The Second World War 1939-45 was essentially unfinished business from the 1914-18 War. Following the rise of the Nazis in 1933, the expansion of the German armed forces beyond the levels agreed by the Versailles Treaty and the annexation of ethnic German territory in neighboring states, Britain rearmed. As Hitler's actions became more audacious the imminence of war became obvious to all. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain flew to Munich in 1938 to secure assurances from Herr Hitler but the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 was the final straw. Britain and France gave the Nazis an ultimatum, which was ignored, and war was declared

The war started with most of the Regulars overseas, but the TA was immediately mobilised to defend the Westcountry coast. 20 Battalions were raised, 11 for the Devon's and 9 for the Dorset's. The 2nd Dorset's joined the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) that was again sent to Flanders, where they spent the `Phoney War', The German blitzkrieg drove the British and French back, and the 2nd Battalion the Dorset Regiment were lucky to escape from the beaches of Dunkirk in the famous `little ships'. The Regular Army had lost all its heavy equipment in France. Consequently, the TA was the linchpin of the defence of Britain. A change of Army policy saw infantry being moved away from their home area, hence most of the regiments were to be found  covering the landing grounds in he south-east of England and on the east coast. 

THE MEDITERRANEAN THEATRE

In the counties the newly raised Local Defence Volunteers or, as they soon became known, the Home Guard, were left to bolster Westcountry defences. .
Although the threatened invasion from across the English Channel did not materialise, the major towns of Devon and Dorset were attacked from the air by the Luftwaffe as they sought out vital factories and defences as well as attempting to break the will of the civilian population.

1939 saw the 2nd Devon's and lst Dorset’s moving to garrison the strategically important 'island of Malta. This seemingly unglamorous role, became crucial as Malta sat astride Rommel's Africa Corps supply route. Effectively besieged, bombed by the Luftwaffe and starved, the Battalions shared the suffering of the Maltese people, who were awarded the George Cross for their endurance in adversity.

Following the restoration of Allied superiority in the Mediterranean, as the ebb and flow of the North African campaign finally swung against the Germans, the Devon’s and Dorset’s and 231 Malta Brigade left the island.

Allied strategy was now to knock Italy out of the war, attract German reserves and keep them there in order to prevent reinforcing the fighting in Russia and France. The Devon's and Dorset’s took part in their first amphibious assault landing when the Allies invaded Sicily in 1945. A second landing followed this on the mainland of Italy at 'Porto Venere' on 8th September 1943. Shortly afterwards, with their recently acquired experience of assault landings, the two battalions were brought home to spearhead the D-Day invasion of France with the 50th Division.

At the western end of the Mediterranean the 4th Devon’s were garrisoning the vitally important 'Rock of Gibraltar'. Highly trained and knowing the labyrinth of tunnels dug during the sieges it would have been very difficult for an enemy to take the Rock.

None came to put them to the test.

BURMA  1944-45

Nowhere, during the Second World War, was the fighting harder or were the conditions worse than in the jungles of Burma. The 14th or "Forgotten" Army, withdrew 1,000 miles, pursued by the victorious Japanese, to the borders of India. Here reinforced by formations that included the 1st Devon’s and the 2nd Dorset’s, they stood and fought. The all-conquering Japanese were bought to a standstill during the battles of Imphal and Kohima, which marked the turning point in the War for the British in the Far East.

IMPHAL

With the Japanese halted at Imphal, the lst Devon's were tasked to capture a vital feature in the enemy line nicknamed "Nippon Hill", which had defied all previous attempts by other units.
The attack, on 11 April 1944, was made with heavy artillery fire and air support. The attack went well until the crest was reached. Here the assault companies were met with a hale of machine gun fire and grenades and the Japanese had to be flushed out of the maze of underground tunnels and bunkers built into the hilltop.
Stung by the loss of the vital feature, the Japanese launched three desperate counter-attacks during the night. The Devon's beat off two attacks, one got onto the position but was eventually broken up, with the help of superbly accurate artillery and small arms fire.

KOHIMA

During an epic battle in the jungle-clad hills of Assam, the Japanese were fought to a standstill by the British 2nd Division who advanced to relieve the town of Kohima. The 2nd Dorset’s attacked strongly entrenched Japanese positions on a steep wooded spur centered on the District Commissioner's bungalow.
On the night of the 26/27 May 1944 they gained a foothold on the vital, dominating, spur and in the following eighteen days fought determinedly, at close quarters, with the enemy.

Despite heavy casualties from hand to hand fighting, they dominated "no-man's land" and eventually, with the aid of a tank hauled up the spur, took the "Tennis Court" terrace above the bungalow. The Japanese were cleared from their bunkers and taking the crest of the Spur enabled other attacks on the Kohima Ridge to prosper.

The twin battles of Imphal and Kohima enabled the British Army to take the offensive in the Far East and start to push the Japanese back down towards the Malay Peninsular.