| Instructions regarding War Diaries and Intelligence
Summaries are contained in F.S. Regs., Vol. 1.
and the Staff Manual respectively Title pages
will be prepared in manuscript. |
WAR DIARY or INTELLIGENCE SUMMARY |
Army Form C.2118 |
| Unit: 31 Tank Bde | ||
| Month and Year: October 1944 | (Erase heading not required). | Commanding Officer: Brig. G.S. Knight |
| Place | Date | Hour | Summary | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LE VERTU D’ALEMBON | 1 | Op on CALAIS completed. All 79 Div Tps conc. | Op Instr No. 14 | |
| WATOU | 2 | Bde HQ moved to WATOU. 1 Lothians and 6 Aslt Regt ceased to be under comd. W Dgns & 42 Aslt Regt RE placed under comd for ops. | ||
| 3 | Bde HQ moved to area GELDROP. | |||
| GELDROP | 4 | Bde HQ est GELDROP E475155. Traffic Post est BEERINGER. | Adm Instr No. 3 | |
| HELMONDE | 7 | Bde HQ est HELMONDE E565227. | Adm Order No. 28 | |
| 9 | Elts of 269 Fwd Del Sqn under comd for rfts of personnel and tks. | |||
| 10 | GOC 79 Armd Div visited this fmn. | |||
| 11 | Bde Traffic Post moved to DIEST. | |||
| 11 | Allotment of tps for op prelimInary to Gatwick was as follows:- A Sqn 141 in sp 4 Coldstream Gds: 617 Aslt Sqn RE in sp of CRE 3 Br Div: A Sqn W Dgns in sp 4 Coldstream Gds: C Sqn W Dgns in res 3 Br Div. | |||
| 11 | Op preliminary to Op Gatwick commenced and town of OVERLOON was captured. | |||
| 13 | Int. Summary No. 30 | |||
| 14 | Bde Traffic Post at DIEST was closed. 16 Aslt Sqn RE came under op comd of Bde and moved into Bde area. | |||
| 14 | Special devices under comd 30 Corps were placed under comd of Second Army. | |||
| 15 | Op Aintree continued. | |||
| 16 | Op Aintree continued. | |||
| 17 | Op Aintree continued. A Sqn 141 RAC moved to area of 12 Corps. | |||
| 18 | B Sqn W Dgns in sp of 12 Corps for pending ops. | Op Instr No. 15 Adm Order No. 29 | ||
| 19 | Allotment of tps for Op Alan: | |||
| 19 | 51 (H) Div. 1 Tp A Sqn W Dgns: A Sqn 141 RAC: 16 Aslt Dqn RE. | |||
| 19 | 53 (W) Div. 1 Tp B Sqn W Dgns: Half Sqn C Sqm 141 RAC: 222 Aslt Sqn RE. | |||
| 19 | 7 Armd Div. 1 Tp B Sqn W Dgns. | |||
| 19 | 12 Corps Res. A Sqn W Dgns less 1 Tp: B Sqn W Dgns less 2 Tps. | |||
| 19 | Lt.Col. J.T. Savage appointed Special Devices Adviser to 12 Corps. Maj. J.M. Sidey to 53 (W) Div. Maj. H.W. Mills to 51 (H) Div. Lt.Col. H. Waddell relinquished comd of 141 RAC (The Buffs). | |||
| 21 | 617 Aslt Sqn RE ceased to be under comd for ops and placed under comd 1 Cdn Army. | Medical Instr issued. | ||
| 22 | Op Alan commenced. Special Devices in sp 53 (W) Div and 7 Armd Div. | |||
| 23 | Op Alan and Colin continued. GOC 79 Armd Div visited fmn. | |||
| 24 | 1 Tp B Sqn W Dgns: C Sqn 141 RAC passed from op comd of 53 (W) Div to 15 (S) Div. | |||
| 24 | Lt. C.H.T. Cleaver and LT. W.C. Hepworth posted to this fmn as Liaison Offrs. | |||
| 26 | Lt.Col. W.Y. Kington-Blair-Oliphant assumed comd of the Bde in the absence of Brig. G.S. Knight on compassionate leave. | |||
| 28 | Comd 31 Tk Bde appointed Comd HELMONDE Grn for def of HELMONDE only by Second Army. Tps under comd for this op consisted of:- | |||
| 28 | 3 Div Battle School | |||
| 28 | 1 Coy 11 Air Bmn Sigs | |||
| 28 | 29 Armd Bde Sigs | |||
| 28 | 46 Inf Bde Battle School | |||
| 28 | 116 Pioneer Coy | |||
| 28 | 46 Inf Bde Wksps | |||
| 28 | Second Army Sigs | |||
| 28 | 614 Rd Constr Coy RE. | |||
| 29 | B Sqn W Dgns and 617 Aslt Sqn RE joining this fmn for ops. | Op Instr No. 16 | ||
| 29 | All special devices less B Sqn W Dgns now In Army Res. | Adm Order No. 30 | ||
| 31 | C Sqn W Dgns placed in sp 15 (S) Div for ops. |
Source: Jeroen Koppes, TracesOfWar.com, transcribing: Hans Houterman.
Disclaimer: This War Diary is based on its original, but typos might be corrected. Locations are calculated, so might not be in the correct place. For historical research, always check the originals.
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