A Partial History
135th Infantry Regiment

34th Infantry Division

Approved for Publication
Allied Force Headquarters
Information News and Censorship Section

THE 135TH IN THE PRESENT WAR (p. 1-33)

THE LANDING AT ALGIERS (pp. 3-6)

	On 18 October 1942, Companies I, K, L, an attached platoon from
Company M, and one officer and sixteen enlisted men from the Medical
Detachment were placed on detached service at Sunnylands Camp,
Carrickfergus, North Ireland, with Lt. Col. Edwin T. Swenson in command.
Capt. William F. Snellman, Capt. Vilhelm Johnson (MC), 1st Lieutenant
Emory J. Trawick, 1st Lieutenant Robert O. Foster, and 2nd Lieutenant
George George also accompanied these units in addition to their full
complement of company officers.  At this camp the Battalion was equipped
and organized for combat, predicated on the space available for
transporting them to the scene of operations.  Administrative personnel
and equipment were not included to give maximum space for combat
personnel, in view of the fact that only two destroyers were available
for the operations.  During the time spent at Sunnylands Camp, troops
were trained in boarding and disembarking from destroyers, and one
practice operation was executed in the dock area of Belfast.

	On 21 October 1942, three officers and 24 enlisted men embarked from
Belfast, North Ireland, on the British destroyers HMS Malcolm and HMS
Broke; all heavy weapons personnel, with the exception of one officer. 
On 26 October, the balance of the force, 21 officers and 613 enlisted
men, boarded the British cruiser HMS Sheffield and put out to sea with a
large troop convoy.  During the voyage the plans of operation were
worked out by Capt. Fancourt (Royal Navy), Lt. Cmndr. Sears (Royal
Navy), Lt. Col. Swenson, Capt. Snellman, the three Company Commanders,
and the Communications Officer.  This Battalion was to operate with and
under the command of the Royal Navy and was known as the "Terminal
Force".  The mission of this force was to break the boom at Algiers,
Algeria, North Africa; land and secure the port and shipping against
sabotage.  This operation was to be executed simultaneously and in
conjunction with the main American and British landing of the Eastern
Assault Force just west of Algiers.  Due to the fact that the ship was
to put into Gibralter for one day, it was impossible to risk disclosure
of the destination and detailed plans until after leaving.  As soon as
the ship put out to sea at Gibralter, each officer and
key-non-commissioned officer was given a map and a copy of the approved
plan, and coordination and ironing out of the details commenced. 
Alternate plans were also studied.

	On 7 November at 1630 the destroyer HMS Malcolm came alongside the
Sheffield, and the forces detailed to go on that vessel transferred at
sea without incident.  The force detailed to go on the destroyer HMS
Broke transferred in a like manner immediately afterward.  The transfer
at sea was completed at 1730 hours.  Lt. Col. Swenson and Capt. Fancourt
accompanied the force on the HMS Broke which was commanded by Cmndr.
Layard.  Morale and discipline were excellent.  The night was very dark,
the sky slightly overcast and visibility fair.

	At 0220 on 8 November, a message was received from Capt. Fancourt
stating that the landings of the combat teams of the Eastern Assault
Force had been successful and that the force was to go in.

	Capt. McCullough was instructed to get all men in readiness.  The
two destroyers steamed for approximately an hour toward the port.  On
nearing the port, gun flashes were seen along the coast but not from the
Port of Algiers batteries.  Searchlights on the Ilet de Marine and at
Battery des Arcades began to search the harbor to seaward.  As the
lights went off, it became more difficult to make out where the boom was
located.  The destroyers proceeded forward on what was thought to be the
right course, and the Battery des Arcades opened fire on HMS Malcolm. 
On approaching the boom, it was realized that the ships were heading
outside the Jette de Mustapha, so they turned seaward for another try. 
HMS Malcolm following HMS Broke out.  On the second try the boom was
missed again and the HMS Broke was under the fire of the batteries of
both des Arcades and Jette du Nord.  Captain Fancourt signaled the HMS
Malcolm to go in if it could.  HMS Malcolm also missed and on turning
seaward received several direct hits from shore batteries.  Fire broke
out amidships and the Malcolm sent a message that she was badly hit,
could make only four knots, and consequently was withdrawing.

	The heroism of 2nd Lieutenant William L. Muir, Company L, who was on
the Malcolm, was recognized in the following letter received by him:
	"Sir, I am commanded by my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty to
	inform you that the King has been graciously pleased to approve the
	mention of your name in Despatches for your bravery on passage to
	North Africa as Ninth U. S. Army Officer attached to Boarding Party
	in H. M. S. MALCOLM when your jettisoned burning ammunition
	containers were set on fire by enemy gunfire.  The certificate will
	be sent you in due course, I am Sir, Your obedient Servant, N. V.
	Markham, Officer of the Secretary of the Admiralty."

	Lieutenant Muir, later promoted to captain and decorated with the
Silver Star for his bravery and initiative under fire in Tunisia, died
in the hospital in Italy on 29 October 1943, of malaria and jaundice.

