254806 Tpr. Thomas James Seymour MM,MiD.British Army 6th Btn. Royal Tank Regiment from:Newcastle upon Tyne My father, Thomas James Seymour, was born in 1920 in Newcastle upon Tyne.
He joined the Territorial Army in 1937 and in 1940 was sent to the Western Desert, (El Alamein). He was involved in the early part of the campaign when things were going badly. On 7th of July 1942 in the area of Ruweisat Ridge his lorry was shelled and badly damaged. Showing no regard for personal danger, he changed 2 damaged wheels under fire and refused to go back to the A1 Echalon, but went forward over a minefield to replenish the tanks which were heavily engaged in action. His lorry was again shelled, and he was ordered to off-load ammunition from the lorry and make a dump which he did single-handedly. His commander was Lieutenant Colonel Liardet. My father was awarded the Military Medal. The officer who was involved in this incident received the George medal.
My father was also Mentioned in Dispatches and has an oak leaf and bar decoration.
I only know most of this because I got a copy of the original citation. My father did not talk about the awful things that happened until the 2 years before his death at the age of 97. Any mention of his time at El Alamein would make him very upset. I do remember my father telling me that he saw Auchinleck sitting up against a truck, I also remember him telling me that he thought Auchinleck had done a really good job, and was sorry when he was dismissed.
He was very friendly with another recruit from Newcastle. He showed my father a picture of his youngest sister. He started to write to her and on return to Tyneside they met and married! His friend Steve was now my uncle Steve and when they got together they would regale us with funny stories about their experiences. Neither of them told us how awful it was.
On a final note, he had been given an order to drive an armoured car over a bridge that was not safe. He told the officer that it wouldn't hold the lorry. On feeling the bridge give way he jumped out and the lorry was lost in a river. He was told he would be in great trouble for losing the lorry. A while later, on being summoned to the Colonel's tent, he was told before entering to salute and say 'Thank you'. Expecting to be told what would happen as a result of losing the truck, he was told instead that he had been recommended for the Military Medal. He heard no more about the lost lorry!
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