Oakham School WW2
Oakham School War Memorial Chapel
The Memorial Crucifix
Special treatment for a Martyr
Vivian Frederick Barnes REDLICH Priest-in-charge Sangara, Papua. He was beheaded on 14 August 1942 at Buna, Papua. He was 37 He was the son of the Reverend E Basil and Mrs Redlich, Teigh Rectory, Oakham He is remembered in St Paul’s Cathedral, Leicester Cathedral and in the Chapel of St John’s Leatherhead which school he attended after Oakham Additional information Oakham 1920, he also attended St John’s, Leatherhead and Chichester Theological College 1926. Deacon 1932; Priest 1933; diocese of Wakefield, Curate of Dewsbury Moor, 1932-35. Member of the Brush Brotherhood of St Andrew, Queensland, 1935. Priest-in-charge Dawson Valley, 1935-36, diocese of Rockhampton. Priest-in-charge, Winton 1937-40. Diocese of New Guinea, 1940; Doguara, via Samuria, Papua; Priest-in-charge Sangara, Papua. The most recent information - 2009 Over the years the story has been told of a young priest, Vivian Redlich being beheaded by the Japanese. Recently a different story has emerged and for the sake of completeness both stories are told here. From the journal This is Leicestershire 2 October 2009 The half-brother of a Leicestershire missionary who was murdered by Pacific tribesmen has attended a reconciliation service with the families of the killers. Patrick Redlich travelled to New Guinea to offer islanders his family's forgiveness for the murder of the Rev Vivian Redlich, who was killed in July 1942. The descendants of the missionary's murderers had told local church leaders they wanted to seek forgiveness because they felt cursed. At an emotional service, attended by 1,500 people, many of the relatives came forward to hand gifts to Mr Redlich and embrace him. He said: "I was bringing the forgiveness of the whole family. I presented the cathedral with a bronze memorial plaque. This records the date of Vivian's death and our father's forgiveness for all those who caused it." The brothers' father, Edwin, was the rector of Little Bowden in Market Harborough. When he heard of his son's death, he preached a sermon of forgiveness. Rev Redlich had refused to leave his post in New Guinea despite the invasion of Japanese forces during the Second World War. Five other missionaries, including his fiancée May Hayman, a nurse, were killed by the Japanese invaders. For many years it was believed Rev Redlich had been murdered by the soldiers as well. But six years ago, tribal families on the island told church leaders it was their relatives who had murdered him and that they felt cursed. The circumstances of the murder were not revealed. An emotional reconciliation service was held at Popondetta Cathedral in the south east of the island, last month, attended by many of the tribal families and Mr Redlich. The 77-year-old, who lives in Sydney, Australia, said: "Several people were on their hands and knees and many were crying."A large number of traditional gifts were presented, as well as offerings of money amounting to almost £700, more than a year's pay for a local labourer. It was incredible." The money will form the basis for a Vivian Redlich Trust that it is hoped will be used for the formation of a teachers' training college. Patrick was only three when Vivian left Leicestershire. He said: "He went to Queensland to work in the bush. He could have come home to England in 1940 but he decided to go to New Guinea." In his last letter home, which is part of a memorial in St Nicholas Church in Little Bowden, he wrote: "If I don't come out of it, just rest content that I have tried to do my job faithfully." Supporting this report There is the following report on PM which is part of ABC News in Australia MARK COLVIN: In just under a fortnight in a church at the north end of the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea, a reconciliation ceremony may finally lay to rest a little known mystery of the Second World War. Patrick Redlich will be unveiling a plaque to his elder brother Father Vivian Redlich, an Anglican priest who died there in 1942. Father Vivian Redlich was always listed as one of the so-called Gona New Guinea Martyrs - a group of missionaries who were stabbed and beheaded by the Japanese during the invasion. But it's emerged in the last few years that some of them were betrayed to the Japanese by the tribes people among whom they were working. And in the case of Father Vivian Redlich, it was a group of tribesmen who actually speared him to death. I asked Patrick Redlich whether until a few years ago he'd been convinced that it was the Japanese who killed his brother. PATRICK REDLICH: Oh yes, yes, there was no question. That was the thought right round the world. There's something like 180 entries on this... on Vivian Redlich in the Internet and the great bulk of them confirm that fact. MARK COLVIN: And so he was considered to be one of the so-called Gona New Guinea Martyrs. PATRICK REDLICH: That's exactly right. MARK COLVIN: And their story was relatively famous because some of them really were killed by the Japanese. PATRICK REDLICH: Oh yes, they certainly were. They were killed very horribly. They were either stabbed by bayonets or had heads cut off. MARK COLVIN: And well, what about your brother Vivian then? What actually happened to him, do you now believe? PATRICK REDLICH: Well, we know believe that he was stabbed by a party of five or six Arukivan (phonetic) spearman. One of those who was still alive, Bishop David, wrote and told me had had a religious experience and had asked for forgiveness for this. Bishop David wanted me to go up to New Guinea to express the family's forgiveness to this man and to other people there. But he died before it could happen. MARK COLVIN: Why do you think that they waited for more than half a century before letting this news come out? PATRICK REDLICH: I think they probably realised that they had done something fairly terrible, and I think it... I think it probably ran around in their minds it was bad thing. Locally they now believe that the curse is on the community descended from these people. And I think it was just the horror of it. They realised they had done something really bad, and that was what it boils down to. MARK COLVIN: What do you think the reason for killing was? Did they mistake your brother; did they not understand that he was a missionary? Did they think he was a colonialist in some way? PATRICK REDLICH: That I cannot tell you at all. The... I have a letter which... the validity of which I don't know, sent to me by the man who was doing the investigation for Bishop David. And he describes how my brother was... very exactly how my brother was walking up a path with this guy Kipling when they met this party of spearman. But there is no hint as to why this happened - what brought it on. MARK COLVIN: I believe this all came at a bit of a turning point in your brother's life? PATRICK REDLICH: Yes, he had been down to recover possibly from malaria to Dagua, which is the cathedral city there, and he had very recently become engaged to a young girl who is no... is just I think a year older than him, who was nurse at the gorner station there. She and the other girl there who was a teacher, both of them were horribly killed by the Japanese later on, separately to Buna beach (phonetic). And what in fact... they were walking out... walking out rather late and they had just crossed the Kokoda trail when they were discovered and attacked and were put into the hands of the Japanese. That's what happened to them. That would have been about the same time that my brother was killed. MARK COLVIN: Now, tell us about your impending visit. PATRICK REDLICH: Now, they've got a bishop there, Bishop Joe Kapata, who has had some difficulty establishing himself there because it's the biggest diocese in New Guinea and eventually he had a secretary from New Zealand who was a New Zealand priest, Father Michael, who just before his retirement acted as secretary there. And one of the things he tidied up was the situation regarding my brother. Now he's come up with a slightly different story, saying that there's too much through different views there and it would be... too many people would come forward if I just went offering forgiveness there. And so he suggested, and this has been accepted, and in fact it's happening that I'm taking up a memorial plaque to put in the cathedral there. MARK COLVIN: So when you go, will you go with much forgiveness in your heart or do you understand what happened to your brother? PATRICK REDLICH: I do, but as this was going on it was very interesting and about three years ago I received out of the blue a letter at my home in Sydney, and it was a letter that said something like this: 'Dear Patrick, when you go up to new Guinea and you are called to speak, I would like you to know that when I was in your father's parish in 1964 with the boys, several people came up to me and all talked about how your father had preached on forgiveness when the news of your brother's death arrived in the parish'. This would have been in about late 1942. MARK COLVIN: Because your father was a priest as well? PATRICK REDLICH: Yes, a priest, as well as my brother. And so on this basis, I feel I have a Christian duty, particularly with the invitation from Bishop David, although he's dead, to go there now I'm being welcomed there and offer this forgiveness to them. MARK COLVIN: And you have assurances that you will be well received? PATRICK REDLICH: I think that from what I... and the program of events there I think shows that I'm, going to be more than welcomed. MARK COLVIN: Patrick Redlich, who'll be going to the north end of the Kokoda Track to lay a plaque to his brother Father Vivian Redlich, on August the 31st. The story that we learnt soon after the war In July 1942 after a short illness, Vivian Redlich returned from Doguara, HQ of the New Guinea Mission, to his Mission Station in Sangara, Papua. Japanese warships were already shelling the coast further south as he landed. On Saturday 25 July the travelling Medical Assistant of the Papuan Government arrived in the district, and, hearing that Vivian was in a shelter prepared for him by the natives, went to see him. This official was a Roman catholic and was very friendly with Vivian and other members of the Anglican Mission in New Guinea. To