163rd Regiment Royal Armoured Corps

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Jump to: navigation, search
163rd Regiment Royal Armoured Corps
Royal20Armd20Corps.gif
Badge of the Royal Armoured Corps
Active 1942–1944
Country  United Kingdom
Branch Flag of the British Army.svg British Army
Type Armoured Regiment
Part of Royal Armoured Corps
Disbanded 1 December 1944

The 163rd Regiment Royal Armoured Corps (163 RAC) was a short-lived armoured regiment of the British Army's Royal Armoured Corps serving in India during World War II.

Origin

163 RAC was formed by the conversion to the armoured role of the 13th Battalion, Sherwood Foresters, a hostilities-only battalion raised in 1940, on 30 July 1942, the day after it arrived in India.[1] In common with other infantry battalions transferred to the Royal Armoured Corps, the personnel of 163 RAC would have continued to wear their Foresters cap badge on the black beret of the Royal Armoured Corps.[2]

Service

163 RAC was stationed at Rawalpindi under command of 267th Indian Armoured Brigade. However, there was a change of policy, and on 1 December 1944 (also reported as 1 December 1943) the regiment was re-converted to infantry, reverting to its previous title of 13th Foresters and coming under command of 67 Indian Training Brigade.[3]

Notes

  1. Joslen p. 497.
  2. Forty pp. 50–51.
  3. Joslen pp. 497, 543.

References

  • George Forty, "British Army Handbook 1939-1945", Stroud: Sutton Publishing, 1998, ISBN 0-7509-1403-3.
  • Lt-Col H.F. Joslen, Orders of Battle, United Kingdom and Colonial Formations and Units in the Second World War, 1939–1945, Volume I, London: HM Stationery Office, 1960/Uckfield: Naval & Military, 2003, ISBN 1843424746.