The Lord he moves in Mysterious ways...

Discussion in 'British Army Units - Others' started by Verrieres, Jan 6, 2009.

  1. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    Hi,
    I was posting this under the thread Heroes at Rest but I think it would be lost in that thread because at the moment that thread is covering the air war. So I`m starting it in a new thread,
    During May/June last year (2008) I visited the area around Normandy my priority was to visit my uncles grave at Bayeux,however one of the other cemeteries we visited was Jerusalem where young Jackie Banks lies.Amongst the well kept graves were two Padres attatched to the DLI no one seemed to know their story although someone did mention that they may have died as a result of the same incident.Today whilst looking through some of the photographs my son took on that day I came across the two padre`s once more and decided to dig a little in the hope that I could reveal what had truely happened to the pair.
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    The Rev. CECIL JAMES HAWKSWORTH,
    Initials:C J
    Nationality:United Kingdom
    Rank:Chaplain 4th Class
    Regiment/Service:Royal Army Chaplains' Department
    Age:35 Date of Death:07/07/1944
    Service No:90874
    Awards:Mentioned in Despatches
    Additional information:Husband of Diana Hawksworth, of Kingsclere, Hampshire. A.K.C.
    Casualty Type:Commonwealth War DeadGrave/Memorial Reference:Row B. 2.Cemetery:JERUSALEM WAR CEMETERY, CHOUAIN
    His appointment to the armed forces is contained in the London Gazette dated the 30th June 1939
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    The Rev. GERARD NESBITT
    Initials:G
    Nationality:United Kingdom
    Rank:Chaplain 4th Class
    Regiment/Service:Royal Army Chaplains' Department
    Secondary Regiment Durham Light Infantry
    Secondary Unit Text:attd. 8th Bn.
    Age:33 Date of Death:05/07/1944
    Service No:163330
    Additional information:Croix de Guerre (France)Mentioned in Dispatches. Son of Stephen and Jane Nesbitt, of Felling-on-Tyne, Co. Durham. D. Phil.
    Casualty Type:Commonwealth War DeadGrave/Memorial Reference:Row B. 1.Cemetery:JERUSALEM WAR CEMETERY, CHOUAIN
    His appointment to the armed forces is dated the 30th December 1940 and appeared in the London Gazette on the 10th January 1941 Mentioned in Dispatches London Gazette 12th January 1944 Pg 12

    This extract was taken from 8th Battalion The Durham Light Infantry by Major Lewis and Major English;-
    Padre Nesbitt was killed today he was killed by a stray shell whilst burying the dead just behind the 9 th DLI positions. Padre Nesbitt had been with the 8th DLI since the end of 1940 and was well loved by all ranks whether of Roman Catholic faith or not his quiet manner yet very strong personality impressed all those who came in contact with him. Always cheerful and willing to help anyone in trouble, he was regarded as a personal friend by many. He was a great example of courage and fortitude and his death deeply affected all members of the Battalion. All the old officers of the 8th DLI headed by the CO went back to attend the funeral at 149 Field Ambulance…

    Extract from the Faithful Sixth(DLI) by Harry Moses;-
    On the 6th July the 6th Battalion the DLI suffered a real loss with the tragic death of Padre Hawksworth,the Church of England padre.He was seriously injured whilst riding a motorcycle.He was taken to 149 Field Ambulance but later died of his injuries.He had been with the Battalion since theend of the Sicilian Campaign and his loss was felt deeply by all officers and other ranks.his funeral was held later in the 50th Divisional cemetery....

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    So the story that they had been injured in the same incident was unfounded but both died in 149 Field Ambulance and just to add a little irony to the tale Padre G Markham (Cannon Markham)who joined 8DLI at this time stated `My first job with the DLI was to bury my predessor Padre Nesbitt who was killed by a shell whilst conducting the funeral service of another Padre who had been accidentally killed a day or so before!` they now lie together in Jerusalem Cemetery.
    Regards
    Verrieres
     
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  2. Smudger Jnr

    Smudger Jnr Our Man in Berlin

    Yes the Lord does indeed move in a mysterious way.
    A good but sad post to read.

    Regards
    Tom
     
  3. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    Hi,
    The story of one `Padre` who survived ;-Chaplain Fraser McLuskey was born on 19th September 1914 in 1939 he married his German Wife Irene Calaminus.Fraser joined the Royal Army Chaplains' Department in 1942 , thus opening the door to an outstanding period of Military service. Padre McLuskey volunteered for parachute training and was eventually appointed Chaplain to the 1st SAS Regiment.
    He parachuted into southern France with his squadron in June 1944, armed only with a large amount of bibles! Lots of harsh warfare followed, as the occupying German forces tried to eliminate both the French Maquis and the British troops supporting them in their disruptive tactics. Through all the tragedies and the heroisms of War Padre McLuskey ministered unstintingly and courageously to his "parishioners", describing this theatre of war with typical understatement as "a pretty wide parish!" His kindly and effective ministry to all ranks in the face of constant danger has never been forgotten by those he served.
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    The humanity in Padre McLusky showed through as he talked with his men about his anxieties for Irene at home and what he himself described as terrible homesickness. His admitting such feelings to his comrades built an even closer relationship with them: here was a padre not wrapped in an impenetrable saintliness but one who knew what it was to share and overcome anxiety and fear. Courage was abundant also in Padre Fraser McLuskey. In1945 the award of the Military Cross was recognition of it and was well recieved by his regiment. His citation reads;-
    On 22nd June 1944 the Rev McLuskey dropped by parachute with the main body of "A" Sqdn 1st SAS behind the enemy lines. During the next three months he carried out all his duties with the greatest courage and determination. When the area was full of German Convoys and patrols, he made several long and dangerous journeys between the base and outlying patrols in a civilian car with only a driver obtaining most valuable information. His bravery, steadiness and cheerfulness in all situations, and complete disregard for personal safety served as an inspiration to the whole Squadron.
    In 1945, entering Germany with the 2nd Army, McLuskey entered Wuppertal discovered that his wife`sGerman parents and other members of the family had been killed in the last Allied air-raid of the war. His war experiences fashioned in him a determination to break down barriers between people .In 1951 he related his war time experiences in his book `The Parachute Padre` which was republished in 1985 with a forward by David Stirling.Fraser McLuskey died in Edinburgh on 24th July 2005

    SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 29 MARCH, 1945
    The Military Cross
    The Reverend James Fraser McLuskey (270929),
    Chaplain to the Forces, Fourth Class, Royal Army
    Chaplains' Department (Edinburgh).

    SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 20 MAY, 1947
    ROYAL ARMY CHAPLAINS' DEPARTMENT
    The undermentioned from Emerg. Commn to be
    granted Short Service Commns as Chapln. to the
    Forces, 4th Cl.:—
    Rev James Fraser McLusKEY, M A, B.D.
    (270929) (C of S) (of 5 years), i5th May 1947.

    SUPPLEMENT. TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, .28 NOVEMBER, 1947
    ROYAL ARMY CHAPLAINS' DEPARTMENT.
    Rev. James Fraser^McLusKEY, M.C., M.A., B.D.
    (270929), Chapln. to the Forces, 4th Cl. (C. of S.),
    from Short Serv. Commn. to be Chapln. to the
    Forces, 4th CL, ist-.Oct.-1947

    Regards
    Verrieres
     
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  4. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    Hi,
    Heres a brief tale of a priest in the German Army Father Josef Perau who was reported to have kept a detailed diary of his thoughts and service;-

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    On June 13, 1940 Father Josef Perau was conscripted into a medical unit as part of general call ups, as the Concordat (agreement between the Apostolic See and a government of a certain country on religious matters) between the Vatican and the Nazi state stipulated. The Unit was composed of "doctors, pharmacists, barbers, Red Cross workers, theologians, and priests."For 12 months Perau served in Danzig, Riesenburg, and Ghent, primarily in the various military hospitals in those areas
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    As a Priest he found life in this situation difficult he is reported to have kept adiary and recorded his feelings of oppression by his officers and wished for a posting to a combat unit where he felt he could have more impact on the frontline soldiers.
    A call to Berlin for a chaplain training course in July 1941 ended this period of Josef Perau's service. At the time, he was excited at the prospect of ministering to the troops, but unaware of the hard times which lay ahead. After leaving Berlin he was posted to a military hospital in Tomaszow on the Eastern Front
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    . The entries during this period, immediately before his deployment to the eastern front, display a great deal about Perau's perception of himself as a chaplain, and what he thought the role of a chaplain should be. He expressed discomfort with the concept of wearing a uniform so similar to that of the SS; he clearly disliked the SS, He reacted with "discomfort and sorrow" to the fact that he could be mistaken for an SS officer His new position had its draw backs his primary objection was that the chaplain was armed and carried the title Kriegspfarrer, literally war-pastor,
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    Over the course of the next year Perau served at a number of different military hospitals on the eastern front, mostly in Russia and Ukraine, but also in Poland as well. In this period he was first forced to come to terms with the atrocities being committed . Perau states that when speaking to Russian families he was ashamed to be German and he often repeated his desire that other nations would know that not all Germans were Nazis , in an especially troubled entry he recounted his thoughts upon seeing a mass grave of Russian prisoners in Roslwal:
    “The guard tells me there are already about 19,000 therein…I look over the edge of the grave and see many layers of tangled corpses with wide eyes and clenched hands--a terrible accusation.”
    Perau continued noting the tales of epidemic disease in the camps and cannibalism on account of hunger Josef Perau certainly shared the Nazis' distaste for Bolshevism. It was, for him, a fearful concept because it was utterly Godless, a destroyer of lives and communities He was afraid that if the Russians won, then " the complete annihilation" of the church would .be complete In contrast, he had no qualms with Slavic people themselves. While in Poland Perau noted his respect for the Poles' "deeply rooted Christianity," and was impressed by the intelligence of captured Russian soldiers. Perau admired the desire of the Slavic peoples for Christianity, be it Greek Orthodox or Catholic. Perau also reported a "brotherly relationship" with Polish priests he met in the latter days of the war. For the next two years Perau moved between a number of different military units on the Eastern Front. In May 1942 Perau was assigned to the front; his initial reaction was negative, not wanting to leave the "stable life of the hospital and the mass to the chaos of war." Perau clearly now feared working at the front; He became increasingly depressed towards the end of the war. . He was exceedingly disenchanted in August 1944, when his unit suffered great losses as it retreated; Perau called these casualties "worthless blood sacrifices" and was fairly certain that Germany had lost the war He also recorded only seeing other chaplains rarely or not at all.s not surprising due to Goebbels' 1942 order that the vacancies within the chaplaincy would no longer be filled After February, 1943 Himmler and Hitler insisted that all army chaplains become grenadiers, otherwise they would be dismissed. The news filtered back to the front of the large scale executions of so called deserters and he records privately how he rejoiced when they heard the news of Hitler's death, noting that he was thankful for "that life which is newly given to us," but kept these feelings to himself as "such words were still very dangerous.Josef Perau spent a short time in an Allied prisoner of war camp at the end of the war.Father Josef Perau died in 2006