him we are indebted for what details we have of Vivian's last few days. He found Vivian surrounded by church members of the district who were much alarmed by conditions in their neighbourhood. Vivian said to them: "I am your missionary. I have come back to you to help you and I will remain with you as long as you will let me. Tomorrow is Sunday and I shall celebrate Holy Communion. I invite you to Communicate." Next day the Medical Assistant himself was present at the Celebration and he was deeply impressed with the spirit of devotion of all who communicated. On the following day, Monday July 27th, Vivian hastily wrote in pencil on a piece of paper the following message to his father, the Rev. Canon Edward B Redlich, Rector of Little Bowden: Somewhere in the Papuan Bush July 27th 1942 My Dear Dad The war has busted up here. I got back from Doguara and ran right into it, and am now somewhere in my parish hoping to carry on, tho' my people are horribly scared. No news of May, and I am cut off from contacting her - my staff O.K. so far, but in another spot. I'm trying to stick whatever happens. If I don't come out of it, just rest content that I have tried to do my job faithfully. Last chance of getting word out: so forgive brevity. God Bless you all, Vivian About twelve missionaries and church workers were killed by the invading Japanese in New Guinea in WW2. The four women in the group are commemorated in a window high up the east wall in the south transept of St John's Cathedral, Brisbane including May Hayman, his fiancée who was a Nurse stationed at Gona. These four women were captured by the Japanese after many difficult days in the jungle trying to escape the patrols. They were executed by the bayonet in late August 1942 at Jegerata. May had worked as a nurse in various Australian hospitals and, not long before her death, had announced her engagement to Vivian. The railway bridge at Kanchanaburi over the river Kwai. It was immortalised in the film "A bridge over the River Kwai"
In the nearby cemetery there are 6.982 former PoWs buried mostly Australian, British and Dutch. The bodies of American PoWs were repatraited. The multitudes, probably over 80,000, of the local population were buried where they died by the railway Gordon Fletcher Beldam Archer
He died on 7 August 1943 |
The Fallen in WW2
Gerard (Robin) Griffin ALLEN Battery Quartermaster Sergeant, 222 Battery, 10 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery. Army no. 1451651 He died on 30 December 1942. He was 40 He was the son of Hubert and Jessie G Allen of Burton Overy, Leicestershire He is buried in Coll. grave 3 3 4 Imtarfa Military Cemetery, Malta Additional information Oakham 1916-1919 Cricket and Rugby Colour Alaric (Pip) Joseph APPLEBY Sergeant, 217 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 949210 He died on 25 July 1941. He was 25 He was the son of Ernest and Gertrude Appleby, Spinney Hill, Northampton and the husband of Eunice G Appleby of East Haddon, Northamptonshire He is remembered on panel 38 of the Runneymede Memorial Additional information Oakham 1930-1932 Greylands At 05.30 hours on 25 July 1941, 6 Bristol Beauforts of 217 Squadron took off from RAF St. Eval in Cornwall armed with mines targeting the German battleship Scharnhorst which was in the Bay of Biscay. She was escorted by six destroyers making a dash for the safety of Brest with its guns and its repair facilities. The weather quickly worsened providing cover but the aircraft became separated and only one Beaufort found the target. Spotting a large wake in the sea, they flew along it hoping to catch their quarry unawares. In fact the cloud was so thick that it wasn't until they were directly above it that the Beaufort crew saw the huge vessel. There was no time to drop the mine. They had to go round again. Whilst attempting a second run the lone Beaufort ran out of cloud cover and met a storm of flak. Within seconds the aircraft was hit several times and it crashed. Sergeant 'Pip' Appleby, the Wireless Operator, was killed. The pilot, Squadron Leader Les Collings, was wounded and Pilot Officer Jim Hunter, navigator, and Air Gunner, Sergeant Ted Taylor suffered minor injuries. All three became PoWs. George Fletcher Beldam ARCHER Private, 1st Battalion, Straits Settlements Volunteer Force, (Singapore Volunteer Corps). Service no. 13823 He died of dysentery on 7 August 1943 whilst he was a PoW of the Japanese Army. He was 31 He was the son of John F and Laura A Archer of Bessacarr, Doncaster He is buried in grave 2 J 28 Kanchanaburi War Cemetery, Thailand Additional information Oakham 1923-1929 School House He was born 10 April 1912 and his civilian occupation was either an Accountant (Oakham Magazine) or a Rubber Vendor. He was taken prisoner by the Japanese at the surrender of Singapore and taken to Thailand as part of “H Force” on 13 May 1943. The terminology for the larger PoW groups moved from Singapore were known as “Force”. H Force consisted of 1,949 British, 705 Australians, 26 Americans and 590 Dutch. George Archer died in captivity at Tamarkan, Thailand which was a base hospital camp. It is most likely that he was either left there on the way up the line or sent back with the sick. His grave is at Kanchanaburi. 'H' Force [and 'F' Force] were real horror stories - often sick men pushed up from Singapore and marched up the Railway during the Japanese 'Speedo.' 'Speedo' was the period in 1943 when the Japanese speeded up the construction of the Railway - longer working hours, more demanding work and more brutality leading to much higher illness and death rates. The PoWs from the Straits Settlement Volunteer Force weren't helped by the fact that their senior British Officer, Lt Colonel T H Newey, commanding 1st Straits Settlements Volunteer Force, was a harsh disciplinarian - he was the subject of a post-war court of enquiry. The Burma-Siam railway was a project to support the large Japanese army in Burma and built by Commonwealth, Dutch and American PoWs. During its construction, approximately 13,000 PoWs died and were buried along the route of the railway and it is rarely recorded that an estimated 80,000 to 100,000 civilians also died. These were chiefly forced labour brought from Malaya, the Dutch East Indies, Siam (Thailand) and Burma (Myanmar). Two groups, one based in Siam and the other in Burma worked from opposite ends of the line towards the centre. The Japanese aimed at completing the railway in 14 months and work began in October 1942. The line, 424 kilometres long, was completed by December 1943. Jack Butler ASTLE Bombardier, 277 Battery, 68 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery. Army no. 1460896 He died on 20 June 1942. He was 27 He was the son of Leonard and Nell Astle, Hucknall Road, Nottingham and the husband of Agnes K Astle of Nottingham He is buried in grave 2 B 24 Tobruk War Cemetery, Libya Additional information Oakham 1928-1931 School House The 20 June was a day of bitter fighting before Tobruk was taken by the Germans the following day John Lewis BAINES Pilot Officer (Pilot), Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 88686 He died on active service on 18 March 1941. He was 27 He was the son of Eleanor S and the Late Colonel John C Baines of Oadby and the husband of Shirley Baines of Bexhill-on-Sea He is buried in grave sec A grave 43 Oadby Cemetery Additional information Oakham 1922-1931 School House He was the pilot of Blenheim Mark IV, T2443 of 2 SAC (School of Army Co-op) at RAF Andover. The plane crashed at Penton Mewbey. The observer, Ion H Acland (RCAF) and Wireless Operator Sergeant Victor Moore were also killed. The Rev. John Charles BARTLEET Chaplain 4th Class, Royal Army Chaplains' Department. Army no. 101735 He died in a road accident on 17 July 1942. He was 39 He was the son of the Reverend Edwin B and Sophie Bartleet of Much Wenlock and the husband of Alice E Bartleet, SRN, SCM, QN of Tettenhall, Shropshire He is buried in grave C A 6 Gaza War Cemetery, Israel Additional information Oakham 1917-1920. John Bartleet achieved a 2nd in Theology at Oxford, was ordained in 1927 and appointed Vicar of Meole Brace in 1931 Gaza, where he died, was a major Hospital centre at the time Wilfred Bennett BEALE Squadron Leader (Pilot), Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 90240 He died on 4 September 1941. He was 43. He was the son of the late Edgar W and Edith M Beale, Humberstone House, Leicester and the husband of Freda L Beale. He is buried in grave 6, row D in Upavon Cemetery, Wiltshire Additional information Oakham 1912-1914 RAF Upavon was the Central Flying School for the RAF from 1935 to 1 April 1942. His service number shows he was with 605 Auxillary Air Force Squadron. He was an instructor who had also served in the Army and the RFC. He was killed near the Central Flying School based at RAF Upavon on 4 September 1941. He was instructing Pilot Officer George H Brown in Miles Master III, W8472 when it dived into the ground near Alton Barnes. Both were killed. Peter Gascoyne BEARD Sub-Lieutenant, HM Trawler Agate, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve He died on 6 August 1941. He was 25 He was the son of the Reverend Hugh S G Beard MA and Winifred A Beard MA (Cantab.) He is remembered on panel 4 column 3 of the Lowestoft Naval Memorial Additional information Oakham 1929-1934, School House, Cricket Colour. After Oakham, Peter Beard had been an Exhibitioner at St Catherine’s Cambridge, gained a BA and been an Assistant Master at King’s School, Canterbury HM Trawler Agate was a 627 ton trawler purchased in November 1935 and converted for anti-submarine duties. On 6 August 1941, whilst escorting convoy FS69, she went off course, grounded and was wrecked on Haisborough Sands off Cromer. The Depot for the Royal Naval Patrol Service was at Lowestoft during WW2. By the spring of 1944 it had reached its peak strength of some 57,000 men. Between 1942 and 1946, their ships and craft totalled 1,637, among them minesweepers, corvettes, fuel carriers, motor launches and naval seaplane tenders. Their objective was to maintain wartime patrols and safeguard the coasts. James Henry Manning BLAKE MBE Wing Commander, Combined Operations, North Africa, CMF and MEF, Royal Air Force He died on 16 October 1945 in an air accident. He was 37. He was the son of Leonard J B and Lois A