Buckinghamshire Brochure Final 4 - Flipbook - Page 7
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE'S
PART IN RIFLES HISTORY
Most infantry regiments carry
their battle honours on Colours
(ceremonial flags). RIFLES Battalions
do not have Colours, but all Riflemen
carry 34 representative battle
honours (of 913 awarded) on their
belt badge. Some honours were for
Ypres (1914 '17) - 2/OXF and BUCKS LI entered the line during the First Battle
of Ypres on the 20th October 1914. They would go on to see heavy fighting at
Langemarck, Gheluvelt and Nonne Bosschen. 1/4th, 2/4th 1/1st & 2/1st/Bucks, and 5
& 6/OXF & BUCKS LI would see action during the Second Battle of Ypres, notably at
Menin Road, Polygon Wood and Passchendaele. 23 years later, the Regiment would
fight a successful delaying action at the Ypres-Comines Canal during the WWII.
Somme (1916 '18) - 1/4th, 1/1st & 2/1st/Bucks, and 2/4th, 5, 6 & 7/OXF & BUCKS
LI took part in the Somme Offensive. The Regiment would see heavy action
throughout the battle, notably at Delville Wood, Pozieres and Flers Courcelette,
and the diversionary Attack on Fromelles. 2, 21st & 2/4th/Bucks & 5/ OXF &
BUCKS LI fought in the Second Battle of the Somme, helping to successfully
hold back the German Spring Offensive. The Regiment would see especially
hard fighting at St Quentin and Rosieres.
great battles of national significance,
like Waterloo, the Somme, El
Alamein and Normandy. Others
are unique to The Rifles, such as
Marabout and Pegasus Bridge. One
scroll on the belt badge is left blank
for a battle honour yet to be won.
Italy (1943-45) - 7/OXF & BUCKS LI took part in the amphibious
landings at Salerno. They then went on to fight their way up the length
of Italy, seeing bloody fighting at the Garigliano Crossing, Anzio and
Gemmano Ridge. After suffering heavy casualties and being critically
short of manpower, the Battalion was finally disbanded in September
1944, with the men being transferred to other units.
Peninsula War (1808-14) - The 85th converted to Light Infantry in 1808
and arrived in Portugal to take part in the Peninsula War in 1811. They
would go on to win battle honours of Fuentes de Oñoro and Nive, and
take part in the sieges of Badajoz and San Sebastián.
Nonne Bosschen (1914) - 2/OXF and BUCKS LI fought at
the Battle, seeing 4,000 exhausted British troops defeat
10,000 fresh German ones. At Nonne Bosschen Woods, the
Prussian Guard was halted and pushed back by a ferocious
charge from the 2/OXF & BUCKS LI.
Pegasus Bridge (1944) - The first action of the Battle of
Normandy was, Operation Deadstick, which saw 2/OXF &
BUCKS LI attacking bridges over the River Orne and the Caen
Canal. Landing by glider, they were able to capture the bridges,
swiftly overwhelming the German defences. The Battalion then
defended the bridges throughout D-Day, until finally relieved at
midnight. By taking and holding the bridges, they had secured
the line of advance for the British troops landing on Sword
beach and prevented any German counter attacks.
Vittorio Veneto (1918) - 1/4th and 1/1st/BUCKS/OXF & BUCKS
were withdrawn from the Western Front and redeployed to Italy
in 1917. They took part in the Allied offensive during the Battle
of Vittorio Veneto in October-November, the latter of which
knocked the Austro-Hungarian Empire out of the First World War.
Normandy (1944) - 1st/Bucks and 1 & 2/OXF & BUCKS LI saw action
throughout the Battle of Normandy. While 2/OXF & BUCKS LI were
fighting at Pegasus Bridge, 1st/Bucks were landing on Sword Beach.
They were charged with defending the bridgehead and engaging
German defenders in bunkers and houses along the beachfront. 1//OXF
& BUCKS LI landed in Normandy in late June and were soon fighting in
the Battle of Caen.
Anzio (1944) - 7/OXF & BUCKS LI landed in the Anzio beachhead
and took part in the defence, driving back repeated German
assaults. As the fighting dragged on for months, the Battalion's
losses mounted until at last, when victory was achieved, only 60
men remained of an initial strength of 1,000.
Abridged timeline of historical names and amalgamations of Buckinghamshire regiments from 1793 to the formation in 2007
1802
1793
85th Regiment of Foot (85th)
1808
85th (Bucks Volunteers) Regiment of Foot
......In 1882 the 85th amalgamated to form the KSLI and subsequently the Light Infantry
85th (Bucks Volunteers) Regiment of Foot (Light Infantry)
1908
1958
1966
2007
The Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry (OXF & BUCKS LI)
1st Green Jackets (43rd and 52nd)
The Royal Green Jackets (RGJ)
The Rifles (RIFLES)
