Wormhout Massacre/Battle Related Research Questions

Ferunkelose = never ever heard that word, but it could be boils indeed (Furunkel = boil)

As there doesn't seem to be a medical context, could 'boils' be interpreted as isolated pockets of resistance? i.e. where we would mop-up, the Germans would purge/cleanse/lance boils. Does the -ose suffix make some sense in that context?

 

As there doesn't seem to be a medical context, could 'boils' be interpreted as isolated pockets of resistance? i.e. where we would mop-up, the Germans would purge/cleanse/lance boils. Does the -ose suffix make some sense in that context?

That would be an extreme euphemism since Furunkel is a strictly medical term. I really can't tell without the context it was used in, but I doubt it would be camo for some nasty job.
-ose would be the illness per se (e.g. Furunkulose causes Furunkel) ...at least I think so.

 

I didn't mean to imply it was their codeword for 'murder the Tommies'. My point of reference (in the absence of the actual context in which ferunkelose is used) was their use of 'kessel' for 'pocket' - just a soldierly euphemism with no sinister overtones.

 

I didn't mean to imply it was their codeword for 'murder the Tommies'. My point of reference (in the absence of the actual context in which ferunkelose is used) was their use of 'kessel' for 'pocket' - just a soldierly euphemism with no sinister overtones.

Ah sorry, got that wrong.
No, there's no euphemism about Kessel, it's just the normal translation of pocket, i.e. (half) encircled troops. 'Beule' (another word for Furunkel) could perhaps remotely be used for a pocket in the military sense, but F. can't. It's strictly medical.

 

But, literally, kessel is kettle/cauldron, isn't it? (my limited knowledge is courtesy of Arnhem books). Sorry, I'm getting out of my depth here as I don't speak the lingo. Perhaps Andy can post the extract to clear things up.

I've just resorted to Wiki's article on boils (furuncles) : in English, furunculosis (= ferunkelose?) would be the condition rather than the boil itself, wouldn't it? That pushes the meaning even further into the medical domain and away from the military, I'd have thought. I shall concede defeat...

 

But, literally, kessel is kettle/cauldron, isn't it?

Kessel means both kettle and pocket, yes. But it's just a conincidence that cauldron also fits for the image of a pocket.

 

Sorry for the delay (Andrea is restricting my internet access!) chaps and chappettes.

The Furunkel ref is definately a medical condition. An SS Officer (His name escapes me at the mo) says he was suffering from it at some point in his career. I think it was his excuse for not being at the massacre or being medically discharged/downgraded. I think I did mention it in one of the original posts.

 

You did. In my defence, I will have more time to read things properly if Andrea's throttling your bandwdith.

 

I have just finished going through the inventories of provisional burials at Wormhout and Esquelbecq Cemeteries from 1940 to 1941 and it shows that only 33 bodies including one French soldier (R. Vanpee) were recovered from the mass graves in the field opposite the barn. For the purpose of acuracy these records were published in a book in 1991 so in the last 9 years attempts to recover further bodies may have been made. I suspect this question will be answered when I visit the cemetery or CWGC.

At the time of printing it can be assumed there are still upto 60 undiscovered murdered British soldiers buried in la Plaine au bois where the massacre took place. This figure does seem to be reliable as witness accounts suggest there was around 100 PoW's in the barn at the time of the massacre. Prior to the massacre some were bayoneted or shot en-route who could not keep up due to injuries as they were forced marched across the field towards the barn.

EDIT:

Geoff's serach engine shows 40 WW2 casualties with 4 killed later during the war and belonging to the RAF which makes a total of 36 including some the Gloucestershire Regt and one from Queen Victorias Rifles. The proof will be in how many unknown headstones there are .

 

Do they correlate their data with the 20 listed from 2 Warwicks (including Lynn-Allen) on the Dunkirk Memorial from the worst-case period 27 May to 6 June 1940? There are also 10 from 4 Cheshire but they could be spread across the divisional area, as would any gunners.

Of course, the missing element is the number of wholly or partially unknown graves in the cemeteries. I'm not sure there's any way of accounting for them without visiting.

Edited to say: snap!

 

In reference to Idler's previous post about unknown casualties.

About Wormhoudt Communal Cemetery on CWGC.

"There are now a small number of 1914-18 and over 100, 1939-45 war casualties commemorated in this site. Of these, over 30 from the 1939-45 war are unidentified."

 

I've been working on my Wormhout trip today and I thought I'd post some of the more interesing Grid References I've come across in the files so if anyone else wishes to visit the area they can use these.

288670 - Daley's MG position and location of surrender. He was covering the Esquelbecq Rd and was most likely involved in shooting up Sepp Dietrich.

296662 - The area where Burt Evans and 30 Colleagues surrendered to the SS.

294665 - HQ II Bn. LSSAH at 1400hrs. Burt Evans Party is joined by Daley and party.

280664 - Location of Barn.