F Blake of Corwen, Wales He is buried in grave IV M 10 Naples War Cemetery, Italy Additional information Oakham 1930-1937 Greylands Prefect. James Blake attended Cranwell after Oakham. He was promoted Squadron Leader in 1941, Liaison Officer with USAAF, in 1943 promoted Wing Commander, Combined Operations, North Africa, CMF, MEF. He was appointed MBE in 1941 Patrick Selwyn Fraser BLAND Sergeant, 107 Royal Horse Artillery (The South Nottinghamshire Hussars), Army no. 896291. In April 1942 this unit was renamed 107 Field Regiment Royal Artillery He died on 27 May 1942 in the siege of Tobruk. He was 22 He was the son of William P and Florence M Bland, Tattershall Drive, Nottingham He is remembered on column 10 of the El Alamein Memorial Additional information Oakham 1933-1936 Wharflands David Herbert Vivian BOARD MiD Lieutenant Colonel, The Royal Berkshire Regiment seconded to The King's Regiment (Liverpool) Army no. 69830 He died on 6 June 1944, D Day. He was 38 He was the son of Thomas H and Mary G Board, Norbiton Lodge, Kingston upon Thames and the husband of Barbara M Board He is buried in grave 1 C 13 Hermanville War Cemetery, Normandy Additional information Oakham 1921-1924 School House, Prefect. He attended Clare College, Cambridge where he achieved a BA David Board landed in Normandy on D Day after months of training. In 1943, the 5th and 8th King's (Liverpool Irish) had been given specialist training in Ayrshire in preparation for a planned invasion of France. They were selected to form the nucleus of the 5th and 7th Beach Groups, whose objectives on the invasion beach were to maintain organisation, secure positions and provide defence against counter-attack. Both the King's battalions landed on D-Day, the 5th at Sword with the British 3rd Infantry Division and the Liverpool Irish at Juno with the Canadians. 2 companies of the Liverpool Irish landed in the assault wave with the Royal Winnipeg Rifles. Under intense machine gun and mortar fire, the landing of Major Max Morrison's A Company proceeded well, allowing some to establish a command post upon reaching the sand dunes. In contrast, in B Company's sector, the late arrival of the reconnaissance party and DD tanks exposed the landing infantry to heavy machine gun fire. The company's officer commanding, Major O'Brien, and the second-in-command were among those wounded. Experiences at Sword Beach were similar. As the 3rd Division moved inland, the 5th King's attempted to neutralise hostile positions and snipers. Lieutenant-Colonel D H V Board was killed by a sniper and Lieutenant Scarfe commanding 9 Platoon was mortally wounded. Selwyn Butlin BRADFIELD Lieutenant, 1st Battalion, The Leicestershire Regiment. Army no. 95598 He died on 15 December 1941 during the Japanese invasion of Malaya. He was 21 He was the son of Henry H and Maude E Bradfield of Nottingham He is remembered on column 63 of the Singapore Memorial Additional information Oakham 1934-1938 School House, Prefect, Rugby and Cricket Colour then RMA, Sandhurst William Francis Baron BRIGGS Captain, 4th Battalion, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry attached to 12th Battalion, Nigeria Regiment, RWAFF. Army no. 165796 He died on 14 July 1944. He was 24. He was the son of William R and Deborah A Briggs of Lightwater, Surrey He is buried in grave 7 D 12 Taukkyan War Cemetery, Myanmar (Burma) Additional Information Oakham 1934-1938 Wharflands, Prefect, Cricket Colour. William Briggs was a Chindit in 3rd Brigade of Wingate’s Army. His brother John Baron OO wrote: William joined up in 1939 and he was commissioned in the Royal West African Frontier force, they joined the second Chindit force in Burma, and he was killed, regrettably by a shortfall from allied gunfire. Geoffrey Franklin BRITTLEBANK Flying Officer (Pilot), Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 101004 He died on 29 September 1942. He was 21 He was the son of Colonel Joseph W and Maud E Brittlebank of Sawbridgeworth He is buried in East Boundary Cemetery of Great St Mary Church, Sawbridgeworth Additional information Oakham 1934-1937 School House. He had been studying to become a Vet. At the time of his death he was with 1 Refresher Flying Training School at Kirk Newton, Scotland. He was flying with Flying Officer Thomas R C Adams RCAF in Miles Master III, W 8960. The aeroplane hit trees on take-off. He was being posted to 152 Squadron to fly Spitfires. He has the Oakham School motto on his memorial stone John Trevor BURGASS Captain, 2nd (Royal) Battalion, Sikh Regiment, Army no. EC/7435 He died on 25 November 1945 in a road accident whilst he was on leave. He was 22 He was the son of Archibald H and of Edith M Burgass of Radcliffe on Trent He is buried in Sec. K16 grave 45 Nottingham Southern Cemetery Additional information Oakham, 1931-1940 School House Charles John Washington CHARTERS Sub-Lieutenant, HMS Kelvin, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve He died on 29 November 1944 in an accident which coincided with an attack by enemy aircraft. He was 20 He was the son of Norma K and of the late Charles G W Charters of Newcastle-upon-Tyne He is remembered on panel 79, 3 of the Chatham Memorial Additional information Oakham 1938-1942 School House, Head Prefect, Rugby and Cricket Colour At the time of Charles Charter’s death, HMS Kelvin was deployed in the Eastern Mediterranean involved with the re-capture of the Dodecanese Islands. This included bombarding the island of Tilos and launching an attack by the Special Boat Service. In June HMS Kelvin had taken part in the D-Day landings in Normandy where her main role had involved firing on targets on Sword Beach. HMS Kelvin also took Sir Winston Churchill to visit the Normandy in June 1944 shortly after the landings. James Falshaw COOK Sergeant (Flight Engineer), 15 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAF no. 524567 He died on 14 February 1943. He was 34 He was the son of James F and Catherine J Cook and the husband of Barbara Cook of Hunstanworth, Co. Durham He is buried in grave Coll. grave 10 E 2-8 Heverlee War Cemetery, Belgium Additional information Oakham 1923-1927 School House In April 1941, 15 Squadron was the second squadron to receive Stirlings and from August 1942, the squadron was based at RAF Bourn, Cambridgeshire. Stirling 1 BF448 LS-T took off at 18.25 hours on a mission to bomb Koln. The aircraft was shot down by a night fighter flown by Ofw Fritz Schellwat of 5./NJG1 and crashed near Helchteren in Belgium. All the crew died: Flight Lieutenant Owen C Chave pilot, Sergeant Lewis L Gladwin RCAF, Sergeant James F Cook Navigator, Pilot Officer William A McL Archibald, Sergeant Alfred A Self, Pilot Officer John H M Muir, Sergeant Thomas F Stocks, Sergeant James E Nicholls. They were all buried at St Truiden but they were moved to Heverlee War Cemetery, Belgium after the war David Sturge CRICHTON, BA (Oxon.) Lieutenant, 1st Battalion, The Gordon Highlanders, Army no. 70723 He died on 29 August 1941 as a Prisoner of War of the Germans. He was 34 He was the son of David S and Edna A Crichton of York. He is buried in grave 3 C 17 Durnbach War Cemetery, Germany Additional information He was on the Staff at Oakham and certainly taught PE The great majority of those buried at Durnbach War Cemetery are airmen shot down over Bavaria, Württemberg, Austria, Hessen and Thuringia who were brought here from their scattered graves after the war. The remainder are men who were killed while escaping from prisoner of war camps in the same area. Ronald Vincent Geoffrey CURRALL MC Lieutenant, 2nd/7th Battalion, The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment). Army no. 287764 He died on 23 February 1944 whilst defending caves containing wounded Allied soldiers. He was 25. He was the son of Lawrence V and Winifred V H Currall of Eastbourne, Sussex He is buried in grave XVIII G 3 Beach Head War Cemetery, Anzio Additional information Oakham 1931-1936 School House. He was a Johnson Exhibitioner at Sidney Sussex and gained a Theology Tripos and a BA Literature and had planned to take Holy Orders The London Gazette of 10 February 1944 announces the award of his MC Raymond Stuart DENNISON Captain, Leicestershire Regiment seconded to 46th Battalion, King's African Rifles Army no. 180120 He died on 9 February 1945 in Burma. He was 33 He was the son of Joseph S and Kate M Dennison of Oakham He is remembered on panel Face 8 of the Rangoon Memorial Additional information Oakham 1924-1928 Day Boy The King's African Rifles were part of the 14th Army, the Forgotten Army under the command of Viscount Slim. This Army invaded Burma from the north and, whilst fighting in appalling conditions and with serious logistical problems steadily defeated the Japanese in Burma. Keith Inger DEXTER Flying Officer (Pilot), 103 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 127249 He died on 17 June 1943. He was 32. He was the son of Walter J and Constance S Dexter of Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire He is buried in plot JJB grave 106 Woensell General Cemetery, Eindhoven Additional information Oakham 1923-1929 School House, Rugby Colour. After leaving Oakham he became an Engineer and then a Station Inspector for the Metropolitan Police. He played Rugby for the Police and for Wasps. Avro Lancaster III ED945, PM-B from 103 Squadron took off at 22.33 hours from RAF Elsham Wolds, North Lincolnshire. It was shot down by a night fighter piloted by Hptm Manfred Meurer from I./NJGI and crashed at 01.55 hours near Esch, Netherlands. All the crew were killed: Pilot Officer Keith I Dexter, Sergeant Horace Staples, Sergeant Roy C Ridgway, Sergeant William T Shepherd, Sergeant Harold G Thomas, Sergeant James M Carroll and Sergeant Robert A Heslop Peter Patman DODSON Flight Lieutenant (Pilot), 613 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 123983 He died on 17 January 1945. He was 24 He was the son of Harold and Doris Dodson of Mapperley, Nottingham and the husband of Eileen G Dodson of Chilwell, Nottinghamshire He is buried in grave Plot 2 Row B Grave 7 Route de Solesmes Communal Cemetery, Cambrai Additional information Oakham, School House 1930-1935 613 Squadron started to train in tactical reconnaissance from August 1941 when it received its first Tomahawks. They received Mosquito VIs from November 1943 and joined 2 Group, beginning