They were used in the Western Desert Campaign by the British Army to harass German and Italian forces.
The columns were named after an officer who was a superb exponent of the tactic and may have conceived it originally, Lieutenant Colonel John Charles "Jock" Campbell.
[1][2] The basis for the Jock column was a battery of six 25-pounder and a troop of 2-pounders, supported by a squadron of tanks and a company of infantry, along with several anti-aircraft artillery guns.
Having suffered heavily in the Battle of Greece and in Crete, the mobility of the Jock column allowed the British to compensate for their equipment losses by deploying artillery where needed.
Rather than concentrating armor as Rommel tended to, the columns were further separating their tanks into groups which were more easily defeated.