War diary 2nd Northamptonshire Yeomanry

Discussion in 'RAC & RTR' started by somequestions, Apr 17, 2016.

  1. somequestions

    somequestions Member

    Hello,

    iam searching for the unit diary of the 2nd Northamptonshire Yeomanry espcially for the time of the Normandy campaign. Every help is appreciated!
     
  2. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    Anything specific date wise you are after? It's not a very detailed war diary.
     
  3. somequestions

    somequestions Member

    Oh its you again :)

    Mostly Normandy and more specifically Operation Bluecoat. Wondering what happened around La-Bistiere but the entire Normany diary would be interesting.
     
  4. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    Well I do have copies of all the RTR and RAC war diaries in NWE covering 1944 ;)

    I'll post some pages for you later
     
  5. somequestions

    somequestions Member

    Thanks. I noticed i mistook you for somebody else.
     
  6. somequestions

    somequestions Member

    The period in question is early august ( 1-7). I was reading Ian Danglishs book about Bluecoat and was curious what really happened around La-Bistiere.
     
  7. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

  8. somequestions

    somequestions Member

    Thanks a lot!
     
  9. Charley Fortnum

    Charley Fortnum Dreaming of Red Eagles

    Pretty laconic stuff.

    Overworked author or contents reassembled from memory at a later date?
     
  10. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    I think any diary that is typed up there is a good chance it was written from notes/memory sometime after the event. That said if the unit was in the UK or not close to the front line then they may just have the luxury of having a typewriter to hand.
     
  11. graeme

    graeme Senior Member

    Morning,

    Hate to be a pain, Andy, but any mention of what happened to Lt. Stephen White on 19 July 1944 in the War Diary at all ??

    He is buried in Banneville-La-Campagne War Cemetery in Grave IX.A.12.

    Many thanks,

    Regards,

    Graeme
     
  12. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    He joined the unit on the 4th Jan 1943 according to June's Officer Field Return and from the war diary:

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
    CL1 likes this.
  13. graeme

    graeme Senior Member

    Morning Andy,

    Once again, many thanks for taking the time and trouble to dig out and post the War Dairy,

    much appreciated,

    Regards,

    Graeme
     
    Drew5233 likes this.
  14. chi

    chi Member

    hi. I hope someone picks this up. I am trying to find out about the events of August 1944 around Vassy in France. I have come across a photo of a Cromwell tank of the 2nd Northamptonshire Yeomanry on 15th August driving through the town. This in turn led me to your website and these war diaries. Is there a map available that will relate to the references which I think are grid references.?
    Also clearly visible in the foreground is a sign : Rennert 1 with an arrow pointing right. This is obviously a military direction , I would think, but can anyone shed more light? It would be pointing in the direction of Flers, if that helps.
     
  15. adbw

    adbw Active Member

  16. chi

    chi Member

    Gosh that was quick! Thank you - it is certainly interesting and useful. In War diaries 14th August, there is a reference: Maps 1/50,000 sheet 7F5 and 1/25,000 sheets 37/12 NW and SW. Do these correspond or are they special military maps?
     
  17. m kenny

    m kenny Senior Member

    7F5 is the Flers Map and is 1:50000 scale. The 1:25000 maps are roughly 4 sheets to every 1:50000 map. To make things awkward the smaller maps are not made so they overlap exactly with a single 1:50000 sheet of the same area. This is how a single smaller map overlaps with the same area in the larger one. The grid references are the same for both types.
    [​IMG]
     
  18. m kenny

    m kenny Senior Member

    3 photos of the town centre I have. In the last photo the photographer is facing the opposite way to the first two. B9230-32
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  19. chi

    chi Member

    I can’t believe how much I have discovered in such a short time. We are renovating an old farmhouse just outside Vassy and I met an old French gentleman in one of the bars and he told me that as an eleven year old boy his parents sent him to give pears to the soldiers who were camping in fields somewhere near our house. He also told me that only two properties were destroyed in Vassy - the Germans deliberately blew them up to block the road - and one was his parents shop. I wish I had asked him more, but our “franglais” was rather laboured! I am so thrilled to see the photographs, they bring the realities of war to life and I think this bloody period of history, which cost so many lives deserves to be remembered. There is a lot about the actual d day landings, but this fight for the Falaise pocket seems to be more overlooked. Thank you so much for your interest.
     
  20. 8RB

    8RB Well-Known Member

    Not a war diary but certainly very interesting to read: Sixty-four days of a Normandy summer. Written by Keith Jones, a 2nd Northamptonshire veteran.
     

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