Philippine Division Revisited

[el cid again]

Working on eratta for the Level 7 batch of RHS scenarios,

I found we have (always, in all forms of WITP) misnamed the 86 th and 88 th Field Arty Regiments (US Army).

They are Philippine Scouts. For some reason one regiment had more men than the other. Equipped in the main with 105mm howitzers, each also had about a battery of 155 mm (apparently - for which there is photographic evidence).

Also present was a "131st Field Artillery Battalion" - which the US Army Order of Battle says never went to PTO - but to North Africa and ETO - and which didn't yet exist. But missing were the 23rd and 24th "regiments" - although one of these units has 2 battalions of 75mm guns and the other 1 battalion of 2.95 inch Mountain guns - making them together a real artillery regiment. I created a combined unit and put it in the slot of the 131st - which should not be present at all.

I also found that the Philippine Scouts Infantry regiments (the 45th and 57th infantry) had considerably more men than the all white US Army 31st Infantry did: so I left the 31st at 81 squads but increased the Pp Scouts to 108 - and their support from 120 to 144 squads.

[DuckofTindalos]

No such thing as the 131st FA bn; but there was a 2/131st FA rgt of the TX Army National Guard who served in the SRA. It ended up fighting with Blackforce in Java.

[el cid again]

While the unit is indeed a Texas outfit - the Army OB says it went to North Africa 13 April 1943 and Italy 9 Sept 1943
and France 15 Aug 44 - so it seems unlikely to have been in Java. It formed in January 1942 at Camp Bowie Texas

[DuckofTindalos]

Whether you call it "unlikely" or not, the 2/131st Field Artillery was there. It formed part of the 26th FA Bde, which had been destined for the Philippines, being transported on the Pensacola convoy. It was diverted to Brisbane when the Philippines were invaded.

[treespider]

ORIGINAL: Terminus

Whether you call it "unlikely" or not, the 2/131st Field Artillery was there. It formed part of the 26th FA Bde, which had been destined for the Philippines, being transported on the Pensacola convoy. It was diverted to Brisbane when the Philippines were invaded.

From:
http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/java.html

"The American army contingent (ca. 750 men) on the other hand consisted of only one single army unit - the 2nd Artillery Battalion of 131st American Field Artillery Regiment of the Texas National Guard (558 officers and men) under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Blucher S. Tharp, which arrived in Soerabaja on 11 January 1942."

[el cid again]

The unit listed in all forms of WITP is 131st FA Battalion. It could not have started in PI when the war began because it didn't form up until 1942. It appears never to have entered PTO at all.

Now if an element of the 131st FA Regiment was intended - it should have been so designated - permitting verification.

I cross checked both the US Army Order of Battle and the official US Army history The Fall of the Philippines. The latter lists no such unit in either Philippine Division or US Army Forces in the Philippines (other than the Philippine Division) - a different table - nor in the text on either topic. Clearly our OBs are all wrong - even if some element of a regiment was eventually involved in the DEI - which hardly could be verified without the proper name. I will check the Army OB for such a unit.

[el cid again]

I indeed found - under 131 FA regiment - that a 2nd battalion was detached - but it never went to the Philippines. Instead it shipped for Australia just before the war began (21 Nov 41) and

to confuse the issue further - the rest of the regiment was redesignated the 131st FA BATTALION - and became the unit I report on above - which never entered PTO at all.

Apparently the original unit had 36 tubes - and these ended up in 2 different battalions of 18. Not sure if the regiment always had two battalions or if it originally had 3 and reorganized as 2? Nor is it clear the 2nd battalion element should be shown as showing up at Malang on 8 March 1942 or, perhaps, a point like Brisbane about the end of December 1941?
It appears to have been at sea when the war began - and might have gone many places - depending on developments. Not having it available until March seems a disadvantage.

In any case, since the 131st FA Battalion never entered PTO in fact, it should not be in our OB. The 2nd bn 131st Regiment should be properly designated and not shown in the wrong place when the war begins.

