|
|
|
Sgt. Donald Swaine . Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve 106 Sqd from Yorkshire (d.29th Mar 1942) Donald Swaine was with 106 Sqd he died in 1942 and is remembered on the Runnymede Memorial.
|
Janetta Swaine . Royal Canadian Air Force Women's Div. from Canada I am looking for information on, or anyone who may have served with, Janetta Swaine in 1943-44. She was a parachute packer. She was in Torbay, Newfoundland as well as No. 15 SFTS Claresholm, Alberta. Her picture is on the front of a booklet called `At work in the parachute section'.
|
F/O. Alfred Wesley Swainson . Royal Canadian Air Force 420 (Snowy Owl) Squadron from Red Deer, Alberta Alfred Swainson was my father.
He was a bomb aimer, navigator, and pilot with 420 Snowy Owl Squadron.
He flew out of England and North Africa.
After the war he married Alberta Grimson and had 3 children. They farmed in the Red Deer area of Alberta.
On 7th of December 1953 Alf and Alberta were killed in a tragic car accident.
|
L/Cpl. Evelyn Swainston . Auxiliary Territorial Service A Coy. Cumbria from Sunderland Evelyn Swainston is my mother. I was conceived in Dec 1944 at Catterick Garrison and I am looking for my blood father, I understand not many military were in the base during the festive period, she was however on duty.
|
G Swainston . British Army Yorkshire Regiment G Swainston served with the Yorkshire Regiment British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: The Wartime Memories Project is no longer in contact with Dan , his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
|
K Swainston . British Army K Swainston served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: The Wartime Memories Project is no longer in contact with Dan , his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
|
Sea. Harry Lewis Swale . Royal Navy HMS Achates from Hull (d.31st Dec 1942) Harry Swale was my mother's cousin, the son of my Aunty May. He had a brother John. Harry was a witness at my mum's first marriage in 1941.
|
A/Maj. Edwin Essery Swales VC, DFC.. South African Air Force 582 Squadron from South Africa (d.23rd Feb 1945) Edwin Essery Swales was one of four children born in Inanda, Natal, South Africa to Harry Evelyn Swales, who was a farmer in the Heatonville district, and Olive Essery. Following the death of her husband in the influenza epidemic of 1918-19, Mrs Swales and her children moved to the Berea, Durban. Here, Edwin Swales attended Durban High School. As a young lad, Edwin had also been a member of the 4th Durban Scout Troop. After leaving school, and prior to the Second World War, Edwin Swales worked for Barclays Bank Dominion Colonial and Overseas in Durban. He had joined the Natal Mounted Rifles before the War, rising to the rank of Sergeant Major. With the N.M.R., in the early part of the War, he saw action in Kenya, Abyssinia and in North Africa. He then transferred to the South African Air Force on the 17th of January 1942. He received his wings at Kimberley on 26 June 1943. On 22 August 1943, he was seconded to the Royal Air Force.
Following successful period of training on heavy bombers, in June 1944 Swales was posted, to the RAF Pathfinder Force, 582 Squadron at Little Staughton. His first operational flight for 582 Squadron was on 12 July 1944. Newly promoted to Captain on 4 November 1944, he took part in a daring daylight bombing raid on 23 December, on the Gremberg railway yards, Cologne, Germany. The Squadron Leader for the raid on Cologne was his close friend, Robert Palmer, D.F.C., who normally flew Mosquitos with 109 Squadron, also based at Little Staughton. Swales was the number two Pathfinder, leading the main flight and following Palmer as he marked the target. Palmer, who had completed 110 bombing raids, was killed as his Lancaster was damaged by flak and crashed. Six of the 30 aircraft on this operation were lost. Palmer was later awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross - becoming the 2nd Pathfinder pilot to be so honoured. For his actions on the Cologne raid, Edwin Swales was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. The citation reads:
"This Officer was pilot and Captain of an aircraft detailed to attack Cologne in December, 1944. When approaching the target, intense anti-aircraft fire was encountered. Despite this, a good bombing attack was executed. Soon afterwards the aircraft was attacked by five enemy aircraft. In the ensuing fights, Capt. Swales manoeuvred with great skill. As a result his gunners were able to bring effective fire to bear upon the attackers, one of which is believed to have been shot down. Throughout this spirited action Captain Swales displayed exceptional coolness and captaincy, setting a very fine example. This Officer has completed very many sorties during which he has attacked a variety of enemy targets."
