55th (Kent) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery

55th (Kent) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment
Royal Artillery cap badge and AA patch
Active	1925–1955
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	Territorial Army
Role	Air Defence
Size	Regiment
Engagements	The Blitz North Africa Sicily Italy

55th (Kent) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery was a volunteer air defence unit of Britain's Territorial Army from 1925 until 1955. In World War II it defended the Thames Estuary, Medway Towns and Dover during The Blitz and later served in Iraq and North Africa. It then supported British Eighth Army and US Fifth Army during the Sicily and Italian campaigns until the end of the war.

German air raids by Zeppelin airships and Gotha bombers on British cities during World War I had shown the need for strong anti-aircraft (AA) defences in any future war. When the Territorial Army (TA) was reformed in the 1920s it began raising five dedicated AA units of the Royal Artillery (RA). The last of these was 55th (Kent) Anti-Aircraft Brigade, with headquarters at Fort Clarence in Rochester. At first the brigade consisted only of 163rd (Kent) AA Battery based at Tunbridge Wells and in turn formed the only unit of 28 Air Defence Brigade. In 1935 it was joined by the independent 166th (City of Rochester) AA Battery, which had been converted from a coastal defence battery (of Kent Heavy Bde RA) in 1932.