Prisoners of war in Milan War Cemetery

To all those interested,

I have finally put together a website on my research into POWs buried in Milan War Cemetery.

I have also included pages on the Airmen and Post War casualties buried there.

Regards

Vitellino

 

Feel free to use any images or info from my post on Captain Taberer Casualty Service and Paybook Collection

I'll hopefully be paying a visit to his grave in September

 

Thank you. I'll amend the site and add in the details.

Edit. Have done.

 

Vitellino,
Another amazing effort and source for others.
congratulations

 

Thanks Geoff. Much appreciated.

 

Well done excellent work and thank you

 

Looked through AM today and found one item a friend will like. Impressive collection, thank you.

 

Excellent. Typically thorough. I was just scratching my head a bit about Capt Keany (Irish Fusilier) but there's a lot of detail there - many thanks.

And learning the ultimate fate of poor old Captain George Curphey of the Canadian Intelligence Corps, who joined the Skins on 14th February 1943 and was reported missing on 24th February 1943 after going out on patrol near pt 286 - and, interestingly (for me, anyway) which led to the Sgt McAleer incident which was featured later in the Victor comic.
6976983 Sgt Frank McALEER, DCM, 6 Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers

6 Innisks entry for 24th February 1943:
"Lt Curphey, Lt Bokanowski, Special Detachment 5 Corps and 4 NCOs did not return from patrol last night. We are all sorry indeed to lose Lieut Curphey. He was a Canadian sent out for 3 months to gain experience from the Canadian forces in England. He was a born leader.

0915 OC D Coy received a letter from Sgt McAleer to say he had come out to see if he could find any trace of the patrol. It did not seem very hopeful that he would return from this errand.

0945 Sgt McAleer returned with two prisoners and a machine gun. His report is attached.

The morning was spent investigating these two prisoners. They were of low morale. Talked freely and with the aid of Major Clarke the Gunner Officer who is an official weapons interrogator and our only German speaking officer we were able to find out all the dispositions of the enemy on pt 286. So much so, it was decided to put a platoon of D Coy over 286 this afternoon. It seemed that the morale of the enemy there was low."

 

Richard,
What never ceases to amaze me is how it all ties together....I hadn't realised that Capt. (Lt.?) Curphey had been with the Skins.
WO 392/21

 

I didn't know this until I skirted through the detail (unusual for me)... and he also appears to be a Dieppe veteran.

Pt 286, which we've clambered over a number of times, was the scene of 2 LIR's disastrous day on 20th/21st Jan 1943, when they suffered more than 250 casualties over a 24 hour period.

A couple more entries "about him" from the Skins' diaries:
14th Feb 1943
Three Canadians joined the bttn yesterday and are posted onto the WE on the unit. Capt Kingsmill, Royal Regiment of Canada is posted to C Coy under Major Little. Lieut Curphey. West Nova Scotia to B Coy under Capt Bayley, and Sgt Sortie Mountie Royal Fusiliers is posted to A Coy under Major Bunch. Sgt Sortie is an expert in explosives. Curphey was in the Dieppe raid and Capt Kingsmill was an Brigade Major in the Canadian Army.

19th Feb 1943:
Very wet day. All roads, except the main roads, are impassable to traffic. D Coy come up during evening and relieve B Coy on pt 279. Lt Curphey, the Canadian, who is in B Coy, however stays with D as he wants to go out patrolling again until he gets a prisoner.

23rd Feb 1943:
1100 Owing to the changeover last night, the patrolling conference was postponed until 1100 hrs. A and B Coys are sending out local recce patrols in front of our old position on Grandstand. C Coy will send out patrol to Gubaia. D Coy under Lt Curphey are to go and recce 286 with possible object of attacking it with a platoon in a day or two. It is discovered that all the A/Tk guns in the farms that C Coy are guarding have disappeared except for one.

 

One more, if I so may... Fusilier Cecil Stevenson's, 2 Innisks, death must indeed have been an accident, but slightly perplexing as to why he is buried at Milan as the Skins were up near Villach by then (and had been there since May 1945).

The CWGC note his army number as 6981544, an expected Inniskillings' number

 

I wondered about him too.

Found this: rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=765908.27

Thanks everyone,
I now know I should look at the war diary of 311 Transit Camp (ref WO 170/7293)
This is where Cecil returned to (3/8/45), after being home on leave, to await being demobbed. Whilst there he sustained wounds from a grenade thrown by an Italian which was recorded as an accident.
He died in 64 General Hospital on 17/10/45

There was a Court of Inquiry held on 13/10/45 at 311 Transit Camp but service record only has a few words which I've already said. It doesn't say when the accident occurred.

