Hi All
I bought a medal group recently to the Hallamshire Battalion of the York & Lancaster Regiment. With it were some photos of the recipients service.
Starting in Egypt in 1936 through to Germany 45-46.
A few bike photos taken in Iceland which I would like to share.
They are not the best, but I can make out the numbers under an eyepiece.

PME607 has serial C3914379 (and an 8 marked on the oil tank and on the front mudguard)
and the other bike (with 3 up) is C4106437 (and a No.7 chalked on the side of the tank)

What puzzles me is that I know these guys are Hallamshires, part of the 49th Div, but why (and I have seen other pictures of vehicles from the Hallams with the same)is the one bike marked with the '57'and not a '62' as in the Div. tactical matrix for this Battalion ?

Rich

email (option): richardpurkiss@hotmail.com

Hi Richard

Lovely pictures, thanks for sharing them.

I don't know the answer to your question, but I suspect some vehicles were passed from one unit to another, and remarking may not happen immediately

Rob

email (option): robmiller11(at)yahoo.co.uk

Thanks for sharing the photos which must make the medal group much more interesting.

I suspect that the differing Arm of Service serials are connected with the arrival and departure timing of 146th and 147th Infantry Brigades.

'57' (on red) was the serial allocated to the junior battalion of the senior brigade in a division. '62' (on green) related to the junior battalion of the middle brigade.

I'd guess that these post-Dunkirk serials had not yet been allocated when the earliest of 49th Division's brigades (147th) left England for Iceland. It might therefore be reasonable to assume that 147th considered themselves the senior brigade within Alabaster Force and took their serials accordingly (with '57' being used by 1/7th Duke of Wellingtons ?) - If, as you say, the Hallamshires are generally shown with '62' then this implies that despite 146 Bde. being 'senior', they took the next batch of serials and 147th continued to use the senior markings... or it might be that 146th arrived with '57' also, having used it in the UK and were then told to change as 147th had been with the force longer.

147th left Iceland earlier than 146th so perhaps the serials were then reallocated.

There doesn't seem to have been a standard way of dealing with markings relating to the aspect of seniority within units when the make-up was altered. Generally though it seems that they tried to avoid repainting where possible.

Rik
I have generally seen in my short research, Hallamshire vehicles marked with a '57'. Its just that in the matrix diagrams I have seen they are shown as supposedly having a '62'and being the middle battalion. Surley the 146th was the senior battalion ?
Rich
ps. yes I was chuffed with the group...
http://www.wdbsa.nl/division_markings.htm

email (option): richardpurkiss@hotmail.com

Rich, I'd have expected 146 to have been the senior brigade whilst in Iceland but know from my BEF researches that the AoS serials were not always updated when battalions were moved.

Any chart is a snapshot. Which other brigades are shown ? I imagine that after 70th Brigade arrived in October 1940, things may have changed again ?

Alabaster Force didn't have a full divisional structure and whilst their serials seem to have been based on that, there may have been local variations...and not much chance of some busy-body from the War Office coming to tell them that they were not interpreting Army Council Instructions correctly.

I have found where the top two photos were taken on Google earth (i love it !).
Obviously I am retricted to a view from the new road, but I have other photos (without bikes) to confirm this location.
65°43'54.34" N 18°18'12.58" W
Its in a valley on the north of the island on road number 1 from Rekjavik to Akureyri.
C & D companies of the Halamshires were billeted here along with the HQ Coy (the photos I have). This particular location was called Krossastadir Farm.
The building in the google picture was nicknamed 'Endcliff Hall'.

The nissen huts were in the small paddock behind the fence with the red sign. You can see the profile of the hill behind is the same. Its all a lot more vegitated than it was then.