1st Canadian Armoured Brigade formation sign

The 1st Canadian Army Tank Brigade, later known as 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade, was an

armoured Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

of the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

, raised during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The brigade was composed of the 11th, 12th and 14th Canadian Armoured regiments and saw service in the Italian campaign and later in

north-west Europe Northwestern Europe, or Northwest Europe, is a loosely defined subregion of Europe, overlapping Northern and Western Europe. The term is used in geographic, history, and military contexts. Geographic definitions Geographically, Northwestern ...

. It was one of only two independent Canadian armoured brigades in combat, the other being

2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade The 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade was an Armoured warfare, armoured brigade of the Canadian Army that saw active service during World War II. The brigade was composed of the 6th, 10th and 27th Canadian Armoured regiments and saw service in north ...

History

The 1st Canadian Tank Brigade was formed on 4 February 1941.

The Ontario Regiment The Ontario Regiment (Royal Canadian Armoured Corps, RCAC) is a Primary Reserve armoured warfare, armoured reconnaissance regiment of the Canadian Army. The unit is based in downtown Oshawa, Ontario, and is named after Ontario County, Ontario, Ont ...

and

The Three Rivers Regiment ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

were transferred from the incomplete 1st Canadian Armoured Division to provide the nucleus of the 1st Canadian Tank Brigade in February 1941. In March, The Calgary Regiment joined the new brigade from 2nd Division. The

Fort Garry Horse The Fort Garry Horse is a Canadian Army Reserve armoured warfare, armoured regiment based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is part of 3rd Canadian Division's 38 Canadian Brigade Group. It traces its history to a cavalry regiment first formed in ...

were also originally part of the brigade, but transferred to the 5th Canadian (Armoured) Division in May 1941. The Campaign in Sicily 1943 NA5141

The 1st Tank Brigade moved to the United Kingdom in the summer of 1941; personnel arrived in the Clyde on 30 June and were promptly moved to the

Salisbury Plain Training Area The Salisbury Plain Training Area is a large expanse of land on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, which is managed by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation on behalf of the Ministry of Defence. History The British Army's Salisbury Pla ...

where they were issued sufficient

Churchill tank The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) Churchill was a British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple Bogie#Tracked vehicles, bogies, its ability to ...

s for training. The Calgary Regiment participated in the disastrous Dieppe landing in 1942. Issued brand new M4 "Sherman" tanks, the entire brigade moved to the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

, with The Three Rivers Regiment participating in the assault landing at Pachino. The remainder of the brigade landed with the follow-up convoy of 13 July and served alongside the Three Rivers Regiment for the final weeks of the

Allied invasion of Sicily The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as the Battle of Sicily and Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allies of World War II, Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis p ...

. The 1st Tank Brigade's role in the latter operations was largely one of fire support, the rugged terrain limiting the role of the armoured corps. The fight for

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

ended with 1st Tank in reserve. Preparing for

Operation Baytown Operation Baytown was an Allied amphibious landing on the mainland of Italy that took place on 3 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy, itself part of the Italian Campaign, during the Second World War. Planning The attack wa ...

, the

Allied invasion of Italy The Allied invasion of Italy was the Allies of World War II, Allied Amphibious warfare, amphibious landing on mainland Italy that took place from 3 September 1943, during the Italian campaign (World War II), Italian campaign of World War II. T ...

, it was redesignated 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade in August 1943. Although reorganized as an armoured brigade, no motor battalion served under command. Having established a reputation for both courage and skill, the Canadian tankers were in constant demand by senior British commanders. The brigade took part in the landings of the Eighth Army on the toe of Italy in Operation Baytown in September 1943. Its regiments participated in the Battles of Potenza,

Termoli Termoli ( Molisano: ''Térmëlë'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) on the south Adriatic coast of Italy, in the province of Campobasso, region of Molise. It has a population of around 32,000, having expanded quickly after World War II, and it is a ...

Ortona Ortona ( Abruzzese: '; ) is a coastal town and municipality of the Province of Chieti in the Italian region of Abruzzo, with some 23,000 inhabitants. In 1943 Ortona was the site of the bloody Battle of Ortona, known as "Western Stalingrad". ...

. During the fourth and final

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome, was a series of four military assaults by the Allies of World War II, Allies against Nazi Germany, German forces in Kingdom of Italy, Italy during the Italian Campaign (World War ...

in May 1944, the brigade helped break the

Winter Line The Winter Line was a series of German and Italian military fortifications in Italy, constructed during World War II by Organisation Todt and commanded by Albert Kesselring. The series of three lines was designed to defend a western section ...