[spence]

At the beginning of 1941 the 131st Artillery of the Texas National Guard consisted of three 12 gun battalions (3 batteries of 4 x 75s). It was nationalized in mid 41. The 2nd Battalion was apparently a little better equipped, trained or administered so it, along with 3 other similarly equipped battalions got assigned to the 26th FA Brigade which was originally supposed to reinforce MacArthur in the Philippines.
It was in the Pensacola Convoy on Dec 7th and got diverted to Brisbane arriving some time in mid-December. The 4 artillery battalions then got parcelled out here and there as the deteriorating situation required. The 2/131 went to Java arriving in Jan and got further subdivided into batteries which ended up fighting in different parts of Java (D Battery fighting with the Australians in Blackforce, the others with the Dutch). The two battalions of the Idaho Guard, 148th Regt IIRC, went to Darwin and were going to be shipped to Timor in the Houston Convoy in Feb but ended up just helping to beef up the defenses there after the convoy turned back. The other Bn in the 26th FA Brigade, from a third (and cant remember #NG Regt) ended up attached to whichever US Div got to New Guinea first since that division didn't have its own guns.

The original 131st Artillery Regiment of the Texas NG did indeed go to North Africa, with or without a reconstituted 2nd Battalion.

After fighting in Java the Japanese grouped the men of the 2/131 together with the Houston survivors and they all went to Burma to build a railroad.

[DuckofTindalos]

Here's the "consist" of the Pensacola convoy. Very handily shows the subunits of the 26th FA Bde:

[el cid again]

thanks

[JeffroK]

ORIGINAL: el cid again

Working on eratta for the Level 7 batch of RHS scenarios,

I found we have (always, in all forms of WITP) misnamed the 86 th and 88 th Field Arty Regiments (US Army).

They are Philippine Scouts. For some reason one regiment had more men than the other. Equipped in the main with 105mm howitzers, each also had about a battery of 155 mm (apparently - for which there is photographic evidence).

Also present was a "131st Field Artillery Battalion" - which the US Army Order of Battle says never went to PTO - but to North Africa and ETO - and which didn't yet exist. But missing were the 23rd and 24th "regiments" - although one of these units has 2 battalions of 75mm guns and the other 1 battalion of 2.95 inch Mountain guns - making them together a real artillery regiment. I created a combined unit and put it in the slot of the 131st - which should not be present at all.

I also found that the Philippine Scouts Infantry regiments (the 45th and 57th infantry) had considerably more men than the all white US Army 31st Infantry did: so I left the 31st at 81 squads but increased the Pp Scouts to 108 - and their support from 120 to 144 squads.

Its odd that 86 & 88 FA rgts are mis-named, both are ID'd as PS in the "Green Books", both had some 155mm. 86th with South Luzon Force had 3 Bttys with 6 x 155mm GPF and an SP Bn with 16 x 75mm, 88th had 75mms, I cant find any reference to 105mm in the period before Bataan.

45th Rgt PS had its 1st Bn detached to the Bataan peninsula, do you show this as a seperate unit?

I think, as above, the US Army had a 131 Fd Arty Bn plus a 131 Fd Arty Rgt, there were numerous duplications when the NG Rgts were changed to Bns.

[el cid again]

Turns out the OB lists the date of formation for the 131st FA BATTALION as the date of disbanding the 131st FA REGIMENT - and both trace formation to the same point in Texas - so it is pretty clear that the battalion simply took over the regimental name. It isn't clear to me if a FA REGIMENT had three battalions or only two? But in at least two cases we get only two battalions from one regiment - whilie in another we seem to get three.

I think the "SP 75s" are shown - but in vehicular form - as a separate unit.

EDIT: Yep. As the Philippine Provisional AT Regiment - with GMC 75mm Halftracks


It appears the 105s were entirely in the hands of the "Provisional Field Artillery Battalion" of the Phlippine Army - after it was inducted into the US Army - But surely the 75 was the standard in the Philippines - the 105s are what whoever did the original OB thought were present - and I never changed it. The official history clearly shows that one regiment had two battalions of 75mm field guns and the other only one battalion of "2.95 inch" mountain guns.

