Whilst browsing I spotted my grandfather in this picture. All that I know is that it was taken before the fall of Tobruk in 1941. Could anybody shed any light on it?
I would say that was taken quite late in 1941 (December), after the British breakout and victory in Operation CRUSADER. The gun they are sitting on is one of the ex-French 155mm GPF pieces used by German artillery (533rd Arty Bn I think) to shell Tobruk. As you can see here, some were captured by the British during the breaking of the siege ring. Here are some more pictures of the weapon, at least one showing it in German service in North Africa. CANNON DE 155mm GPF mle. 1917 | Facebook
TTH is right. Sometime between 9 December 41 and June 42. The forage cap and great coat of the guy in the front are a dead give-away. There were a view of the coastal artillery battalions with this gun. Do you have any other pictures to share? Which unit was he in? All the best Andreas
I stumbled on this picture on the internet. I have no other photos from this particular period. According to the MoD's medal entitlement letter, my grandfather was with 10th Fd Regt RA at this time, but I think they were actually in India then. I found some NAAFI tokens from Sudan and Egypt in his things, and whilst alive he mentioned being in N.Africa before Burma.
I stumbled on this picture on the internet. I have no other photos from this particular period. According to the MoD's medal entitlement letter, my grandfather was with 10th Fd Regt RA at this time, but I think they were actually in India then. I found some NAAFI tokens from Sudan and Egypt in his things, and whilst alive he mentioned being in N.Africa before Burma. If he was in North Africa before El Alamein, he wasn't entitled to a medal for that (a disgrace, in my view), as far as I know. The only thing I think could help is if you get his full service record? All the best Andreas
He was in the first battle of El Alamein but didn't get an Africa star. I'm currently waiting for his service record. Originally they said it would take 6 months but it's been a year now.
Qualifying dates for Africa Star Ministry of Defence | Defence For... | Veterans | Medals | Africa Star Dates : 10 Jun 1940 - 12 May 1943 Star awarded for 1 or more days' service in North Africa, Malta or Egypt between the above dates. The qualifying areas for the Africa Star also include the earlier areas of conflict against the Italians in East Africa; those serving in Abyssinia, Sudan, Eritrea, Kenya or Somaliland between certain other specified dates will also qualify.
Actually I got that wrong... He should have been entitled to the star then, but not the 8 Army clasp Ministry of Defence | Defence For... | Veterans | Medals | Africa Star Strange. Will be interesting to see what you can get out of the service record. Where did you find the picture? All the best Andreas
Found it on a Google image search. It has also been used by BBC's People's War and published in a book.
With regards to medal entitlement, on my reckoning he should have an Africa and Pacific Star in addition to what the MoD say. When his service record arrives, hopefully I'll be able to prove this.
Found it on a Google image search. It has also been used by BBC's People's War and published in a book. The image is presently the property of Corbis, from their Hulton-Deutsch Collection. The Hulton-Deutsch Collection was formerly the Radio Times-Hulton Picture Library, the foundation of which consisted of photos originally taken for both Radio Times and Picture Post. If you want any further information about the men or unit in the photo, you might have to scour 1941-1942 issues of Picture Post, because the Corbis caption is quite vague. Knowing who the photographer was might help.
Several points: If your account of your father's movements is correct, then you want to find a unit that served in North Africa and then went to Burma later. Take a look at this link: British Artillery Regiments The 10th Field Regt served with the 2nd Division in India and Burma, but never served in North Africa. Several RA units (51st Field Regt, etc) served with the 6th Division (later re-numbered the 70th Division) in North Africa and went to India-Burma later, where at least two were converted to Chindit infantry. Many units went from the Middle East to India between Dec 41 and spring 42, but I cannot find a unit that both fought at First Alamein (which took place in July 42) and then went to India-Burma. If your father did not fight at First Alamein then an RA unit of 70th Div might fit though, because that division was in Tobruk from October '41 and did fight in CRUSADER. Gunners from the 70th thus would have had a chance to examine the captured German 155s. (Note: two RA units also went from N Afr to Burma with 7th Armd Bde after CRUSADER, 414 Fd Bty and a battery of 95 Anti-Tank Regt.) Of course, your father might have been transferred from one regt to another between First Alamein and his movement to India-Burma. It happened all the time.
OK, I may be wrong. The 5th Indian Division and 161st Indian Bde did leave North Africa later in 1942, the 5th after fighting at First Alamein and the 161st Bde after the second battle. Among the RA units that left with 5th Indian Div were the 4th and 28th Field Regts, both of which had served in the Sudan in 1939-41...where they might have gotten those NAAFI tokens. The 4th also served with the 6th/70th Div in 1941, and spent some time as 8th Army Troops. If the 4th was in CRUSADER as well, then it might be a candidate.
