1 Special Service Battalion
| 1 Special Service Battalion | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 SANDF 1 Special Service Battalion emblem | ||||||||||||
| Active | 1 May 1933 – present | |||||||||||
| Country |
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| Branch |
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| Type | Armoured | |||||||||||
| Part of | South African Armoured Formation | |||||||||||
| Garrison/HQ | Tempe 29°05′0″S 26°11′0″E / 29.08333°S 26.18333°ECoordinates: 29°05′0″S 26°11′0″E / 29.08333°S 26.18333°E | |||||||||||
| Nickname(s) |
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| Motto(s) | Eendrag Maakt Mag (Unity is Strength) | |||||||||||
| Colors | Orange over Blue which must be divided by Silver and where it is not possible to use silver white will be used in place | |||||||||||
| Equipment | ||||||||||||
| Engagements |
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| Battle honours |
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| Website | www.saarmour.co.za | |||||||||||
| Commanders | ||||||||||||
| Notable commanders |
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| Insignia | ||||||||||||
| Cap Badge | A spray of three protea flowers, bound by a ribbon bearing the initials and motto | |||||||||||
| Beret Colour | Black | |||||||||||
| Armour Squadron emblems |
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| Armour beret bar circa 1992 |
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1 Special Service Battalion (usually abbreviated to 1SSB) is an armoured regiment of the South African Army and only one of two such in its regular force. The Regiment is based at Tempe near Bloemfontein.
It was previously known in Afrikaans as 1 Spesiale Diens Bataljon (1 SDB).
History
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Following World War II, the Special Service Battalion was re-organised into 2 battalions - 1 Special Service Battalion and 1 South African Infantry Battalion.
When the South African Armoured Corps was thus officially proclaimed in 1946 and Special Service Battalion was included in the corps as the only full-time unit, its symbols and colours were incorporated.
1 SSB also took part in the South African Border War, serving in South-West Africa and Angola.[1]
More recently, the unit also took part in Operation Boleas, which was a South African intervention in its neighbouring country of Lesotho in 1998.
1 SSB had a sister unit for a number of years in the post-World War II era, designated 2 Special Service Battalion, which was based in the town of Zeerust. This unit has now been disbanded.
1 SSB also detached squadrons to various battlegroups in the South West African campaign
Equipment
pre 1995
| Variant | Description | Comment | Image |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eland 60 | .svg.png){kind=small} | Mortar platform |  |
| Eland 90 | | Fire support platform and assault gun |  |
Current
The regiment is equipped primarily with Ratel infantry fighting vehicles and Rooikat armoured cars.
| Variant | Description | Comment | Image |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rooikat 76 | | 76mm cannon |  |
| Ratel 90 | | 90mm cannon |  |
| Ratel ZT3 | | antitank missile |  |
Future
Under Project Hoefyster, the SANDF will eventually replace the Ratel family of vehicles with the Badger system.[2] [3] Five versions are contemplated of which two are earmarked for 1 SSB:
- Missile (turreted Denel ZT3 Ingwe)
- Fire Support (turreted 30mm cannon, but with more ammunition than the section vehicle)
| Variant | Description | Comment | Image |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denel Badger various types | | Various armaments |  |
Regimental symbols
- The cap badge is a spray of three protea flowers, bound by a ribbon bearing the initials and motto.
