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MEMORIES
AND INFORMATION - STAFFORDSHIRE HOME GUARD
41st STAFFORDSHIRE (TIPTON) BATTN.
THE
TIPTON
HOME GUARD
SUMMARY
and GENERAL
INFORMATION PAGE
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Tipton and the adjoining area was
defended throughout the war by the 41st Staffordshire (Tipton)
Battalion of the South Staffordshire Home Guard
and it operated in its earliest formation from May
1940 until final stand-down at the beginning of
December 1944. In 1941 it was commanded by
Lt.-Col. G. G. Heathcock, M.C., M.M., late of the
Royal Engineers.
The
Battalion was part of the Central Midland
Area, South Staffordshire Zone, Group 5 of
Western Command.
This page
within the Tipton
section of the website provides general
information on the 41st Battalion including
its organisation,
group and individual images and other
miscellaneous information.
For all other Tipton Home Guard information,
please see links above.
Little is so
far known of the earlier organisation of the
Battalion but a clear picture of it from April
1944 is now available and is provided within
this website, on this and associated pages.
For reasons
which are so far unknown (although they may be
connected to a perceived need to establish
mobile units locally in the build-up to D-Day) the Battalion was
instructed in February 1944 to reorganise; and a
detailed set of instructions - "Special Orders"
dated 1st April 1944 and prepared by the Adjutant,
Capt. G. W. Shepherd
- was issued on behalf of the
Battalion C.O. who by then was
Lt.-Col. G. M.
Rainbird. (Col. Rainbird had before his
promotion been a Major and Company Commander in
the neighbouring 28th Staffordshire (West
Bromwich) Battalion).
Below is the
structure of the Battalion with effect from April
1944. (For further detail, please see
Special Orders - 1st April 1944.
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MOBILE
BATTALION
Battalion
H.Q: 75 Lower Church Lane, Tipton
C.O:
Lt.-Col.
G.M. Rainbird
******
11 COY. (Mobile)
H.Q: "The Towers", Victoria Road, Tipton
Comd: Capt. H. E. Ratcliffe
Coy.
H.Q.
No. 7 Platoon
(Lt. G.
Smith) - Sections 1, 2, 3
No. 8 Platoon
(Pl. Off. Lycett - Sections 4, 5, 6
No. 9
Platoon
(Lt. G. Reeve) - Sections 7, 8, 9
******
12 COY.
(Mobile)
H.Q:
Drill Hall, Tipton
Comd: Maj. P. Pearson
Coy. H.Q.
No. 10 Platoon
(Pl. Offr. E. Jones) - Sections 1, 2, 3
No.
11 Platoon
(Lt. C. L. Meredith) - Sections 4, 5, 6
No. 12
Platoon
(Pl. Offr. W. Fletcher)- Sections 7, 8, 9
******
13 COY.
(Mobile)
H.Q:
Bullers Ltd., Tipton
Comd: Maj. W. E. Jones
Coy. H.Q.
No. 13 Platoon
(Lt. L. Martin) - Sections 1, 2, 3
No.
14 Platoon
(Lt. W. C. Nicholls) - Sections 4, 5, 6
No. 15
Platoon
(Lt. G. A. Carter) - Sections 7, 8, 9
******
14 COY.
(Mobile)
H.Q:
Beans Industries Ltd.,
Hurst lane, Tipton
Comd:
Maj. S. Morris
Coy. H.Q.
No. 16 Platoon
(Lt. H.
Walker)- Sections
1, 2, 3
No. 17 Platoon
(Pl. Offr.
G. Hanson) - Sections 4, 5,
6
No. 18 Platoon
(Lt.
Paskin)- Sections 7, 8, 9
******
TOTAL STRENGTH: Mobile Battalion
Officers
32 |
W/Os
5 |
Sgts.
33 |
Cpls., L/Cpls.
100 |
O/Rs
385 |
TOTAL
555 |
***********************
TOWN DEFENCE COYS.
H.Q:
75 Lower
Church Lane, Tipton
Comd:
Maj. J. C.
Evans
Coy. H.Q.
******
"B" COY. (Town
Defence)
H.Q: M.E.C. Offices, Toll End
Road, Tipton
Comd:
Maj. E. Thompson
Coy. H.Q.
No. 20 Platoon
(Lt. G. F.
Ellis) - Sections
1, 2, 3
No. 21 Platoon
(2/Lt. W.
Newton) - Sections 1, 2,
3
No. 22 Platoon
(Lt. P.
Gittins) - Sections 1, 2, 3
******
"D" COY. (Town Defence)
H.Q:
39
Neptune Street, Tipton
Comd:
Maj. S.
Davis
Coy. H.Q.
No. 27 Platoon
(Lt. J.
James) -
Sections 1, 2, 3
No. 28 Platoon
(Lt. A.