operations in December. From May 1944 it took on the role of night intruder and moved to Cambrai in November 1944 where it stayed for the rest of the war He was killed on take-off at A75, Cambrai/Epinoy piloting Mosquito FB VI, LR302. The aeroplane stalled on take-off. The Navigator, Flight Sergeant Thomas H Summers was also killed David DOLBY Corporal, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 744863 He died on 6 October 1944 as a prisoner of war of the Japanese. He was 27 He was the son of Albert E and Annie M Dolby of St Martins, Stamford and the husband of Vera A Dolby He is buried in grave 14 B 11 Ambon War Cemetery, Indonesia Additional information Oakham 1926-1929 School House Born 28 November 1912 David Dolby is believed to have been captured in Java. He is buried near Ambon, on the Laitimor Peninsula on the southern shore of Ambon Bay. This area was severely damaged during the war, first by the Japanese who bombed it heavily in January 1942 and later by the Allied forces who attacked it in 1943 and 1944. The War Cemetery is on the site of a former camp for Australian, British and Dutch Prisoners of War, some of whom had been transferred from Java in 1943. Many of those buried in it died in captivity. Soon after the war the remains of PoWs from Haruku and other camps on the island were also removed to Ambon as were the 503 people who had been buried in Makassar War Cemetery on the island of Celebes. The cause of his death is believed to have been dysentery according to the accounts of a fellow PoW – source contemporary school magazine Peter ELLINGWORTH Midshipman, HM LCT 494, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve He died on 18 October 1944. He was 19 He was the son of Arthur R and Edith M Ellingworth of St Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex He is remembered on panel 88, column 1 of the Portsmouth Naval Memorial Additional information Oakham, Day Boy, Rugby Colour 1939-1942 HM LCT 494, (Landing Craft Tanks) foundered in bad weather off Lands End and the ship was lost with its Captain, Sub Lieutenant Roland J Gilmour and 16 men. This was one of four 4 LCTs that were lost that night. And the official records tell us that: LCT 494 foundered, stress of weather, Lands End, ship loss, 18-19 October. The following were lost: Charles Bayford Leading Mechanic, John D G Berry Stoker 1 class, John J Busuttil, Act/Able Seaman, Ronald V Dickinson Leading Stoker, Andrew Donaldson Ordinary Seaman, Leonard A C Eager Leading Seaman, Peter Ellingworth Midshipman, Barry S Fitzsimon Leading Seaman, Alistair Fraser Wireman, Roland J Gilmour Sub Lieutenant, Edward C Hartley Ordinary Seaman, Arthur S James Stoker 1 class, Kenneth Killingback Ordinary Seaman, William H Mccunnell Wireman, John Murts Lieutenant, John Shipston Telegraphist, George Smith Able Seaman John Hardyman ELLIOTT Lieutenant, HM Trawler Leyland, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve. He died on 26 November 1942 of his injuries. He was 29. He was the son of John and Dorothea H Elliott of Exmouth, Devon He is remembered on panel 7, column 3 of the Lowestoft Naval Memorial Additional information Oakham, School House, Prefect 1927-1932. John Elliott had trained as an Architect HM Trawler Leyland was purchased for anti-submarine duties in September 1939. It sank in collision with a merchantman off Gibraltar on 25 November and John Elliott died the following day John Morris EMERTON Second Lieutenant, 2nd/5th Battalion, the Leicestershire Regiment. Army no.117317 He died on 25 May 1940 in the retreat to Dunkirk. He was 20 He was the son of John E and Annie Emerton of Wymondham, Leicestershire He is remembered on column 48 of the Dunkirk Memorial Additional information Prefect 1931-1937 Maurice Adeney Ellis ENNION Sergeant (Observer), 77 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 1150934 He died on 11 June 1942. He was 21 He was the son of Sidney J and Isabel M Ennion, Newmarket He is remembered on panel 82 of the Runneymede Memorial Additional information Oakham, School House 1934-1938 From May to October 1942 the squadron with its Whitley aeroplanes was loaned to Coastal Command and based at RAF Chivenor in Devon. This was a bad period for the squadron with 11 aircraft lost, 43 crew killed or missing believed dead. The targets included St Nazaire, Emden, Rostock and Wilhelmshaven Maurice Ennion died on 11 June 1942. His aeroplane a Whitley V, number Z9477 was lost, missing on patrol and the crew of 6 were posted as Missing in Action. David Ronald EVANS Lieutenant, Cheshire Regiment attached to 1st/4th Battalion, King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry. Army no. 277982 He was killed in action on 25 June 1944 shortly after the Allied Landings in Normandy. He was 27 He was the son of D Ernest and Hilda Evans of Hoole, Chester He is buried in grave IV C 9 Tilly sur Seulles War Cemetery, France Additional information Oakham, Wharflands 1932-1936 This area was well and courageously defended by the Germans and was the scene of very hard fighting. John Denys FLETCHER Flight Lieutenant (Pilot), 91 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 61460 He died on 8 February 1942. He was 23. He was the son of Arthur N and Catherine Fletcher of Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire He is buried in row A grave 5 Middelkerke Communal Cemetery, Belgium Additional information Oakham, School House, Rugby Colour 1932-1935 No 421 (Reconnaissance) Flight had been formed at RAF Gravesend on 8 October 1940, to carry out shipping reconnaissance and to monitor the movements, tactics and marking of the enemy. The flight became 91 Squadron on 11 January 1941 by which time it had moved to RAF Hawkinge. It became a normal Spitfires fighter squadron in the summer but continued to carry out weather reconnaissance mission and ASR patrols. John Fletcher is presumed to have been shot down on 8 February 1942 on a reconnaissance flight over the Channel known as a “Jim Crow Shipping Recce.” He had taken off from RAF Hawkinge at 12.00 hours in Spitfire Vb, W3132 for Gris Nez Ostend. James Woodroofe Guy FLETCHER Captain, 64th (The Queen's Own Royal Glasgow Yeomanry) Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery. Army no. 134651 He died on 12 May 1944. He was 30 He was the son of Edward H and Marion P Fletcher of Wilmslow, He is buried in grave I F 2 Salerno War Cemetery, Italy Additional Information Oakham, Wharflands 1924-1930 The 59th General Hospital was based in the area and it is probable that he died from his wounds there Morgan FORD Sergeant (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner), 106 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 956103 He died on 30 June 1941. He was 28 He was the son of George H and Mary Ford of Oakham He is buried in Coll grave 1 E 7-9 Sage War Cemetery, Near Oldenburg, Germany Additional information Oakham, Day Boy 1924-1929 Morgan Ford was killed in action with 106 squadron on 30 June 1941. Hampden I, AD895 took off from RAF Coningsby to bomb Bremen. It was shot down by the night fighter of Obit Reinhold Eckardt of 11/NJG 1. The aircraft crashed at 02.55 hours on 30 June 1941 near Utersen, 23 kilometres from Hamburg. All of the crew were killed: Pilot Officer Murray R F Baker, Sergeant Morgan Ford, Sergeant John H Bevans and Sergeant George E Smith John Hesketh FORMBY Sub-Lieutenant (A), HMS Vulture, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve He died on 30 May 1941. He was 23 He was the son of Commander Hesketh and Gwladys Formby of Portsmouth He is buried in grave 3 of St Merryn Churchyard, near Padstow , Cornwall Additional information Oakham, Greylands 1931-1935 On 30 May 1941 at 10.00 hours, Fairey Swordfish Mark II L2799, S6-A of 774 Squadron based at RNAS St. Merryn hit an overhead electric cable in Trebarwith Valley, 1¼ miles SSW of Tintagel Police House. The aircraft was totally destroyed and the occupants killed. Those on board were: Sub-Lieutenant John H Formby and 2 Trainee Air Gunners, Ordinary Seaman Edward W Page and Ordinary Telegrapher Frederick Thurlow. Gordon Allison FRASER Sub-Lieutenant (A), 769 Squadron, HMS Condor, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve He died on 14 September 1942. He was 20. He was the son of the Reverend Albert E Fraser MA, and Elizabeth A Fraser of the Rectory, Solihull. Albert Fraser was previously the Vicar of Oakham He is remembered on bay 4, panel 2 of the Lee on Solent Memorial Additional information Oakham, Day Boy 1930 who later attended Marlborough College He was stationed at RNAS Condor, near Arbroath Gordon Fraser was killed in an air crash. Sub Lieutenant (A) Wilfred J Ashcroft also died. Little information has been found but another Condor from the same squadron is listed as having been involved in an air crash that day killing Leonard F Cradock Richard Thomas GLOVER Sergeant (Pilot), 607 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 742508 He died on 26 June 1940. He was 22 He was the son of Dr Norman and Irene Gladys Glover of Brailsford, Derbyshire He is buried in plot O, row N, grave 3 Thornaby on Tees Cemetery Additional information Oakham, Greylands 1926-1934 In March 1940, the squadron’s Hurricanes arrived but, with its airfields overrun, No. 607 (County of Durham) Squadron moved back to RAF Usworth on 5 June 1940 from France as a consequence of the Dunkirk evacuation. Richard Glover died on active service on 26 June 1940. He was flying in Hurricane I, N2704 when his aircraft dived into the ground at Neasless Wood, ½ mile south of Sedgefield, Co Durham. On 3 July 1962, RAF Usworth, was purchased by Sunderland Corporation and reopened as Sunderland Airport. Usworth closed at 15.00 hours on 31 May 1984, The site is now a Nissan car factory. Henry Hugh GOUGH Captain, 2nd Battalion, The Royal Irish Fusiliers. Army no. 71211 He died on 15 February 1942. He was 25. He was the son of Harry P and Martha R Gough of Frodsham, Cheshire He is buried in grave 1 3 14 Pembroke Military Cemetery, Malta Additional information Oakham, School House, Prefect, Rugby Colour 1930-1935. After Oakham he attended the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He shot for the College and for Middlesex 15 February 1942 was one of continuous bombing of Malta by the Axis forces which started at 06.30 hours and lasted until the evening. At 17.50 hours