2nd Armoured Division (United Kingdom)

rdf:langString 2nd Armoured Division (United Kingdom)

rdf:langString 2nd Armoured Division

rdf:langString Flynn

rdf:langString Maughan

rdf:langString Toomer

rdf:langString Molony

rdf:langString Playfair

rdf:langString Hardy

rdf:langString Collier

rdf:langString Carver

rdf:langString Maughan

rdf:langString Stitt

rdf:langString Knighton

rdf:langString Toomer

rdf:langString Higham

rdf:langString Molony

rdf:langString Playfair

rdf:langString Fraser

rdf:langString Newbold

rdf:langString Farndale

rdf:langString Jentz

rdf:langString Pallud

rdf:langString French

rdf:langString Mackenzie

rdf:langString The divisional sign was a plumed helmet of a knight. It was painted on the division's vehicles and tanks, but probably not worn on uniforms.

rdf:langString Major-General Michael Gambier-Parry

rdf:langString Second World War

rdf:langString Actual: 102 tanks

rdf:langString War Establishment: 342 tanks

rdf:langString The 2nd Armoured Division was a division of the British Army that was active during the early stages of the Second World War. The division's creation had been discussed since the beginning of 1939, with the intent to form it by splitting the 1st Armoured Division. A lack of tanks delayed this until December 1939. For a short period after its creation, the division had no assigned units until the 1st Light Armoured Brigade was assigned to it from the 1st Armoured Division, and the 22nd Heavy Armoured Brigade from Southern Command. In early 1940, 1st Armoured Division was given priority for equipment, leaving the 2nd Armoured Division understrength and equipped largely with light tanks. After the Battle of France, with the threat of a German invasion of the United Kingdom, priority for equipment shifted to the 2nd Armoured Division, which was brought up to strength. The plan was to use the division to counter-attack the flanks of a feared German invasion force. In August 1940, an armoured regiment from the division was transported to Egypt and transferred to the 7th Armoured Division, but it was replaced by another. In October, it was decided to transfer the rest of the division to Egypt, as reinforcements for Middle East Command. Before leaving for Egypt, the division exchanged brigades with the 1st Armoured Division. Since the brigade received in exchange consisted of only one armoured regiment, division strength was reduced to three armoured regiments. Upon arriving in Egypt in December 1940, the division was further reduced in order to provide support for Operation Lustre, an expeditionary force to Greece. The detached units included two-thirds of the division's tanks, a battalion of infantry, and artillery support. The remnants of the division then moved to the province of Cyrenaica in Italian Libya, which had been conquered during Operation Compass. The division's remaining tanks were worn-out; they were supplemented by captured Italian models that were equally decrepit. In March, a German-Italian counter-attack led to the destruction of the division, and the ejection of the British from Cyrenaica, except for Tobruk. The consensus of historians is that there was little the division could have done to prevent this, given the circumstances of its being under equipped, poorly supplied, lacking proper training, and having inadequate communications and an unclear chain of command.