Messages posted by: Phil Eyden

I would very much like to find out some information on L/Cpl Frank Middleton of the Royal Armoured Corps. He's the only one of the group who left his graffiti in the fort I cannot find a photo of and have only the scantest of details. It's great to show the public photographs against the names when I am giving tours so a photograph would be wonderful.

Could anyone help please? Thank you.

Thank you for looking him up Geoff. It is a different George Price as 'our' George survived the war. We'll keep looking.

(By the way, I'm not really new here. I posted some of my research on No.4's Op. Abercrombie a couple of years ago. That raid was 71 years ago this evening, quite a thought when I spent all day working at the Drop Redoubt fort in Dover today, their base prior to the raid).

Phil

I've received a request from a friend to try and find out any information on her husbands father. His name was George Price, he joined the commandos from the Cheshires, was born in Liverpool in 1916 and had the nickname 'Kitner'. He was present on D-Day.

Unfortunately my friend does not know which Commando he was in, but would appreciate any leads. Thank you.

Yes, it is a very good resource and is growing daily. £80 per year works out at about £1.50 per week for unlimited page views. Searching is quite easy too - just enter the term into the search box then filter via newspaper and date.

What is fascinating is the level of detail one can find. Although other online national newspapers are fine for the 'big' stories, for local research they are often of little help. For my own particular area, the Dover garrisons, these local newspaper records have been utterly invaluable.

One can find out tales from the street you live in or family history. However, I've found they are not so hot on WW2 due to the level of censorship applied. If you are interested in local history, £80 a year is good value for money.

I'm afraid I don't know any of the answers to questions about his military service Mark. My source was the online local newspaper archive at the British Library. One has to pay to view pages but if one does a lot of historical research, it is definitely worth it. The papers I found the references are:

Hull Daily Mail
Derby Daily Telegraph
Western Daily Press
Western Daily News

I can add is that he was 26 when he escaped so he must have been born in 1920, committing his first offence when he was 11. The link below adds a little more - he appeared to join the commandos for two years having volunteered from the Royal Artillery. He appears to have had a crime-filled youth and had been to Borstal.

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/55938503

I pieced this together from online newspaper records for you Mark:

On Monday 16th June 1946, George Jackson of Nottingham, escaped from Parkhurst Prison on the IOW having been sentenced to five years for larceny and housebreaking; sentence having been carried out at Godmanchester in January 1945. He broke out of his cell and managed to climb a 20ft prison wall. Passengers, boats and trains were checked. A string of burglaries in which food was stolen were reported around Parkhurst. 1000 police, prison warders, bloodhounds, armed paratroopers and even a plane were called in on a huge man hunt. On Sunday 23rd June a house at Alverstone was broken into, the twelfth break-in, but this time a shotgun and 50 rounds were taken.

The police nearly intercepted him on Tuesday 26th when he was reported having been seen peering through a hedge into a house at Yaverland. They found in a wood where he had been staying; a Home Guard trench which had been equipped with money, towels, food, soap and ration books. He was eventually recaptured on his 13th day at large, on the 28th June at 02:40 at Downend having been picked up in headlights running off.

He seemed to be a serial criminal with a series of criminal convictions dating back to 1931. He was sentenced again at Winchester for the crimes he committed whilst at large and was given a further five years.

I have just discovered that back in April this year, and on the 70th anniversary of the raid, The Daily Telegraph reprinted an interview with James Ennis. I don't suppose anyone here has a copy? If so, please drop me a line as I'd very much like to read it. Thank you.

I met the nephew of Leslie 'Tubby' Finnis a couple of days ago - it was a chance conversation whilst walking around the Western Heights at Dover whilst clearing rubbish and paths ready for our Open Weekend this Saturday and Sunday. By an amazing coincidence with my research into Op. Abercrombie, his nephew told me he had been stationed in the Drop Redoubt! Finnis was a very early member of No.4 at its formation and served at Dieppe.

I informed him that I would try and obtain further details about his uncle, so if anyone could help it would be appreciated so I can pass the information on.

Oh my goodness - thank you Guy (and Pete). This is really exciting for me because this image shows the state of some of the parade ground buildings at the Drop Redoubt by WW2. Photos of the inside of the Drop Redoubt in use are like hen's teeth, this literally is only the fourth image I've seen even though the place was occupied for 150 years.

Even though we work monthly at the fort, our small gang of volunteers have next to no images of the fort in use, and precisely none of the buildings opposite the barracks. This provides our first hint of what they looked like. It seems that the 1860 Staff Sergeants quarters had a bricked up doorway and the kitchen front had been smashed through to make a storage shed.

The commando one can see hot footing it behind a wall and up a passage is heading off to use the urinals!

