Welch fusiliers, casualty buried at Arromanches, what could have caused his death?

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Always possible. Keeping an open mind.
But I'm sticking with an initial burial in France for the moment, and a concentration to a larger Nomandy cemetery e.g. Bayeux, before I expand the search.

If he had no ID on him, would that indicate e.g. serious injuries (explosion/fire?), or possibly what?

Harry

 

If the casualty is/was the first week in June (possibly) and the RWF first lost man is 28th June 44 does that not then cast doubt on the Regiment the soldier belonged too? With no recorded casualties during the initial stages any clerical errors are slim because they are not exactly going to be rushed off their feet? If `unknown Richards` were a casualty then there would I presume be a more concerted effort to trace/record him ?

The earlier RWF casualties appear to be Commandos

Post War Widows pensions were reliant on mens service records,to have a service record the soldier needed a number . Each number needed a record (possibly in triplicate )

If he had no ID on him he would be buried as an Unknown and commemorated on the Bayeux Memorial but he would be missed by his unit . A man does not attach himself to an Army unit a record will exist for him the only problem is theres no actual `name`. Men did disappear but for them to disappear they would have to be known/recorded in the first instance.

Strange one ,which is going to be impossible to prove

Kyle

 

This sounds like pure rumour/conjecture.

Could be some unlucky chap like Goddard who has a fatal mishap with his Sten, then moved.

I'd appreciate much more from OP but this ties into nothing I've dug into into any of the RWF units, and bares no similarity with any account, written, oral, history etc, that I've seen.

I'm pretty confident on this but happy to be proven wrong.

 

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"Men did disappear but for them to disappear they would have to be known/recorded in the first instance."
Hi Kyle, this is really helpful. I am sure he would be missed by his unit - and so it's almost definite he is recorded somewhere, but it may be that he's not recorded under the name I have. Just been talking to a guy who was adopted at birth and has 2 completely different names. Also, people can change their surnames if e.g their mother is widowed and gets remarried, and this happens a lot during war time. So I'm guessing it's a problem with the name, not any clerical error or omission. Geez.
Thinking cap on! I haven't given up yet.
Harry

 

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Hi Swiper, thanks for your thoughts.
There's always a reason why someone or something can't be found, and what I'm looking for now is that reason. The case itself is genuine, I am happy that the man existed, but the records don't show him there, with the name written in my notes.
Happy to accept that the "RWF" is mistaken as his unit in 1944.
Harry

 

Sometimes the CWGC `additional information` option can give you clues although if this unknown soldier was an orphan or similar there might not be any `additional information`

Just a thought anyhow here`s two `Foster sons` as an example:-

YORKPrivate7363459 GEORGE ERIC 06 June 1944Age 25BAYEUX MEMORIALPanel 18, Column 3. VIEW RECORDRoyal Army Medical CorpsUnited Kingdom

O'REILLYPrivate1602722 JAMES 18 June 1944Age 21BAYEUX MEMORIALPanel 18, Column 2. VIEW RECORDSpecial Air Service Regiment, A.A.C.United Kingdom

Kyle

 

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Now that's a great lead, Kyle, I didn't realise that this level of detail existed. 'Clues' are what we need. Name are tricky things to pin down, and in daily life people sometimes use several names, depending on the circumstances (and I'm not talking about deception etc). I will pursue the idea of foster family/2nd family and see if anything comes up. Harry

 

Kyle, regarding the Bayeux Memorial, is this the only place where unaccounted-for British forces folk from the Normandy fighting are recorded? [I've been there, seen it, there are about 2000 names I think.] Harry

 

Casualty

Hello Harry,

Any possibility your chap was with the Monmouths?

Casualty

Good luck with your searching.

Kind regards, always,

Jim.

 

I do believe North west Europe Casualties are on the Bayeux Memorial . If you believe the unknown died in the first weeks (beeen buried near Arromanches) you can input dates into the CWGC search . i tried inputting `Wales` with no success yet Cardiff brought up hits / If you know the family you are research for try inputting their Town or City ?

