two autonomes groups earned 6 citations.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Algeria and the modernization of the Regiment
After returning to French North Africa in 1954, the regiment was involved in the Algerian War for eight consecutive years of active service. Following the Évian Accords and the independence of Algeria  the 1er REC regrouped at the base of Mers El Kebir. It was then reassigned, on October 17, 1967, to peacetime duty in metropolitan France for the first time.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Algeria and the modernization of the Regiment
The 1er REC was now based at Orange in the Quartier Labouche garrison. Reattached to the 14th Infantry Division (14th DI) on January 1, 1976; the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment returned to Africa the same year, serving in Djibouti and then Mayotte. In 1978 and 1979, the regiment participated in Opération Tacaud in Tchad where an Army citation was awarded. During this period, the regiment received new equipment, including the FAMAS service rifle, MILAN anti-tank guided missiles, VAB armored personnel carriers, and the AMX-10RC armored car. From May to October 1983, the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment served in three separate deployment areas: within the ranks of the Multinational Force in Lebanon; with a tactical command headquarters stationed in Beirut; in Tchad within the combat deployment cadre of Operation Manta; and in Djibouti.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Within the ranks of the FAR and Division Daguet
The 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment remained within the Force d'Action Rapide (FAR) and was part of the Division Daguet. On July 1984, the Royal étranger was incorporated into the 6th Light Armoured Division (6e D.L.B). Engaged in operation Daguet starting September 15, 1990; the regiment as whole was found complete in the desert of Saudi Arabia on November 6, 1990. Following an initial preparatory phase, the regiment saw service as part of Operation Desert Storm. On February 23, 1991; the regiment crossed the Iraqi frontier, reached its objective at the D'As Salman air base within 36 hours. Victorious, the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment intact from personnel or material loss, decorated a new palm on the regimental colors. From December 1992 to June 1993, the regiment served in Cambodia as part of the United Nations peacekeeping force (APRONUC).


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Operations post 1993
The 2nd Squadron of the Regiment served in Sarajevo as part of the United Nations Protection Force (FORPRONU) from October 1993 to February 1994, and subsequently with the cadre of BATINF from January to June 1995. From 1995 to 1996, the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment was engaged in the former Yugoslavia within the cadre of the force de réaction rapide (FRR) and in Chad as part of Opération Épervier. From May to September 1996, the 5th Squadron, recreated in July 1993, was first deployed in the Central Africa Republic during Operation Almandin II.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Operations post 1993
The 1er REC also participated in Guyane, Mayotte and Djibouti. In 1997, the regiment served in the Republic of Congo assisting in the evacuation of refugees. During 1999 the regiment participated in operations with NATO forces in Kosovo, deploying one armored squadron (5e ESC) in the Macedonia, then dispatching the scouting squadron in Kosovo. Since then, the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment has participated in Operation Licorne in Ivory Coast and in Operation Pamir in Afghanistan


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Operations post 1993
In January 2013, an AMX 10 RC unit from the regiment was deployed in Mali as part of Operation Serval, to counter an Islamist offensive against the local government and engaged in battle for control of the town of Diabaly.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, History, Operations post 1993
As of June 2015, with nearly 1,000 men and advanced equipment, the Regiment is on permanent stand-by to undertake any mission being allocated to it.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, Equipment
Three squadrons are equipped with the AMX 10 RC, a light wheeled armoured vehicle armed with a 105mm gun. The EEI is equipped with the Panhard VBL.


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, Traditions, Insignias
Regimental Insignia of the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, 1er REC


1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment, Traditions, Insignias
The Foreign Legion Groupment, G.L.E in the 31e Brigade featuring Poseidon


1st Foreign Engineer Regiment
The 1st Foreign Engineer Regiment (French: 1er Régiment étranger de génie, 1er REG) is one of two combat engineer regiments in the French Foreign Legion, and part of the 6th Light Armoured Brigade. Currently stationed at Quartier General Rollet in Laudun-l'Ardoise, Gard, southern France.


