REGIMENTAL NOTIFICATIONS 12 OF 2019
Borderers,
FUND RAISING FOR THE FUNERAL OF RONNIE SHEPERD – FROM BOB BOLTON
“I have now received into my bank the donation from our friends in Germany, and the retiring collection from yesterday. The donations on the JustGiving page as of today total £2,005, paid into my bank from Germany was £838.36 (1,000 Euros) and into Paypal £45. Cheques amount to £190. The collection after the service amounted to £242.65 So in total WE raised £3321.01
The Funeral Directors will be paid their £2,345 leaving £976.01 to go to charity.
What a fantastic effort by everyone. I don’t think I can thank you all enough for this, I am completely overwhelmed by your generosity.
Bob”
ARNHEM WAR DIARIES
The following link gives access to the War Diaries of the 7th (Galloway) Battalion. http://www.pegasusarchive.org/arnhem/frames.htm
75th ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATIONS OF THE LANDINGS ON WALCHERN 1944 – from ROD BARRON
“Greetings.
I just wanted to draw attention to the forthcoming commemorations that are being planned on the Dutch island of Walcheren in the final week of October 2019.
These will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the amphibious Allied landings which took place here on November 1st 1944 and liberated the Dutch islanders from German occupation. The Walcheren landings also helped to secure control of the Scheldt estuary and thereby provide unrestricted access to the port of Antwerp, significantly shortening Allied lines of supply.
The amphibious assault involved a number of British & French Commando units as well several battalions of the 52nd Lowland (Mountain) Division, including the 4th & 5th KOSB.
The principal commemorations will take place on the weekend of Saturday October 26th/Sunday October 27th.
In the port of Vlissingen (Flushing), a special service will be held in the Sint Jakobskerk on the morning of Saturday October 26th followed by a commemorative ceremony in the afternoon on nearby Uncle Beach, where both 4th and 5th KOSB landed in 1944. A re-enactment of the original landings is also planned.
Other events will probably include a ferry trip to Breskens (directly across the Scheldt estuary from Vlissingen and the launch point of the 1944 landings) as well as visits to local War cemeteries including Bergen op Zoom.
A total of 27 men from the 4th & 5th KOSB lost their lives during the Walcheren landings and are now interred in the Bergen op Zoom War Cemetery.
I’d be most grateful if you could post details of these events on the Regimental website.
If you wished to include my name and email address (barronrm@hotmail.com) as point of contact for those who may be interested in attending, am happy for you to do so.
Many thanks,
Rod Barron”
OP BANNER 50 – COMMEMORATIVE EVENT
British troops deployed onto the streets of Northern Ireland on the 14 August 1969, in response to growing sectarian unrest. The military campaign was code named OP BANNER and the General Service Medal (Northern Ireland) was awarded to over 300k Service personnel that were deployed into Northern Ireland over the subsequent 38 years. In total, 1,441 UK Armed Forces personnel died as result of operations in Northern Ireland or paramilitary actions in other countries. All their names are listed on the Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum (NMA).THE ROYAL BRITISH LEGION (RBL) EVENT – 14 AUG AT THE NATIONAL MEMORIAL ARBORETUM (NMA)
The Royal British Legion will host a commemorative event on Wednesday 14 August 2019 beginning at 2.00pm to mark the 50th anniversary of the UK Armed Forces’ deployment on operations in Northern Ireland – the longest continuous campaign in British military history.
The event will be held at the National Memorial Arboretum. Please note that this RBL Op Banner 50 event will be a closed, accredited event. You need to be a holder of the General Service Medal (Northern Ireland) as it is not open to the general public.
For more information on the Op Banner 50 event please visit the RBL website: https://www.britishlegion.org.uk/op-banner-50/. You are strongly recommended to read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) which you will find once you open the above link.
This event is likely to be well attended (maximum 20,000 attendees) and the details of what the RBL is planning on the day are still being formulated.
OPERATIONAL HONOURS AND AWARDS LIST APRIL 2019
Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)
Lieutenant Colonel James Maccoll CHRISTIE, The Royal Regiment of Scotland
Our congratulations to James – the last Second-in-Command of the 1st Battalion.
PDH