Harris Joseph Selwyn Pte 5951794
Personnel Entry
Name Harris Joseph Selwyn
Army number 5951794.
Rank Private.
Decorations None known beyond Service Awards.
Date of birth Born 7/8/1917 in Coventry. Mother's name Charlotte Harris (1895 - 1979).
Age (At the time of his death) 69.
Unit Enlisted in the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment 15/2/1940. Posted to the Infantry Training Centre for Basic Training. Transferred to The Durham Light Infantry 26/6/1940 and posted to the 16th Battalion. Posted to Y List 1/4/1941. Posted to the ITC 23/5/1941. Posted to the 11th Battalion DLI
21/7/1941. Served Iceland 24/7/1941 to 23/12/1941. Returned to the UK. Served Normandy. Posted to 48 Regimental Holding Unit 9/9/1944. Transferred to the Duke of Wellington's Regiment 27/10/1944. Posted to the 7th Battalion. Posted to 49th Division HQ 13/8/1945. Absorbed into the War Establishment as a Batman 24/9/1945. Spell in hospital 19/11 - 7/12/1945. Struck off the strength of BAOR and embarked North West Europe. Class A Release 14/3/1946. Granted Release Leave 4/3/1946. Struck off Y List and Relegated to Class Z(T) Reserve 24/5/1946. Posted Class Z (Z) T Reserve 25/5/1946. Discharged from Reserve Liability 30/6/1959.
Company/Battery Company not yet known. 49 Div HQ.
Platoon or other sub-unit Not yet known. Probably Admin. Platoon at Div HQ.
Task or role Not known but initially probably Rifleman. Cook. Batman.
Joined Brigade 21/7/1941.
Promotions With 16th DLI promoted Acting Unpaid Corporal 15/7/1940. Granted Paid Rank of Acting Corporal 15/7/1940. Reverted to Paid Rank of Lance Corporal 14/10/1940. Reverted to Private on admission to hospital 11/3/1941. With 11th DLI Acting Unpaid Lance Corporal 4/8/1941. Paid Lance Corporal 1/10/1941. DWR - Reverted to Private at own request 23/11/1944. Additional Pay as Cook granted 22/3/1945.
Wounded Not as far as is known.
Prisoner of War Not so far as is known.
Died/Killed in action Died 22/5/1987 in Huntingdonshire. Buried 1/6/1987 in Cambridgeshire.
Home address Working as a General Labourer on Enlistment. Lodging in the Armer household at the time of the 29/9/1939 National Survey. Lived in Huntingdon in the 1930's. Married Edith Joan Armer (1919 - 2003) 5/9/1939 in Huntingdon. Lived at 2, Castle Hill Lane, Huntingdon.
Source table
Private Harris' son has kindly made available material from his own researches - especially via the Regimental Museum of the Duke of Wellington's Regiment - and this includes a map of North West Europe and extracts from the War Diaries of the 7th Battalion, Duke of Wellington's Regiment. If any user of the Website would like to see the copies of that material these can be forwarded upon request They are interesting in that the 7th Battalion was commanded by Lt Col C D Hamilton - formerly of the DLI and 70th Brigade. Jet Harris' work in this regard has been most helpful and is much appreciated.
