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MEMORIES
AND INFORMATION - WORCESTERSHIRE
6th
WORCS. (KIDDERMINSTER) BATTN.
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Kidderminster was defended by the
6th Worcestershire
(Kidderminster) Battalion, commanded by
Lt-Col. R.W.A. Painter, MC.
Before the end of May, 1940, the very
first patrol of 10 men performed its duty on the
outskirts of the town on a Sunday evening and this was
the beginning of four-and-a-half years of devoted duty
by members of the Battalion. This initial patrol was
armed even though the official issue of a very limited
amount of rifles and ammunition had barely started.
They may have been wearing LDV armlets but even these
are likely to have been provided by voluntary groups
in the town, prior to the official issue. Full uniform
was still some way off.
It seems that the very
initial formation was of 16 sections, each comprising
10 mainly ex-servicemen, with a further squad of 35
men whose duty was to guard vulnerable points such as
power substations. Later, the unit would would evolve
into the normal Battalion formation comprising several
Companies, further subdivided into Platoons and,
within the latter, Sections. The entire complement of
the Battalion would eventually be 1200-1500 men (and
perhaps a few women in auxiliary support roles). Ranks
would eventually mirror those of the Regular Army and
the early Section Leaders would become either
commissioned officers or senior NCOs. As was the case
with every other Home Guard Battalion in the country,
the Kidderminster Battalion would be on duty every
single day and night, from late May 1940 until its
final stand-down parade through the streets of the
town on Sunday, December 3rd, 1944.
This
website page records just a few names out of the many
hundreds who served within the Battalion. Ranks are
included, where known, but it should be noted that
information on which they are based was recorded at
varying times and therefore they may not represent the
seniority achieved by stand-down. This is especially
the case with some of the more junior officers whose
rank is that recorded at February 1941.
This is
a list of just a few of the men who served within the
Battalion.
Anton, J.G.,
Capt.
Brockway, -, Lt.
(Performed
a particular act of bravery, picking up and
throwing a primed grenade out of a training
trench)
Brown, H. H.,
Lt.
Buckley, H.H.,
2/Lt.
Burrows, Leonard
(Volunteered at the age of 14, manned a
roadblock at the top of Bewdley Hill, involved
in the "Battle of Bewdley", Sunday 30th June
1940. Worked at Bradley and Turton)
Carter, Reg.
(Quartermaster)
Charles, Alec
(Later
member of the successful Kidderminster Home
Guard Rifle Club)
Clarke, K., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 27 Birmingham
Road.)
Colwell, Joseph
Alfred
(Served 31st May 1940 - 31st December 1944)
Compton,
William
(Involved in the "Battle of Bewdley", Sunday
30th June 1940. Member of No.6 platoon based
at Abberley whose observation post was the
church clock tower. Worked at Parson Chain
Co., Stourport)
Cooper, Stan
(Under-aged
member, manned a roadblock at the top of
Bewdley Hill)
Corbett, C., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of Broomhurst, Nr.
Kidderminster, working in Tipton)
Davies, O.W., Capt.
(Early
Section Leader)
Davis, C.A., Cpl.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 40 Franchise
Street, working at RAF MU, Hartlebury)
Dudley, L.A.,
Sgt-Maj.
(Early Section Leader)
Dykes, D.G. Maj.
(Medical
Officer)
Edwards, J.G., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 9 Rock Terrace,
Park Butts, working in Stourport)
Evans, Bert, Sgt.
(Sgt.
i/c No. 1 section. No. 6 Platoon, "B" Coy. -
working as a
barber in Wood Street)
Evers, Harold, Sgt.
(Organist and Choirmaster at St. George's
Church)
Forrest, E.A.K.,
Lt.
(Early Section Leader)
Foster, W.K., 2/Lt.
Goodwin, -, Capt.
(Involved in the "Battle of Bewdley", Sunday
30th June 1940)
Gregory, H.W.,
2/Lt.
Grove, R.E., MC,
Lt.
Gwillam, E.
(Early Section
Leader)
Harber, Cyril,
Sgt./?2/Lt.
(Led a platoon responsible for the
Lickhill and Rifle range area)
Harvey, J.G.
(Early Section
Leader)
Head, G.H., DCM,
Lt.
Hopkins, C.W.E.
(Early Section
Leader)
Howells,
(Later member
of the successful Kidderminster Home Guard
Rifle Club)
Kirkby, E.H. Lt.
Knight, A.A. Capt.
(Early
Section Leader)
Lamb, H.J.
