The 8th Battalion Sherwood Foresters in Norway April 1940

Hi Kirsty, Steve Foster here and thanks for posting. If you look at the casualty list you have posted, you will see that my dad, Sgt Fred Foster, is on the same page - what a small world. Most of the 8th battalion were Nottinghamshire men - A Company from Arnold, B Company and battalion HQ from Newark, C Company from Mansfield and D Company from Worksop. Where was your granddad from? A real "Pals Battalion" just like in WW1. I expect your grandfather and dad knew each other well. The only information I have about him is: Marshall J C, Corporal, 4741933, Held Stalag 357 Oerbke, Fallingbostel POW number 4830. Dad's POW number was 4726 so they were probably captured together. It would appear from the information above, he was moved from Stalag XXA in Poland at some time to Germany. Dad also got moved to Stalag 383 in 1942. As you can see from the thread, I have spent some time researching the 8th Sherwood Foresters in Norway so you have any questions, please ask. Steve

 

Hi
After looking at this photo I believe my grandad may be top row second from right I think
His name was Frederick Arthur Tomlinson who according to one site says was a lance sergent with sherwood foresters with a service number of 4987185 and a POW number of 247245 where it said he was in stalag 357. Unfortunately he died when I was 6yrs old and non of my family are alive now so hoping to find more on him.
Seperately whilst looking I found I had a great uncle Harry Penney who died in the battle of the Somme so this has been a very worthwhile search which I am enjoying greatly
As most POWs my grandad never spoke about his time in the camps and I am led to believe my Nan never knew he was there as she was told missing killed in action, so can only imagine her shock when he turned up
Thanks for this photo really pleasing to see
Tony

 

Dear Steve
I have just joined this thread on POW taken at Trenton, Norway. My grandfather Capt EGC Beckwith is in that photo, middle row. He edited a camp magazine full of POW’s stories, poems drawings and paintings. It was published after the war as The Quill.
Regards
Georgina

 

Hello Georgina,
A privilege to meet Captain Beckwith's granddaughter. A Company, 8th Foresters, of whom he was Officer Commanding, put up a hell of a fight at Rindheim field under his leadership and held the superior armed and numerous Germans in their tracks for some hours. The German war diaries state that this was the only time they met any serious opposition to their advance. I have read his memoirs in the Imperial War Museum in London and found them moving and informative.

Also, I always find his poem, written in 1958, so moving and articulate and it seems to summarise the conditions the Nottinghamshire lads fought and died under. Dad hardly ever talked about his war and being a POW, but did say how fighting in the snow in Tretten was terrible.

Steve

 

Goodness me, that was quick! Yes I love that poem too. I will get the trunk full of his papers back from my brother (including his personal report of the fighting and what went wrong), and then I can answer questions. I have his scrap book in front of me now full of original drawings and his day to day diary.
Regards
Georgina

 

Welcome to the forum EGCB!

 

Thank you. I have gone back to the beginning of these discussions and am working my way though - truly fascinating.

 

Yes, there is a lot there, I started this post after my visit to Norway in 2010 to see where dad fought and found all of the the firing positions in the field by Rindheim farmhouse south of Tretten. The young farmer thought they were piles of stones and knew nothing of the battle that happened on his land. Steve

 

Hi Tony,
I'd be happy to scan a hi res copy of the photo for you...might take me a few days but I'll get round to it. Unfortunately i don't have any info I can share, as I never knew my grandfather and not much of his story made it to me.
Kirsty

 

Hi Steve,

Yes I saw the names on the causality list - small world indeed! My father was born just before the war in Edwinstowe, so I'm assuming my grandfather was living there too - that would make Mansfield the nearest town I think. Wow, isn't it amazing to think that all these years later through the power of the internet that we, their descendants, are in touch.

Thanks you for the additional information - I've found that service records are in the national archives, and PoW records are at York. I'm close to London so after lock-down plan to make a few visits.

Your research has really helped me get a better understanding of where the battalion was, the conditions they faced and what ultimately happened. I'm keen to find out more about my grandfather's time in the PoW camp, family stories mention an escape and my father told me that his dad was never the same when he came back from the war and was deeply affected by it (quite understandably!). So I think my next avenue for research will be delving into PoW records and trying to find out where he was and when. The info you've posted above will really help me - thank you so much!

