Victor Thomas Browne.

Hello!
I am researching my Grandad- Victor Thomas Browne, he was in No 1 Commando. I would love to find out where he went with his service. Is this the place to start finding information?

Hi Vicki,

Welcome to the CVA Website and Forums.
Yes it is the place you can start to find out about your grandfather's service... :D

I'm pleased to say that we have in in the No.1 Commando Nominal Roll - that shouldn't surprise you because you obviously knew he'd served in No.1 Cdo, but actually there was never a definitive nominal roll (that we can find) of those who served as commandos.
A very small team have painstakingly compiled names from documents, records, War Diaries, books and photos to ensure that our fathers, grandfathers, uncles, cousins etc are remembered for what they were and for what they did.

http://www.commandoveterans.org/1CommandoNomRollA-C

You will note that we don't have either his parent regiment nor his service number - do you know these at all so that I can update his entry on the nominal roll?

Here is another link which will give you a background on the history of No.1 Commando so you will know where in the World he served

http://www.commandoveterans.org/1Commando

But to find out more about his individual service, I would recommend that you apply to the MoD - the ONLY custodian of WWII Service Records - for a scan of his original, handwritten service records. These give details from enlistment through to demob and include training, postings, attachments, promotions ( and demotions, if applicable) embarkations for overseas, disembarkations , theatres of war, woundings, hospitalisations, disciplinaries and even jailings...

To apply you will need the consent of his next of kin ( one of the application forms will show you who the immediate NoK is), a copy of his death certificate and a one off fee of £30 (unless your grandmother is still with us and signs the consent - then the fee is waived).

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/711147/20180524-request_service_details_NOK_part1_v6.2.pdf

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/545060/request_for_service_details_army_application_part2_1_.pdf

I believe your grandfather passed in 1988 and so, in case you need a copy of his death certificate, I have provided another link to another gov.uk webpage.:

https://www.gov.uk/order-copy-birth-death-marriage-certificate

Now, we do have a unique collect of over 10,000 images in our Website Gallery and I'd suggest that you brows through our No.1 Commando Album to see if you can spot your grandfather - if you do, maybe you'll let us know and we can annotate the photo(s) accordingly. Please pay particular attention to the No. 1 Commando panorama photo on - click on the thumbnail to open the image, then click again to enlarge the photo...

http://gallery.commandoveterans.org/cdoGallery/v/units/1/

Maybe you have some photos of him that you'd like to share with us and that we can upload to the Album?

Nick

Hi Vicki,
Well after a bit of digging, Graham Cooper and I have discovered that his parent regiment was the Cambridgeshire Regt which ties in with the fact that he was Head Gardener at West Wratting Park Nurseries, Cambs in '49.

Nick