Anyone require War Diaries or other files from the National Archives?

Cheers Andy, will do.
All the best,
Chris, (Bowlesy)

 

See post below.

 

Hi Andy, i was in touch with you 3 years ago, asking you for the unit diaries of the 14th Anti Tank Regt, 1944, WO 170/1032. I think you had arranged for a visit, and then we went into lockdown. Anyway, I am still interested in getting these diaries if you could for me.
Charlotte Jenkins

 

Hi Rich,

Not sure why my emails don't reach you as they don't 'bounce back' & are shown in my sent files with all of the security details but 'nay bother' & I hope it is ok to reply here & that I am not breaking any site etiquette or rules in doing so. Someone please let me know if I am.

Well, I don't really know where to start, or how to say thank you enough for the information you have so generously shared with me. Firstly, the photos & information about your uncle, HARRY PAYNE, & of course the part of 52nd PROVOST DIVISION war diaries already in your possession. You are doing Harry proud & the hair on the back of my neck stood up when I saw your family tribute to him with his photograph, medals & ribbons, divisional badges & identity tags. They are all exactly the same as my father, GEORGE BOWLES, had (but all I have left are his medals in a box) so I have never seen them all together. Georgie came back to England after his one year & 166 days in Europe on Valentines day 1946, so right around the same time as Harry's unfortunate & ultimately fatal sten gun incident. The news for the family would have been devastating & the effect on the lads, all of Harry's mates, after all they had been through together would have been equally insuperable. It is highly possible that Georgie would have heard of the incident (& been affected by it) & there's even the slight chance that their paths may have crossed or that they may have known one another.

Thanks to this platform & the other avenues that you & your dear father have explored the name, HARRY PAYNE, will be kept alive & he has helped me to recreate a truer picture of the situation & the risks involved on a daily basis during those troubled times. We that are left are truely blessed (& very lucky) to have them as part of our history & DNA.

The diaries, I have only had time to have a quick scan of at the moment but, my god - goose pimples! As I have said previously, when I started this journey to try to trace my father's war time footsteps I knew very little about the structure of the British army & even less about the battles of WW2. I know Georgie had 'issues' about what he had gone through & witnessed during his service & he often mentioned place names, Walcheren, Middelburg, Nijmegen, Arnhem, Bremen & many more but no one really listened. As children, we had to 'endure' World at War & The Nuremberg trials on the TV which scared the living daylights out of us & I was even discouraged from playing childlike war games. I have since obtained Georgies service record & have read many books on the WW2 campaigns in Europe & the 52nd (Lowland) Division, inluding 'Mountain & Flood', 'With the Jocks' & 'Bloody Bremen'. It is only since catching sight of a few pages of the diaries that some of the 'jigsaw puzzle pieces' have started to slot into place to enable me to create a complete picture of his exact whereabouts during his time in Europe. THANK YOU very much indeed.

I will contact Andrew when I have had chance to study the diaries more to confirm what I would like him to get for me (if time allows) on his next visit to Kew.

With kindest regards & best wishes.

Chris. (Bowlesy).

 

Hi,

I can copy this file if you want me to. I'm happy to copy any 20th-century file apart from BTS and WO 416 type series.

In the spirit of openness, my 'charging model' is:

£3 a file + £0.12 a page (so minimum charge is £3.24 if the file has one page).

I will copy individual months from a war diary file (no need to pay for the whole file), and for WDs, you can specify:
1. Everything (narrative, appendices, and WE returns)
2. Everything apart from the WE returns (I understand not everyone wants these)
3. Just the narrative pages

Finally, if I already have the file ,it is £0.07 a page, with no 'file' cost. Although this may seem to be on trust, the EXIF data will tell you the date the photo was taken, irrespective of the file timestamp.

Regards,
Gary.

 

Hi Charlotte -Can you send me a private message regarding this please.

 

Hi Andy,

Hope you are well. I tried to log on to the site several times yesterday & was unable to reply to any threads. It showed that I was logged in but all options were 'greyed out'. I then managed to get in using my mobile but after spending ages typing (I'm slow) found it limited me to 400 odd characters only so not sure how much I managed to send. I fully understand if I have left it too late or if you are already overwhelmed with orders but if you are able I would still like to put in a request for some diaries. Richard has kindly sent me diaries for the 52nd (L) Division, Provost Company, Corps of Military Police from Feb1945 (I recall reading that Jan is missing for some reason) until the time Georgie came back to the UK in Feb 1946. I would appreciate ANYTHING available on line prior to this if you have time or if you have not already been down to Kew. I would also welcome any advice about trying to find out what battalion or company he was in as I have not been able to find this out. I have supplied all his info earlier in this thread so hopecthat is all you need.

A very big thank you for all you do for the guys & girls on this site it REALLY is appreciated.

Travel safe & take care.

All the best,

BOWLESY (Chris)

 

BTW. I forgot to mention that although I have read 'Mountain & Flood' & many other books & articles about the 52nd (LOWLAND) DIVISION'S service & training in SCOTLAND, especially in the CAIRNGORM MOUNTAINS, I would dearly love to know if there are any personal diaries or sketches that exist or have been published on the subject.

Cheers.

 

Hello
Is there anyone on here still offering this copying service please?
Thank you

 

Yes, just drop me a DM with what you are looking for.

 

Thank you Gary
How do I send you a DM please

 

I've figured it out and realized that you have already replied to me in an old private message, I didn't know you had replied because until I just tried to message you I didn't know where to find my private messages lol

 

please can you get copies for these please
WO 171/1060 65 Med Regiment 1944 Jan.- Dec.
WO 171/5028 65 Med Regiment 1945 Jan.- Dec.
Thanks

 

Thanks to another member's recommendation I have used the services of a researcher at the National Archives, Kevin Asplin and his rates are reasonable IMHO. His email is: kevinasplin (at)aol (dot)com

 

Hi, I'm looking for information about two captured German airmen. I know that there are interrogation reports somewhere, possibly Kew. Their names are Botho Sommer and Paul Prauler. They were shot down in Dorset on the 7th October 1940. They were flying a Messerschmit Bf 110 coded 3U+AA

 

Hi Duncan

S/Ldr Felkins reports are seldom more than 1 side of a page.

3U DD third letter green according to Felkin debrief and the profile on the excellent dive log from BSAC Document

AI1(k) report below


Ross

 

Does anyone have the war diary for the Royal Scots Greys 1st september 1944? or is anyone going to the archives who could source it for me?
Thanks

 

Hi Jill, if nobody here already has the diary you’re after, why not send Gary Tankard a message, he may well be able to get a copy for you next time he’s at Kew.

 

See Post 2 by dryan67 on this thread. It contains a history of the brigade including the Scots Greys and the day you are after: YOU CAN HELP US : Airaines 1944

Note this thread has a tag for the Scots Greys too, that might help identify threads.

Somewhere in this thread: 2nd Fife and Forfar Yeomanry

 

Hi Gary , how do I DM you from this page please?

Fairly new to this site.

Regards

Nigel