No. 14 Dress

following months of fierce Taliban attacks, an impasse had been reached and a truce was brokered by the District Elders, under which both the British and Taliban forces agreed to withdraw from the District Centre. However, within three months the Taliban were back, citing a US airstrike as a violation of the original agreement. Radical Islamic rule was established and the town became a stronghold of insurgent activity. As a result of the US Army surge, operational responsibility for Musa Qal’eh was transferred to US Marines in March 2010. 2 YORKS deployed on Op HERRICK 7, taking over from 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards on 21st September, 2007, in the mentoring and liaison role, guiding the Afghan National Army (ANA) units of the 3rd Brigade, working out of Camp Shorabak and deploying with the Kandaks (battalions) within their battalion areas of Gereshk, Sangin and Musa Qal’eh.

By December plans were well advanced for a multi-national operation, Op Mar Karadad, to liberate Musa Qal’eh from the Taleban and protect Mullah Salaam’s village. Mullah Salaam had been a Taliban commander but was now the District Governor and leader of a tribal uprising against the Taliban.

On 2nd December, Royal Marine Commandos crossed the Helmand River and created a block to the south of Musa Qal’eh; on 5th December the Household Cavalry BG established the northern block and the Afghan militia set up a cordon round the eastern perimeter.

On 7th December, 2 YORKS led their ANA Brigade (less one battalion) in a feint attack from the South West, to convince the Taleban that the main attack was coming up the Musa Qal’eh Wadi, while the main assault by US Task Force 1 Fury landed by helicopter, surrounding the town in a pincer movement, supported by a veritable air armada, ranging from spy satellites, surveillance and electronic aircraft, bombers, strike fighters, UAVs, gunships and attack helicopters.

On 11th December the ANA, led by 2 YORKS, linked up with the weary US paratroops and broke into the town centre, behind an RE mine clearance team and after a successful sweep and search of the compounds, on the 12th December, the flag was raised over the District Centre, under a desultory mortar attack.

Within three weeks of the liberation of the town a new District Centre had been constructed and was the first purely ANA Area of Operations (AO), mentored by A Coy 2 YORKS, in the country, with a large, white helium balloon floating gracefully over one of the newly constructed PBs.

Altogether, twenty eight members of the Battalion were commended for their actions during the operation, including the awarding of one OBE, two Military Crosses, eleven Mentioned in Dispatches, two Queen’s Commendations for Valuable Service, eleven Joint Commander’s Commendations and one Commander British Forces Commendation.

Two soldiers were killed and 15 were wounded in action.

Musa Qal’eh Minaret

The Silver Musa Qal’eh Minaret was commissioned by those Officers who served with the 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment on Operation HERRICK 7. Their names are inscribed on the rear of the base.

The piece of silver depicts the mosque that was so prevalent on the skyline of the town. It serves as a testament to the bravery of those troops from the Battalion who served on Operation HERRICK 7, and of the acts undertaken in Musa Qal’eh.

Helmand

Operation DAAS 20th July 2012

During past operations in NES(S) and the rise and fall of the kinetic environment, the Insurgents’ ability to transport weapons and IEDs into the area became of great interest to ISAF. Once enough information had been gathered about these supply routes 3 YORKS aimed to strike the Insurgents where it would most hurt them, in an area they felt safe and where they believed they could readily move and store munitions, weapons and other equipment to be used against us.

3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment

Once the target village was found the challenge was obvious; with irrigation ditches criss-crossing the area affecting movement and the obvious threat of IEDs protecting such a valuable location, the Battlegroup called

upon other nations for assistance with the operation. The 18th July saw the multi-national force gather at Lashkar-Gah Durai (LGD), home of Corunna Company, to conduct battle prep and receive formal orders. The operation saw the Prince of Wales’s company mounted in MASTIFF, Corunna company mounted in Warrior, a number of Leopard 2 tanks from the Danish BG, the Route Proving & Clearance (RP&C) and bridging assets from the US, as well as CO’s TAC, the IRG and a smattering of the Ops Platoon, Engineers and EOD to create a truly multi-national force prepared for any challenge.

Early on the morning of the 20th July, 3 YORKS Taskforce set out on for the Arghandab River Valley with the intent to conduct an operation designed to disrupt insurgent activities in an area a well known as an Insurgent stronghold in the South East of Afghanistan. The first challenge was breaking through the IED belt that had been laid to protect the valley. With a little luck we accomplished that, losing just a single US mine-roller in the process, and, from our perch to the north of the village, watched a mass exodus of people as the majority of the inhabitants fled from their homes. The search of the village resulted in the find of over 200 kg of explosives, enough to make over 200 IEDs, hidden inside a vehicle covered by a camouflaged tarpaulin. As part of the plan, the Warrior Company pushed further south and onto the high ground to gain the obvious advantage of being able to look down into the valley.

