Green Arthur James Lieutenant 299730
Personnel Entry
Name Green Arthur James
Army number 299730
Rank Lieutenant
Decorations
Date of birth 5/7/1923, in Leigh, Lancashire.
Age 21
Unit Enlisted in the Royal Armoured Corps 17/9/1942 as 14290046. Posted 53rd Training Regiment 28/10/1942. Recommended for Officer Training 7/12/1942. Pre-OCTU Training 28/1/1943. Cadet at Sandhurst No 100 OCTU 24/4/1943. Emergency Commission as a 2/Lt in the Royal Armoured Corps 7/11/1943. Posted 61 Training Regiment, Royal Armoured Corps 16/11/1943. OCTU Infantry Training Course, Dunbar, 31 January to 31 March 1944. Transferred to the York & Lancaster Regiment as a 2/Lt 1/4/1944. Attached to the Loyal Regiment, posted 2nd Battalion 1/4/1944. Posted 41 Reinforcement Holding Unit 16/6/1944. Normandy. Attached to The Black Watch, posted 1 TS 30/6/1944. KILLED in ACTION with 1 TS 9/7/44.
Company/Battery C Company.
Platoon or other sub-unit Not yet known.
Task or role Duty Officer.
Joined Brigade 30/6/1944.
Promotions W/S Lt 6/5/1944.
Wounded
Prisoner of War
Died/Killed in action 09-Jul-44
Home address Son of Alfred and Elsie Green, Leigh, Lancs. Bank Clerk. Member of the Home Guard. Buried Grave V. A. 20. St Manvieu War Cemetery, Cheux.
Source table 1TS
To read his Commemorative Record please click here.
Lt Green's nephew, John Ollerton, has compiled a record of his life and service, including researching the circumstances of his death - a task with which we were very happy to help. To read this family document please see below.
Lieutenant Arthur Green Introduction When I was a child two ghosts lived in my grandparents’ house. My parents and my grandparents would often speak of my mother's two brothers, John and Arthur, but they could never answer my questions about what had happened to them. The truth was they couldn’t. Nobody knew what had happened to them. Two years ago, having found out what had happened to his brother, I decided to find out what had happened to Arthur. My research led me to the National Archives in London and to Normandy. It has been a fascinating and emotional journey. I was expecting to be researching Arthur’s lost life but in the end I feel that I have found him. There are no longer any ghosts. Childhood Arthur James Green was born on 5 July 1923. He was the third child of Arthur and Elsie Green of Leigh in Lancashire. His brother John was four years older than him and his sister Jessie two years older. He grew up on his parents’ farm. He had a happy childhood. Arthur attended Leigh Grammar School from 1932 to 1939. One of his classmates, Trevor Williams, remembers him as follows: Well, Arthur was in my Form at LGS and we sat at the same table during our dinner there. He was rather quiet and studious and did quite a bit of swotting in books during the lunch rather than making the raucous noise that was prevalent. He was always very pleasant, easy to get on with, but one would never get to know him intimately. On leaving school he joined Williams Deacons Bank as a clerk and attended Metropolitan College from 1939 until he joined the army in 1942. At the same time he served in the Home Guard. Top Left: Arthur with his elder brother John and his sister Jessie! Top Centre: Arthur with his mother and Jessie! Top Right: Arthur aged about 12 Above: Arthur aged about 17 The Army Arthur’s army career was short. It began in Beverley, North Yorkshire in September 1942 and ended 21 months later in Juvigny sur Seulles, Normandy. On joining up Arthur’s preferences were: first the Royal Armoured Corps, second Infantry and third the Intelligence Corps. He was successful in his first choice. On enlistment on 17 September 1942 he was posted to the Royal Armoured Corps 53rd Training Regiment in Beverley. He undertook basic training in Beverley, Catterick and Black Down camp near Okehampton in Devon before being selected for officer training. On selection for officer training his Military Character was assessed as ‘Very Good,’ his medical as ‘A1’ and his Power of Leadership as ‘Should Develop,’ He had a fair knowledge of French grammar and some German. On 24 April 1943 Arthur was admitted to an Office Cadet Training Unit (OCTU) at Sandhurst. He left on 6 November on being granted an emergency commission as second lieutenant. At this time he transferred from the RAC to infantry. He undertook an Infantry Training Course in Dunbar between January and March 1943. On 1 April he was transferred to No.2 Battalion of the Loyal Regiment, which was stationed at Killyleagh, Northern Ireland. On 5 June Arthur started a Battle Course in Killyleagh where exercises simulated the invasion of Northern France with different units representing German and British forces. He didn’t complete the course. He and nine other officers were transferred to other regiments and sent to France whilst the rest of the regiment was sent to Italy. The extract from the War Diary of the Loyal Regiment below shows his posting to No. 41 R.H.U. (Regimental Holding Unit). From this he was posted to the No. 1 Battalion, Tyneside Scottish, Black