Hat 8227 WWII British Mortars

During World War II, several dozen divisions were formed as part of the British Army, and at the end of the war they served in its ranks about 2.9 million people. In this one of the most important armies of the Second World War, in terms of numbers, the most important element was, of course, the infantry. The standard British infantry division in 1939, numbering approximately 13,900 officers and men, was relatively well saturated with mortars. This can be seen as the aftermath of the experience of the Great War, in which mortars played a significant role on the battlefield. In each division infantry battalion there was a mortar platoon consisting of 6 pieces of weapons, which very often - as early as 1939! - were transported on Universal Carriers. Mortars (three in number) were also included in the reconnaissance platoon assigned to the infantry battalion. The light mortar was also a full-time job for every British infantry squad. With the ongoing war, the mortar saturation increased and the 1944 infantry division already had (apart from the mortars on the ranks from the team up) a support battalion with three machine gun companies and a mortar company of 16 4.2 inch mortars. It can be estimated that at that time the British infantry division was equipped with approximately 360 mortars of various types. It is worth adding that the basic types of British infantry mortars in 1939-1945 were three 2 inch (50.8 mm), 3 inch (81 mm) and 4.2 inch (107 mm) mortars.