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59th (Newfoundland) Heavy Artillery Regiment

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59th (Newfoundland) Heavy Artillery Regiment
Winston Churchill inspecting howitzers of the Regiment
ActiveJune 1940 – August 1945
Country Dominion of Newfoundland
TypeHeavy Artillery
SizeRegiment
EngagementsWorld War II
Commanders
Notable
commanders		Lt. Col. J. W. Nelson
Military unit

The 59th (Newfoundland) Heavy Artillery Regiment was an artillery regiment of the Dominion of Newfoundland. It was formed in June 1940 during World War II. It fought on the Western Front as part of the Army Group Royal Artillery which itself was a part of the 21st Army Group. After the war, the regiment was disbanded in August 1945 at Saffron Walden.

History

Formation

The regiment was formed in June 1940 at Ifield, Crawley. It was under the command of Lt. Col. J. W. Nelson.

Deployment to France

After D-Day, the regiment was sent to France. The regiment's first action of the war in Western Europe was providing fire support for Canadian and British forces during the Battle for Caen. The regiment's 21st and 22nd Batteries targeted German positions in villages around the northern perimeter of Caen while the 155-mm guns of 20th and 23rd Batteries provided Counter-battery fire during the assault. Later, they would bombard German positions during the Battle of the Falaise Pocket.

Into Germany

During the Battle of the Bulge the four batteries of the 59th Regiment repealed the German drive to the River Meuse. On 2 May 1945, the regiment fired all of their batteries at the key Germany city of Hamburg. The next day, the city's defenders would surrender. For the next 8 weeks, the regiment helped in the administration and rerouting of refugees.

References

  1. "www.canadiansoldiers.com". www.canadiansoldiers.com.
  2. "59 (Newfoundland) Heavy Regiment RA".
  3. "59 (Newfoundland) Heavy Regiment RA". The Royal Artillery 1939-45.
  4. "Canadian History, or Not? The 59th (Newfoundland) Heavy Regiment, Royal Artillery, on D-Day and Beyond". www.linkedin.com.
  5. "59th Newfoundland Heavy Regiment was eager to do its part | SaltWire".
  6. Nicholson, G.W.L. (1969). More Fighting Newfoundlanders: A History of Newfoundland's Fighting Forces in the Second World War. St. John's: Government of Newfoundland.
  7. "Newsletter Volume 3 Issue 1" (PDF). rnfldrmuseum.ca. 2019.
  8. ^ "AFTER D-Day – The 59th (Newfoundland) Was There!". asecondlook.info.
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