Jump to content
Main menu
Main menu
move to sidebar
hide
Navigation
Main page
Recent changes
Random page
Help about MediaWiki
Special pages
Niidae Wiki
Search
Search
Appearance
Create account
Log in
Personal tools
Create account
Log in
Pages for logged out editors
learn more
Contributions
Talk
Editing
Scheyville National Park
(section)
Page
Discussion
English
Read
Edit
View history
Tools
Tools
move to sidebar
hide
Actions
Read
Edit
View history
General
What links here
Related changes
Page information
Appearance
move to sidebar
hide
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
===World War II=== With the outbreak of World War II, the farm was commandeered by the military. Initially, it was intended to use the farm for artillery and anti-tank warfare training but little record of this is available. In early 1942 the Scheyville Dreadnought Farm became the home of the newly formed 73rd Anti-Aircraft Searchlight Company.<ref name=nswshr-1817/> The new and highly specialised force was an essential element in the defence of Australia particularly after the Japanese surprise air [[Attack on Pearl Harbor]] on 7 December 1941. The 73rd Company used the land at Scheyville to carry out basic training while waiting for its ranks to fill.<ref name=nswshr-1817/> 73rd Company administration was carried out in the former farm administration building of the Quadrangle Precinct. Officers were housed in the Quadrangle dormitories suitably adapted as single person rooms. The dining room became the Officer's mess. Other ranks were housed in tents pitched to the southeast of the quadrangle buildings. The Company moved out of Scheyville in November 1942. They first moved to a Staging Camp in [[Brisbane]] and then to [[Townsville]] where on 29 December 1942 they boarded the MV Duntroon and were shipped to New Guinea where they served at [[Port Moresby]], [[Nadzab]] and [[Lae]] during 1943 and 1944. Initially illuminating anti-aircraft artillery they soon were also employed illuminating enemy aircraft. Their most commended function by both the Australian and American forces was their work guiding Allied aircraft, damaged in battle, back to their bases in Port Moresby and Lae. Often these aircraft had lost radar and radio contact and the lives of those airmen depended on the assistance provided by the 73rd Company men.<ref name=nswshr-1817/> At the outset of the war the allied nations had no effective paratrooper forces. They were quickly convinced of the necessity to train paratroopers as [[Germany]] successfully deployed paratroopers in battles to annex [[Austria]], [[Norway]], the [[Netherlands]] and [[Crete]]. As part of Australia's contribution to the defence of the [[British Empire]] and our own shores then under threat by the Japanese, the [[1st Parachute Battalion (Australia)|1st Parachute Battalion]] was formed in late 1942 and was the first airborne combat battalion to exist in the Australian armed forces. The members of the Battalion were recruited from the ranks of the army and most of the men had already seen active service in other theatres of war. A number of those who joined the Battalion were decorated and there were ten soldiers who had earned the Military Cross for their war service.<ref name=nswshr-1817/> Extensive training was required for those volunteering to join the new force. They began training with Australia's first Parachute Training Unit at [[RAAF Station Tocumwal]] under the command of Wing Commander P. Glasscock (RAAF). Training at Tocumwal was in specific aspects of airborne combat and culminated in their first parachute jump. The paratroopers continued training for a short period of time at [[RAAF Base Richmond]]. During flight training members of the Battalion had to qualify for the winged insignia and the "Red Beret" by performing a total of seven jumps. Once flight training was completed the men were then marshalled at Scheyville where, while waiting for their Battalion ranks to fill, they received general combat and fitness training.<ref name=nswshr-1817/> Like the Searchlight Company before them, the Parachute Battalion took over the facilities at the "Scheyville Camp", utilising the quadrangle buildings for administration, officer accommodation and the slopes to the south-east of the quadrangle.<ref name=nswshr-1817/> Under the command of Lt. Col. Sir [[John Overall (architect)|John Overall]] CBE, MC & Bar, a seasoned and distinguished Officer, the Company moved out of Scheyville in late 1944 eventually arriving at [[Canungra, Queensland|Canungra]] where they received training in jungle combat. The Battalion finally moved to [[Mareeba Airfield]] in northern [[Queensland]] to await orders. This was where the Battalion spent the final months of the war.<ref name=nswshr-1817/>
Summary:
Please note that all contributions to Niidae Wiki may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here.
You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see
Encyclopedia:Copyrights
for details).
Do not submit copyrighted work without permission!
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)
Search
Search
Editing
Scheyville National Park
(section)
Add topic