Replies

Hobart's Funnies

The tragic outcome of the Dieppe raid in August 1942 had taught the Allies the necessity of providing artillery cover for the initial infantry assault waves. The myriad obstacles installed by Rommel both on the beaches and inland was an additional argument for designing armoured vehicles capable of destroying them, all the while retaining their combat capabilities.

It was Major-General Sir Percy Hobart, placed at the head of the 79th Armoured Division, who was given the task of turning this idea into a reality. From his fertile imagination, together with that of his colleagues, sprang an astonishing array of vehicles with strange silhouettes, sneeringly nicknamed the “Funnies”. They were, in fact, tanks - generally Shermans or Churchills - which had been transformed and adapted to carry out specific tasks. The Crabs, for instance were fitted with flails to blow mines up, while the Crocodiles were equipped with powerful flame-throwers. Then there were the “bobbins”, the tanks carrying fascines and, most well-known of all, the DD amphibious tanks.

The “Bobbin”, a converted Churchill tank, was used to lay matting roads across the patches of sticky clay found on certain beaches.

Churchill-This tank could rapidly lay a bridge that would allow vehicles to cross a trench up to nine metres wide or scale a vertical object (such as a wall) up to 4.5 metres high.

The “Crab”, or flail tank, carried a drum fitted with chains at the end of its long steel arms, which could beat the ground and explode all the mines in its way.

This tank’s job was to use the fascine, or bundle of wooden poles, it was carrying to fill in antitank trenches or deep fords.

Designed by the Hungarian-born engineer Nicholas Straussler, the DD tank was fitted with a skirt of inflatable canvas around its hull, making it completely watertight. In the water, it was driven by a propeller. On land, the skirt was lowered and the engine took over as normal, hence the name DD (Duplex Drive).

Crocodiles” were Churchill tanks which had been equipped with a powerful flame-thrower instead of the front machine gun and a bowser containing an inflammable mixture. This equipment was also mounted on Bren carriers.

Today's Educational Sources and suggestions for further reading:

www.d-daytanks.org.uk/tanks/
www.geocities.com/britsatwar/
www.normandiememoire.com
www.ihr.org

Hobart's Funnies were designed after the disastrous raid on Dunkirk. It was realised that vehicles were needed to overcome defences, anti-tank walls and ditches. General Hobart designed many different types of tanks to do this. One of the most reliable was a Sherman tank that could float in the water. They were used by the 79th Armoured division and were a classic example of British ingenious engineering. They were the reason for most of the successes on D day and enabled British and Canadian troops to get inland quickly and complete their objectives.

The Sherman Crab was a standard Sherman but had a flail sticking a few metres out to the front of the tank. The cylinder which the chains are attached to rotated at a very fast speed making the chains thrash the ground. If there were any mines in front of the tank, the chains would detonate the mines and there would be no damage to the tank. These were very useful on D day and if the Americans had not refused to use them on D day, they would not have had so many casualties on Omaha as the Crabs could have detonated the mines and, using the Sherman's main 75mm gun, took out the defences easily.

The Sherman DD tank was a great design. The screen which is shown up on the picture above, was held by a steel ring which went around the tanks body. The tank was again a normal Sherman tank. Two propellers were fitted to the rear of the tank to propel the tank in the water. The idea was that the Sherman DD tank (DD stood for Duplex Drive) would, with its screen up, drive into the sea from a landing craft about half a mile offshore (this is just a guess, I do not know the real distance) and, using the propellers, swim towards the shore. When the tank reached the shore, it would drive up onto the beach, lower its screen and take out the beach defences. The Infantry and other vehicles would arrive afterwards and would have no trouble getting off the beach as there was no German resistance. Sadly, at Omaha beach, only a few of the DD tanks reached the beach as they were launched out of the landing craft too far offshore as the Coxswains of the landing craft feared that if they got too close to the beach, they would hit a mine or be attacked by German Artillery or machine gun fire.

