Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

World War 2, Australia, WX12474 MCBRIDE, 2/3 Machine Gun Battalion

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Overview

World War 2, WX12474 Sergeant Michael (Mick) James MCBRIDE 2/3 Machine Gun Battalion.

Historical information

The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was formed in June 1940 as part of the 7th Division and served in Egypt, Syria, the Netherlands East Indies and New Guinea during World War II. The battalion was primarily a South Australian unit, although it had sub-units formed in Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia. After completing training in Australia, in April 1941 the battalion embarked for the Middle East. In June/July 1941 it saw action against Vichy French forces during the Syria–Lebanon campaign,
Following Japan's entry into the war, the decision was made to transfer a large number of Australian troops from the Middle East to the Pacific region. The majority of the battalion was captured during the Battle of Java. A small number of the battalion's personnel returned to Australia and it was subsequently re-raised in mid-1942. It was later attached to the 6th Division as a corps unit and served in Papua New Guinea during the Aitape–Wewak campaign in 1944–1945. The battalion was disbanded in January 1946.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-32-AMWA29389

Item type

Photographs

Themes

War and Conflict

Width

85 mm

Height or length

135 mm

Contextual Information