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1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment
1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment was based in India when war broke out in 1939. They saw action in Burma.
If you can provide any additional information, especially on actions and locations at specific dates, please add it here.
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Those known to have served with 1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment during the Second World War 1939-1945. - Adlard Harry. Pte. (d.15th April 1944)
- Barratt Harold Bristow. Pte. (d.25th Feb 1945)
- Bateman Vernon James . L/Cpl. (d.5th Jan 1945)
- Cairncross MM. Albert Frederick. Sgt.Mjr.
- Eyley Aaron. Pte. (d.23rd June 1944)
- Follis Peter David. Pte. (d.14th June 1944)
- Hawkes Jack. Pte.
- Hawkins Thomas George. Pte. (d.22 March 1945 )
- Parker Randolph . Pte. (d.14th June 1944)
- Porritt John. Pte.
- Reece Albert. L/Cpl. (d.22nd March 1944)
- Treharne Gerald Arthur George. Pte. (d.20th Jan 1945)
- Unsworth Murray Wilson. Pte. (d.20th April 1944)
The names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed,
please
Add a Name to this List
Records of 1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment from other sources.
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Want to know more about 1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment? There are:1318 items tagged 1st Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Second World War. |
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Sgt.Mjr. Albert Frederick "Cairn" Cairncross MM. 1st Btn. Northamptonshire Regiment Albert Cairncross was my father. He served with the 1st Northamptonshire Regiment.
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L/Cpl. Vernon James Bateman 1st Btn. Northamptonshire Regiment (d.5th Jan 1945) Vernon Bateman of the 1st Northamptonshire Regiment was my mother's first husband. I am interested in his life and his time in the army.
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Pte. Thomas George Hawkins 1st Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment (d.22 March 1945 ) George Hawkins was only 25 when he was killed.
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Pte. Harold Bristow Barratt 1st Btn. Northamptonshire Regiment (d.25th Feb 1945) Harold Barratt served with the 1st Battalion, The Northamptonshire Regiment. He was the son of Thomas Harold and Mary Barratt of Portobello, Willenhall, Staffordshire.
When you go home
tell them of us and say,
For your tomorrow,
we gave our today.
The British Fourteenth Army was a multi-national force comprising units from Commonwealth countries during World War II. Many of its units were from the Indian Army as well as British units and there were also significant contributions from West and East African divisions within the British Army.
It was often referred to as the "Forgotten Army" because its operations in the Burma Campaign were overlooked by the contemporary press and remained more obscure than those of the corresponding formations in Europe for long after the war. For most of the Army's existence, it was commanded by Lieutenant-General William Slim.
The 1st Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment was a regular army unit that served in the Burma Campaign from July 1942 to April 1945 with the 32nd Indian Infantry Brigade within the 20th Indian Infantry Division.The division was formed at Bangalore in April 1942. It was commanded by Major General Douglas Gracey and at first it consisted of the Indian 32nd, 51st and 53rd Brigades.
In July that year, the 51st and 53rd Brigades were detached to form the Indian 25th Infantry Division and replaced by the Indian 80th Infantry Brigade and Indian 100th Infantry Brigade (the latter brigade being transferred from the 34th Division which had recently disbanded in Ceylon).
The division was intended from the start for operations in jungle and mountain and was on a Mixed Animal and Mechanical Transport establishment for maintenance in rough country.
The division's insignia was a hand wielding a tulwar, in white on black.
After training in Southern India and Ceylon, the Division joined Indian XV Corps at Ranchi in Bihar in December, but from July 1943, it was transferred to IV Corps in Imphal.
At the start of the Battle of Imphal in March 1944, 20th Division was deployed forward to Tamu in the Kabaw Valley. To avoid being cut off, it retreated to the Shenam Saddle in the hills surrounding the Imphal Plain. Because the 17th Indian Infantry Division was in difficulty in its sector, the 32nd Brigade was temporarily detached.
