Our grandfathers and fathers and relatives in military service!

[Stewy S]

My Grandad (Smith), Served in India. Stewy

- - Updated - -

The one on the left in photo. Stewy

[Adrian Stevenson]

Thread title now amended.

[Wilhelm Saris]

Thanks Adrian. I will show some more photographs.

img627 P+E 6 nov-1939 a.jpg

First another one of my father when he married my mother on November 6th in 1939.
Note the different insignia for hospital orderly, as shown with post 5.
I just found out that I was not only named due to my grandfather's name Wilhelm, but also
for my father's father, who was named Wilhelmus. For that I am named Wim.

Further I will show some photographs from 3 brother's (during nomal life they all were
butchers and working in a butcher's shop or slaughterhouse) and a half-brother from my mother.
To start with the three that were born in Germany. During the war they were called up for
the German army.

img626-willy 42 b.jpg a) img628-willy 42 c.jpg b)

My uncle Wilhelm Schenk was named after his father. In my country he was named as Willy.
The photographs are from about 1942. He was missing in February 1944 at Petrowka in Russia,
then captured and imprisoned (send to a labour camp). He returned home in Helmond, the
Netherlands, in about 1947.

img629-Hein 44 d.jpg c)

My uncle Heinrich Schenk, named Hein, during his last holiday home in Helmond in 1944. His
last rank was Obergefreiter. January 23, 1945 he was missing after he had been in the
Feldlazarett 6/542 at Pillau/Lochstädt. He may have been at the ship "Steuben".
There is mentioned to be a grave at Pillau. He had escaped before from the Russians,
when his and other units were surrounded by Russians, due to he was a good swimmer.

img630-Robert 43 e.jpg d)

My uncle Robert Schenk in 1943. He was my Godfather. He was on its way to Berlin in 1945.
He was captured and imprisoned in Russia, send to the mines in Siberia. He returned home
in Helmond, the Netherlands, in about 1949. I remember well his home-coming. When I
once asked him about his decorations (he had an EK2 and 1, but also a Nahkampfspange
(and possibly another decoration)), he told me their commander commanded to take all off
and throw into a ditch somewhere east, while the Russians were in their neck and they would
be shot when wearing a Nahkampfspange! Further he never mentioned what had happened
during the war.
Note the quite lousy condition for his collar-Litze. He had no better tunic, he mentioned
when I asked, when I still did collect.

img631-jan-43 f.jpg e)

Due to the fact my German grandfather was killed during WWI, my grandmother returned
from Germany and settled in Helmond. There she re-married and got a lot of children, new
born ones and others her new husband brought with him.
My uncle Petrus Martens, named Jan by his brothers and sisters, in 1943. He volunteered the
Waffen-SS (Freiw. Legion Niederlande) when he was 17. He got an EK2, which I do own
for about 60 years. This cross was send directly to my grandmother during the war. He was
wounded three times, but never got any of the wounded badge forms. He served (as he said)
for a while in Yugoslavia. When he returned he was imprisoned for collaboration and stayed
at the camp at Vught (near 's Hertogenbosch) in the Netherlands.
He hardly ever told about what had happened during the war, but I remember I could feel a
bullett in his ellbow.

All of my uncles (also the others that never were in the army) are dead for years, some for
many years!! All photographs I was able to show, were kept by my mother...........

[tailor marc]

My Pop. Australian Army WW2
t/ sgt 3rd feild regiment Artillery (25 poundeer's)
Walter Edwin Clark. He originally jioned up when he was 14 and served for 6 months before his mum dobbed him in then re joined at 18 and served for 7-8 yrs

IMG_0002 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr3


My pop WW2 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


IMG_0023 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


IMG_0036 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


IMG_0040 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


IMG_0032 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


IMG_0045 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


IMG_0034 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


My pop WW2 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


My pop and nanna WW2 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr


IMG_0041 by Marc Russo (Australia), on Flickr

[Aleksander P]

I've made an post on this, but I will write here.

