Add Information to Record of a Person who served during the Second World War on The Wartime Memories Project Website
Add Information to Record of a Person who served during the Second World War on The Wartime Memories Project Website
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204648
Rfm. John Edward Fraser
1st Btn. C Coy.
from:Dagenham, Essex.
My Grandfather, John Fraser was a Rifleman in 10 platoon, C Coy, 1st Rifle Brigade. He joined up in the summer of 1940, trained with 27 ITC in Winchester. We have C Coy photo and 1 platoon photo dated 17th Sept. 1941, which suggests that they were still in the UK but shortly after this he departed for North Africa. Its not clear when they sailed or when they arrived in Egypt but his name and service no. were reported by Vatican radio around the latter part of Feb 1942 as having been taken into captivity by the Italians.
He remained a prisoner in Italy and then in Austria, until the end of the war. His time as a POW is well documented, however I am trying to build a picture of his movements between arriving in Egypt and becoming a POW. As a child he did confide in me once, he mentioned what could have been a jock column which had been attacked from the air and having lost all their transport they tried to make there way to a position where they expected to find the Free French, along the way they ran into an Italian patrol and that was that.
If anyone can offer any advice as to where to look or whom I might approach to gather any more information I would be very grateful.