    Regards
    Verrieres
     
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  5. Stevin

    Stevin Member

    Great thread. Very much an overlooked part of WWII. I recently got "The Man Who Worked On Sundays" by Rev Leslie Skinner (8th Arm Brig - Sherwood Rangers), because it is self-published and because they were so involved in the casualty department as well. The book gives a great insight into the work these men did....very sad and difficult at times...and dangerous....as this thread testifies to.
     
  6. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    Great thread. Very much an overlooked part of WWII. I recently got "The Man Who Worked On Sundays" by Rev Leslie Skinner (8th Arm Brig - Sherwood Rangers), because it is self-published and because they were so involved in the casualty department as well. The book gives a great insight into the work these men did....very sad and difficult at times...and dangerous....as this thread testifies to.


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    The Reverend Leslie Skinner
    The Reverend Leslie Skinner, a Methodist minister, was reportedly the first British chaplain to land on D-Day. He was senior chaplain to the 8th (Independent) Armoured Brigade, and was attached to the Sherwood Rangers when they landed on Gold beach in the first wave of the assault. Skinner was injured as his landing craft hit a mine but quickly started to gather up the wounded and arrange their evacuation. He used a lightweight motorcycle to pursue his personal mission of tracing members of the unit reported missing, and giving a Christian burial to those who had been killed. All were located except for one, for whom Skinner was forbidden by his commanding officer to search the battlefield.
    Ken Markland who seved with the division recalled in 2000 An interesting recollection of the Rev. L. Skinner.
    "Ron Copeman and I will remember him for driving us when wounded in his specially converted jeep from Pt.103 on 10th June, 1944, past some German troops on our way to the beach and hospital in England, commenting to us quite calmly as we lay on our stretchers that he felt fairly confident they (The Germans)would respect the red cross flag he was flying!."
    The Rev. Skinner recalled later going down the main street of a town in Normandy where there was some German infantry being winkled out when suddenly firing broke out at both ends of the road-
    “so I dived into a shop for cover. It was a barbers’ shop, so I had a haircut while waiting for things to simmer down. Only later did it strike me as somewhat unusual to have one’s hair cut while a bit of a battle went on outside.” - .Three weeks after the landings Skinner was wounded in the head by a mortar fragment but recovered and served with the Sherwood Rangers throughout the rest of the campaign in north-west Europe.a truly courageous gentleman
    Regards
    Verrieres
     
  7. militarycross

    militarycross Very Senior Member

    This is the first look at the Padres from the other side. Thanks. I would invite more in this thread if there are stories to be told. I've read Canon Scott and Peace Time Padres, but nothing on the view from the other pew or pulpit.
     
  8. Stevin

    Stevin Member

    I have, from the Allied side

    - Wings On The Cross - A padre with the RAF by P. Hamilton Pollock
    - The Scarlet Dawn by Msgr. R M Hickey, Major (I think he was with the North Shore Regt)

    On the German side there is

    - Amazon.com: German Military Chaplains In World War Ii (Schiffer Military History Book): Mark Hayden: Books

    Interesting story about the US Army chaplain at Nuremburg Prison: Army Chaplain to German War Criminals at Nuremburg

    A thread Carl started at ww2forums.com: German Army & Navy Chaplains in WWII. - World War II Forums
     