Inputting dates brings the numbers down .

Kyle

 

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That's promising. So you'd say it's a dead-cert that everyone IS recorded, it's just a question of finding where and how. I will input some dates into the CWGC search as you suggest. I'll report back. Thanks for the idea. Harry

 

Could that reason actually be that "Richards" ISN'T a casualty?
We seem to be drip fed a snippet here, another there and now he's NOT RWF....

Why not scan the "notes" you have so we can see the same as what you are working from?
You're happy that the man existed, but you don't know his name, so how would you know if we "found" him?
Why specify a date period 8 June to 2nd July - why those dates in particular, not D Day to 31st July?
Why are you certain he was buried at "Arromanches"? Is it a beach burial, roadside or what - why do you specify Arromanches and not, say, Grayes sur Mer? Did he come ashore at Arromanches, which might help narrow down the possible units.

By 11 July I'm pretty sure that all German forces were well back from Arromanches, so if he died on 11 July it is likely to be accidental rather than hostile.

I'm leaving this, too vague for me to be more help.

 

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KevinBattle you've been a great help.
I'm new to this site and I didn't know how it works nor whether there would be anything anyone could do to assist. I was sent here by another person who thought I might be able to be offered 'specifics' e.g. details of where relevant records are - and in that sense my request's been highly successful.
The notes were made by someone else and I haven't been 'drip-feeding'. The details are sparse, which is not my fault. I'm also mindful that information which comes from people is not always accurate, and neither do I have a whole interesting 'story' to tell or to give you, like other people may do (e.g. all about their great-uncle who survived the sinking of HMS Isis).
I'm a dedicated researcher working with a small parcel of what I take to be facts, out of which I need to make some sense - hence my series of questions. Thanks a lot for your time, Harry

 

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Hello JimHerriot, thanks for your suggestion, it's very welcome.
My chap was, I truly believe, associated in some way with a fighting unit such that he was a "Welsh" + "fusilier". But not being a military historian myself, I don't know if that could be interpreted as belonging to a different unit from what the experts on here are calling the "RWF". My knowledge of how the army works is slim, which is why I'm very glad of the assistance.

Regarding the actual RWF, do you know from where they tended to recruit their men?

And could someone who considered themself a "Welsh fusilier" have served with the Monmouths, do you think?

Harry

 

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Thanks Owen, these are the types of details which will really help to nail it down. I didn't know there were block allocations of numbers, but now I do!
Harry

 

Hi,

You set the hares running in your first post by unequivocally stating your subject was a “Welch Fusilier” but you’re now backtracking and describing him as “Welsh” + “fusilier”?

I doubt members here will be able to assist you any further on your revised vague unit search parameters.

Steve

 

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That's OK! Your members have been more than generous.
I'm not backtracking in any way. I stand by what I've written here. But as a researcher I'm trained to adjust details in the light of what's discovered, and what specialists tell me.

The words Welsh and Welch are indistinguishable when spoken. I was advised to use the spelling Welch because there is actually a unit called "Welch fusiliers".

I had to choose some words to go in the box, in order to make a post. I used details from what I had. Nothing is unequivocal, least of all the line I chose. Everything is open to discussion, conjecture and correction. (An expert would probably have worded the line differently; I am not an expert on military matters.)

As it is, I've found 3 possible candidates, thanks to what your members have told me. I'll follow them up. When I hit on the correct person I'll post the information up here.

Very grateful to you all, Harry

 

Out of interest how will you know when you have hit the correct person? as everything is very vague I cant quite see how the Eureka moment will arrive (I really hope it does, so good luck with it)

 

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AB64 I'm happy to explain further... is there the ability to message one another on here? (Or exchange contact details?) I don't know how it works - and don't want to contravene regulations. But will gladly enlighten you further. Harry