My Great Grandfather (Grandmothers father) served in the Finnish Civil War. He fought on the side of the Whites. He fought in Liminka, Oulu and Tampere.

Here is an photo of him:

Mummonisä.jpg

My Great Uncle served in the Continuation War and fought on the Karelian Isthmus 1942-1944. His convoy was once ambushed, where his own horse got killed and most of the convoy too, by Red Army soldiers. He and a few of his friends managed to survive, by running down an steep hill and swimming across an river. He served as an machine gunner, mortar crew spotter and fire controller. I also heard at his funeral preparations, that he was also served as an sharpshooter, because he had hunted all of his life, but I don't have any official info on this. He never talked about the war, as he was so traumatized by it. Sadly, I don't have any photo of him from the war time.

My Great Grandfather (Grandfathers Father) served in Kiestinki, now days called Кестеньга. Hi's regiment was Jalkaväki Rykmentti 53 (Infantry Regiment 53), part of the 3rd Division. German SS troops also fought there and he has an photo, that he took of an SS cemetary. His regiment got surrounded, but they managed to break out.

Here is an photo of him, from the 20's:

Emil.jpg

Cropped out photo of him, in Kiestinki:

Emil2.jpg

SS troops cemetery:

SS joukkojen hautausmaa Kiestingissä.jpg

Also an relative served during the Continuation War and had an rank of an Lieutenant. He sadly fell, during the first days of the war, 07.07.1941 in Vuokkiniemi now days called Вокнаволок.

[Eric Zentner]

Great Thread guys I have enjoyed it very much.

Eric

[Ben1596]

My Great Grandad served in the second world war with his brothers. He was in the 49th recce, so he was in places like Holland and Belgium.
Unfortunately I haven't really heard or seen much of him, he died before I was born so the only info I have is his service record and conversations with my parents.

I posted this somewhere else but this is him in Utrecht at the end of the war, he is the one standing in the Bren gun carrier. Its the only photo I have seen but I hope to find more, this one I saw when I was flicking through a WW2 book and my dad spotted him.



He never spoke much about the war to my dad when he was a kid, obviously because he had seen and done things you cant really say to a 13-14 year old but it would have been nice to hear some of his experiences. I have his knife which he says he used in Caen.

[jwp]

my grandfather at Sandwich military hospital. Kent in 1919 (front row,far right) and his discharge document from 1920.
regards,
john.sandwich.jpgDischargeDocument2.jpg

[James C]

here's some photographs i would like to share of my grandfather francis stanley tym ,i dont really know a great amount of information about him to be honest ,but according to his records he was in the royal electrical and mechanical engineers as a storeman and its noted he recieved the defence medal and posibly others ,its hard to read the handwriting ,as to where he saw service i dont know also the date of these photographs are very vague so i cant pin down the year ,they may even be taken post ww2 ,sorry jamesPAULINESFATHER.jpgPAULINESFATHER1.jpgPAULINESFATHER2.jpgPAULINESFATHER5.jpgPAULINESFATHER3.jpgPAULINESFATHER4.jpg

[Wilhelm Saris]

In post 93 I showed my uncles, named Schenk, wearing German army uniforms.
I just found a photograph (the whole family together), along with my grandmother and mother,
taken in Helmond (Netherlands) on October 12, 1940, shortly before they were called to arms for
the German army. They knew what was coming and for that reason they visited the local
photographer "Prinses"!

B3 de schenk's 12 okt.1940 - kopie.jpg B3 de schenk's 12 okt.1940 - kopie - kopie - kopie.jpg

At left Hein, at right Willy and above him Robert. I just found out Hein is wearing a sort of cogwheel
badge. Had not ever noticed this in my life! I am not able to ask any of the family, as I am the only
one left with an age I could have asked.........my mother. Would she have known?

I hope some new, nice material will be shown in this thread. Come on friends!!