9th-12th-Lancers - Year 2001 - Page 0045
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| Regiment | 9th/12th Lancers |
|---|---|
| Year | 2001 |
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REGIMENTAL JOURNAL OF THE 9TH/12TH ROYAL LANCERS (PRINCE OF WALES’S) 45 Capt Mathesoh fee/s the straw forces into the Presevo Valley, an area hotly defended by the UCPMB Albanian extremists. Quite contrary to expectations, a knotty problem seemed to unravel itselfwithout too much diffi- culty and the focus of the Task Force shifted to the Southern tip of Kosovo and the fighting near Tetovo. The Task Force was redeployed down to the south along with GW Troop who had a rather sticky time amid the minefields in the region around Dragass. Due to altitude, the hardy band from GW were deployed without their vehicles and lowered into position from 1 . Sergeant Ma/ot 7 that wasn’t the K/hd of AA that / was ta/K/hg about a Puma. After nearly two weeks, in all weathers, and 13 arrests later, the troop was extracted and returned to Podujevo with numerous tales of the ‘deep’ south. At the end of the tour and the hand over completed to the SCOTS DG Battle Group, the Sqn looked back with a sense of pride and achievement. It was certainly not the easiest tour and there were many times of extreme activity, but it was an extremely interesting and in many ways fillfilling. It was definitely not ‘Another Bosnia’. GC- C Exercise GOTHIC LANCER Regimental Battlefield Tour to Italy “Our role was subordinate and preparatory” - Gen Alexander commenting on the Italian Campaign his summer I had the privilege of organising and leading a battlefield tour to Italy. Following on from the hugely suc- cessfiJl Regimental tour to Tunisia in 1998, the seed was sown by reading the account of the 9th Lancers in 1945, who formed a “Private Army” under Lt Col Price 9L, as the exploitation force for 78 (British) Division’s advance through the Argenta Gap and up to the Po River. This also offered an opportunity to investi- gate the exploits of the 12th Lancers, who in 1945 completed an advance of 200 miles in 23 days across 12 major rivers, of which 10 had to be bridged. And so Exercise GOTHIC LANCER emerged into a 3-day whistle-stop tour of six areas of study across northeast Italy: Cp/s’ Mess 7 Ravenna Wat Cemeteh/ The first Battle of San Savino-Coriano Ridge 7 September 1944 (9th Lancers) The fall of Faenza 7 December 1944 (9th Lancers) In the infantry role 7 January-March 1945 NW of Ravenna (9th Lancers and 12th Lancers) The advance through the Argenta Gap 7 April 1945 (9th Lancers) The advance to the R Adige 7 April 1945 (12th Lancers) The advance to Venice and the occupation of Trieste 7 April/May 1945 (12th Lancers) |
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