The British Motor Battalion, 1943 to 1945
In mid 1943 the British Army began to revise the organisation of many of its units in preparation for the long awaited assault on Nazi occupied Europe. The Motor Battalion was one such as it incorporated the experience gained from combat in North Africa.
The Motor Battalion, circa 1943 to 1945
Battalion Headquarters (5 Officers, 27 men) * reduced by 1 man, February 1944
Headquarter Company (5 Officers, 94 men), comprised of;
Company HQ (1 Officer, 8 men)
Signals Platoon (1 Officer, 16 men)
Administrative Platoon (3 Officers, 70 men)
Support Company (7 Officers, 191 men), comprised of;
Company HQ (2 Officers, 24 men) * increased by 1 man, February 1944
Three Anti-tank Platoons, each (1 Officer, 37 men)
Two Machine Gun Platoons, each (1 Officer, 28 men)
Three Motors Companies (7 Officers, 168 men), each comprised of;
Company HQ (2 Officers, 37 men)
Scout Platoon (2 Officers, 41 men)
Three Motor Platoons, each comprised of;
Platoon HQ (1 Officer, 6 men)
Three Motor Sections, each comprised of 8 men
Total Strength of 854 all ranks (38 Officers and 816 men)
Points of Note
Machine guns and anti-tank guns were all now fully integrated into the Battalion organisation with the establishment of the Support Company, while 3-inch mortars were added to each Motor Company.
The elements of the Battalion
Battalion Headquarters - as the HQ of the Infantry Battalion, but included a scout car and a Universal Carrier, itself replaced by a second Scout Car in early 1944.
Signals Platoon - as Infantry Battalion. The Platoon was also entitled to a pair of 20-mm AA guns, but it does not seem these were deployed in reality.
Admin Platoon - as Infantry Battalion, and as above was to deploy four 20-mm AA guns.
Machine Gun Platoon - the Motor Battalion enjoyed a luxury denied the Infantry in that they carried their own Vickers medium machine guns. Each platoon required eight Universal Carriers to transport the four weapons, plus a motorcycle orderly. The Vickers could be fired from the carrier itself, a handy trick. A PIAT was provided for anti-tank defence.
Anti-tank Platoon – was a slimmed down version of the Infantry unit. The platoon served four 6-pdr guns, each again with two Loyd Carriers plus a Bren and 2-inch mortar. Platoon HQ added a Universal Carrier, trucks and motorcycles.
The Motor Company - the Motor Company underwent a key change in the run up to the Normandy landings. The previous 15-cwt personnel trucks were replaced by a combination of US supplied halftracks for the Motor Platoons and wheeled White scout cars for Company HQ.
The Motor Section continued to be made up of a Corporal, a Lance-corporal and six privates. By 1943 the Bren gunner had lost his rifle, the driver had acquired a Sten gun, and the Boys was finally discarded. Initially, the Section Commander still retained his rifle, but I would suggest he too was generally carrying a Sten gun by D-Day. Also during 1943/44, US halftracks began replacing the 15-cwt truck, affording better cross-country performance, and some measure of protection from small arms fire at least. The adoption of the halftrack allowed for an onboard machine gun to be fitted, but it appears the implementation of this feature differed dependent upon the Battalion involved.
Platoon HQ now consisted of an Officer, Sergeant, signaller, two man team for the 2-inch mortar, and a batman-driver for the halftrack. As before, a motorcycle orderly accompanied the Platoon. Personal weapons vary according to the sources used, however both the batman-driver and motorcycle orderly would have carried Stens, and probably one of the mortar crewmen. With a pistol for the officer, augmented or replaced by another weapon of his choice, the balance would have carried rifles. The Platoon halftrack also carried a PIAT for use as required.
Company HQ retained its dual command and administrative roles, with the company commander and his second-in-command each provided with a White scout car or halftrack. By 1943 Company HQ deployed a section with two 3-inch mortars, each transported in the usual modified Universal Carriers, for a total of six weapons in the Battalion.
The Scout Platoon still had three Sections each of three carriers. The Section Commander’s carrier now had a four man crew, the other two vehicles each three. Platoon HQ deployed two more carriers, plus a scout car, a 15-cwt truck and two motorcycles. By 1943, each Section had a 2-inch mortar and a PIAT, and as always each carrier, and the scout car, a Bren gun.
Summary
The Motor Battalion was perhaps the most sophisticated and powerful infantry based unit deployed by the British Army. It was ultimately handicapped by the problems British commanders had in deploying tanks and infantry in a cohesive manner to achieve the same goal. But without it, the Armoured Regiments would have been unable to move beyond the pace of the foot soldier, and their vulnerability to German anti-tank weapons vastly increased. The Battalion did not have the manpower reserves of a regular Infantry unit, and if deployed as one could be squandered meaninglessly.
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The British Infantry Battalion