260279 Sgt. Sidney George Compton British Army 1st Btn. Rifle Brigade from:Crosby, Liverpool, formerly London Sidney Compton was my father. Originally he was from 13 Skelbrook St., Earlsfield, London, SW 18. When this was bombed, the family moved to a prefab in Clapham Common.
He served with the 1st Battalion, Rifle Brigade in WW2 and was a Desert Rat in the Middle East from 25th of September 1941 to 9th of September 1943; in North Africa from 10th of September 1943 to 5th of January 1944. Dad returned home (he had been injured) from 6th of January 1944 to 3rd of June 1944, then fought in Northwest Europe from 4th of June 1944 (participated in D-Day landings) to 13th of April 1945.
He was discharged permanently unfit for service on 13th of April 1945 to Dunmail Drive, Carlisle, the home of Mrs. Sylvia Harrison and Mr. Will Harrison, where his wife Peggy and daughter Jeanette were residing.
He was awarded 5 medals, including the Africa Star and Damy Clasp; 1939-45 Italy Star; France and Germany War Medal 1939-45; S.W. Arm (B.C) 19th of July 1944 (NW Europe) (not sure if the latter is a medal).
He was wounded twice, patched up and sent back to the front because, as he said, they were short of sergeants. He said that in the desert they would capture German soldiers and send them back to their lines in the morning because it was too much trouble to keep them. He remembered using water from the jeep's radiator to shave with and then returning it to the jeep.
My father didn’t speak much about the war. I think he was a very troubled man due to his experiences. He never wanted to go abroad for holidays until we, as a family, took him to the Algarve in his late 80s. Up until then he said abroad was dirty. But he really enjoyed the holiday and said it was the best he had ever had.
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