大象传媒

War service of SIDNEY CONN (formerly known as Aaron Cohen)

My late husband, Sidney,enrolled in the Army in November, 1939, at the age of 21. He was enlisted as a Private (Army no.5728315) in the Dorsetshire Regiment, in January 1940, and commenced army training in the Dorchester area and later in Yorkshire, and northeast England.

About this time his unit was joined by regular soldiers who had been fighting in France and had been lucky to get back from Dunkirk. The local population treated all the soldiers as heroes, including the raw recruits like Sidney, and it was drinks all round in the locals.

Sidney was in good physical condition, because his pre-war sport and hobby had been cycle racing, and had been a member of a cycling club. He was also a good runner, and was popular because he ran in sporting events for his regiment.

All good things come to an end and in April 1942 he embarked on a troopship for overseas service. After a long tortuous journey to evade u-boats, he landed in Cape Town, South Africa. He did more training for several weeks, and enjoyed the hospitality of the local population, visiting their homes and synagogues.

As well as general field exercises, Sidney was given specialised training in signals including Morse Code and was placed in a signals platoon. During fighting this enabled separate groups or units to keep in touch with each other. Sidney had to carry the heavy and cumbersome transmitter and battery on his back, as well as his other gear.

The troopship then sailed on to India, where they did more training in jungle warfare.

The regiment was heavily involved in the Burma campaign in late 1943 and early 1944, and there were heavy casualties among his comrades. On 28th April 1944, during fierce fighting in Kohima, near the tennis courts, he was sent to deliver a new battery to a group who were cut off and without communication. He had his Jewish prayer book in his kitbag and on his return planned to visit the graves of two comrades who had been killed the previous day, and to recite Kaddish,a special prayer for the dead.

Unfortunately on the way back, an enemy sniper hiding up a tree, shot Sidney, severely wounding him in the right hip, shattering the joint. Because of constant enemy fire he could not be picked up by the medics until the next morning, in considerable pain and having lost a lot of blood. His main worry all night was that a Japanese soldier should not find him first.

He was rushed to a field hospital, where he was given massive doses of penicillin to prevent gangrene. This was the beginning of three years or more of hospitalisation and treatment to save his leg and his life. When he was re-united with his kitbag all his personal belongings had disappeared, and the only thing left was his prayer book.

He was then shipped back to England in a hospital ship, lying on planks and both legs heavily encased in plaster from hips to ankles , to keep him immobile, finally landed in Liverpool in July 1944. By a coincidence he was carried off the ship by an army stretcher-bearer who was a distant relative.

The army discharged Sidney on 29th December 1944 as ceasing to fulfil army physical requirements and awarded an army disablement pension. However, it was only after several more years of hospitalisation and numerous operations that he was able to return to civilian life. He was very proud of his army service, which was described as :exemplary, and constantly wore his silver wounded-serviceman鈥檚 badge with pride., and likewise his medals each year at the Cenotaph.His disablement, after years of pain, necessitated him wearing a heavy built-up shoe to compensate for a four and half inch shortening of his leg.

W e met at an ex-servicemen鈥檚 club in July 1949, married in April 1951 , and had three children. In all our years together he never complained about his disability, or bemoaned his luck. He always said he was lucky to have got out alive.All in all, he was a good soldier,patriot, and caring family man.

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