The 31st Brigade was a formation of the

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is 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 ...

during

World War II 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 ...

. Raised in January 1942, amidst concerns of a Japanese invasion of Australia, the brigade was tasked with defending the eastern

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

coast around

Botany Bay Botany Bay (Dharawal language, Dharawal: ''Kamay'') is an open oceanic embayment, located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, south of the Sydney central business district. Its source is the confluence of the Georges River at Taren Point a ...

and

Cronulla Cronulla is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Boasting numerous surf beaches and swimming spots, the suburb attracts both tourists and Greater Sydney residents. Cronulla is 26 kilometres south of the Sydney central ...

. Initially consisting of just two infantry battalions, after several months a third battalion was assigned to bring it up to strength. The formation was only short-lived and was disbanded in September 1942, having never seen combat, with its battalions being reassigned to other formations.

History

The 31st Brigade was formed shortly after Japan's entry into the war, when the Australian government was concerned about the possibility of a Japanese invasion. The brigade opened its headquarters at

Burwood, New South Wales Burwood is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the Local government in Australia, local government area of Mun ...

, in January 1942, although it moved to Blakehurst the following month. Upon formation, it was assigned to the 1st Division, a

Militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

formation. Initially consisting of just two infantry battalions, the brigade was tasked with defending the coastal region between

Sydney Heads The Sydney Heads (also simply known as the Heads) are a series of headlands that form the wide entrance to Sydney Harbour in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. North Head and Quarantine Head are to the north; South Head and Dunbar Head are to ...

and

, with the

1st First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and 45th Battalions, which had previously been assigned either directly to Headquarters 1st Division, or in the case of the 45th Battalion, to the 28th Brigade. Since the outbreak of the war, the two battalions had been engaged in constructing beach defences in their assigned areas with the 1st Battalion being based around Centennial Park, and the 45th around Loftus until February when the two battalions swapped locations. In March 1942, the brigade was relieved of its defensive duties and construction tasks by the 5th Brigade so that its units could undertake training. Under the command of the 2nd Division, the brigade moved to

Narellan Narellan is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales. Narellan is located 60 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Camden Council and is part of the Macarthur region. Narellan is known for it ...

to complete training, remaining there until June 1942, when they were rotated back to Blakehurst. At this time, the forward defensive positions along the beach had been taken over by the 18th Garrison Battalion, so the 31st Brigade's troops continued to carry out training, while tasked with mobile defence in the event of an invasion. In May 1942, the 48th Battalion was assigned to the brigade to bring it up to three infantry battalions. In June, the 48th was transferred again, firstly to the 5th Brigade and then later its personnel were used to form an anti-aircraft unit – the 108th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment – although its designation was used to form an amalgamated unit, designated the 10th/48th Battalion, which served in Darwin. By late 1942, the Australian government decided to disband or amalgamate a number of infantry battalions and other formations due to manpower shortages in the Australian economy and elsewhere in the Army. A total of eight infantry battalions were disbanded around this time; other formations such as the 10th Division and the 32nd Brigade were also disbanded around this time as the strategic situation in New Guinea eased. The 31st Brigade was disbanded in September 1942. The 1st and 45th Battalions were subsequently amalgamated, and transferred to the 9th Brigade. Although the headquarters of most brigades of the Army that were raised during the war were allocated a

Unit Colour Patch Unit colour patches (or simply known as colour patches) are a method of identification used by the Australian Army, used to indicate which unit a soldier belongs to. It is believed that the Australian system of colour patches is based upon th ...

, none was assigned to the 31st Brigade. The brigade's commander was Lieutenant Colonel Albert Arnold Brackpool, who assumed the appointment on 22 February 1942, and remained in command until the formation was disbanded. Brackpool was temporarily promoted to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

in March 1942 and then

brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

in June 1942.

Units

The 31st Brigade consisted of the following units: * 1st Battalion * 45th Battalion (from 11 February 1942) * 48th Battalion (8 May 1942 – 2 June 1942)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * {{cite book , last=McKenzie-Smith , first=Graham , author-link=Graham McKenzie-Smith , year= 2018, title=The Unit Guide: The Australian Army 1939–1945, Volume 2 , publisher=Big Sky Publishing , location=Warriewood, New South Wales , isbn=978-1-925675-146

External links