In 1945 with 582 Squadron Swales was the Master Bomber and captain of Avro Lancaster, B MkIII (No. PB538 60M). On 23rd February 1945 Swales led the bombing raid on Pforzheim, Germany. It was his 43rd operational flight, and the force consisted of 367 Lancasters supported by 13 Mosquitos. The marking and bombing, from only 8,000 feet, were particularly accurate and damage of a most severe nature was inflicted on Pforzheim with 1,825 tons of bombs dropped in only 22 minutes. Ten Lancasters were lost that night and two more crashed in France
Swales' aircraft was attacked by an Me110 whose fire shattered one engine and holed the fuel tanks. They were attacked again by the same fighter which knocked out a second engine. Swales decided to make if not England then friendly territory. The weather closed in and he ordered the crew to bail out. He attempted to put down but his Lancaster stalled and crashed near Valenciennes, west of Prouvy, two miles, 3 km, SSE of Denain in northern France. He was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.
His VC citation reads:
"Captain Swales was Master Bomber of a force of aircraft which attacked Pforzheim on the night of February 23rd, 1945. As Master Bomber he had the task of locating the target area with precision and of giving aiming instructions to the main force of bombers in his wake.
Soon after he reached the target area he was engaged by an enemy aircraft and one of his engines was put out of action. His rear guns failed. His crippled aircraft was an easy prey for further attacks. Unperturbed, he carried on with his allotted task; clearly and precisely he issued aiming instructions to the main force. Meanwhile the enemy fighter closed the range and fired again. A second engine of Captain Swales' aircraft was put out of action. Almost defenceless, he stayed over the target area issuing his aiming instructions until he was satisfied that the attack had achieved its purpose. It is now known that the attack was one of the most concentrated and successful of the war. Captain Swales did not, however, regard his mission as completed. His aircraft was damaged. Its speed had been so much reduced that it could only with difficulty be kept in the air. The blind-flying instruments were no longer working. Determined at all costs to prevent his aircraft and crew from falling into enemy hands, he set course for home. After an hour he flew into thin-layered cloud. He kept his course by skilful flying between the layers, but later heavy cloud and turbulent air conditions were met. The aircraft, by now over friendly territory, became more and more difficult to control; it was losing height steadily. Realising that the situation was desperate Captain Swales ordered his crew to bail out. Time was very short and it required all his exertions to keep the aircraft steady while each of his crew moved in turn to the escape hatch and parachuted to safety. Hardly had the last crew-member jumped when the aircraft plunged to earth. Captain Swales was found dead at the controls. Intrepid in the attack, courageous in the face of danger, he did his duty to the last, giving his life that his comrades might live."
|
Tpr. Frank Swales . British Army 7th Tank Regiment Royal Armoured Corps from Gamlingay
|
Pte. Hubert Swallow . British Army Royal Artillery from Cleckheaton Hubert Swallow was captured and held as a prisoner of war.
|
Sgt. Sidney Ernest Swallow . Royal Air Force 22 OTU (d.14th Dec 1942) Sidney Swallow, a relative of my wife, was killed on 14th of December 1942 when his Wellington plane crashed just outside Wellesbourne Mountford airfield where he was under-going training with the No. 22 O.T.U. He was a wireless operator air gunner.
|
Boy 1Cl. William Alfred Charles Swallow . Royal Navy HMS Phoebe from Southend on Sea, Essex (d.23rd October 1942) Boy 1st Class William Swallow was the son of William and Elizabeth Swallow, of Southend on Sea, Essex. He was 16 when he died and is buried in the Pointe Noire European Cemetery in the Congo.
On the 23rd October 1942, H.M.S. Phoebe was on her way to take part in operations off North Africa, when she was torpedoed off the coast of French Equatorial Africa. 46 men lost their lives in this engagement and 29 of them were buried in Pointe Noire European Cemetery in a large collective grave. This grave was later marked by a screen wall memorial, which carries details of all 46 casualties.
|
L/Cpl. Alexander Fulton "Eck" Swan . British Army Royal Army Service Corps from Cornhill on Tweed, Northumberland My father Alexander Swan returned from Dunkirk in 1940. I am trying to trace his history after he reached the UK.
