Obituaries Norfolk Section The Britannia and Castle |
| Obituaries Norfolk Section The Britannia and Castle |
| Tim Parker | Alfred Henry Durrant | Frederick Cross | Frederick Price | Dennis Pitcher | Bob Colk | Jimmy McGregor Elliot |
| WO1 Roy Smith on 22 June
1996. Roy Smith was known as Roy, Rex or Smudge to his
friends and family and he was a Norwich man through and
through. When I looked for a word to describe him the one
thing that kept breaking through was 'big'. Roy was a big
man, in stature and in heart and that's the way he went
through life. Roy chose the army as a career and he enlisted into the 1st Bn of the East Anglian Regiment as a Junior Leader in 1961. He was an excellent example and product of the system and upon joining the Battalion in Aden was soon selected for promotion. The 'Sixties' saw changes in the role and attitudes of the Army and Roy was ideally suited to be a forerunner of these changes. When the Battalion took up post in Northern Ireland at the start of the troubles there was a need for Colour Sergeant Platoon Commanders and Roy was the perfect man to fill one of these important positions. He carried out his role in typical Roy fashion and at the end of the tour was awarded a Mention in Despatches. Roy was an outstanding shot, representing the Battalion and the Army. He had excellent ability but was always at his absolute best when the pressure was on. Roy served all around the world with the Army and wherever he went he left his mark and made a lasting impression. He was not only an excellent leader and teacher of men, but also a loyal follower and his straight forward approach to soldiering made him respected by his peers and contemporaries alike. Roy did not suffer fools gladly, and when he made a friend he made it for life. That mark of love, friendship and comradeship is indescribable and is was displayed by the quality of those present at his funeral service. In 1973 Roy suffered horrendous injuries in an accident in Kenya. I believe that Roy's attitude in recovering from his injuries and continuing in his Army career was an example to us all. He not only recovered from what would have seen most people down and out, but went on to continue his career to its peak as a Regimental Sergeant Major. Throughout all this he still managed to represent the Battalion shooting team. Towards the end of his career the effects of these injuries gave him considerable pain yet he never once complained or allowed anyone to see any signs of weakness. Upon leaving the Army Roy went into business and what should have been a quieter life. Some hope! Roy involved himself in the Royal Anglian Association and took a deep interest in linking together the Old Comrades of the Royal Norfolks/East Anglians and Royal Anglians. He also got himself involved in charity work and ten trips to the former Yugoslavia is an incredible record which speaks for itself. It is very easy to be swept along by this image of a hard man which Roy presented, and which he was. But there was another side to the man which his friends and family were privileged to see. He was a man of great compassion and a true friend to many. He was also a great family man and our hearts go out to Marjorie and the children Caleb, Daniel and Hellie. He was immensely proud of them all and always spoke of them with great affection. Also to his mother Margarete. He was a one off, the likes of which we will never see again; a great husband, father and friend. A character and a comrade we shall never forget. The world will be a quieter but poorer place without him. WO2 KC Jones MBE
Click here for a tribute paid to Roy at the Royal Norfolk Association Dinner in Sep 1996 and here for a reminiscence of me and Roy with the Commanding Officer, Lt Col Alastair Veitch (d Mar 95), while awaiting a visit from the Brigadier Commanding 54 Bde in Norwich. |
Captain Derek Gill after a mercifully brief battle against cancer on 17 May 1996. Despite living in the south since 1953 I know he maintained links with Norfolk and with his fellow officers in the Royal Norfolk Regiment. It was largely his enthusiastic influence that resulted in my joining the army and enjoying nearly 30 years as a Sapper. He served with 7 Royal Norfolk and was captured at St Valery-en-Caux, going as a POW to Colditz from where he was medically repatriated before the end of the war. He never talked much about his time with the Regiment or understandably, his wartime experiences. However, I know he greatly regretted having to leave the army after the war as a result of ill health, though by that time he had transferred to the Dorsets. Colonel DM Gill MBE (The Regimental history relates that after the last British soldier was off the beaches at Dunkirk on 3 June 1940, the 7th Battalion 'took part in