Robert Allnutt
British Army 2nd Btn. Grenadier Guards
from:Frome, Somerset, England
My grandfather, Robert Allnutt, landed on the Normandy beaches (possibly a day or two after the initial landing) and pushed on towards Caen, where he and the battalion encountered fierce resistance as we all know. During this confrontation, his tank was hit. All escaped, some more injured than others, burnt and disorientated. My grandfather took cover by a hedge with another person. From what I remember, mortars were raining down and he was injured as a result. He was then recovered and taken out of the battle by half-track and eventually back to the UK. I hear that he visited one his other Sherman tank colleagues who was left with very badly burnt facial injuries. Another member of the tank team wanderered off blinded, after the tank being hit, into enemy positions and no one ever saw him again.