The Churchill was the idea for most of the AVRE's (Armoured Vehicle Royal Engineers) as it was perfect for the designs it was needed for. It had a low, heavily armoured hull that had a spacious interior and had escape hatches at the side for easy escape. Many of the Churchill AVRE's had some sort of bridging device on it. This variant carried a bridge up to a gap, i.e. an Anti-Tank ditch and would drop the bridge over the gap and then drive over the gap, and so would other vehicles. The Churchill AVRE's were fitted with a special, cast turret which had a Petard Mortar which lobbed a large mortar shell about 25-50 metres and would destroy concrete defences i.e. anti tank walls, bunkers or gun emplacements. They were a great success. Many survive in Normandy as memorials.

The armoured Bulldozer was the standard Caterpillar D8 bulldozer that was armoured. It was used in the initial assault for moving mounds of earth or beach defences like Tetrahedra or Hedgehogs which would block the way for other vehicles and Landing Craft coming in when the tide was higher.

On this Day In History

Birthdates which occurred on January 09:
1554 Gregory XV [Alessandro Ludovisi], Roman Catholic pope (1621-23)
1803 Christopher Gustavus Memminger Secretary Treasurer (Confederacy) died in 1888
1816 John Palmer Usher Secretary Interior (Union) died in 1889
1822 John Porter Hatch volunteers Brevet Major General (Union), died in 1901
1859 Carrie Lane Chapman Catt women's rights leader/founder (League of Women Voters)
1870 Joseph B Strauss civil engineer/builder (Golden Gate Bridge)
1890 Karel Capek Czechoslovakia, writer (R U R ); coined the word "robot"
1898 Gracie Fields [Stansfield], England, music hall/vaudeville performer
1901 Chic Young cartoonist (Blondie)
1902 Rudolph Bing opera manager (New York Metropolitan Opera)
1904 George Balanchine dancer/choreographer/ballet producer
1908 Simone de Beauvoir France, author (Mandarins, 2nd Sex)
1913 Richard Milhouse Nixon Yorba Linda CA, (R) 37th President (1969-74)
1914 Gypsy Rose Lee [Rose Hovick], Seattle, burlesque actress (Gypsy)
1915 Fernando Lamas Buenos Aires Argentina, actor ("You look marvelous")
1915 Les Paul guitarist/inventor (Les Paul Guitar)
1917 Herbert Lom Czech, actor (Pink Panther Strikes Again, Dorian Gray)
1925 Lee Van Cleef New Jersey, actor (For a Few Dollars More, Escape from New York)
1933 Robert Garcia (Representative-D-New York, 1978- )
1934 Bart Starr NFL quarterback/coach (Green Bay)
1935 Bob Denver New Rochelle NY, actor (Dobie Gillis, Gilligan's Island)
1941 Joan Baez Staten Island, folk singer/human rights advocate
1941 Susannah York London, actress (A Man for All Seasons, Tom Jones)
1944 Jimmy Page London England, rock guitarist (Led Zeppelin-Stairway to Heaven)
1972 Kristie Hicks Bardstown KY, Miss Kentucky-America (1995)

Deaths which occurred on January 09:
1324 Marco Polo Italian explorer, dies
1499 Johan Cicero elector of (Brandenburg, 1486-99), dies at 43
1843 Caroline Herschel "1st lady of astronomy", dies at 98 in Germany
1878 Victor Emmanuel II king of Sardinia (1849-61)/Italy (1861-78), dies at 57
1893 Mohara, Arab ivory/slave trader, dies in battle & is eaten
1979 Sara Carter vocalist/guitarist (Carter Family), dies at 80
1993 Felix Grucci fireworks expert, dies of Alzheimer's disease at 87

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 SCHIMBERG JAMES P.---CEDAR RAPIDS IA.
[REMAINS RETURNED 12/22/98]
1966 WILLIAMS THADDEUS E.---MOBILE AL.
[REMAINS RETURNED 12/22/98]
1968 DALY JAMES A. JR.---BROOKLYN NY.
[03/16/73 RELEASED BY PRG, DECEASED]
1968 GREEN NORMAN M.---WASHINGTON DC.
1968 IRSCH WAYNE C.---TULSA OK.
1968 NEWTON WARREN E.---CANBY OR.
1968 PHIPPS JAMES L.---MATOON IL.
1968 RAMOS RAINIER S.---BELLINGHAM WA.
1968 REHE RICHARD R.---LONG BEACH CA.
1968 SYKES DERRI---CHICAGO IL.
1968 WATKINS WILLIE A.---SUMTER NC.
[11/05/69 RELEASED]
1969 BYRD HUGH M. JR.---BEREA KY.
1969 O'BRIEN KEVIN---FARMINGVILLE NY.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

