大象传媒

My grandfather was part of the British Expeditionary Force serving in France in 1939/40 at the time of the German invasion. He and the rest of his unit were taken by suprise by the sudden and terrifyingly swift German advance. Like many other thousands of soldiers he was cut off by the unexpected speed of the enemy and he never got the chance to make his way to Dunkirk, being killed as he fought in the quiet rural village of Franleu a few miles from Abbeville.

In many ways the thousands that died at the beginning of the retreat are the forgotten victims of the war. The huge publicity that surrounds the later part of the retreat and the miraculous evacuation, rightly takes the headlines but the sacrifice of the thousands left behind is no less important, tragic or moving.

My Grandfather, Corporal John Richard White, Number 4264929, was an ordinary man who had volunteered to join the teritorial army prior to the outbreak of war in 1939. He was a miner, working in Pegswood pit in Northumberland. The lads he was with were local lads who had volunteered together.

I know very little of how they became cut off from the main force but I know there must have been thousands in a similar situation all over France because of the speed of the German advance.

The small group of soldiers made a stand in the tiny French village of Franleu. The story I grew up with was that one of my grandfather's friends, a young lad of 18 or 20 called Private Carter, also of Pegswood, had been shot and wounded. My Grandfather made a dash to pick him up and bring him back from where he fell. My Grandfather was shot in the throat by a German sniper concealed in a tree as he made his way back to where the British troops were fighting.

He died instantly and men who witnessed this act of unselfish bravery said he should have received a medal for what he did.

Many years later in the early 80's my brothers visited the tiny graveyard in the church grounds of Franleu where 20 or so British soldiers lie buried. They spoke to an old man who tended the graves, a task he had carried out since the war ended. He said he remembered the corporal who was buried in grave number 10. He said that he had been shot in the stomach and had taken several days to die. He too said he was a hero. The old man also told a tale of having to move the bodies of the dead soldiers several times after they had been buried for the first time, that also was a story of great courage and dedication. It was something that he was proud to do, to repay in some small way what these men from a foreign country had done for him and his people.

I myself visited the grave in July 2001 with my wife and my own two sons. It was the fulfilment of a lifelong ambition and I was so proud to be where my grandfather lay. There was no ancient French groundsman to talk to, just the peace and tranqility of a sleepy, French farming village on a baking hot July day, 61 years after my Grandfather had lost his life.

I do not know which version of events is true or even if my Grandfather was a hero for trying to save someone else's life. I do know that he was a hero to me and that the reality of his death during that untidy retreat to Dunkirk made the drama televised by the 大象传媒 last week all the more moving. It is important that the story continues to be told for the sake of everyone who died defending our country and our way of life and for the next generation of children for whom the war is "ancient history" .

There are many individual stories to be told of the thousands who lost their lives in "meaningless" little skirmishes across France. They do not appear in major Hollywood films, 大象传媒 documentaries or important text books on the war, but every single individual did what they could and they could do no more.

Corporal John Richard White, no. 4264929 of the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers. Died on the 5th. June 1940 in Franleu. He is buried in Franleu Church Yard with about 20 other soldiers. His grave is Number 10 row A.

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