大象传媒

I have a keen interest in the D Day landings and the Normandy campaign, my brother George served with the 2nd Monmouthshire Regiment, landing at Arromanches on June 26th 1944, he was just 18 years old, he was in action 3 days later and eventually served as a stretcher bearer on the famous or ill-famous Hill 112.

I returned to Normandy with him and my American brother in law on the 50th Anniversary of D Day. My late brother in law landed on Utah beach With the 90th Infantry Division on D +2 and was seriously wounded at Periers, another brother in-in-law again American landed at Omaha on the same day he was also seriously wounded Near St Lo, both were repatriated to the UK and spent several months in hospital. They then returned to their units and served in Europe until the end of the war. All three have now sadly passed away.

After the visit to Normandy back in 1994 my brother wrote a summary of his visit which I have since made into a Pictorial Record containing his memories of the war years and his visit 50 years later.
As is normal with most veterans of those days it is difficult to get them to talk of their experiences. Below is an excerpt from the book which I managed to extract from him;

When I landed here on June 26th 1944, I was in a team of four stretcher-bearers, and attached to 鈥淐鈥� Company, which was the Battalion cycle company. In addition to all our personal equipment, we carried Sten guns, ammo, a first aid pack, and between us a stretcher, also we each had a heavy army bicycle. I do remember that when we actually landed I did not get my feet wet, but it was certainly a struggle. Once we were up and off the beach, we marched (we were not allowed to ride) so why we had the bicycles I do not know. (I was unaware of the names of the places where we were, but I was able to get them once the war was over, and the regimental histories began to emerge)
We marched for about 10 miles to a holding area called Subles. We stayed there for 2 or 3 days and in that time did not 鈥渄ig in鈥�; during this period I remember we handed in our bicycles and our arms, (as stretcher bearers we were not allowed to carry them.) Battalion HQ and all our transport joined us in the next 2 days, so by the morning of the 29th we were ready to move as a fully equipped regiment. It was during early hours of the 30th June, that we moved into action, and during that day at Mesnil le Patry (nicknamed Mess in the Pantry) we suffered our first casualties. Then on to Mondrainville and Hill 112.

George returned again to Normandy the following year and I pressed him to tell me about his experience on Hill 112, I knew he had suffered Battle Exhaustion there, and the Hill seemed to be the most important part of his visits. Below is another extract from the book.

I then walked to the centre of Diamond Copse to photograph the stone placed there. I did not have my camera with me when I was brought here by the Frenchman from Esquay last year.
A wreath had been placed there recently by the Normandy Veterans Association. As I walked back to my van I felt very alone, maybe reading the inscriptions on the memorials brought back some of the emotions I felt all those years ago.
I took the road to Baron Sur Odon and stopped near a hedge, (see picture) it was somewhere near here that Sammy Sturgeon was injured. We had been under continuous mortar attack for many hours and despite the terrific noise I fell asleep in my slit trench, when I awoke all was quiet and I found that I was completely alone. I looked around picked up the stretcher and ran down the road towards Baron, and thankfully found the Regimental Aid Post.
From here I was evacuated to a Military Hospital and treated for battle exhaustion, afterwards I returned to the battalion, and remained with the 鈥淢onmouth鈥檚鈥� until the end of the war.

Sammy Sturgeon was his fellow stretcher bearer and they had been working as part of a team since leaving Subles on June 29th. Sammy was awarded the Military Medal; George made a reference to him in the book as follows:

Sammy Sturgeon and I were the stretcher-bearers at Headquarters, it was our duty to aid the wounded and carry them to the Regimental Aid Post (R.A.P). Sammy was later awarded the Military Medal, (I did not know at the time, that the award had been a choice between him and I, but truthfully he lead and I followed on.) He was injured some days later on Hill 112, I am unable to recollect where, as I was not called to assist him, in fact I did not know about his injuries until I arrived at the Regimental Aid Post later that day. I was told that he limped into the post, holding a field dressing to his backside and said, 鈥淭hose b------鈥檚 have got me鈥� that was 鈥淪am鈥�. Unfortunately I never saw him again, and was unable to contact him, or discover where he was living, I had several reports over later years that he was still alive and well, and then I sadly heard that he passed away last year (1997).

It is impossible to imagine the scenes and tragedies that those young men witnessed and endured fighting for our freedom.
These words from a book by John Stirling a tank commander of the 4th/7th Hussars convince me that the battle was worth the fighting.

He wrote;
In company with millions of other young men I have spent five of what they say are the best years of my life learning and practising a profession which has destruction for its 鈥渞aison d鈥檈tre鈥�.

I do not doubt for one moment that we were right to do this, or that our cause was just and true; of that I am convinced, and without that, neither I nor the others could ever have seen this thing through.

But equally I am convinced that should this situation ever arise again, it will represent our failure to fight for peace with those same magnificent qualities which have shone through the dross of war, and it will spell the doom of all civilised existence and progress on this earth.

We should never forget them.

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