Operation "Infatuate"

452 Battery less vehicles landed at Flushing at 1 November 1944.

BCs recce party with HQ 4 KOSB approx 07.30hrs. C Troop left Breskens approx 09.45hrs, shelled 88mm from 09.50 until beached. also under MG fire when nearing beach.

1 L.C.A carrying A subsection sunk and the following casualties sustained.

1 Officer and 2 ORs presumed killed, 5 ORs picked up wounded and returned to Breskens ( Lieutenant A.C.Kidston and Gunner Bamborough reported killed and NOT picked up, Gunner Mountjoy reported picked up but stated to have died of wounds).

Troop was landed 150 yards from beach and all loads were landed, L/Bdr Knapp and Sig Morrish showed particular real. D Troop beached under smoke screen at approx 11.15hrs, under command 4 KOSB but no fire owing to short ranges, all below 500yrds. Major J.Fairclough and Captain V.O.Cohen forward to Recce "Dover" pill box (No.8) and possibility of attacking over open sights, Major Fairglough wounded by sniper at 13.50hrs. Captain V.O.Cohen assumed command of 452 Mountain Battery.

2 November 1944: Under command 5 KOSB, FOOs Captain P.W.Chandler with Company on right, Captain P.J.M.Marshall with Company on left. OPs established in house, Targets engaged at 250 yards from OP, ammo dump. Enemy Inf in trench (HE&Air burst). Destroyed house containing snipers 150yards west of OP. Neutralised pillbox, enemy withdrew to concrete emplacement. D Subsection (L/Sgt Walker) gun taken fwd to adjoining house and fired over open sights from first floor window at pillbox with HEAT, 8rds fired, enemy surrendered. C Op Captain Chandler established, targets engaged, Snipers post destroyed, Pill box neutralized. C. Troop using single gun to engage targets over open sights. Cranes in shipyard were set on fire and sniper there in silenced.

3 November 1944: Under command 7/9 R.S. , FOOs out, Captain Marshall and Lieutenant V.H. Bellinger. Close quarter fighting, Sigmn Shaw wounded by mortar splinter, no shooting. D subsection gun taken forward by weasel to deal with pillbox, route impassible, BC proceeded on foot, found that less than 200yards separated 7/9 R.S. from SS Bde troops and recalled FOO's.

4 November 1944: In sp 5 KOSB, D troop fired barrage on East bank of Middelburg. C Troop fired similtaneous conc on ememy strong points, Captain Chandler observed and corrected fire by night and engaged targets in this Eastern sector during daylight.

5 November 1944: Under command 4 KOSB, advance on Middelburg. 07.00hrs. barrage fired astride canal, FOO Captain Marshall with Company on bank of canal, OP and Company under mortar and MG fire, C Troop moved forward. Hy guns ranged on targets by 452 Battery FOO. Lieutenant D.I.Page relieved Captain Marshall and neutralized recorded targets. Occupation of Middelburg Captain Marshall forward by Buffalo with 4 KOSB.

                                      Mountain Artillery at Sea-Level

                       By Captain Vincent Cohen 2IC of 452 Mountain Battery

The briefing conference was ended, Walcheren Island was to be captured to open the Scheldt to allied shipping and make the port of Antwerp available as an advanced base for the attack on the German Mainland.. 452 Mountain Battery was to provide close support to 155 Brigade whose immediate task was the capture of Vlissingen. The ground would would be well prepared, for the RAF had an all-night bombing programme, whiel 9 AGRA, from their positions on the Dutch mainland, were to deal with hostile batteries and other fixed defences in a mammoth fire plan. After many years of training in mountain and snow warfare, our greatest fear on this, the eve of first encounter with the enemy, was that we might be cheated out of our battle by the weight of the preparations for it. On November 1st 1944, the Battery embarked from Breskens in 10 Assualt landing craft. In inky darkness the guns were lowered peice by peice from a narrow wooden jetty, a laborious process involving the use of rickety  home-made ladders. the Battery Commander John Fairclough, with a small recce party, had already reached Vlissingen, and his reports of strong opposition  from the area of the beach itself delayed our departure until after dawn. As the little convoy of five Landing craft carrying CD.Troop came out into the open channel it was heavily engaged by an enemy coast battery and as we neared the beach machine gun fire greeted us too. Towards the end of our three mile journey Adrian Kidston craft took a direct hit in the engine, followed by a second hit which sank her. Adrian Kidston and  Gunner Mountjoy were killed, Bamborough, the limber gunner, was fatally hit by machinegun fire as he tried to dive from the blazing craft. Fortuantely, the gun wheels floated up to support the survivors, of whom only Simpson was not wounded. Sergeant rogers, wounded in the thigh, swam out to save Oates and refused to board a returning craft until all other survivors had been picked up. We made a wet landing. The heavy gun loads were carried one by one through about 100 yards of water to the beach, Back and forth until the last box of ammunition was safely landed, making 100 rounds per gun. Perhaps Knaap and Morrish, two of Majors signallers, who had been pinned down to the beach for some two hours, were glad of the exercise, certainly there were tireless in their efforts to help land the guns. Then D.Troop came in under cover of a smoke screen, and, on a better tide, grounded much closer to the beach. Then out seven guns were man handled into action in a small open patch little more than 100 yards away.