Author Topic: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated  (Read 36339 times)

Offline rsel

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Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« on: Sunday 24 June 07 07:20 BST (UK) »
Hi all,
    Does anybody know if any records exist which list/detail the troops who were evacuated from Dunkirk, as i would like to confirm what i have been told about my grandfather ?

    My Grandfather, Harold Mons La Bassee Sellens, was in the Royal Sussex Regiment as part of the BEF (he was a Corporal and was a gunner on a Bren Gun Carrier), and was apparently wounded by a mortar round during the retreat to Dunkirk (he was apparently blown out of the carrier and went missing for 3 days). He was eventually picked up by passing troops and taken to a field hospital on the beach, before being evacuated back to England.

Thanks

Richard
Sellens - Sussex
Newham - Surrey
Wellington - Dagenham, Essex
Camp - South Essex
Wren - Essex
Livermore - Essex
Wane - Essex
Fisk - Essex / Suffolk
Bailey/Bayley - Sussex
Newton - Sussex
Funnell - Sussex
Streeter - Sussex
Coates - Sussex
Maisey - Surrey

Offline themonsstar

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #1 on: Sunday 24 June 07 09:14 BST (UK) »
I feel you would have to look at the unit 'WD'(at the 'NA' Kew) to see if it has any info ref: the evacuated soldiers of his unit. You could also try and get his service record from the MOD, cost around £30.

With a name like Harold 'Mons La Bassee', his dad most of been in WW1.

Offline rsel

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #2 on: Sunday 24 June 07 10:53 BST (UK) »
Hi,
  Thanks i was trying to avoid the war diary's as i had heard that whilst very interesting they did not contain many specifics on people, and i would imagine that it was a little bit frantic in France to record the events at dunkirk in much detail. I was also told that his service record would not actually contain much information, so did not think it was worth paying £30 onthe off chance.

   His father was in WW1, but that i not why he got his name. The family story is that his 3 brothers that were in WW1 all happened to meet up there, by pure chance and his father thought that i was an event worth recording :-)

Richard
Sellens - Sussex
Newham - Surrey
Wellington - Dagenham, Essex
Camp - South Essex
Wren - Essex
Livermore - Essex
Wane - Essex
Fisk - Essex / Suffolk
Bailey/Bayley - Sussex
Newton - Sussex
Funnell - Sussex
Streeter - Sussex
Coates - Sussex
Maisey - Surrey

Offline themonsstar

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #3 on: Sunday 24 June 07 19:08 BST (UK) »
If you do-not get his Service Record you will never no will you?


Offline Wendi

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #4 on: Tuesday 26 June 07 08:30 BST (UK) »
Hi Richard !

I don't know if you have been following this thread, but thought you may find it of interest..

http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,240790.0.html

Wendi  :)
"Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it!  No matter if I have said it,
unless it agrees with your own reason and with your own common sense" ~ Buddha

SCOTT ~ Monmouthshire & Glamorgan
BUCKLEY ~ Cork & Manchester
FRANKLIN ~ Clerkenwell, London
BRADY ~ Kildare & Manchester
DERICK ~ France
FRIEND ~ Kent & Portsmouth
TYLDESLEY ~ Lancashire
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Census information posted here is Crown Copyright from The National Archives

Offline rsel

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #5 on: Tuesday 26 June 07 17:28 BST (UK) »
Thanks Wendi,
    I had not seen that one, it sounds like it might be worth getting the service record on the off chance. I had seen posts in another group which had led me to belive that they would not actually contain much infomation at all, hence my hesitation on spending the money.

Richard
Sellens - Sussex
Newham - Surrey
Wellington - Dagenham, Essex
Camp - South Essex
Wren - Essex
Livermore - Essex
Wane - Essex
Fisk - Essex / Suffolk
Bailey/Bayley - Sussex
Newton - Sussex
Funnell - Sussex
Streeter - Sussex
Coates - Sussex
Maisey - Surrey

Offline paulcheall

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #6 on: Friday 01 October 10 20:20 BST (UK) »
It is highly unlikely you'll get any information on this. I've just been rereading my dad's memoir and things at Dunkirk were absolutely chaotic. I'm including below a short extract from his memoir, which starts on location in Cardiff, after the troops had arrived by train direct from Folkestone.

"We were at Cardiff .... to be sorted out and sent to our own regiments. I was lucky, as most of our boys had stuck together. We did not have any kit so had to wait until the full regalia of a soldier’s kit was available, so we remained rather scruffy and unkempt.
An officer came round the huts, taking our names and checking identity discs and, of course, our requirements; it was not impossible for an infiltrator to have taken the opportunity to come over with us from Dunkirk. Right now, all different regiments were mixed together, just as we had been on the ships and the train"

If you want to learn more about his memoir, go to www.grimdetermination.co.uk where you can read the first chapter of his memoir, located at Dunkirk. I'm hoping to get the book published next year so, unfortunately, you can't read the whole book but there is plenty of stuff on the site which is still of interest, including lots of photographs.

Kind regards,
Paul


Editing Dad's WW2 diary at www.fightingthrough.co.uk

Offline rsel

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #7 on: Saturday 02 October 10 06:47 BST (UK) »
Thanks Paul

From my grandfathers medical records (which we had to obtain seperatly to his Service record) we have now peiced togther that he must have actual been evacuated  the day before the offical evacuation started.

Like you mention i had assumed that some form of roll call was taken of all the returning troops to check for infiltration, and was hoping that might have existed to give confirmation on when a someone arrved back.

Richard
Sellens - Sussex
Newham - Surrey
Wellington - Dagenham, Essex
Camp - South Essex
Wren - Essex
Livermore - Essex
Wane - Essex
Fisk - Essex / Suffolk
Bailey/Bayley - Sussex
Newton - Sussex
Funnell - Sussex
Streeter - Sussex
Coates - Sussex
Maisey - Surrey

Offline Pete Keane

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Re: Dunkirk - Records of Troops Evacuated
« Reply #8 on: Saturday 02 October 10 10:20 BST (UK) »
What did his service history say?