Grandadfathers records

Hi people, my grandfather past away a few years ago and since his death I have found out from my dad that he was a paratrooper in the 1st Bn Parachute Regiment and that he was on a glider in the battle of Arnhem. I know he initially joined the Northumberland Fusiliers but then left to join the Parachute Regiment. I have photos of him in his uniform and others of him and his regiment from which I can make out the Pegasus badge on his beret also one other photo is dated from 1946 in Cairo. I have an old document with the number 6352804 L/Cpl. Mills W. which is a police recruiting mission letter from Cairo and is dated 8th June 46. My grandfathers name is William Mills known as 'Bill' if there is anything you can suggest to help me track down his involvement with WW2 I would be extremely grateful. I have tried all the obvious sites incl. the National Archives but can only find his involvement with the Northumberland fusiliers.
Thanks guys
Larry Mills

 

Hello and welcome Larry.
Please could you post the photos you have of your grandfather, I am sure members would like to see them.
Although I cannot help you, there will be members who I am sure will be able to help.

Lesley

 

Welcome to the forum Larry - enjoy!

Have you got his service records? These will be the best of information about which regiment he was with and when!

You mention he was with the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers and the Parachute Regiment, but his army/service number is actually from the Royal West Kent Regiment block i.e. 6334001 - 6390000. Once you have his service records and know which regiment he was with and when, we can then put together information about the theatres and actions he may have been involved in.

You will find all of the relevant forms here: https://www.gov.uk/r...service-records Ask for his FULL service records.

I hope this helps...

Best,

Steve.

 

Hi guys thanks for the reply. I'm not sure why that no. relates to Royal West Kent Regiment as to my knowledge he has had no involvement with that regiment. I don't have his service records just a few random photos and random paperwork. I will try and upload some photos maybe this might help identify his regiment. I have tried relentlessly to find info on line but feels like I am getting nowhere so I really do appreciate your help.
Thanks again
Larry

 

Welcome to the forum Larry. I am sure you will find out a lot here and even more when you get the service records. They can take a few months to come through but when you post the photos and any other info you have I am sure you will be able to fill a lot of gaps while you are waiting.

All the best
Dave

 

Thanks Dave I have downloaded a form to get his service records and I will be sending it off tomorrow so fingers crossed I will have it soon.

@ Steve thankyou for your advice. I found a picture from when he very first joined the army and when I zoomed in on the badge on his beret it is the same as the The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment badge..... my first break through. The other uniform is definitely the parachute regiment. I have tried to upload photos but failing miserably as the res is to high and Im not sure how to reduce them!?

Thanks Guys
Larry

 

If you are using a computer with Windows and have Microsoft office (this is how I do it but maybe there is another/better way):

Right click on the file (photo) icon you are trying to open and select "open with". Chose Microsoft Office Picture Manager (it has a little red icon beside it).

On the top menu bar chose "Edit Pictures" and a menu will open on the right hand side.

Chose "Compress Pictures" from this menu on the right (it is the last one on the list.

Select either documents, webpage or e-mail from the list (any of them will bring it to a sufficiently small size).

Then go "File" and "Save as" and save it under a different name.

Then close and when it prompts you, click "Don't save". This will allow you to keep the high resolution image as well as having a smaller sized image to post.

Hope this helps but feel free to get back if it does not work for you. You may want to create a back up first in case it all goes wrong!

Dave

 

*
You are welcome, Larry.

When you apply for grandfather's service records be sure to ask for his FULL service records. Be patient, it can take circa 9 months, sometimes more, before the records arrive.

Best,

Steve.

 

Hello,

A couple of people can help.
They have a great knowledge about the 1 st airborne division and arnhem.
They will reply when they read this post, I'm sure.

Only think I can say is, when he was 1st battalion parachute regiment, he didn't probably fly by glider to arnhem.