The 4th Royal Tank Regiment (4 RTR) was an armoured regiment of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

from its creation in 1917, during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, until 1993. It was part of the

Royal Tank Regiment The Royal Tank Regiment (RTR) is the oldest tank unit in the world, being formed by the British Army in 1916 during the World War I, First World War. Today, it is an Armoured warfare, armoured regiment equipped with Challenger 2 main battle tanks ...

, itself part of the

Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the armoured arm of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 and the Warrior tracked armoured vehicle. It includes most of the Ar ...

History

The regiment originally saw action as D Battalion, Tank Corps in 1917. In 1940, it was briefly amalgamated with the

7th Royal Tank Regiment The 7th Royal Tank Regiment (7th RTR) was an armoured regiment of the British Army from 1917 until disbandment in 1959. History The 7th Royal Tank Regiment was part of the Royal Tank Regiment, itself part of the Royal Armoured Corps. The regi ...

, as the 4th/7th Royal Tank Regiment, returning to its previous title four months later. 4 RTR was captured at

Tobruk Tobruk ( ; ; ) is a port city on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District (formerly Tobruk District) and has a population of 120,000 (2011 est.)."Tobruk" (history), ''Encyclop� ...

on 21 June 1942. On 1 March 1945, 144th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps was re-designated 4th Royal Tank Regiment to replace the original. The newly retitled regiment equipped with Buffalo

LVT LVT may refer to: * Land value tax, a levy on the value of land * Landing Vehicle Tracked The Amphibious Vehicle, Tracked (LVT or AMTRAC) is an amphibious warfare vehicle and Amphibious vehicle, amphibious landing craft, introduced by the ...

s took part in

Operation Plunder Operation Plunder was a military operation to cross the Rhine on the night of 23 March 1945, launched by the 21st Army Group under Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. The crossing of the river was at Rees, Wesel, and south of the river Lippe b ...

, ferrying troops of 51st Highland Division across the Rhine on the night of 23/24 March 1945. The Commanding Officer (Lt-Col Alan Jolly) carried the same standard that was originally carried across by 17th Armoured Car Battalion of the Royal Tank Corps in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Once again the RTR was first across the Rhine. In 1948 it assisted in the ending of the British Mandate over Palestine. In 1959, it was again amalgamated with 7th Royal Tank Regiment, this time without a change of title, and in 1993 due to

Options for Change Options for Change was a restructuring of the British Armed Forces in summer 1990 after the end of the Cold War. Until this point, UK military strategy had been almost entirely focused on defending Western Europe against the Soviet Armed Forces ...

, amalgamated with the

1st Royal Tank Regiment The 1st Royal Tank Regiment (1 RTR) was an armoured regiment of the British Army. It is part of the Royal Tank Regiment, itself part of the Royal Armoured Corps and operationally under 12th Armoured Infantry Brigade. History Formation The regimen ...

Commanding officers

The Commanding Officers have been: *1941: Lt.-Col. W.C.L. O’Carroll *1960–1962: Lt.-Col. Thomas S. Craig *1962–1964: Lt.-Col. H. Brian C. Watkins *1964–1967: Lt.-Col. John A. Cowgill *1967–1969: Lt.-Col. Roger B.C. Plowden *1969–1971: Lt.-Col. Martin H. Sinnatt *1971–1973: Lt.-Col. Laurence A.W. New *1973–1976: Lt.-Col. David Sands *1976–1978: Lt.-Col. Nicholas H. Cocking *1978–1981: Lt.-Col. Michael J. Rose *1981–1983: Lt.-Col. Philip J. Sanders *1983–1985: Lt.-Col. Hedley D.C. Duncan *1985–1988: Lt.-Col. W. Douglas Cantley *1988–1990: Lt.-Col. Charles J. McBean *1990–1993: Lt.-Col. Martin N.E. Speller

Awards

* Philip John Gardner –

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

Tobruk 1941

References

External links

*
The History of the 4th and 7th Royal Tank Regiment. revised 2011

The website of 4th RTR on the internet

The History of the 4th and 7th Royal Tank Regiment

Merseyside RTR
Brian Gills website) {{RAC armoured regiments of the Second World War Royal Tank Regiment Royal Tank Regiment 004