the desperate fighting in the neighbourhood of Abbeville'. Severe casualties were received in early June by the 7th Battalion en route for a possible embarkation point at St Valery-en-Caux. A number of references occurred in B&C 87 Dec 96 to the Dorsetshire Regiment with whom the Norfolks had close links for over 160 years: Dorset Regt and Tim Chatting 'Primus in Indus', N10 and N24, . The 54th Foot was given the title the 54th or West Norfolk Regiment in 1785 and in 1881 it became the 2nd Bn The Dorsetshire Regiment. Hung in Norwich cathedral for 78 years from 1868 the colours of the 54th or West Norfolk Regiment were handed over to the Dorsetshire Regiment in September 1946, to join the old colours of the 54th Foot in the Abbey Church of Sherbourne. Ed.) |
| Maj General 'Bob' Robert Turner Cain
CB CBE DSO on 11 July 1996 aged 84. A physically large,
avuncular figure with a powerful outgoing personality, he
was known as 'Uncle Bob' by his soldiers. Commissioned
into the Norfolk Regiment in 1932 he was posted to the 1st
Battalion on the North West Frontier of India in 1933. He
saw active service in Waziristan and was Mentioned in
Despatches. Returning to Norwich in 1938 he became
Adjutant of the Regimental Depot, by now Royal Norfolk. He
married Lamorna Hingston in 1938 and saw through the
mobilisation of Regular and Territorial Battalions in
1939. He rejoined the 1st Bn as a Company Commander after
attending Staff College then was transferred to the 1st
Herefords as Second in Command. After landing as part of
11th Armoured Division, he took Command in June 1944 and
was awarded the DSO for his Battalion's crucial night
assault crossing of the Willems canal, the citation
reading: 'His sound tactical ability made possible the
great success of his battalion at heavy cost to the enemy;
his coolness and personal bravery under enemy fire were an
inspiration to all ranks.' As the war ended he was awarded the Croix de Guerre and after a series of staff appointments he was given war-substantive command of 1 Royal Norfolk in 1947, stationed in Berlin during the Allied airlift. After studying at the Joint Services Staff College and three years in Military Intelligence he was at last appointed to fully substantive command of the Royal Norfolks in Hong Kong then Colchester. Two years as Commandant of the Tactical Wing of the School of Infantry was followed by promotion to Brigadier and secondment to Malaya where he carried through some of the last jungle operations against the communist terrorist gangs on the Thai border. In 1961 he went to HQ BAOR. Appointed CBE in 1963 and promoted Major General in 1964 he went to Singapore and handled all the Army's logistic problems throughout the confrontation with Indonesia in Brunei and Borneo. General Turner Cain retired in 1967, was appointed CB and became Deputy Colonel of the Royal Anglian Regiment. From a family of Norfolk maltsters he had already opened a second career. In 1962 the Army Board permitted him to take over the chairmanship of the family firm and he made a twenty fold increase in malt production, two new maltings were built, and transport and supply companies were added. He retired in 1982 and is survived by his wife, son and daughter. |
Maj Frank James Ash
Smith after a long illness on 6 June 1996 at the
age of 80. Frank Smith joined the 5th Bn Royal Norfolk
Regiment before the war and at the time of the doubling of
the TA was transferred to the new 7th Bn. The Battalion
went to France early in 1940 and had the misfortune to be
attached to 51st Highland Division who were forced to
surrender to Rommel some time after the Dunkirk evacuation
at St Valery-en-Caux. At the time Frank was attending an
RE course in England and subsequently became part of the
cadre formed to train the new 7th Bn. As part of 59th
Staffordshire Division this was a 'follow-up' Division
after D-Day. The first serious engagement for the 7th Bn
was to take part in the Division attack towards Caen. Many
casualties were suffered by the Bn and Frank, a Rifle Coy
Commander, was badly wounded, suffering the loss of a
kidney which affected him for the rest of his life. |
| Walter F 'Dot' Tunaley after a
long and hard fought battle on 16th May 1996 at the
Priscilla Bacon Lodge. Mainly known as 'Dot' or Walter, Mr
Tunaley and certainly 'Sir', to hundreds of soldiers and
Gentlemen Cadets at RMA Sandhurst, he was born in 1917 and
brought up in Wymondham. He joined 4th Royal Norfolks and
just before war was declared was posted to Britannia
Barracks with Gilly Banthorpe, who became a lifelong
friend. Instructors to the first intake, they taught them
to ride bicycles and use a pickaxe by numbers. Then to
Hythe as instructors where Dot elected to teach Small Arms
Weapons. In 1939 he married his beloved 'Peg' on 28 Dec.