Really fascinating, and thank you so much.

Lt. Ennis can be seen in the Pathe newreel covering the raid:

http://www.britishpathe.com/video/commandos-raid-boulogne

Following my researches into the Hardelot raid and it's connection to a local old fort in Dover (please see the 'Abercrombie' thread) I have discovered a few bits and pieces relating to Lt. James Francis Ennis of B Troop, No.4 Commando and thought I would put it together for you here. He had the nicknames 'Jock' due to his Scottish ancestry and 'Carpet Slippers' which I'll try to explain below!

Born 1910 in Glasgow, his home address being Craigielea, 20 Roman Road, Bearsden, he went to St. Aloysius School, Glasgow and then attended Glasgow University, followed by two years at Hendon Police College. He joined the Met Police in 1935 and became a Police junior Inspector at Arbour Square in Limehouse. Whilst living at Blackheath in London he married and had two children. During his service in the Met he patrolled and broke up a number of clashes between Fascist and Anti-Fascist demonstrators in London including a major disturbance on Tower Hill.

He also the rank of Lieutenant in the Clyde Heavy Brigade (TA). At the time of mobilisation he obtained a commision in Royal Artillery at outbreak of war and from there volunteered for the commandos. There he was posted to 'B' Troop of No.4 Cdo.

During the Hardelot raid he was second appointed in command of No.3 Fighting Patrol under Lt. Peter Mercer-Wilson. He also recorded many beach reports mostly relating to the terrain, many of these still exist in the National Archives as sections of Lovat's official record of the raid.

With his police background, he took a home-made truncheon with him to France - this was a twenty inch rubber tube with three and a half inch steel bar in one end. He regretted not having the opportunity to use it.

Whilst the rest of the commandos actually wore gym shoes on the raid to minimise sound, Ennis wore carpet slippers tied to his feet with elastic bands. "I wanted to invade France in comfort", he claimed. On his return he stated "They will never be the same again, but it was in a good cause". His father speculated that he had no gym shoes as he took size 11 and perhaps none could be found to fit him.

At Dieppe he was Mentioned in Dispatches commanding the mortar section of No.4. The Recommendation read: "Lt. Ennis was in charge of the 3th Mortar Detachment which brought effective fire to bear on the Heavy Battery. By good staff work and well thought out preparatory training the Mortar Detachment kept up a concentration of accurate and devastating fire upon the German Gun crews. Lt. Ennis organized an efficient ferry system bringing Mortar ammunition reserves from the supporting landing craft. He also succesfully covered the re-embarkation of the Commando silencing en enemy Machine-Gun on the top of the cliff and keeping enemy Mortar fire at a respectable distance."

He was described by his father, W.P. Ennis as "a lad who always liked a bit of comfort" and described by his Police colleagues as "slim and easy going with great sense of humour.". He was also a close friend of Lord Lovat.

Sadly, to date I have not been able to find out anything further of his career post-Dieppe.

*Photo removed by admin. Can still be viewed in gallery [view image]. Correct image of Lieutenant Ennis uploaded by Phil Eyden below.

Thanks again Nick - just crossed over posts there!

Phil Eyden wrote:This is a bit of a wildcard, but were there any members of No.4 of the period with the nickname 'Dusty'? I have a piece of graffiti that looks as if it was written at the same time as those I have listed above, but sadly can't pin it to anyone.

It may be entirely unconnected and be a member of an infantry regiment from the nearby Grand Shaft Barracks, but if you don't ask...

I've just worked this one out - the graffiti scratched into the brick in the side arms store is L/Bdr 'Dusty' Maund of C Troop. This is excellent - it means we've now found the 'autographs' of five members of No.4 and three of the Canadians. It was right beneath 'Dickie' Mann's and Frank Middleton's names in the Side Arms Store.

I'd love to find a photo - can anyone help please?

According to James Dunning in 'The Fighting Fourth' he was a 'rascally character, fearless, outspoken but loyal and dependable in action. He became the batman/runner/'minder' to a young subaltern, Robert Dawson, at Weymouth, and stayed throughout the war, during which time Dawson advanced from Section Officer to Commanding Officer. Maund was one of the first in No.4 to be decorated, when he was Mentioned in Despatches for his part in the Lofoten Islands Raid.'

He is also featured on the Dieppe list.

I hope this is of some interest, my ongoing list of who took part in the raid. I've been compiling it from several different sources but think I've now hit a brick wall...It would be good to know who the officers are in the Lovat briefing photos. Styles and Ennis are identified, but it's putting faces to names for the others is near impossible for me.