  9. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    [​IMG]
    John Frederick Olney Bown was born on March 19 1913 at Penrhiwceiber, Glamorganshire, where his father was curate. Not long after his birth the family moved to Chelmsford diocese and to a long spell in London's dockland before his father became vicar of Orsett, a few miles from Tilbury.
    Young John went as an exhibitioner to King's College, Cambridge, to read History, then to Cuddesdon Theological College to prepare for Holy Orders. In 1937 he joined a team of curates at Prittlewell, the parish church of Southend.
    Padre John Bown enlisted as a TerritorialArmy chaplain while a curate at Southend, and was called up on the outbreak of war in September 1939 for service with an anti-aircraft artillery unit.
    After being sent to France with the BEF early the following year Padre Bown worked in a casualty clearing station after the opening of the German offensive. When the British Army fell back on Dunkirk he elected to remain with the wounded who could not be evacuated.
    For the next three years he was in a total 12 prisoner-of-war camps in Germany and Poland where, as he always put it, he was "the captive of the Hun". He ministered faithfully and sometimes courageously to his fellow prisoners, and at one point narrowly escaped execution by the Gestapo through the intervention of a German army officer.
    He recalled how the men in his first camp, Stalag XXA at Thorn, Poland, had made him an altar, cross and candlesticks. At first chaplains conducted services in battle dress, but later the Red Cross sent them surplices, cassocks and stoles, while choristers improvised their own surplices. The chaplains' work was much the same as at home, except that they had to submit their sermons to the camp censor.
    In 1943Bownwas repatriated, via Sweden, and became chaplain of the Woolwich Garrison, where he met and subsequently married his future wife Jane Crook, an assistant matron of the garrison hospital .In 1945 he was granted a permanent commission in the Royal Army Chaplains Department, and over the next 25 years served in senior positions in many parts of the world, proving himself a born padre – friendly, down-to-earth, at ease with all ranks and always aware of the religious character of his role.
    He served as a senior chaplain to North Africa and Italy. Then came a year in India with the 10th Indian Division. Two years in Japan with the British Commonwealth Occupation Forces included visits to devastated Hiroshima, and after two years at the Solent Garrison in Portsmouth he went for three years to Germany. Promotion to Deputy Assistant Chaplain General in 1953 gave him responsibility for the chaplains in East Anglia District, and in 1955 he went for the first of two postings to East Africa. These involved travelling 900 miles by land, sea and air most weeks. A unit in the Seychelles came under his jurisdiction, so that on several occasions he visited Archbishop Makarios, the Greek Cypriot leader who had been exiled for his support of the Eoka terrorist movement in Cyprus. Bown established and developed a training course for indigenous Army chaplains in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and also became a canon of Nairobi Cathedral where, during his second tour, he refurnished the garrison church in the city.
    Between these postings he spent two years in England with Anti-Aircraft Command, and established a lasting link with the Royal Artillery which was to lead after his retirement to the honorary chaplaincy of the regimental association; for 17 years he conducted the annual Remembrance service at the Royal Artillery memorial in Hyde Park. Returning from East Africa in 1963, Bown was promoted to Assistant Chaplain General, I British Corps in Germany, where he remained for two years; he received a Scroll of Appreciation from the American Army for his contribution to the religious welfare of its units. His final years in the Army were spent in England, first as Assistant Chaplain General of Northern Command, then of Southern Command, becoming a Queen's Honorary Chaplain in 1967.
    Padre Bown died suddenly on September 23rd 2008.


    THE LONDON GAZETTE, 14 JULY, 1939
    The Rev. John Frederick Olney BOWN,
    B.A. 7th July 1939.,
    Regards
    Verrieres
     
  10. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    The Chaplains who perished that day were;Ernest Warburton Stewart “Pat” Macdonald ,Captain David H. Youngdahl; 1st Lt. Fr. Valmore Savignac; 1st Lt. Horace E. Gravely and 1st Lt. James E. Liston. Two other chaplains were saved that day, Chaplains Ira Bentley and G. J. Whelan
    [​IMG]

    Ernest Warburton Stewart “Pat” Macdonald was born on December 25, 1911 to John Ernest and Patience (Stewart) Macdonald in Boston, MA
    Captain “Pat” Macdonald was on board USS Henry R. Mallory,on route to Iceland a journey that never made it to their intended destination but Captain Macdonald would do his duty in giving aid and comfort Captain Macdonald gave his life on Sunday, February 7, 1943 along four other chaplains aboard the USS Henry R.Mallory.

    29 July 1943

    Dear Mr. And Mrs. Macdonald:
    It is with profound regret that I must inform you of the death of your son, Chaplain (Captain) Ernest W. S. Macdonald, 0-449-888, Corps of Chaplains, who died as a result of enemy action in the North Atlantic Ocean. A Telegram announcing his death was sent to his wife, Mrs. Katherine B. Macdonald, 21 Langley Circle, Wollaston, Massachusetts, who had been designated by him as the person to be notified in case of an emergency.
    He was a passenger on a ship, which was attacked shortly after midnight by an enemy submarine. After the vessel was struck every effort was made to effect the rescue of those who were aboard. Such efforts were continued long beyond the period of time that human life could survive the elements in the area. In view of the compelling evidence, it has been determined and entered officially on the records of the War Department that he was killed in action on 7 February 1943.
    I regret exceedingly that because of the necessity for extensive inquiry to substantiate the fact of death, it has been necessary to delay this report until every possible source of information could be checked.
    It is distressing that this tragic message must be added to the burden of grief you have borne so bravely since our original missing in action report. May the thought that he gave his life heroically in action be of sustaining comfort to you.
    Please accept me deepest sympathy in your great loss.

    Sincerely yours,


    Signed

    J. A. Ulio

    Major General,

    The Adjutant General.







    [​IMG]
    Captain David H. Youngdahl, O448376, Protestant Chaplain, US Army Chaplain Corps awarded the Purple Heart Posthumously and his name appears on a monument in Cambridge, England inscribed with the names of the men Missing in Action or Lost at Sea.
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    Valmore G. Savignac, the son of a policeman was killed in action on February 7, 1943 and was awarded the Purple Heart posthumously. His family was notified of his missing in action status about a month after the sinking and then as per American law was declared dead one year and a day after the sinking on February 8, 1944. Padre Valmore G. Savignac, 1st Lt. Army Chaplain Corps was the first chaplain killed in action during the war from the state of Rhode Island.
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    James M. Liston was a native of the Chicago area and was born on 16 th September 1905 in Chicago On August 3, 1943 a letter from the War Department arrived at 6613 S. Honore St. addressed to Mr. And Mrs. James Joseph Liston informing them that their son 1st Lt. James M. Liston, O462733, United States Army, Chaplain Corps gave his life on February 7, 1943. Chaplain Liston was awarded the Purple Heart posthumously

