Family connections with South Lancashire Regiment

For a very brief history take a look at the QLR museum website, its basic but gets you started.

The title of the regt. was South Lancashire Regiment (Prince of Wales Volunteers), just to confuse things a little the regimental history refers to the 1st Bn. and 2nd Bn. using their pre-1881 Regimental numbers ie 40th for the 1st Bn.

There are 3 Carrolls with South Lancs service numbers who died in 1940, I think your guess is probably the right man, certainly no Carrolls killed after D-Day.

The 1st Bn. were involved in the battle for France in 1940, and were part of the defence at Dunkirk.

Last out, first back !

I have sent you a pm.

Regards

Pete.

 

Peter,

From the info you sent me I see the 1st Battalions RSM in 1940 was called Joseph Carroll CWGC :: Certificate

I wonder if they were related.

Andy

 

I dont know is the short answer, names can be funny things ie there is a James Brennan on the RoH !

The third Carroll was with the Green Howards, although he was drafted into the South Lancs.

I have seen large sections of the 1st Bn. war diaries posted here somewhere, just cant remember which thread. Possibly one of Phils' posts.

Regards

Pete

 

All we know so far is he never served overseas due to asthma but did do a stint in Northern Ireland during WW2. I think he was at the South Lancashire Regiment's training depot throughout the war.



I can't believe how young he looks

 

So far he lost his best friend during the retreat to Dunkirk and was shot in the shoulder. Possibly took part in D-Day.


I know some of the badges are 3 Div, Corporal rank and South Lancs on epaulette. Any ideas on the other two? I'm assuming one is a TRF ?

 

Drew, the 9th battalion went to NI, see the below extract from the RH.#

NINTH BATTALION

In October 1940, the 50th (South Lancashire) Holding Battalion became a Field Force Battalion and was located at Ulverston and Barrow-in-Furness under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel J. F. G. Hislop. The 9th battalion was now a unit of the 225th Infantry Brigade with the 9th Battalion The Border Regiment and the 10th Battalion The King’s Own Royal Regiment. In its early days the battalion, in common with all others, was occupied with anti-invasion measures, involving many guards and piquets and a constant state of readiness, which restricted training to the most elementary forms.

As the invasion menace receded, however, more and more training became possible, and by the summer of 1941 the battalion, then at full Linlithgow, in Scottish Command, was taking part in large-scale exercises. From Linlithgow the battalion went to Glencorse Barracks near Edinburgh, the peacetime Depot of the Royal Scots, and in February 1942, it found itself just about as far north as it could get in the British Isles, at Kirkwall in the Orkneys. Here it became part of the 207th Infantry Brigade with the 30th Battalion The King’s Own Scottish Borderers, the 11th Battalion Gordon Highlanders, the 15th Battalion Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and ancillary units. The task was aerodrome protection and, again, opportunities for training were few and far between. The War Diary for this period discloses little of the conditions under which the 9th Battalion lived while in the Orkney Islands, but something may be gathered from weather entries; which ranged from ‘dull, damp, windy’ to ‘ stormy, heavy rain,’ with apparently little else.

It was until the middle of August 1943 that the battalion moved south again, to Seaford, in Sussex, where its operational role was counter attack to destroy enemy landings that might occur in its area. Later the battalion went to Bexhill in the same role, and in November 1942, Lieutenant-Colonel J. F. C. Hislop vacated command and was succeeded by Lieutenant-Colonel R. F. B. Hill. In December the battalion was sent to Northern Ireland where it was in the Loughermore area, and here it assisted in the training and exercises which were carried out with American troops who were being acclimatised in Northern Ireland as they came over to take their part in the great assault of the European fortress which was under preparation.

In this connection, coming events were casting their shadows before them and the need for the provision of reinforcements and their training made a sweeping reorganisation necessary, and the 9th Battalion became one of those units designated as Training Units, from May 1944. It continued in this valuable, if unspectacular, role until it was finally disbanded.

 

Drew

Pte Daley (the 12 year old!)... will be interested when you get his service history back, my g/f was in the 9th Bn.