a bomb fell on Regent Cinema, Valletta. Among the casualties were the Adjutant, Captain P Low and the Commanding A Company, Captain H Gough were both killed. Fusilier Haunce of C Company was also killed. Charles Godfrey GRAHAM-BROWN Lieutenant, Royal Army Service Corps attached to Royal Engineers. Army no. 121780 He died on 17 June 1943. He was 28. He was the son of William and Sybil R Graham-Brown and the husband of Mary F Graham-Brown of Great Horkesley, Essex He is remembered on panel 15 column 2 of the Brookwood Memorial Additional information Oakham, School House 1929-1932 and then he gained a BA from Edinburgh University. The Brookwood Memorial commemorates nearly 3,500 men and women of the land forces of the Commonwealth who died during WW2 and have no known grave, the circumstances of their death being such that they could not appropriately be commemorated on any of the campaign memorials in the various theatres of war. They died in Norway in 1940, or in the various raids such as Dieppe and St Nazaire. Others were special agents who died as prisoners or while working with Allied underground movements. Some died at sea, in hospital ships and troop transports, in waters not associated with the major campaigns, and a few were killed in flying accidents or in aerial combat. The circumstances of Charles Graham-Brown’s death has not been identified Bernard Tresham HARDY MM Lieutenant, 13th/18th Royal Hussars, Royal Armoured Corps. Army no. 197989 He was killed in action on 14 June 1944 shortly after the Normandy Invasion. He was 30 He was the son of Harold E Hardy OO and Beatrice C Hardy of Gundrada, Lewes and the husband of Vivien M F Hardy of West Acton, Middlesex He is buried in grave 3 C 2 Hermanville War Cemetery, France Additional information Oakham, Wharflands 1928-1931. After Oakham he had gained a BA at Selwyn College, Cambridge. He was commissioned in 1941 having been a Despatch Rider with the British Expeditionary Force. The Regiment was equipped with Sherman Tanks and had landed on D Day Hubert HARVEY Chief Engine Room Artificer, HMS Niger, Royal Navy. RN no C/M 7099 He died on 6 July 1942. He was 43 He was the son of Henry and Elizabeth Harvey and the husband of Eva M Harvey of Allington, Lincolnshire He is remembered on panel 60 1 Chatham Naval Memorial Additional information Oakham 1910-1915 HMS Niger took part in the evacuation of the BEF from Dunkirk evacuating some 1,500 men. On 14 February 1942 HMS Niger met 13 merchant ships who constituted Convoy PQ11 which sailed from Kirkwall. The return Convoy QP11 (13 ships) sailed on 28 April. On 27 June she sailed for the UK from Murmansk with Convoy QP13 (35 ships), which by an error of navigation caused by the bad weather, strayed into an allied minefield off Iceland. At 22.40 hours on 5 July 1942 HMS Niger blew up and sank. The Commanding Officer, 8 officers and 140 ratings perished. William Thomas HEATH Captain, Royal Marines, HMS Royal Albert He died on 4 March 1946 in an accident. He was 35 He was the son of Frank T and Marion Heath, Knighton Road, Leicester and the husband of Phyllis C Heath of Brixham, Devon He is buried in grave 2 B 23 Munster Heath War Cemetery, Germany Additional information Oakham, School House 1923-1925. In civilian life he was an Insurance Broker. In 1946 HMS Royal Albert was a shore establishment of the Royal Navy in Hamburg Peter Severn HITCHCOCK Major, Pioneer Corps. Army no. 220758 He died in an accident on 23 January 1946. He was 28 He was the son of Francis J and Alice D Hitchcock of Southport, Lancashire He is buried in grave 8 F 2 Tripoli War Cemetery Additional information Oakham, Greylands 1930-1934 Robert Colin HODGSON Flying Officer, Royal Air Force. RAF no. 31444 He died on 17 June 1940. He was 21 He was the son of Dr Robert E and Mary Hodgson, Burley in Wharfedale, Yorkshire He is buried in sec 18 plot 1 row A grave 107 Rennes Eastern Communal Cemetery Additional information Oakham, Wharflands, Cricket Colour 1931-1935 Large numbers of the British Expeditionary Force were stranded in France after the Dunkirk evacuation. Robert Hodgson was killed when the Germans bombed a train in Rennes on which he and two other RAF personnel were escaping. Cecil HOLMES Warrant Officer (Observer), Royal Air Force. RAF no. 581425 He died on 31 May 1942. He was 30 He was the son of Harry Cecil and Edith A Holmes, Sandown, Melton Mowbray and the husband of Marjorie K Holmes of Leeds He is buried in row C grave 23 Bury Cemetery, Huntingdonshire Additional information Oakham, Greylands 1925-1927 Hampden I, P5321 of 14 OTU coded GL P3 took off from RAF Cottesmore at 23.06 hours on 30 May 1942. On returning from an operation to Koln at 04.05 hours on 31 May 1942, the aeroplane collided near March, Cambridgeshire with Halifax W1013 of 78 Squadron which had also been on the same Koln mission. The Hampden pilot, Squadron Leader Falconer DFC said later that he emerged from a rain cloud and saw an aircraft displaying navigation lights but he was unable to avoid a collision. The crew of the Halifax who died were: Sergeant George Bolton, Sergeant Andrew Caie. 3 others were injured The pilot of the Hampden, Squadron Leader Falconer survived but the others died: Wireless Operator Cecil Holmes, Sergeant John H Knowling and Pilot Officer Harvey S Little. Stephen Gordon HUMPHRYS Major, Royal Corps of Signals seconded to HQ III Indian Corps. Army no. 41149. He died between 2 and 3 March 1942. He was 33 He was the son of the Reverend Percy and Helen Humphrys, Baxterby Rectory, Atherstone and the husband of Betty F Humphrys of Bromley, Kent He is remembered on column 41 of the Singapore Memorial Additional information Oakham, School House 1922-1926. He had graduated from RMC Sandhurst in 1929. Stephen Humphrys died whilst escaping from Sumatra and the Japanese Norman James INGRAM Major, 145 (8th Battalion, The Duke of Wellington's) Regiment, Royal Armoured Corps. Army no. 149373 He died on 18 September 1944. He was 25 He was the son of Harold P and Mary E Ingram, Brynbella, Ilkley He is buried in grave XII B 3 Coriano Ridge War Cemetery. Additional information Oakham, Wharflands, Prefect, Rugby Colour 1932-1937 On 3 September 1943 the Allies invaded the Italy. Rome fell in June 1944. Coriano Ridge was the last important ridge in the way of the Allied advance in the Adriatic sector in 1944. Its capture was the key to Rimini and then the River Po. German parachute and panzer troops, aided by bad weather, resisted all attacks on their positions between 4 and 12 September 1944. On the night of 12 September, the 8th Army reopened its attack on the Ridge, with the 1st British and 5th Canadian Armoured Divisions. The attack was successful in taking the Ridge but marked the beginning of a week of the heaviest fighting experienced since Cassino in May, with daily losses for the 8th Army of some 150 killed. William Henry KINGSWOOD Commander (E), HMS Golden Hind, Royal Navy He died of a cerebral haemorrhage on 21 April 1945. He was 42. He was the son of William and Anna Kingswood of Hambleton He is buried in grave 2W B 12 Sydney War Cemetery Additional information Oakham, Cricket colour, Senior Cadet and Captain of the Rugby Team 1912-1916 He died from natural causes whilst he was the Commander, HMS Golden Hind which was the Royal Naval Barracks in Sydney. He had served in WW1 and remained in the Royal Navy. Charrington Cecil KIRBY MB, MRCS Surgeon Lieutenant, HMS Cornwall, Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve He died on 5 April 1942. He was 29 He was the son of Thomas C and Mary M Kirby of Pinner He is remembered on panel 66, 1 of the Chatham Naval Memorial Additional information Oakham, School House, Prefect 1927-1931 31 March 1942 HMS Cornwall joined HM Battleship Warspite, HM Aircraft Carriers Formidable and Indomitable, HM Cruisers Enterprise, Emerald and Dorsetshire screened by six destroyers as Force A in position south of Ceylon. 1 April Force A was deployed in unsuccessful search for Japanese naval force reported to be on passage to Ceylon. 3 April detached from Force A with HMS Dorsetshire for escort of military convoy SU4 during their passage in Indian Ocean. 4 April recalled to join Force A again when Japanese warships were sighted. 5 April HMS Cornwall was sighted during her return passage to Force A by aircraft from Japanese cruiser Tone. HMS Cornwall and HMS Dorsetshire came under heavy and sustained attacks by dive bombers from the aircraft carriers Akagi, Soryu and Hiryu. HMS Cornwall was quickly disabled and sank within 15 minutes with heavy casualties including 190 killed or missing. (Note: Some 6 minutes later HMS Dorsetshire was sunk by similar attacks). 6 April 1,122 survivors from the two cruisers were rescued by HMS Enterprise and destroyers Paladin and Panther. A contemporary report records that Charrington C Kirby was killed by fire from Japanese aircraft whilst he was in the water John Lawson KIRBY Lieutenant, Royal Artillery Army no. 302819 He died on 23 July 1945 of Infantile Paralysis (Polio). He was 21 He was the son of John H Kirby and Ida M Kirby, Powys Avenue, Leicester He is buried in plot 1 row A grave 3 Christiansborg War Cemetery, Ghana Additional information Oakham, Wharflands, Head Prefect, Rugby Colour 1937-1942 Peter (Titch) Anthony LOVEGROVE Flying Officer (Pilot), 83 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 62324 He died on 12 November 1942 when he was a PoW at Oflag XXXIB. He was 22. He was the son of Edward T and Hilda M Lovegrove of Thorpe Arnold, Leicestershire He is buried in grave 6 A 14 Poznan Old Garrison Cemetery, Poland Additional information Oakham, School House 1929-1936 Avro Manchester 1 L7427 OL-Q of 83 Squadron took off at 22.15 hours on 9 April 1942 from RAF Scampton on a mission to bomb Hamburg. The aeroplane was last heard at 00.10 hours on 9 April and was thought to be near Lastrup, Germany. The aeroplane crashed NE of Cloppenburg Peter Lovegrove survived but the other 6 crew members died, they were: Pilot Officer Jack H Morphett, Flight Sergeant Geoffrey D Hutchinson RNZAF, Flight Sergeant Albert H Salter, Sergeant Reginald S Williams, Sergeant George C Fisk RCAF and Sergeant Charles D Gellatly RCAF. These crew members are buried in Sage War Cemetery. Peter Lovegrove was interned by the Germans in Stalag 21B in Poland. He was PoW no. 778. He died in captivity on 