Leicester Barracks

My dad, Bill Harrison, was based in Leicester barracks in 1947. I was born in Husum in '47. Dad landed at Gold beach on June 6th, having boarded Fort Wallace at Tilbury. He was in a light anti aircraft (27th RA?) regiment, as a gunner. He doesn't remember much about all the places he passed through, but he remembers Antwerp. I'd be grateful if anyone could help me fill the gaps involving his regiment(s) from D Day till around 1948, when he returned to the UK.

Hi SonofBill and welcome to the site, this website might be of some assistance in narrowing down the search for your Dads' old Regiment:-

http://nigelef.tripod.com/regtsumm.htm#atkregt

Welcome Son of Bill can only help with 1946 onwards and think that 27 = 22 from mine and JPW's research of the early days of BAOR

1 Apr 46 – 153rd (Leicestershire Yeomanry) Field Regiment RA relieving Royal Scots Greys
command HQ RA Guards Division
RHQ: Leicester Barracks Husum
129 Battery – 130 Battery – 131 Battery
31 Dec 46 – to Schleswig-Holstein Sub Area of Hamburg District
15 Jan 47 – redesignated 153rd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA
Training Regiment for RA recruits (Light Anti-Aircraft + Anti-Tank + Driver Training)
1 May 47 – redesignated 22nd Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA
47 Battery – 53 (Louisburg) Battery – 58 (Eyre's Company) Battery
12 Jan 48 – to Oxford Barracks Münster command HQ RA 2nd Infantry Division less one battery
Mar 48 – remaining battery arrives Münster
Jan 49 – to Northumberland Barracks Menden

Hope this helps

Son of Bill

Welcome to this site

Agree with my good friend Steve that your father was almost certainly posted to Husum when the wartime 153 (Leicester Yeomanry) Field Regiment was disbanded and replaced by the BAOR Anti Aircraft Training Regiment with initially the same number

For details of your father's wartime service he is entitled to purchase a copy of his complete Record of Military Service (will cost him £30) from the Army Personnel Centre Glasgow. Other contributors to this site have used the facility and can advise on the detail.

Good luck.

Thanks Shelldrake, steve and JPW. All extremely helpful.

A sad one, this - the 23rd Hussars being 'unhorsed'. Their tanks are being moved to Hamburg for the last time. The one nearest the camera is C Squadron's ARV (a turretless Sherman) which kept my Dad safe throughout the campaign. The other is one of the Comets. Husum Barracks in the background.

grimmy wrote:

A sad one, this - the 23rd Hussars being 'unhorsed'. Their tanks are being moved to Hamburg for the last time. The one nearest the camera is C Squadron's ARV (a turretless Sherman) which kept my Dad safe throughout the campaign. The other is one of the Comets. Husum Barracks in the background.

Cromwell...............no top rollers!

Quote :

Cromwell...............no top rollers!

Quite right - my mistake.

They must be two of the oldest tanks in the Regiment. 23H was the first unit to re-equip with Comets; for some reason these were not replaced (the ARV is definitely the same one that crossed the channel in June 44).

Grimmy

Thank you for posting these marvellously evocative photos.

Is the ARV fitted with a winch? Did other members of the Squadron Fitter Section travel in an American Half Track the last of which went out of service in the late 1960s when I was serving with a Guards Battalion in Munster (the Battalion always took great delight in taking any visitor from Household Division HQ in this vehicle and re enacting the scene of a photo outside the Cathedral when the Stadt was captured in April 1945 by an American Infantry Division with the tanks of 6 Guards Armoured Brigade in support)?

grimmy wrote:

Quote :

Cromwell...............no top rollers!

Quite right - my mistake.

They must be two of the oldest tanks in the Regiment. 23H was the first unit to re-equip with Comets; for some reason these were not replaced (the ARV is definitely the same one that crossed the channel in June 44).

Along with 3RTR and the Fife & Forfar Yeomanry who were also in 11th Armd Div! The Cromwell might well be a Close Support (CS) version sporting a 95mm howitzer as all the squadrons had at least one! As can be seen in this pic of B Sqn 3RTR leaguered up in Bad Segeberg at the end of the war:-

Soprano

A historically very interesting photograph

On arrival in Bad Segeburg 3RTR had discovered a Battle Group of some 250 Waffen SS in the nearby forest who refused to comply with Grand Admiral Doenitz's order to surrender and were prepared to fight on till the death in accordance with their oath to the now dead Hitler ( cease fire had been declared between the British in Schleswig Holstein and all German Forces in early May 1945 in order to prevent any further loss of life.)

A Wehrmacht General was sent in as Liason Officer to say the SS were surrounded by the British and should they still refuse to surrender the British were quite prepared to open up on their postion with heavy Artillery. After s short pause the SS then surrendered.

JPW wrote:

Is the ARV fitted with a winch?

Here's a more detailed view of the ARV (the gentleman goose-stepping in front is my Dad). I'm not mechanically minded, but I see a 'winch-like object' attached to the front. Notice also the straw-filled sleeping compartment on the side.

And yes, the fitters not travelling in the ARV went around in the White's half-track.

Grimmy

Many many thanks, "a picture is worth a thousand words"

JPW wrote:

Grimmy

Thank you for posting these marvellously evocative photos.

Is the ARV fitted with a winch? Did other members of the Squadron Fitter Section travel in an American Half Track the last of which went out of service in the late 1960s when I was serving with a Guards Battalion in Munster?