Cheers

Pete

 

Hello, I hope you dont mind me jumping in like this, but i have been looking for anything that would point me in the right direction of my grandfathers military life as he passed away before i was born, ive been looking on the internet for two years without sucess and i have read your post my grandfather too was in the 2nd bn south lancashire regiment his name was, william james bradshaw no.14803890. Now the confusing part it appears he was in the army far longer than first thought as my grandmother and mother where sure he was in some way attached to the royal scotts,in we still have the red cap touree. I also have a few pictures from when he was serving in trieste Italy. Any information would be greatly appriciated.Thank you

 

Drew, how are you getting on with the Service records? The Divisional Flash is the 3rd Division, so this photo was taken post June 1940, as The 1st Bn South Lancs served under the 4th Division BEF in the Battle for France / Belgium). As soon as the Battalion had regrouped, re-equipped and recovered, they transferred to the 3rd Division, and after a period of Coastal defence duties, started training for the invasion.

 

Hello, I hope you dont mind me jumping in like this, but i have been looking for anything that would point me in the right direction of my grandfathers military life as he passed away before i was born, ive been looking on the internet for two years without sucess and i have read your post my grandfather too was in the 2nd bn south lancashire regiment his name was, william james bradshaw no.14803890. Now the confusing part it appears he was in the army far longer than first thought as my grandmother and mother where sure he was in some way attached to the royal scotts,in we still have the red cap touree. I also have a few pictures from when he was serving in trieste Italy. Any information would be greatly appriciated.Thank you

Jim Bob, welcome to the forum, and be rest assured that you are in the right place, as after months of researching the South Lancs Regiment in WW2, there is no other online source / forum that contains as much knowledge on the regiment as this one. So after two years if you dont mind waiting till tonight I will look through my files.

In the meantime, can I suggest you start a serperate post under geaneology, and put as much info on it as you can, especially any details, timings etc that you have from your g/f's service record, as dates are all important, especially if an individual moved between regiments.

In the meantime, i can confirm that the 2nd South Lancs were in Trieste in 1947 - 48, amalgamating with the 1st Bn from 19th Sept 1948.

The movements of the 2nd Bn during WW2 are as follows, and this is were the dates come in, as the service number that you have given says that he originally enlisted in the General Service Corps, and therefore would have been posted to a Regiment / Battalion after enlistment. There is some readacross with the South Lancs and Royal Scots, but i dont have the details with me, but it would help to know, if he served with the Royal Scotts before or after the South Lancs.


1939 Bombay
1940.07 ----- UK (29 Infantry Brigade)
1942.03.21 - at sea (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121)
1942.04.22 - South Africa (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121)
1942.04.28 - at sea (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121)
1942.05.05 - Madagascar (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121 (Operation Ironclad))
1942.08.20 -- at sea
1942.08.26 -- East Africa (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121)
1942.09.05 -- at sea
1942.09.10 -- Madagascar (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121 (Operation Slim-line Jane))
1942.10.16 -- at sea (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121)
1942.10.24 -- South Africa (29 Infantry Brigade, Force 121)
1943.01.08 -- at sea
1943.01.26 -- India
1944.04 ------- Burma (7th Indian Division)
1945 ------------ UK
1946 ------------ Malta
1947 ------------ Trieste


You might also be interested in reading the following post which details from the Regimental History, some of the Battalions Time in India / Burma


http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/burma-india/20329-2nd-battalion-south-lancashire-regiment-kohima-irrawaddy-burma.html

 

1. Whats the connection with Prince of Wales Volunteers? Were they a different Regt. just before the war?

That title goes back to the pre-1881 days of the 82nd (Prince of wales vols.) Regiment of Foot which amalgamated with the 40th Foot (in 1881) to become the "Prince of Wales Volunteers (South Lancashire regiment)"...their official title until 1938.

2. I've had a look in Blitzkreig in the West and there's no mention of the South Lancashire Regt. Any links to what they were upto in 1940?


1st Bn was part of 12 Bde, 4th Div. Not too much on them in the "general" histories, but they were holding the line just north of Nieupoort on 29th/30th May.

 

Drew

In relation to Pte. George Daley, its worth taking a look at the South Lancs page on the Burmastar website. If you read the entries by Manny Curtis, he describes a little of his time in Northern Ireland, I believe he was also 9th Bn.