I have decided to separate the Philippine Division artillery

the 23rd was motorized while the 24th was pack. I am showing the 24th as a "Regiment" Field Artillery Battalion as well.
And that means we can detach a battalion - letting 23rd represent it.

[Don Bowen]

Sid, I'm a little ashamed of you. You are one of the most knowledgeable people I know on the Philippine Army and Campaign - you've tought me quite a few things. Yet this thread has questions that can be easily answered from the green books, alone. I hope you are not getting Alzheimer’s disease, as we are about the same age and I’m afraid I’ll get it too.

In the 1930s the Philippine Division was a square division with several units inactive:

Philippine Division
23rd Infantry Brigade
- 45th Infantry Regiment (PS)
- 57th Infantry Regiment (PS)
24th Infantry Brigade - Inactive
- 31st Infantry Regiment
- 49th Infantry Regiment (PS) – Inactive
12th Artillery Brigade
- 23rd Field Artillery Regiment (PS) - 2nd Battalion Inactive
- 24th Field Artillery Regiment (PS)
- 26th Field Artillery Regiment, Medium (PS) – inactive.
14th Engineering Regiment (PS)

This represented an under-strength Square Division, lacking one Infantry Regiment, one light Field Artillery Battalion, and the entire medium Field Artillery Regiment. The missing light Field Artillery Battalion (2nd/23rd) would normally be used in support of the (missing) fourth infantry regiment. The lack of a medium FA regiment was due to lack of resources in the Philippines.

Following the outbreak of the war in Europe in 1939, two significant events occurred to affect the Philippine Division:
1. The legal maximum number of Philippine Scouts was raised from 6500 to 12000, enabling Scout units to fill out and a few new ones to be created.
2. Divisions began to convert from square to triangular. This was less noticeable with the Philippine Division as it’s inactive units already made it appear triangular.

The 23rd Infantry and 12th Artillery Brigades were inactivated. No change was required to the three infantry regiments and those for the FA Regiments were delayed due to lack of equipment. However, the normal conversion of FA Regiments to independent Battalions would have eventually converted the single battalion 23rd Regiment to 23rd FA Battalion and the 24th to the 24th FA battalion plus another with an available number.

The 14th Engineers had personnel reduced preparatory to conversion to a battalion and the 14th Combat Engineer Battalion designation was reserved for them. However, the official redesignation probably did not take place prior to the outbreak of the war.

Two new Field Artillery Regiments were selected for activation in 1941: 86th Medium and 88th Light. However, only the 88th was formed as a regiment. The 86th was directly formed as a battalion – 86th Field Artillery Battalion – and officially the 86th Regiment did not exist. Many histories, including the Green Books, refer to the unit as 86th Regiment or sometimes “single battalion of” 86th Regiment.

Field Artillery units at the outbreak of the war were:
23rd Regiment (Pack) with 2.95 inch mountain guns (single Battalion)
24th Regiment (Truck) with 75mm field guns
86th Battalion (Tractor) with 155mm field guns**
88th Regiment (Truck) with 75mm field guns (single Battalion)

And
2nd Battalion/131st Field Artillery (Truck) with 75mm guns in Pensacola Convoy
1st Battalion/138th Field Artillery (Truck) with 75mm guns departed San Francisco 12/3***
147th Field Artillery (Truck) with 75mm guns in Pensacola Convoy ****
1st Battalion/148th Field Artillery (Truck) with 75mm Guns in Pensacola Convoy
Plus one additional Medium Regiment (155mm) not yet designated

** The 155mm Guns were drawn with World War I vintage armored Tractors (whose M-number I do not recall)

*** If anyone can specifically identify the ship carrying this unit, I would be very grateful. The FA Battalion went to Hawaii.

**** Stanton indicates that the 147th was re-equipped with 105mm howitzers prior to sailing but I believe he is incorrect. All records for the Pensacola convoy and for the early history of the 147th in Australia indicate that only 75mm M1897 on new M2 “split tail” mounts were used by the four battalions on the Pensacola Convoy. There were an additional 20 75mm guns of unspecified mark on the Pensacola convoy. These were intended for units already in the Philippines. Freed guns (probably the 2.95s from the 23rd) were to be re-issued to Philippine Army Units.


