Urgent request. Royal North Devon Yeomanry

[johnG]

Please can anybody help by posting a picture of a Royal North Devon Yeomanry cap badge.

I would like to get this to include as a picture on a citation being prepared for a man who enlisted in the Royal North Devon Yeomanry in 1936 and was mobilised into 142 Field Rgiment, Royal Artillery in 1939.

He never claimed his medals, but following a rather wistfull "I wish I had", then SSAFA Southampton have obtained his medals and they will be presented to him as guest of honour at a parade on 11 July.

I am in the process of tying up the tiddly bits, and if anybody can confirm any details of the history of 142 regiment, and how elements of them came to be in India/Burma, when the bulk of them were in Italy, that would be a bonus......or were they in fact on the strength of 96 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery, disbanded in 1943, but what happened to the personnel of 96 Regiment. These things I am still trying to find out, and sadly at 88 years of age our hero does not have a very good memory, and the real need right now is for a picture of a Royal North Devon Yeomany cap badge.

Thanks,

John

[Deejayuu]

There are a few variations on this stlye badge reflecting title changes. From K&K i think the version you are looking for has the wording `Royal Devon Yeomanry Artillery` around the device. Cannot lay my hands on my own badge but try some of these links.
Cheers, Dave

PS, i have no connection with the site owners nor am i commecting on the authenticity of the badges.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Royal-Devon-Ye...3A1%7C294%3A50
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Royal-Devon-Ye...3A1%7C294%3A50

[johnG]

Thanks Deejayvuu, that's the badge I am after, but cannot get a clear image of it, but if all else fails I will fall back on that one.

I am also after a good clear picture of a Hampshire Yeomanry (Carabineers) badge to add as an extra frill on the same citation.

Regards,

John

[Malcolm Davey]

post cancelled

[revdougal]

8 Jul 1939 formed at Dartmouth as duplicate of 96 (RDY) Fd Regt RA(TA) with 383 & 384 Btys, 506 Bty formed in 1940. 17 Feb 42 authorised title to be 142nd Fd Regt RA(RDY)(TA).
In Nov 45 went into Suspended Animation but reconstituted as 342 (RDY) Med Regt RA(TA) in 1947.
The Regt served in UK, N Africa and Italy; I find no record of it being in India/Burma, nor is there any mention in "Gunner" Farndale's book of the History of the Royal Regiment in "The Far East Theatre 1941-46".

[johnG]

Thanks Revdougal. That is very interesting. I have an 88 year old bloke I am dealing with who says he was in 142 Regt, and looks blank at me when I ask him if he transferred to 96 Regt who served in the Far East. His medal awards have checked out and includes the Burma star, but I cannot reconcile that with 142 Regt.

My limited knowledge of India tells me he is saying all the right things, and I am convinced hje was there, and for a fact I know he was in Durban in transit, as he knows the same low down taverns as I did, albeit he was there a long time before me.

Your message rather confirms that in spite of my research I have not been able to pin down 142 Regt being in India, and there is not time now to get his service record from Glasgow, so I will just play it in broad terms over his service and not go into detail. A grand old chap, but his memory is not so good.
Thanks for your help.
Regards,
John

[revdougal]

Thanks.
I do not believe that 96 Fd was in India/Burma either - no record found, indeed 96 is listed as being in UK throughout the war, with45 Div, and Home Forces.

[johnG]

From what I have gleaned 142 Regt served in Italy, and 96 Regt were in the Far East, but were disbanded in 1943. The chap I am dealing with was definitely on the frontier of Burma serving with a 4.5 howitzer battery, and had ben mobilized in 1939 with 142 Regt. I can only find a brief refernece to 96 Regt being in the Far East and absolutely nothing about 142 Regt being there, so am at a bit of a loss to fathom out who or what this bloke was with, i.e what happened to the men of 96 Regt when it was disbanded in 1943; I cannot find any reference to where they went, and they were certainly not demobbed then. All very confusing.

The Royal North Devon Yeomanry divided into 96 and 142 Regt RA in 1939, but from there I find it difficult to trace them.



Reghards,

John

[johnG]

Recent mention of the Royal Devon Yeomanry on the forum caused me to go back over a thread I started in 2007 when I appealed for help with information, and received it.

To complete that story. Through my links with SSAFA Southampton we got the old chap the medals he never claimed at the end of WW2, and 257 Battery Royal Artillery (Hampshire Yeomanry) put on a great show for him, with an officer from that battery presenting his medals.

The 'Sheltered Housing' where he was staying put on a party for him, and amongst other things they presented him with a Royal Artillery regimental tie, which became standard wear for him, and he got a write up in the local magazine. He even put a picture of the R.N.D. cap badge in a window of his flat so that all could see it - he was so proud of it.

The grand old fellow wore his miniatures evry day after that, smartened up his appearance, and almost swaggered along with his walkng frame.

Sadly his health went downhill a few months later, and he was moved to where he could get 24/7 attention, but nothing could ever take away his pride at having been a Gunner again. Thanks blokes, you were terrific with your help.

Kind regards,
John

[Mike Jackson]

I have a note that 96 Fd Regt RA left 61 Inf Div in UK in late 44 and arrived in India in Jan 45. The Regiment participated in Op Zipper (invasion of Malaya) and I happen to know that there is an OG slip-on in the Malaysian Military Museum with embroidered Captain's rank badge and the tile R.D.Y.A. embroidered in black.
And of course - see Norman Litchfield's Territorial Artillery pp 46-48