His brothers, Henry and Charlie Swan were both also at Dunkirk as I understand it, the former on a merchant navy ship, the latter on the beach and was captured then spend the years until 1945 in a prisoner of war camp.
|
WO2. Charles William Swan . British Army Essex Regiment from Hackney, London Dad, Charles Swan served with the Essex Regiment and the Royal Army Service Corps in WW2. I have been going through my late father's papers and have his Regular Army service book which shows he was on H.M.S. Afrikander during 1944. He used to tell me stories of Simonstown, the TOC-H club and someone called Tubby.
|
Rfm. Edward William Swan . British Army 2nd Btn. (Tower Hamlets Rifles) Rifle Brigade from Poplar My da,d Edward Swan joined Tower Hamlets Rifles (Territorials) as soon as he was 18 in 1937 and was an enthusiastic weekend soldier following on from his days in the Boys' Brigade. He was encouraged to join the Rifles by his Boys' Brigade leader who had fought for them in WW1. His mother was dead against it, his brother offered him a job as an apprentice at Plesseys assuring him that he would be in a reserved occupation, but my dad would hear none of it. I think he was attached to the 2nd batt. Rifle Brigade and it was the 1st that Churchill sent them to Calais where most of them were captured in 1940. Dad spent his time in England and Scotland where he trained as a PTI and played in the band (2nd cornet!!).
His first posting was to North Africa I think in 1941/2. Here he was attached to the LRDG (Long Range Desert Group) and was involved in an action at a place called Snipe Ridge where his "mob" and members of the Royal Artillery were charged with holding up the Afrika Corps for 24 hours while the rest of the army retreated to Alamein. This they succeeded in doing and I believe some VCs were won there for their actions. He was mentioned in dispatches. I only found this out by doing a great deal of research - he only once said anything about it and that was to his grandson who asked why he had a bar on his Africa Star. His reply was "That was for killing Germans son". Just about the only reference to his wartime fighting experiences!
He was in Africa until the end of fighting there and was then involved first in the retaking of Sicily and then in the Italian Landings - I believe he may have been attached to the American group that landed at Anzio and got stuck - he had a very low opinion of the Americans as fighting troops, but as people it was completely opposite. From here he was posted to Monte Cassino as a stretcher bearer with another guy from the Tower Hamlets Rifles whose name I sadly failed to take down when I went there a few years ago. The other guy died, my dad survived but at some cost to his mental health. I have no idea what he witnessed but I know that he was there for the entire period of the operation and must have seen some terrible sights. He went on to Naples where my grandmother was convinced I had an older half brother or sister. He received regular letters from Naples well into 1947/8 when he was already married to my mum. He was transferred to admin. staff and continued north through Rome where his grudge against Lady Astor was born - apparently she called the troops in Italy "D Day dodgers" finishing up in May 1945 in Austria where he was demobbed classified as B2 health-wise.
He loved the early part of his army life, but the mental and physical toll on his health only really became apparent in the late 1980s when he suffered a breakdown leading to depression and then was diagnosed with throat cancer from smoking - he had given it up but the damage had been done at Cassino where he reckoned it was normal to smoke upwards of 100-150+ cigarettes a day.
|
F Swan . British Army Highland Light Infantry F Swan served with the Highland Light Infantry British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: The Wartime Memories Project is no longer in contact with Dan , his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
|
F. J. Swan . Home Guard No 1 platoon 3rd (West Leicester) Battalion As an underage member (graduating from the Army Cadets aged 15) of
No 1 platoon, 3rd (West Leicester) Battalion, Home Guard, I vividly remember during our training
sessions, being shown a road block entry to the village which consisted of holes set
across the road, into which we had to insert upright lengths of tram track cut into
about six foot lengths. We were then shown how we should take one of these lengths,
and ram it into an enemy tank track. Another masterpiece which we were instructed to
do, was to use our Boyes anti tank rifle, which fired a half inch bore bullet, to
dent the rim of a German "Tiger" tank gun turret so that it could not be traversed.
The bullet itself was insufficient to penetrate the armour plate of the tank.
We later had a "PIAT" launcher issued to us. This had a missile loaded into a cradle and
was fired from on the shoulder like a bazooka. The missile itself looked like a small
bomb, with fins, but also it had a long point at the front. The principle was that the
charge would go down this point, after penetrating the armour, and explode inside the
tank. Fortunately, we never had need to try out these items in real life. After D Day,
a lot of Home Guard units were used, on a voluntary basis, and at weekends, to pack
various items of ordnance for use by the Army in France. Our particular task seemed to
be make bundles of cross pieces for for the top of signal posts to attach the wires
to,like telegraph poles.