1st Foreign Engineer Regiment, History, creation and different nominations, Heir to the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment (6e REI), World War II
" Oriental Mediterranean Regiment " known as Regiment du Levant, the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment (French: 6e Régiment Etranger d'Infanterie, 6e REI) has existed through history on two occasions, in the Levant (Syria and Lebanon) from October 1, 1939 to January 1, 1942 and in Tunisia from April 1, 1949 to June 1955. At creation in 1939, the manpower came from the 1st, 4th, 6th battalions of the 1st


1st Foreign Engineer Regiment, History, creation and different nominations, Heir to the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment (6e REI), World War II
Foreign Infantry Regiment, 1er R.E.I (forming the 1st, 2nd, 4th battalions of the 6e R.E.I) and the 2nd battalion of the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment (forming the 3rd battalion of the 6e R.E.I) with the Legion Artillery Group of the Levant (French: Groupe d'Artillerie de Légion du Levant, G.A.L.L) compromising 3 artillery batteries. On August 23, 1941; the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment embarked at Marseilles; reduced from the results of combats to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd battalion and an artillery group, the regiment rallied to the Free French including other French constituents.


1st Foreign Engineer Regiment, History, creation and different nominations, Heir to the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment (6e REI), World War II
The regiment was disbanded on January 1, 1942 after the British success in the Syria–Lebanon Campaign and its legionnaires were transferred into the 1st Foreign Regiment and Communal Depot of the Foreign Regiments while 690 of the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment opted for Charles de Gaulle. The regiment left Lebanon on August 16, 1941 and rejoined the Camp Idron (Pau) on August 25 before rejoining Sidi-bel-Abbès on December 3, 1941. During the regiment's dissolve on December 31, 1941, the legionnaires of the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment were assigned to the later reconstituted 1st Foreign Marching Infantry Regiment (French: 1er Régiment Etranger d'Infanterie de Marche, 1er R.E.I.M) and the Marching Regiment of the Foreign Legion (French: Régiment de Marche de la Légion Etrangère, R.M.L.E).


1st Foreign Engineer Regiment, History, creation and different nominations, Heir to the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment (6e REI), World War II
On June 7, 1949, the 3rd battalion of the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment embarked for Indochina and transformed to the 1st battalion of the 5th Foreign Infantry Regiment (French: 5e Regiment Etranger d'Infanterie, 5e REI) on October 31. The 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment participated to the operations of maintaining order. The regiment notably engaged in the battles of djebel Selloum, Kasserine and djebel Gouleb. the 6th Foreign Infantry Regiment was dissolved for the second time on June 30, 1955 when the French Foreign Legion was in phase of reorganization following the return from Indochina.


1st Foreign Engineer Regiment, History, creation and different nominations, Creation of the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment (6e REG)
The 1st Foreign Engineer Regiment (1er Régiment Etranger de Génie), 1er REG) was created in 1984 as the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment. On July 1, 1984, Foreign Legion Groupment, G.L.E Commander, général Jean-Claude Coullon assisted to the patronization ceremony marking the enacting of the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment, 6e R.E.G. For the first time in Legion history, the colors of a French foreign legion regiment included the inscription "Génie". Accordingly, the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment ( 6e R.E.G ) received the regimental colors on October 12, 1984.


1st Foreign Engineer Regiment, History, creation and different nominations, Creation of the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment (6e REG)
The creation of the 6th Foreign Engineer Regiment ( 6e R.E.G ) was delayed with a doubtful bet. The Legion had a long history of Fortification construction (French: génie bâtisseur), however, had little experience in combat engineering assault. The whites cadres combat engineer assault specialist of the general regime, a part component of the Military Combat Engineer Assault (French: Génie militaire) of the French Army brought forth their precious savoir-faire and formed the legionnaires in the various fields of specialties. Material arrived and the units prowled.