Guardsman Stanley Bolland

I am currently researching the career of Guardsman Stanley Bolland.
Stan was my uncle & was killed in North Africa in 1941 while in the SAS, on secondment from 8 Commando.
My father is now his only surviving sibling and we are trying to discover exactly what happened to Stan in 1941.
Can anyone help?
Comments, information, links & photographs gratefully received.

Guardsman Stanley Bolland
2 Bn Scots Guards
8 Commando
L Detachment SAS
No 2696934

Many thanks,

John Bolland

John - I have responded to you on your post on the other forum
Best wishes,
Sam

John,
i'm sure you've already seen this but here is a link to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) record for your uncle.

http://www.cwgc.org/search/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=2119742

Nick

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 01/04/2010 11:13:16

John,

I have a book entitled 'The Phantom Major' by Virginia Cowles, 1958, which is about David Stirling and the formation of the SAS.
Chapter 3, "Action", describes the first raid carried out by 'L' Detachment on the 17 November 1941.

To summarise: In a storm and heavy winds, 6 Officers and 55 Other Ranks (ORs) parachuted from Bombay Bombers to attack the German airfield at Tamini & Gazala. Due to the conditions men were killed on the drop, many were captured, some disappeared and the airfields were never reached.
The pilot of the aircraft that carried Lt Bonnington's group was unable to find his bearings for the 'drop zone'. Finally, in desperation, he had radioed to the ground saying he was lost and asking for a beam to land on. The Germans had picked up his signal and in perfect English they had beamed him in to their own landing field. The occupants were all taken prisoner.
Of all the officers and men that took part in the raid only 4 Officers and 18 ORs returned...

I would presume that your uncle was one of those killed in the raid as 'L' Detachment's next action was on 8 December 1941.

Nick

Yes thats right Nick he was MIA on those raids. I think he may have been in the plane with David Stirling. Apparently commemorated on the El Alamein memorial. There are some good photos I have provided on the Gallery section of this site of Stanley in the UK and North Africa during his time in 8 commando.

He gets a mention in the book "The Orginals" by Gordon Stevens in a recollection by Dave Kershaw.

NIck,

That's a really good piece of information.

Many thanks,

John.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 01/04/2010 13:45:34

sammyb wrote:Yes thats right Nick he was MIA on those raids. I think he may have been in the plane with David Stirling.

If that is so then my book recounts that having landed very heavily in the pitch black night and, having been knocked unconscious for a few minutes, Stirling started looking for his group.

The Phantom Major, by Virginia Cowles wrote:He felt blood trickling down his face but he moved his arms and legs relieved to find that no bones were broken, When he stood up he had to brace himself against a raging wind. The air was thick with dust and sand which almost choked him. He could see nothing through the black, noisy night. He shouted but the gale carried his voice away. He flashed his torch. still saw nothing. he began to walk waving the torch. After a few minutes a light blinked in the distance; then off to the right was another and yet another. The group was starting to converge.
It took nearly an hour to assemble the men. One was missing and the remainder presented a sorry sight. There was a broken arm, a sprained wrist and two badly wrenched ankles. All of them had gashes and cuts. Apart from this only two out of ten supply parachutes were found...
For the next two hours the men searched down the line of wind for the missing soldier... Finally Stirling decided to give up. The soldier had probably been knocked unconscious on landing. ''By this time he must have been blown miles into the desert''...

Incidentally it may be of interest to learn that in her Acknowledgements in her book, Virginia Cowley thanked David Stirling for telling her all that he could remember and for racking his brain to try and place the details of the raids in their correct chronological order.