	Capt. McCullough was informed that the HMS Broke was going in alone,
and he relayed instructions for Plan "B" covering that eventuality. The
Broke proceeded in for the third time and received seemingly greater
fire from the shore batteries, but missed the entry again and turned
back to sea.  Surprise was out of the question now and it was becoming
daylight.  Therefore, it was decided to take Basin du Mustapha including
the Grand Mole, and the destroyer went in for a fourth try, the shore
batteries pounding away.  Fire was returned from the ship.  It seemed
likely to miss again, but Cmndr. Layard altered the course slightly and
ordered increased speed.  The ship cut through the boom with hardly a
sensation of hitting and proceeded toward the quay.  The quay at which
it had planned to land was filled with ships, so HMS Broke berthed next
to the Quay du Falaise on Mole Louis Billiard.  Terrific machine-gun
fire was encountered from a small vessel in port, and Oerlikons aboard
the Broke shot up the vessel considerably, silencing the fire.  A number
of naval personnel aboard the Broke were wounded by machine-gun fire
which seemed comparable to our .50 caliber.  Some machine-gun fire was
received from the warehouses and ships in the harbor, and the naval
personnel returned fire with the Oerlikons, which seemed to silence the
enemy guns.

	The troops aboard the HMS Broke were quite shaken by the bombardment
and were a little slow in getting underway to disembark; however, the
platoon leaders got their men off and proceeded to their objectives. 
The landing was completed in broad daylight at 0520 hours.  Small arms
fire was directed at the troops from various parts of the city, and
automatic fire covered open places and streets.  Little fire was
directed at the troops.  The situation began to look favorable.  At
about 0800 hours two policemen and two civilians came over to the
American forces stating that they wished to have an emissary go into the
city to make arrangements for taking over Algiers.  While this was being
discussed, a British naval officer, one of the boarding party
commanders, came back and stated that a French army officer had
contacted him and told him that the landing forces were about to be
surrounded and annihilated, and let it be understood that they were
definitely against cooperation. Before there was time to weigh the
merits of this information, artillery fire was received from the
direction of the Jette du Nord. The third round went through the bow of
the HMS Broke, and the commander backed the destroyer along the Quay de
Dunkerque.  Fire was covering the areas between the forces on land and
the ship, and with the radio broken no communication was to be had. 
Shortly after this, the Battery des Arcades began ranging on the HMS
Broke and after six rounds delivered five direct hits.  The Broke
signalled by siren for recall, but the men in the area were not
permitted to go to her.  It was obvious that the ship had to leave port
immediately or be sunk.  The time was 0930 hours, and it was felt that
the combat teams of the Eastern Task Force, advancing from the west,
should be nearing the city, as the general plan had set forth, and that
the positions could be held.

	The force in the vicinity of the power plant and sea plane base
seemed to be continuing the fight, but there was no report from the
platoons to the left in the direction of Brise Lames Est.  The area to
the south of the warehouse on Mole Louis Billiard where there were large
piles of sand, wood,, and baled straw, was organized for defense, and
the outer perimeter was organized so that no one could get within hand
grenade range.  At this point PFC Melvin A. Lein, of the Medical
Detachment, learned of the location of a wounded officer.  Disregarding
heavy machine-gun fire which cut across the path, PFC Lein went to the
officer and rendered emergency treatment. He started back to his post
and was killed by the enemy gun.  PFC Lein was awarded the Distinguished
Service Cross posthumously.

	At about 1100 hours, six Allied planes came over and bombed Jette du
Nord, destroying those batteries.  Artillery fire could then only come
from one direction and preparations were made accordingly. Shortly after
this armored vehicles were reported approaching, and men were placed in
favorable positions to fire with anti-tank grenades.  Three tanks
commenced to circle the area, subjecting the troops to crossfire with
37mm and machine guns.  A group under Staff Sergeant Robert Rooney had
to pass a street intersection which was under heavy machine-gun fire
from two directions.  Looking back, Sergeant Rooney saw Private Lawrence
Fonder fall in the danger area and, disregarding the deadly fire, he
returned and carried Private Fonder to cover.  For saving the life of
his comrade, Sergeant Rooney was awarded the Distinguished Service
Cross.

	Two more tanks were approaching, the first three took positions, and
it was realized that the enemy was going to cover all openings with
fire.  One stack of straw was ablaze and a number of casualties had been
suffered.  It was then 1230 hours and there was still no firing from the
areas around the city.  It was evident that something had gone wrong
with the advance of the combat teams and the Command Group, so rather
than subject the group to annihilation, Lt. Col Swenson surrendered the
position.  Later it was learned that while the combat teams had landed
it was far from the planned beachhead.

	The officers and men were lined up in the streets and disarmed.  A
French officer allowed an aid man and several other men to bring the
casualties to safety before the fire got to them.  The Sengalese troops
tried to strip the men of their personal belongings, but upon objection,
the French Lieutenant halted the practice and ordered all articles
returned.  Firing had ceased all over the port, so it was felt that the
other groups had met the same fate or had been wiped out.  The enlisted
men were marched to a barracks where they were held, and the officers
were loaded into a truck, joined by officers from the platoon around the
power plant area, and taken to the Admiralty for questioning.  They were
asked for identification, but only the permissible identification was
given.  During the time of imprisonment, the French treated the
Americans well.  Some of the French officers kept the American officers
abreast of the situation and seemed fully in accord with the operation,
while others showed definitely that they were against the Allies.  All
of the American forces were released on 10 November.  The British Navy
had done an fine job of cooperation with the American forces, and the
French naval officers stated that the commander of the destroyer had
accomplished a magnificent feat in going through the boom.  During the
entire operation the officers and men of the American Terminal Force
conducted themselves in a very commendable manner.  The 3rd Battalion of
the Regiment was appointed as a guard of honor for Divisional formal
affairs as a token of their outstanding services.

	There were 48 casualties during the landing, 15 killed and 33
wounded.