So began a true vocation, enhanced with a sense of humour,
fun, care and love for his family and fellow men. He was
an excellent instructor and spent many years at the Small
Arms School, synonymous with excellence, immersing himself
in all aspects of work and life at Hythe. From 1953 to
1956 he was in Warwick. In 1958 he went as Senior Small
Arms Instructor to the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst
where Major Reeve was an officer cadet. The Cadets who
passed through his hands, many now holding high ranks,
some from Royal families, remember him for many things but
perhaps mainly for his leading by example. Leaving the
army he came home to Norfolk as Head Porter and Mace
Bearer at the UEA where he organised his men in military
fashion until he retired. He took up golf and played in a
military style 1 - 2 - 3 - FOUR. He really enjoyed it and
was always good company wherever he went. When Peg died
three years ago life was not quite the same now that he
was on his own. His health declined and visits to the
Priscilla Bacon Lodge became more frequent. But he
retained his love of life, telling jokes and reminiscences
- a breath of fresh air and a pleasure to be with. A
remarkable, caring and truly lovely man. Rodney Tunaley (A sterling member of the Norwich and District Branch, see the Branch Report, one of his poems will be published in the next journal; 'The Regimental Reunion Dinner'. Ed.) |
| CH 'Tim' Parker MM suddenly
in December 1995 at his home in Battersea. This full
obituary follows the brief notice in B&C No 86
Jun 96. He lived on his own, his wife having died many
years before, leaving him with a married daughter. As a Sergeant in the 1st Battalion, The Royal Norfolk Regiment, he had an outstanding record in the 1944 Normandy campaign. He landed with the Bn on D-Day and 2 days later carried out a daring solo attack on a German position which was threatening the safety of his platoon; for this action he was awarded the Military Medal. The citation reads : 'On 8 June 1944, 'B' company were ordered to move forward from the main battalion position and occupy a position between the villages of Blainville and Beauregard. Sgt Parker was the platoon sergeant of 12 platoon, a leading platoon as the company advanced. Opposition was encountered from a group of enemy holding a house and using a machine-gun and other light automatic weapons. As his platoon came under fire, Sergeant Parker on his own initiative and entirely alone dashed forward, entered the house, and personally silenced the three enemy who proved to be in occupation. By his action, which showed great bravery and disregard for danger, he not only saved casualties among his comrades but enabled the company to advance with a minimum of delay.' I joined the battalion as a reinforcement near the end of the Normandy campaign. Within a few days he had joined me as platoon sergeant of 12 platoon, having been out of action for a week or so with a minor wound. And we stayed together through the heady days of the advance from Normandy to Holland, the liberation of Helmond, the link-up with 82nd US Airborne Division near Nijmegen in operation 'Market Garden' and the beginning of the Overloon-Venray battles in October 1944. Here he was wounded again on the first day of battle. 12 platoon, having reached its objective in the attack, was sheltering in ditches on either side of the main road. The expected counter attack was materialising with tank, artillery, Nebelwerfer and small arms fire coming in with considerable menace. The episode involving Tim Parker is mentioned in the following words in John Lincoln's book 'Thank God and the Infantry.' 