    A survivor that day was Padre Ira Bentley
    [​IMG]
    On April 22, 1942 he was appointed a Chaplain in the Army Corps of Chaplains at the rank of Captain Chaplain Bentley could not know at that time that his services would be required before they even got to the battlefields in Europe. Chaplain Bentley’s first taste of battle would be in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. Once the USS Henry R Mallory had slipped from the surface of the angry waters Chaplain Bentley found himself lucky to be among the living, for now. Men were drowning and freezing all around him. He would endure the icy waters for over seven hours, until rescued by the USCGC Bibb.Father Gerald J. Whelan was the only other Padre to survive the sinking.
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    The ill fated USS Henry R Mallory On 7 February 1943, while en route to Northern Ireland from New York with convoy SC-118, SS Henry R. Mallory was torpedoed and sunk south of Iceland by the German submarine U-402. Of the nearly 500 crewmen, Navy Armed Guardsmen and passengers on board, over 270 lost their lives in the torpedoing or while awaiting rescue in the winter seas of the North Atlantic.
    For anyone wanting more information on the History/sinking/Crew rescue then there is a lot of information here;- USS Henry R. Mallory
    Regards
    Verrieres
     
  11. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Inspired me to scan these pictures of mobile churches from the defunct Wheels & tracks magazine:
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    First Allied Jewish service on German soil:

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    Holy Jeeps:
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    And some WW1 stuff, just because they're nice shots:

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  12. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    Another tale of Courage:-
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    "On February 3, 1943, the USS Dorchester would become another statistic in the 'ships-lost-at-sea' column, but unlike others before it, what took place on deck of the Dorchester would live on forever. At about 1 a.m., the USS Dorchester, a troop transport with over 900 service members aboard on it way to Greenland, was hit by a torpedo fired by a German submarine and was sinking in the icy waters of the North Atlantic. Many on board died instantly, while others were trapped below the deck.

    This account was recited at a medal ceremony for the families;-

    "Chaos ensued – fire, smoke, and the screaming of the wounded. Fear filled the air. Some men panicked and jumped into the waters without life jackets; others were frozen in fear and refused to leave the sinking vessel. Taking on water rapidly, the ship began listing to starboard. Overcrowded lifeboats capsized, and rafts drifted away before anyone could reach them.

    "In the midst of the confusion and terror, four chaplains – Protestant Ministers George Lansing Fox and Clark Poling, a Catholic Priest, Father John Washington, and Rabbi Alex Goode – moved about the ship, exuding composure while calming frightened men, directing bewildered soldiers to lifeboats, and distributing life jackets with calm precision. Soon, the supply of jackets was exhausted, yet four young soldiers, afraid and without life vests, stood waiting.

    "Without hesitation, the chaplains removed their own life jackets and gave them to the young soldiers. Then, according to one survivor, the four chaplains joined some of the other men trapped onboard for prayers that “sounded like a babble of English, Hebrew and Latin.”

    "These four men of faith had given away their only means of saving themselves in order to save others. Men rowing away from the sinking ship in lifeboats saw the chaplains clinging to each other on the slanting deck. Their arms were linked together and their heads were bowed as they prayed to the one God whom each of them loved and served.

    "The Dorchester sank beneath the icy waters of the North Atlantic, carrying with it the four chaplains and some 675 servicemen
    [​IMG]
    Chaplains Memorial Screen
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    George L. Fox was born March 15, 1900 in Lewistown, Pennsylvania. In addition to George, he had a sister Gertrude and brothers Bert, Leo and John. When George was just 17, he left school, and with strong determination, convinced the military authorities he was 18 and joined the ambulance corps in 1917, shortly after the United States entered World War I. George was placed in the ambulance corps and shipped to Camp Newton D. Baker in Texas. On December 3, 1917 George embarked from Camp Merritt, New Jersey, and boarded the US Huron enroute to France. As a medical corps assistant, he was highly decorated for bravery and was awarded the Silver Star, Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre.
    Upon his discharge, he returned home to Altoona, completed his last year in high school, and went to work for the Guarantee Trust Company. In 1923 he entered Moody Institute in Illinois, where he married at Winona Lake, Indiana. After he withdrew from Moody, he became an itinerant preacher in the Methodist faith. A son, Wyatt Ray, was born on November 11, 1924. After several successful years, George held a student pastorate in Downs, Illinois. He entered Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington in 1929 and graduated with an A.B. degree in 1931. Again as a student pastorate in Rye, New Hampshire, he entered the Boston University School of Theology. George was ordained a Methodist minister on June 10, 1934 and graduated with a S.T.B. degree. He was appointed pastor in Waits River, Vermont. Their second child, Mary Elizabeth, was born shortly thereafter. In 1936, he accepted a pastorate in Union Village, Vermont. His next calling was in Gilman, Vermont where he joined the Walter G. Moore American Legion Post. He was later appointed state chaplain and historian for the Legion.
    In mid 1942, George decided to join the Army Chaplain Service and was appointed July 24, 1942. He went on active duty August 8, 1942, the same day his son Wyatt enlisted in the Marine Corps. He was assigned to the Chaplains school at Harvard and then reported to the 411th Coast Artillery Battalion at Camp Davis. He was then reunited with Chaplains Goode, Poling and Washington at Camp Myles Standish in Taunton, Massachusetts and their fateful trip on the USAT DORCHESTER. Chaplain Fox was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Distinguished Service Cross.
    [​IMG]
    Alexander D. Goode was born in Brooklyn, New York on May 10, 1911. His father was a Rabbi and his mother, Fay had two other sons, Joseph and Moses, and a daughter, Agatha. Alex received medals at Eastern High School, Washington, DC for tennis, swimming and track. He led his class in scholarship too! He planned to follow in his father's footsteps and become a Rabbi, but that did not keep him from having a laughing, shouting, hail-fellow-well-met boyhood with all the Protestant and Catholic boys in his neighborhood. He graduated from Eastern in 1929.
    He entered the University of Cincinnati and graduated in 1934 with an A.B. degree...and then on to Hebrew Union College with a B.H. degree in 1937. He later received his Ph.D. from John Hopkins University in 1940.
    Alex married his childhood sweetheart, Theresa Flax, daughter of Nathan and Rose Flax. Theresa was a niece of singer and motion picture star, Al Jolson. They were married on October 7, 1935. As an ordained Rabbi, his first assignment was a synagogue in Marion, Indiana in 1936. On July 16, 1937 he was transferred to the Beth Israel synagogue in York, Pennsylvania until mid 1942. Alex and Theresa had a daughter, Rosalie, who was born in 1939.
    In January 1941 he applied as a chaplain with the U.S. Navy but was not accepted at that time. Right after Pearl Harbor, he tried again, this time with the Army, and received an appointment on July 21, 1942. Chaplain Goode went on active duty on August 9, 1942 and was selected for the Chaplains School at Harvard. He had courses in map reading, first aid, law, and chemical warfare. Chaplain Goode was then assigned to the 333rd Airbase Squadron in Goldsboro, North Carolina. In October 1942, he was transferred to Camp Myles Standish in Taunton, Massachusetts and Alex was reunited with Chaplains Fox, Poling and Washington, who were classmates at Harvard.
    It was January 1943 when he boarded the USAT DORCHESTER in Boston and embarkation to Greenland. Chaplain Goode was killed in action on February 3, 1943 in the icy waters of the North Atlantic when the DORCHESTER was sunk by a German U-boat. Chaplain Goode was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Distinguished Service Cross.
    [​IMG]

