what did your relations do during ww2

[swinny]

My grandad went out to fight in WW2, he was hit with the butt of a rifle by a german and remained nearly fully blind in one of his eyes for the rest of his life.

 

My grandma worked in an amunition factory

 

RIP God Bless

[daveindales]

I also have an interest in RN history. About 10/15 years ago I put together a web site about the Hunt Class escort destroyer HMS Wensleydale. This is the area where I live. I located and interviewed a number of the crew. The story I put together can be found at HMS Wensleydale home page

[LGP Eddie]

I also knew a bloke who buried the bodies at Belson with a bulldozer. I thought he was the only one. Things must have been that bad, that they needed a few to bury them all.

 

I think it was probably a scene we couldn't possibly begin to imagine?

 

He obviously continued to utilise his skills after the war and continued into the civilian plant game. He eventually went to college and jumped the fence to surveying, but ended up managing a fleet of large construction plant.

 

There is an image of a Dozer at work in Belsen if you simply google 'Belsen' and look under images.

I didn't think it appropriate to post up, but it gives a horrid insight and would be nice to think it turned out to be one of these guys at the controls?

 

I was on Foot and Mouth and those images will remain with me, let alone so many bodies you need a Dozer to move them!

 

 

Eddie.

[Big Ben]

Great thread. I had alway been interested in what my Grandad did during the war. I have his medals and a few old photos also have his discharge report from the army (not sure what it's called without looking) basically a write up from his Co.

 

If you can make that out it says he was in 106/78th which I have been told is 106 lancashire regiment 78th artillery division, which made up a part of the 8th army. He did Africa Italy and France.

My other grandad was too young and just got into the home guard towards the end.

A close friend of the family had some pretty amazing stories, he was shot down in a Lancaster over France and was luckily picked up by the resistance who nursed him for a few months in a crypt in a grave yard(he suffered severe burns) and was the last airman to be smuggled out of France over the Pyrenees

[dogman]

Got a few photos but not good at this posting lark. Dad had a reserved occupation(slaughterman/butcher)but lied about his age & joined the army anyway. He saw action in Italy(18th birthday in the front line)Germany, & the low countries, did a total of 4yrs, 1942 & de-mobbed in 1947, he was with the Welsh guards, but is'nt Welsh, was wounded & left behind in Italy but found by American troops(thank you America).

 

Rob

[Pete Hart]

What a brilliant thread, I could read these all day!

 

My late Father was an anti aircraft gunner on HMS London, and I'd like to get the new Arctic Star medal that was released as he served on the Atlantic Convoys, but sadly my Mum won't really speak about it.

My late brother passed his medals to his son, and I'm still furious about it. I'm my fathers surviving son and they mean an awful lot to me.

 

I also had an Uncle who was always a bit of a hero to me, absolutely huge guy who gained your respect the second he set foot in the room. He was heavily into large construction plant (big Dozers etc) which obviously fascinated me.

Sadly he passed away all too soon, but I'd like to find out more of him after being told by my Mum he was a shadow of the lad who went to war.

He drove a Dozer in the war and ended up burying bodies at Belsen with one, which obviously had a massive effect on him.

 

Completely forgot about my great uncle Geoff who spent time clearing up at Belsen too. As you mention about your uncle, Eddie, Geoff was tormented by what he saw there. He was a lovely old boy, I've got fond memories of going to watch the Wolves play with him and hear about the war (although not about Belsen).

[Rich2484]

Great grandad was a pilot, unsure as he passed many moons ago. Uncle member of SBS again has passed on, dads side was one in artillery, infantry and a tankie (desertrats) mams real dad was in the navy (officer ranking?) and hit a mine. Not really spoken of. Then a couple more but im waiting for the arrival of my family tree which my uncle spent year drawing up

 

Your dad's side might know my mums side then? Was he in Malaysia by any chance? I have his medal somewhere.

 

Name was soltysiac, or somehow spelt. Pronounced "salt eze e ak"

[Dan Earp]

That and Suez etc bud

[Treegeek]

My grandfather on dad's side was 1st Airborne and great grandfather on mum's side designed torpedo station in Sri Lanka sadly they both passed away before I could appreciate there services to our freedom, it makes me deeply sympathetic to our service men of today .

[oldwoodcutter]

Not a relation,but an old friend,who was almost completely deaf, was in royal norfolks and had been captured in the far east and spent much of the war in a pow camp.

One day we were talking in a farm yard when some lads started taking the micky about his deafness until i went over and explained to them how when he was in captivity a jap took a dislike to him one day and ruptured both his eardrums with a rifle butt.

Due to his weakness and diet at the time,they never recovered and he remained handicapped until the day he died.