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260876 Pte. Cecil Alfred Garrould British Army 6th Btn. Royal Norfolk Regiment from:Ditchingham, Norfolk My father, Cecil Garrould enlisted on the 13th of June 1940 and was posted to Singapore. Documents show that he and thousands of others there were ordered to surrender when Singapore fell to the Japanese. As a POW he was assigned to No. 1 Railway Battalion, which worked on constructing the Thai-Burma Railway, from 4th of December 1942 to 11th of February 1944. During this time he was held in work camps at Ban Pong, Nong Pladuk, Tahlua, Kanburi (Kanchanaburi), Ban Kau, Wampo (Wang Po), Tan Yen, Conchon, Nam Pei, Kinsaiyok, Pran Kiash, Tomajo, and Hindato. From 12th of February 1944 to 2nd of February 1945 he was involved with camp construction (Nong Pladuk), then dock and general work (Singapore), and was ultimately sent to Saigon on 8th of February 1945, remaining there until 13th of August 1945.
Like all POWs held by the Japanese, he endured horrendous conditions and hardship. His medical history during this time included bouts of malaria, colitis, fever, and dysentery. I cannot read the name but the designation on one of the documents is by a major with the Gordon Highlanders, and he wrote "A man who endured the hardships of this period without being evacuated has something to be proud of".
His military release certificate, issued at the Warwick Record Office, is signed and dated 26 March 1946.
My father did not talk of his time as a POW. There is a letter awarding him medals but I understood from my mother that he refused them. We believe this was to do with the circumstances around the surrender. Strangely enough, having lived on little except rice during his captivity, it was still one of his favourite dishes.
Sadly, my father died far too early, in 1982. |
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