The Wartime Memories Project - The Second War

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212279 Tpr. Alfred Edwin Etches British Army 4th Queens Own Hussars Alf Etches was my uncle. As a reservist he was called up immediately WW2 broke out and was sent to Greece as part of the 2nd Armoured Division following the Greek request for assistance in the face of German and Italian invasion.Because of the enemy's superior strength the British troops were forced to evacuate and on the night of 28th/29th April 1941 as he was awaiting embarkation from the port of Kalamata, Alf was captured. He was taken to a temporary camp in Salonika and then dispatched to Stalag 18A, Wolfsburg. From here he was sent to work camps at Niklasdorf(924/GW) and Peggau (119/GW). He said that he was one of the luckier PoW's in that he wasn't assigned heavy manual work such as in the quarry or timber mill. He added that the camp commander, Kommandant Steiner, was a fairly amiable man. As the War came to an end he was transferred back to Stalag 18A to await liberation. There was a scare however when US aircraft mistakenly bombed the camp. A number of huts were damaged and there were some casualties. When Alf returned to his home in Wandsworth he was dreadfully thin but he had a loving wife, Violet,who made a great fuss of him and he was soon back to his cheery self.Like many others he was reluctant to talk about his experiences though. He had a number of jobs such as house painting and storekeeping. He and Vi led a quiet life and had no children. Alf died on the 19th January 1988 of a heart attack. The photo shows Alf (standing on the extreme left) in the camp, presumably after a game of football. I would be interested if anyone could identify his comrades in the photo. Mike Etches Add to this record.  Additional Information: I only know that the chap in the back row, third from the right was Bob Oliver who was the band leader at 924/GW. This photo was taken at 924/GW Niklasdorf. This camp was constructing a Hydro-Electric scheme. Ken Maris Reply Related Content: 4th Queens Own Hussars Stalag 18A Prisoner of War Camp Can you help us to add to our records? Add a record to our website. The names and stories on this website have been submitted by their relatives and friends. If your relations are not listed please add their names so that others can read about them Did you or your relatives live through the Second World War? Do you have any photos, newspaper clippings, postcards or letters from that period? Have you researched the names on your local or war memorial? Were you or your relative evacuated? Did an air raid affect your area? If so please let us know. Help us to build a database of information on those who served both at home and abroad so that future generations may learn of their sacrifice. Contact us. Celebrate your own Family History Celebrate by honouring members of your family who served in the Secomd World War both in the forces and at home. We love to hear about the soldiers, but also remember the many who served in support roles, nurses, doctors, land army, muntions workers etc. Please use our Family History resources to find out more about your relatives. Then please send in a short article, with a photo if possible, so that they can be remembered on these pages.

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