None of my family were directly involved in D-Day as far as I know, being in other theatres. But I'm told my wife's uncle was. His D-Day was short. As he waded ashore another landing craft came up behind him and dropped its ramp on top of him! Thankfully he survived, ending up in hospital, but that was the end of his D-Day! #-o ;D
Any other stories from your family's history, guys?
My late uncle was a junior sailor on a service landing craft providing meals for other vessels off shore. Other than that Mum and dad were in Egypt.
IanS
None that I know of, as both sides of the family were in reserved occupations, or too old or too young. One grandparent was in the Home Guard I believe. The only chap I knew directly who had been involved in D-Day was one of the engineers who landed early to start dismantling mines etc. I only found out by chance once he had passed away.
My dear old Dad was a Captain in the Home Guard.....Age wise, he was probably getting towards the limit of conscription...and also he was in a reserved occupation. (?)...Headmaster.
I wish I still had his Home Guard 'jacket'.....I used to wear that in the seventies....'Cos it was quite 'trendy/retro' back then. (What a pillock.)
The only other relative that I know of was Brig. James Hargest.
I was stunned when PaulR, in NZ told me he'd heard of him....I wonder where the family's copy of 'Farewell Campo 12' ended up. :(
Cheers - Phil.
Quote from: Techno on 06 June 2019, 09:33:43 AM
The only other relative that I know of was Brig. James Hargest.
I was stunned when PaulR, in NZ told me he'd heard of him....I wonder where the family's copy of 'Farewell Campo 12' ended up. :(
Cheers - Phil.
I did a battlefield tour in Crete a couple of years ago, covering the German airborne invasion. If I recall correctly Hargest was the Brigadier commanding the New Zealand Brigade around Maleme airfield. He get away to Egypt, and I think commanded his brigade in the desert and became a PoW. Cannot remember all the details, but I think he was a veteran of Gallipoli as well. I am not surprised he is known in New Zealand, probably aided by the unusual name?
My father never forgave his father for volunteering and leaving behind a wife and four children; I think he used that as a major excuse for never making anything of his life. Since the old patriarch was dead before I was born (not killed in action), I never got to form a solid opinion. In fact, my father never spoke to me about it; I got it via my first wife, who was in some respects the son he never had.
June 1944 my Dad was in hospital in today's Israel, then all know as Palestine. He has been shot down over the Med, several bits of Krupp shrapnel in the leg, and three days dehydrating in a dingy before the ASR boys from Malta saved his life.
I recall him getting quite emotional one night when the Spinners (English folk music group) sang on their BBC 1 show, the 8th Army Reply to Lady Astor. 1
Perhaps some talent will put up the You tube link - the Brighton Taverners deliver a censured version.
1. Lady Astor strongly denied ever using the term.
Quote from: mollinary on 06 June 2019, 10:05:55 AM
I did a battlefield tour in Crete a couple of years ago, covering the German airborne invasion. If I recall correctly Hargest was the Brigadier commanding the New Zealand Brigade around Maleme airfield. He get away to Egypt, and I think commanded his brigade in the desert and became a PoW. Cannot remember all the details, but I think he was a veteran of Gallipoli as well. I am not surprised he is known in New Zealand, probably aided by the unusual name?
Hi M.
I think PaulR probably knows more about him than I do....Gallipoli ? I'm sure you're right, from what Paul has told me.
From Family history, which one of my aunts researched.......Then my Sis continued.....A lot of 'that side' of my family ended up in NZ. (Pretty sure the surname Hargest, is a corruption of 'Hergest Ridge' in Shropshire.)
The PoW bit ?.....I think that's where the title of the book 'Farewell Campo 12' originated...As I believe he escaped. (I'll have to try and find a copy of that book.....Or nick it back from my niece...If that's who's got it now.)
Cheers - Phil
Cheers - Phil
Granddad was a Gunnery officer on HMS Duke of York, so had a noisily quiet DDay.
My late departed next-door neighbour was on minesweeping, he said the run up to dday was intense (he had helped recover bodies after operation Tiger), DDay -1 was miserable because of the high swell, but most of DDay was spent on the Eastern end of the line waiting for E boats to attack
Used hardback copies of Farewell Campo 12 on sale at Amazon for as little as £2, Phil. My Dad was also in a reserved occupation. He told me he wanted to enlist but, with 3 older brothers serving (he was the youngest), two of whom died in '43 (one clearing mines, the other of Blackwater fever), his family talked him out of it. Instead, he served in Dad's Army where he got to guard a laundry(!). What was his reserved occupation? He made landing craft. We've often wondered if it was one of his that dropped the ramp on my wife's uncle .....
Nope - Far East and Italy.
Quote from: Sunray on 06 June 2019, 10:31:47 AM
June 1944 my Dad was in hospital in today's Israel, then all know as Palestine. He has been shot down over the Med, several bits of Krupp shrapnel in the leg, and three days dehydrating in a dingy before the ASR boys from Malta saved his life.
I recall him getting quite emotional one night when the Spinners (English folk music group) sang on their BBC 1 show, the 8th Army Reply to Lady Astor. 1
Perhaps some talent will put up the You tube link - the Brighton Taverners deliver a censured version.
1. Lady Astor strongly denied ever using the term.
Hopefully this will work
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4hny_XRaw4
Great find, Orcs! My Dad was a D Day dodger, and used to sing a version of that song when I was a kid. He was an able seaman on Landing Craft, did the invasions of Sicily, Salerno, , Anzio and Southern France, and was on embarkation leave for the invasion of Japan when they dropped the bomb and the war ended. He was a life long supporter of nuclear weapkns!