On this day...
1296 Earl Floris V signs accord with French king
1317 Phillips V, the Tall, crowned king of France
1349 700 Jews of Basel Switzerland, burned alive in their houses
1428 Pope Martinus V declares Jacoba van Beierens marriage invalid
1464 1st meeting of States-General of Netherlands
1493 1st sight of manatees (by Christopher Columbus)
1522 Adriaan F Boeyens of Utrecht elected only Dutch/last non-Italian pope (Adrian VI)
1570 Tsar Ivan the terrible kills 1000-2000 residents of Novgorod
1718 France declares war on Spain
1760 Afghans defeat Marathas in battle of Barari Ghat
1776 Thomas Paine publishes Common Sense, a scathing attack on King George III's reign over the colonies and a call for complete independence.
1788 Connecticut becomes 5th state
1793 Jean Pierre Blanchard makes 1st balloon flight in North America (Philadelphia)
1799 Income Tax introduced in UK
1811 1st Women's Golf Tournament held
1812 Swedish Pomerania (Germany) seized by Napoleon
1839 Daguerrotype photo process announced at French Academy of Science
1839 Thomas Henderson measures 1st stellar parallax (Alpha Centauri)
1847 1st San Francisco newspaper published (California Star)
1848 People's uprising in Palermo Sicily
1854 Astor Library opens in New York City NY
1855 Clipper Guiding Star disappears in Atlantic, 480 dies
1857 7.9 earthquake shakes Fort Tejon CA
1861 1st hostile act of Civil War; Star of the West fired on, Sumter SC
1861 Mississippi becomes 2nd state to secede
1863 -Jan 11th] Battle of Arkansas Post AR (Fort Hindman)
1866 Fisk University establishes
1879 Cheyenne prisoners led by Dull Knife revolt at Fort Robinson
1880 6' (1.8 meters) of snow falls in Seattle in 5 days
1903 Baseball's National & American Leagues make peace
1903 Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota established
1903 Frank Farrell & Bill Devery purchase AL Baltimore franchise for $18,000 & move it to New York City NY (Yankees)
1905 Bloody Sunday-demonstrators fired on by tsarist troops
1908 Muir Woods National Monument, California established
1908 Count Zeppelin announces plans for his airship to carry 100 passengers
1909 Ernest Shackleton reaches 88º23' south
1912 US marines invade Honduras
1929 KDB-AM in Santa Barbara CA begins radio transmissions
1933 Amsterdam confectionery worker go on strike against wage reduction
1936 Semi-automatic rifles adopted by US army
1937 Italian regime bans marriages between Italians & Abyssinians
1941 6,000 Jews exterminated in pogrom in Bucharest Romania
1942 Joe Louis KOs Buddy Baer in 1 for heavyweight boxing title
1942 US Joint Chiefs of Staff created
1945 US soldiers led by General Douglas MacArthur invade Philippines
1951 Life After Tomorrow, 1st film to receive an "X" rating, premieres
1952 Marines give notice that they will recall Ted Williams to active duty
1954 -87ºF (-66ºC), Northice Station, Greenland (Greenland record)
1956 Abigail Van Buren's "Dear Abby" column 1st appears in newspapers
1956 Samir el-Rifai forms government in Jordan
1957 Checheno-Ingush ASSR reformed in RSFSR
1957 British premier Anthony Eden resigns
1957 Dutch Newspaper Society expels communist daily paper "Truth"
1958 In basketball Oscar Robertson (Cincinnati OH) scores 56, Seton Hall team 54
1959 "Rawhide" with Clint Eastwood premieres on CBS TV
1960 Building of Aswan dam in Egypt, begins
1962 Mister M (Dr X) beats Verne Gagne in Minnesota, to become NWA champ
1962 US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1966 Polish government denies exit visa to Cardinal Wyszynski revisionism
1967 Georgia legislature seats Representative Julian Bond
1968 Surveyor 7 space probe soft lands on the Moon
1969 Concorde jetliner's 1st test flight (Bristol England)
1970 Constitution of Singapore enacted
1972 Billionaire Howard Hughes said Clifford Irving's biography is a fake
1976 CW McCall CB song "Convoy" hit #1 on the country music charts
1977 Super Bowl XI Oakland Raiders defeat Minnesota Vikings, 32-14, in Pasadena; Super Bowl MVP Fred Biletnikoff, Oakland, Wide Receiver
1979 High-school player Daryl Moreau makes 126th consecutive free throws
1979 Supreme Court strikes down (6-3) PA law requiring doctors performing an abortion to try to preserve lives of potentially viable fetuses
1980 63 beheaded in Mecca, Saudi Arabia
1983 British PM Margaret Thatcher visits the Falkland Islands
1987 New Nicaraguan constitution takes effect
1987 Chinese/Vietnamese border fights, 1500 killed
1989 Johnny Bench & Carl Yastrzemski elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
1990 64th US manned space mission STS 32 (Columbia 10) launches into orbit
1990 Supreme Court strikes down Dallas' ordinance imposing strict zoning on sexually oriented businesses
1991 Baker & Aziz meet in Geneva; talks fail to defuse the gulf crisis
1991 Baseball officially bans Pete Rose from being elected to Hall of Fame
1997 Heart attacks sends Frank Sinatra back to hospital
1998 Anatoly Karpov defeats Viswanathan Anand to retain chess title
1998 Decapitated head of Danish Little Mermaid is returned
1999 French NATO forces killed a suspected war criminal in Bosnia while trying to arrest him. Dragan Gagovic had been charged in the rape and torture of Muslim women during a Serb offensive in eastern Bosnia in 1992-93.