That line brought back a memory. I remember the Belgian army still driving FARGO half tracks in the mid 60's. You heard them before you saw them, the buggers could put on a real burst of speed, but Lordie they just shook & rattled all over. Always a big grin the crews faces. I remember soon after all of a sudden the Belgians were driving brand new German military trucks. I heard they were part of pay back from WW 2.

We had two Whites Half Track's when I was at 20 Armd Bde Signals Sqn in 1952/54. They were needed for us to keep in close contact with the armour. Naturally they bore the respective names of Certa and Cito.

ciphers wrote:

We had two Whites Half Track's when I was at 20 Armd Bde Signals Sqn in 1952/54. They were needed for us to keep in close contact with the armour. Naturally they bore the respective names of Certa and Cito.

Hi all,
I remember riding on the back of either a bren gun carrier or a half track to get to the canteen at Sennelager in 1952
Anyone remember which it was

Cheers Sapper

Well seeing as I was only 10 then and wouldn't get to Sennelager for another 10 years, I just don't know.

The only time I've seen a Bren Gun Carrier in action was at a fire power demonstration in 69 in Petawawa. Some one in the Guards found it in a farmers barn, got it working and out performed an APC in the mud flat. Still had original markings and paint job from year ought.
The Brigadier pulled a few Centurions out of storage (Centruions were no longer on strength in Canada) and had a ball impressing foreign attaches with our out dated equipment. I had old timers looking in my Sigs truck and recognizing the old C52 set we were still pushing around for one more year.

Hello,
happy to find this page. I´m the Manager of a small museum "militärhistorischen Sammlung FlaRakGrp 26" in Husum at the Fliegerhorstkaserne. In the Museum we exhibit the history of the Baracks, the town and the Military Equipment Air Defense Bundeswehr. It is difficult to get Information from the time between the WW2 and the stationing of the JaboG41. If somebody have something from interest from this time (stories, pics , coat of arms....) please contact me.

Hi Husum, welcome to the site,

The barracks in Husum have always been a difficult to document accurately who were there and when they departed. A couple of our members will certainly be on this web site in the next few days. I am sure they will help you with your questions regarding Husum Barracks.

I also know they will also have a few questions for you about the Royal Navy when it was based at Husum in 1945.

Regards
Alan

Hello Alan,

thx for the welcome.
For Information what happens today in the old "Leicester Barracks", now called "Fliegerhorstkaserne" take a look at www tinchen-husum.de, but it is in German. When somebody feels called an article for it is always welcome

Regards
Thomas

Thomas

Belated Greetings.

I am one of the small team of enthusiasts who have been researching the History of the British Army in Germany for the past ten years and more referred to by my good friend Alan.

I have a particular interest in Schleswig Holstein as I was at school in the mid 1950s in what is now MUS Ploen.

I have details of eight British Army units who occupied the Marine Kaserne, later renamed Leicester Barracks, but have yet to identify the unit of 7 Armoured Division who were the first to enter Husum in early May 1945 but withdrew when it was realised that the responsibility for occupation duties in Kreis Husum would be a 11 not 7 Armoured Division unit. Incidentally some of the information contained in the 300 Jahre Garnisonstadt Husum website is incorrect. I will happily pass on a copy of my working notes privately.

We do have details of the RAF presence in Husum in Summer 1945 (they were mainly concerned with the technical details of the Messershmitt jet fighters stranded on the Luftwaffe Fliegerhorst. However as Alan says the team has been unable to locate any details of the Royal Navy presence in Husum, probably a detachment from HMS Royal Adelaide with its Headquarters in either Sylt or Tonning. We have four separate sources which mention the RN in Husum in Summer/Autumn 1945. Any information you can provide would be most welcome.

Thomas,

After a little bit of detective work by my German relative. I now know where you got the name 'Tinchen' from. I did look every where, thinking it had a military connection.

MvG
Alan

JPW
it looks as we have more informations from the RAF in Schauendahl then from British forces in the Leicester Barracks. From the Tysklandbrigaden we have a lot of informations and sometimes visiters.
Very interesting are some aerial photographs showing Schauendahl on May 4th, 1945 from the 541 Squadron and then the information which airplanes the Disarmament Wing took over.
"Im Mai 1945 übernahm die No. 3 Squadron der No. 8302 Disarmament Wing der Royal Air Forcea auf dem Flugplatz Schauendal folgende Flugzeuge (mitgeteilt durch Phil Butler, Golborne, Warrington):
20 Arado Ar 96, 1 Fieseler Storch Fi 156, 3 Messerschmitt Bf 108, 2 Messerschmitt Bf 109, 39 JunkersJu 88, 3 Siebel Si 204, 4 Messerschmitt Bf 110, 37 Focke Wulf Fw 190, 1 Focke Wulf Fw 189, 23 Junkers Ju87, 2 Junkers W 34, 17 Heinkel He 111, 1 Heinkel He 219, 5 BuckerBu 181, 30 Messerschmitt Me 163
Insgesamt 188 Flugzeuge 15 verschiedeneTypen."
I'm sure the comet ME 163 was of great interest to the RAF.

Alan,

the "Tinchen" is the Landmark from Husum, an old figure of the town and now on a fountain in the market square. For the AA-Forces is "Barbara" more of interest, but this is another Story.

Best regards
Thomas