2/13th Battalion (Australia)

2/13th Battalion
Soldiers crouch behind a low berm amidst a rocky desert area
A 2/13th patrol at Tobruk, September 1941
Active1940–1946
CountryAustralia
BranchAustralian Army
TypeInfantry
Size~800–900 personnel[Note 1]
Part of20th Brigade, 7th Division
20th Brigade, 9th Division
Nickname(s)"Devil's Own"[2]
EngagementsWorld War II
Insignia
Unit colour patch
(1940–1942)
A rectangle inside a diamond, forming an organizational symbol
(1942–1946)A T-shaped organizational symbol

The 2/13th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army, which served during World War II. Formed in April 1940 from volunteers drawn primarily from New South Wales, as part of the 20th Brigade of the 7th Division, the battalion served in North Africa in 1941–1942, after being reassigned to the 9th Division. While most of the 9th Division was withdrawn from Tobruk, during October 1942, the battalion remained and fought alongside the new garrison built around the British 70th Division. Following the lifting of the siege, the battalion returned to Australia during 1943. It later took part in campaigns against the Japanese in New Guinea in 1943–1944 and Borneo in 1945, before being disbanded in 1946.

  1. ^ Palazzo 2004, p. 94.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference AWM was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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