Page 91 - The History of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps 1962–2021

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL ARMY VETERINARY CORPS 1962 – 2021
President Makarios, the Turkish army invaded the North of the island in a well-staged expeditionary campaign and partitioned approximately 37% of the Island within three weeks.
This resulted in approximately one hundred and sixty-five thousand Greek Cypriots being displaced from their homes in the North – many travelling across the world under refugee status to begin new lives in Europe, America and Australia. A much smaller number of Turkish Cypriots (about twenty thousand) were obliged to move to the North of the island from their communities in the South – the majority occupying property abandoned by the fleeing Greek Cypriots.
UNFICYP was powerless to stop the invasion, but it evacuated foreign nationals and arranged local ceasefires. Reinforced by British troops from Dhekelia, UNFICYP also stopped the Turks from seizing the airport at Nicosia.
In 1975, the North declared itself to be the Turkish Federated State of Cyprus, then in 1983 it declared full independence as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Although many years of fruitless talks have taken place since 1974 and tensions and frustrations remain on both sides of the dividing line, the Island has experienced thirty years of relative peace. In the south particularly, the Island’s population has enjoyed new found prosperity from a burgeoning tourist economy.
At his time of writing in 2005/6, Major Rose commented: “Britain lost some of its strategic assets in the North of the Island during the invasion, but its Sovereign Bases were unaffected and continued to provide intelligence gathering capability, a forward mounting base for Middle Eastern Operations and excellent training areas for exercising troops. Currently, there are about five thousand British service personnel stationed in Cyprus.5"
Re-visiting why the British fought so long and hard to secure a military presence in Cyprus, lays the foundation for exploring the role of the RAVC on the Island since 1962 and why the location remains strategically important to our military might.
The RAVC’s relationship with Cyprus began in 1939 with the mules but the dogs were not far behind.
The Dogs:
Military Working Dogs were employed extensively on the Island during the Second World War and
all of the conflict that followed and they are still very much in demand today. Initially, 3 War Dog Training Unit, which was based at Lakatmia, just outside Nicosia, used Tracker dogs and a variation of the Casualty Detection Dog, then called a Hide Dog. These dogs proved particularly effective in the search and detection of terrorist hide-outs during the troubled era that preceded the procla- mation of independence in 1960. Many of the terrorist hides, primarily in the Troodos area were cunningly constructed and camouflaged making the dogs the most reliable and effective tool in the Army’s anti-terrorist campaign. Considered to be so invaluable that in 1955, the same year that Colonel Grivas launched the EOKA, the first Guard dog section was added to the canine capability on the Island. It was set up entirely by Sgt Gerry Quigley RAVC.6
No 6 Army Guard Dog Unit was based at Wayne’s Keep, outside Nicosia, which was at that time a military prison. This Unit of six Guard dogs and six RAVC handlers was responsible for perimeter security at a time when terrorist activity was running particularly high. So intense was the terrorist action in the 1955 – 1959 period that dog trainers’ skills were in great demand, a situation that necessitated a shift of control over the Guard dog units. In 1958, the decision was taken to transfer control of the Unit to the RMP (Royal Military Police). Two years later, the Guard dog duties were transferred to the Army Dept Police (ADP) later to become the Security Force Police (SFP).
In line with all other Unit designation, the Cyprus Unit was known as 3 War Dog Training Unit RAVC. Finding itself in need of room to grow, HQ 3 WDTU moved from Nicosia to tented kennels at Cambrai camp, Dhekelia when the strength of the Unit stood at ten RAVC, sixty ADP and some ninety dogs. Meanwhile, the Unit in the Near East reported that the eagerly awaited twenty dogs from the UK had arrived with Cpl Ted Parsons. After a short rest, four of the dogs were put onto an LST (Landing Ship Tank) to Tripoli. Cpl Pete Hepworth, who had visited the UK on leave, returned to Cyprus on a ‘cruise’ via the Mediterranean with ten more dogs.
Reports from the time showed that the estab- lishment of a robust dog Unit wasn’t the only sign of the Corps making its presence felt and settling in. It was telling that the main office block had been rebuilt and, unlike the previous site, there had been no sign of subsidence...yet! Talking of
5 Chiron Calling Winter 2005/Spring 2006 ‘Why are we here’ by Major Iain Rose RAVC.
6 Oral testimony Major (Retd) Tony Rossell RAVC dated 9th May 2021.
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