287663 - Location of Le Fort Rose Farm. HQ II Bn. LSSAH at 1800hrs. From this location the prisoners are forced marched to the barn where most are murdered.

298667 - Where Parry enters the river to try and escape to Dunkirk (He heads the wrong way)

296661 - Parry leaves the river in search of a map in some houses.

297661 - Parry goes through a house and is confronted by SS soldiers on the main road and surrenders.

292666 - A Company HQ

296669 - 2nd Bn. Warwicks. Regimental Aid Post.

 

Sorry for the short notice but I received another two files on Wormhout today (thanks to a certain member) and I'm now scrambling through them like mad (I've still not packed yet!) and came across this rather brilliant map.

It shows the LOA of II Bn. LSSAH towards Wormhout during the battle. The map was marked up by SS Obersturmfuhrer Otto Baum, 7th Company Commander and I wonder can someone translate what he's written at the top and bottom in German?




Many thanks in advance

 

Bewegung d. II. Zuges in der Stadt sind mir nicht bekannt.
I don't know/remember about the movements of the II. Platoon in the city.

Vermutlicher BtlGefStand, als ich dort Mohnke sprach.
Probable location of btl. CP when I was there speaking to Mohnke.

KpGefStand nachts vom 28.-29.5.40
Coy CP in the night of 28.-29.5.40

Baum

 

Cheers Kate !

 

Just for ref the Bn. HQ is the location of Fort Rose Farm incase anyone is interested.

 

Hi Drew
I have just read the Book, Dunkirk - fight to the last man by Sebag-Montefiore. I knew my father had been at Dunkirk but had no details. I showed him the book and it turns out that he was one of the four heavy machine gunners from the Cheshire Regiment number - in fact he was the number one (apparently the machine gun crew numbered four - himself doing actual shooting, number two feeding his ammunition, number three bringing up the oil and water and ammunition - worst job since very exposed to gunfire and number four loading the ammunition belt. He was on the Esqebech Road. The platoon had arrived late the previous night prior to the action to find some poorly prepared positions half finished by the Poineer Corp. They spent all night digging in.

What is never mentionned is that they had already been to the Dunkirk and spent a night on La Panne Beach expecting to he taken back to Britain. However they were ordered back to the front at Wormhout. Their journey had started from in front of the Maginot line and they had fought three actions before Wormhout.

He remembers being in front of a stand of copised poplars with an anti-tank gunner 2 pounder on his right and positioned about 200 yards from the road. He is adamant that the Cheshires and the anti-tank gunner were the first to open up and shot up the column of lorries which you ascribe to the Warwicks.

Later the SS attacked their front - you say 9.30am - he remembers this vividly. Because they came though a corn field to cover their approach. The Cheshire machine guns were scything through the corn like a harvester and of course killing many SS.

At no time did they have any protection on the left flank (if this was B Company, Worcesters - nobody in his platoon of the Cheshires knew). Gradually the Germans worked out where the 2 pounder crew was and of course after that they were a sitting duck being so far above ground and were the first to be killed. Then the sargeant of the Cheshires was killed (can't remember what happened to the Liuetenant) by Shrapnel and the platoon was then commanded by the Corporal for the remainder of the Battle. Eventually the Germans realised that the Platoon had no protection on the Flank and since the Cheshires did not know where their own forces were positionned they could not fire in that direction for fear of hitting their own men. A this time my father's number three was shot and the Corporal prerformed this task in addition to everything else.

With the Germans coming around their flank, they retreated to the Town Square, in front of a Large Building with the Church not far away. Where they again held up the SS advance. Finally the Corporal gave orders for general retreat. My father and his number two (also from the same village on the Cheshire\Derbyshire border) got back to Dunkirk to catch one the last ships,either the last day or the one before Dunkirk was closed down - a French Destroyer which took them to Le Havre. They were ordered back to the Front but France collapsed before this happened and he was brought back in a small boat with 5 others to either Portsmouth or Plymouth (can't remember since he slept the whole journey).

Anyway he is now 92 years old and I think wants to talk before everything slips into history.

I am a beginner at this thing so I am going to try to work out where all the actions took place. Please bear with me if I ask some daft questions.

If there is anything you would like me to ask my father, please let me know.

 

Hello Samuel. Welcome to the forum. Fantastic first post. I think that Drew's going to be in touch !

There are few places on the internet where the BEF of 1940 are so highly regarded as here. Please keep the info coming.

Rich

 

Hi Samuel,

Many thanks for posting about your father, much of what he says at Wormhout fits with what I've found out over the last few years. From what you have said I would say the pictures in Post Number 6 are where your father was. It sounds like he was with the men that opened fire on Josef Dietrich on the Equelbecq Road.

Once again, many thanks for posting your fathers account and do feel free to add any further info he remembers about the battle at Wormhout.

Regards
Andy

 

I wonder how many other members of the BEF were evacuated twice?

Have you seen this other thread of Drew's? He did find some references to the Cheshires' positions in the files.

And don't worry about daft questions.