B Troop 47 RM commando Walcheren

Hi All
I am trying to get as much info on my uncle who served with 47 commando B troop. He was marine Albert George may Thatcher PLY/x110293. My dad would take us on holiday to Ostende and can always remember his grave, some of the records I have found say he was injured on the 1st Nov and died on the 2nd (DOWS) and looking at others from 47 guessing he got cas evaced.
Any info would be graeatly appreciated.
Andy Thatcher

Google 47 Commando. There is a dedicated website. Your man is listed.

Hello Andy and welcome to our Archive

Mne Albert George May Thatcher is remembered in our own Roll of Honour as seen below with the source of the information shown as Professor (Capt) John Forfar MC. 47RM Cdo. the author of the book 'From Omaha to the Scheldt. There the author describes the incident that led to your uncle's death. He was on board LCT 18 which was hit by a shell and many were killed or wounded by shrapnel . Your uncle died of wounds the next day. This book is an excellent account about 47RM Commando and won the Royal Marines Historical Society Award in 2005. The author was the 47RM Commando Medical Officer and later went onto to become a highly respected Professor of Medicine.

If you have a copy of a photo of your uncle we would very much like to include it in our own online Archive.

http://www.commandoveterans.org/AlbertThatcher47RMCommando

This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 04/03/2018 11:09:05

I should just add that the LCT was a Landing Craft Tank and it carried many of the vehicles to be used by 47 RM Commando to get ashore. The author describes in detail the incident. Briefly as the ramp was lowered to let these vehicles off the LCT received a direct hit from a shell which amongst the other vehicles that it hit was a 'Weasel' carrying flame throwing equipment. This vehicle exploded.

The book used to be available on Kindle and I highly recommend reading it.

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission have the detail of the headstone on their record for your Uncle. The inscription reads as follows:

Just as I last saw you
You will always
Be in my memory, son.
Gone but not forgotten

https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2082109/thatcher,-albert-george-may/

I have just been updating our record for another from 47RM Commando and note this further quote, which may be of interest regarding the conditions, from the book by 47 RM Commando medical officer Captain John Forfar MC:

Due to weather conditions between the 2nd and 5th November casualties were not able to be evacuated and had to be retained ashore in crowded tented facilities. Eventually more than 70 were evacuated by one LCT on the 6th November, the journey to Ostend taking 10 hours due to the weather.

Thank you so much Pete for the information, it has closed the book on what happened on that day. My dad was the youngest of five and always believed his brother died instantly and although he will never know the full event as he has passed on it hit me hard when I started researching and it said that he died on the 2nd after being wounded on the 1st, it never stopped my dad serving in the signals, myself serving in 2LI ( now 5 rifles) and my daughter joining the RA next week ( 11-3-18) as a junior in Harrogate.
Once again thankyou so much and I will keep researching his career
Andy Thatcher.

Hi Andy

Have you any photo, in uniform or civvies, of your Uncle that you could post on here, or email it to me. so as we could include it in our gallery and on his ROH page ?

Pete