    Clark V. Poling was born August 7, 1910 in Columbus, Ohio. He was the son of Susie Jane Vandersall of East Liberty, Ohio and Daniel A. Poling of Portland, Oregon. In addition to Clark, the other children were Daniel, Mary and Elizabeth. Clark attended Whitney Public School in Auburndale, Massachusetts where his teachers remembered his maturity and delicate side of his nature. The Auburndale days came to an end when his mother died in 1918. She is buried at Greenlawn Cemetery, Uniontown, Ohio. Clark's father was an Evangelical Minister and in 1936 was rebaptized as a Baptist minister. Reverend Daniel Poling was remarried on August 11, 1919 to Lillian Diebold Heingartner of Canton, Ohio.
    Clark attended Oakwood, a Quaker high school in Poughkeepsie, New York, and was a good student and an excellent football halfback. Clark was a council member and president of the student body. In 1929 he enrolled at Hope College in Holland, Michigan and spent his last two years at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, graduating in 1933 with an A.B. degree. Clark entered Yale University's Divinity School in New Haven, Connecticut and graduated with his B.D. degree in 1936. He was ordained in the Reformed Church in America and his first assignment was the First Church of Christ, New London, Connecticut. Shortly thereafter, he accepted the assignment of Pastor of the First Reformed Church in Schenectady, New York.
    Clark was married to Betty Jung of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the next year, Clark, Jr. (Corky) was born. With our country now at war with Japan, Germany and Italy, he decided to be a chaplain. Talking with his father, Dr. Daniel A. Poling, who was a chaplain in World War I, he was told that chaplains in that conflict sustained the highest mortality rate of all military personnel. Without hesitation, he was appointed on June 10, 1942 as a chaplain with the 131st Quartermaster Truck Regiment and reported to Camp Shelby, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, effective June 25, 1942. Later he attended Chaplains School at Harvard with Chaplains Fox, Goode and Washington after his transfer to Camp Myles Standish in Taunton, Massachusetts. Shortly after the USAT DORCHESTER was sunk February 3, 1943, his wife, Betty, gave birth to a daughter, Susan Elizabeth, on April 20. Chaplain Poling was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Distinguished Service Cross.
    [​IMG]
    John P. Washington was born in Newark, New Jersey on July 18, 1908. His parents were Frank and Mary; in addition they had daughters Mary and Anna, and sons Thomas, Francis, Leo and Edmund. In 1914, John was enrolled at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Elementary School. In those days, times were rough for a poor immigrant family, but John had his father's Irish grin and his mother's Irish stick-to-itiveness. He liked to play ball, but he had a newspaper route to help his mother with extra money, since there were nine mouths in the Washington household to feed. John started to take piano lessons, loved music and sang in the church choir. When he entered seventh grade, he felt strongly about becoming a priest...during the previous year, he became an altar boy and his priestly destiny was in process.
    John entered Seton Hall in South Orange, New Jersey to complete his high school and college courses in preparation for the priesthood. He graduated in 1931 with an A.B. degree. He entered Immaculate Conception Seminary in Darlington, New Jersey and received his minor orders on May 26, 1933. John excelled in the seminary, was a sub deacon at all the solemn masses, and later became a deacon on December 25, 1934. John was elected prefect of his class and was ordained a priest on June 15, 1935.
    Father Washington's first parish was at St. Genevieve's in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and then he served at St. Venantius for a year. In 1938 he was assigned to St. Stephen's in Arlington, New Jersey. Shortly after the Pearl Harbor attack of December 7, 1941, he received his appointment as a chaplain in the United States Army. He went on active duty May 9, 1942 and was named Chief of the Chaplains Reserve Pool, Ft. Benjamin Harrison, Indiana. In June 1942, he was assigned to the 76th Infantry Division in Ft. George Meade, Maryland. In November 1942, he reported to Camp Myles Standish in Taunton, Massachusetts and met Chaplains Fox, Goode and Poling at Chaplains School at Harvard.
    Father Washington boarded the USAT DORCHESTER at the Embarkation Camp at Boston Harbor in January 1943 enroute to Greenland. Chaplain Washington was killed in action on February 3, 1943, when the DORCHESTER was sunk by a German U-boat. Chaplain Washington was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and Distinguished Service Cross.

