Scafati, The Bridge at Sarno and the action there

I have worked out that it is possible that my grand-uncle, may have died at this action.

My grand-uncle is George Frank Dyer, of 1/6th Queen's (RWS) Regiment, and died on 28 Sep 1943, which is the date of this action.

Name: George Dyer
Given Initials: G F
Rank: Private
Death Date: 29 Aug 1943
Number: 6099233
Birth Place: Surrey
Residence: Surrey
Branch at Enlistment: Infantry
Theatre of War: Italy
Regiment at Death: Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey)
Branch at Death: Infantry
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I have gleaned the following:

Early on 24 September 1943 The King's Dragoon Guards in their two LST's unshackled their vehicles as the craft ran in towards the beach. As they arrived, the great bow doors opened and the KDG drove out at speed. They had arrived at Salerno, to be the Armoured car regiment for the British 10 Corps, part of the Fifth Army, coming under immediate command of 23rd Armoured Brigade. On the 26th the KDG moved out of the assembly area, driving through Salerno and Maiori to Ravello, then on the 28th advancing north across the mountains from Maiori. Lieutenant Phillips of 'A' Squadron found a bridge across the river Sarno intact, although strongly held by the enemy. He managed to get onto it but was driven off by heavy fire. He then kept it under observation until the arrival of 131 Brigade, who captured the bridge intact; and he himself finished the day at Scafati. Another 'A' Squadron patrol encountered stiff opposition at a second bridge, with heavy fighting taking place, but the Germans managed to blow the main bridge over the Sarno before retiring. 'B' Squadron advanced on the left nearer the sea, reporting Castel-mare and Gragano clear of the enemy, but they reached the line of the Sarno to find all the bridges blown and the Germans in strength on the far bank of the river. 'B' Squadron lost Trooper Rowell, badly wounded and later dying, to a sniper. (World War Two - Part 5)
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And:

The Scafati Memorial, Italy

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The Scafati Memorial
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The 9th September 1943 saw the first major allied assault on the mainland of Europe with the landings at Salerno on the south west coast of Italy. Two weeks later the Allied Forces, which included 169 Queen’s Brigade and 131 Queen’s Brigade, were striving to advance onto the plain of Naples.
At noon on 28th September 1943 1/6th Queen’s, led by Lieutenant Colonel Michael Forrester and with a squadron of 5 RTR, M Battery 3 RHA, an Anti-Tank Regt battery and an RE recce party under command, pushed through 1/7th Queen’s heading at high speed for their objective which was the important bridge at Scafati over the River Sarno. Their advance on a stormy day was so swift that A Company under Captain W L Johnson, with assistance from Italian partisans, outflanked the elements of the Herman Goering Division defending the bridge, killing or capturing them all and securing intact the bridge, which had been prepared for demolition.
Subsequent German counter attacks were repulsed by the battalion group and on 29th September 131 Bde pushed north from the Scafati bridgehead.
The rapid capture of the bridge meant that heavy artillery exchanges and aerial bombardment, and the prolonged street-by-street fighting, which have caused great loss of life and damage to Scafati, a fate which was to befall other Italian towns, were avoided. Michael Forrester was awarded the DSO and “Johnnie” Johnson the MC for the action.

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The Partisan Memorial
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The role of the Scafati partisans in capturing the bridge and in being the first to take up arms against the Germans was subsequently commemorated by a memorial on the bridge. The citizens held the battalion and Michael Forrester in high regard, and for many years prior to his death in 2006 a message was sent annually to him. A leading role in keeping alive the memory of the events of September 1943 was taken by the city historian Dr Angelo Pesce who had been in the city as a young boy during the battle.
In the summer of 2008 the city, through Dr Pesce, very kindly invited a number of guests from Britain to attend a day of events commemorating the 65th anniversary of the Battle for Scafati, to be held on Sunday 28th September 2008. These celebrations would include the unveiling of a memorial to honour the late Major-General Michael Forrester.

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Major General M Forrester CB, CBE, DSO and Bar, MC and Bar. He was a Freeman of the city of Scafati and also a Freeman of the island of Crete.
British guests at the ceremonies included General Forrester’s two sons, Simon and Nicholas, and his grandsons, Nick and James (the English and Gloucester rugby player), as well as General Forrester’s companion in later years Mrs Denise Patterson. Consul-General in Naples and Southern Italy, were amongst a party from the British diplomatic staff in Italy.
(Monuments & Memorials)

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Would anybody have more information, or could anyone point me in the right direction?

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By the way I should have mentioned that I am organising getting a copy of the War Diaries of the Battalion as soon as I can afford it, got a reasonable quote already for it.

 

Does anyone have an order of Battle or other informarion on the Herman Goring Division in 1943, specifically September '43? Or could you suggest where to look?

 

hi try this link, Axis History Factbook: Panzer-Division Hermann Göring , hope this helps. tonyrod

 

Thanks tonyrod.