The South lancs training Depot was No. 19 Infantry Training Centre, I believe in Preston, although whether this was at Fulwood Barracks I dont know. South Lancs had been moved out of their home barracks at Warrington at that time.

Regards

Pete

 

Cheers all,

Funny you should mention Service Records Phil.....It was only yesterday we had our umteenth arguement about her getting proof of death to apply for all three sets. It will happen I just don't know when

 

Im sorry for the delay In my reply, Thank you for this information it has already helped me put a place to some pictures.i have a little more information regarding his involvement with the royal scotts he would of been with them prior to the 2nd battalion as the dates commence from 20 july 1944.I also have now some more photos with his friends and release book my mother also found his death certificate so will have a look to see if i can apply for his service records which will help me.

I shall also make a new post in the geanology section thank you very much again.

 

Let us know what you turn up, the 2nd Bn. in Burma is of great interest.

Regards

Pete

 

And so it starts ...Death Certs for all 3 men applied for

 

Does anyone have the War Diaries for the 1st Battalion South Lancs in 1940?

I'm interested in the time leading up to the defence of the perimeter and the evacuation of any companies. I know they were in the Nieuport area but looking for detailed locations.

Cheers
Andy

 

Does anyone have the War Diaries for the 1st Battalion South Lancs in 1940?

I'm interested in the time leading up to the defence of the perimeter and the evacuation of any companies. I know they were in the Nieuport area but looking for detailed locations.

Cheers
Andy

Ive got the regimental Histry Drew, but thought I had already sent you that

P

 

THE FIRST ROUND

The 1st Battalion in the Retreat to Dunkirk.

THE First battalion was at Dover when the Second World War began. On the 29th December 1938, Lieutenant-Colonel G. H. Keighley-Bell, M.C., had officially handed over command of the battalion to Lieutenant-Colonel D. M. W. Beak, V.C., D.S.O., M.C., who came from a regiment with which the South Lancashire had had a long and close comradeship. Colonel Keighley-Bell had thirty-two years’ service when he left the regiment, and had been particularly enthusiastic in his string support of the variation of the title of the regiment, which was ratified under Army Order No. 244 0f 1938, and which restored the Territorial designation to the first place in the title, making it ‘The South Lancashire Regiment (The Prince of Wales’s Volunteers).’ The general feeling on this important matter was perhaps well interpreted by the following paragraph which appeared in the Regimental Chronicle for the winter of 1939, under 1st Battalion Notes: ‘So far as this battalion is concerned, there was almost a 100 per cent vote of all ranks in favour of the change. To those of the younger generation, there is not the same significance in the alteration of a title under which they were “born.” Their mental attitude may perhaps be summarised in this question- “To which particular period of the Regiments History do we in this battalion owe the greatest allegiance?” Their thoughts at present go with the majority on the plea that an ancient and fragrant title in itself does not fit modern conditions. We owe it now to the highest percentage of out men to recognise their Territorial Origin. We respond to the wishes of our Territorial battalions to emphasise their Territorial distinctiveness, with the same spirit as they conformed to previous ideas on the subject. We owe it the entire generation who served with the Regiment in the Great Was that their identity shall never fade from the shoulder titles which they wore with honour to themselves and us all.’

And so the already indissoluble territorial connection between the regiment and the county received final official blessing as the South Lancashire Regiment moved forward to take its part in the greatest and most critical war in the history of mankind.

The machinery of mobilization was thrown into gear as from the 2nd September, the first batch of 134 reservists arrived from the Depot on the 3rd, and on the 8th the battalion marched to Fredville Park Camp and on the 25th departed for Aldershot in three groups, where it was accommodated at Badajos Barracks. On the 27th The King and Queen visited the 4th Division and the battalion lined the route and cheered the progress of Their Majesties.