The extraction, however, did provide us with more problems, as a series of vehicles struck IEDs making the recovery at dusk difficult and risky. The CO had little choice but to remain in location for the night and effectively sleep in an IED belt. The next day saw the taskforce recover to LGD but not without the Prince of Wales’s Company striking another IED whilst reversing their WOLFHOUND through the loose sand, or the forward mounted Ops room being engaged by RPG and PKM fire only to be rescued by the CO when his HUSKY dramatically appeared in the line of fire.

The second day of the operation saw soldiers from Corunna Company search a suspicious compound in the valley. This strike was launched, on foot, from the high ground to the south of the objective, a direction the insurgent surely thought highly unlikely and resulted in the finding a further 100kg of home made explosives and a large number of IEDs and IED parts, all of which were destroyed in situ before returning back to the high ground.

Further to the east the rest of the taskforce had braved the 45-degree heat to patrol almost 2l m by foot into another village and search a series of compounds that had been highlighted as of interest. Although this search did not prove fruitful, the return journey did and whilst travelling along a picketed route a number of vehicles struck IEDs, which the insurgent had somehow managed to lay in the only patch of ground we could not see. This set off a series of events as CO’s TAC led strikes on a series of compounds moving almost too quickly for the insurgents to gather themselves, and eventually chasing a motorbike by 3 HUSKY down a dusty track with Leopard 2 tanks in pursuit as well. One can only imagine what was running through the insurgent’s mind as he brazenly looked back over his shoulder and saw what was chasing him.

The final day of the operation saw Corunna Company clear a village of insurgents, explosives and weapons by searching compounds as they moved north from the high ground towards a designated RV where the rest of the taskforce waited. The obvious irrigation ditches and IED belt proved a huge challenge and the US bridging assets were deployed to span the 15-metre-wide culvert. This, together with the use of the mineclearance plough and the EOD search team, enabled both elements of the force to link up again before returning back to LGD, successfully having achieved its mission with no fatalities or injuries.

REGIMENTAL ARTEFACTS

THE ABYSSINIA DRUM

King Theodore’s Drum was taken at the storming of Magdala on 13th April 1868, for which Private Bergin and Magner were awarded the Victoria Cross for breaking into the fortress when it was discovered that the Sappers had not brought any scaling ladders or explosives to breach the main gate.

While the sappers returned to fetch their implements, General Stavely ordered the 33rd to continue the assault and a small party breached the defences close to the Kokit Bir gate, opening the way for the seizing of King Theodore’s stronghold.

The drum was divided between the 4th Kings Own Royal Regiment (left section) the 33rd (centre section) and the 3rd Dragoon Guards (right section).

THE AMHERST FLAG

Field Marshal Jeffrey Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst KCB, was born in Sevenoaks, Kent on 29 January 1717. Amherst served in the War of the Austrian Succession. He was present at the battle of Dettingen in 1743 and Fontenoy in 1745. During the Seven Years’ War, Amherst served as ‘commissary’. Soon after his return he was made Colonel of the 15th Regiment of Foot from 22nd May 1756 to 21st September 1768.

The commander-in-chief of the forces in Britain and America requested of King George II to appoint Colonel Amherst ‘Major General in America’, an operation involving William Pit, the Duke of Newcastle, the Prime Minister, and seeking the aid of the King’s mistress, Lady Yarmouth, to bring this about. The king finally agreed at the end of 1757.

Amherst sailed for America in March 1758 and after a long, slow voyage finally attacked Louisburg in June 1758. He was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in North America. Officially under the command of Amherst, General James Wolfe led the attack on Quebec by way of the River St Lawrence and Amherst attacked by way of land. In 1760 Amherst was ordered to capture Montreal which surrendered to Amherst on 8th Sept 1760 ending French rule in North America.

In 2007 while the Museum store at Tower Street was being reorganised a huge frame was found which revealed a white ensign bearing the cross of St. George on a faded white ground with the Union flag of 1707 represented in the top left quarter.

On the frame was the inscription:

THE AMHERST FLAG This flag, said to be the personal flag of the First Lord Amherst, Colonel of the Regiment 1751–1757 is believed to have been flown at Quebec after its capture in 1759

The flag was carefully restored thanks to a grant from the PWO Museum Trustees and the Association of Independent Museums and is one of the many Regimental artefacts on display in the York Army Museum.

THE ROYAL BENGAL TIGER

The Royal Tiger, superscribed ‘India’, was granted as a badge to be carried on the Regimental Colour of the 14th Regiment in 1838. It was granted for long and distinguished service in India between 1807 and 1831.

The original Royal Bengal Tiger was presented by eleven members of the Officers’ Mess of the 14th Buckinghamshire Regiment in 1875, on the occasion of their promotion.

A copy of the piece was commissioned by the 2nd Battalion in 1871, which is now housed in the York Army Museum.