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Connecticut : Ratification Day (1788)
Panamá, Canal Zone : Martyrs' Day/Dia de los Martires
Switzerland : Meitlisunntig Festival-Woman in Villmergen War (1712) (Sunday)
US : Pun Week (Day 6)
Fungal Infection Awareness Month.

Religious Observances
Roman Catholic : Feast of St Adrian
Roman Catholic : Commemoration of St Julian the Hospitaller & companions

Religious History
1569 St. Philip of Moscow, primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, was murdered by Czar Ivan IV ("Ivan the Terrible").
1777 Pioneer American Methodist bishop Francis Asbury wrote in his journal: 'My soul lives constantly as in the presence of God, and enjoys much of His divine favor. His love is better than life!'
1836 The first Roman Catholic college to be founded in the Deep South, Spring Hill College was established in Spring Hill, Arkansas.
1924 Death of British Armenian scholar F. C. Conybeare, 68. His researches did much to relate the Armenian language and culture to the Greek Old Testament (the Septuagint).
1970 After 140 years of unofficial racial discrimination, the Mormons issued an official statement declaring that blacks were not yet to receive the priesthood "for reasons which we believe are known to God, but which He has not made fully known to man."

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

Thought for the day :
"Imagination is only intelligence having fun."

Question of the day...
How did a fool and his money get together?

Murphys Law of the day...(Frisbee Law)
The most powerful force in the world is that of a disc straining to land under a car, just beyond reach.

Astoundingly Amazing fact #47...
There are one million ants for every human being.

FR *Treadhead List* ping! Another of the *funnies- and one of the most useful and successful: the converted Canadian *Ram* tanks and self-propelled guns modified into infantry carriers with the protection of a tank, invaluable for moving infanbtry across areas under fire from enemy mortars and artillery. Known as the *Kangaroo* [since it carried its *babies* in a steel *pouch*] there are a couple of the old vehicles, almost all used up as targets on tank gunnery ranges after the war, preserved in museums and memorials.

