9 Parachute Squadron RE

9 Parachute Squadron RE is an airborne squadron of the British Army's Corps of Royal Engineers. It is part of 23 Parachute Engineer Regiment based at Rock Barracks in Woodbridge, Suffolk, and provides close engineer support to 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team. It traces its heritage to the first Soldier Artificer Company raised in Gibraltar in 1772. The squadron remains the longest continually serving in-role fighting unit in Airborne Forces.

Early history, 1772–1914

Soldier Artificer Company of Gibraltar, 1772–1797

9 Parachute Squadron RE trace their lineage to 6 March 1772 when a royal warrant raised an unnamed Company of Soldier Artificers, transferring suitable men from the regiments in the Gibraltar Garrison. The initial company strength was 71 soldiers, to be commanded by officers of the Corps of Engineers. Sergeant Thomas Bridges was to be the first sergeant-major of the company, being a man well qualified, "not only to oversee the working duties of the Company, but also to drill the personnel in the exercise of small arms as may in the most effectual manner enable them to assist in defending the work they might be repairing." The company gradually increased in strength and, during the Great Siege of Gibraltar, proved its effectiveness. In 1786 the company was 275 men strong, so was divided into two. On 25 April 1787 a royal warrant granted officers the "royal" title, so that the corps became the Corps of Royal Engineers. On 10 October 1787, six further companies were raised in England. Two more again were raised in 1793.

Absorbed into Corps of Military Artificers and Labourers (other ranks), 1797–1804

The two existing companies in Gibraltar were incorporated into the Corps of Military Artificers and Labourers in 1797. At this point they lost their scarlet coats, worn since their formation, for blue coats instead. A year later the Corps of Military Artificers and Labourers was renamed Corps of Royal Military Artificers.

Epidemic of 1804

suffered a yellow fever epidemic between September and December 1804 which killed a third of the population, including many soldier artificers of the company. The company was reinforced with new artificers from the United Kingdom, who arrived by ship in February 1806 alongside their new commander, Captain Henry Evatt of the Corps of Royal Engineers A similar fever would strike in 1813.

Assignment of the number '9' to their name, 1806

On 5 September 1806, a decision was made to identify the Artificer Companies by numbers. Captain Henry Evatt's company was named 9th Field Company. The unit strength was subsequently increased from 100 to 126.

Demolition of the Lines of Contravallation of Gibraltar, 1810

The Lines of Contravallation of Gibraltar were a set of fortifications built by the Spanish in the 1730s across the northern part of the isthmus linking Spain with Gibraltar, in order to prevent British incursions. By 1810, the Spanish had switched focus to defending themselves from the mutual enemy of France, so the Lieutenant-Governor of Gibraltar received permission to have the fortifications destroyed so as not to aid the French if they made it to Gibraltar.
A detachment from the 9th and 10th Field Company were set to work. It took several days for teams of sappers to install demolition charges in and around the walls, casemates, batteries and towers of the Lines. On the evening of 14 February 1810, thousands of people crowded onto Gibraltar's walls and bastions to watch the demolitions taking place. As a report in The London Chronicle noted, "every part of the garrison facing the Spanish Lines was crowded with Spectators, to witness the explosion which was truly grand and picturesque ... the entire front of Forts San Felipe and Santa Bárbara being blown into the ditch, and the whole rendered a complete mass of ruins."

Evolution to the Corps of Royal Engineers and move to the UK, 1812–1856

In 1812 the Corps of Royal Military Artificers was renamed Royal Military Artificers or Sappers and Miners. In 1813 they were renamed again to the Royal Sappers and Miners.
In 1822, the company was relocated from Gibraltar to Woolwich.
In 1856, the Corps of Royal Engineers absorbed the artificers to have the profession named as it is today. From this day, the private ranks of the company were to be known as sappers.
The company is known to have served in the Kaffir Wars, the Crimean War, Bermuda, Halifax, Nova Scotia and Hong Kong.

Second Boer War 1899–1902

9th Field Company is documented to have been divisional troops to the 7th Division on 11 February 1900 during the Second Boer War.

First World War, 1914–1918

The company were mobilised with the 4th Division for the First World War in August 1914. At that time they were organised into a Squadron HQ with four sections, each commanded by a subaltern.

Deployment

On 10 August 1914, 9th Field Company received orders to depart from their base at Woolwich to Ipswich. They were tasked to defend a portion of East Anglia. From 12 to 18 August they were stationed at Woodbridge, which coincidentally is the town near to where the subunit would be based a century later.
On 19 August they travelled by train from Ipswich to Harrow. They embarked on a train to Southampton, then at 4.30pm on the 22 August they boarded the SS Basil to France and the ship captain read them the King's message:

You are leaving home to fight for the safety and honour of my Empire. Belgium, whose country we are pledged to defend, has been attacked and France is about to be invaded by the same powerful foe. I have implicit confidence in you my Soldiers. Duty is your watchword, and I know your duty will be nobly done. I shall follow your every movement with deepest interest and mark with eager satisfaction your daily progress; indeed your welfare will never be absent from my thoughts. I pray God bless you and guard you and bring you back victorious. George, R.I.

