Special Operations Executive

I believe ME66 was part of the Allied Control Commission, part of the team set up to manage the post-war world. So 1944 in Italy would have been about right.

 

Thanks Bravo_7. This is very useful!

Mel

 

Hi Mel,

I am looking into ME66 as the person I am researching was apparently incorrectly assigned to ME66. I could find very little on it. However, I came across this thread this morning: I think it may prove useful for for you.

Military Establishments Associated with the SOE

P

 

Hi Mel,

Looking for SOSO Bari, I found this on ME 53 & ME56. I'm going to head up to the IWM to see what I can find.

Thought it might be useful for you.

Private Papers of A F Adams

Paul

 

Hi Paul,

I found that link to AF Adams yesterday. I emailed the IWM to see if they could scan it for me. I haven't heard back from them but subsequently I found what is probably the same document on a BBC site (WW2 People's War): BBC - WW2 People's War - Army Service Part 1

The notes from the IWM site says that ME56 was a holding camp situated between Monopoli and Castellana. AF Adams writes “It soon became clear that having personnel waiting in the populous town area presented a security risk. To counter this, a drastic step was taken to evict the Italian population from a small hamlet of villas and cottages about five miles inland from Monopoli called Castellana. I can remember the hapless and tearful Italians standing in the pathway around their belongings, waiting for lorries to take them to alternative homes in the town … The next idea from Headquarters was to affect me personally. It was decided that the waiting time could be used to advantage by kitting out the men and giving them weapons training and keeping them generally fit. A PT instructor was appointed and one of the houses was prepared to receive and store a whole range of special equipment from parachute helmets and clothing, especially sheepskin coats for protection against the bitter winter in the mountains of Yugoslavia, revolvers, submachine guns, compasses, binoculars and survival items like water purifying tablets and battle dress trousers with two specially shaped buttons, one of which would rest on a point on the other and was magnetised to act as an emergency compass. … This was about March 1944”

What’s interesting about this to me is that my uncle was trained at various STSs (including paramilitary, parachute and W/T) and subsequently employed as a training officer. According to his SOE records, in March 1994 he was posted to ME56 as OC Training (officer in command of training). It’s not definitive, I know, but the correspondence is striking to me and I am prepared to believe that the PT instructor mentioned by Adams was Captain AG Robertson.

Cheers!

Mel

 

Hi Paul,

You probably already know that both Evelyn Waugh and Anthony Quayle were assigned to ME66 at some point. For Waugh it was probably in error (is he your research target?).

From “Captain Evelyn Waugh and the Special Operations Executive (SOE)” by Donat Gallagher, 2012 (Evelyn Waugh Studies vol 43; the Evelyn Waugh Society):
… SOE posted Waugh to a body called "ME 66 CMF." ("CMF" means "Central Mediterranean Forces," but I am unable to trace "ME 66"; I can only assume that it was an SOE umbrella body in the Middle East.)

British Resistance Archive on John Anthony Quayle:
After recovering he moved to Section ME66, Allied Control Commission (Office of Chief Commissioner).

On the website for Norman Ramseyer at the National Portrait Gallery, AF Judge has noted: "ME 66 was not a SOE code, but refers to Military Establishment 66, which was responsible for SOE's field staff in Italy and the Mediterranean."
Norman George Ramseyer - National Portrait Gallery

My uncle was assigned to ME66 om April 1944 and then appointed GSO(III) at ME38 in September 1944. I wonder if ME66 was some sort of temporary catch-all assignment.

Mel

 

Hi Mel,

Sent you a PM as well. Yes, found out about Waugh and Quayle yesterday - amazing really. My man is James William Jeffrey MBE RNVR. He was my friend's father. Very mysterious man, and very little is documented.

Similar to your relative, there was confusion over Jeffrey. He was incorrectly added to the roll of ME66, when he was in fact seconded to Force 133 from SOSO Bari. I presume that is Staff Officer Special Operations, but that's guess. I've ordered some books on the subject so I'll let you know what I find. I'm really struggling with an Op Glasshouse I, which took place on or before 21 Mar 1944 into Greece.

