227762 4D/Z Woolley, William Percy, 4752062, Pte, 4th Battalion, Green Howards.
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Reported missing, Western Desert, 4/6/42. Captured Gazala.
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At Camp PG 53, Italy to 9/43. Bad Schmiedeberg W603 until May 1944, then Stalag 4C Teplitz.
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Of 14 Maxwell Road, Welling, Kent.
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One of the four men transferred out of the W603 camp to Stalag 4C in May 1944.
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Possibly on this photograph of Green Howards at PG 70:
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http://stalag4d.atspace.co.uk/page163.html
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Returned POW Liberation Questionnaire extant and researched.
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227918 4D/Z Mitchell, L/Cpl T A, 6285225, The Buffs.
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Reported missing believed POW, Western Desert, 15/12/41.
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Recorded as Thomas Mitchell on his German POW record card. Born Brighton, DoB 4/6/14.
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According to Pat O'Sullivan, one of the few regular soldiers in the group. (Another was Brendan Greene).
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Qualified for General Service Medal (Palestine) in 10/2/40.
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227919 4D/Z Akers, Pte George, 10551127, RAOC.
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Reported POW, Middle East, 9/42.
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Previously in Camp PG 65, Italy.
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With adjacent POW numbers, the two men above were obviously pals in Italy and stayed with each other up into Germany.
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227944 4D/Z Gent, Horace A ‘Georgie’ 4982367, 2nd/5th Sherwood Foresters.
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Reported missing, Tunisia (Sedjenane) 2/3/43. From Ashford, Middlesex.
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DOB 6/9/15, Pennington. Date of capture on his German Record Card listed is as '12/10/43', which seems to be the date his record was taken by the German authorities.
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Previously in Camps PG 98 and PG 53 Bad Schmiedeberg W603. See the 1944 group photo.
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His 1945 home address, 'H Gent, 217 Woodthorpe Road, Ashford, Middlesex' was written in his own hand on a postcard of Halle preserved by Pat O'Sullivan.
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Returned POW Liberation Questionnaire extant and researched.
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227949 4DZ Roberts, Pte W J, East Surreys, 4460148.
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Reported missing, Tunisia, 26/2/43, serving with 1st Bn East Surrey Regt.
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Previously served in DLI. Possibly at W 603? Or as it Roberts 228012 below? Identity still to confirm.
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227951 4D/Z Davey, L/Cpl Idwal T, 3973959, Welch Regt.
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Reported missing, Middle East, 28/1/42, serving with 1st Bn Welch Regt.
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DoB 20/8/10, Lisvane, Wales, according to his German record card.
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Previously at PG 66, Italy.
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Possibly the Welshman 'Davey' at Bad Schmiedeberg W603 workcamp, see 1944 group photo. Captured the same day as E J Britton, 227954, below, Identity still to confirm..
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227953 4D/Z Lewis, Dvr Ben, RASC, T/156453, RASC.
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Reported missing, Cyrenaica, 20/6/42.
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From Dollgellau, Wales. Captured in desert.
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Bad Schmiedeberg W603, see group photo.
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A 1945 address in Dollgellau survived in my father's papers. In telling his POW war stories, my father always referred to Ben Lewis as 'Taffy' I managed to trace Benny Lewis's daughter via a request on C4 Service Pals' teletext page in 1998. Sadly he had died several years before.
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227954 4D/Z Britton, Pte E J, 3971690, Welch Regiment.
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Reported missing, Middle East, 28/1/42, serving with 1st Bn Welch Regt.
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Bad Schmiedeberg W603, though not featured on 1944 group photo caption.
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'Big Jim' Britton.
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227977 4D Dunster, L/Cpl Richard Eric ‘Dickie’, 6848117.
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Served in D Company, 2nd Battalion, King’s Royal Rifle Corps.
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Captured Libya, 23/1/42.
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Held in Camps PG 66, PG 65 and PG 53. Stalag 4B from 27/9/43.
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Bad Schmiedeberg W603, see 1944 group photo. Elected hut leader by the other POWs.
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German POW record card lists his Dob as 2/12/19, at St Day, Cornwall
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A wartime Redruth address for Dickie Dunster survived in my father's papers. As it's an unusual name, I managed to trace Dickie's widow via the phone book in 1998. Sadly, he had died several years before. However, she did tell me that his platoon officer was the Honourable Richard Wood, who was severely wounded during his war service, possibly in the same action in which Dickie was taken POW
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Wood,_Baron_Holderness
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Wood, Mrs Dunster told me, attended their wedding in 1946. He subsequently became an MP and served as Minister of Power in the early 1960s Harold MacMillan Government. I was in touch with the KRRC Old Comrades' Association in the early 2000s and passed on Mrs Dunster's details at their request, so hopefully a reunion ensued.
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Returned POW Liberation Questionnaire extant and researched.
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NEXT PAGE, continued
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