In 2009 I started with my father organizing rememberances any year of the victims of the flying bomb (V1) attack on the 18th of Februar 1945 in the city of Nijmegen (The Netherlands). We realised a monument in 2010 and made a small book with stories of the people who survived. See this link. V1-Waterkwartier For six years my father died (he was born in 1930) en since that time I continued the rememberances, last year with a committee. Also in the last six months I connected with several new citizens and new stories where told. And I did some investigation to the place the flying bomb was coming from. In many stories they told me that English military soldiers where living in the houses of the dutch inhabitans in the neighbourhood of the place where the flying bomb came down. That was logical, because the city of Nijmegen was at the boarder of Germany and it was the end of the zone which became free through the allied army's. Daily there where attacks of the germans on Dutch places, where the allied forces where fighting for our freedom. Last week I became a photo from a British soldier. On these photo.I can see that he must be a member of the 49th infantry division of the Polar Bears. His first name should be Thjou, Shaw of Sjou. See also the photo by this message. This soldier lived in 1945 in the house of the family Van Leyen in the Rijnstreet. What I know is that he was a maker of shoes and in 1945 he was 28 years old, also from 1916 or 1917. There was also a cook, called Phil probably from the same regiment in this house in Nijmegen. They survived the flying bom attack and helped the Dutch family with cleaning up the house. I am very interested in any information about him. Maybe you know more about him or his family, which can give me some more information. I would be very grateful to you if you can give me some details about his life and his military work in the Netherlands and somewhere else. And if you can do any survey to his family. I am busy to realise a new version of the book and I want to bring up many new stories in it. Other names of British soldiers I know they where living there are Sid Slade, Fred Hotkins (could be Hopkins) and Johnny Scoogle. If you have any information about them I would be very grateful. Many thanks for your helping me with more information. Im looking forward to some reactions. Kind Regards!
Below the 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division insignia is the Sphinx insignia of the 56th Infantry Brigade. Three possible Regiments : 2nd Battalion South Wales Borderers 2nd Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment Serving with the 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment? The war diary would confirm if the Battalion was billeted there in 1945?
Agree looks like a regimental flash in a dark colour (Essex Regiment = purple) below the brigade stripe (red). 2nd Battalion Essex Regiment, 56 Bde, 49th Div.
Guy Hudson and Giberville, thank you very much for your reactions. I'm still searching for more information about this young men (in 1945). Therefore I've sent several organizations in Great Brittain a request for information!
Hi Roon & all Thank you so much for sharing your photograph and information on the V1 bomb on Waterstraat in 1945. You've really helped in our search. I was wondering, out of the other soldiers you mentioned, if you know any more information? Which houses specifically were they staying at? I'm searching for a name of a British soldier who was resident at number 145 with the Derks family, who you mention in your book. That property was completely destroyed by the bomb also. If you don't know specifically, maybe you know more names since your original post. Really appreciate your help and look forward to hearing from you!
Sorry Ella dat ik dit forum niet meer heb gevolgd. Inmiddels hebben we per email contact gehad, Ella. Helaas kon ik je niet verder helpen. Ik ben wel aan het proberen om de familie van Fred Watkins te zoeken. Wie weet lukt dat via dit forum. Groeten, Ronald Ruijters
Hello I've just begun my search for my grandfather's war experiences. My grandfathers name was Alfred Charles Hopkins. Could he be the Fred Hotkins? He chose to share little of his life in the war so as a family we were unable to discover much at all. All that anyone, his youngest son and my only uncle, remembered was that "he had a Polar Bear badge on the shoulder of his tunic". Also that he was in Germany at the end of the war, possibly in Berlin and had met and liked the Russians he met. I had searched for references to the Polar Bear without any success. Then just this week a post I made on a couple of Facebook military history sites returned much information. From this post I have discovered that he was in the Gloucestershire Regiment, 49th Division, 2nd Battalion. We know this from the two photographs that were amongst my late father's collection of family memoralia, from 1945. One is dated 16.09.45 in Brussels. The badge he is wearing revealed his Regiment. it has the word EGYPT on it and on his shoulder is clearly the word Gloucestershire. Another image helped the responder to identify his Division and Battalion. This is verified by accounds I have read about the 'Polar Bears'. This has led in turn to much more of the Battalions movements. Including Action at Dunkirk, involvement on D-Day on Sword or Gold(some uncertainty there) also action at Le Havre and across Belguim and Holland. Although I have yet to obtain his war records from the MOD, I think we have the beginnings of his stories. I am uploading the two photographs that I refer to. In the first my grandfather, Private Alfred Charles Hopkins, is seen holding an airgun while trying his skills against (what appears to be a funfair amusement) cartoon images of the "Big Four" Nazi villains. Himmler, Goring, Hitler and Speer (perhaps) He is with a fellow soldier who appears with him in the next phograph while walking along a busy pavement. It's unknown where but a partial "Suis..." on a shop front could be a clue. There is mention of Suisse Normande in the exploits of the Gloucestershire Regiment. I hope this helpful for your research. If not then thank you because your small comment above could prove to be of immense help to mine. Regards and the best of British to you. Ian Hopkins
Can help post VE Day 8 May 45 2nd Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment – 56th Infantry Brigade of 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division Commanding Officers: Lieutenant Colonel RNHC Bray DSO – Lieutenant Colonel HLW Bird 16 Jun 45 Seconds-in-Command: Major AM Munday – Major AHR Chalmers 28 Jun 45 Battalion Headquarters: Leusden-Zuid-NL north-east of Utrecht-NL 16 May 45 – Wolfheze-NL west of Arnhem-NL 26 May 45 – Hagen am Teutoburger Wald south-west of Osnabrück 4 Jun 45 – Soest north-east of Arnsberg – Bleidorn Kaserne renamed Gloucester Barracks later Abercrombie Barracks 1 Mar 46 15 Jun 46 – 5th Guards Brigade – British Troops Berlin One company – British Troops Berlin 12 Jun 46 A Company: Major Lovatt Indische Buurt-NL north-west of Leusden-Zuid-NL – Bad Sassendorf east of Soest 4 Jun 45 B Company – Leusden-Zuid-NL north-east of Utrecht-NL – Soest north-east of Arnsberg 4 Jun 45 C Company – Leusden-Zuid-NL north-east of Utrecht-NL – Werl west of Soest 4 Jun 45 D Company – Indische Buurt-NL north-west of Leusden-Zuid-NL – Werl west of Soest 4 Jun 45 15 Jun 46 – 2nd Battalion Gloucestershire Regiment – 5th Guards Brigade Battalion Headquarters: Alexander Barracks Falkenhagen, Spandau – British Troops Berlin 10 Oct 46 – United Kingdom Hope this helps 21st Army Group later British Army of the Rhine (under construction)
welcome Ian Can i suggest you start a thread here Searching for Someone & Military Genealogy And apply as soon as possible for his service records otherwise you will go down dead ends with guess work and it gets confusing
Hallo Ian, bedankt voor je verhaal. Het zou goed kunnen dat je grootvader kortstondig in Nijmegen gelegerd is geweest. Zijn naam in combinatie met zijn divisie en regiment maken dat dit tot de mogelijkheden behoort. Uit de tijdslijn van zijn regiment kan ik echter niet afleiden dat hij in Nijmegen is geweest. Het is ook lastig om na zoveel jaar dit te kunnen vaststellen. Heel veel succes met je zoektocht naar de verhalen over je grootvader!! Met vriendelijke groeten, Ronald Ruijters
