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141 Royal Armoured Corps (The Buffs) Churchill Crocodiles

Discussion in 'Western Europe 1943 - 1945' started by grahame555, Feb 20, 2009.

  1. Jon Little

    Jon Little New Member

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    My grandad sergeant Bob little won the MM at cormelles. I have a copy of his citation on the wall in my house
     
  2. Richard Brown

    Richard Brown New Member

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    Hello,

    My Grandfather who passed away just a few days ago served in 141 RAC.

    He didn’t talk much about his service until the last couple of decades when he occasionally discussed some of his memories with certain members of the family.

    His details - 14331072 Tpr Stanley Charles Sutton. 141RAC, C Sqn, 11Tp.

    I’d be interested to know if there are any further details of his service, and also if there are any other surviving members of 141?
     
  3. rac1945

    rac1945 New Member

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    Richard,

    Very sorry to hear your sad news, I hope you managed to get to listen to some of his recollections over those years. Here is a little extra information on your grandfather's service. He was on the nominal roll for 25 April 1944 which confirms he was with the regiment before Normandy but he's not on the transfer list from 7th Bn Buffs in 1941. His trade is noted as Gunner Mechanic but I don't have a note of what position in the tank he served in, did he ever say what his job in the tank was? He left the regiment in September 1945 in a tranche of men that were posted to the Royal Scots Greys to complete their service before being demobbed.

    Unfortunately no-one wrote a history for C Sqn but one man who served in the sqn published his memoir - In At The Finish, North West Europe 1944/45 by J G Smith, he served in 13 Tp. It's a rare one to get hold of but does come up on Abe and eBay.

    A book that is easy to get hold of is the 79th Armoured Division history - The Story of 79th Armoured Division, October 1942 - June 1945, 141RAC features a lot in the narrative. I'd fully recommend getting an original copy rather than one of the reprints if you can, it's the same volume your grandfather would have got if he bought one in 1945, it was a hardback with a dust jacket and it regularly comes up on Abe and eBay.

    John
     
  4. Richard Brown

    Richard Brown New Member

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    John,

    Thank you for your reply. I did indeed manage to listen to some of the stories over the years, although it’s quite likely he kept the most harrowing memories from us all.

    I remember him telling me not so long ago that he was a radio operator in the tank, although was trained in all roles.

    It’s interesting you’ve mentioned the Royal Scots Greys, I don’t think any of the family were aware of that although he did tell us after the war he was mainly travelling around Europe with the military band (although we’re not sure which one that would have been).

    Is it likely to be just clerical error that he’s not on the transfer list in 1941?

    Also, thank you for your book recommendations- I will look out for those. I printed a copy of Capt Harry Bailey’s ‘In All Innocence’ a couple of years ago and he remembered a few of the names and events mentioned in there.

    Richard
     
  5. rac1945

    rac1945 New Member

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    Richard,

    Indeed, that was very much the way of that generation, not even many memoirs venture into those darker memories.

    Once the war was over and the men were being demobbed, especially once the threat of transfer to the Japanese theatre was over, men in regular regiments were naturally on the demob roster but since those regiments would continue to exist after the war they transferred in men from wartime raised regiments, such as 141RAC, to fill the ranks and keep those regular units at a functioning level. Men from 141RAC went to many different regiments, the Greys being a common destination. Whether he was in the Greys' band or moved on from them can't be determined from the 141RAC war diary. But, if you contact the archives at the Tank Museum (open again from next week) and send a request to see a copy of the TRACER card for your grandfather that will give you the basic info on his regimental service.

    It could be a clerical error he's not on that list, do you know he was in the 7th Bn Buffs in 1941? Or it could be he joined in 42 or 43. The TRACER card should answer that and may also give a clue to his band playing.

    John
     

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