(Gustav Line), crossing the Gari River in support of the 8th Indian Division. Its regiments helped the

1st Canadian Division The 1st Canadian Division (French: ) is a joint operational command and control formation based at CFB Kingston, and falls under Canadian Joint Operations Command. It is a high-readiness unit, able to move on very short notice, and is staffed and ...

and the 78th Division in breaking the

Hitler Line The Hitler Line was a German Army defensive line in central Italy during the Second World War. The strong points of the line were at Piedimonte, Pontecorvo, and Aquino. In May 1944, the line was renamed the Senger Line, after General Fridoli ...

. It cooperated with the XIII Corps in the Battle of Lake Trasimeno. It was active in the crossing of the Arno River and later fought on the

Gothic Line The Gothic Line (; ) was a German and Italian defensive line of the Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence along the summits of the northern part of the Apennine Mountains du ...

. Combined with the 1st Canadian Infantry Division and 5th Canadian Armoured Division as part of

I Canadian Corps I Canadian Corps was one of the two corps fielded by the Canadian Army during the Second World War. History From December 24, 1940, until the formation of the First Canadian Army in April 1942, there was a single unnumbered Canadian Corps. I Ca ...

, the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade was moved from the Italian Front and joined the

First Canadian Army The First Canadian Army () was a field army and a formation of the Canadian Army in World War II in which most Canadian elements serving in North-West Europe were assigned. It served on the Western Front from July 1944 until May 1945. It was Cana ...

in Northern Europe at the beginning of 1945. Here it participated in the crossing of the IJssel River. In its two incarnations as 1st Tank and 1st Armoured, the brigade's service at

Dieppe, France Dieppe (; ; or Old Norse ) is a coastal commune in the Seine-Maritime department, Normandy, northern France. Dieppe is a seaport on the English Channel at the mouth of the river Arques. A regular ferry service runs to Newhaven in England ...

, in Sicily, Italy and

Northwest Europe Northwestern Europe, or Northwest Europe, is a loosely defined subregion of Europe, overlapping Northern Europe, Northern and Western Europe. The term is used in geographic, history, and military contexts. Geographic definitions Geography, Geo ...

earned it the distinction of the longest and widest service of any brigade of the

during the Second World War.

Organization

The battle order starting 4 February 1941: * 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade Headquarters Squadron (

The Prince Edward Island Light Horse The Prince Edward Island Light Horse was a cavalry regiment of the Non-Permanent Active Militia of the Canadian Militia (now the Canadian Army). First authorized in 1901 as an independent squadron of Canadian Mounted Rifles, it became a full regim ...

, until 1 November 1943) * 11th Armoured Regiment (The Ontario Regiment) *

12th Armoured Regiment (Three Rivers Regiment) The 12th Regiment may refer to many military units. * 12e Régiment blindé du Canada, 12 Régiment blindé du Canada * 12th Infantry Regiment (South Korea) * 12th Regiment Royal Artillery * 12th Infantry Regiment (Philippine Commonwealth Army), 12 ...

* 14th Armoured Regiment (Calgary Regiment) * "A" Squadron,

25th Armoured Delivery Regiment (The Elgin Regiment) Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth Avenue * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a cont ...

(later "B" Squadron) * 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade Signals,

Royal Canadian Corps of Signals The Royal Canadian Corps of Signals (RCCS or RC Sigs; ) is a component within the Canadian Armed Forces' Communications and Electronics Branch, consisting of all members of that personnel branch who wear army uniform. Prior to 1968 it was a combat ...

* 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade 83 Company ( RCASC) * 1st Canadian Light Field Ambulance(No. 2 CLFA) ( RCAMC) * 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade Workshop,

RCEME The Corps of Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (RCEME) () is a personnel branch of the Canadian Armed Forces (CF) that provides army engineering maintenance support. All members of the corps wear army uniform. From the 1980s to ...

) * 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade Ordnance, PG PK ( RCOC) * 1st Canadian Heavy Recovery (RCEME) * 1st Canadian Army Tank Troops Workshop (RCEME) * 1st Canadian Assault Troop ( CAC)

Commanding officers

:Major General F. F. Worthington (5 March 1941- 28 January 1942) :Brigadier General R.A Wyman (28 January 1942- 27 February 1944) :Brigadier General W. Murphy (27 February 1944 - )Marteinson, J.K. and Michael McNorgan. The Royal Canadian Armoured Corps: An Illustrated History (Kitchener: Robin Brass, 2000),173.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1st Canadian Armoured Brigade Canadian World War II brigades Armoured units and formations of Canada in World War II Military units and formations of Canada in World War II Military units and formations disestablished in the 1940s Military units and formations established in 1943