1st Armoured Battalion Coldstream Guards, 1944-45

Discussion in 'The Brigade of Guards' started by jjrc1991, Aug 21, 2013.

  1. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    On this small bridge close to Kutenholz was the place where the tank exploded and all 5 men sadly died so short before the war ended.
    I feel sorry for all the family's and friends who lost their loved ones.
    20201101_093459.jpg 20201101_093416.jpg
     
  2. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    These are their Graves in Becklingen.
    First they where burried in Harsefeld. Why they where not burried in Kutenholz is something we don't know. In Kutenholz was a British Lazarett. In fact of that there were already three soldiers burried in Kutenholz that got killed in Action in Bevern. And there were 2 other soldiers burried in Kutenholz. Maybe they were wounded and died of that. We couldn't find it out till yet. Robin Tudsbery and his comrades were burried also in Kutenholz. Beside the road on a field. They died on the 30th of April 1945 when they drove with their armoured car also over a sea mines and got killed by the explosion. That was about 200 meters far away from the bridge where the tank exploded. 20201101_093527.jpg 20201101_093554.jpg 20201101_093624.jpg
     
  3. JOHN LAMB

    JOHN LAMB Member

    Thanks Debbie
    For these photo, s of the graves at Becklingen Germany for the three crew members
    who had remains that could be identified the two crew members who had no remains
    are Commemorated on panel 3 Memorial Hall at Groesbeek which is a Canadian
    War Cemetery near Nijmegen Netherlands . More information on crew members and their
    families would be greatly appreciated the reason being that the village of Kutenholz are
    placing Memorial stones for the Armoured car crew of the Royal Horse Guards killed on the
    30/4/45 and the crew of the Sherman tank killed on 1/5/45 who were 1st Battalion Coldstream
    Guards of which my uncle guardsman Frank Lock was a member .The Memorial as been
    delayed now until May 2021.

    Best Regards
    John
     

    Attached Files:

  4. JOHN LAMB

    JOHN LAMB Member

    Please forgive me for giving the incorrect title it should read 1st Armoured Battalion Coldstream Guards
    in my post above .It was an oversight on my part.

    All the Best
    John
     
  5. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    Hello to all of you...I just wanted to led you know that the stonemason is working on the memorials. Two are finished already. Hopefully we can put them up soon but with the Lockdown and Corona going on I can't teil when it will be. Here some pictures.
    I hope Chris Green will see it and contact me...if anyone of you knows him can you tell him that please.
    Greetings from Germany
    Debbie Screenshot_20210205-200803_Gallery.jpg
     

    Attached Files:

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  6. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

  7. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    Here are the two memorial stones that are already finished the last one will be soon finished
    Screenshot_20210206-173416_Gallery.jpg Screenshot_20210206-173504_Gallery.jpg
     
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  8. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    And if anyone of you knows something about the other soldiers maybe family members can you contact me please too.
    I am in contact already with John his uncle was Frank Lock and we have contact with the Robin Chapel in Edinburgh for Robin Tudsbery.
    Maybe someone of you can help us. My mailadress is in one of my post below.


    Moderator edit:
    Email address removed. Contact can be made via forum: on thread, profile page or via private message
     
  9. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    20210308_095617.jpg

    Finally we placed the memorial stones.
    I hope Chrisgreen2905 you see this post and contact me.
    If anyone of you know family members of these soldiers please contact me. It would be nice to let them know that we remind their loved ones and would like to have contact.

    20210305_180756.jpg 2021-03-05 Stelen Kutenholz-013.jpeg 2021-03-05 Stelen Kutenholz-012.jpeg
     
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  10. ltdan

    ltdan Nietenzähler

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  11. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    Thanks I know this article and I have pictures of it. In the museum of Kutenholz you can see pieces from the Sherman Tank
     
  12. Apologies again for my late reply it was fascinating to see that there are more and more elements that come together about these events. I was astounded to see exact location of the incident and the memorial that was erected for them, quite moving. Thanks Debbie.

    Unfortunately, I guess the people that lived in this area were shocked to find themselves on the frontline of what was one of the defining moments of the 20th century. It seems to be a very agricultural area. Also some great photos of the guys and their equipment. A major feat, just to get this far through Northern Europe, even these days people would think twice about such a drive and there are even highways. As more information comes to light its difficult to comprehend the circumstances that led to this point. For the most part these guys would have limited knowledge of their whereabouts and activities, and then they just get on with it. Then the more I know the more questions I have, what if they had taken a different route, what if? I guess these questions miss the point, these people existed in a time when they didn't have so many options and they then had to make the most of it. There is some sort of fatalism to these events where the ability to avoid them decays the further and further you get down the path. My father never really knew his father as he was born in 1942 and these events are hard for an adult to comprehend. All the people and the thinking that led to these events are all long gone, luckily the impact on the future fades too. But it is worth knowing the human side to this to at least have some motivation and some consciousness of which trains we definitely want to avoid getting on to.
     