 

no problem BFBSM, hope it helps, my uncles ship the HMS PRINS ALBERT LCI (small) landed commandos that ran into the
HERMANN GORING DIVISION ,see link for my family web site, WW1 - Rodaways of ww1-2 enjoy tonyrod

 

sorry for my english,
I'm from Sarno, near Scafati.
The river Sarno takess his name fron the country of Sarno. The river came from Sarno, pass by Scafati and flows in the see at Castellamare di Stabia...near Sorrento.
My father told me that during tha operation Avalanche in his house, my house, stay the Lieutenant Colonel Forrester!
I keep his insigna with his name and a star of his uniform thet the lieutenent colonel gives to my grandfather.
I'm proud of this heirloom

 

Excellent Nicola, Thank you for you input and welcome to the forum.

Can I be extremely cheeky and ask if you have any details about the action on the bridge?

Mark

 

yes i have a lot of details of the scafati battle.
There are two o three books about the battle...they are in my library I just have to find them and translate it.
As soon as I have some time i'll glad to do this

 

if memory serves me I should have a couple of copies of the books.
if I find them, I could send them by mail.

 

Nicola, thank you very much for the generous offer, it I greatly appreciated. I shall gladly pay for the postage.

Mark.

 

Dear friends unfortunately have not been able to find copies in most of the books on the Battle of Scafati. But I ordered them to the publisher.
In the meantime, I created a PDF of my books.
If you send me email addresses I will gladly send them to you.

 

An interesting web site
http://www.avalanche1943.it/it.html

 

Thanks, checking it out now.

Mark

 

Using the Unit War Diaries, and other sources, I have managed to put together the following using a number of references and Unit War Diaries.

By the 27th September, 1943 the 7th Armoured Division had completed their concentration, and were ready to take up the running after the German forces up the west coast of the boot of Italy towards Naples from Salerno(1). The 131st (Queen’s) Brigade, the lorried infantry of the 7th Armoured Division, had been sited near OLEVANO SUL TUSCIANO since 19 September. On the 27th the 1/6th Battalion Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment received orders to be ready to move at 1230hrs, at which time it moved off and moved 19miles to it’s leaguer position in SALERNO(2).

The plan, to take NAPLES, which had been developed, called for the 46th Division to clear a pass through the mountains to CAMARELLE with the US Rangers to form the bridgehead, near the NOCERA PASS. The 7th Armoured Division, with the 23rd Armoured Brigade under command, were to pass through the 46th and, take their first objective, SCAFATI on the River SARNO. The second objective was for the 23rd Armoured Brigade to advance to NAPLES, with the main part of the Division advancing to CAPUA on the River VOLTURNO passing north of Mount VESUVIUS.(3)

The roads in the area were narrow, and the terrain did not allow vehicles to move off the roads and concentrate – so the 7th Armoured Division had to move in-line behind the 46th Division at a density of 40 vehicles per mile over a length of 55 miles of road. The 46th Division moved three miles, still several miles short of NOCERA with elements occupying CAMARELLE,(4) General McCreery committed the 7th Armoured Division to passing through the infantry.(5)

At dawn on the 28th September the 1/7th Queen’s, seized the dominating high ground forward of the 46th Division to the north of CAVA DI TERRENI(6). There was some resistance from a small but determined rear guard, the 7th Armoured Division attacked along the axis CAVA DI TERRENI-NOCERA-SCAFATI, with the 1/7th Queen’s taking prisoner a straggler from 11 Company, 3rd Battalion, Hermann Göring Division(7). The 1/6th Queen’s passed through the 1/7th and had under command a squadron of the 5th Royal Tank Regiment, ‘M’ Battery of the 3rd Royal Horse Artillery (an Anti-Tank Regiment), and a Royal Engineers Recce Party(8).

‘A’ Squadron of the King’s Dragoon Guards were directed on SCAFATI, where there was a bridge was crossing the River SARNO and on the crossings to the west. Lt. P.N.G. Phillips was sent round AGRI and reported that the SCAFATI bridge was intact and strongly held. He got to the bridge on foot but was forced to retire by heavy fire, he remained in the vicinity until the arrival of the 1/6th Queen’s(9).

“A” Company of the 1/6th Queen’s, under Capt. W.L. Johnson, with assistance from Italian Partisans, made a lightening dash for the bridge. This unnerved the Hermann Göring Division outposts sufficiently that the bridge was not blown. The 1/6th Queen’s subsequently removed the charges and took 11 prisoners.

‘A’ Company, 1/6th Queen’s, then strengthened their hold on the bridge coming under extensive mortar and small arms fire at 1600hrs. A half-hour later an attempt to dislodge the bridgehead was made by a German troop carrier and armoured car, which failed.

