50th (Northumbrian) Division - Wednesday 26th January 1944

On 24^th January 1944 the 61^st Reconnaissance Regiment

joined the 50th (Northumberland) Division,

part of XXX (30) Corps.

The Regiment moved to East Anglia to join their new unit.

 

Don Aiken recalls:

“They (the 61^st Recce) had been doing duty in Northern Ireland for the previous part of the war, but had now been split from their Division (the 61st. Infantry Div.) to become the Reconnaissance Regiment for the 50th Infantry Division.

The 50th (Northumberland) Division was recently returned from North Africa and were renowned as 'The Desert Rats'. The sign (or flash) which was worn on the side of the shoulder was TT, which represented Tyne and Tees.”

(Republished from the People's War website by kind permission of Don Aiken)

 

“The 50^th (Northumbrian) Division was back in England for the Normandy invasion, and had no reconnaissance regiment.  After the Commanding Officer (Lt.Colonel Sir William Mount) had made a number of swift trips to London we found ourselves chosen to fill the vacancy.  So in January 1944, we motored from our coast-guarding duties in Kent to join our new division in Norfolk.

            Only those who have experienced it can know the inferiority an unblooded regiment feels when surrounded by battle-scarred heroes.  But the 50^th Division made us so welcome, and refrained so carefully from flinging their blood and sand into our eyes, that we soon felt at home in what must have been the happiest of divisions in spite of all its casualties.”

(From ‘A Reconnaissance Regiment in the B.L.A.’ by Lieutenant-Colonel P.H.A.Brownrigg D.S.O.)

 

 

50th (Northumbrian) Division, having served in the British Expeditionary Force in 1940,  first fought in the Desert War at Gazala where the 50^th Recce unit was lost to Rommel’s attack.  The Division was part of Montgomery’s Operation Supercharge at El Alamein and fought in Tunisia, on the Mareth Line and Sicily, landing on the south east coast with Operation Husky.  In September 1943 some men from 50^th Division, separated from their units, took part in the Salerno Mutiny. 

At the Washington Trident Conference in May 1943 the Americans had insisted that seven divisions should be withdrawn from Italy by the end of November to take part in the invasion of Normandy.  The 50th was one of the Divisions chosen by Montgomery for this task and were rested and re-grouped in Sicily before returning to England in October 1943. On 19^th January 1944 they were given a new Commander, Major-General D.A.H. Graham.  It seems 61^st Recce joined them soon after this.

 

 

Dick’s TT shoulder flashes – the Tyne Tees insignia of the 50^th (Northumbrian) Division.

 

25th January  1944 - Himmler addresses German Generals and Admirals at Posen in Poland, sharing with them information on the 'race struggle' to eliminate the Jews carried out by his SS troops.

 

61st Recce Regt, RAC

Home Forces

Wednesday

Chotie Darling,

                                                            Received your letter today for which many thanks.  ‘Fraid I can’t write much as I’m rather pushed for time at the moment.

            Nothing much to write about as I haven’t been out for weeks, except once, when I bought a new hat*.  Cost a devil of a lot.  Prices seem to be rocketing upwards.

            Hope you’re enjoying yourself on leave.  I’m afraid I won’t be able to get down to see you.  Next time perhaps.  I should get leave on approx March 5th so you may be able to get a few days then.

            Have met Brian Cooke** again – the mad Irish man I was at OCTU with.

            Still haven’t had any pay – I suppose now it will be Feb the 1st, in which case I’ll get three months pay some £40 or so.  Unhappily I owe about £20 of this.

            Must close here, Darling, will write again as soon as I get time.

                                                                        All my love

                                                                                                Dicker

*This seems to be a code Chotie and Dicker used to indicate that Dick’s unit had moved. 

**Brian Cooke, the Irish pianist and ‘ham’ (actor)

© Chotie Darling

 

27th January 1944 – lifting of the siege of Leningrad (St Petersburg) after 28 months and the deaths of more than 600,000 citizens from cold, starvation, disease and shelling by the German forces.

 

29th January 1944 – first of a series of heavy bombing raids on Frankfurt am Main by the RAF and US Air Force, up to 22^nd March.  The bombing of Frankfurt during World War 2 destroyed the largest Medieval city centre in Germany and killed 5,500 residents.