This was the prelude to departure of the division for service overseas, and on the 5th October the battalion left Aldershot for Southampton and embarked for France in the S.S. ‘Mona’s Queen.’ After a very rough crossing, the battalion disembarked at Cherbourg and left by train in the evening for ‘an unknown destination,’ which proved to be the village of Chantenay, near Noyen. It is interesting to note that the battalion had its band with it, which circumstance greatly helped the mutual demonstrations of goodwill which were the order of the day as the British Troops moved into line in France. From Chantenay, the battalion moved to Billy Montigny, where it was employed with the rest of the division, on the work of organising in depth the line held by the British Expeditionary Force. This of course, meant digging and yet more digging by the companies, while the training of specialist went on as actively as possible. Early in December the battalion went my M.T. to Seclin to take part in an inspection by His Majesty the King who was visiting his forces in France, and it was specially congratulated for its turnout.

An interesting break in this unreal kind of war came soon after this when, in accordance with the policy of sending infantry brigades of the British Expeditionary Force to do short tours of duty under French Command in the Maginot Line, the battalion moved, as a unit of the 12th Infantry Brigade, to the neighbourhood of the Metz and took over a portion of the ‘Ligne de Contact’ under the French 42nd Division. It should be observed that the 1st Battalion was the first battalion of the 12th Brigade selected from the 4th Division to be in positions in direct contact with the enemy. Apart from some slight air activity and mutual patrolling, the battalion’s occupation of these front line positions was uneventful and it was withdrawn to a reserve position near Kedange in time for Christmas, and returned to the B.E.F. area early in January 1940, going into good billets at Tourcoing on the Belgian Border.

Working parties and wiring, interspersed with a certain amount of training and a regular system of leave parties to England, too the troops through February, March and April 1940. It was a hard winter, generally wet and stormy, and at times very cold with sharp frosts which interfered with digging, but spirits were high and the men lost no time in adapting themselves to the strangely unreal atmosphere of this ‘twilight war.’

The ‘phoney war,’ as the Americans inevitably called it, came to a sudden and dramatic end on the 10th May 1940, when the German armies began the sudden onslaught which overwhelmed Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg in the space of a few days, brought France to her knees and exposed England to a deadly peril.

When the storm broke, the battalion was at Tourcoing, with one company at Roubaix, and an indication of the suddenness of the German action may be gained from an Entry in the War Diaries for the 9th May: ‘1730. ENSA Concert in Lille with Will Hay attended by large numbers of men.’ The atmosphere was a peaceful one, with settles routine of work and training, and administrative duties such as billeting charges, damages to billets, electric light charges and so on, assuming a good deal of importance.

The main Belgian positions at this time ran from Antwerp, along the line of the Albert Canal to Maastricht and thence along the River Meuse to the French Frontier. The sector allotted to the British Expeditionary Force ran along the Franco-Belgian border frontier to the east and north of Lille, with its right flank at mauled and its left at Halluin, on the River Lys opposite Menin, with a defensive flank thrown back along the Lys. General Headquarters was near Arras. The tragic short-sightedness of the Belgian Government had prevented had prevented the French and British Armies from entering Belgian territory before the blow fell, but a plan, known as ‘Plan D,’ had been eventually agreed to, under which the B.E.F. were to take up positions along the line of the River Dyle, with the French on their right and the Belgians on their left. The British and French responded instantly to the Belgian Appeal for help and moved forward from the positions they had been preparing for so long, thereby being compelled to meet the enemy on a new and unprepared line.

The first intimation the battalion had of the changed situation was a series of air raids alarms and the news of heavy bombing of aerodromes and communications, while fires could be seen across the Belgian Border. Officers and men on leave were at once recalled, surplus stores were collected for return to base, and all units received orders to stand by for a move at six hours notice. The forward move began on the night of the 13th May by M.T., and next morning the battalion reached its billeting area in the small village of Grimberghen, on the northern outskirts of Brussels. The journey was painfully slow, and on the road the troops saw the heartbreaking symptoms of disaster in the streams of refugees, which were to become such a commonplace of the next few terrible weeks. The enemy were now in contact with the 3rd Division on the eastern outskirts of Louvain, and the 4th Division were to take up a defensive position along the line of the Dyle Canal, with the 10th Infantry Brigade on the right and the 12th on the left. The 1st Battalion of the regiment was on the left of the brigade and so had the distinction of being the left forward unit of the British Army on this day. Throughout the day there was an endless stream of refugees coming across the Dyle, and among them a good many Belgian soldiers falling back to reorganise on rear positions. From what could be observed of the Belgian troops, it was obvious that they had been caught unprepared, and much of their equipment was hopelessly out of date.

