2/6th Battalion (Australia)

2/6th Battalion
Soldiers armed with rifels and sub-machine guns occupy a defensive position during training
Three infantrymen of the Australian 2/6th Battalion training in the Watsonville area of North Queensland, April 1944
Active25 October 1939 – 18 February 1946
CountryAustralia
BranchAustralian Army
TypeInfantry
Size~800–900 men[Note 1]
Part of17th Brigade, 6th Division
Motto(s)"Nothing over us"
ColoursPurple over red
EngagementsSecond World War
Insignia
Unit colour patchA two-toned rectangular organisational symbol

The 2/6th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army that served during the Second World War. Raised in October 1939 as part of the all-volunteer Second Australian Imperial Force, the battalion formed part of the 6th Division and was among the first troops raised by Australia during the war. Departing Australia in early 1940, the 2/6th were deployed to the Middle East where in January 1941, it took part in the first action of the war by Australian ground forces, the Battle of Bardia, which was followed by further actions around Tobruk. Later, the 2/6th were dispatched to take part in the Battle of Greece, although they were evacuated after only a short involvement in the campaign. Some members of the battalion subsequently fought on Crete with a composite 17th Brigade battalion, and the battalion had to be re-formed in Palestine before being sent to Syria in 1941–42, where they formed part of the Allied occupation force that was established there in the aftermath of the Syria–Lebanon campaign.

In mid-1942, the battalion was withdrawn from the Middle East to help face the threat posed by the Japanese in the Pacific. A period of garrison duty was undertaken in Ceylon between March and July 1942, before they arrived back in Australia in August 1942. The 2/6th was then deployed to New Guinea in January 1943, fighting around Wau and advancing towards Salamaua during the Salamaua–Lae campaign. In September 1943, they were withdrawn to the Atherton Tablelands for rest, and did not see action again until later in the war, when they were committed to the Aitape–Wewak campaign in late 1944. The 2/6th remained in New Guinea until the end of the war, and was disbanded in February 1946, having returned to Puckapunyal the previous December.

  1. ^ Palazzo 2004 p. 94.


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