'At this stage Sgt Parker became a little bored with ditches and decided to sit upright to see what was happening in the world. He immediately received 2 bullets for his pains, one in the side and one in the shoulder. Even this did not disturb his tranquillity - he calmly collected his haversack which he had taken off and walked off down the road, in full view of the enemy, in search of the RAP.' After the war we met at a couple of Regimental reunions but then our paths separated until 1984 when a mutual army colleague brought us into contact again. We exchanged Christmas greetings and he always sent a card from his annual summer holiday in northern France. Only recently did I discover that his main reason for selecting this area was to enable him to visit Le Paradis and pay his respects to those in the 2nd Bn who were massacred by the SS in 1940. Tim was a dependable and cheery Londoner and a very helpful morale-booster with his cockney wit interspersed with Hindustani epithets. I remember that one of his yarns related to the extreme excitement in a Norfolk village when the first mechanical bacon slicer arrived - a story told in such a way that even those Norfolk lads who were the butt of the joke enjoyed it. What a wonderful breed of men were those young regular soldiers who became senior NCOs during the war years. They were the stalwarts of the infantry platoons. And Tim Parker was one of the best. George DH Dicks MC |
| Alfred Henry Durrant peacefully on 18 August 1996, aged 76. He served with the 7th Bn and was a FEPOW. |
| Alf Rampling in Bournemouth aged 77 on 25 May 1996. A member of the London Branch, he served with the 1st Bn and was badly wounded at Dunkirk. W Seymour |
| Arthur Robert 'Nobby' Hooker on 31 August 1996 aged 77. He served with the 2nd Bn in Burma and was a member of the London Branch. W Seymour |
| 5771489 Dennis Pitcher of Carlton, Norwich on 16 August 1996. Joining up in 1933 at Britannia Barracks he was posted to the 2nd Bn in Devonport as a Bandboy, appearing at the Royal Tournament. He served in Gibraltar and in France. In 1939, he was wounded and came out at Dunkirk. He spent the remainder of the war as a medical orderly at Nelson Barracks. |
| Frederick Cross of Dersingham, suddenly, of a heart attack, on 3 August 1996. |
| Frederick Price of Rayleigh, Essex after a valiant fight against cancer, in January 1996. He served with The Royal Norfolk Regiment. Mrs Sylvia Price |
| Jimmy McGregor Elliot of Okeford Fitzpaine, Dorset, was a family doctor in Holt who died, aged 76, on 7 in November 1996. A Fleet Air Arm pilot in WW2 he was MO to the 4th Bn when I was CO, Paul Boxall was RSM and Major General Sir David Thorne was Adjutant. He is survived by his wife Christine and three children. Col WD Flower TD |
| George E Richards in June 1996. He saw service with the 1st Bn and was a member of the Normandy Veterans Association and the London Branch. W Seymour |
| Mrs Sara Power, wife of Major Alec Power, on 16 May 1996. A memorial service was held on 14 June 1996. |
| Reg Underwood of Ormesby St Margaret on 11 August 1996. He was a much respected and loved member of the Regimental Branch and will be sadly missed at our meetings. |
| Bob Colk at Wroxham on 11 September 1996. He served in the 2nd Bn Signals in Burma where he was Mentioned in Despatches at Kohima. W Seymour |
| Walter William Ovens of Bromyard, Herefordshire in January 1996. He
joined the TA in 1939 in King’s Lynn and was connected
with the Kings' Lynn Branch. Walter was with 7 Royal
Norfolk, attached to 51 Highland DIV at the time of his
capture at St Valery en Caux in France in 1940. He leaves
a widow, Hazel. Mrs H Ovens And see an appeal from Hazel for more information on Walter's service. |
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