page_title: 32nd Battalion (Australia)
section_title: Second World War
hierarchical_section_title: 32nd Battalion (Australia) / History / Second World War
caption_attribution_description: English: Wounded from the 14th/32nd Battalion (Prahan/Footscray Regiment) await evacuation from the battle zone around Bacon Hill in the Waitavalo area, Wide Bay, New Britain.On left PRIVATE HAROLD JOHN ADAMS VX102366, on right LIEUTENANT A.G. MAWSON VX39213 The Australian War Memorial, which holds this photo, has stated that this image is in the public domain and that its copyright has expired.
context_page_description: The 32nd Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was first raised in 1915 as part of the all-volunteer Australian Imperial Force for service during the First World War, and was initially made up of personnel from South Australia and Western Australia. The battalion served in France and Belgium in 1916–1918 before being disbanded in 1919.
  It was re-raised in 1921 as the "32nd Battalion", a unit of the part-time Militia, and during the interwar period the battalion served as a home defence unit in Victoria. During the Second World War the battalion was merged with the 14th Battalion to become the 14th/32nd Battalion, serving firstly as garrison troops in Australia and New Guinea before taking part in the fighting during the New Britain campaign. In July 1945, the 14th/32nd was disbanded.
  After the war, the battalion was not re-raised in its own right when the Citizens Military Force was formed in 1948, however, it was raised as an amalgamated unit known as the "58th/32nd Battalion". This unit remained in existence until 1960 when it was subsumed into the Royal Victoria Regiment.
context_section_description: Following Japan's entry into the Second World War in December 1941, the battalion was called up for defensive duties. Attached to the 2nd Brigade, the battalion provided garrison troops to vital installations around Melbourne until August 1942 when it was transferred to Western Australia, being attached to the 6th Brigade, which was based around Geraldton. In September 1942, as part of an Army-wide reduction that came about because of over-mobilisation, the battalion was amalgamated with the 14th Battalion to become the 14th/32nd Battalion (Prahran/Footscray Regiment).
  In early 1943, the 14th/32nd Battalion carried out amphibious warfare training in Queensland before being deployed to the Buna–Gona area in New Guinea in July. The battalion would remain in mainland New Guinea and New Britain for the next two years, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel William Caldwell. The strategy employed by the Australians during the New Britain campaign was one of containment against the much larger Japanese forces in the area. On 18 March 1945, the battalion took part in its only major battle of the war when it launched an assault on Bacon Hill and captured it. In April 1945, the 14th/32nd Battalion was withdrawn to Australia in preparation for involvement in future operations but, in July, the decision was made to disband the unit as the end of the war became apparent. During the course of the conflict the battalion suffered 77 casualties, of which 31 were killed in action or died of wounds or other causes. Members of the battalion received the following decorations for their service: one DSO, one OBE, two MCs, one British Empire Medal, one DCM, one MM and seven MIDs.
caption: 14th/32nd Battalion wounded await evacuation from the battle zone, March 1945
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