If I find anything pertinent I will share it back here
Kirsty

 

Hi Kirsty
That would be great. I too am at the start of my journey to find out about my grandad
Many thanks

 

Tony,

I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but I don't think your granddad was in the 8th battalion of the Sherwood Foresters but possibly in one of the other battalions. The 8th was a Nottinghamshire territorial battalion, and for instance, the 5th was a Derbyshire territorial battalion. There were at least eight other battalions of the Foresters who saw active service in all theatres of WW2.
My POW list for the 8th does not show a Frederick Arthur Tomlinson and his POW number is extremely high to have been captured in Norway. Typically the POW numbers given to men from the 8th were four figure numbers and they were almost sequential as they were given numbers on entering Stalag XXA or Stalag XXB in Poland. Officers were sent to Spangenberg in Hess, Germany.
For instance, dad's POW number was 4726 which means he was the 4726th allied soldier to have been registered as a POW by the Germans in WW2. The men from the 8th Foresters and 5th Leicesters were captured in April, well before the BEF saw action in France and all had low numbers. All of those other ranks captured in Norway were sent to XXA or XXB in Poland and not Stalag 357 in Fallingbostel, Lower Saxony. However, many were sent to other camps later in the war - for instance dad was moved to Stalag 383 in 1942.
The last piece of the jigsaw is your granddad's service number. It is very high to have been a member of the 8th battalion. Your granddad's was 4987185 and dad's was 4976755. Looking at the POW list for the 8th, they all began with 497. If you take one from the other, there were over 10,000 recruits between the two. This could not be if they served in the same battalion. The 8th would not have recruited any more members after 23 April 1940 when it was destroyed so, again, this points to your granddad being in another battalion using higher service numbers.

The curator in the regimental museum in Nottingham will be able to help to identify which battalion he served in. If you send me a PM, I will give you her email address.

Regards,
Steve

 

A pleasure Kirsty, if I can help in any way, please ask.
Steve

 

Thanks Steve the numbers I found on another website so maybe they are wrong but I am starting from scratch so any help is appreciated. I will contact the regimental museum and see. Bit confusing as I only have bits of conversations to go on but the photo from Kirsty does appear to be my grandad from old photos. Food for thought indeed. My Auntie had all his medals and paperwork but sadly passed away and cannot find what happened to them
Thanks again
Tony

 

Hi Steve! I am asking for your help! I live in Lillehammer, Norway. Read everything the last 4 years about the battles which took place here during spring of 1940. I am a veteran of war myself. Just read one of your post that your father were taken prisoner at the campaign? We have 35 common welth graves in my area. I would like to get in contact with next of kin to any of these men and boys beeing set to their final restingplace here. I am humble about what they did for me and my family! Only want give them my thank you and a gift during christmas. Please help?

 

Hi Nicklas, thanks for coming on here. I will do what I can to help you and will reply after some research about names of the fallen from the Sherwood Foresters and Leicestershire regiments. Here is a picture I took of the graves of the fallen in 2010 when I visited Tretten and Lilllehammer.
The man who helped me then was Amond Bjor Sandvik who lived at Brubakken, 2635 Tretten. He and his wife showed me all of the places where the battles were fought. He was a retired schoolmaster and the president of the Tretten historical society and had an office in the cheese factory. Perhaps he can help you.

Could you help me please? I have attached a photo of Lt Col Ford being taken away after surrender to the Germans but would like to know exactly where it was taken. I think it was on the track between Rindheim farmhouse and Skardsmoen but could not find it exactly when I walked around the battle field. Do you know please?

I will reply with the names of the fallen and think about how we can contact the relatives.

Steve

 

Nicklas, here is a link to the CWGC website giving the names of the 35 British war dead in Lillehammer northern Civil cemetery. I hope that helps. There are also more buried in Biri which I will investigate:
Search Results | CWGC

 

Amazing! Thank you Steve. I will surely contact Amund in Tretten, I will try to make give me a tour in the spring. Had no idea of his existance!
I have photos and a list of all the 35 buried here in Lillehammer. I have reached out to CWGC 2 days ago but they couldn’t help me with this, they simpy didn’t have any records of relatives....

If you give me one day I will go to the library and look up the actual happening of the capturing of the Lt. Cl. Ford. There is a whole section with Norwegian historybooks from the years 1939-45, and some about the battles in Gudbrandsdalen. I actually know both Rindheim and Skarsmoen. I am a active cyclist and train in these areas. The terrain there, coming on the highway, around Skarsmoen is very obviuos for laying an ambush. High mountains on both sides and the valley opens up on the north side, and south side of Tretten. I’ve read about the harsh battles exactely on that spot.

 

Nicklas, I have attached my photograph of the five Sherwood Foresters graves in Biri churchyard who were killed on the West side of the lake when their lorry received a direct hit from a German mortar from the opposite side. Also buried is the Norwegian driver. I have attached a war artist sketch of the explosion.
Here are the details of the five buried in Biri:
https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/f...ar=&DateOfDeath=&Honours=null&AdditionalInfo=

There is also one Sherwood Forester buried in Heidal cemetery and four in Venabygd cemetery:

https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/f...ar=&DateOfDeath=&Honours=null&AdditionalInfo=

https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/f...ar=&DateOfDeath=&Honours=null&AdditionalInfo=

Steve