Photos WW2 British & Commonwealth Forces

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The little town of Villers-Bocage was the scene of one of the British Army's greatest setbacks during the early days of the Normandy campaign.
It was here on June 13th, 1944, that the 22nd Armoured Brigade of the 7th Armoured Division was skilfully ambushed by Tiger 1s of the Schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 101 led by SS-Obersturmfuhrer Michael Wittman, resulting in the destruction of an armoured column.
The British withdrew, re-grouped and subsequently inflicted costly losses on the Germans, but it is the initial German attack which is remembered because it served to delay the Allied advance towards Caen.

 

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His Majesty, King George VI, inspects the recently captured Tiger 1 we now know as simply "131", in Tunis, June 1943.
The added insignia is that of the British 1st Army which was proud of its trophy!

 

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British paratroopers practise deploying and riding their 98 cc Welbikes.
These were miniature, collapsible motorcycles originally designed for use by the SOE but also used in small numbers by airborne troops during Operation Market Garden.
They were intended to provide quick mobility around the DZ...much like the US Airborne's Cushman scooters did.

 

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The Tiger shown above on display at London.

 

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British 33rd Armoured Brigade Sherman Firefly IC Tanks and their crews in Holland - late 1944
LIFE Magazine Archives - George Silk Photographer

 

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Private G.R. MacDonald of The Toronto Scottish Regiment (M.G.) giving first aid to an injured French boy, Brionne, France, 25 August 1944.
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"Stop, Enemy Ahead" sign being erected by personnel of No. 4 Provost Company, Bretteville-le-Rabet, France, 23 June 1944.
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Sergeant F.H.J. Ricketts examining railway ties which were cut by the last German train through Carovilli, Italy, 26 November 1943.
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October 1940 and the Battle of Britain has been all but won.
An RAF "Erk" (groundcrew) takes the opportunity to relax in the shade provided by the wing of a Hawker Hurricane between sorties.
Note that the Accumulator Trolley ( ie starter) is already connected to the aircraft so should a "Scramble" be called the Hurricane could be started up, the chocks removed and it would be airborne within just a couple of minutes.

Note: what appear to be contrails in the sky is in fact a blemish on the negative!
( LIFE / Vandivert)

 

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Australian gunners in the prepare to use a captured Italian Cannone da 47/32 M35 1.85" (47mm) anti-tank gun against its former owners.
Two of its shells can be seen in the foreground.
Western Desert, c. 1941.

 

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c 1937. Men of the 22nd Australian Light Horse Regiment (22LHR).

 

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A British Bren gun crew in a trench at Anzio, Italy, 13 March 1944.

 

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A Churchill tank of the North Irish Horse crossing the River Senio over two Churchill Ark bridging tanks, Italy, 10 April 1945.

 

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This seems to be an Australian "Kangaroo" APC, basically an M-7 Priest" SPG without the howitzer and it's mount and an added armoured place to fill the gap left by the missing gun.

 

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A number of Sherman tanks of the Coldstream Guards, including some Fireflies, were modified via the addition of launcher rails on their turret sides.
These rails mounted the same RP-3 60 pound HE rockets usually slung under the wings of Typhoons and Tempests.
They were used brieflyand with only modest success during the Rhine crossings.
Note the TC's M1919 .30 cal mg. This was quite unusual as the British usually removed the external mgs from their Shermans.

 

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Following the formation in May 1940 of Britain's Local Defence Volunteers / LDV ...later re-named the"Home Guard"... weaponry was in short supply as a consequence of the huge equipment losses when the BEF was evacuated from France, via Dunkirk.
Thus, making-do and improvisation was the name of the game whilst the British armaments industry worked flat-out to make good the losses.
This resulted in some weird and wonderful creations, some more effective and practical than others!
This is one such weapon being demonstrated to an assembly of Home Guards.
It definitely has a "home-made" look about it!
It was possibly a double-barreled version of the Northover Projector, which was a length of pipe with a rudimentary firing mechanism which was designed to launch incendiary grenades.
Note that the "loader" on the left is holding two sealed bottles. I presume that these were the ammunition for this weapon and probably contained some kind of explosive mixture?

EDIT: AFAIK the Northover Projector fired regular milk bottles filled with a "Molotov cocktail" mixture

 

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Gunners of "B" Troop, 14th Field Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery assisted by the 2 / 1st Australian Pioneer Battalion, haul a 25 pounder through dense jungle near Uben on the Kokoda Trail in the Owen Stanley Mountains of ( Papua) Nw Guinea, circa 1942.
Sweaty, back-breaking work!
A regular 25 pounder weighed in at around 3,600 lbs. It was this that drove the Australians to develop the lightweight "baby" 25 pounder which weighed in at a mere 2,900 lbs....still heavy but easier to handle in a jungle environment.
( AWM / Thomas Fisher)

 

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WWII. East African Campaign. 1 January 1941. South African troops pose with a captured Italian flag at Moyale, Abyssinia.

 

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On February 19th, 1942, war came to Australia when the northern Australian port of Darwin was attacked by wave after wave of Japanese aircraft.
The Japanese were actively engaged in expansionist operations in Java and the port of Darwin was seen as a potential base from which Allied actions could be launched against them.
Two separate raids were launched during the course of the day.
The port was lightly defended and the defenders were caught off-guard.
Some eleven ships at anchor were sent to the bottom and many buildings were destroyed.
There were approximately 300 fatalities.
Thereafter, Australia was on high alert for follow-up raids and even for the threat of invasion from the north.
Thankfully, it never happened.