During the 16rg, minor alterations in the defensive positions were carried out and there was a slight enemy attack on the positions held by the 2nd Battalion The Royal Fusiliers in the right of the 12th Brigade. During the afternoon orders were received for the battalion to be withdrawn to a rear position in the neighbourhood of Strombeck-Bever, south west of Brussels, and it was during this move that the battalion suffered its first casualties, when ‘A’ Company’s sentries were fired on by Belgian troops crossing the canal. One man was killed and two wounded.

Enemy pressure on the forward troops was now increasing heavily; the Belgian troops on the left of the 4th Division were preparing to fall back to the line of the Willbrook Canal, and the 4th Division was ordered to take up positions along that line to cover the withdrawal of the 3rd Division in contact with the enemy. On arrival at Strombeck the battalion went into billets as brigade reserve. The positions on the Willbrook Canal were not held, and the 12th Brigade received further orders to conform with the general rearward movement by falling back to positions behind the Escault Canal. This was carried out on the 19th and 20th, and was a slow process with the roads badly congested with both military traffic and the endless streams of refugees struggling along with their few pitiful belongings.

In the new position the battalion was in and about the small village if Ooteghem, the 12th brigade being in reserve with a counter attack role to retake the line of the River Escault if lost. In this task the battalion, with the 6th Black Watch, was to counter attack to retake positions on the front of the 11th Brigade.

Despite reports of small bodies of the enemy having crossed the river during the night of the 20th / 21st, no contact was made with the Germans on this position, and, except for some slight shelling and a little air activity, the battalion suffered no molestation, and orders for a further withdrawal were received during the afternoon of the 22nd. The battalion sustained its first battle casualties due to enemy action at Ooteghem when enemy shells fell around ‘B’ Company H.Q. Later at Tighem, while the commanding Officer was having a conference, a direct hot was scored on the C.O.’s car, killing a signaller. This burst if shelling also cost the battalion the life of Regimental Sergeant Major Carroll, who was killed when a shell burst a few yards away from where he was walking.

After a tiresome march of eighteen miles of roads congested with traffic of all kinds, the battalion arrived at the village if Triez Cailloux, on the old B.E.F. original line on the Franco-Belgian border near Halluin, and at once manned the pill boxes in the ridge southwest of Halluin with ‘A’ and ‘B’ companies, ‘C’ and ‘D’ being in a position near Battalion H.Q.

It was clear that things were not going well in front, and all thought that the big defensive battle was now about to start in earnest, but it was not to be, and although the brigade stood by in this position throughout the 24th, 25th and 26th, there was no direct contact with the enemy and orders for a further withdrawal was received by the battalion on the night of the 26th. This was fresh indication of the rapidly deteriorating general situation, and the immediate reason for this new retirement in the 4th Division’s area was the withdrawal of Belgian troops on the left which had raised the formation of a dangerous salient. The troops had already been warned that bombing of the railhead was casuing serious supply difficulties, and the companies were now told to prepare for a sudden move and to be ready to travel as light as possible.

The next line was on the Rove Lys, and the battalion found itself in a position west of the river near Ploegsteert (‘Plugstreet’ of 1914-18 immortal memory), covering about two miles of the river. Soon after these positions had been occupied, the bridges over the Lys were blown and the battalion stood by for action. Once again no contact with enemy was made, although the German aircraft were very active, and at 1900 hours on the 28th, Battalion H.Q. and ‘A’ and ‘B’ Companies moved out of Ploegsteert and marched nine miles to Reninghelst. Meanwhile, ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies had been detached to take up a defensive position on the flank near Poperinghe, and those two companies, with the exception of one platoon which marched forty eight miles in thirty six hours, did not rejoin the battalion until after the evacuation.

Embussing at Reninghelst, the battalion (less ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies) was passed straight through to the coast where it became on of the units manning the perimeter hastily thrown out to cover the evacuation from the beaches, which had now been planned and was getting under way. Here the battalion took up positions two miles west of Nieuport, and was responsible, as the left battalion of the 12th Brigade, for the crossings over the Nieuport Canal from the sea to the canal bridge at Nieuport.