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  13. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    Thanks Chris for contacting me and that we could clear the history. Thanks for everyone of you who helped us!
     
  14. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    I just wanted to share this picture. John Lamb sent us poppy wreaths for the memorials and we placed them. Thanks a lot John
     

    Attached Files:

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  15. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    They all died here in Kutenholz a small village near Stade in lower Saxony. We remind them in Kutenholz. We searched their names and placed memorials for all the soldiers that got killed in Kutenholz or where burried there. If you are a family member Jeff please contact me. We are searching for the families of the soldiers. We found the family of Green and Lock but we still would like to get in contact with other families. I know this is an old chat but maybe Jeff you see this post or others than please contact me. Best wishes Debbie IMG_20210503_133122_950.jpg
    IMG_20210503_133529_746.jpg
     
  16. JOHN LAMB

    JOHN LAMB Member

    Hi to all
    My name is John Lamb I am searching for photos of crew members of a Sherman Tank that was destroyed by a magnetic sea mine
    on the 1/5/1945 at a village called Kutenholz Lower Saxony Germany , My Uncle Guardsman Frank Lock was the Gunner Mechanic
    of that crew he and Guardsman Stanley Somerset were vaporized in the explosion and with no body parts to bury they are commemorated at Groesbeek War Cemetery panel 3 Netherlands . I am researching the Sherman tank crew with a German lady
    called Debbie Buelau who is a local Historian in the Kutenholz area she is part of a team that have placed Memorials to not only
    the tank crew of which my uncle F Lock was a member but also to an Armoured car of the Royal Horse Guards Officer and crew
    also to a Grenadier Guardsman an Irish Guardsman and three members of the Leicestershire Yeomanry all killed around the
    village of Kutenholz , So many thanks to the Citizens of the village . I now come to my reason for this post , Would the members of
    this forum agree that a man killed at the age of 19 years in 1945 would have only passed out of his Regiments training in late 1944
    or early 1945 the reason I ask this is that two members of the tank crew were only 19 years old on the 1st of May 1945 and has
    I said at the beginning of my post we are looking for photos of the crew members so currently I am looking for pass out photos of
    Coldstream Guards of the years 1944-45 which have images of Guardsman Stanley Somerset and Anthony G F W Taylor-Hurst ,
    Hope this forum can help with this request . The attached photos are named pass out photo of Frank Lock the SGT J T Green was
    the Tank Commander of the ill fated tank that was destroyed that day , the Guardsman pictured is Frank Lock , The Memorials at
    Kutenholz is the last photo .

    Best Regards

    John
     

    Attached Files:

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  17. Nigel Joy

    Nigel Joy Member

    Colin Wray KIA 30 April 1945.jpg Sgt Maggs Squad.jpg Untitled-Scanned-72 (2).jpg Untitled-Scanned-72.jpg
    Very interesting thread which links with my father's (Ron Joy 2659042 CG) recollections. He was with 5th GAB HQ.

    Tying in with another of the names being remembered I attach photos of Colin Wray's GG original grave and his squad photo in 1938. He is in back row on the right.
     
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  18. JOHN LAMB

    JOHN LAMB Member

    Hi Nigel thanks for the reply to my last post I would be very interested to know more about your father's recollection's
    especially about the destruction of the Sherman tank on that particular day of the 1/5/1945 , And I am sure Debbie Buelau
    would like to know more of Grenadier Guardsman Colin Godfrey Wray as she is trying to learn more about all the soldiers
    who are remembered on the Memorials at Kutenholz .
    Best Regards
    John
    .
     
  19. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    Ich bin sehr interessiert. Danke Nigel. Ich schreibe dir eine persönliche Nachricht und danke John für die Kontaktaufnahme.
     
  20. Debbie B.

    Debbie B. Member

    Hi...2nd try...now in English. Thanks Nigel for the pictures. I am very interested! Thanks John for letting me know about Nigel's post and that my answer was even if I wrote it in English....came out in German. I guess it is because of my automatic translation program. It doesn't matter. Wray and Nigel are more interesting than what happened that the words appear in German. Nigel I wrote you a personal message. It would be nice if we can get in touch. I hope you can tell us all a little more about Wray and the circumstances why he died. Best wishes! Debbie
     

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