Captain A Cave-Browne-Cave DSO

Captain A Cave-Browne-Cave DSO Captain Anthony Cave-Browne-Cave passed away on 31st October, aged 86 years. He was awarded the DSO when he was just 19 years old, while serving with 6SWB in Burma. On the Battalion’s disbandment he was transferred into 4th Indian (Infantry) Brigade in Sumatra as IO Army and was discharged in 1947. After the War he pursued his career as an architect. His wife, Dinah, survives him along with his four children and grandchildren. His Memorial Service is being held at St Peter’s Church, Rushbury, Shropshire on Friday 11th November 2011 at 1400 Hrs.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/s...a8607341.shtml

A very interesting and humble man. RIP

I was collected by jeep and taken to report to the colonel — a very tall man named Cresswell. The first thing he said to me was, ‘What do we call you?’
‘Oh… Cave.’ So I got over that quickly.
He said, ‘What position do you play?’
I was a bit astounded, because we were in the middle of this jungle, I thought he’d tell me something about what I’d got to do, but I said, ‘sometimes I play in goal, sometimes I play left back.’
His expression changed, ‘Are you talking about soccer? Rugby, man, rugby.’
Of course, I was in a Welsh regiment — everybody played rugby. I said, ‘Oh, I’m sorry sir, I’ve never played rugby.’
He just said, ‘Report to “A” company.’ That was the first time I was to be in an ‘A’ coy. Nothing more was said of the fact that I didn’t play rugby, but I’m sure it went as a black mark.

Our Deepest Sympathy goes out to Anthony wife Dinah his children and family friends and fellow comrades'
From All at the Shotton & Deeside Bramch RWFCA

May you Rest In Peace!

Hello,
Bridgend & District Branch of the Royal Welch Fusiliers send their deepest sympathy to all the family and friends of Captain Cave.
RBD Hon sec Bridgend

Deepest condolences to family and friends from London Branch RWFCA.

Deepest sympathy to family from all members of Denbigh and District Branch RWFCA

Some guy. Here's his obituary from The Times, published on the 18 Nov 2011:

"Soldier decorated as a teenager for his heroism while fighting against the Japanese who became a respected architect after the war

An end to the war in Europe was in sight by February 1945 as the Allied armies prepared to cross the Rhine. In the Far East, however, the Americans were still clearing the Pacific islands en route to Japan, and Sir William Slim’s 14th Army had yet to break into Burma’s central plain. It was with Major-General (later Field Marshal Sir) Frank Festing’s 36th Division that Tony Cave-Browne-Cave won the DSO as a 19-year-old subaltern, an achievement as close to winning a Victoria Cross as one could get.

Pushing southwards towards Myitsun on the west bank of the Shweli river on February 16, Festing was obliged to pull back a brigade that had become exposed and ordered 72 Infantry Brigade, including 6th Battalion South Wales Borderers with whom Cave-Browne-Cave was a platoon commander, to cover the withdrawal.

The Welshmen were constrained by a road block sited in depth — a technique in which the Japanese had been proficient throughout the campaign. Cave-Browne-Cave led his platoon in the first attempt to break through, but was halted when light machinegun fire from a flank decimated his leading rifle section. Ordering bayonets to be fixed, he led the remainder of his platoon against the LMG position, bayoneting two enemy himself and capturing the gun. Caught by sniper fire from the flank, he withdrew his platoon to attempt another route to the road block, only to encounter further — and stronger — automatic fire. Again he led a bayonet charge on the second machinegun position, driving the enemy off and killing two of them himself. The in-depth positions behind the road block still held firm, however, so Cave-Browne-Cave led a third bayonet charge to deal with them.

This accomplished, another platoon that had lost its officer was ordered forward to clear any remaining opposition. Exhausted but miraculously unwounded, Cave-Browne-Cave at once volunteered to lead this platoon on a fourth bayonet charge. As he went forward, his small pack was shot off his back and his steel helmet holed in two places. The road block was then finally cleared and the battalion advanced to complete its task. On the previous evening Cave-Browne-Cave and his company commander had discussed the possibility of crossing the 500-yard-wide Shweli river during the night, so as to outflank the Japanese by moving down the eastern bank. They agreed that it would be a highly risky enterprise as the river was in flood and despite there being a mid-stream island downstream onto which anyone washed away might hope to scramble ashore.
During this conversation Cave-Browne-Cave revealed that he was unable to swim and had passed the compulsory swimming test during officer training by walking in full equipment along the floor of the swimming pool, popping up occasionally for gulps of air.

The war not over for 6th South Wales Borderers when the Japanese surrendered in Rangoon on August 28, 1945. They were sent to Sumatra to rescue British and Commonwealth prisoners of war and Dutch women and children held by the Japanese since their capture of the Dutch East Indies in 1942. This was not a straightforward affair, as Indonesian nationalists had taken over the islands, including Java containing the capital Batavia (now Jakarta), to prevent any return of Dutch administrators.
In 2004 a journalist from the Netherlands made contact with Cave-Browne-Cave through his former regimental headquarters, on behalf of a Dutch woman who as a six-year old child had been rescued from a primitive internment camp in which she and her mother were starving, as she wished to express her appreciation.

Anthony Cave-Browne-Cave was born in 1925 in Cheltenham where his father was entertainments manager at the Winter Gardens. Thinking that his surname would sit strangely with his employment, his father used his forenames of Courtney Edwards, and Anthony was unaware of his true surname until issued with his identity card after the outbreak of war in September 1939. After attending Rhyl County School and beginning a course at Liverpool School of Art before enlistment, Cave-Browne-Cave read for a degree at Birmingham School of Architecture after demobilisation in 1947. He started his own practice in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1955, being joined in 1960 by Kenneth Collins, a former fellow student at Birmingham.
They took on small commissions for local authorities and industrial buildings until becoming sufficiently well-known to attract more demanding commissions. Ragley Hall, the property of the Marquis of Hertford, required restoration of its west façade and, being listed, the project was undertaken under supervision of the Ministry of Works. This commitment led to other prestigious commissions in Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Warwickshire — such as the conversion of Alveston Manor in Stratford-on-Avon into a country house hotel — and a 15-year business association with Trust House Forte. In 1984 the practice merged with another and on Cave-Browne-Cave’s retirement became Hawkes, Edwards and Cave.

He married Dinah Ann Mitchell of Shropshire in 1957. She survives him with three sons. Another son predeceased him.
Anthony Cave-Browne-Cave, DSO, soldier and architect, was born on March 4, 1925. He died on October 31, 2011, aged 86"

Give our sympathies to the family.