L/Cpl. James Charles Soden
Royal Marine Commandos
from:Abingdon
James Soden volunteered and did basic training at Eastney Barracks, Portsmouth and 7 weeks additional training at Achnacarry, Fort William, Scotland. Then to Leavesdon for transport training. Learning to drive bren gun carriers and tanks etc, under the instruction of CO Tallymash from Cheltenham & Sgt Major "Boy" Roy.
After training Jim left Avonmouth docks onto a troop carrier, a converted luxury liner called Volandam (a dutch packet). With thousands of all sorts of troops in a convoy of 30 ships escorted by the Royal Navy to South Africa to collect supplies, then through the Red Sea to Cario Egypt. Disembarking going through the desert, he was at Tobruk, El Alamein following the 8th Army to Sicily.
In Sicily he was based at Syracuse for a few months dealing with disgruntled locals and minor skirmishes. Then moved to Catania checking on the vodka and general duties for 1 month. His unit was called back to Scotland for D Day preparations to a place called Gurrock, he said there was no landing stage for the ship to disembark us, just cliffs. We were told to climb as we were commandos. We waited and waited for D Day. Eventually got involved, swept through the Ardennes with a lot of fighting and trying to keep yourself alive. Later to return to the UK to be demobbed in 1946 at Eastney Barracks Portsmouth.
Jim returned to a farming life in the Vale of White Horse Berkshire an still has a say in the running of the family farm today in 2020.
