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Welcome Daughter, Please take a moment and introduce yourself to the Royal Welch community in this forum. Just share a bit about yourself. For instance, whether or not you are/were a serving member of the Regiment or Armed Forces,what your occupation is now and how you plan to use the site.
Hello
I am hoping to find out about my father and his time in the RWF 1939-1946/7.
He was (unfortunately he died DEC. 2003) 4200394 C.Q.M.S. Sidney (Sid) Lee from Newcastle upon Tyne B.1919.
I know that he spent time with RWF in Northern Ireland, Maidstone Kent, Holland, was part of the 53rd division (?) Sword invasion and then on to Caen ending in Germany - Dusseldof and Hilden, he had an Alsation dog there called Arras so I think he was also in Arras France. I would like to hear from anyone who may remember him or is able to supply me with any historical details of the RWF during the war years. I remember my father having a book - it had a green cover with the red dragon (I think) and contained pictures relating to the experiences of the regiment. I would be grateful if anyone knows where I could access a copy or could give me the title and author etc.
I know this is all a long time ago but when reading some of the blogs on the forum, I know there are some of you who were in WW2 - so who knows.........
Many thanks
Carole Hinchey-White
Hi Carole and welcome.
Ok, the Northern Ireland stuff, indicates your father was in either the 4th, 6th or 7th Bn, At the onset of war, they were part of the 158th Brigade, which was sent to Northern Ireland in 1939 for training. The soldiers in this brigade were part of the the territorial army.
This brigade was not deployed into action until the 25th June, when the first fusiliers landed at Juno Beach, although at that point the fighting was still a few days away, there first shot in anger not being fired until the 1st July.
Your fathers name does not appear on the nominal role for the 6th Bn, so its a fair guess he was a member of either the 4th or 7th Bn. Hopefully we may be able to guide you on that.
The book you are looking for is called The Red Dragon by PK Kemp & John Graves....it is out of print but available online, try www.abebooks.com It includes a comprehensive account of the actions of the 4th & 7th Bn.
Lets see if any other members have info. By the way, have you appplied for his service record???
I can only add a small amount of info, but is quite important info for your needs.
He served with the 7th Battalion, joining the Regiment on the 9th April 1940. He seems to have stayed with the RWF all through the war, leaving the Regiment on the 17th November 1946.
As Al said, time to apply for his service papers.
Richard
Thank you so very much for that information. Yes, he was in the 7th Battalion. I know that he was friendly with a Eric Banks and they were together in Hilden - do you know if Hilden Barracks still exist I think it was a hotel somewhere in the forest and was taken over by the British after the Americans left. Do you know if the 53rd Division took part in Hill 112? How do I get hold of his service record and also can duplicate medals be obtained? Sorry - I have so many questions in my head. Thank you again to those who have replied so far, I hope that others may have some thing to add in due course. This means such a lot to me.
Thank you for that information - how or where can I get his service record from and is it possible to aquire duplicate medals which were given to him at the end of the war and are lost?Quote:
Originally Posted by ap1
Many thanks
Carole