12 November 1942. One report states that he fell from a window but other prisoners said that he was trying to escape. Terence (Punch) LUNDHOLM Pilot Officer, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 116426. He was formerly with The Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment. He died on 27 May 1942. He was 24 He was the son of Lieutenant-Commander Torkel and Kathleen Lundholm of Bedford He is buried in grave Sec C grave 25 Llantwit Major Cemetery, Glamorgan Additional information Oakham, Wharflands 1932-1935 Terence Lundholm, pilot of Spitfire K9951, was killed in a collision with another Spitfire whilst landing at RAF Llandow near Cowbridge. RAF Llandow was an Operational Training Unit Peter MANGHAM MiD Captain, 531 Battery, 190 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery Army no. 233408 He died on 22 September 1944. He was 22. He was the son of Professor Sydney and Effie A Mangham of Bassett, Hampshire He is buried in grave III B 2 Mierlo War Cemetery, Netherlands Additional information Oakham, School House, Prefect, Rugby Colour 1935-1940. Emmanuel College, Cambridge He was promoted Second Lieutenant on 9 May 1942 and Captain in March 1945. He was killed whilst the Germans were being driven out of the Maas Alan Cresswell MARTIN Squadron Leader, 40 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAF no. 32051 He died on 26 August 1941 over Belgium whilst on a bombing mission. He was 27 He was the son of the late Alan R and the late Juanita Martin and the nephew of Gertrude Martin of Barnstaple, Devon He is buried in grave 516 Handzame Communal Cemetery, Belgium Additional information Oakham, Wharflands, Prefect, Rugby and Cricket Colour 1922-1929 In November 1940, 40 Squadron had moved to a night bombing role when it was equipped with Wellingtons and was based at RAF Alconbury. Guy Meredith Myles MATHEWS Lieutenant, 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards, Royal Armoured Corps seconded to The Staffordshire Yeomanry. Army no. 129137 He was killed in action on 15 January 1943. He was 27 He was the son of Charles M and Edith A Mathews of Penn, Buckinghamshire He is remembered on column 15 of the El Alamein Memorial Additional information Oakham, Wharflands 1929-1932. In civilian life Guy Mathews was a Solicitor. On 8 January 1943 The Staffordshire Yeomanry heard that the next target was Tripoli. On 12 January the Regiment moved, with the Brigade to the Wadi Chebir and they advanced to the Gheddahia-Bungem road on 14 January The following day, The Staffordshire Yeomanry moved off at first light and came under fire as soon as they crossed the Gheddahia-Bungem road. As the Brigade moved forward the Staffordshire Yeomanry were on the right, 3rd Royal Tank Regiment in the centre, and the Nottinghamshire Yeomanry on the left, with 131st Infantry Brigade in reserve. Ahead and behind the Dur Umm-Er Raml Ridge, lay the 15th (German) Panzer Division, supported by Italian M 13 tanks but the enemy seemed reluctant to engage his tanks and the day was spent mainly in artillery duels. Lieutenant Mathews's Crusader was knocked out by a direct hit and he was killed, his driver being seriously wounded. Charles Fred MILES Officer Cadet, The Leicestershire Regiment. Army no. 4864564 He died on 16 March 1942. He was 20 He was the son of Charles & Ruth Miles, Tinwell Road, Stamford He is buried in grave 8 B 6 Kirkee War Cemetery, India Additional Information Oakham, Greylands, 1934-1937 Donald Maitland James MURRAY Major, Royal Engineers. Army no. 15975. He was previously with the Royal Artillery He died on 19 December 1941. He was 42 He was the son of Harold J R and Katherine Murray, Sandon Road, Birmingham and the husband of H Neste Murray, Bathwick Hill, Bath He is buried in grave 5 E 15 Stanley Military Cemetery, Hong Kong Additional information Oakham, Prefect and Rugby Colour 1913-1917 In December 1941, Japan launched their invasion of Hong Kong, which resulted in the British surrender on Christmas Day of that year. Stanley Village is one of the last battlefields of the defence of the city where D Company, Royal Rifles of Canada and a group of Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps were stationed. Michael Alan NEWLING DFC Flight Lieutenant, 145 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAF no. 41867 He died on 6 July 1941. He was 21. He was the son of George A and Dorothy Newling of Barnes He is remembered on panel 29 of the Runneymede Memorial Additional information Oakham, Wharflands, Rugby Colour 1933-1937 He attended Oakham until he was 17 when the family emigrated to New Zealand. He returned 9 months later because of the threat of war and was a trained pilot by the time war was declared. On 18 May 1940 during an attack against a large number of enemy bombers, he was shot down in Hawker Hurricane Mk 1, N2600 and crashed at Pamel, in enemy territory but he managed to re-gain the Allied lines. His engine and cockpit & cross section were recovered on 22 February 1997. After covering the evacuation from Dunkirk, the squadron took part in the Battle of Britain until withdrawn to Scotland in mid-August, returning south in October and converting to Spitfires in February 1941 to make cross channel sweeps. He was mentioned in despatches on 1 January 1941, awarded the DFC on 4 February 1941 and promoted flight commander. On 6 July 1941, he was reported missing in action. He was killed in action in a Spitfire Va (W3366) near Lille. His war time exploits mean that he is one of 646 Aces credited with destroying 5 enemy aircraft His father George had a distinguished record in WW1 with 2nd Royal Marine Battalion and was awarded the MC George Edward NEWTON Flight Lieutenant (Pilot), 218 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAF no. 37824. He died on 18 August 1940. He was 29. He was the son of Edward C and Gertrude Newton, Harrowby Hall, Grantham and the husband of Doris M Newton of Arrington, Cambridgeshire. He is buried in grave 176 in the churchyard of All Saints, Barrowby, Lincolnshire. Additional information Oakham, Wharflands, Rugby Colour 1919-1928 218 Squadron flew to France on 2 September 1939 and flew valuable leaflet raids and reconnaissance flights in Battle aircraft. During the early days of the war, the Squadron was constantly being moved. Its bases were Auberive sur Suippes, Perpignan, La Salanque, Moscow Ferme, St. Lucien Ferme and then Nantes, all in France. In June 1940, after having hindered the German advance into France by bombing communications and troop concentrations (and having suffered heavy casualties in the process), it was evacuated to England to be equipped with Bristol Blenheim medium bombers and moved to RAF Mildenhall for June-July 1940 and then RAF Oakington in July 1940 George Newton died in an aerial collision whilst flying formation exercises from RAF Oakington in his Blenheim IV,T1929. The aircraft collided with another aircraft from his squadron Blenheim IV, L9264. Those killed were: Flight Lieutenant George E Newton (pilot) Blenheim IV, L9264 Sergeant David W Dennis Blenheim IV, L9264 Sergeant William L Smith Blenheim IV, L9264 AC 1 Robert H Harrison Blenheim IV, L9264 Pilot Officer William B Wheelwright Blenheim IV, T1929 Sergeant Robert W Clapperton. Blenheim IV, T1929 Sergeant John N Bilton Blenheim IV, T1929 John NEWTON Sergeant, 86 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 1113501 He died on 28 May 1942. He was 23. He was the son of Frederick and Fanny Newton of Skillington, Grantham and the husband of Dorothy Newton. He is remembered on panel 90 of the Runnymede Memorial Additional information Oakham, School House 1933-1935 John Newton was in Beaufort IIa, AW371 BX-Q which took off from RAF Wick at 23.25 hours on 27 May 1942 to patrol off the Norwegian coast between Stavanger and Andalsnes. The aircraft failed to return and the following were lost: Sergeant John K Knight (pilot), Sergeant John Newton, Sergeant Henry W Hall and Sergeant Stanley R Ashton. 42 and 86 Squadrons had carried out attacks on the Prinz Eugen on 18 May 1942 when it sailed through the Skaggerak and down to Kiel. The flight on 27/28 May may have been a patrol to check for the Prinz Eugen (or another ship) coming out of Kiel. It should be mentionned that he was a relative of Sir Isaac Newton whose home was near Skillington! Charles Peter NICHOLSON Captain, 467 Battery, 92 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery. Army no. 126242 He died on 20 January 1944. He was 24. He was the son of Charles and Dorothy I Nicholson of Sheffield He is buried in grave III G 20 Minturo War Cemetery, Italy Additional information Oakham, School House 1933-1937 On 3 September 1943 the Allies invaded the Italian mainland with the objective of drawing German troops from the Russian front and more particularly from France. Progress through southern Italy was rapid despite stiff resistance, but by the end of October, the Allies were facing the German defensive position known as the Gustav Line which stretched from the river Garigliano in the west to the Sangro in the east. Initial attempts to breach the western end of the line were unsuccessful and it was not until 17 January 1944 that the Garigliano was crossed, and Minturno taken two days later. The burials in this cemetery are mainly those who died in making the crossing of the Garigliano in January. John Thornton NOBES Sergeant, 2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards Army no. 2657561 He died on 25 December 1942 at Longstop Hill. He was 25. He was the son of Harry W and Christabelle I M Nobes of Bedford Road, London SW4 and the husband of Lily Nobes He is buried in grave 3 A 5 Medjez el Bab War Cemetery, Tunisia Additional information Oakham, School House 1926-1933 In May 1943, the war in North Africa came to an end in Tunisia with the defeat of the Axis powers. The campaign had begun on 8 November 1942, when the Allies landed in Algeria and Morocco. The Germans responded immediately by sending a force from Sicily to northern Tunisia, which checked the Allied advance east in early December 1942. In the south, the Axis forces were defeated at El Alamein and withdrew into Tunisia along the coast through Libya, pursued by the Allied 8th Army. Medjez-el-Bab was at the limit of the Allied advance in December 1942 and remained on the front line until the decisive Allied advances of April and May 1943. Jack Michael O'HAGAN Signalman, HMS Penelope, Royal Navy. No. P/JX 327318 He died on 18 February 1944. He was 19. He was the son of Harry and Florence E O'Hagan of East Sheen, Surrey. He is remembered on panel 84, column 2 of the Portsmouth Naval Memorial Additional information Oakham, Wharflands, Rugby Colour 1938-1941 On 9 September 1943, HMS Penelope was part of the allied landings at Salerno, Italy. On 7 October, with HMS Sirius and other ships she sank 6 enemy landing craft, one ammunition ship and an armed trawler off Stampalia. Although damaged by a bomb, she was able to return to Alexandria at 22 knots. On 22 January 1944, HMS Penelope took part in the amphibious assault on Anzio, Italy, providing gunfire support with the USS Brooklyn and then bombarded the Formia area. On 18 February 1944, HMS Penelope was leaving Naples to return to the Anzio area when she was torpedoed by the Uboat U410. The first torpedo struck her in the after engine room and was followed 16 minutes later by another torpedo which hit in the after boiler room and she sank immediately. 