During the 29th the battalion’s positions came under enemy shellfire, but during the night it was possible to dig-in section posts, although this work was made more difficult by the sandy soil, which demanded constant revetting. It was also difficult to keep the sand out of weapons. By the morning of the 30th there were indications of ever growing enemy activity on the other side of the canal, and shellfire became progressively heavier and more accurate as the day wore on, with constant enemy air observation from a balloon. During this day, 6th Black Watch took over from ‘B’ Company in the sea flank and the battalion’s position was extended to the right to relieve pressure in the right of the brigade’s area.

Shortly after daylight in the 31st the enemy put down a heavy artillery bombardment along the line of the canal and this, accompanied by the intensive searching fire by mortars, was the prelude to an enemy attempt to force the position. By 0800 hours ‘B’ Company had reported 14 casualties, including two officers (Lieutenant Hargreaves and 2nd Lieunt. Warren), and two hours later this company reported that enemy troops to a strength of approximately a battalion were attempting to infiltrate on the right of ‘B; between the company and the 2nd Royal Fusiliers. The enemy attacks rapidly developed and at one time one thrust penetrated to within 100 yards of battalion Headquarters and threatened to surround it. It was here that the Military Cross was won by Captain M. A. H. Butler who, as the situation became precarious with the enemy working round both flanks, collected together such men as immediately available and led them forward under very heavy Machine Gun and Mortar Fire, and restored the position with the help of the Mortar Platoon under the command of P.S.M. Edwards who was afterwards killed.

Earlier in these final operations before the evacuation, great work had also been done by the Carrier Platoon, commanded by 2nd Lieut. H. G. Kemball, who had led the platoon forward to clear the enemy from an area, which they had occupied. In the course of this operation Kemball was wounded but only came back when ordered to do so by a senior officer. This was the last in a series of distinguished actions carried out by the Carrier Platoon during the retreat, and 2nd Lieut. Kemball was awarded the Military Cross for his consistent Gallantry and leadership while the Distinguished Conduct Medal went to Sergeant J. Jones who took over command of the Platoon when Kemball was wounded. Another member of the Carrier Platoon decorated for his work during the battle of Nieuport was Corporal J. M. Birtles. This gallant N.C.O. used his carrier with great skill and initiative and, in the evening, was badly wounded in the neck but refused to go back until covering his task of the carriers had been completed, when he collapsed from his wound. He was awarded a very well earned Military Medal for his courage and devotion to duty.

Casualties during the 31st May were heavy, and it was now apparent to all that the end was very near and the evacuation was in full swing. Battalion Headquarters and ‘A’ and ‘B’ Companies held a position approximately corresponding to the original battalion support line throughout the day, and started to thin out during the night, covered by the carriers, which finally left their positions on the high ground west of Nieuport at about 0215 hours in the 1st June, when the rest of the battalion was safely embossed. On reaching La Panne, the battalion came under heavy shelling and here it was ordered to abandon its M.T., the streets being inextricably blocked with all kinds of wrecked transport. The situation on the beaches was obscure and many of those responsible for the beach organisation had become casualties.

At first, the battalion formed up with other units of the 4th Division, but is soon became apparent that no tenders were coming to the shore from the ships lying offshore, and most of the units began to move along the beach towards Dunkirk. As they went, some were able to get to the waiting craft and some thirty men of the battalion managed to get aboard a destroyer, but the rest continued along the beach under heavy machine gunning and bombing from the air.

Thus the 1st Battalion, under command of Lieutenant-Colonel D. M. W. Beak, V.C., D.S.O., M.C., less its detached ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies, marched in drill formation to the Mole at Dunkirk, where they embarked with their arms in the Isle of Man Steamer ‘Ben-my-Chree.’ The B.B.C. time signal for 1pm was sounding as they went aboard. The crossing was uneventful and the battalion arrived at Folkestone in the evening and the men were dispersed to various rest camps in the Aldershot and Salisbury Plain areas.

The final stage of the campaign and the scenes of those historic beaches have been vividly narrated by abler pens and, moreover, space does not permit a detailed description of that heartbreaking but splendid operation which brought away from the continent so many more British Troops than even the most sanguine had dared to hope, but nobody who took part will ever forget it, and it stands very high in the long record of splendid achievement which is the history of the 40th.