Watch, to make up the number of officers following losses in battle. On leaving home Arthur had said to his mother that he would become “Cannon fodder for the Boche.” This was to prove tragically prophetic. He landed in Normandy between 19 and 29 June, probably on ‘Sword’ beach near Lion sur Mer. He was killed two weeks later. Arthur’s service file, obtained from Army Records, is summarised on the next page. It appears to be incomplete and inaccurate in some respects: No mention is made of Arthur’s posting in Northern Ireland His family remembers that some of Arthur’s training took place in Northern Ireland where he was billeted in the home of Bert Orr. The file does not mention Northern Ireland but the War Diary of 2 Battalion, Loyal Regiment reveals that he was posted to Killyleagh, N. Ireland on 1April 1944. No mention is made of Arthur’s promotion to Lieutenant The war diary for 9 May states: 2/Lt. AJ Green, having completed six months’ service was promoted to lieutenant with effect from 6 May 1944. It is not clear about Arthur’s connection with the York and Lancaster Regiment The name of the parent regiment in Arthur’s file has been altered by the crossing out Royal Armoured Corps and the substitution of the York and Lancaster Regiment but it does not record that him ever being posted to it. On transfer to the Loyal Regiment he is recorded as being transferred from Y&L (see previous page). On the other hand we have no photographs of him wearing York and Lancaster insignia. Just what connection has with the regiment whose name is inscribed on his gravestone is unclear. Events and postings Date Location Home Guard (18 months experience) Enlisted (Number 14290046) and posted to General Service Corps 17 September 1942 Beverley Transferred to 53rd Training Regiment, Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) 28 October 1942 Beverley Recommended for Officer Cadet Training Unit (OCTU) 7 December 1942 Catterick Posted to Pre-OCTU Training 28 January 1943 Catterick Upgraded to Class 1 19 March 1943 Black Down No 1 Pre-OCTU Training Unit 23 March 1943 Black Down Ceased to be attached (CTBA) on posting to Sandhurst 100 OCTU 24 April 1943 Sandhurst Discharged on being appointed to a commission. Granted emergency commission of Second Lieutenant. 6 November 1943 Sandhurst Posted to 61 Training Regiment RAC 16 November 1943 OCTU Infantry course Dunbar No 1 Infantry School 31 January to 31 March 1944 Dunbar Transferred to Infantry of the line. Posted to 2 Loyals 1 April 1944 Killyleagh Promoted to Lieutenant 9 May 1944 Killyleagh Battle Course No1 Infantry school - not completed 5 June 1944 Killyleagh Posted to No41 RHU (Reinforcement Holding Unit) and TOS (Taking on Strength) X4 list 16 June 1944 Killyleagh Posted to draft CAPBA 19 June 1944 Posted to 1 Battalion Tyneside Scottish 30 June 1944 Rauray Missing in action 8 July 1944 Juvigny sur Seulles Reported killed in action 9 July 1944 Juvigny sur Seulles Summary of Arthur’s Service File Notes: 1.The entries in green text are not included in the service file but added based on information in the Loyal Regiment’s War Diary 2.I have been unable to find the meaning of ‘CAPBA’ It could be Canadian Army Posting from British Army Photographs There are not many photographs of Arthur’s army career and they are not annotated. However, by comparing them with his service file it is possible to estimate where they were taken. The two photos above and the one below left were probably taken in the winter of 1942-3 when Arthur was stationed in Catterick. The photograph on the left was taken in the Market Square, Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria whilst he was training with the RAC. He has not yet been commissioned. The photo below right may have been taken in November 1943 when Arthur was at Sandhurst. He is fourth from the left in the middle row. Photographs This is that last photo taken of Arthur and his brother John. John his wearing the ribbon of the DFC, which was awarded in March 1944. Arthur is wearing a single star on his epaulettes signifying that he has been commissioned second lieutenant but he is wearing an RAC cap badge. This suggests that it was taken before his transfer to the Loyal Regiment on 1 April 1944. John was killed when his Mosquito aircraft crashed into the sea on 23 August 1945. These are the last three photos that were taken of Arthur. They are likely to have been taken in Northern Ireland where he was stationed from April to June 1944. He is wearing the Loyal Regiment cap badge and two stars on his epaulettes which means that they must have been taken after his promotion on 9 May and before 16 June when he left the regiment. Normandy The map above shows approximately the route that Arthur would have taken in France. In all he travelled about 35 miles. It is not possible to say exactly when or where he landed in Normandy but it was probably near Lion-sur Mer. Arthur was joining the Tyneside Scottish Regiment which was part of 70th Brigade and 49th Division which were attached to the Canadian Army. The 