The Royal Australian Naval Bridging Train (RANBT) was formed of 300 men based initially at Kangaroo Beach on the Gallipoli Peninsula from 1915, during WWI. They built and maintained jetties and were constantly under fire. Some of these men lost their lives and a number were wounded during their 5 months of service here. As a result the RANBT was the most highly decorated unit during WWI. The unit then continued to the Middle East, operating bridges over the Suez Canal before the unit was disbanded (Australian War Memorial online, 2014).These badges represent a highly specialised and decorated Unit from WWI. The RANBT was made up of 300 men who served in Gallipoli and in the Middle East from 1915-1917. The badges are associated with Australian defense and form significant links to ANZAC history. A pair of brass shoulder titles "NBT" from the Naval Bridging Train attached to paper card. They have a loop shank at the back for fastening."NBT" Naval Bridging Trainshoulder title, royal australian naval bridging train, ranbt, navy shoulder badge

The 1st Royal Australian Naval Bridging Train (1st RANBT) was formed in Melbourne on 28 February 1915 and was intended to be a horse drawn engineering unit attached to the Royal Naval Division (RND), then serving as infantry on the Western Front. The term ‘train’, in its title, was a direct reference to the horse drawn wagons that would, in theory, form and move ‘in train’ to carry the unit’s heavy lumber, building materials and engineering equipment to the front. The unit was manned by members of the Royal Australian Naval Reserve for whom there were no available billets in seagoing RAN ships. Many of the sailors serving in the 1st RANBT were rated ‘drivers’, and again, this refers to wagon drivers as opposed to motor vehicle drivers. Other seamen were rated as ‘artificers’ or ‘sappers’, the latter being a military term traditionally used to describe army engineers. Appointed in command of the 1st RANBT was Lieutenant Commander Leighton Seymour Bracegirdle, RAN. Bracegirdle was ideally suited to command the unit, having seen active service with the NSW Naval Brigade during the Boxer Rebellion in China as well as serving as a military officer in the South African Irregular Horse during the Boer War in 1901. He had also recently returned from German New Guinea where he had served as a staff officer in the joint Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force (ANMEF) responsible for the capture of the German colonies in the Pacific in September 1914. Three hundred naval reservists, including 50 men who had recently served in New Guinea, were selected for the 1st RANBT and they began their training in horsemanship, engineering and pontoon bridging at the Domain in Melbourne. By late May 1915 a decision was made to send the unit to Britain to complete its training and then to join the RND on the Western Front. The plan, however, never eventuated. The complaints about the non-combatant work being done by the men had been raised in Federal Parliament and following consultation with the senior Australian officer in the Middle East, Lieutenant General Sir Harry Chauvel, a recommendation was made that the unit be disbanded and its men used as reinforcements for the AIF. Consequently, Lieutenant Commander Bracegirdle was advised that his unit was to be dispersed; its men transferring to the AIF or being returned to Australia for discharge. On 27 March 1917 the 1st RANBT was officially disbanded.Oxidised brass anchor shaped collar badge.ww1, world war 1, first world war, ranbt, ran bridging train, royal australian navy bridging train, collar badge

snape collection

non-fictionThis collection of letters by Bert Webster is a record of service of two Australian cousins both destined to die in WW1. In 1911 Bert Webster, a Victorian by birth, joined the Royal Naval Reserve. By November 1914 he was Acting Petty Officer on HMAS Cerberus. In March 1915 Bert transferred to the newly formed 1st Royal Australian Naval Bridging Train similar to being Naval Engineers. They landed at Suvla north of Anzac Cove during the August Offensives in 1915. After the Gallipoli evacuation the RANBT was disbanded at which time Bert Webster transferred the 23rd Battalion AIF. He went with the Battalion to the Western Front. Bert was killed on the night of the 28th July 1916 while in the trenches at Pozières. (Books on War)world war 1914-1918, bert webster