    End note;-Petty Officer John J. Mahoney, tried to re-enter the ship but was stopped by Rabbi Goode. Mahoney, , explained he had forgotten his gloves.
    "Never mind ," smiled Goode . "I have two pairs." The rabbi then gave the petty officer his own gloves. Afterwards, Mahoney realized that Rabbi Goode was not carrying two pairs of gloves, and the rabbi had already decided he was not to leave the Dorchester.

    Remarkable story well known I am told however this is the first time I`ve come across it.

    Regards
    Verrieres

    A posthumous Special Medal for Heroism, never before given and never to be given again, was authorized by Congress and awarded by the President January 18, 1961. Congress wished to confer the Medal of Honor but was blocked by the stringent requirements which required heroism performed under fire. The special medal was intended to have the same weight and importance as the Medal of Honor
     
  13. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    Heres a look at what some of the Allied and German Chaplains were wearing during WW2.
    [​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG]

    Various quality and condition shown in this range of Caps including a Naval Chaplain and one which was termed
    in a Militaria catalogue as a `Field Bishops Cap?`
    [​IMG]Canadian Shoulder Title Chaplain Corps
    [​IMG][​IMG][​IMG][​IMG]

    Cap Badges and Breast Badges Allied Padres
    [​IMG]
    Chaplain Robe Badge
    Recently seen a death Card being sold on E-Bay to a Catholic Priest serving with the German Army
    [​IMG]
    Description read;-

    Medical Combat
    Gottfried Ortnetsmüller

    (INFANTRY REGT.)

    born on March 01, 1914
    priest since July 02, 1939
    Soldier since April 1940
    died for fatherland in a forest battle in the cauldron of Kiev (Ukraine)
    on Sep.26, 1941 - Age 28

    Some pretty interesting stuff
    Regards
    Verrieres
     
  14. dbf

    dbf Moderatrix MOD

    Monsignor John Coghlan, Vicar-General to the Army, was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his gallantry during the Battle of Flanders in 1940.
    He and his staff Chaplain, Fr. Basil McCreton, were the last chaplains to leave the north of the Somme. Of their own free will they remained behind at Bergues, a key centre eight miles from Dunkirk. The town was eventually almost totally destroyed. The two priests buried all the dead and attended the wounded of all denominations.

    Mgr. Coghlan is a native of Castlepollard, Westmeath, and son of the late Mr. Hugh Coghlan of Castlepollard. He was educated at St. Finian’s College, Navan, and at Maynooth College; took his B.A. degree at the Royal University of Ireland, and was ordained for the Diocese of Meath in 1913. He served in France, Flanders and Mesopotamia in the last war, and was with the Army of Occupation on the Rhine. In the last 20 years he was served as Senior Chaplain to the forces in Malta, Shanghai, Egypt and Britain. He was appointed Catholic Vicar-General to the British Army in March, 1940, and was assistant deputy Chaplain-General to the Forces in France.


    London Gazette:
    30 August 1940
    http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/34936/supplements/5325
    11 May 1948
    http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/38288/supplements/2921


    Listed:
    The Times, Wednesday, Dec 01, 1943
    ECCLESIASTICAL NEWS
    DOMESTIC PRELATES
    The Pope has appointed Mgr. Edward Dewey, Vicar-General, Royal Navy, and Mgr. John Coghlan, Vicar-General, British Army, to be Domestic Prelates in recognition of their services for the Roman Catholics in their charge.

    See this thread for ref:
    www.ww2talk.com/forum/research-material/19413-volunteers-eire-who-have-won-distinctions.html#post195852
    :irishflag[1]:
     
  15. dbf

    dbf Moderatrix MOD

    Fr. Thomas Duggan was awarded the Military Cross in 1940. The immediate award was made in France by Lord Gort, Commander-in-Chief. This was the first clerical award of the war.

    His coolness, energy, courage and example were outstanding. He helped to maintain morale when the regiment aid post at Moeras was heavily shelled and was full of wounded.

