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von Arnim had entered the attack upon Hunt's Gap with a force of some 200 tanks, but only 45 remained by 5th March. On the 10th March Rommel was evacuated to Munich, no longer being able to take part in operations, owing to a severe attack of malaria.

The press at home had maintained a sealed lips attitude, until Wednesday 9th June,1943, when in the House of Lords, the Master Gunner, Field-Marshal Lord Milne, was finally able to get the War Office to relent and to reveal the identity of those units which had demonstrated outstanding feats of bravery.

Thereupon, the epic of 155 Battery was related with great prominence, under banner headlines in many British national newspapers. On Saturday 10th July,1943, the story was revealed on one of the current 大象传媒 documentaries "Into Battle" series. My Mother actually heard it on her radio that evening!

The Officers and men of the 155th Battery did not hail from any particular locality or county of Britain, having been drawn from all parts of the country. But now when, under pressure from Field-Marshal Lord Milne, the wonderful story of their heroism had at last been released, there remained details that were still being witheld.-

Who were the nine survivors? (of a total of 130 Officers and men originally engaged in that Battle.) What was the name of the Battery Commander? When being officially told that no further details were available, the "News Chronicle" inquired for the name of the Battery Commander, and they came up with the self-same reply "We have not got it - it is not known at the War Office."

"The Daily Herald" featured what was considered to have been the most vivid press account. Please excuse me making the pun 'jumping the gun', but two years later on I had once again returned to my grandmother's hotel (Rozel) in Weston-s-Mare, When out in town, I noticed a book in W.H.Smith's entitled 'Birth of an Army' by A.B. Austin, published by Gollancz. It was 1st impression, 1943.

I held this book for a period of 39 years, when shortly before retirement from a shop in Penarth I lent it to a customer, and it was not returned. What has concerned me over the years was the fact that that 1st impression contained the lines "It was almost certain that they were expected to have been sacrificed" Since then I have received two further copies of that book, but those particular lines have been omitted. Maybe if anyone is in possession of a 1st edition, they would please certify this for me.

The Sidi N'Sir action was also reported in the "Illustrated London News" dated Wednesday, 23rd June,1943, under the heading 'THE VC BATTERY' accompanied by a vivid drawing by war artist Bryan de Grineau, depicting the Battery's last stand.

There were those at the time who felt that the importance of the success in this battle was very much under-rated by High Command, but not by the Germans. A German Afrika Korps Commander talking to Brigadier Graham many years after the war admitted that their failure at Sidi N'Sir and Hunt's Gap 'marked the end of their hopes of victory in North Africa' Indeed within two months of the battle for Beja, Tunis had been taken and the Germans had surrendered at Cap Bon.

At this point it is very interesting to note that, having heard of the 1st Army landings at about 08.00 hours on the 8th November, 1942, Rommel had stated to the Commander of the Afrika Korps, General Fritz Bayerlein, "This spells the end of the Army in Afrika". Indeed it eventually proved to have been the killer blow!

It is also fitting to add that, in order to commemorate the action in which the 155 Battery had been involved, Captain Marcus Phillips, R.A., was commissioned by the Royal Artillery Institution in 1964 to paint areproduction in oils. The finished product, a large canvas 7ftx5ft., was later hung in the Royal Artillery Museum, Woolwich and was later on display in the Royal Artillery Mess, Pembroke Dock, South Wales.

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