The first round was over, and four years were to pass before men of the regiment again set foot on French Soil in the great offensive which brought about the final Victory.

While the rest of the 1st battalion was fighting its way back to the beaches, the main body of the 4th Division, ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies had their fill of adventures and perils before they, in turn, were evacuated.

Detached from the battalion on the evening id the 28th May to take up defensive positions in the exposed flank near Ypres, these two companies, commanded respectively by Major J. A. Thompson and Captain G. A. McDonough, arrived in the area between Vlamertinghe and Ypres at about midnight after a tiring march of twenty miles, only to find that the situation on that flank has still further deteriorated, that the 50th Division further to the West had already withdrawn and that the covering force of cavalry was about to do the same. With the final withdrawal of the cavalry at about 6.40 a.m. ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies found themselves ‘in the blue.’ With no contact with either their own battalion or the rest of the brigade, and with the rapidly advancing German troops closing in. There was no alternative, therefore to withdrawal, and they fell back to the outskirts of Poperinghe, where they were told that the enemy was now all around and that all our infantry were to make their way to Dunkirk and the beaches as best they could.

The retreat was in full swing by now and the companies marched through crowds of disorganised French troops and transport to the line of the Yser River, where they joined rearguard troops of the 42nd Division and assisted in holding a position covering the river crossings at Rousbrugge. Here several casualties were caused by shelling and some of the wounded who were put into an ambulance were captured by the enemy, who were now across the main line of retreat. In the very early hours of the 30th, ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies withdrew with other troops from the Yser Line and fell back towards the coast in an extremely hazardous march virtually through the German Positions. Everywhere they had to thread their way through crowds of retreating French troops and miles of abandoned and burning vehicles, and finally arrived, weary, hungry, at a point near Bergues where the British and French sectors of the hastily improvised perimeter covering Dunkirk joined. Here they took up positions in support of the 1st Guards Brigade, all attempts to find the rest of the battalion having failed.

While in these positions ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies cane under heavy shellfire, and during the night of the 31st May / 1st June the enemy pressure increase very considerably, and there were reports of break troughs at a number of points. There was heavy shelling and sniping throughout the morning and afternoon if the 1st June, and in the evening information came to the effect that the last of the B.E.F. were evacuating that night. At 2100 hours the two companies marched down to the beach and dug-in.

On the morning of the 2nd the R.A.F. did magnificent work driving of the swarms of German aircraft, which tried to close in for the kill, and casualties were surprisingly light. ‘C’ and ‘D’ Companies stayed on the beach throughout Daylight on the 2nd and then, at about 2100 hours, all the troops formed up at the water’s edge and marched along the beach to the Mole at Dunkirk. Progress was very slow, but they eventually got there and were at last put aboard the cross-channel steamer ‘St. Helier’ at about 0200 hours on the 3rd June and reached Folkestone some four hours later.

And so the last of the 1st Battalion came home from the historic evacuation at Dunkirk. They were nearly the last to get away, for it was announced by the Admiralty at 02.23 p.m. on the 4th June that Operation ‘Dynamo’ (the evacuation) had been completed.

The following awards were made to the 1st Battalion for the operations up to the evacuation at Dunkirk:

Military Cross – Captain M. A. H. Butler, 2nd Lieut. H.G. Kemball, Captain J. L. M. Watson. Lieutenant B. R. Fairclough was also awarded the Military Cross for his escape as a prisoner of war.

Distinguished Conduct Medal – Sergeant J. Jones.

Military Medal – Corporal J. M. Birtles, lance Corporal J. Boughey, Corporal C. Pennington.

 

We found out today the James Brennand was transfered to the 5th Bn, East Lancashire Regiment in 1943 after joining the South Lancs in 1938 and serving with the BEF in 1939/40.

Any ideas why this would happen?

I'll post pictures of all the info I obtained this weekend when Andrea downloads it off her phone.....The family stumbled on a box containg his original AB64 and some other original documents including a 'We regret to inform you form you' from WW2.

Cheers
Andy