St Valerie and Dunkirk

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St Valerie and Dunkirk

Postby jamiemcivor » Sat May 22, 2010 7:34 pm

Over the next few weeks there will, quite properly, be a lot said to mark the 70th anniversary of the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk.

The 51st Highland Division - in which many Campbeltown and Kintyre men - were serving was not evacuated, of course. They remained in France and were captured a few weeks later. Many spent 5 years in German POW camps.

My grandfather, my granny's brother and her brother-in-law were amongst them.

I'm sure many other local families were affected just as badly, if not worse. Indeed, the effect on lots of small towns across the Highlands and Islands must have been great. It is, perhaps, time to chronicle this more fully while there are still some people alive who remember this all too well.
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Re: St Valerie and Dunkirk

Postby bill » Wed May 26, 2010 10:20 am

My father Donald McCallum was one of the few who escaped from St. Valery by making his way to Le Havre and getting evacuated from there.After his home leave he then spent the rest of the war stationed in Birmingham manning an anti aircraft gun placement.
My next older brother Donald has researched the Argyll and Sutherland archives and has far more information.

My father returned home to Campbeltown at wars end to resume work as a plumber with Robert Armour.
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Let the Winter roll along
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Re: St Valerie and Dunkirk

Postby petewick » Fri May 28, 2010 4:22 pm

My grandfather, John McCallum Morrison, Andrew Mathieson and Alexander Robertson were
captured soon after St Valery. They were marched to Bresslau in Poland and interred there until
1945.
Andy and my grandfather, interestingly, Bill, were also plumbers with Armours.
My late father, John Docherty Morrison also served his time with that firm.
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Re: St Valerie and Dunkirk

Postby EMDEE » Fri May 28, 2010 10:33 pm

My own late father was with the Royal Scots Fusiliers and was at Dunkirk. He returned to Campbeltown minus his bagpipes which he had placed down on the beach and a mortar shell landed right on top of them blowing them to matchwood while he was standing just a short distance away. As he said it was a pity about the pipes but it was a narrow escape.

As far as I remember it was round about 1980 before he got the Dunkirk Medal.
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Re: St Valerie and Dunkirk

Postby bill » Fri Jun 04, 2010 6:43 pm

Below is an extract from the 51st Highland Division website.............

http://www.51hd.co.uk/accounts/ark_force

"On 9th June, General Fortune ordered Brigadier Stanley-Clarke, commanding 154 Brigade, to take a force for the defence of Le Havre. The force was formed in the village of Arques-la-Bataille and took the name "Ark" force after that village. Its task was to form a defensive position about 20 miles east of Le Havre, on the line Fécamp-Bolbec through which the French corps with the 51st Highland Division would withdraw. It would also reconnoitre an inner line of defence close in to Le Havre to cover an evacuation.

ARK force comprised the following:

4th Battalion, The Black Watch
7th Battalion, The Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders
8th Battalion, The Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders
6th Battalion, The Royal Scots Fusiliers (Pioneers)
4th Battalion, the Boarder Regiment - "A" Brigade
5th Battalion, The Sherwood Foresters - "A" Brigade
4th Battalion, The Buffs - "A" Brigade
1st Battalion, Princess Louise's Kensington Regiment (less two companies)
17th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery
75th Field Regiment, Royal Artillery
51st Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery (204 battery)
236th Field Company, Royal Engineers
237th Field Company, Royal Engineers
239th Field Park Company, Royal Engineers
213th Army Field Company, Royal Engineers
154th Field Ambulance
Detachments from 525, 526 and 527 Companies RASC

The force set off almost immediately but because of the congestion on the roads the last units did not reach Fécamp until midday on the 10th. At about the same time news reached the Division that German tanks of the 7th Panzer Division were cutting the route between Ark force and the remainder of the Corps. At the same time elements of Ark Force were engaged by the same division.

Brigadier Stanley-Clarke had been given clear orders by General Fortune that, should the Germans cut the line between Ark force and the rest of the Corps he should act on his own initiative to save his troops. This was now clearly the case and he ordered his force to withdraw during the course of the afternoon to a line between Octeville and Contreville two miles east of Le Havre, leaving only a small force on the original line.

Brigadier Stanley-Clarke still hoped that the Division might fight its way through and on 11th June he ordered that the new line should be held to the last man. However when the Navy reported that the Division was completely cut off and plans were being made for its evacuation through St Valéry he began planning the evacuation of his own force. All useable vehicles, material and equipment that could not be taken were destroyed.

Over the two nights of 11/12 and 12/13 June some 4000 men of Ark Force were evacuated from Le Havre and taken to Cherbourg."




I can only assume that my father was part of the 7th Battalion,or 8th Battalion The Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders,and that is why he managed to be evacuated from LeHavre.
I know my Summer'll never come
I know I'll cry until my dying day has come
Let the Winter roll along
I've got nothing left but song
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