Regret to advise the forum that Cyril died peacefully in his sleep last Saturday 4th June aged 97...In 1944 OC 8 Platoon B Company 7th KOSB and taken prsioner near Wolfheze in Holland on 20th September...... Also in recent years he used to attend the Cosford Museum on a Tuesday with other WW2 veterans to talk to visiting parties of school children about his experiences.....a real gent and another sad loss.......in fact around October last year was when I last saw him at Cosford......although I met him more often in Holland where he was a regular attendee at the commemorations.......
This is what I've sent to the Arnhem Veterans Club for inclusion in their newsletter (if they print it of course!).... It is with regret that we report that perhaps the last officer from the 7th Kings Own Scottish Borderers - Cyril Ashley died peacefully in his sleep on June 4th 2011 at the age of 97. In September 1944 he was OC 8 Platoon of B Company led by Major Michael Forman. A Territorial before the war he was called up for full-time service and was awarded a war time commission in the Royal Artillery in April 1943 before transferring to the KOSB in January 1944 just about as the unit was converting to an airlanding battalion. Flying from RAF Down Ampney as part of the first lift on 17th September Cyril and his platoon landed safely on LZ S where after forming up marched the few miles north west to act as part of the guard force for the 4th Parachute Brigade’s drop zone at Ginkel Heath, where they were due to land at 1100 on the 18th. B Company being positioned on the north west corner of the DZ closest to Ede - a likely direction from which the Germans might attack. The 7th KOSB repelled several attacks on the night of the 17th and during the day of the 18th and managed for the most part to keep Ginkel Heath clear for the 4th Parachute Brigade’s drop. After the drop of the 4th Parachute Brigade the 7th KOSB’s next task was to act as guard force around LZ L, east of Wolfheze for the ‘heavy equipment’ of the Polish Parachute Brigade and this move was successfully achieved with Cyril’s platoon taking up positions around the Johannahoeve farm. They remained in this area until the afternoon of the 19th when it became the situation became very confused with the 4th Parachute Brigade withdrawing towards Wolfheze. The 7th KOSB now that their role of guarding drop and landing zones was over were meant to take up a position in the ‘Divisional’ perimeter and so headed towards Oosterbeek for further orders. During this phase most of B Company including Cyril and his platoon lost contact with the rest of the Battalion. The OC Major Forman, eventually made it south of the railway line near Wolfheze and found the 4th Parachute Brigade HQ and Brigadier Hackett advised that he thought the remainder of the 7th KOSB were in the village. This report was found to be false after a recce by the OC. It was then agreed that the KOSB should remain with the 4th Parachute Brigade overnight. On the morning of the 20th Hackett advised Major Forman to go to the Hotel Wolfheze where he could rejoin his unit. As Michael Forman said; ‘We moved to the Hotel Wolfheze, which was unoccupied but with the Germans nearby. There were no signs of the unit. In the Hotel I heard a BBC news report that our forces were fighting near the river.’ Michael Forman decided to head south and it was during this move that B Company ran into very strong German forces and became surrounded. As Cyril said ‘So we were left without any ammunition or supplies and my commanding officer had a difficult decision to make, either he led a bayonet charge across the heath which would have been suicidal or to surrender. We surrendered to the enemy and as prisoners of war; we were marched to the railway station and loaded onto cattle trucks for the journey to Oflag 79 at Braunschweig, Germany. We were there throughout the following winter and our two greatest enemies were cold and hunger.' Cyril remained a prisoner for the rest of the war until an American Unit liberated the camp in April 1945 and a month later, we flew back to the UK where in his words ‘We enjoyed the best bacon and eggs ever.’ After the war he married Elsie who he described as ‘the loveliest Wren in the British Legion.’ The couple had met whilst Cyril was training in the Isle of Man and went on to have two sons and five grandchildren. A regular visitor to the commemorations I had the pleasure of meeting him several times and a real gentleman. He also visited local schools near his home in Shropshire telling of his war time experiences. He also was at the RAF Museum at Cosford nearly every Tuesday with other WW2 veterans to talk to visitors and I met him there in 2010 which was the last time we were to meet.
