What is 1st Armoured Regiment’s legacy to be for those who come after?

“A legacy: something left or handed down from the past; something with lasting impact for future generations.” 

It was almost taken for granted that 1 Armd Regt was the nation’s tank regiment and that it would always be on the ORBAT (as it had for the past 75 years).  It was, after all, the RAAC’s foundation stone.  

For it to be a non-combatant, or have a non-RAAC role of any sort, was just inconceivable.  

Now, however, 1 Armd Regt is no longer a tank regiment; it is not even a combatant.  The inconceivable has happened!  

Neither the Chief of Army, nor RAAC Head of Corps, will say whether or not its new role as an experimentation unit, is a permanent one.  They won’t even say why the change of role had to happen … nor why an experimentation unit suddenly became more important than a tank regiment! 

While 1 Armd Regt was a tank regiment, there was no thought of ‘legacy’.  Why would there be?  The Regiment was evolving … developing its battlecraft and focussing on ways to continually improve its ability to destroy the enemy using fire and manoeuvre.

The future of the unit (and the RAAC) seemed assured when the 2023 Defence Strategic Review designated 3 Brigade in Townsville, to be an armoured brigade.  

The Brigade was expected to comprise: a tank regiment (1 Armd Regt); a reconnaissance regiment (2 Cav Regt); and a mechanised infantry battalion (3RAR).  This, however, was not to be.  On 29 Sep 23, 1 Armd Regt ceased to have an RAAC role.  

As surprisingly as it was, the Chief of Army reduced the combat power of 3 Brigade by a tank squadron, a cavalry squadron and a battlegroup headquarters (allocating 2 Cav Regt two tank squadrons and two recon squadrons … an incompatible mix of roles for a single unit).   

Given the circumstances, veterans now have to ask themselves: will we leave a legacy; if so, what will it be?  

One way of looking at this, is to ask: when 1 Armd Regt becomes a tank regiment again (as it most certainly will), what words of wisdom would we ‘metaphorically’ place in a time capsule (to be opened when it marches to ‘Radesky’ once more). 

Acknowledging that today’s tanks are different in every way, what things did we learn during our operational service, that those coming after would benefit by being aware of, i.e. what were the timeless elements that, for us, led to our success in battle?

The list below is intended to provide a starting point:

Be determined to win
Be ready to go at all times
Support each other in all things
Train the way you intend to fight
Offensive action always wins through
Bring maximum firepower to bear quickly
Use combined arms to the greatest advantage.

An invitation …

Veterans and former members of 1 Armd Regt are asked to add to this, so that a lasting legacy that is truly representative of our battlecraft and experience, can be passed on … whenever it is that 1 Armd Regt becomes a tank regiment again.

Lieutenant Colonel Bruce Cameron, MC, RAAC (Ret’d)

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FILE PHOTO (2017): Soldiers from the 1st Armoured Regiment await the order to start the parade to mark the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Cambrai. Photo by Corporal Craig Barrett.

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