During April and the first part of May, the division held the saddle against attacks by infantry, tanks and heavy artillery. It was then relieved in place and ordered to counter-attack, north-east from Imphal to Ukhrul. The monsoon had broken, and movement was very difficult.
After several Japanese counter attacks, at the start of July the division was transferred to the XXXIII Indian Corps and slowly eliminated large numbers of Japanese in and around the village, which had been made into a Japanese communication and logistic centre.
During the remainder of the monsoon, the division rested around Dimapur. As the monsoon ended, it moved into a bridgehead across the Chindwin River at Kalewa. It attacked southward on the 4th December and cleared Japanese rear guards from Monywa.
On 13th of February 1945, the division made a crossing of the Irrawaddy River 20 miles (32 km) west of Mandalay. The boats used were leaky and other items of equipment already worn out. The first precarious footholds were counter attacked every night for a week but eventually linked up into a solid bridgehead. It was probably during one of these counter attacks that Harold Barratt was killed
He was probably interred initially at the Mandalay cemetery as this was nearest to the place where he fell on the Irrawady River on 25th of Feb 1945.
The graves have been grouped together at Taukkyan to preserve the individuality of these battlefield cemeteries. Burials were also transferred from civil and cantonment cemeteries, and from a few of the isolated jungle and roadside sites.
Taukkyan War Cemetry is the largest of the three war cemeteries in Burma (now Myanmar). It was begun in 1951 for the reception of graves from four battlefield cemeteries at Akyab, Mandalay, Meiktila and Sahmaw, which were difficult to access and could not be maintained. The cemetery now contains 6,374 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 867 of them unidentified.
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Pte. Harry Adlard 1st Btn. Northamptonshire Regiment (d.15th April 1944) A WWII Memorial commemorating Private Harry Adlard is inside St Peters Church in Barton-Upon-Humber.
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Pte. Murray Wilson "Peter" Unsworth 1st Btn. Northamptonshire Regiment (d.20th April 1944) During my childhood I knew my uncle, Murray Unsworth, by name only as uncle Peter, though I now know this was his nickname, and his real name was Murray. Unfortunately I never met him.
Now, as my mother has told me his real name, I was able to trace his WW2 record, and can now name him on this website, to be remembered by future generations of our family.
I have done this for my father, Gordon Leslie Unsworth (deceased).
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Pte. Gerald Arthur George Treharne 1st Btn. Northamptonshire Regiment (d.20th Jan 1945) My uncle Gerald Treharne died of wounds in Burma on 20th January, 1945 which was 36 days after his 20th birthday. I was told by my mother that he was a fun loving man but also a very considerate man.
I was able to obtain his service records and it would seem that he decided to go AWOL on 14th December 1944 (the day before his 20th birthday) for several days and was subsequently charged for this misdemeanour by docking his pay. I do wonder where he could have gone AWOL in the jungle of Burma but that is something I will never find out!
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Pte. Peter David Follis 1st Btn. Northamptonshire Regiment (d.14th June 1944) Peter Follis died in battle in Burma on 14th June 1944, age 20.
He was the younger brother of triplets Philemon, Desmond and John Follis.
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Pte. John Porritt 1st Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment John Porritt enlisted into the Northamptonshire Regiment on the 16th of August 1934 and was posted out to the 1st Battalion in India where he earned the India General Service Medal 1936-37. The Battalion was in Burma from 1943 and he was finally discharged on the 16th of August 1946.
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Pte. Randolph Parker 1st Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment (d.14th June 1944) I am trying to find as much information as I can on my Uncle Randolph Parker.
He was killed in action in Burma on 14th June 1944. My Dad tells me that they were notified he had been injured, however the information I have been given so far is that there was no known body, therefore no grave. However he is remembered at the Rangoon war memorial. Also I only have one photo of my Uncle, is there by chance anyone out there got any photos that they could share with me?
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