49th (West Riding)Infantry Division was nicknamed ‘The Polar Bears’. Their insignia is shown opposite. The Canadian Army landed on ‘Sword Beach’ near Lion-sur Mer. He joined up with 1st Battalion Tyneside Scottish on 30 June in Rauray. The route that he took to get there would have been to the west of Caen which was still in German hands. The Battle of Rauray Three weeks after the Normandy invasion the British and Canadian armies had made slow progress in fighting their way forward against powerful and well entrenched German forces. Caen, which had supposed to have been captured on D-Day, was still in enemy hands. Field Marshal Montgomery decided on a fullscale operation codenamed ‘Operation Epsom’ to drive forward in a southerly direction to the west of Caen. To protect the right flank of the invading force, 30th Corps was given the task of securing the high ground to the south of the village of Rauray in an operation codenamed ‘Martlet’. No 1 Battalion Tyneside Scottish took part in Operation Martlet by fighting its way south, with support from heavy artillery and naval guns from battleships offshore. By 28 June it had established defensive positions south of the village of Rauray. During its advance the battalion had suffered heavy casualties and needed reinforcements, particularly with officers. On 30 June Lieutenant. Arthur Green was transferred to the Tyneside Scottish Battalion from the Loyal Regiment. This turned out to be the day before the battalion’s biggest battle of the war. It was apparent that the 2nd SS-Panzer Division ‘Das Reich’ and the 9th SS Panzer Division ‘Hohenstaufen’ were strengthening their forces and were about to launch a counter attack. The Tyneside Scottish Battalion comprised four companies; A, B, C and D. Arthur joined ‘C’ Company. Together with the rest of ‘C’ Company he took up a defensive position 500 metres south of the village of Rauray on the right of the Tyneside Scottish line. ‘C’ Company would have comprised an HQ platoon and three other platoons; numbers 13,14 and 15, each of which would have had up to 21 men. We do not know which of these platoons Arthur was in but it is most likely either the HQ platoon or 15 platoon. The photographs that I have used to illustrate the Battle of Rauray were taken in similar situations to those which he would have experienced. At the start of the battle ‘C’ Company’ was dug in behind a hedgerow with an area of bocage (small fields surrounded by embankments) in front of them. The bocage made them vulnerable to the enemy infiltrating the fields behind them. To the left of ‘C’ Company, ‘B’ Company held a key position in front of an open field which was vulnerable to attack by enemy tanks.‘B’ Company had this critical area covered by antitank guns. At 5.30 Major Angus, who commanded ‘C’ Company, reported that they were under mortar and machine gun fire. The battle had started. At 6.40 the first German attack began. ‘C’ Company reported that it was under attack from both tanks and infantry using the cover of a smoke screen and an artillery barrage. The two forward platoons (13 and 14) were engaged in a violent fight with the Panzer-Grenadiers. 13 platoon was suffering heavy casualties from enemy machine gun fire. Later Lieutenant Wallace and his platoon sergeant were killed and 13 platoon was overrun. By 7.25 ‘C’ Company was finding itself short of men and its forward platoons were becoming isolated. On the right 13 platoon appeared to be surrounded and on the left 14 platoon had been pushed to the left leaving the way open to enemy infiltration. To ‘C’ Company’s left, ‘A’ and ‘B’ companies were under similar pressure. Sherman tanks of the 24th Lancers were brought in to support them. By 8.22 ‘C’ Company’s position was beginning to look untenable. The two forward platoons were cut off and HQ and 15 platoon were being outflanked. At 8.32 the remains of ‘C’ Company were under such intense pressure that they were forced to withdraw to Rauray village. It was later established that some members of 13 and 14 platoons had not withdrawn and were left isolated in their forward positions. For the next three hours the battle continued with Tyneside Scottish sustaining heavy casualties. However with the support from artillery bombardment of the enemy positions, ‘B’ Company managed to hold onto its key position in front of the open field and destroyed many German tanks. At 16.40 three flame throwing ‘Crocodile’ tanks were brought into use to eliminate the enemy machine gun and sniper positions in front of ‘C’ Company. At 18.10 a British counter attack was begun, supported by ‘Crocodiles’ and tanks. By 21.00 the battalion’s original forward positions had been regained and Tyneside Scottish were withdrawn from the front. During twelve hours of bitter fighting the Germans had suffered a heavy defeat. It is estimated that they put about 50 tanks and assault guns into the attack and lost 30 of them.The Armoured Brigade which was supporting Tyneside Scottish lost only five tanks. They lost two officers killed, five wounded and two missing. Thirty-one other ranks were killed, seventy-nine wounded and thirteen are missing. There is no estimate of the number of German losses but given that they did not have the advantage of defensive positions, their losses are likely to be higher. The attack on Rauray is considered by historians to be the turning point in the Battle of Normandy. It was the Germans’ last big opportunity to break through the Allied front. During the evening, the day’s action was mentioned in a radio broadcast made by Lord ‘Haw-Haw’ of the German Forces Network. He declared ‘You Polar Bear Butchers!’ He went on to state that if any man wearing a Polar Bear (49th Division) insignia on his shoulder is captured he will be shot right away without any trial whatsoever, as British soldiers, he claimed, had massacred surrendering SS-Panzer crews without mercy. This threat may have had fatal consequences for Arthur and two others a week later. ! ! ! The Rauray battlefield today is unrecognisable from what it must have been like at the time. Since 1944 the bocage field pattern has been erased from most of the landscape. Hedgerows like those in the distance would have occupied the open field which can be seen in the foreground. This photograph is taken from the position at which Arthur’s Company was dug in at the start of the battle. The German attack came from the direction of the trees at the left of the horizon. On 3 July the division was taken out of the line and sent for recuperation and reorganisation to Ducy Ste Marguerite. On 5 July Arthur celebrated his 21st birthday. He wrote to his parents to say that he spent the day in a trench with his batman drinking something nonalcoholic. On the day after his birthday the battalion moved forward from Ducy to take up positions north of the deserted village at Le Pont de Juvigny. 500 yards in front of them was the Château de Juvigny which was believed to be the German HQ. It was being slowly demolished by allied artillery. The Reconnaissance Patrol EXTRACT FROM WAR DIARY OF 1st BATTALION TYNESIDE SCOTTISH, BLACK WATCH 8 July Preparations were made for reconnaissance patrols to be made at night. ... They were to be ‘sneak’ reconnaissance patrols of one officer and two other ranks each. One patrol was to be led by Lieutenant Green of ‘C’ Company. The ‘other ranks’ in the patrol were Private Winyard and probably Private Ritson. The document above sets out the object of the patrol as: to listen in at a church and other buildings and to pinpoint enemy positions and strength. The route to be taken was from the B Company forward position, to the bridge at Juvigny, following the river to the church and returning by the same route. The password was “Rome Burns”. The photograph shows the route taken by the patrol. The River Seulles flows along the line of trees on the right. The patrol was to followed the line of the hedge on the left as far as the buildings which lie just beyond the tall trees in the centre of the picture. The patrol went out at 23:59hrs. At 02:09hrs on the following morning Private Winyard returned alone. His report is on the next page. The map opposite is the one used by the patrol. The Pont de Juvigny, the river and the church and other buildings that were to be investigated for enemy occupation are marked. The ‘other buildings’ consisted mainly of the presbytery to the church which is now a private house. The areas ringed in red are the positions occupied by A,B,C and D companies of Tyneside Scottish. ! ! ! ! ! ! Presbytery The photograph opposite, which was taken before D-Day, shows the route taken by the patrol. ! ! ! Pont de Juvigny ! ! ! River Seulles ! ! ! Presbytery ! ! ! Church ! ! Château de Juvigny The photograph opposite was taken from the position occupied by B Company where the patrol started from. The church can be seen above the trees on the left. The presbytery is just visible behind the grey roofs on the right. On the night of the patrol there was almost a full moon but the amount of cloud was not recorded. ! ! Church ! ! Presbytery The First Patrol Report reads as follows: At 02:09hrs Private Winyard returned alone from ‘C’ Company’s patrol (See Appendix I) he reported as follows: The patrol moved down field parallel with the river. 200 yards. from road an explosion occurred on the left. They lay quiet for 15 minutes then moved forward along the line of the hedge. They reached the buildings at 848169. They mounted the top of the bank then Lieutenant. Green fired a burst of Sten and he and one man dived down bank leaving Private Winyard to cover their withdrawal. As they dived through the hedge an explosion took place. Private Winyard followed but could find no trace of the others. He moved back to the two prearranged R.V.s waited 1/4 hour at each but found no trace of the other two. He heard sounds of enemy in the buildings before he withdrew and later two Spandaus (heavy machine guns) seemed to be firing from the buildings. At 15:15hrs another patrol went out under the cover of mortar fire. Two snipers went out on the route of the ‘C’ Company patrol of the night before to see if any trace of the missing officer and man could be established. The Second Patrol Report reads as follows: At 20.10 hours one sniper returned and reported as follows: One wounded man was seen in field in front of buildings 848669. Private Gibson crawled over to man, raised him up and gave him a drink of water. From the build of the wounded man it appeared to be Lieutenant. Green. Then a shot rang out and Lieutenant Green was hit again. Private Gibson dashed for the hedge then a number of shots were fired. The other sniper tried to contact Gibson but could not do so and returned to Le Pont de Juvigny where he contacted D.L.I. (Durham Light Infantry) Post. He then returned to scene of shooting accompanied by a D.L.I. sniper but they found no trace of either Lieutenant. Green or Private Gibson. The two men who were killed with Arthur were probably Private John Ritson, (known as ‘Jackie’) of Lintz Colliery Co.Durham aged 25 and Private John Arthur Gibson aged 28 from Sheffield. They are the only two soldiers from the 1st Battalion Tyneside Scottish who are recorded as having been killed on that day. They were both married. The photograph opposite shows the bank which rises up from the field to the presbytery garden. There is a change of level of about twelve feet. The photograph above, taken from the top of the bank, shows the field in which Arthur was injured by the explosion. It is possible that he or the other soldier stepped on a mine or a grenade was thrown at them from the top of the bank. Whatever happened, Arthur lay injured in this field until he was reached by Private Gibson fourteen hours later. He may have died here. The bodies of Arthur Green and the two other missing men were discovered in the cellar of the Château de Juvigny on 19 July after it had been captured by Tyneside Scottish. Its cellar had been used by the 47th Panzer Regiment as an HQ and a field hospital. The château was built in the 1743. In 1944, as now, it was the home of the Marquise de Blangy. The above photo was taken before the war. It has since been reconstructed as a single storey building having been severely damaged by allied bombardment. The above extract from the intelligence summary in the War Diary reads: A private in the Intelligence Section found the bodies of Lt Green and the two men who had been missing since 8th/9th July. They had obviously been shot The private who found the bodies was Private Leonard G. Baverstock, the father of Kevin Baverstock, author of the book ’Breaking the Panzers’. Kevin Baverstock recalls his father describing his discovery as follows: He said very little, just "They'd been shot", but he said it in disbelief. He appeared as moved as I ever saw him and was quiet for several moments afterwards.” ! ! ! The château cellar today Private Baverstock’s testimony raises the possibility that the three men were not killed in the field but in captivity in the château cellar. The wording and emotion of his evidence suggests that the three were killed in the château. ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! A lost son The telegram above brought the news of Arthur’s death to his parents. The distress that it caused can hardly be imagined. The photo above right shows a cross bearing the name Tyneside Scottish, Black Watch. The name was changed to York & Lancaster Regiment when the cross was replaced by a gravestone. For at a year after his death, Arthur’s mother sought solace in writing letters to her son which she placed amongst his possessions in his bedroom. Ten nights after hearing of his death she wrote the letter shown opposite. It reads: My Dear Arthur Tonight I have failed in my undertaking to bear your departure from this life. I know I must try to overcome my grief. I pray for God’s help, and I know I must really try, myself. I would not have your life troubled by my longing for your presence here but will again try to live my life in God’s way, so I may join you when God decrees I may. God keep you Arthur my son. You were only lent to us. ! Your loving mother ! ! and father
John Ollerton - 2012 johnollerton@yahoo.co.uk Acknowledgements This account of Arthur Green’s service history is drawn from War Diaries from the National Archives, family records, Arthur’s service file, and historical accounts of the period. The photographs of the Battle of Rauray have been taken from Wikipedia, most of the others are from family records. I am particularly grateful to the following people who have helped me: •Jessie Ollerton •Kevin Baverstock - Author of Breaking the Panzers •Tom Renouf - 1st Battalion Tyneside Scottish •Jane Davies - Curator, Lancashire Infantry Museum •John L. Dixon - 70th Brigade Researcher •Stéphane Jacquet - Museum of the Battle of Tilly sur Seulles •Geoffroy Jegou-Dulaz - Owner of the Château de Juvigny •Philipe Bouteloup - Owner of the Presbytery of Juvigny •Trevor Williams - Arthur’s former classmate at Leigh Grammar School •Ian Gibson-Ling - Son of John Gibson •Vivienne Coulter - Niece of John Ritson