Fascinating, that afterwards I think Jeffrey worked for the Australian SOA too, and was involved in the Malaya campaign.

 

Hello Gregory, I was born in Humbeek (Grimbergen). At the end of 1944 the 420 RSU was based at Grimbergen airfield (near Brussels), as you know. Two RAF technicians from 420 RSU were staying at my parents'/grandparents' house in Humbeek for a couple of months, before they left for Germany in January 1945. Their names: Jack Hill and Paddy Shanahan. Do you have more information (photos, others) about 420 RSU and your father Stanley Ballard during their stay in Humbeek? Thanks! Williamhist

 

Williamhist,

Greg Ballard has not logged on for nearly ten years, so I fear he will not see your post. He is not on the Members List and I found him scrolling through this thread.

 

Hi, apologies for barging in on this thread but hopefully someone in the brains trust can help.

I am researching my father in law's war records, so was wondering if I could piggy back on some of the research and input from the posters on this thread. I am living in Australia and it would appear that many of the records held by the National Archives are still undigitised

His name was Sgt John Tsirindanis, Army No: RH/6852924 and died in BUlawayo , Zimbabwe in 2002.

My father in law was originally enlisted from Rhodesia in early 1940 and was posted to the North African Theatre as part of the Rhodesian Platoon in 1 Bn Kings Royal Rifle Corps. He was one of the few survivors from his platoon ( and battalion) after the battles in Libya and Cyrenaicia resulted in most of the battalion being captured near Derna. He was badly wounded twice, was mentioned in dispatches, and was eventually discharged and repatriated to Southern Rhodesia in Oct 1942. I suspect this was due to his injuries as the records indicate "Services no longer required".

Where it gets interesting, is that he volunteers again on 17 April 1944, and shows as enlisting in the General Service Corps as a Private in Cairo (which is a long way from where he was discharged to in present-day Zimbabwe. He is then temporarily transferred to the KRRC as a Rifleman. A day later, he is posted from KRRC to HQ Force 133 (18 Apr 1944) as a paid acting Sgt, and then posted the same day to ME62, which from the records is shown as MEF X(1) (ME62). (I assume that this is an X list supernumery transfer to ME62. Records then show that he promoted to W/Sgt in 14 Oct 1944.

He is struck off strength from ME62 and posted to CMF on 1 Jan 1945. He stays with CMF until discharged from service on 30 Oct 1945 and returns to Rhodesia.

I am keen to get more info about his time in ME62. What I do know about him is that he was originally born in Greece, grew up in Southern Rhodesia and that his family were from Crete and Milos (sometimes shown as Melos) in the Cyclades. He was a fluent native Greek speaker and oral memories indicated that he operated in the Adriatic and was involved in operations on Siphnos and at some time spent a long time on Milos or Naxos hiding from the local garrison. Unfortunately he had early onset altzeimers which affected his memory of events.

Hopefully some of the research from this thread may have more details and I am happy to post copies of his service records which are surprisingly complete if that would help. However, was wondering if there are SOE records that may have more details as clearly the Army only record what is pertinent to them.

Thanks

John

 

I have created an new thread regarding my query if anyone wants to comment or add further info.

Sgt John Tsirindanis, Army No: RH/6852924, 1 Bn KRRC and SOE Force 133

 

I'm new to this forum, but would like some help - does anyone know the location of ME 10 based in Bedfordshire?

Thanks

 

Julian,

On another thread here it states:

From a 2017 thread: Military Establishments Associated with the SOE

It was operational from September 1943, to pack medical supplies for the French Resistance.
This is from a UEA PhD in 2015 and the footnote states:

From: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/58576/1/Built_to_Resist_Vol._1.pdf (Which later became a book).

There might be a clue in a preceding passage about parachute packing and that unit was within a busy RAF Henlow, in the strictest secrecy. So, is this the location: RAF Tempsford - Wikipedia

 

That's really helpful information - many many thanks!

 

Going over the details, RAF Henlow looks more likely.