 

Eek.. a long thread.. without any definitive answers… but may lead us in a particular direction.

 

Good afternoon Vitellino,

I have just ready your report in to the death of Robert Dickinson. I am his nephew (Steve Dickinson) and the current custodian of the diary you mention. The diary will be going back to Servigliano POW Camp later this year and will remain in their museum.

Some of the information you detail is on Robert's death is new information to me and I am keen to know more about your sources. I have researched Robert's war life for many years, have visited Gassino Torinese and Servigliano in search of information and his grave several times. The diary was returned with a slip of paper with the name Bauducco with the Gassino address you mention. I only found out last month that the Special Branch investigation report in to Robert's death had been released in 2017 (I have a copy being sent to me in the next 2 weeks). I have never managed to trace the Bauducco family, but do have the translated letter from Varesio Vincenza which can be found on the CAMP59SURVIVORS web site. I am now beginning to question some of the information in the letter, but understand why if your account is correct.

UK press reports detail that he was injured and left / hidden by a stream. There is no mention of the dog attack, only that he was beaten to death, but I think this came from the letter from Varesio Vincenza. Sadly the original does not exist only a translated copy that I have.

Was Nelly Bauducco from the Gassino family that I believe to have sheltered Robert?

Hope you can assist me with information.

Steve Dickinson

 

Steve,

I will email you later today.

I advise you to take your email address off your post by using the edit facility, as you may attract some unwelcome spam.

Best wishes,

Janet (Vitellino)

 

I intend to reply to Steve in a private message but in case anyone else is interested in this case my source for the comment on the Milan War Cemetery website is the Diario Clandestino (Secret Diary) of Fulvio Borghetti held in the ISTORETO ARCHIVE, Turin.

Vitellino

 

Hi, Cecil was my great uncle. I am just getting back into family history again as I have more time now.
Cecil started out in 2nd Battalion RIF but was recruited, whilst in Iraq, into the newly formed SBS (1st SAS) March 19th 1943.

These squadrons began to cease to exist from 30th July 1945 before they officially disbanded (15th August 1945). At some stage between these dates Cecil had been home on LIAP (Leave In Advance Python). He must have been reassigned to RIF 2nd Battalion after the official disbandment of the SBS/SAS and returned (on paper) to his parent unit. He returned to 65 Transit Camp (CMF) on August 3rd then moved on to 311 Transit Camp where he was wounded as the result of an accident.
He died at 64 British General Hospital.
I still haven't got to the bottom of the cause of the accident yet. The Service Record states : "Died result of grenade thrown by an Italian. On duty not to blame"
I don't know if that means the Italian was on duty or was he a local that was in denial about losing the war?

I would have to travel from Belfast to visit the National Archives to search WO 170/7293 I'm told.

TAMCK

 

Hi TAMCK,

I have commented on this thread previously and just thought to drop you a message. I'm visiting the Milan Commonwealth Cemetery in just under 2 months time, should you wish a photo of Cecil's grave let me know.

The National Archives reference WO 170/7923 has Description "Transit Centres and Camps: 311 Camp". If you can create an account, you will be able to search for it, but would then need to pay small amount for Document Check and then again for a copy.

The War Crime Investigation report I mention in this thread duly arrived from Kew. After nearly 80 years it brought family closure on my uncles life and a lot more!

Vitellino has been a great help in bringing all the pieces together.

Good luck with your search.

Steve.

 

Hello TAMCK,

I have just checked the National Archives website which informs us that the document has not been digitalised and cannot be downloaded.

You need to register (free), as Steve has said, then request a page check, (small charge) and if you want to proceed after having seen how many pages there are the document can be ordered and paid for on line and then you can download it.

When the words ''on duty'' appear in records it normally refers to the person injured or killed. To find out the true function of the transit camp you need the record. I don't know whether it was for allied servicemen awaiting repatriation or for Italians or Germans who had been apprehended at the end of hostilities who were awaiting transfer to an internment camp.

I hope you get to the bottom of this,

Vitellino

 

Hi Steve, thank you for your reply, that is very helpful. I think I will follow your advice and submit a request. I think it would be more feasible than travelling from Belfast. Thank you for your kind offer of photographing Cecil's grave but I got a few sent via the CWGC request service they offered a few years ago. i hope you have a wonderful trip. It will be a very moving experience for sure.

Tracey