The 2-AD returned to Fort Benning Georgia on Sep 29, 1941, and participated (Nov 2, 1941), in the 1st Army Carolina Maneuvers, then returned to Fort Benning on Dec 2. [18], In early 1940, the 1st Armoured Division had priority for equipment and the 2nd Armoured Division had to make do with the remainder. The fighting in Sicily came to an end on Aug 17, with the 2-AD having sustained relatively light casualties in the brief campaign, where it had gained its first Medal of Honor of World War II, belonging to Sgt Gerry H. Kisters. This was in addition to two other armoured regiments, 48 anti-tank guns with 40,000 rounds, 20 light anti-aircraft guns with 30,000 rounds, 48 25-pounders and 24,000 rounds, 500 machine guns, 250 anti-tank rifles, 50,000 anti-tank mines, one million rounds of, Between the end of August and the end of 1940, the following transfers took place: 76,000 men, including. The 2nd Armored was organized as a "heavy" armored division, having two armored regiments of four medium tank and two light tank battalions of three companies each. 62d Armd FA Bn 6 Oct 1944 – 25 Oct 1944 Lt Col Russell W. Jenna 27 Dec 1943 – 23 Jan 1945 He took great risks to rescue wounded comrades and inflicted prodigious destruction on enemy personnel and materiel even though suffering from the wounds he received in the battle’s opening phase. Members of the Division received 9,369 individual awards, including two Medals of Honor, twenty-three Distinguished Service Crosses, and 2,302 Silver Stars as well as nearly 6,000 Purple Hearts; among those receiving the Silver Star were Edward H. Brooks, Hugh Armagio, Stan Aniol, Staff Sergeant John J. Henry, William L. Giblin, Neil J. Garrison, Morton Eustis, son of William Corcoran Eustis, and Sgt Kenneth E. White. 405th Inf (102d Div) 26 Oct 1944 - 3 Nov 1944 Lieutenant-General Philip Neame, GOC Cyrenaica Command, believed his position was untenable without a fully equipped armoured division supported by two complete infantry divisions and adequate air support. The 2nd Armoured Division was an division of the British Army, which was active during the early stages of the Second World War. As the four tanks advanced towards the German positions, fifty other vehicles containing the rearguard (including some Australian forces) moved off. Divisional information Divisional troops Attachments Assignments Detachments Command Posts. 7 Jun – St-Laurent-sur-Mer – Calvados – France [140], The 2nd Armoured Division was the first of the four BAOR divisions to be reorganised. 15ème Groupe d'Escadrons de Réparations (15e G.E.R) The division arrived in Egypt in December 1940 and was stripped to support Operation Lustre, an expeditionary force to Greece. The destruction of this vehicle blocked all movement of the remaining enemy column consisting of over 100 vehicles of a Panzer unit. But the 2nd Armored none-theless contributed materially to the quick defeat of the enemy, fighting at Campobello, Palermo, and other hot spots. 2-AD Casualties Killed in Action, 1102; Wounded in Action, 5331; Missing in Action, 253; Captured, 65; Battle Casualties, 6751; Non-Battle Casualties, 7116; Total Casualties, 13867. Service Company The 22nd Armoured Brigade had no serviceable tanks and made do with lorries. The 2nd Armored Division gained its first Medal of Honor of World War II, belonging to Sergeant Gerry H. Kisters. 497ème Compagnie de Services These armoured cars were superior in both speed and armament to the armoured cars of the 2nd Armoured Division, which avoided contact to minimise losses. The remainder of Torch's American component were the 1st, 3rd, 9th and 34th Infantry Divisions. In a time of war, the division would be reinforced to a wartime strength of 14,000 men. 28 Mar – Bruckhausen – Westphalia – Germany 1st Bn 406th Inf (102d Div) 9 Nov 1944 - 25 Nov 1944 27 Aug – Mantes-Gassicourt (4 mi W) – Eure-et-Loire – France Elements of the Division first saw action in North Africa, landing at Casablanca, 8 November 1942, and later taking part in the fighting at Beja, Tunisia, but the Division as a whole did not enter combat until the invasion of Sicily, when it made an assault landing at Gela, 10 July 1943. 11 Jan – Erpigny – (Prov) Luxembourg – Belgium By dawn of the third day of the ground campaign, the 2nd Armored Division(Forward) had a hand in the destruction of four Iraqi tank and mechanized brigades. POWs Taken : 76963. The 2nd Armoured Division anti-aircraft gunners reported two aeroplanes shot down and the Germans recorded a friendly fire incident with one bomber attacking German tanks.