Leonard Bruce “Bruce” Ballantyne
Major · NZ #1398 · T1 Patrol · MID
| Rank | Major |
|---|---|
| Service number | NZ #1398 |
| Patrol | T1 Patrol |
| Regiment | 2nd NZ Divisional Cavalry Regiment |
| Known as | “Bruce” |
| Born | 1912-07-18 |
| Died | 1957 |
| Honours | MID |
| Campaign medals | ED, War Medal 1939-45, NZ War Service Medal |
| Record | https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C134323 |
What this roll records
HE WROTE TO A TROOPER’S MOTHER, AND THE LETTER WAS PRINTED. The Wanganui Chronicle of 17 April 1941 published a letter he sent from Egypt about TROOPER R. J. MOORE, D.C.M., NZ #1248, of his own T Patrol, describing him as “a soldier and a leader of great ability” and “one of my best men, and remember they are hand picked”, and recording that he had recommended Moore for a mention in despatches. IT IS THE ONLY ITEM ON THIS SITE IN WHICH ONE MAN OF THE ROLL WRITES ABOUT ANOTHER. The paper gives his rank as Captain, which is his 1941 rank; the Major on this card is the rank he reached. Source: “Trooper R. J. Moore — ‘Able Soldier And Leader’”, Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 85, Issue 89, 17 April 1941, page 4, via Papers Past (National Library of New Zealand).
CONFIRMED by photo caption: "Capt L.B. Ballantyne, T Patrol, checks his F8 command car". Brendan O'Carroll, "The Long Range Desert Group in North Africa".
PATROL COMMANDER of T (LRP)/T1 per W.B. Kennedy Shaw, "Long Range Desert Group", Appendix 4 Patrol Commanders.
On original LRP Roll (5 Dec 1940): HQ — Adj LRP; OC T Patrol LRDG; OC Composite Comd Sqn Div Cav. Source: LRP Roll (Original LRP Nominal Roll as at 5 Dec 1940, Capt L H Browne).
Born 18 July 1912 at Waitahora, New Zealand; died 1957, aged 45. Efficiency Decoration (ED) and Mentioned in Despatches. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph.
The Kiwi Scorpions (Brendan O'Carroll): Maj. L. B. Ballantyne — sheep farmer, Pongaroa; born Waitahora, 18 Jul 1912; Adjutant and Quartermaster LRP and LRDG; patrol commander LRDG; CO Composite Training Depot 2 NZEF, 1942.
The Kiwi Scorpions (Brendan O'Carroll) — formation of the LRP patrols, 1940: At formation Lieutenant L. B. Ballantyne (a New Zealander) was the unit's adjutant and quartermaster.
Patrol commander: commanded T Patrol (LRP) and T1 Patrol. Kiwi Scorpions (Appendix II — Commanders of NZ Patrols).
The Kiwi Scorpions (Brendan O'Carroll): One of the first two New Zealand patrol commanders (with D. G. Steele); pictured at Abbassia, 1940, driving R Patrol's Ford V8 15cwt pilot car.
Adjutant and quartermaster of the LRP/LRDG. At Murzuk (January 1941) led a T patrol troop against the airfield, capturing the hangar and its aircraft. After the Gebel Sherif ambush (31 January 1941) brought the seven surviving T patrol trucks back to rejoin G patrol and the French. As Major, commanded T1 patrol navigating the Guards Brigade towards Antelat (December 1941). Source: ‘Long Range Desert Group in Libya, 1940–41’, Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (NZ official war history).
Sheep farmer, of Pongaroa; born Waitahora, 18 Jul 1912. ED, m.i.d. Adjutant, quartermaster and patrol commander LRP/LRDG; CO Composite Training Depot 2 NZEF 1942. Source: Episodes & Studies Vol. 1 (biographical notes).
Sheep farmer in civilian life. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph.
Embarkation detail from his Cenotaph record: he embarked as LIEUTENANT, 2nd Divisional Cavalry Regiment. The rank held on this card, Major, is his LRDG rank; promotion after embarkation was the rule rather than the exception, so the two are not in conflict. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph, record C134323.
See him in the full roll →Where this comes from
- Honours & campaign medals from Online Cenotaph: MID, ED, War Medal 1939-45, NZ War Service Medal. Source: Auckland War Memorial Museum Online Cenotaph.
- Murzuk Raid roll (courtesy Tarek el Mahdy)
- LRDG Nominal Roll, 28 Dec 1940 – Jan 1941 (courtesy Tarek el Mahdy) — roll rank: Lieutenant
- Additional sources (AWMM Online Cenotaph). Nominal Roll 2NZEF No. 1, p.13. Unit history: Loughnan, R. (1963). Divisional Cavalry. External links: Long Range Desert Group Preservation Society: http://www.lrdg.org/; Ngā Taonga (U-series, LRDG 11734): https://www.ngataonga.org.nz/search-use-collection/search/11734
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Not By Strength But By Guile