No.4 Commando (B&C Troop) - 100 men:

Capt. Style David C.W. (C Troop) (Lanc. Fus) (OIC Centre Section Beach Head)
Capt. Webb G.G.H. (B Troop) (Royal Artillery) (OIC No.4 Fighting Patrol)
Lieut. Smith, A.D.C. (Intel Corps) (Adj. to Lovat)
Lieut. Ackernley M.C.R. (Royal Corps of Signals)
Lieut. Mercer-Wilson, Peter Maziere (OIC No.3 Fighting Patrol) (KIA Normandy)
Lieut. Ennis, James Francis 'Carpet Slippers' (B Troop) (Royal Artillery) (2nd in command No.3 Fighting Patrol)
Lieut. Dawson, R.W.P. (Loyals) (OIC No.1 Group - right sector of beachhead)
Lieut. Veasey, A.F.S. 'Fairy' (Worcesters) (2nd in command No.1 Group - right sector of beachhead)
Tsm. Dunning, James (C Troop) (Royal Armoured Corps) (2nd in command Centre Section beachhead)
Tsm. Chattaway, Louis (B Troop) (Ox & Bucks) (2nd in command No.4 Fighting Patrol)
A/Rsm. Hobson (B Troop) (No.4 Fighting Patrol)
Cpl. Mann, Richard 'Dickie' (C Troop) (Royal Berks) GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT
L/Cpl. Middleton, Frank.(Royal Armoured Corps) GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT
L/Cpl. Clark, Eric 'Nobby' (Royal Ulster Rifles) GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT
L/Bdr. Maund, F 'Dusty' (C Troop) (Royal Artillery) GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT
L/Cpl. Shearing (shot in leg)
L/Cpl. Thomas
Gdsm. Powell, Joseph (C Troop) (Grenadier Guards) (Gunner in LSC, not to land)
Gdsm. Spearman, William (Grenadier Guards)
Gnr. Davies, Bernard (Royal Artillery)
Spr. Kennett, Kenneth (Royal Engineers)
Pte. Mellis, James (Lovat Scouts) (Mentioned in despatches).
Bdr. Pike, H.F. (Royal Artillery) GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT

Carleton & York (Infantry) Rgt (Canada) - 50 men:

Capt. Maclean Ian S. (M.O) - (Stayed in the Redoubt)
Lieut. Ensor Jack F (OIC of Canadian operation)
Lieut. Farthing, (Bridgehead)
Lieut. Snell, (Bridgehead)
Lieut. Smith W.Y, (No.1 patrol)
Lieut. Thorton (Beachmaster)
Lieut. Groom (in LSC, not to land)
Pte. Akerley, George Leonard, (D. Coy). GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT (KIA Sicily)
Pte. Ricker, Everett (D. Coy) GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT
Pte. Springer, W.E. (B. Coy) GRAFFITI IN REDOUBT

Royal Navy

Lieut. McKinnon (Flotilla Leader)
Lieut. Cmdr. Thomas N. Cartwright (MGB)

Thanks Nick,

Here are the others. Again, I believe these are (mostly) unseen since they were originally published in 42. Apologies for the poor quality, but I did what I could...

1) Lord Lovat briefing the No.4 officers on the parade ground of the Drop Redoubt (see above). This image is known and has been duplicated in publications before although exactly where the briefing took place has not.

2) No.4 marching with equipment in the area of the fort. I suspect this is Military Hill. I wish I had a clearer copy of this to pin it down.

3) Returning from the raid on the morning of the 22nd April. The walkway is the now-demolished submarine jetty in Dover Eastern Docks.

4) Returning from the raid and handing in unspent ammunition (?)

5) Return from the raid image.

6) Naval ratings somewhere in Dover Eastern Docks.

7) Naval officers following the raid.

I've just unearthed this image, published in the Evening Standard on 23rd April 1942. As far as I know it's the first time it's been seen for 70 years. It shows 'B' and 'C' troops of No.4 Commando lined up on the Drop Redoubt parade ground. (The Drop Redoubt is a Napoleonic fort on the Western Heights at Dover). This would have been taken on the afternoon of the 21st April as the troops awaited the briefing by Lord Lovat prior to the Hardelot raid.

The image in the No.4 Gallery on this website of Lovat giving the briefing would have been taken very shortly after this photo and is the same group of soldiers down on the parade ground taken from the opposite angle.

I expect the soldiers in the foreground in the helmets are probably Royal Engineers, but please do shout if I'm wrong.

Full size shows an interesting collection of equipment - life preservers, rifles and half a dozen Bren guns. There are a couple more images, mostly portraits, that show some of the commandos on their return the next day. I'll try and post them over the next couple of days.

(P.S. Spot the commando picking his nose. :D)