2718673 Serjeant Frederick John ARMSTRONG, MiD, 2 Irish Guards: PoW

Recommendation for Award for Armstrong, Frederick John Rank: Serjeant ... | The National Archives
Name Armstrong, Frederick John
Rank: Serjeant
Service No: 2718673
Regiment: 2 Battalion Irish Guards
Theatre of Combat or Operation: B E F 1939-40
Award: Mention in Despatch
Date of Announcement in London Gazette: 20 December 1940
Reference: WO 373/89


2718673 Serjeant Frederick John ARMSTRONG, 2nd Battalion IRISH GUARDS

In the operations at the HOOK OF HOLLAND this Serjeant did fine work and set an excellent example by maintaining his Anti-Aircraft Bren gun during the air raids which took place on Monday and Tuesday, May 13th and 14th despite falling bombs and heavy machine gun fire directed at his post.

He showed courage of a high order, and set a very fine example to those under him.

 

Army Number: 2718673
Rank: Serjeant
Name: Frederick John ARMSTRONG
Unit: 2 Irish Guards
Theatre:
POW Number:
Date of Capture:
Place of Capture: 23/05/1940
Camp:
TNA Reference: WO 208/3298/29

 

Army Number: 2718673
Rank: Lance-Serjeant
Name: F ARMSTRONG
Unit: 1 Irish Guards
GSM & Clasp: GSM, Palestine Clasp 1936 - 1939
TNA Reference: WO 100/503

 

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C14082396

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Sergeant ARMSTRONG, 2nd Battalion IRISH GUARDS


On the 22nd May my Company, No. 1, landed at BOULOGNE about 12 noon. We proceeded to take up a position on the left of the Battalion. My Platoon, No. 2, was on the left, commanded by 2nd Lieutenant ROMER. We had on our left the railway and river, the WELSH GUARDS begin on the other side of the river, but eventually we did not see any of them.

Having taken up our position about 4 o'clock we proceeded to dig in. Mr BUTLER's Platoon was on our right about 150 yards away and an Anti-Tank gun commanded by Corporal McNAMEE was on our left. While we were digging in there was a certain amount of shelling but the fire appeared to be chiefly directed against the Anti-Tank gun position.

(Supper came up about 7.30).

Just before it got dark we saw some enemy tanks on the road in front of us to our right. These tanks remained in the vicinity for some time and then eventually, as far as we know, went back. The most of their fire was directed at the Platoon on our right. We were subjected to a certain amount of artillery fire during the night. Any movement during the night out of our post was not possible owing to fire from a machine gun which was close to us.

Mr. ROMER went back to Company H.Q. during daylight and we did not see him again.

At dawn, we endeavoured to sent a runner back to Company H.Q. but anybody who got out of the trench was immediately shot at and as far as we could see we were more or less surrounded. We tried to retreat to Company H.Q. but were unable to do so. There were no casualties in our Platoon up to this time. The position of our Platoon was behind tall hedge with a very bad field of fire.

About half-an-hour after dawn, just before it got quite light, some Germans came through the hedge on our right and machine gunned from our immediate right about 60 yards way a very heavy fire on the post, whilst a party of Germans attacked us on foot from our right front ( a party of 30 or 40 Germans).

When we were captured, P.S.M. HAYES took his badges and rank off and I, myself, having Sergeant's badges, was taken away by a German to be interrogated. As far as I know, Mr. BUTLER's Platoon on our right was, at the time we were captured, still being attacked.

The German Officer who interrogated me asked what Regiment I was in and I refused to tell him. He told me 2 battalions of GUARDS had arrived in BOULOGNE the day before. He then asked me how many men there were in each Battalion and I told him "thousands". He asked if I were English and I said I was Irish, and he asked why, being an Irishman, I was fighting for ENGLAND. He appeared to be well-acquainted with LONDON, Wellington Barracks and Buckingham Palace.

We were taken back about a mile and a half to where there were two batteries of German guns. Before this, we had been withdrawn about 200 yards in front of our position, where some other captured GUARDS prisoners belong to Nos. 1 and 4 Companies were collected, before being marched back to the German gun position. We stayed there all day at the German gun position guarded by about 6 Germans with a Tommy gun and bombs, and were kept there until 3.30 in the morning of the 24th May. The German guns which were quite close put up a heavy bombardment on to the harbour during the night of the 23rd/24th May, and the German guns were still in the same position when we left at 3.30 on the morning of the 24th May.