415 of the crew went down with the ship. There were 206 survivors. The unusual aspect of the attack by U410 was that the cruiser was making 26 knots when hit. In the history of submarine attacks during WW2, no other ship running at such speed was ever successfully attacked. Richard Francis OLIVE Lieutenant, 2nd Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment. Army no. 33855. He died on 31 May 1940. He was 32. He was the son of Charles and Mary Olive, Station Road, Kettering and the husband of Mabel K Olive of Willaston, Cheshire. He is remembered on column 56 of the Dunkirk Memorial Additional information Oakham 1919-1924. He had a BA from Queen’s College, Cambridge. He died in the retreat to and evacuation of Dunkirk Edward Donald PARKER GC, DFC Squadron Leader (Pilot), 61 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 76465 He died on 16 January 1943. He was 33. He was the son of Alfred and Rowena Parker, Huntingdon Drive, Nottingham and the husband of Doris Parker He is buried in grave 1 F 3 Berlin 1939-1945 War Cemetery Additional information Oakham 1924-1926 He was commissioned on 1 December 1939: awarded the George Cross on 6 August 1940 then the DFC on 22 December 1940. He was promoted Squadron Leader on 1 June 1942 Citation for the George Cross: The following details are given in the London Gazette of 6 August 1940: On the night of 8 June 1940, this officer was the First Pilot of an aircraft loaded with 4 500 lb bombs, detailed for bombing operations. Just after taking off the port engine failed and Pilot Officer Parker could gain neither height nor speed on one engine. Reducing speed to 80 mph, he switched off his engine and "felt" the aircraft into the nearest field in complete darkness. The aircraft crashed and immediately burst into flames. Pilot Officer Parker got clear to find that his Navigator and Air Gunner were safe, but the Wireless Operator was lying stunned near the burning aircraft. With complete disregard for his own safety, and knowing that the bombs might explode at any moment he returned and carried his Wireless Operator to safety. While he was doing so a bomb exploded but Pilot Officer Parker saved the airman further injury by throwing him to the ground. This officer displayed exceptional coolness, courage and resourcefulness throughout, and in face of extreme danger undoubtedly saved the life of his Wireless Operator Edward D Parker was the pilot of Lancaster I, ED332, QR D of 61 Squadron which took off at 16.30 hours on 16 January 1943 for a raid in Berlin. The aircraft was lost near Berlin and the crew all died. They were: Squadron Leader Edward D Parker, Sergeant Tom Miller, Flight Sergeant John A Mcphee, RCAF Sergeant John J Cadd, Sergeant Clifford H Reed, Sergeant Cecil N Judd and Flight Sergeant R F Bird Nigel Reginald PEARCE Lieutenant, The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) Army no. 184589 He died on 5 September 1944. He was 22. He was the son of Reginald A S and Frances E Pearce of Belvedere Road, Burton on Trent He is buried in grave VII F 9 Coriano Ridge War Cemetery, Italy. Additional information Oakham, School House, Prefect, Rugby Colour 1931-1940 On 3 September 1943 the Allies invaded Italy. Rome fell in June 1944. Coriano Ridge was the last important ridge in the way of the Allied advance in the Adriatic sector in 1944. Its capture was the key to Rimini and then the River Po. German parachute and panzer troops, aided by bad weather, resisted all attacks on their positions between 4 and 12 September 1944. On the night of 12 September, the 8th Army reopened its attack on the Ridge, with the 1st British and 5th Canadian Armoured Divisions. The attack was successful in taking the Ridge but marked the beginning of a week of the heaviest fighting experienced since Cassino in May, with daily losses of some 150 killed for the 8th Army. Ivan Roy James PERKINS Pilot Officer, 108 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 106235 He died on 4 May 1942. He was 29. He was the son of Ernest and Edith Perkins, Esher Grove, Nottingham and the husband of Theodor J Perkins of Bingham, Nottinghamshire He is remembered on column 249 of the El Alamein Memorial Additional information Oakham, School House 1924-1929 108 Squadron was a night bomber unit, equipped with Wellingtons with its initial targets being in Libya and Greece. The Squadron was based from 20 May 1942 at airbase LG 105. Liberator AL511 A took off at 18.30 hours on 4 May 1942 to attack the shipping and harbour facilities at Tripoli. The aircraft was shot down by a night fighter near Soluch. 4 of the crew were killed: Flight Lieutenant Duncan H MacArthur DFC, Pilot Officer Ivan R J Perkins, Pilot Officer Douglas Hudson and Flight Sergeant Denis F Clifford NZRAF. Three others were taken prisoner Hugh POPE Second Lieutenant, 2nd/5th Battalion, The Leicestershire Regiment. Army no. 113783 He died on 27 May 1940. He was 22. He was the son of Arthur C and Mary B Pope, Bank House, Oakham, Rutland He is buried in grave plot 2 row H grave 2 Carvin Communal Cemetery Additional information Oakham, School House, 1926-1936 Prefect, Captain of Cricket Team. After Oakham, Hugh Pope attended Sidney Sussex, Cambridge and gained a BA. He had intended to take Holy Orders. In the retreat to Dunkirk, there was a British counter-attack by the 50th Division, who took up positions along the canal on a line from La Bassée to Carvin. The canal crossings were held and a German attack which had caused the French North African troops to fall back on Carvin was checked on 26 May 1940. Arthur John Michael RICHARDSON MiD Captain, 121 Field Regiment, Royal Artillery. Army no. 148267 He died from his wounds on 28 October 1942. He was 21 He was the son of Donald and Dorothy Richardson of Park Valley, Nottingham He is buried in grave XIX G 6 of El Alamein War Cemetery, Egypt Additional information Oakham, School House 1931-1937 He was wounded during the advance from El Alamein Ronald Herbert ROE Captain, 1st Battalion, 4/16th Punjab Regiment. Army no. EC/9055 He was killed in action on 14 November 1943. He was 29 He was the son of Herbert B and Alice M Roe of Marlow He is remembered on face 48 of the Rangoon Memorial Additional information Oakham, Wharflands 1923-1931 Peter ROOK Captain, 1st/5th Battalion, The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment). Army no. 67912 He was killed in action on 11 February 1942. He was 26 He was the son of Maurice and Ethel Rook of Epsom and the husband of Helen Rook He is buried in joint grave 23 C 16-17 Kranji War Cemetery, Singapore Additional information Oakham, Wharflands 1926-1934. He died just four days before Singapore fell to the Japanese Reginald Geoffrey RYLEY Captain, 1st Battalion, The Suffolk Regiment. Army no. 62226 He died on 7 June 1944 on D Day + 1. He was 37 He was the son of Maud E and the late Reginald Ryley of Stratford St. Andrews, Suffolk and husband of Barbara J V Ryley He is buried in grave IV G 3 Douvres-la-Délivrande War Cemetery, Normandy Additional information Oakham, School House, Prefect, Rugby and Cricket Colour 1920-1926. Johnson Exhibitor, Clare College Cambridge gained 2nd Classical Tripos and became Assistant Master at Liverpool College George Edward SHARDLOW Captain, 129 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery previously 21st Battalion, City of London Regiment. Army no. 179364 He died on 17 August 1945 of natural causes. He was 34 He was the son of Ernest A and Ada Shardlow, Knighton Grange Road, Leicester and the husband of Patricia Shardlow He is buried in grave 6 A 19 Kiel War Cemetery, Germany Additional information Oakham, School House 1925-1929 John Arthur SHARPE Sergeant (Flight Engineer), 218 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAF no. 527639 He died on 21 August 1942. He was 27 He was the son of Herbert and Margaret E Sharpe and the husband of Joan M Sharpe of Downham Market, Norfolk He is buried in grave 2 J 1 Kiel War Cemetery Additional information Oakham, Day Boy 1926-1930 218 Squadron was equipped with Stirlings in February 1942. In July 1942, the unit re-located to RAF Downham Market. They took off at 20.15 hours on an operation mine laying in the Cadet Channel in the Baltic. His aeroplane, Stirling Mark I, BF338, HA Q crashed at Hoffnungstal Marietal. He was buried initially at Schiewig and later moved to Kiel. 1 of the crew was taken prisoner. Those who died were: Flight Sergeant Leonard Hartley, Sergeant John A Sharpe, Sergeant Norman Podmore, Pilot Officer Isaac C Newell, Flight Sergeant Colin H Barrow and Sergeant George E S Wren 4 other Stirlings from 218 Squadron were lost on this operation. Frederick Arthur SILLS Lieutenant, 7th/10th Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 154 Infantry Brigade, 8th Army. Army no. 180346 He was killed in action on 28 October 1942. He was 35 He was the son of Frederick C Sills OO and of Edith N Sills of Chiswick and the husband of Nellie M Sills of Sudbury-on-Thames He is buried in grave XXIII E 9 El Alamein War Cemetery Additional information Oakham 1915-1922 He died in the fighting at El Alamein, the turning point of the War in North Africa Irvine John SMART Ordinary Seaman, HM Trawler Northern Princess (on loan to US Navy), Royal Naval