NORTHUMBRIAN GUNNERS
The origins of Northumbrian Gunner units lay with the formation of Volunteer Artillery units raised from 1859 onwards in response to threat of French invasion by Napoleon III.
On 12th May 1859, the Secretary of State for War, Jonathan Peel, circulated a letter to the Lieutenants of the Counties authorising them to raise a force of part time rifle, artillery and engineer corps.
The first Volunteer Artillery unit to be raised in the country was the Tynemouth Volunteer Artillery (TVA) who held their first drill on the 25th May 1859 at the George Tavern, Kings Street, North Shields.
The raising of the TVA would be followed by a number of Artillery units being raised in Northumberland and Durham. These units went through a number of organisations over the next 50 years and became absorbed into the Royal Artillery.
Whilst the Volunteers were recruited to provide a home defence capability, a requirement arose in 1900 for troops to reinforce the Regular Army fighting the Boers in South Africa. The Volunteer units raised Cavalry and Infantry units for South Africa. In Newcastle, the 1st Northumberland Royal Garrison Artillery raised a battery for service in South Africa. The personnel were mainly drawn from men working at Armstrong's Elswick Works, and the battery became known as the 'Elswick Battery'.
The experiences of the campaign in South Africa led to a number of reforms in the organisation and equipping of the British Army. These reforms included the formation of a British Expeditionary Force to meet threats outside of Britain (to the British Empire or from Continental Europe), and a Territorial Force for Home Defence. The Territorial Force would consist of part time soldiers and would be formed from the old Volunteer units.
On formation, the Territorial Force contained 14 infantry divisions, 14 mounted yeomanry brigades, and Coastal Artillery Batteries. The infantry divisions would include integral divisional artillery, and many Volunteer Artillery units became Royal Field Artillery brigades. The Tyne, Tees, and Humber were all defended by units which included Territorials.
On the 4th August 1914 Britain declared war on Germany, the start of World War One. The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) deployed to France. The early stages of the war resulted in heavy losses for the BEF and the stagnation of trench warfare.
The first Northumbrian Gunners in action were the Durham Garrison Artillery at the Heugh Battery, Hartlepool, who engaged the German Navy bombarding the town.
Whilst the Territorials role was for Home Defence, they were called upon to serve on the Western Front and the Northumbrian Division (to be numbered 50th) departed the North East in April 1915. The call to arms in 1914 led to the formation of second line units, the second line Northumbrian Gunner becoming the divisional artillery of 63rd (Royal Navy) Division. They departed to the Western Front in May 1916.
Lord Kitchener had called for a New Army to be formed, noted for it's Pals Battalions such as the Tyneside Scottish. The New Army included artillery units. The domination of the North Sea by the Royal Navy, and the need for trained gunners for heavy artillery, led to the Territorial Coastal Artillery units becoming the nucleus for siege artillery batteries.
On conclusion of the First World War, the Territorial Force was stood down. It was reformed in 1920 and its role was primarily home defence. The First World War had brought a new threat to the United Kingdom, aerial bombing. This threat was met by the formation in 1936 of Anti-Aircraft Command and the formation of many new Territorial Army Air Defence units.
Whilst the Territorial Army's primary role was home defence, the 50th (Northumbrian) Division was equipped as a motorised infantry division and part of the British Expeditionary Force earmarked for service overseas. With war clouds looming, the Territorial Army was doubled in size, and duplicate units were formed including gunner regiments.
The Territorials were mobilised at the start of the Second World War. The 50th (Northumbrian) Division, with it's integral gunner units, preceded to the continent to fight the Germans. In May 1940, Germany launched thier Blitzkrieg. The 50th would be involved in the initial engagements, and be evacuated through Dunkirk. They would go on to serve in the Middle East, Scilcly, landed on D-Day and fight their way through North West Europe.
Other Northumbrian Gunner units would serve in Greece, the Balkans and the Far East.
The Territorial Army (TA) was demobilised at the end of WW2, being re-constituted in 1947. This was the advent of the Cold War. The TA role of home defence continued, and they would also have a function of reinforcing the Regular Army. the threat now being the Soviet Union.
Many of the Northumbrian Gunner units continued in old roles, though with the advent of more sophisticated weapon, coastal artillery units and air-defence units were disbanded. The post Second World War world would see the British Empire decolonising and the need for overseas garrisons declined. The draw down of troops from the Empire resulted in a reorganisation of the British Army including the Territorials.
The Territorial Army was reduced in size and it became the Territorial Army and Volunteer Reserve (TAVR). The gunner units in Northumbria were amalgamated to form 101 (Northumbrian) Regiment Royal Artillery (Volunteers).
The 101st was equipped with the BL 5.5inch gun and allocated a role supporting the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) based Germany.
Northumbrian Gunner: 101 RA (V) - TAVR 1967 to 1979
As the Cold War intensified, the TAVR was expanded and in 1979 the Territorial Army (TA) title was restored. A new Division, 2nd Infantry Division tasked with securing the rear area the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) consisted mainly of TA units.
101 RA re-equipped with the 105mm Light Gun, the Regiments primary role being to support 15 Infantry Brigade in the 2nd Division in BAOR.
In 1989 the Berlin Wall came down and over the next two years significant changes in the former Soviet Union and it's satellite countries brought an end to the Cold War. The Government review of the post Cold War forces resulted in a reduction in the size of the Armed Forces which were outlined in a Government paper 'Options for Change'. There was no longer a requirement for a British Army of the Rhine based in Germany and this would be dismantled. The British Army reduced from four war fighting divisions to two, 1 (UK) and 3 (UK), which would support NATO.
The post Options for Change saw 101 Regiment re-equip with FH70 and re-role as general support Regiment for 1 (UK) Division, a Regular Army Division.
In 1996 a significant change occurred with the terms and conditions of Territorials with shift of emphasis from the TA providing formed units, their main function for over a century, to providing trained individuals who could be mobilised to augment the Regular Army.
The Strategic Defence Review of 1998 saw a reduction in the size of the Territorial Army, and brought a completely new role for 101 RA. The 101st would exchange their guns for missiles, being equipped with the tracked M270 Multi Launch Rocket System (MLRS). They would become part of 1st Artillery Brigade which was allocated to the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps(ARRC) to provide deep fires.
The role of the TA providing individual reservists to augment the Regular Army would see Territorials of 101 mobilised to serve on active service in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan.
101 RA (V) - Territorial Army 1979 to 2012
The Territorial Army was renamed the Army Reserve in 2012. Reservists continued to deploy to Afghanistan until main operations ended there in 2014. With the ending of RA operations in Afghanistan, the primary focus for the 101st switched to providing war fighting capability within 1st Artillery Brigade. From 2015 till 2019, 101 (Northumbrian) Regiment RA was the only depth fire Regiment in the Royal Artillery.
