Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment

The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment
Cap badge of the Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment
Active	9 January 1947 – Present
Country	New Zealand
Allegiance	HM The Queen
Branch	New Zealand Army
Type	Line Infantry
Role	Light Role Infantry
Size	Five battalions
Garrison/HQ	1st Battalion – Linton 2/1st Battalion – Burnham 2nd/4th Battalion 3rd/6th Battalion 5th/7th Battalion – Trentham
Motto(s)	Onward
March	1st Battalion - Quick – Sons of the Brave Slow – Scipio 2/1st Battalion - March on – Action Front March past (quick) – Great Little Army March past (slow) – Scipio March off – Army of the Nile
Commanders
Colonel-in-Chief	HM The Queen
Colonel of the Regiment	Major General K.M. Gordon, CBE (Rtd)
Insignia
Tac Sign
Abbreviation	RNZIR

The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment is the parent administrative regiment of regular and reserve infantry battalions in the New Zealand Army. It is the only regular infantry regiment of the New Zealand Defence Force.

The regiment was formed on 9 January 1947 as the New Zealand Regiment with a single infantry battalion as part of the newly created infantry corps. By 1 August 1947 the regiment was augmented by the reorganisation of the Jayforce (the New Zealand occupation force in Japan):

The 2nd and 3rd Battalions were disbanded in 1948 following their return to New Zealand. The honours and traditions of the 22nd Battalion, NZEF were then perpetuated through the Wellington (City of Wellington's Own) Regiment, the Hawke's Bay Regiment and the Wellington West Coast and Taranaki Regiment.

The 2nd Battalion was raised again in 1959 and saw service as part of the 28th Commonwealth Infantry Brigade Group in Malaya before converting to a depot for the 1st Battalion in 1963. The regiment received its present name on 1 April 1964, when all of the Territorial Force battalions were absorbed into its structure, receiving battalion numbers:

In 1967, during the Vietnam War, 1 RNZIR which was stationed in Malaya, contributed Victor Company, a 182-man rifle company to Vietnam which served from May 1967 until November 1967 as part of the 1st Australian Task Force. For the first two weeks the company served with 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment at Nui Dat and then came under 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment for the remainder of the tour. Despite being under 2 RAR operationally, V Company did maintain some command autonomity for all non-operational administrative matters which were reported to the New Zealand Headquarters in Saigon. During its six months in Vietnam V Company participated in Operation Paddington (8–16 July 1967), Operation Cairns (25 July – 1 August 1967), Operation Atherton (16 August – 3 September 1967), Operation Ainslie (4–21 September 1967) and Operation Kenmore (29 September – 11 October 1967). Victor Company was replaced by Whisky One Company in December, also from 1 RNZIR in Malaya. A fresh Victor Company also joined and the two New Zealand companies continued to serve under 2 RAR until the formation of the ANZAC Battalion in 1968.