My Dad, who is now 100, was a US Navy Lieutenant engineering officer on LST 501. They landed at Normandy late in the day on June 6th. Then shuttled back and forth bringing supplies from ports in the UK.
He just told me a story about the landing. LST 501 was a designated casualty ship for bringing casualties back. He met an Army Captain that came aboard for treatment. The Captain had been wounded and picked up by the Germans. He was first treated in a German field treatment unit. When done they were busy with other wounded so the Captain just walked out and made his way back to the US lines.
The ship also had a hole ripped in her fresh water tanks. After things calmed down she was dry docked and repaired in the UK.
He also participated in the invasion of southern France.
Dad chose to go to LSTs. He figured it was the best place for a Navy guy to see some action.
I joined the Navy Civil Engineer Corps. Got myself into an Amphibious Construction Battalion. I was deployed on a modern LST, USS Newport, LST 1179. So Dad and I have that in common.
Is your father familiar with the escape from POW camp in Renoir's Le Caporal épinglé? He might be amused by the similarity.
My Grandfather designed the hydraulics for the Flail arms on the Sherman funny to be stowed behind the turret and swung over the turret when needed for flailing
Dad was an apprentice in Barry dry docks. He spent 18 months watching the shipping build up in the docks and Barry Roads. Early one morning (June 2 or 3?) he was walking to work - and all the ships had gone. Something was up.
Uncles in the Med.
My Grandad was somewhere in the North Atlantic on D-Day, aboard a merchant vessel. I have his seaman's paybook, so I can chart his various journeys.
I remember him saying that on one trip the ship in front of his was torpedoed. His ship was ordered to move up to take its place. Then the ship behind him was torpedoed. "That was the day" he intoned "that I began to take the war personally."
I had an uncle in the RN. He was on Hood (and left before it went down) and was on Nelson (I think) in 1944. I recreated his service life from some photographs given to me by my aunt. My interest was piqued by a photo on a carrier. I didn't recognise the aircraft (they were Supermarine Attackers.) From that I could pin him down to one ship ... so it went.
Uncle Alan, grandfather's younger brother, was a lookout on "Small boats" (No further information) and was active on D-day and the days after.
Without knowing what sort of boat, it's difficult to speculate about anything precise.
He made it through unscathed.
Grandfather was in Burma by this time, don't know whether the "forgotten army" also count as dodgers.
My uncle missed D-Day, he'd been in the rearguard at Dunkirk.
He was in the Lancashire Fusiliers and felt he'd been lucky. When they ran out of ammo and had to surrender, his company were picked up by a Wehrmacht unit, in the next village over they were facing SS where 30-odd prisoners got machine gunned the same day.
Quote from: sunjester on 06 June 2019, 10:01:55 PM
My uncle missed D-Day, he'd been in the rearguard at Dunkirk.
He was in the Lancashire Fusiliers and felt he'd been lucky. When they ran out of ammo and had to surrender, his company were picked up by a Wehrmacht unit, in the next village over they were facing SS where 30-odd prisoners got machine gunned the same day.
Dear God, history is frightening.
Quote from: Techno on 06 June 2019, 10:51:11 AM
Hi M.
I think PaulR probably knows more about him than I do....Gallipoli ? I'm sure you're right, from what Paul has told me.
From Family history, which one of my aunts researched.......Then my Sis continued.....A lot of 'that side' of my family ended up in NZ. (Pretty sure the surname Hargest, is a corruption of 'Hergest Ridge' in Shropshire.)
The PoW bit ?.....I think that's where the title of the book 'Farewell Campo 12' originated...As I believe he escaped. (I'll have to try and find a copy of that book.....Or nick it back from my niece...If that's who's got it now.)
Cheers - Phill
Hargest is extremely well know in Otago and Southland; High School, Library, streets named after him
He was with the Otago Mounted Rifles at Gallipoli, his brigade was responsible for Maleme, he got back to North Africa but was captured
He succeeded in escaping from his Italian PoW camp and getting to Switzerland. He served as the NZ observer at D-Day and was killed by shell fire on a farewell visit to British 50th Division in Normandy in August 1944
My father landed on Sword beach with 2nd East Yorkshire battalion on 6 June, he fought until VE Day and was scheduled to invade Japan
After the A-bombs were dropped he got to spend some time in Palestine instead
Never spoke about any of it
See.....I told you Pail knows more about him !
Davy (Westie)...Thanks for the book tip. :)
Cheers - Phil
Quote from: mollinary on 06 June 2019, 02:21:43 PM
Great find, Orcs!
Yes, thank you Mark. This is why Remembrance Day/Festival is so important - we remember them all - the long and the short and the tall -regardless of rank, social class, recognised gallantry, or the plain forgotten heroes whose gallantry went unrecognised. Those who are "known", those "unknown" and those who have no grave. Those who died, whose who survived but wounded in body or in mind.
Its a simple apolitical act. We will remember them.
My dad, a veteran of Italy, went to Normandy with the REME in support of the 10th Armoured Division. He was there until the end of the Normandy campaign and then was transferred to prepare for the invasion of the Japanese home islands, he was on the transport ship when the Japanese surrended, they turned round and went back to India where he stayed until the partition so "his war" didn't end until 1947. He didn't talk much about his service in Italy and Normandy but he did enjoy his time in India, He died on the 6th of June a few years ago.
Martin
On D-Day my Dad was a seventeen year-old "tiffy boy" in the dockyard and, on the Day of Days, a bicycle messenger taking sandwiches to AA batteries and Observer posts around Rosyth Dockyard.
Still MY hero though.