Nick

John

You have probably seen these in our gallery...the photos were supplied by Sam who has responded to you here already

http://www.commandoveterans.org/cdoGallery/v/units/8/Fred+Senior+and+Stanley+Bolland.jpg.html

Sam believes Stanley Bolland may be the man in the middle of the back row in this second one. Can you confirm that and I will update the picture accordingly

http://www.commandoveterans.org/cdoGallery/v/units/8/Fred+Senior+and+other+No_8+Commandos.jpg.html

Regards

Pete

Hi John,
i've just seen your message regarding S.Bolland and i have a little bit of info but as my reply is probably 6 months too late you may have the answers already anyway he was in the stick which went with David Stirling they were apparantly known as "Stirlings Guard" and sadly he was lost in action during the drop, as the weather was against them he may have been dragged away on landing. It would appear that this was the first time they had dropped with shovels and it may be that the shroud lines caught in the handle. The shovels were apparantly positioned behind their parachute packs, it could also have been a parachute malfunction or perhapts he landed safely but was unable to find the others of the stick, we will never know to be sure.
The full make up of the stick was as follows,
Captain D. Stirling,
CSM G. Yates,
Sjt. D. R. Tait,
L/Sjt. L.Colquhuon,
L/Cpl. J. Orton,
Pct. S. Bolland,
Pct. E.J. Cockbill,
Pct. F.C. Trenfield.
Hope this will be of use to you,
Regards,
Alan Orton.

Hi Alan,

This would corroborate the text from David Kershaw in the book "The Originals" by Gordon Stevens (page 70)
"After a couple of days and nights, we came to the Makele and Masous track, that cut right across our front, and we saw four or five bodies, which was going completely away from the direction that we were going. I got the glasses on them - I had binoculars with me - and it seemed that they were Sergeant Yates with Tranfield, Boland, Calhoun, and maybe a couple more. So we whistled and I got my .45 out and fired a few rounds but they took no notice. So we carried on."

I'm not sure what he meant by "bodies".

According to Special forces in the Desert War (National Archives publication) Stirling and Tait agreed to spilt off from the rest of the stick.

Sam

Hi Sam,
i've not read that particular book so i will try to track it down. i've spent years trying to put together what happened to that and the other sticks who didn't return. All i've had to go on is what my dad told me that after they had landed they split up and headed for the r/v and were convinced that they were heading in the wrong direction, but after a few days they spotted some English vehicles and they assumed that they were the advance guard of the Allied Forces but alas they were Italians and so he spent the next 4 years as a p.o.w.
From what i've been able to find out his stick was Stirling and those previously mentioned but there was another pct. as the sticks were made up as follows 9, 11, 11, 12 and 12.
I've managed to work out partial sticks for the others but a lot still eludes me but i have to admit it's good fun trying to work it all out.
Regards,
Alan.

Hi Alan,

I've had an interest in this raid for a while and its hard to get a true picture of what happened. I've read a few accounts in various books but there is a lack of consistency. Its certainly not 100% clear who was actually on the raid. I don't think anyone knows.

I recently came upon this...

http://www.scotsguards.info/Jurnel_Archive/2005/2005.pdf

...which contains a tribute to Danny Hill who was on the raid and his account gives some different info. eg suggests Stan Bolland was in McGonigals stick. It also gives a comprehensive list of the men but some are missing eg Calhoun (Colquhoun?). I think this is understandable given the passage of time.

Interestingly the list contains a Hill, Carrington and Robertson in addition to Bolland. I wonder if these are the same Hill, Carrington, Robertson in the 8 commando photos I have added to the photo gallery on this website. I am confident it is the same Bolland.

Sam

Hi Sam,
one thing for sure is you are quite right i don't think anybody really does know who was on the Squatter op. and certainly there is no real consistency in the accounts published One article i have shows Hill as being left out of the op. I did check the P.O.W. list on ancestory and this does indeed show him to have been taken prisoner and as i haven't seen him on any list for the other op's this pretty much puts him as taking part. My records had only got him listed without a christian name so at least i can add that to it. Regarding the other names you mention i would i think go with that they would be Originals but again who can be really sure.
I have a copy of the book you mentioned in the post to me right now so look forward to getting my hands on it.
Thanks for the info in the link it certainly made an interesting read.
Regards,
Alan.