12th Battalion (Australia)

12th Battalion
A 12th Battalion observation team at Gallipoli in August 1915
Active1914–1919
1921–1936
1953–1960
1972–1975
CountryAustralia
BranchAustralian Army
TypeInfantry
RoleLine infantry
Part of3rd Brigade, 1st Division
Motto(s)Ducit Amor Patriae
(Love of My Country Leads Me)[1]
ColoursWhite over blue
MarchCaptain Oldfield[1]
EngagementsWorld War I
Commanders
Notable
commanders
John Gellibrand
Insignia
Unit colour patch

The 12th Battalion was an infantry battalion originally raised for the First Australian Imperial Force during the First World War. The battalion was recruited from Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia and formed part of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division. It served throughout the war, firstly during the Gallipoli Campaign and then on the Western Front. During the interwar years, the 12th Battalion was re-raised as a part-time military unit and during the Second World War undertook garrison duties in Australia, but did not see combat. Today its lineage is perpetuated by the 12th/40th Battalion, Royal Tasmania Regiment, a unit which continues to serve in the Australian Army Reserve.

  1. ^ a b Festberg 1972, p. 72.