They disembarked at Rouen the next evening. Subsequently, they were transported by train to Saint-Quentin, Aisne before marching northwards to bivouac for the evening of 25 August, while artillery fire rung out in the distance.

Retreat from Mons

9th Field Company marched Northwards the next day and met up with the rest of the 4th Division near Le Cateau; however, they shortly afterwards began retracing their route southwards as part of the Great Retreat. As part of the delaying action in the retreat, detachments from the company were tasked to demolish bridges along the way to slow the German advance as follows:

Commander	Location	Preparation Started	Outcome
Lt Fishbourne	Ourscamp	29 August	Demolished 30 August.
Capt Westland	Bailly	29 August	Orders from 2nd Army Corps to cancel the demolition and remove the charges.
Lt Young	Compiègne	30 August	Demolished 31 August.
Maj Barstow with Lt Fishbourne	Bailly	30 August	Unsuccessful as attacked by a German picket resulting in the death of Maj Barstow. Cpl Stone left injured and later captured. Lt Fishbourne escaped with 3 others back to the company.

Capt Westland's section were sent to prepare the bridge at Bailly on 29 August. On arrival they set out pickets and prepared the charges. They then monitored the bridge as retreating British forces extracted over it. At 3.45am on 30 August Westland received orders to send his section back to the company. Westland remained behind with Cpl Goodfellow. At 10.30am he received written orders from 2nd Army Corps to not destroy the bridge, and these orders were to overrule any other orders he received. They received orders to return to the company at 5.30pm.
The bridge at Compiègne was destroyed by a team commanded by Lt Young. At midday on 30 August, Lt Young, his sergeant and eight sappers cycled with tool carts to the bridge from Trosly-Breuil, arriving at 5pm. Young had been ordered to report to General Headquarters B.E.F. but found they had already started their retreat. He headed to the bridge and found the Engineer-in-Chief. He introduced him to a French officer who provided details of the explosives that had been delivered by train, then Young was tasked with his small team to prepare the bridge for demolition, whilst keeping it open for the traffic of retreating troops. Fortunately, he found that the bridge had been designed for quick demolition, with cylindrical shafts in each pier available for rapid insertion of explosive. They worked through the night to prepare the bridge, with it ready for firing shortly before sunrise. After first light 31 August, Young sent the rest of the section back to the company and he remained in place as demolition commander. By 10am, most of the traffic had stopped, with the few stragglers exclaiming that the Germans were close behind. At 11am, the Engineer-in-Chief gave permission for the bridge to be destroyed. From Young's firing position the far side of the bridge could not be seen due to the camber of the bridge. As Young pressed down the handle of the exploder, a refugee cart crested the bridge; however, the exploder failed to work. By luck of the refugee, a brass contact plate on the exploder had fractured off. As such, Young used his alternate means of non-electric initiation and the demolition was successful. He extracted away by car, finding the company near Saint-Sauveur.
Meanwhile, at 9pm on the 30 August, Lt Fishbourne was tasked to prepare 4 bridges on the River Oise for demolition, starting with the one at Bailly that Westland had previously rigged for demolition but had received orders from 2nd Army Corps to cancel. Fishbourne and his party from 9th Field Company were due to meet with an infantry escort and a truck; however, the infantry never arrived and the truck was almost empty of petrol. Fishbourne and his team nonetheless made a start out to the location of the bridge, and Maj Barstow, the officer commanding the squadron, found more petrol and followed up afterwards. They parked their vehicles 2 miles from the bridge and marched in file towards it. The party was fired at by an unseen German picket at approximately 1am on 31 August. Maj Barstow was killed and Cpl Stone badly injured so both were left behind. Cpl Stone was captured and was released after the war. Of the remainder, 3 were injured; however, they managed to conduct a fighting withdrawal back to the vehicles. Under Fishbourne, they arrived back at Company HQ at 5am. The company second-in-command, Capt G F Evans, took command of the company until a new OC was despatched.
9th Field Company were ordered to move out to the high ground overlooking Saintines on the evening of 31 August. They slept there, but were awoken by gunfire in the early hours. Preparing to move off, a German Uhlan was seen by the company's sentry and killed. The company continued to retreat by foot with the remainder of the division, reaching Lagny by 9am on 3 September. With no time to rest, the sappers were put to work providing water supply. Later they continued their retreat, concluding at Chevry at 3pm on 5 September.