The 4th Military District was an administrative district of the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), wh ...

. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, the 4th Military District covered all of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, with its headquarters at

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

. Around the start of the Second World War, the 4th Military District became part of Southern Command, along with the 3rd and

6th Military District 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

s in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

and

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. This required legislative changes to the ''Defence Act'' (1903), and did not come into effect until October 1939.

Units during Second World War

Headquarters

*4th Military District Headquarters – Adelaide

6th Cavalry Brigade

*Headquarters – Keswick * 3rd Light Horse Regiment (The South Australian Mounted Rifles) – Mt. Gambier * 9th/23rd Light Horse Regiment (Flinders Light Horse/Barossa Light Horse) – Clare *18th Light Horse (Machine Gun) Regiment (The Adelaide Lancers) – Unley

3rd Infantry Brigade

*Headquarters – Keswick * 10th Battalion (The Adelaide Rifles) – Adelaide * 27th Battalion (The South Australian Scottish Regiment) – Keswick * 43rd Battalion (The Hindmarsh Regiment) – Adelaide * 48th Battalion (The Torrens Regiment) – Adelaide

13th Field Brigade

*Headquarters – Adelaide *49th Field Battery – Adelaide *50th Field Battery – Prospect *113th (Heavy) Field Battery – Kilkenny * 48th Field Battery (Attached) – Keswick

Other units

*10th Heavy Battery, RAA (PF) – Fort Largs *110th Heavy Battery, RAA (M) – Fort Largs *Detachment, RAE (PF) – Keswick *20th Heavy Battery, RAA (PF) – Fort Largs *120th Heavy Battery, RAA (M) – Fort Largs *3rd Troop, 2nd Field Squadron, RAE – Keswick *3rd Field Company, RAE – Keswick

Notes

References

* * * {{cite book, last=Long, first=Gavin, authorlink=Gavin Long, title=To Benghazi, year=1952, series=

Australia in the War of 1939–1945 ''Australia in the War of 1939–1945'' is a 22-volume official history series covering Australian involvement in the Second World War. The series was published by the Australian War Memorial between 1952 and 1977, most of the volumes being edi ...

. Series 1 – Army, volume= 1, publisher= Australian War Memorial, url=https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/RCDIG1070200/, location=Canberra, oclc=18400892 History of South Australia Military districts of Australia