Deakin) -
Sections 1, 2
No. 29 Platoon - Section
1
No. 30 Platoon
(Lt. T. E.
Ordish) - Section 1
No. 31
Platoon
(Lt. B. Allen)- Section 1
******
H.Q. COY.
(All personnel attached to Companies
apart from 4 named individuals detailed
for special duties)
******
"C" COY.
(Recruit Training Cadre)
H.Q:
Drill
Hall, Tipton
C.S.M:
Powell, G. T.
******
TOTAL STRENGTH: Town Defence Battalion
Officers
31 |
W/Os
5 |
Sgts.
22 |
Cpls., L/Cpls.
43 |
O/Rs
369 |
TOTAL
470 |
***********************
GRAND TOTAL STRENGTH: Battalion
Officers
63 |
W/Os
10 |
Sgts.
55 |
Cpls., L/Cpls.
143 |
O/Rs
754 |
TOTAL
1025 |
***********************
INVENTORY OF
WEAPONRY, TRANSPORT VEHICLES and
AMMUNITION
WEAPONRY
Revolvers: 28
Rifles: 388
Sten M.G.s: 697
Browning Automatic
Rifles: 48
.55 Boys Anti-Tank Rifles:
6
E.Y. Rifles: 34
Spigot Mortars:
6
Browning M.G.s: 2
Lewis M.G: 1 |
TRANSPORT
(under
various ownerships and allocated to
specific individuals, units and functions)
Motor cycles: 32
Cars: 22
Truck/Load carriers: 18
Ambulance: 1
Breakdown vehicle: 1
Buses: 16 |
AMMUNITION
300 S.A.A:
Bandolier: 9,600
Carton: 43,200
Tracer: 5,500
Frankfort: 10,000
Boys .55: 750
9mm: 50,800
.300 Bal: 500
Spigot Mortar:
20lb A/TK: 149
14lb A.P. 60
Grenade 36M:
4 sec: 1,100
7 sec: 490
68 Grenade: 120 |
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COMPLETE
BATTALION
Click on image to view higher
definition version
Date:
Sunday 16th May 1943
Location:
probably Highfield Estate, near Jubilee Gardens
A COMPANY
WITHIN THE BATTALION
(possibly the
Battn. H.Q. Coy.)
Click on image to view higher
definition version
Date:
unknown but probably pre-1944
Identifications: middle
row, extreme right: Sgt. David
Blackford
Location:
Municipal Buildings, Sedgley Road
AN
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP
OF OFFICERS AND NCOs
Click on image to view higher definition version
Date: unknown but probably pre-1944
Identifications: middle
row, extreme right: Sgt. David
Blackford; standing, extreme left:
Sgt. L.
Stanway.
Location:
unknown
Sgt. LEONARD
STANWAY
©
Richard Leonard Stanway 2019 |
The map below dates from before
the 1944 reorganisation and shows the location of four
Company HQs and also the HQ of four Platoons. Also
shown are details of adjoining Battalions. Click on
the map to see a higher definition version of it and
also further information.
Click on image to view higher definition version |
Details of a parade and demonstration to celebrate the
Third Anniversary of the establishment of the Home Guard:
from the papers of
Pte.
Albert Barratt
After the formal inspection the
Battalion presented a demonstration during which a unit
staged a mock attack on a German sand-bagged emplacement
using assault and motorcycle troops. The Imperial
War Museum holds a cine film of this event. During the
day a photograph was taken which included almost all
members of the Battalion. This is reproduced above and
also in a higher definition version
here.
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**********
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ALF BREAKWELL
A member of the
41st
Staffordshire (Tipton) Battalion
and a loyal and devoted friend to the
Tipton Library |
|
In Memory of
ALL MEMBERS OF
THE TIPTON HOME GUARD
41st Staffordshire
(Tipton) Battalion
Home Guard
1940-1944
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Grateful acknowledgement is made to the many sources of
the information included on this and associated pages of
the Tipton section of this website:
- J, an anonymous Tipton historian; Tipton
Library (Robert Hazel); The Friends of Tipton Library; Sandwell Archives Service (Ian
Gray); Tipton Civic Society (Keith Hodgkins);
"Home Guard List 1941 Western Command" by Jon Mills
(Savannah Publications); "Black Country Bugle";
Tipton in the 50s and 60s Facebook page and its
members; and several individuals including Hazel Jones
(daughter of Sgt. David Blackford), David Barratt
(nephew of Pte. Albert Barratt); Joan Keeling; Kevin
Partridge; Leonard Richard Stanway; Jackie Thickett; and
Nicky Stokes (grand-daughter of William Duncan).
- and any original sources of this material
whose identity is so far unknown to staffshomeguard.
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x155A - January 2018; updated March, September 2019,
May 2022
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