Marc De Bolster - 47 Royal Marine Commando An Inside Story 1943-1946

Captain J. O. Doc Forfar 227049, RAMC att. HQ-Troop.

Fonthill Media Limited

Fonthill Media LLC

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First published in the United Kingdom

and the United States of America 2014

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data:

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Copyright Marc de Bolster 2014

ISBN 978-1-78155-297-1

The right of Marc de Bolster to be identified as the author of this work has been
asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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Typeset in 10pt on 13pt Sabon Lt Std

Printed and bound in England

The Second World War has been the subject of many booksboth fiction and non-fictionas well as countless films and documentaries. With non-fiction books, there is a wide range from books covering the complete global conflict to subjects of specialization. This work falls into the latter category.

Seldom do substantial new facts or information come to light, although diaries continue to appear, adding snippets to the existing core of knowledge. It is by using diaries, interviews and individual records that this book has come into being.

47 Royal Marine Commando: An Inside Story 19431946 does not attempt to reveal many new facts, for it concerns a unit for which a magnificent book has already been published, From Omaha to The Scheldt, written by the units former medical officer, Professor J. O. Doc Forfar.

Instead this book provides a completely different, but complementary perspective on the units history, for it is a story told by the veterans who were there. It reveals what they saw, what they felt and how their actions affected the course of the war. More than anything it portrays the harsh reality of war and demonstrates that victory was brought about by sacrifice and at the great cost of many young lives lost.

The Royal Marines played an important part in freeing the world from Hitlers regime, but it was not until 1942 that they became involved in forming Commando units as small raiding forces. Army Commandos were already in training following Prime Minister Winston Churchills demand for the formation of these specialist forces, and the Admiralty wanted to form Commando units also. The War Cabinet was urged to allow them the opportunity and permission was granted, and the infantry battalions of the Royal Marine Division were re-organised as Commandos, joining the Army Commandos. The Division command structure became a Special Service Brigade command. One of these units was the 10th Battalion Royal Marines, which became 47 Royal Marine Commando as of August 1943.

At the point of writing this book it is unknown how many surviving veterans of this formidable unit are still among us. Only a few veterans of around 900 who at some point have served in or were attached to this unit are involved with the 47 Royal Marine Commando Association today, and so the time has come to combine their stories together in this book.

First my special thanks go out to Miss Mariel van Mierlo, without whom I would never have met the veterans of 47 Royal Marine Commando in the first place.

As mentioned before, a very comprehensive book was written by 47 Royal Marine Commandos medical officer, Professor J. O. Forfar MC. Without his excellent book and information from his medical records, this book could not have been produced.

The work presented here is based upon a document written not long after the war by its CO, Lt-Col. C. F. Phillips DSO and Maj. P. M. Donnell DSO, around which all of the additional information is woven. More crucial to creation of this work are the personal stories written by veterans who served in 47 Royal Marine Commando, as well as some who served in other units indirectly involved in the actions, or who witnessed the events in which the Commando was involved. Although my name may appear on this book, I am effectively the mere compiler, for the true authors are the veterans themselves, with their stories presented in their own words, and integrated into the whole storyline. All credits go to these men, my dear friends, who kindly put some of their experiences in writing, and allowing me to put it all together for publication. This is the story as told by the men of 47 Royal Marine Commando.

At the time of putting this book together, some of the contributing veterans are no longer with us, but I am thanking them nonetheless! With humble and grateful appreciation, in no particular order I would like to thank veterans Frank Wright, Ken Pixie Parker, Chuck Harris, Fred Wildman, Ernie Taffy Staphnill, Ted Ben Battley, Pat Hagan, Bill Marshall, Roger Dobbie Dobson, George Amos, Gerry Brent, Sidney Barlow, Eric John Sharp, Eric Crawford, as well as the families of the following veterans and the University of Greenwich with their website www.memoriesofwar.org.uk for sharing information, documents and photos which they allowed me to use for this book; Fred Batt, Albert Thompson, Tom Robbins, John Wetjen, Albert Potterton and Hugh Corlett. For sharing photos I thank Laurence Scoupe, Ken Cowdery and Tina Vermeylen-Jonkers. Thanks to the committee members of the 47 Royal Marine Commando Association for their support, in particular Patrick OConnell for sharing BBC recordings of an interview held with his father Capt. Guy Jeep OConnell, as well as the Associations newsletter editor Lannah Battley for helping me obtain several veterans personal accounts, and Miss Essie Cousins for her advice and assistance.

Thank you to Kirsten van den Broeck, Gijs Dorrestein and Arie Wieman for their support and inspiration.