The 2/14th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army that served during World War II. Part of the 21st Brigade, 7th Division, the battalion was raised from Second Australian Imperial Force volunteers drawn mainly from the state of Victoria. After completing training in Australia in 1940, the battalion deployed to the Middle East where it was stationed in Egypt and Palestine before it saw action against the Vichy French in Syria in June and July 1941, in a short lived campaign. Garrison duties in Lebanon followed before the battalion was withdrawn to Australia in early 1942 as Australian forces were concentrated in the Pacific to respond to the threat posed by Japan's entry into the war.
After a short period of re-training in Australia to prepare for jungle warfare, the battalion was deployed to New Guinea in August 1942 as the Australians sent reinforcements to the Kokoda Track to fight against Japanese forces that had been advancing towards Port Moresby. After the Japanese were forced to exhaust their supplies they began to fall back towards their beachheads on the north coast. The 2/14th was part of the Australian advance that then saw further action around Gona. In September 1943, after a period of re-organisation in Australia, the battalion took part in the advance on Lae as the Allies went on the offensive in New Guinea, before taking part in the fighting in the Markham and Ramu Valleys of the Finisterre Range campaign. The battalion's final involvement in the war came in the landing on Balikpapan in 1945. The 2/14th was disbanded after the war, in early 1946.
History
Formation
The 2/14th Battalion was raised on 26 April 1940 at Puckapunyal, Victoria, shortly after the start of World War II as part of the all-volunteer Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF), which was established at the time from personnel that had volunteered to serve in combat overseas. The battalion was assigned to the 21st Brigade, 7th Division, and would remain part of this formation throughout its existence. It had an authorised strength of around 900 personnel, and most of those were drawn from the state of Victoria, although some were allocated from other states later as reinforcements. Many of the battalion's initial recruits had previous military experience, having served in the Militia prior to volunteering for the 2nd AIF, with the majority having to relinquish rank to transfer. Officially the battalion's average age on formation was 29, although the battalion historian, William Russell, asserts that this is not necessarily accurate as men were found to have altered their ages both up (from as young as 15) and down (from as old as 55) upon recruitment. In keeping with 2nd AIF recruitment practices, there were many pairs of brothers who were early recruits; there was even one case of a father and son who served in the same platoon.
Soon after battalion headquarters was established, the battalion's first commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel William Cannon, began choosing his officers, who then set about the task of forming their own companies and platoons, as the unit structure was built up around four rifle companies – designated 'A' through to 'D' – with a battalion headquarters and a headquarters company consisting of several specialist platoons including signals, pioneer, anti-aircraft, transport, administration and mortars. The battalion's companies were formed largely along territorial lines, with 'A' Company being drawn mainly from the Mildura and north-eastern regions of Victoria, while 'B' Company was drawn from Geelong, the Western District, Prahran, Brighton and the Mornington Peninsula. 'C' Company consisted largely of men from Ballarat and Melbourne's inner suburbs, and men of Scottish ancestry, while those of Irish ancestry formed 'D' Company. Once the battalion's complement of men had arrived at Puckapunyal and formation was complete, basic training began in May 1940. On 18 August, the battalion was presented its regimental colours in a ceremony by members of the 14th Battalion, who had served during World War I. This was done in order to establish links with the units of the First Australian Imperial Force, and later, in early October, the 2/14th Battalion changed its unit colour patch from a black over blue diamond to the yellow and blue rectangle of its earlier counterpart. Shortly after this, although still only partially trained, the battalion received orders to deploy overseas, and on 18 October the men embarked upon the Aquitania in Sydney, New South Wales, bound for the Middle East.