We marched on the morning of the 24th May from the German gun position through ETAPLES to MONTREUIL, a distance of about 42 kilometres. During the march on this day there were, I think, some WELSH GUARDS prisoners in the rear of our column. We arrived at MONTREUIL at 4 o'clock on the afternoon of the 24th. After a half of 2 1/2 hours we marched to HESDIN where we arrived about 2 o'clock in the morning on the 25th May (Saturday). We had received up to this time no food from the Germans but most of the men obtained some form of food from the villagers at MONTREUIL where we were guarded in the Square. HESDIN appeared to me to be the H.Q. of one of the Mechanised Divisions. They had a big garage where they were painting British M.T. trucks and motor-cycles with their own colours. We halted at HESDIN for about 2 - 3 hours' sleep and were then marched to a big wood about half a mile away to the North and about 11 a.m. they gave us, between three men, 12 ounces of British Bully Beef - presumably captured - and a packet of biscuits.

We remained in the wood until Sunday morning (26th). We were then marched along the main road between HESDIN and FREVENT. On this march Platoon Sergeant-Major HAYES and myself escaped somewhere about VIEL HESDIN. We escaped by going through a hole in the hedge which led to a track to our right. Having got through the hedge we lay low until the remainder of the column had passed. We eventually got to a small village where were got in touch with a priest who could talk a little English, and he directed us to a big house which was empty and where we fitted ourselves out with civilian suits, overcoats and hats.

We walked a bit during Sunday and ended up on the night of Sunday somewhere in the neighbourhood of ERQUIERES where we spent the night. We had no map and no compass but the inhabitants pointed out to us the general direction of the SOMME. We got some food and water from the French inhabitants at farmhouses.

On the Monday we continued to go towards the Somme and had difficulty in avoiding meeting Germans. Finally we landed up on the Monday night somewhere near AUXI LE CHATEAU. The Germans had a strong position between ABBEVILLE on the right, BARNAVILLE and DOULLENS, which we had to get through. On the 30th may, Thursday night, we slipped out, and heard a lot of German troops on the march, singing, with horse transport. It took them 2 1/2 hours to pass us. After then had passed we continued and saw heavy concentrations of mechanised units in an orchard.

In daylight on Friday, 31st May, at about 11 o'clock we were held up by another long column of Infantry and horse transport which app red to be heading towards the coast. We eventually reached the river of the Somme about midday Saturday at BOLOY. There was a bridge over the Somme which we tried to cross. There were only a few Germans there who seemed very scared. We were not able to cross as the Germans and the French were bombarding each side. Actually before getting to the Somme we had to cross a swamp and having crossed a lake in an old boat reached the Somme itself still in daylight. We swam the Somme at about 12.45 p.m. on Saturday, 1st June - this I know for a fact as our watches stopped at that time. I swam over first and had only got 10 or 15 yards up the bank when a French Sentry challenged me. I then shouted across the river to P.S.M. HAYES to come across as the French were there. There was a young French Officer who could speak a little English and (after interrogation) gave us food, drink, and cigarettes, and after a quarter of an hour he took us up to where his Company was, where they gave us another set of civilian clothes (white cricket trousers and lady's blouse). We then went back to, I think, the Battalion H.Q.

They questioned us and we gave them some information as to where the German troops were. They took our Regimental numbers and particulars. We left Battalion H.Q. about 7 o'clock in the evening of Saturday and went to another H.Q. where we were interrogated by an interpreter and again full particulars were taken and we gave them the same information as we had given the other H.Q. At this H.Q. we were given food and English cigars and we spent the night there (night of 1/2nd June). Next morning we left in a Staff car and were taken back to 9th Army Corps. We were once again examined by Le Generale IHLER and we were given a 'Order de Mission' (copy attached). The same day, the same car, the same driver, we were taken to the H.Q. of the 10th Army Corps (a copy of a further 'Order de Mission' is attached) where we saw Le General Robert ALTMAYER who, I think, was wearing the British Military Cross from the last war, and from there we were taken to ROUEN.

We went to the Town Major at ROUEN and from there they took us to No. 1 I.B.D. quite a bit outside ROUEN. On arrival at the I.B.D. we were questioned by a Sergeant who appeared to be in charge of the Orderly Room. We were then informed we would have to sleep in the Guard Room for the night.




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2718673 Serjeant Frederick John Armstrong, 2nd Battalion IRISH GUARDS

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D7392334

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London Gazette : 20 December 1940
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/35020/supplement/7174/data.pdf


https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/35020/supplement/7184/data.pdf


https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/35020/supplement/7185/data.pdf