260848 L/Cpl. William Baird Erskine MID.British Army 8th Battalion Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders from:Falkirk William Erskine joined the 8th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders at the beginning of the war.
He married in 1941 and had 1 son.
He fought in the successful North African campaign. He was then sent to Sicily and to the Italian campaign. He was promoted to Lance Corporal sometime then.
Somewhere in the push northwards through Italy he was captured by the German army and perhaps that was when he was listed as missing on 27th of October 1943.
He was actually forced to march through Germany and onto Torgua in Eastern Germany where he was held POW in Stalag 4d.
He was made to work in local armaments companies where on the production lines he deliberately pierced holes in the wrong places.
He also escaped on 2 occasions but was recaptured each time. He was released by the Russian advance and returned home to Scotland at the end of the war when he met his 4 year old son for the first time.
He was awarded the following medals: The Italy Star, The Africa Star, The 1939-1945 Star and the War Medal 1939-1945.
|