(Early Section Leader)
Lench, Les.
(Joined in
1942, served in No. 2 Platoon as Platoon
driver, based at the Futurist Cinema. Guard
duties included Victoria Bridge, Bewdley, BBC
transmitters at Droitwich, and Stourport
petrol dump. Later joined the Warwickshire
Regiment)
Lewis, R.H, Lt.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 84 Birmingham
Road, working in Edgbaston, Birmingham)
Lloyd, G.E.
Loynes, R.
(Early Section
Leader)
McDonough, J., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 44 Franchise
Street, working in Kidderminster)
Mantle, H.G.,
Lt.
(Early Section Leader)
Marks, E., Lt.
Matthews, H.A.,
Pte. (HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of Barnetts Lane)
Mlllett, C.R, Lt.
Morris, "Dollar",
Pte.
Morris, G.K., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 58 Bewdley
Street, working in Kidderminster)
Oakley, W. Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of Duke of
Edinburgh, Bromsgrove Street)
Ovens, R.A.
(Early Section
Leader)
Painter, R.W.A.,
L-t.-Col., MC
(Battalion
Commanding Officer)
Payne, J.P.
Perrett, F.C. Lt.
Pritchard, H.M.,
Cpl. (HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 232 Chester
Road North, working in Kidderminster)
Ray, H.J., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 62 St. John's
Ave, working in Kidderminster)
Richards, H.E.,
Cpl. (HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 121 Sutton
Road, working at Anglo Enamelware, Stourport)
Rigby, A., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 20 Avill Grove,
working in Birmingham)
Robinson, T.A.,
Pte. (HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 13 Cross
Street, working in Kidderminster)
Russell, J.H. Sgt.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of Coventry
Street, working in Kidderminster)
Simes/Sines, J.D.,
Lt.
(Early Section Leader)
Smith, W.H.X.
(Early
Section Leader)
Stevens, G.C.
(Early
Section Leader)
Summers, Vic
(Working as Tax
inspector)
Sykes, R., 2/Lt.
(Early Section Leader)
Tanser, W.W., 2/Lt.
Thatcher, C., Maj.
Thompson, -, Pte.
(Based
at the Golf Club)
Thompson, A.A., Lt.
Tolley, -
(Later member
of the successful Kidderminster Home Guard
Rifle Club)
Whatmore, W.,
Lt.
White, T., Pte.
(HQ
Coy., Machine Gun Section - of 19 Claughton
Street, working in Kidderminster)
Viney, H.T., Capt.
(Early
Section Leader)
also:
Gwilllames, E.,
Capt.
(Serving officer, seconded to Battalion as
Adjutant and Quartermaster, 1941)
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There is much further information available about
the impact of the war on Kidderminster in an excellent
local history book entitled
"Kidderminster and District in the Second World War",
by Bill Wood, Bob Millward and Robert Barber,
(published by Kidderminster and District
Archaeological and Historical Society, 2006, Sutton
Publishing Ltd. ISBN-13:
978-0750945516).
Contents include sections on the evacuation of
children, the ARP, bombing, the military presence in
the town (especially the Army Pay Corps and U.S. Army
personnel), work, shortages and rationing, school days
and education, leisure and entertainment and finally
the celebrations for peace. The section on the Home
Guard contains detailed recollections of many
experiences and incidents, including, of course, the
main one, the famous
"Battle of Bewdley". The latter started at
about 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 30th 1940 when an alert
was given about an imminent German paratroop attack.
The Home Guard and regular troops were mustered to
counter this threat and the crisis lasted for most of
the night. It later emerged that air currents had
lifted a quantity of hay high into the air and this
had been mistaken for German parachutes.
Further information about the Home Guard in the county
is contained in the book
Chronicles of the Worcestershire Home Guard
by Mick Wilks
(Logaston Press, 2014, ISBN-13:
978-1906663872).
In Memory of
All the Home Guards
who served in the
6th Worcestershire
(Kidderminster) Battalion
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The publication
mentioned above,
"Kidderminster and District in the Second
World War", is the source of many of
the names of Kidderminster Home Guard members
which appear on this page and grateful
acknowledgement is made to it.
FURTHER
INFORMATION
Further information about the
Home Guard in Worcestershire is contained
elsewhere in various parts of this website. To view the
Worcestershire summary page, please use the
Mems-Worcs link below.
And if you
can add anything to the history of the
Worcestershire Home
Guard, and especially the Kidderminster unit, please contact staffshomeguard via the
Feedback link. |
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September 2016 |
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