Then, after the outbreak of the war, two provisional FA units were formed in the Philippines. Both were officially part of the Philippine Army and not the U.S. Army, if only for purposes of easier approval. A mixture of personnel was used, including U.S. Regular Army, Philippine Scout, Philippine Regular Army, Philippine Reservists, and Philippine Constabulary.

The 301st FA, Provisional, was formed to utilize about 24 old 155mm GPF guns that were originally intended for Coast Artillery emplacements in the south of Luzon and the Visayas. One battery had been emplaced in the area covered by either the 41st or 51st Division (too lazy to go look it up) and these were successfully withdrawn.

Fifty early Tank Destroyers had been sent to the Philippines but not yet issued to units. These were 75mm M1 anti-tank guns mounted on half tracks. This was the same gun used in the hull mount of the M3 Medium Tank. 48 of these were used to form the 1st Provisional FA Group – 3 Battalions, each of 4 4-gun batteries.


And, finally, a U.S. Field Artillery Regiment just before the war consisted of two battalions. There may have been a few National Guard Units with more.

In a Square Division, there were 2 infantry Brigades (totaling 4 regiments) and a Field Artillery Brigade. The Artillery Brigade had two light FA regiments (totaling 4 battalions) and one medium FA Regiment (totaling 2 battalions). The nominal allocation of the Field Artillery Battalions was one light battalion to support each Infantry Regiment plus one medium battalion available to each Infantry Brigade. Also a combat engineer regiment of two battalions – one for each Brigade.

In a Triangular Division, there were 3 infantry regiments, 3 light FA battalions, and one medium FA Battalion. The allocation of one light FA Bn to each Infantry Regiment remained, with the single medium battalion available in overall support as designated by Division. The combat engineer regiment was reduced to a battalion.

[treespider]

In doing some research on the 2/138th FA ...I have yet to find the ship... but according to the unit history on a website I found the unit itself is renamed to the 198th FA on March 1, 1942....in CHS I note that the 198th starts at hex 136,55....Stanton places the redesignation on 10 feb 42 in Hawaii...

[Cpt Sherwood]

ORIGINAL: Don Bowen
[snip] ... [/snip]

Fifty early Tank Destroyers had been sent to the Philippines but not yet issued to units. These were 75mm M1 anti-tank guns mounted on half tracks. This was the same gun used in the hull mount of the M3 Medium Tank. 48 of these were used to form the 1st Provisional FA Group – 3 Battalions, each of 3 4-gun batteries. [snip] ... [/snip]

Don, 3 x 3 x 4 = 36. Where did the other 12 guns go? [:)]

[Don Bowen]

ORIGINAL: Cpt Sherwood

ORIGINAL: Don Bowen
[snip] ... [/snip]

Fifty early Tank Destroyers had been sent to the Philippines but not yet issued to units. These were 75mm M1 anti-tank guns mounted on half tracks. This was the same gun used in the hull mount of the M3 Medium Tank. 48 of these were used to form the 1st Provisional FA Group – 3 Battalions, each of 3 4-gun batteries. [snip] ... [/snip]

Don, 3 x 3 x 4 = 36. Where did the other 12 guns go? [:)]

Apparently to that famous Chinese City: Tai-Po (spelled typo in English). Off course it's four 4-gun batteries to a battalion. Total 16 guns times 3 battalions = 48.

[el cid again]

I do have trouble with short term memory - but I am doing very well with long term. Still - I find it useful to look in books. My copy of the "green books" - which are not green but a reprint - say the Philippine Division was only "theoretically a square division" - and do not list inactive units.

Still - I am not geeting your point - what is it you are ashamed of? In your long post I failed to note one thing that does not seem consistent other than the absence of the "theoretical" word - and you cover why it ended up the way it did quite well anyway.