    Fr. Duggan is an M.A. and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology of Cork. He served as a chaplain in the last war, and was held a prisoner in Germany for some months. He volunteered for service at the beginning of this war, and was at first rejected because he was over age. He is a member of the staff of St. Finbarr’s College, Cork.


    http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details-result.asp?Edoc_Id=7652799&queryType=1&resultcount=2
    Name Duggan, T F
    Rank: Reverend
    Regiment: Attached 8 Durham Light Infantry
    Theatre of Combat or Operation: British Expeditionary Force 1939-40
    Award: Military Cross
    Date of Announcement in London Gazette: 20 December 1940
    Date 1940-1942
    Catalogue reference WO 373/16

    London Gazette:
    5 December 1939
    http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/34749/supplements/8170

    See this thread for ref:
    www.ww2talk.com/forum/research-material/19413-volunteers-eire-who-have-won-distinctions.html#post195852
    :irishflag[1]:
     
  16. dbf

    dbf Moderatrix MOD

    Rev. Richard Newcombe Craig was awarded the Military Cross in 1940. This was the third clerical award of this war.
    On May 23rd, 1940, he arrived at Calais, when it had already been menaced by the enemy, being under continual bombing and shellfire. He declined to embark for England, and in view of the shortage of Medical Officers he voluntarily established and Aid Post with straggler personnel near Calais Docks station. Here, without a medical officer for three days, he organised the dressing and evacuation of some 300 wounded who otherwise might have been without care. On the afternoon of May 25th he learned that six badly wounded men were lying on the dunes, under enemy sniping fire, unable to get away. Without hesitation he called for four volunteers, drove an ambulance himself to the spot nearby, and with his volunteers crawled to the men, and rescued them all, driving back under fire. All six wounded were dressed and placed on a ship under the direction of this very gallant chaplain.

    The Rev. R.N. Craig was born in Dublin.


    http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details-result.asp?Edoc_Id=7652798&queryType=1&resultcount=1
    Name Craig, Richard Newcombe
    Rank: Chaplain to the Forces 4th Class; Reverend
    Regiment: 1 Battalion Tyneside Scottish Black Watch
    Theatre of Combat or Operation: British Expeditionary Force 1939-40
    Award: Military Cross
    Date of Announcement in London Gazette: 20 December 1940
    Date 1940-1942
    Catalogue reference WO 373/16

    London Gazette:
    20 December 1940

    http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/35020/supplements/7198

    See this thread for ref:
    www.ww2talk.com/forum/research-material/19413-volunteers-eire-who-have-won-distinctions.html#post195852
    :irishflag[1]:
     
  17. dbf

    dbf Moderatrix MOD

    The Reverend Worral Reginald Leadbeater, Chaplain to the Forces, Fourth Class, Royal Army Chaplain’s Department, was awarded the Military Cross.
    During an attack on March 16th-17th, 1943, the battalion to which this officer was attached suffered extremely heavy casualties in concentrated minefields. The padre undertook the duty of collecting wounded both in darkness and daylight from the mined areas. He carried out his self-imposed task with complete disregard for his personal safety and with the utmost bravery, being undoubtedly responsible for the saving of many lives which otherwise must have been lost, and mitigating the sufferings of the wounded.

    Some days later the Reverend Leadbeater directed the removal of our dead from the minefields and again his inspiring example, energy and personality were largely responsible for the completion of this most dangerous and distasteful task.

    In proof of the thickness of the minefield it should be noted that some 720 mines were lifted in order to remove 69 bodies from the mined areas.

    The Reverend Leadbeater comes from Dublin.


    http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documentsonline/details-result.asp?Edoc_Id=7657307&queryType=1&resultcount=1
    Name Leadbeater, Worrall Reginald
    Rank: Captain, Chaplain to the Forces
    Service No: 131945
    Regiment: Royal Army Chaplain's Department attached 6 Motor Battalion Grenadier Guards
    Theatre of Combat or Operation: Middle East (Egypt and Libya)
    Award: Military Cross
    Date of Announcement in London Gazette: 19 August 1943

    London Gazette:
    17 August 1943
    http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/36138/pages/3722


    See this thread for ref:
    www.ww2talk.com/forum/research-material/19413-volunteers-eire-who-have-won-distinctions.html#post195852
    :irishflag[1]:
     
  18. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

     
  19. Verrieres

    Verrieres no longer a member

    Heres a bit of an insight into the man During the actions around Carvin -Lens a French Major was directing a platoon of 8DLI into positions near Carvin when he and the platoon saw a vehicle in no mans land , just ahead of the German positions, where the vehicle ran into a ditch .Shortly afterwards two Khaki clad figures emerged they were Padre Duggan and his batman Pte Deveney.The French major was not impressed that the vehicle had been out in no mans land however Padre Duggan,much to the DLI`s amusement lectured the French Major in rudimentary French,and delivered in his best Irish manner regarding his duty as a British officer and the use of Army vehicles under his command! which left the French Major storming off and muttering to himself that all English soldiers were mad!
    Duggan set about setting up an un-official Regimental Aid post in the main street which he manned all day with no regard for his personal safety despite accurate German shelling in the immediate area
    On May 31st elements of 8DLI, (DLI and some stragglers from 11DLI set up a joint regimental aid post.German shelling was heavy and accurate and casualties mounted steadily throughout the shelling Padre Duggan and Cpl H .Fletcher made repeated journeys carrying the wounded into the cellars of the nearby chateau the Padres humour,coolness and courage did wonders for the morale of the Durhams as he carried on regardless despite the ferocity of the German bombardment..Duggan received a MC Cpl Fletcher a mention in dispatches.Father Duggan died in Peru on the 17/12/1961 .

    More of his post war record can be foun here http://www.corkandross.org/priests.jsp?priestID=538


    Verrieres
     

    Attached Files:

  20. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    Did the German Military have the equivalent of a padre and a actual Corps ?

    I noticed the caps above but was this just making used of a priest that wanted to join the military or was there a actual unit?

    Regards
    Andy
     

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