5381941 George Blockley

I'm trying to find information about George Blockley who enlisted, I think, about 1935/36.
Any information or sources would be appreciated.
Cheers.

 

Enlisted into Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry 5373001 - 5429000

Army Number Block Allocations

What do you know ?
That saves us looking up stuff you already know about.

 

Full Name
BLOCKLEY, George
Rank Name
Warrant Officer 2nd Class
Service Number
5381941
Award Details
Bronze Cross Award received from Netherlands during Second World War.
Gazette Date
18 Jul 1947
Gazette Page
3323
Service
British Army
Regiment
Oxfordshire And Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
Conflict Period
World War I
Served For
United Kingdom

Awarded LSGC 25 Sep 1952

Served with 1 Oxf Bucks-53 Div-1 Corps .

Casualty listing:-
Full Name
Blockley, G
Date
25 Feb 1945
Fate
Wounded
Incident Details
Reported to War Office Casualty Section for the 48 hours ending at 09:00.
Incident Date
12 Mar 1945
Information
Casualty List No. 1703.
Rank Name
Company Sergeant Major
Service Number
5381941
Duty Location
Western Europe
Service
British Army
Regiment
Oxfordshire And Buckinghamshire Light Infantry
Battalion
1st Battalion
Archive Reference
WO417/89.2
Conflict Period
World War II
Served For
United Kingdom

Citation and operational information in attached in PDF

Kyle

 

Don’t know a lot I’m afraid.
I was hoping to find a copy of his attestation papers, if possible.
I know he was awarded a medal for valour by the Dutch.
I also believe his wife returned to England with their children in 1949 from Libya so I am assuming he was posted somewhere overseas up until that date.
Cheers

 

You will not find that type of record online. Service records are only available from the MoD/National archives. Consider an application but theres a long queue. Enlistment Date 15 Jan 1938 (as per Peter Gerald Cullen whose number was 5381946 ,five after George)

Kyle

 

His name and number have not been mentioned here before this thread.

There is a web page partly in Dutch and a line of text in Dutch (no copy option) for his Dutch medal See: Nederlandse onderscheidingen aan Britse staatsburgers voor de Tweede Wereldoorlog and https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/38018/supplement/3323/data.pdf

According to the OBLI Wiki neither the 1st or 2nd battalions were posted to Libya post-war. See: n.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxfordshire_and_Buckinghamshire_Light_Infantry#Post-Second_World_War_era_(1945–1966) Wiki does not state whether overseas tours involved taking families. Plus: British Army units from 1945 on - Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry

 

Mr Jinks. Thanks for the information, really useful. I am though still a bit confused as I when he married in 1936 his occ. was recorded as a Lance Corporal, res. at Colchester Garrison. From what I've read I assume he must have left the army and re-enlisted to obtain the number 5381941?

 

What was the number on his marriage certificate ? You didn`t get a `new` army number if you re-enlisted there are exceptions of course to every rule . All I can confirm is Peter Gerard Cullen 5381946 according to his RA card enlisted on 15 January 1938 and there`s only five numbers between his and your man . There could have been an error on the card and it should either read `re-enlisted or transferred rather than enlisted ? Sorry but take a look after the RA card for another 5381910 1934 enlistment ?. (31 numbers before your man ? )



Name William Thomas Davies
Nationality English
Marital Status Married
Birth Date 20 Oct 1912
Birth Place Groor Welly; Sherpool; Worcester
Marriage Date 9 Sep 1940
Marriage Place Kidderminster
Residence Place Kiddermuister; Woros.
Enlistment Date 6 Jul 1934
Enlistment Place Oxford
Discharge Date 10 Feb 1954
Military Place United Kingdom
Service Number 5381910
Rank Corporal
Unit 2nd
Regiment Pioneer Corps
Eye Color Hazel
Hair Color Brown
Complexion Fresh
Height 5 Ft. 7 Ins.
Weight 141 Lbs.
Occupation Farm Labourer
Religion Church of England
Piece Number 87812
Registration Number 2362982


EDIT (to add below document)



Kyle

 

converted Mr Jinks pdf to j.peg

 

An enlistment in 1934 would also be a fit with qualifying for the LS&GC Medal in 1952 after the 18 years qualifying period. If I remember the records for these may be on findmypast & may show where he was serving in 1952.

Looks like he was 1st Battalion Oxs & Bucks LI before WW2 as online there are marriage banns read at Colchester Garrison Church in March 1936, giving his regiment as O & B Regt, C Company. When he married in April of that year when he gave his occupation as Lance Corporal, resident at Colchester Barracks.

This is consistent with the 1st OBLI movements as in the 1930's they were stationed at Hyderabad Barracks, Colchester. The 2nd Bn can be ruled as they were in India 1934-1940. I also saw that his wife is in married quarters in Colchester on the 1939 Register.
Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry - Wikipedia

Although the passenger list you have seen for his wife & children states that the HM Troopship Empire Windrush that they travelled on had come from Torbruck & Port Said the family give their last country of residence as Greece. This is consistent with the postings of 1st Bn OBLI who arrived in Greece June 1949 & would have left by the time in Feb 1950 that the Empire Windrush embarked the last British troops to leave, the Beds & Herts Regiment along with soldiers families. British troops were in Greece because of the civil war which had ended in September 1949.

The OBLI then served in Cyprus until October 1951, when they moved to the Canal Zone until 1953. Looks like if he went with the Bn to Cyprus they did not accompany him as it was either not an accompanied posting then or the battalion did not know how long they would be there. I don't think the Canal zone was an accompanied posting as it was not very safe by 1951.
HMT Empire Windrush - Wikipedia

Just as extra info in 2003 a bar to the General Service Medal for the Canal Zone in this period was approved. Like other medals either the soldier or maybe their descendants/next of kin can claim this.

There are two "soldier Certificates" (whatever they are) shown at the archives of the Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum, but they may just repeat some of the info posted by Kyle in post 4. They will not be his service record.
soldier – Soldiers of Oxfordshire Museum

Travers

 

Fascinating to see that the OBLI & the Beds & Herts regiments both had accompanied tours, in Greece too. There was another thread that indicated a unit in Libya was accompanied too in the immediate post-war years. In my research into the exit from India, some of the last units appear to have been accompanied too; with families boarding the ships the day before the final parades (by the SLI & Black Watch).

Apologies for the diversion.

 

I was surprised to see Greece as an accompanied posting, although things there had calmed down there by June 1949 when the OBLI were posted there. Interesting to see Libya was also an accompanied posting post war.

Can't yet make sense of the families journey. If they embarked on HMT Windrush in Greece this could have been before or after the OBLI soldiers left for Cyprus. But if families & soldiers left at the same time & the soldiers were going direct to Cyprus the boat may have had to double back from Greece to do this.

Maybe the families return to the Uk rather than army housing in Cyprus was prompted by possible plans known or expected for the eventual deployment of the OBLI to the Canal Zone.

Travers