[Don Bowen]

Before this thread goes off the page, I'd like to use it to ask a question about the Philippine Army. Sid may well know this off the top of his head.

How many guns were authorized to the Field Artillery Regiment of a Philippine Division?? This question probably relates only to Reserve Divisions as neither the Regular Division nor the Constabulary Division ever fielded artillery regiements.

Dr. Niehorster gives a defintion of a Reserve Division with 444 Officers, 7199 Enlisted, and a Field Artillery Regiment of three battalions, each with 2 batteries, and a total of twelve 2.95-inch pack howitzers.
http://www.orbat.com/site/ww2/drleo/013 ... ppine.html
Simple math gives a 2-gun firing battery.

Ricardo Trota-Jose, in Philippine Army 1935-1942, gives the same data but indicates that this was the 1940 TOE and it was increased in 1941 to 521 Officers and 7881 enlisted (no data on weapons changes but there obviously would be some). I also note the "40_org" portion of Dr. Leo's link.

And, in the Green Book Fall of the Philippines, Morton gives several examples that indicate an allotment of 24 guns to some of the Reserve FA Regiments:

Page 29: 31st FA received only eight 75mm and could organize only two firing batteries of the six that it was authorized. Four guns per battery would indicate 24 in 6 batteries.

Page 327: 41st FA had 16 75mm and 8 2.95-inch. Pretty direct but at this time in the campaign it could possibly have absorbed other units.

Page 327: 21st, 31st, and 51st FA had a total of 40 guns. More than 12 per regiment, hints at 24 with some losses to date.

There are a number of references to units having only 12 guns - 11th, 21st, 71st and 91st.

Also, back in the 90s I traded information with a fellow in the Philippines whose grandfather was in the 41st as an infantry man. He indicated that there were 24 guns in the FA regiment and the anti-tank unit had only one 37mm M1916 gun and a few heavy MGs. The 37mm had been displayed outside an armory and was taken down and cleaned as the only thing available. Unfortunately his website and email address disappeared during the big dot-com bust at the turn of the millennia and I've never been able to reestablish contact with him.

So, from all of this I am ready to assume that the authorized strength of a Reserve FA Regiment was 24 guns in six 4-gun batteries. Also that only two units (41st and 51st, from near Manila area) ever got that many guns and the others got 12 or less.

Sid, can you (or anyone) comment on this??

[el cid again]

The Philippine Division was always a wierd creature - neither regular nor reserve - and not particularly related to other organizations except in theory (where it was a regular square division minus parts). One of the missing parts was a regiment of Philippine Scouts. Another was a missing artillery battalion.

A square division had two brigades each with two regiments of infantry and one regiment of artillery - that composed of two battalions. The Philippine division had three regiments of infantry (one regular and two Philippine Scouts) - and two regiments of artillery - but one of these had only one artillery battalion (the Green Book says "because it was not needed to support the absent infantry regiment" if I remember this right).

The Philippine army WAS supposed to have artillery regiments in its divisions and it DID form them up - kind of sort of.
But in most cases there were no guns! [And in one case there were 110 guns!!!] This was all messed up because there was not enough time to organize and train - and ultimately I think what happened is that a "provisional artillery battalion" was formed from the available experienced people. This unit seems to be the only unit in the entire Archepellego with 105mm guns - probably newly arrived from purchases for the Philippine Army. This unit IS present in RHS. More detailed information should be in The Philippine Army, University of Manila Press (and in print in Manila). Ah - I see you have it. The reserve divisions (which used the officers from the first regular division - that reforms up green later) had artillery units fitted as you say above - I follow Trota - calling the 2.95 inch "75mm mountain guns" - they are mountain guns. I think the Philippines were supposed eventually to use 6 gun batteries - but it never happened.

I now think that ALL US artillery regiments pre war were two battalions - because they theoretically supported square divisions. But IF they ever had four gun batteries (I think they did) this got reorganized during the pre war period to six gun batteries. We have cases where we know the guns were 36 per regiment and it splits into two 18 gun battalions - so that probably was done about 1939/1940 - if not before.