24 October 1944 marks the official birth of the Regiment as an independent entity. On that day, an official communication was received which indicated that ...By authority of the GOC 1st Canadian Army, 19 October 1944, the 1st Canadian Armoured Personnel Carrier Squadron ceased to exist as a separate entity and became a squadron of the newly-created 1st Canadian Armoured Personnel Carrier Regiment. The Regiment to be commanded by Lieut. Col. Gordon M. Churchill, formerly 25th Canadian Armoured Delivery Regiment (Elgin Regiment) and 10 Canadian Armoured Regiment (Fort Garry Horse) with Major F.K. Bingham Sherbrooke Fusiliers and 1st Hussars as Second-in-Command. Regimental Headquarters to be at 83 van Ryswick St., Antwerp.

Lt. Col. Churchill was truly the right man for the job. A Sergeant-machinegunner in WW1, Churchill knew the face of war. With the new regimental status, he was now able to indent for the thousand-and-one things which the previous squadron had depended on others for. At the same time, Col. Churchill set about creating the trappings of a unique identity for this already unique unit.

Amongst the first on the list was proper unit identity. Thus was born the classic 'Kangaroo' cap badge. As a mother kangaroo protects and transports her young within her pouch, so too did the Canadian Kangaroos for the infantry. The Regimental motto was decreed as ARMATOS FUNDIT, loosely translated as "Bearing Armed Men'. It was incorporated into a scroll on the bottom of the badge. Shoulder titles for the new regiment were manufactured locally, orange letters (representing Holland) "ARMD CARRIER REGT Canada" embroidered on a black felt backing. The 1st Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment had come of age.

At this time, the Regiment also came under command of 31 Brigade of the famous British 79th Armoured Division. Previously, the association of the original squadron with the British had been long and successful, and the whole concept of specialized armour fit perfectly within the infrastructure of the "Funnies" of this valourous assault division.
Accordingly, the Canadians of 1CACR were authorized the wearing of the 79th 'Bullshead' flash, and the same was painted on their vehicles, along with the unit designation "157" in white on a green-and-blue square.

On 1 November 1944, RHQ moved formally to Tilburg, Holland, the 'birthplace' of the Regiment. Luckily, deteriorating weather conditions - which were to lead to the worst winter in Europe in 50 years - permitted the new CO to concentrate on building the new organization.

To quote Ken Ramsden, in THE CANADIAN KANGAROOS IN WW2: ...Developing a strong unit with high performance standards was not an easy task. With a suddenly assembled strength of 268 all ranks, no regimental home in Canada, no regimental traditions, and a group of newly-arrived officers, NCOs and troopers, it was a challenge of considerable proportion.

Fortunately, all progressed smoothly. The new faces were integrated quickly, and through labourious indents and some good, old-fashioned scrounging (for which the Canadians in Europe were famous), the Regiment was brought quickly to a state of battle readiness. At this point the combat strength of the Regiment was 106 carriers, and it was contemplated increasing the two existing squadrons to four, but this move was held in abeyance indefinitely, due to the logistical difficulties. By now, 1CACR also had a sister regiment in the 79th Armoured Division, the British 49th Armoured Personnel Carrier Regiment (also equipped with Ram Kangaroos), and it was determined that, between the two, the assault requirements of 21st Army Group would be satisfied.

Towards the end of December, Col. Churchill has also finally won the battle to have 1CACR formally known as the '1st Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment', dropping the word 'Personnel'. This was significant, as elements within the Canadian command infrastructure had long campaigned to make 1CACR a part of the Service Corps, due to its transport function; the men of the Regiment were vociferously opposed to this categorization, as in combat they were exposed daily to the same hazards as were the infantry and armoured corps. The Regiment was back in action in January 1945, and stayed in the thick of things until the end of the war. 'A' and 'B' Squadrons functioned pretty much independently from the crossing of the Rhine until the official Cease Fire order on 5 May 1945, causing no end of headaches to the administrative staff attempting to keep up with the lads. However, both squadrons rendered yeoman service to many British and Canadian infantry formations through this final victory campaign.

The morning mists of mid-winter roll about a column of loaded Kangaroos somewhere in Holland, January 1945. Note that the troops in the lead vehicle are wearing berets, which suggests this might be an administrative move rather than combat assault. The gentleman on his feet looks like a cold and somewhat bored junior infantry officer waiting for orders.