The 1/6th Queen’s spent the rest of the day fighting battles in the streets against repeated counter attacks from the Hermann Göring Division, all of which were beaten off. At 1900hrs “A” Company was relieved by “D” Company and the bridgehead consolidated, at 2000hrs the Germans continued to attack the Queen’s positions suffering many killed, whilst inflicting no casualties(10).

Throughout the night of the 28th/29th September there were periods of artillery concentrations which the Germans answered with sporadic mortar fire, with the 1/6th Queen’s standing to throughout the night. In the early morning of 29th September there were reports of enemy troops and armoured vehicles to the right of the Battalion positions, followed by “promiscuous shelling”. Patrols were sent out, but returned having made no contact. The Battalion suffered no casualties when securing the bridge and town, and had taken 20 prisoners and caused many German casualties.

At 1200hrs, the Battalion moved off from their position with the intention of contacting enemy forces at S. GIUSEPPE, and were approximately 1km south of PASSANTI by 1400hrs, where they encountered small arms and anti-tank fire which caused the wounding of one other rank. The Battalion took up Company positions at 1700hrs with the Battalion HQ at PASSANTI.

At 2300hrs the War Diary notes that were four casualties(11) in “D” Company during the night of 29th September, caused by the “enemy the enemy are sporadically” which I take to mean there was sporadic shelling.
The CWGC show there were two deaths in the 1/6th Queen’s on the 28th:
DYER GF No. 6099223
LOWE AW No. 6105636
and one on the 29th:
COOPER RT No. 6300240

(1) The Desert Rats: The history of the 7th Armoured Division. 1938 – 1945. Major General G. L. Verney D.S.O., M.V.O. Hutchinson & Co. 1954 p.168; The Desert Rats: 7th Armoured Division 1940 – 1945. Robin Neilands, Weidenfield & Nicolson. 1991. p.198; History of the Fifth Amy, Part I. From Activation to the Fall of Naples, 1944. p. 47
(2) 1/6th Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment War Diaries, WO 169/10281
(3) Verney. p.168; Neilands. p.198
(4) History of the Fifth Amy, Part I. From Activation to the Fall of Naples, 1944. Ed:Col. John D. Forsythe, Fifth Army, Italy p.47
(5) Salerno to Cassino; Martin Blumenson, Center of Military History, United States Army, Washington 1993 p. 165; The Desert Rats: The history of the 7th Armoured Division. 1938 – 1945. Major General G. L. Verney D.S.O., M.V.O. Hutchinson & Co. 1954 p.168; The Desert Rats: 7th Armoured Division 1940 – 1945. Robin Neilands, Weidenfield & Nicolson. 1991. p.198; History of the Fifth Amy, Part I. From Activation to the Fall of Naples, 1944. p. 47
(6) 1/7th Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment War Diaries, WO 169/10283; The Desert Rats: The history of the 7th Armoured Division. 1938 – 1945. Major General G. L. Verney D.S.O., M.V.O. Hutchinson & Co. 1954 p.168; The Desert Rats: 7th Armoured Division 1940 – 1945. Robin Neilands, Weidenfield & Nicolson. 1991. p.198; History of the Fifth Amy, Part I. From Activation to the Fall of Naples, 1944. p. 47 Ed:Col. John D. Forsythe, Fifth Army, Italy p.47
(7) 1/7th Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment War Diaries, WO 169/10283; The Desert Rats: The history of the 7th Armoured Division. 1938 – 1945. Major General G. L. Verney D.S.O., M.V.O. Hutchinson & Co. 1954 p.168; The Desert Rats: 7th Armoured Division 1940 – 1945. Robin Neilands, Weidenfield & Nicolson. 1991. p.198; History of the Fifth Amy, Part I. From Activation to the Fall of Naples, 1944. p. 47 Ed:Col. John D. Forsythe, Fifth Army, Italy p.47
(8) 1/6th Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment War Diaries, WO 169/10281
(9) King's Dragoon Guards War Diary, WO 169/9312
(10)The Desert Rats: The history of the 7th Armoured Division. 1938 – 1945. Major General G. L. Verney D.S.O., M.V.O. Hutchinson & Co. 1954 p.168; The Desert Rats: 7th Armoured Division 1940 – 1945. Robin Neilands, Weidenfield & Nicolson. 1991. p.198; History of the Fifth Amy, Part I. From Activation to the Fall of Naples, 1944. p. 47 Ed:Col. John D. Forsythe, Fifth Army, Italy p.47
(11)1/6th Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment War Diaries, WO 169/10281


My Great-Uncle George Frank Dyer (02 Aug 1915 – 28 Sep 1943), No. 6099223 of the 1/6th Queen’s is noted as being killed on 28th September 1943 by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and in his service records. His last communication with the family was to my Mum, which showed he was in “B” Company, but it would appear that at some stage he was attached to “D” Company. Also the manner of his apparent death ties in with the oral family history which is that he was killed by an exploding shell, still not sure about what I was originally told about being in the tent.