North Africa/Italy/Records Help - Royal Engineers Unit 3 D.B.R.E

looking for anyone who may have known george banks re at sicily/italy monte de cassino/algeria .tunisa.traing at newark and hewick .late farther in law

 

Welcome aboard Ken.

Best you start your own thread on him. In this area of the forum: Searching for Someone & Military Genealogy

Please add his full name, Date of Birth and Service Number? If known. It will help others to help you. A visual guide to ‘Start’ is in Post 19 in: George William Knock

If you have any documents there is guidance on uploading / scanning is within: How to Start a new Thread / Edit Post / Upload Image

 

many thanks unfortanatly we only have a few photos of george i never meet him he died around 1991.i married his eldest daughter.we know very little.but thanks,i have wrote to war records office for help?

 

Ken,

His full name, Date of Birth and Service Number? Incredibly some of those who served are already here and the expertise here can develop more information..

 

I don't know if this is the right place, or whether I should start a new post. My father enlisted on 11 March 1940 in Weymouth Dorset. As a carpenter and joiner he expected to join the REs, but was told there were too many tradesmen enlisting and was made a dispatch rider. While he enjoyed riding his motor bike he felt it was an insult to be doing that. He obviously was 'difficult' seldom kept a stripe for long! Then in 1943 he got the transfer to the REs and fairly quickly got three stripes. I have his army records but can't make head nor tail of them. There are two things that intrigue me. He spent some time in Northern Italy as part of a bridge building team. 'We extended the bridge by day and Jerry bombed it by night' what I can't work out is where he was based/billeted; i think I was told it was in the Po valley. He seems to have been there for a while because, according to my mother, he had an affair there. She told me the name of the village but I have forgotten. I can't work it out from the hand writing on the records. The second thing I can't work out is that he said that at the end of the war they were moved to Austria where they built prefab huts for displaced people. Then he seems to have been given leave before going to Greece to do the same job (still in the Army), this i can see as his C/O gave him a reference for his time there. He was discharged in 1946.

His name was Gerald Charles Martin DOB 11/3/1916, Army Number 2591679. I would appreciate any help and am happy to copy the relevant pages of his records+

Roy

 

Roy,

I would recommend a new thread, if only to be different from Ken's thread on a Sapper too.

That name and number have not appeared here before.

 

re royal engineer sapper name george ernest banks dob 28 march 1919 died 1991/thats all i know all family have died only his eldest daughter my wife knows little

 

thanks davidfpopatron for help ken

 

Bingo, an exact match @ The National Archives; it is a 'closed' record. His Service Number is: 1909872.
From: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C20799575

It is 'Closed' as their procedures require an official document recording his death (CWGC entry will do). Follow the link and TNA explain: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/mod-closed-foi-request-step1/C19248003

Death Cert. if not to hand via: https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/

CMP shows he was enlisted in the Royal Engineers before early 1942 (when the Army system changed). See: Army Number Search

He has own thin Wiki:

See: George Banks (footballer) - Wikipedia and George Banks. Former Harrier - Harriers Chatter

His name & number have not appeared here before.

 

yes thats him ex pro footballer with west bromwich albion & mansfield town and many none league.we found out that he never claimed is war medals ,we dont know why ?thanks for all your help ken mullaney baden powell scouts association former scout master

 

dear davidbfpo/the information you gave me was very well recieved/any idea with royal engineers reg he may have been with/geroge died in wednesbury 1991/any help would be great /i tryed but failed not here from army records office yet ken best wishes and thanks for your service and to all,

 

Ken,

Hopefully once you get his Service Record it will identify his postings. It is the definitive record.

Yes, it now costs ££ and this recent thread helps to explain the options: National Archives Service File Applications - Pre Feb 2026 v Post Feb 2026

Yes, there can be a long wait.

 

Roy Martin (Post 25) has added his own thread now: G C Martin Royal Engineers

 

many many thanks everyone for help /thanks again davidbfpoken mullaney scouts beprepared