3775704 Lance-Sergeant Peter Francis McCARTHY, MM, King's Regiment (Liverpool) & 4 Commando

Found this online concerning my late Uncle Peter.


Lance Sergeant Peter Francis McCarthy 3775704,
C Troop No 4 Commando [Kings Regiment Liverpool]
Dieppe, Normandy Sword Beach and maybe Walcheren?????

Sergeant Peter McCarthy was awarded the Military Medal in recognition of gallant and distinguished service in the combined attack on Dieppe. Also served at the CMWTC and with 46RM Commando.

I never knew any of this until after he died, he lived in another town to us but met him at family occasions.
Ian

 

Thank you sir, that document you posted will shared with the surviving members of my family.

Ian

 

Not sure if uncle Peter moved from 2 cdo to 4 cdo or took part in the walcherern operation.
No nothing about his part in the d day landings, I guess he landed on sword beach, don't know what his unit did after landing, it would be nice if he was with Lord lovat walking vehind the bagpiper.

Ian

 

Hi Ian

I have updated the page on the Commando Veterans Archive for your Uncle Peter. If you look you will see there is reference to a document about the Commando Mountain Warfare Training Centre. After Dieppe he appears to have moved to there as a Sgt Instructor. If you read that document you will see that several of the staff at the CMWTC were attached to different units for Normandy and onwards. He is named on a nominal roll for 46RM Commando covering from June 1944 onwards.
Here is the updated entry on the Commando Veterans Archive: MCCARTHY, Peter Francis | ͏

Can you check the dates of birth and death I have there which I got from registers online and do you have a photo of your Uncle Peter ?. Also I believe he had a brother Thomas is that correct?

Pete

 

Hi Pete
You are correct I did have a uncle named Thomas but unfortunately he was drowned in a training accident on the river seven around 1943.
Don't know anything more about him, what service he was in.

Unfortunately I don't have a photo of uncle Peter, I have asked my older family members to see if they have one. Peter was born in widnes but moved to Northwich when he was married, all this took place well before I was born.
The details you have about him are spot on.

Ian

 

Is there a Thomas McCarthy in the commando Pete?

Ian

 

I did notice the other day that out of all my relations (about 6 in all), five of them made the rank of sergeant by 1945.

Ian

 

Hello Ian
I don't believe Thomas was a Commando but I found the following newspaper article in the Runcorn Weekly News 24 November 1994 referencing an article from November 1944 about a Thomas McCarthy mentioning at the end his brother Peter Francis being awarded the MM at Dieppe. So that leaves me a bit confused after you said he died in 1943 ? Do the family have his service number to cross reference against official lists online?

 

Is this Thomas - https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2701130/thomas-mccarthy/

There is a poor photo of him here

 

Well Pete you have really impressed me, thank you.
I will contact my elder sister who is 86, she knew our uncles.
I am sure Thomas died during the war, but we are a big family so I will ask her who the relatives are on that data sheet.
She will know them.
Be in touch.
Ian

 

Extract from the Liverpool Echo 28 July 1947.

 

That's him Pete, well done!!
Never seen anything before in print concerning uncle Tom.
I shall show to my family.
Thank you.
Ian

 

I was talking to my eldest sister and there was suspicions that uncle Tom was murdered and not drowned on the river Severn.
They found his body on the river bank and not in the water.

Ian