Kangaroo # 14 is a late-production model featuring a hull-mounted Browning .30 calibre machine gun rather than the cupola of the earlier Ram IIs. Most Kangaroos were initially equipped with at least one Browning .50 on an improvised mount on the turret ring, but these mounts were found awkward and unreliable due to the incredible vibration of firing, and were subsequently replaced with one or two additional Browning .30s scrounged from wrecked vehicles or wherever they could be found. Sticking with .30s also eased a logistical problem in that much more of the smaller calibre ammunition could be carried, and no space required for bulky .50 calibre. Generally, responsible infantry were taught to man these extra guns on the run into the debarkation point (it was easier to teach them to use the .30 as well), providing saturating fire all over the objective. A troop of eight Kangaroos would thus have a minimum of sixteen machine guns to cover their advance, not including the Brens of their infantry lift and the support from whatever other armour might be along for the ride.

An unidentified Ram Kangaroo speeds past the camera in a non-tactical move, somewhere in northern Holland, on April 11th, 1945. The troops onboard are members of the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders of Canada.

Note the rudimentary racking holding water cans and other bric-a-brac on the front of this 'Roo. Storage space was at a premium in WW2 armoured vehicles.

The Kangaroo was a god-send to the infantry in both tactical and non-tactical applications. The former meant going into battle with a modicum of protection from artillery and small arms fire, and the latter meant not having to walk between battles!

The Kangaroo's worst enemies in 1945 were mines and artillery. The former usually just blew off tracks and running gear (and shaking up the occupants!), but the latter could prove deadly in or out of the tank. Most Kangaroo casualties were as a result of artillery fire.

The following units of the 21st Army group were lifted into battle by 1CACR at one time or another. If you know of any veterans who have memories and stories of the Kangaroos they would like to share, please contact the WEBMASTER. 2nd BRITISH ARMY

3rd Infantry Division
1st Bn Suffolk Regiment

7th Armoured Division
1/5 Bn Queen's Regiment
2nd Bn Devonshire Regiment
9th Bn Durham Light Infantry

11th Armoured Division
4th Bn King's Scottish Light Infantry

15th Infantry Division
8th Bn Royal Scots
6th Bn Royal Scots Fusiliers
6th Bn King's Own Scottish Borderers
9th Bn Cameronians
7th Bn Seaforth Highlanders
2nd Bn Glasgow Highlanders
10th Bn Highland light Infantry
2nd Bn Gordon Highlanders
2nd Bn Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders

43rd Infantry Division
4th Bn Somerset Light Infantry
4th Bn Wiltshire Regiment
5th Bn Wiltshire Regiment
7th Bn Hampshire Regiment
4th Bn Dorset Regiment
5th Bn Dorset Regiment
7th Bn Somerset Light Infantry
5th Bn Duke of Cornwall Light Infantry

49th Infantry Division
2nd Bn Essex Regiment
2nd Bn Gloucestershire Regiment
Hallamshire Bn

51st Infantry Division
2nd Bn Seaforth Highlanders
5th Bn Cameronians
5th Bn Black Watch
1st Bn Gordon Highlanders
5/7th Bn Gordon Highlanders
1st Bn Black Watch
7th Bn Black Watch
7th Bn Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders
52nd Infantry Division
7/9th Bn Royal Scots
4th Bn King's Own Scottish Borderers
5th Bn King's Own Scottish Borderers

53rd Infantry Division
6th Bn Royal Welsh Fusiliers
4th Bn Welsh Regiment

1st CANADIAN ARMY

2nd Cdn Infantry Division
Royal Regiment of Canada
Royal Hamilton Light Infantry
Essex Scottish Regiment
Regiment de Maisonneuve
Calgary Highlanders
South Saskatchewan Regiment
Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada

3rd Cdn Infantry Division
Royal Winnipeg Rifles
Regina Rifles
1st Bn Canadian Scottish Regiment
Highland Light Infantry
of Canada
Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders
North Nova Scotia Highlanders

4th Cdn Armoured Division
Lake Superior Regiment
Lincoln and Welland Regiment
Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada

And in addition...

Elements of Royal Artillery and Royal Canadian Artillery, i.e. Forward Observation Officers & Men

Elements of Royal (Assault) Engineers

Kangaroos also carried hundreds of wounded and prisoners away from the line in the course of normal ops.
.