557th Moonlight Battery, Royal Artillery
The 557th Independent Moonlight Battery, Royal Artillery was a Searchlight (S/L) unit of the British Army that provided artificial illumination, or 'Monty's Moonlight', for night operations by 21st Army Group during the campaign in North West Europe in 1944–45. Previously, it had served on anti-aircraft (AA) duties in the United Kingdom and Normandy. Origin The battery was formed on 13 February 1941 at 234th S/L Training Rgt at Carlisle, with a cadre of experienced officers and men from 55th (Durham Light Infantry) S/L Rgt. On 1 May it was assigned to the new 92nd S/L Regiment, the last all-male S/L regiment to be formed in Anti-Aircraft Command. 92nd S/L Regiment comprised 556, 557, 558 S/L Btys and was assigned to 53rd Light AA Brigade in 4th AA Division. 53rd Light AA Brigade's role was to provide S/L cover for the North Midlands of England. In the summer of 1941, 92nd S/L Rgt transferred to a new 70th AA Bde in 4th AA Division. Then in October 557th Bty was attached directly to 5 AA Group (which had replaced 4th AA Division), and on 20 February 1943 it was formally detached from 92 S/L Rgt and became an independent mobile unit in 21st Army Group. Independent battery On 1 June 1943 the battery was at Toft Hall Camp in Cheshire, where it came under command of the newly formed 76th AA Bde HQ at nearby Peover Hall at Knutsford, which was training for the planned invasion of Normandy (Operation Overlord). Mobile S/L units had their own Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) detachments, and 'N' S/L Battery Workshop was formed on 18 May 1943 at the REME Mobilisation and Holding Centre, Bestwood Camp, Arnold, Nottinghamshire. It was formally designated 557 S/L Battery Workshop on 3 June and mobilised for overseas service on 29 June. It travelled to join the battery at Oulton Park Camp, Tarporley, Cheshire, on 4 August. 557 S/L Battery left Oulton Camp on 3 January 1944, when it moved to Southend-on-Sea. From here its individual Troops went to practise 'Canopy' S/L defences at RAF stations at Bradwell-on-Sea, Coltishall and Twinwood Farm. 76th AA Bde HQ was to be part of the initial assault forces on D-Day, while 557 S/L Bty was among the follow-up units, so in April 1944 it was transferred from 76 AA Bde to 51st AA Defence HQ in 21st Army Group, then to 103rd AA Bde, and finally to 107th AA Bde, which was scheduled to cross to Normandy after D-Day. The battery moved to Nettlebed in Oxfordshire where it was joined by a small signals section of the Royal Corps of Signals in preparation for its mobile role. Normandy Finally, 557 S/L Bty embarked at Gosport on 26 July and landed in Normandy the following day, where it came under the command of 100th AA Bde until 107th AA Bde HQ arrived and took over on 12 August. On arrival, A Troop and a section of B Troop were deployed to defend Caen,