51st Battalion, Far North Queensland Regiment

The Far North Queensland Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Australian Army. It currently consists of a single battalion, the 51st Battalion. This traces its lineage from the 51st Battalion, Australian Imperial Force.

History

World War I

The 51st Battalion, AIF was raised in Egypt in 1916 from personnel originating from Western Australia. At the time of its formation, it inherited the battle honour awarded to the mounted infantry from Western Australia who served during the Boer War.

The battalion, as part of 13th Infantry Brigade of the 4th Australian Division, sailed for Marseilles and was sent to the front lines in June 1916. In three weeks, the battalion lost 560 men. Following this, it moved to Belgium where it saw service on the Hindenburg Line, where it lost a further 389 men in two days. By the end of the war, when the 51st Battalion was disbanded, it had lost 83 officers and 2,477 men, with Lt C.W.K. Sadlier having been awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions in Belgium.

Inter War

The battalion was reformed in 1921 at Subiaco in Western Australia, before moving to Launceston, Tasmania, and then to Sydney. In 1927, the battalion was regimented as 51st Battalion, Field of Mars Regiment. During its period in New South Wales, it was twice amalgamated, first with the 30th Battalion in 1930, then with the 18th Battalion in 1935. In 1936, the 51st Battalion, Far North Queensland Regiment was formed, taking on the lineage from the original 51st Battalion.

World War II

The FNQR was a militia regiment on the outbreak of the Second World War, and consequently lost most of its men to the 2nd Battalion, Australian Imperial Force. In 1941, with Japan entering the war, the regiment was placed on full time duty defending the area from Port Douglas to Gordonville. However, in 1943, due to the government releasing rural workers from their full time military commitment, the 51st Battalion was forced to amalgamate with the 31st Battalion, Kennedy Regiment. The new 31st/51st Battalion was deployed to New Guinea, where it was designated as an AIF battalion in 1944. Following this, and a return to Australia, the battalion was then deployed to the Soloman Islands, where it saw its heaviest fighting of the war at the Battle of Porton, near Bougainville. The battalion was finally disbanded in 1946.

Post War

The 51st Bn, FNQR was raised again in 1950, this time being presented with colours containing the battle honours of its predecessor units. In 1960, the regiment was amalgamated yet again, with the 31st Battalion, Kennedy Regiment and the 42nd Battalion, Capricornia Regiment to become the 2nd Battalion, Royal Queensland Regiment. This lasted five years, until the Citizen Military Force was reorganised again - the 2nd Battalion was split into it components, with the 51st becoming 51st Battalion, Royal Queensland Regiment. A further reorganisation saw the number of battalions reduced; this led to the 51st become a single company.

RFSU

In the late 1970s, the Australian government decided that an increased military presence was needed in the far north of Australia, in the form of Regional Force Surveillance. The first two units, North-West Mobile Force and The Pilbara Regiment were raised for service in Western Australia and the Northern Territory in 1981-1982. To extend this to the northern regions of Queensland, it was decided to reform the 51st Battalion. In 1985, the 51st Independent Rifle Company was removed from the order of battle of the Royal Queensland Regiment to become the 51st Battalion, Far North Queensland Regiment once again.

Mission

The mission of the 51st Bn, FNQR is as a Regional Surveillance Force unit. It is responsible for providing surveillance and reconnaissance in the inhospitable areas along the northern coast of Australia. As the regiment's name suggests, it has responsibility for the areas in the north of Queensland.

• Battle Honours
  • South Africa 1899-1902
  • Great War: France and Flanders 1916-18, Egypt 1915-16, Somme 1916-18, Pozieres, Bullecourt, Messines 1917, Menin Road, Polygon Wood, Passchendaele, Ance 1918, Villers-Bretonneux, Hamel, Amiens, Albert 1918, Hindenberg Line, Epehy
  • Second World War: Liberation of Australian New Guinea, Tsimba Ridge, Bonis-Porton, South West Pacific 1943-45