Patrol Service. RN no. LT/JX 281129 He died on 7 March 1942. He was 19. He was the ward of Mrs L Fortune of Enfield, Middlesex and the son of the late Mr and Mrs C Smart, The Manor House, Stretton, Oakham He is remembered on panel 9, column 3 of the Lowestoft Naval Memorial Additional information Oakham 1938-1940, Wharflands HM Trawler Northern Princess was an anti-submarine, armed boarding vessel, on loan to US Navy which was sunk by a German U-boat U94 off Grand Banks in the North Atlantic. The entire crew of 38 were lost Geoffrey Vincent SMITH Lieutenant, 2nd/5th Battalion, The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment). Army no. 237872 He died on 29 April 1943. He was 21 He was the son of Edward V and Violet A Smith, Willowhayne, Chorley Wood He is buried in grave IV D 22 Enfidaville War Cemetery, Tunisia Additional information Oakham 1936-1940, Wharflands, Prefect and Rugby Colour The campaign had begun on 8 November 1942. The Axis forces defeated at El Alamein withdrew into Tunisia pursued by the Allied 8th Army. By mid-April 1943, the Axis force was hemmed in and the Allies were grouped for their final offensive. The 8th Army attack on the position at Enfidaville on 19 April captured the village but made no further progress. Attacks further north met with greater success and Tunis fell on 7 May, Bizerta on 8 May. Enfidaville fell on 12 May. John Edward STEPHEN Warrant Officer (Pilot), 516 (Combined Operations) Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 903322 He died on 6 February 1944. He was 24 He was the son of Major Edward F Stephen and Constance Stephen of Havant He is buried in grave Sec 3 Grave 746 Warblington Cemetery, Havant and Waterloo Additional information Oakham 1933-1936, School House, Rugby Colour 516 Squadron at RAF Abbotsinch provided realistic air support and mock enemy air attacks in Commando training and others, particularly in amphibious landings. On 6 February 1944, three Hurricanes from 516 Squadron took off from RAF Connell for a training exercise in the Kentra Bay area on the NE corner of the Ardnamurchan Peninsular. Their task was to undertake mock, low flying attacks on amphibious landings. Their mission complete, they set course for RAF Connell but found themselves enveloped by thick cloud and mist that rolled in from the west at sea level. They split up and tried to reach any base they could. Pilot Officer Larry Figgis climbed above the cloud ceiling at over 6,000 feet on an easterly course. He was on the point of bailing out when a small break in the cloud appeared. He dived through it to a successful belly landing in a field near Stirling. Warrant Officer John E Stephen in Hurricane IIc, LF160 made for Tiree but crashed onto the Isle of Coll while attempting a forced landing on which looked like flat ground. Unfortunately it was a bog with hidden streams and LF160 flipped over killing him. The wreckage was found on 9 February 1944. Flight Lieutenant Woodgate took a sea level route to RAF Connel and on 19 February 1944 the Hurricane of Flight Lieutenant Woodgate was found on the side of Beinn na Seilg on Ardnamurchan. Flight Lieutenant A J Woodgate RNZAF was 21. In 1995 a memorial plaque was mounted that overlooked both crash sites. Nigel Dennis STICKLAND MiD Lieutenant, Leicestershire Regiment seconded to 1st Battalion, The Dorsetshire Regiment, 231 Infantry Brigade. Army no. 94765 He died on 24 July 1943 during the invasion and capture of Sicily. He was 24. He was the son of Harold J and Violet Stickland, Springfield Avenue, Harrogate and the husband of Phyllis D Stickland also of Harrogate. He is buried in grave VI B 10 Syracuse War Cemetery, Sicily Additional information Oakham 1932-1935, School House Francis Paul SUTTON Lieutenant, The Northamptonshire Regiment seconded to 2nd Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment. Army no. 124248 He died on 14 October 1944. He was 28 He was the son of Rupert E and Edith Sutton, Bank House, Towcester He is buried in grave I C 8 Overloon War Cemetery, Netherlands Additional information Oakham 1929-1933, Wharflands In the autumn of 1944, the strip of land between Eindhoven and Arnhem was being extended slowly. The Germans had entrenched themselves around Overloon and the adversaries bombarded each other's position for four days. On 30 September, the Allies launched their attack, one of the fiercest battles that took place in Western Europe. American Sherman Tanks tried to breach the German defences. They were stopped by mines, field artillery and Tiger and Panther tanks. On October 8, exhausted Americans were relieved by the British who launched a new assault. The area was a quagmire and tanks were unable achieve much so breaking the German resistance was left to the infantry plus supported by heavy artillery and air raids. The last German stronghold fell at 16.15 hours on 14 October Charles Maurice THORPE Corporal, Royal Air Force. RAF no. 566539 He died on 26 October 1939. He was 22 He was the son of Charles H and Annie Thorpe, High Street, Uppingham He is buried in Sec E Grave 1001 Dirleton Cemetery, East Lothian Additional information Oakham 1928-1933, Day Boy He enlisted in September 1933 as an Aircraft Apprentice at RAF Halton. In October 1939 he was at 13 SFTS (Service Flying Training School) at RAF Drem On 26 October he was in Airspeed Oxford N4592 with Cpl B F Evans RAF 566005 when it flew into the ground at Lammer Law, East Lothian and both occupants were killed. George TOWNS Sergeant (Observer), 156 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 1182661 He died on 28 June 1942. He was 21. He was the son of John T and Margaret L Towns of Whissendine, Rutland He is buried in grave 17 C 20 Rheinberg War Cemetery Additional information Oakham 1932-1938, Day Boy George Towns was in Wellington III Z1619, GT on a mission to Bremen. It took off from RAF Alconbury at 23.13 hours and crashed at Westrum Kreis. 144 aircraft attacked Bremen that night and 9 aircraft were lost - 4 Wellington, 2 Halifax, 2 Lancaster and 1 Stirling. The crew who died were: Sergeant Norman T Owen, Sergeant George Towns, Pilot Officer William Henderson, Sergeant John E Jones, Pilot Officer Hector W C Watts RCAF Michael James WEST Pilot Officer, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 88015 He died on 31 March 1941. He was 22 He was the son of William E and Mabel C West of East Farndon He is buried in Compt 7 Grave 1, St Nicholas Churchyard Extension, Cottesmore Additional information Oakham 1928-1935, School House On 31 March 1941 Handley Page Hampden I, P2062 of 14 OTU (Operational Training Unit) took off from RAF Woolfox Lodge for night flying practice. At 04.20 hours this aeroplane, piloted by Sergeant K E Holder while on approach to land went out of control and crashed close to the airfield. The crew who died were: Sergeant Kenneth E Holder, Pilot Officer Michael J West, Pilot Officer John E Richmond and Sergeant Fred S Jessop At this time RAF Woolfox Lodge was a satellite airfield for RAF Cottesmore. Thomas Edwin WILLIAMSON Captain, Royal Artillery and No. 4 Commando. Army no. 113188 He died on 6 June 1944, D Day. He was 32 He was the son of Griffith E and Catherine E Williamson of Rhyl, Flintshire He is buried in grave 1 M 3 Hermanville War Cemetery Additional information Oakham 1926-1930 School House. He had qualified as a Solicitor before the War. 4 Commando were the first Commandos to hit the beaches on D-Day. Having disembarked from their landing craft Princess Astrid and Maid of Orleans, with 500 men, they landed on Queen Red beach to find 8 Infantry Brigade pinned down by enemy fire. In the mêlée that followed the Commandos suffered 40 casualties including the Commander, Lieutenant-Colonel Dawson. The Commando pushed forward, breaking out onto the coastal road and set off for Ouistreham, led by 1 and 8 (French) troops of 10 (IA) Commando. 4 Commando joined the others at Hauger and dug in between Sallanelles and Le Plein. Peter Plumpton WILSON Pilot Officer, 213 Squadron, Royal Air Force. RAFVR no. 114748 He died on 13 June 1942. He was 24. He was the son of Dr Geoffrey P and Constance M Wilson of Hildersham, Cambridgeshire He is remembered on column 249 of the El Alamein Memorial Additional information Oakham 1928-1932 Junior House, when he moved to Repton Peter Wilson joined 213 Squadron in 1938 and went to France to assist the BEF. For part of the Battle of Britain, it was based in south-west England but moved to RAF Tangmere in September. In November 1940 it moved to Yorkshire and then to RAF Castletown in Scotland. In May 1941, the squadron boarded HMS Furious. On 21 May it flew to Malta and on to Egypt and took part in operations over Syria. Then to Cyprus until December 1941 when it returned to Egypt. Air Defence duties were followed by offensive missions from June 1942 flying the Hurricane Mk. IIc. Then the squadron moved, supporting the 8th Army, following the breakout at El Alamein. During part of this period the squadron actually operated from bases behind the enemy lines. The record of his final flight is: Missing in action on 13 June 1942. 213 Squadron at RAF Gambut West took off at 07.00 hours on a sweep over Tobruk. 12 Messerschmitt Me 109's of 1/JG27 had taken off to escort a Messerschmitt 110 on a reconnaissance over the Acroma/El Adem area. 6 of the Messerschmitt 109 bounced the 213 Squadron aircraft north of Acroma. Lt Komer claimed 2 Hurricanes and Lt Stahlschmidt another. Pilot Officer Wilson in Hurricane IIc, Z3507 was seen to crash into the sea Flight Sergeant Holvorsen in Hurricane IIc, BE340 bailed out and was reported safe in Hospital with burns to chest and hands. John Walter WOMERSLEY Captain, 6th Battalion, The Lincolnshire Regiment. 138 Infantry Brigade, 46 Infantry Division. Army no. 162355 He died on 14 November 1944 in the advance to the Lamone River. He was 25 He was the son of the Rt. Hon. Sir Walter J Womersley, 1st Bt. PC and Lady Womersley of Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire and the husband of Betty Womersley of Cleethorpes He is buried in grave I C 13 Meldola War Cemetery, Italy Additional information Oakham 1931-1936 School House. He left his studies as an Articled Clerk to an Accountant to join the Army and served with the HQ of Middle East Division and HQ CMF and then with HQ of the 5th Army before rejoining his Battalion. |