Battle and theatre honours of the Australian Army explained
The Australian Army and its forerunners have been awarded 248 battle and theatre honours since its formation. The first honour given to an Australian unit came prior to Federation and was awarded to forces from the colony of New South Wales, which contributed a small contingent consisting of an infantry battalion, with artillery and support units to take part in the short-lived British campaign against the Dervish revolt in the eastern Sudan in 1885 following the death of General Charles Gordon at Khartoum.
The next conflict that saw Australian units receive battle or theatre honours was the Second Boer War. Between 1899 and 1901, forces from the six Australian colonies fought alongside each other before being replaced in 1901 by forces of the newly established Australian Army following Federation. A total of five theatre honours were awarded for service in South Africa, being bestowed upon successor units in the form of honorary banners and distinctions presented in 1904, 1908 and 1911. Since then, the Australian Army has received honours for fighting during the First World War, the Second World War, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, with the Royal Australian Regiment last being awarded a battle honour in 1994 for the First Battle of Maryang San in Korea.[1] In 2013, units of Special Operations Command were awarded the battle honour Eastern Shah Wali Kot for their actions in Afghanistan in May and June 2010.[2] A theatre honour for peacekeeping in East Timor in 1999–2003 was awarded to the Army on its 119th birthday in March 2020.The most highly decorated unit in the Australian Army is the 12th/40th Battalion, Royal Tasmania Regiment (12/40 RTR), with 47 battle and theatre honours. It is an active Australian Army Reserve Infantry unit. The 12th/40th Battalion, Royal Tasmania Regiment, is part of 4 Brigade, with battalion headquarters at Anglesea Barracks, Hobart, with Alpha Company based in Launceston at Youngtown Barracks and Bravo Company being based in Hobart at Derwent Barracks.[3]
Sudan (1885)
South Africa (1899–1902)
First World War (1914–18)
German New Guinea
Gallipoli
Egypt
Palestine
Western Front
Second World War (1939–45)
North Africa
Greece
Middle East
Syria
Malaya
South West Pacific
Korea (1950–53)
Malaya (1955–63)
Malaysia (Confrontation) (1964–66)
Vietnam (1962–72)
East Timor (1999–2003)
Afghanistan (07/08/2001 – 30/08/2021)
Iraq (20 March 2003 – 15 December 2011)
See also
Notes
Footnotes
Citations
References
- Book: 2/17 Battalion History Committee. What We Have We Hold: A History of the 2/17 Australian Infantry Battalion, 1940–1945. 1998. 1990. Revised. Australian Military History Publications. Loftus, New South Wales . 1-876439-36-X.
- Book: Dennis. Peter. Grey. Jeffrey . Jeffrey Grey . Morris. Ewan. Prior. Robin. Connor. John. The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History. Oxford University Press. Melbourne, Victoria. 1995. 1st. 0-19-553227-9 . CITEREFDennis_et_al1995.
- Book: Festberg, Alfred . The Lineage of the Australian Army . 1972 . Allara Publishing . Melbourne, Victoria . 978-0-85887-024-6 .
- Book: Grey, Jeffrey . Jeffrey Grey . A Military History of Australia . Cambridge University Press . Port Melbourne, Victoria . 2008 . 3rd . 978-0-521-69791-0 .
- Book: Jobson, Christopher . Looking Forward, Looking Back: Customs and Traditions of the Australian Army . 2009 . Wavell Heights, Queensland . Big Sky Publishing . 978-0-9803251-6-4.
- Book: Rodger, Alexander. 2003. Battle Honours of the British Empire and Commonwealth Land Forces 1662–1991. The Crowood Press. Marlborough, United Kingdom. 1861266375.
- Book: Wilcox, Craig . Red Coat Dreaming: How Colonial Australia Embraced the British Army . 2009 . Cambridge University Press . Port Melbourne, Victoria . 978-0-521-19360-3 .
Further reading
- Book: Baker, Allan. 1986. Battle Honours of the British and Commonwealth Armies . Ian Allan. London. 0711016003.
- Book: Maitland, Gordon. 1999. The Second World War and its Australian Army Battle Honours. Kangaroo Press . Roseville, New South Wales. 0864179758.
- Book: Pears, Maurie. Battlefield Korea: The Korean Battle Honours of the Royal Australian Regiment, 1950–1953. 2007. Loftus, New South Wales. Australian Military History Publications. 9780980379600.
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: Kowang-San. The Australian War Memorial. 24 December 2009.
- Web site: Special Operations Units Awarded Battle Honour. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 26 March 2013. http://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20130329054102/http://www.pm.gov.au/press-office/special-operations-units-awarded-battle-honour. 26 March 2013. 29 March 2013. live.
- [Royal Tasmania Regiment]
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: First Sudan War, Second Boer War . Australian Army . 30 December 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130330035305/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%201st%20Sudan%20War.pdf . 30 March 2013 . dead .
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: The Great War: Australasia . Australian Army . 30 December 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130330050439/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20The%20Great%20War%20Dardanelles.pdf . 30 March 2013 . dead .
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: The Great War: The Dardanelles . Australian Army . 30 December 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130330050439/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20The%20Great%20War%20Dardanelles.pdf . 30 March 2013 . dead .
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: The Great War: Egypt. Australian Army. 30 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130330003603/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20The%20Great%20War%20Egypt.pdf. 30 March 2013. dead.
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: The Great War: Palestine . Australian Army . 30 December 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130330052826/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20The%20Great%20War%20Palestine.pdf . 30 March 2013 . dead .
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: The Great War: France and Belgium . Australian Army . 30 December 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130330031020/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20The%20Great%20War%20France%20and%20Belgium.pdf . 30 March 2013 . dead .
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: World War Two: North Africa. Australian Army. 30 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130329235807/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20World%20War%20Two%20North%20Africa.pdf. 29 March 2013. dead.
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: World War Two: Greece. Australian Army. 30 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130330012905/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20World%20War%20Two%20Greece.pdf. 30 March 2013. dead.
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: World War Two: Middle East. Australian Army. 30 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130330001940/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20World%20War%20Two%20Middle%20East.pdf. 30 March 2013. dead.
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: World War Two: Syria. Australian Army. 30 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130329234719/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20World%20War%20Two%20Syria.pdf. 29 March 2013. dead.
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: World War Two: Malaya. Australian Army. 30 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130330020243/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20World%20War%20Two%20Malaya.pdf. 30 March 2013. dead.
- Web site: Battle Honours of the Australian Army: World War Two: South West Pacific. Australian Army. 30 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130329225626/http://army.gov.au/Our-history/Further-Reference-Materials/~/media/Files/Our%20history/AAHU/History/Battle%20Honours%20by%20Conflict/Battle%20Honours%20of%20the%20Australian%20Army%20World%20War%20Two%20South%20West%20Pacific.pdf. 29 March 2013. dead.
- Web site: Defence Image Gallery . Department of Defence . 7 December 2023.
- Web site: East Timor Theatre Honour for Army on its 119th birthday. Minister of Defence . 5 November 2020.
- Web site: Army's Birthday and New Banner Presentation. Australian Army . 13 November 2020.