I was called up just 4 days before Christmas in 1944, and
went to Cameron Barracks in Inverness. I was told to report in my Home Guard uniform.
|
FJ Swan . British Army FJ Swan served with the British Army. I have his unissued dogtags, made in preparation for deployment to the Far East and would love to get them home to his family. I am happy to cover all costs. If you are a family member or can put me in touch with them please get in touch. Update: The Wartime Memories Project is no longer in contact with Dan , his website, facebook page and email have all ceased to function. But if you can add any details about the person listed, please use the add to record link below.
|
Thomas Cameron Swan . Royal Navy from Glasgow Thomas Swan was my grandfather. I have his service records.
|
Randy Swanberg . United States Army Air Force 71st Liason Squadron I served with the 71st Liason squadron in the China, Burma, India Theatre. We were based at an airstrip. Jack Sheets on the Ledo road was one of my people.
|
SSgt. Geoffrey Swanborough . British Army Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers My father Geoffrey Swanborough was a prisoner at Stalag 383 during the war. Captured at Crete he attempted to escape three times. He told of getting their Red Cross cigarettes, something their captors where short of, and making the German officers salute them in return for a cigarette
|
Alexander Holland Swann . Royal Navy HMS Galatea My father, Alexander Swann, on realising the ship had been hit, made his way up the gangways and stepped into the sea as she was sinking. He was picked up by an American ship after several hours.
He had swallowed and inhaled a fair amount of diesel fuel while in the water so was taken to a nearby hospital before being invalided back to the UK.
In 1954 he had extensive surgery at Haslar Hospital to remove ulcers that had failed to heal, due to the affects of the fuel. After he had recovered, he continued to serve in the Royal Navy until he retired in 1968.
He died in 2007 aged 92.
I'm afraid all his possessions went down with the Galatea so I have no photographs of his from that period. Only ones taken later in the war and afterwards.
|
Pte. Charles Henry Swann . British Army 9th Btn. Durham Light Infantry (d.14th Jun 1944) Private Charles Swann, 9th DLI was killed in action on the 14th of June 1944, aged 35. He was the son of Richard and Florence Swann, husband of Florence May Swann of
West Walsall, Staffordshire.
He is Buried in Bayeux War Cemetery
|
LCdr. E Swann DCM.. Royal Navy E Swann served with the Royal Navy during WW2. His brother Gerald was killed in France in 1917 flying with RFC. There is a Battle Field Cross memorial to Gerald in All Saints Church, Witley, Surrey. His body lies at Varennes Military Cemetery, Somme.
|
Cpl. Frank Swann . British Army Royal Warwickshire Regiment from Birmingham My grandfather Frank Swann was in the Royal Warwickshire Regiment he joined in August 1914 and served in India but died of malaria in January 1951 when he returned home.
|
L/Sto1. George Swann . Royal Navy HMS Manchester from Birmingham, Warwickshire George Swann joined the Royal Navy at the outbreak of war in 1939 as a stoker on Victory 2, joining HMS Manchester the following year. On that terrible night during the Malta convoy after the ship was scuttled, he finished up in the sea, for some time, until he was picked up by an American vessel which was homeward bound.
He finished up in New York, stayed for three weeks and went home to rejoin Victory 2 and continue fighting the war, moving to HMS Vernon, HMS Indomitable, HMS Victory and other ships. He must have loved the life of a sailor, because when the war ended he stayed on until he was eventually pensioned off in 1958.
He couldn`t get the sea of his chest anyway, so he bought a pub in Portsmouth with his wife Peggy and ran it until his death in 1993. Last year his daughter, Brenda died and a few months later, his last remaining sibling Trevor passed away too. As the eldest nephew, all the old photos were passed onto me, and I was struck by the photo of one of his shipmates with his wife, a lovely photo. However on the reverse, is written, "Topsy", Dad`s friend, killed on HMS Manchester, Malta Convoy 1941, Albert Turner. R.I.P. If Topsy`s family happen to see this posting, I would be delighted to send them this card.
He earned the Pacific Star, Italy Star, France and Germany Star,
|
Signalman. Victor Swann . British Army 11 Operating Sec. Royal Corps of Signals from England (d.1th Aug 1943) Victor Swann is my great uncle, I do know anything about him but am trying very hard to get information on him but don't know where to start. All I know is that he died 12/08/1943 aged 25 and is buried at Chittgong War Cemetery, so if anyone can help me with any information it would be very helpful
|
Pte. Norman Swanney . British Army 2nd Btn. Highland Light Infantry from Scotland (d.29th Jul 1944) Norman Swanney was 24 when he died and is buried in the Tirana Park Memorial Cemetery,Albania. He is remembered on Special Memorial "E" his grave having since been lost.
|
Stoker John Swanson . Royal Navy My father-in-law John Swanson was a stoker in the RN and survived the Russian Convoys, Sicilian Landings & 'D' Day to die peacefully aged 80 at home in Liverpool.
We owe them a great debt and should always remember them.
|
|