- Regimental motto: Eendrag Maakt Mag (Unity is Strength)
- Regimental communications icon :
- Regimental deployment strength : 1,000 soldiers
- Regimental honour roll : Soldiers who died during active combat duty and soldiers who died during training. See 1 SSB Roll of Honour
- Regimental traditional contact meeting :Pantseraksie once a year
Previous Dress Insignia
Current Dress Insignia
Leadership
| From | Commanding Officers | To |
| May 1933 | Lt. Col. GE Poole DSO | Nov 1933 |
| Dec 1933 | Lt. Col. P de Waal | Jan 1934 |
| Feb 1934 | Lt. Col. WHE Poole | Apr 1935 |
| May 1935 | Lt. Col. J Danie | Jan 1936 |
| Feb 1936 | Maj. JR Wocke | Dec 1937 |
| Jan 1938 | Lt. Col. HB Klopper | Sep 1939 |
| Oct 1939 | Lt. Col. HP van Noorden | Dec 1939 |
| Jan 1940 | Lt. Col. GCA van Dam | Jun 1940 |
| Jun 1940 | Lt. Col. CEG (Papa) Brits DSO | Aug 1946 |
| Sep 1946 | Lt. Col. GN Nauhaus OBE | May 1949 |
| Jun 1949 | Maj. EE Fodred MC | Aug 1949 |
| Sep 1949 | Maj. PE Ferguson MC | Jan 1951 |
| Feb 1951 | Cmdt. CS Leisegang DSO | Sep 1953 |
| Oct 1953 | Cmdt. W.R. Van Der Riet MC[lower-alpha 1] | Dec 1960 |
| Jan 1961 | Cmdt. S Hugo. SM | Jun 1963 |
| Jul 1963 | Cmdt. JJ Wahl. MC | Oct 1964 |
| Nov 1964 | Cmdt. JR Dutton. SSA SD | Nov 1967 |
| Dec 1967 | Cmdt. WH Matthews. SM | Nov 1968 |
| Dec 1968 | Cmdt. MB Anderson | May 1969 |
| Apr 1969 | Cmdt. WC Meyer | Sep 1972 |
| Oct 1972 | Cmdt. PJ van Schalkwyk | Jul 1973 |
| Aug 1973 | Maj. AJ Snyman[lower-alpha 2] | Nov 1973 |
| Nov 1973 | Cmdt. APR Carstens | Nov 1976 |
| Dec 1976 | Cmdt. R Otto[lower-alpha 3] | Dec 1979 |
| Jan 1980 | Cmdt. FA Botha | Nov 1981 |
| Dec 1981 | Cmdt. AJ van Niekerk | Nov 1983 |
| Dec 1983 | Cmdt. HT Heinze | Nov 1986 |
| December 1986 | Cmdt. AJ Kriel | May 1989 |
| Jun 1989 | Cmdt. AJ van Jaarsveld | Nov 1989 |
| Dec 1989 | Cmdt. BC Gildenhuys[lower-alpha 4] | Dec 1993 |
| Jan 1994 | Col. GM Louw. HC MMM | unk |
| From | Regimental Sergeants Major | To |
| May 1933 | RSM J Whammond. MC DCM MM | Feb 1934 |
| Mar 1934 | RSM LJ van den Heever | May 1934 |
| Jun 1934 | RSM BS Scheepers | May 1935 |
| Jun 1935 | RSM SP Conje | Jun 1935 |
| Sep 1936 | RSM CEG Brits | Mar 1937 |
| Apr 1937 | RSM JO van Blommenstein | May 1940 |
| Jun 1940 | RSM JW Hamilton | Jan 1943 |
| Feb 1943 | WO1 S du Plessis. MC | Aug 1946 |
| Sep 1946 | WO1 WE Wocke | Oct 1951 |
| Nov 1950 | WO1 S du Plessis. MM | Sep 1953 |
| Oct 1953 | WO1 WJ van der Merwe. SM | Dec 1965 |
| Jan 1966 | WO1 BJP Ehlers. PMM | Oct 1972 |
| Nov 1972 | WO1 MA Booyens PMM MMM | Sep 1976 |
| Oct 1976 | WO1 JP. O'Neill | Nov 1978 |
| Dec 1978 | WO1 PH Rohrbeck PMM | Jan 1979 |
| Feb 1979 | WO1 GDF van Baalen PMM MMM | Nov 1984 |
| Jun 1984 | WO1 IJ Prinsloo | Nov 1988 |
| Dec 1988 | WO1 WF Snyman PMM MMM | Nov 1993 |
| Dec 1993 | WO1 JAB van Zyl | unk |
| From | Chaplains | To |
Alliances
Battle honours
| Awarded |
| Italy 1944-45 |
| Florence |
| Gothic Line |
| Celleno |
| The Greve |
| Po Valley |
| Kunene |
| South West Africa/Angola 1975-1976 |
| South West Africa/Angola 1976-1989 |
| Cuito Cuanaval |
Future
This unit will together with 1 SA Tank Regiment form the Armoured Brigade of the new Mechanized Division to be formed under Army vision 2020.
See also
Notes
- ↑ Later Lt Gen W.R. Van Der Riet SSA SD MC
- ↑ acting
- ↑ Later Lieutenant General Reginald Otto SD & Bar SM MMM
- ↑ Later Brigadier General Chris Gildenhuys SM MMM
References
- ↑ Engelbrecht, Leon (1 March 2010). "Fact File: 1 Special Service Battalion". defenceweb.co.za. DefenceWeb. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
- ↑ Leon Engelbrecht. "SA Army horse shod by December? | defenceWeb". Archived from the original on 2015-03-28. Retrieved 2015-03-25.
- ↑ Natalie Greve. "Land Systems SA secures sights contract for Denel’s Badger". Archived from the original on 2015-03-28. Retrieved 2015-03-25.