ISBN 90-804718-6-0
223 pages

Foreword; Introduction; Acknowledgements; photos; maps; Sources; Index of Persons

Appendix: Commanding Officers; Officers on 9 July 1943; Glider load for Husky; Roll of Honour for Husky; Poem by Sgt Williams; Officers on 17 September 1944; Battalion roll on 17 September 1944; Roll of Honour, Market; Seaborne Echelon; No. 12 Platoon Evades and Liberates; POW Log; Officers on 23 May 1945; Militaria, Uniforms and Equipment; Abbreviations

   In 1997 Robert Sigmond self-published his Off at Last about the 7th Battalion King's Own Scottish Borderers, which in its six years of existence saw ten days of combat—all at Arnhem—and lost 90% of its strength. The 2nd Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment suffered its own heavy losses in the same battle. Two Dutch authors, assisted by a third Dutchman, have over the years assembled the story of the South Staffords and now Robert Sigmond has published their book.
   Bart Smulders began studying the battalion in 1985. Alexander Junier began studying the unit in 1990. Some years later the two met and joined forces in preparing the book. In addition to researching war diaries and other primary documents, the authors interviewed dozens of veterans to produce an account largely propelled by the words of the vets but meticulously supported by a wide range of other materials.
   The pre-war history of the battalion dating back to 1705 consumes only a page, with the unit serving on the North-West Frontier in September 1939. In the second half of July 1940, hard on the heels of the BEF's disaster in France, the battalion returned to the UK from India. For the next year the South Staffords served in the Home Defence role and conducted various training activities. In October 1941 the battalion was designated for service with the newly formed 1st Airborne Division, and for the next year and half intensive training continued as part of 1st Airlanding Brigade. In May 1943 the unit sailed to North Africa, arriving in Oran on the 26th. Further training (and assembly of Waco gliders) ensued. In July, the troops boarded their gliders to take part in the invasion of Sicily and their first combat operation of the war.
   As with the book as a whole, the chapter on Operation Husky mostly contains lengthy direct quotes from the veterans, with their words italicized for ease of recognition. Here the men tell about their first landings—some in the sea—and their first actions, including the battle at the Ponte Grande bridge. The battalion took considerable losses in Sicily and withdrew to Africa on 14 July to refit. The unit was briefly deployed to Taranto in Italy in September as part of Operation Slapstick and as foot infantry in the advance up the east coast. Afterwards the battalion returned to the UK via Africa, arriving in December.
   Chapter Four covers further training in the UK, and Chapter Five, the heart of the book, covers the battalion's next operation, Operation Market and the Battle of Arnhem.
   The story of Arnhem must be one of the best-known in the English-language literature of the war, but Junier and Smulders add many new details, especially with some remarkable reminiscing by veterans of the South Staffords. In some parts it almost seems as though the authors account for the moment-by-moment activities of every man in the unit. Here's an example of a small part of the action:

   This left C Company without its commander, who was killed together with his driver, while most of his Company HQ was wounded. C Company's three rifle platoons stayed west of the St Elisabeths Hospital, on the road between the city prison and the Den Brink estate. Captain J.R. Dickens, the 2 i/c, took over the Company. Meanwhile on the other side of the road to the Museum, the houses being defended by three platoons of A Company were under heavy attack from tanks on the south side of the road. They were firing directly into the houses, setting the house occupied by No. 8 Platoon on fire. From the northern side, they came under murderous fire from 20 mm guns and machine guns. This stopped around 1100 hrs when German infantry launched an attack on the houses from the rear, lobbing grenades inside. Fortunately this attack was repelled although it was unsure how long they could hold out as the shelling from the self-propelled guns already had forced them down to the lower floors.
   At A Company HQ in the Museum, a request for a PIAT was received from No. 8 Platoon. Private Percy Collett immediately set out with a PIAT to cross the road but as he left he was killed on the doorstep by a shell from a self-propelled gun.

Major R.H. Cain, CO B Company:

   "During this time the buildings forward on the north side of the road had been shelled mercilessly and several were on fire. At some stage the CO and Henry Lane came up and I heard the CO ask Henry if it would be possible to withdraw the trapped men to our side of the road. I saw Barker [CO No. 8 Platoon, A Company] in the doorway of a house and called him over and told him to report to Henry. I do not know if anything was arranged but I did not see any of A Company come over.
   "As Georges [Dupenois, OC No. 14 Platoon, R Company] was down to his last bomb I went back to Battalion HQ which was now in a house about 100 yards to the rear, to find more. As I went they started up shelling into the hollow from the lower road. I then saw some German infantry on the road. They were wearing clean grey uniforms and forage caps and were lightly equipped with just small arms and bandoleers. An NCO was beckoning on a section of about six or seven who were in a line abreast and in enfilade to us. I indicated them to a Bren gunner who fired and missed them. They did not see where it came from but they stopped and crouched looking to their front, the NCO moving forward rapidly out of sight. The rest were beautifully bunched. I told the Bren gunner not to fire again and grabbed a Bren from Wagstaffe of No. 11 Platoon. I laid on the bunch and fired half a magazine. As I fired I could see them crumpled up. I watched them and saw one half rise and try to crawl forward. I then let them have the other of the half magazine and there was no further movement. I had been firing from a mound in the hollow on which we were standing, some large stone slabs, inscribed in Hebrew, probably a small Jewish cemetery. I got Ken Taylor [CO No. 11 Platoon, B Company] with two Brens and a dozen of his Platoon to occupy the mound as it commanded the hollow right down to the road. At Battalion HQ I could find no more PIAT bombs and the RSM informed me that there were, in fact, no more in the position."

Lieutenant J. Reynolds, 1st (handcart) Mortar Platoon, S Company:

   "The mortaring and shelling was tremendous, I took a Bren gun and started to fire at the infantry trying to get up the slope. I remember the grenades exploding over our heads. At one stage a grenade hit the branches of a tree that I was under in the hollow, a branch or a clod of earth hit the pipe that I had in my mouth and it broke off a couple of teeth. With me was a signaller with a radio set on his back, a heavy thing, and we could not get a sound out of it. It was useless, and I was so fed up with the Signal equipment not working up to that stage that I told him to get rid of the bloody thing as it would only make him a target. Shortly after this a runner came up with a message from Battalion HQ saying 'the men may shave now'. I was pleased to know they had not lost their sense of humour."

...

Private D.W. Smith, No. 15 Platoon, C Company:

   "Our officer returned from '0' group. We are to attack through the wooded area to our left and try to outflank the enemy blocking forward movement! Gunfire can be heard from that flank in the far distance. We were given no opportunity to eat. We were ordered to drop our small valise off our backs. 'He must know that our twenty-four hour ration packs and water bottles are in them?' He orders us to spread into a single extended line, left to right. As I hoisted the Bren gun and took my place in the line, I recalled stories of the men of 1916 going over the top at the Somme. We moved forward through the trees and brush as the firing from the left increased. I do not remember looking to the left or right. My attention was forward. Abruptly, it seemed, we came under machine-gun fire! It was my first experience of concentrated German MG fire. We had met nothing like this in Sicily or Italy. It was like meeting a hailstorm! I went down to the ground and crawled forward, lugging the Bren alongside, looking for a big tree. I had only a vague impression of the men either side of me. The trees and underbrush ahead were more sparse, no big trees! In the distance I caught brief impressions of figures moving. I just had time to note they wore brown, green, black mottled camouflage clothing, similar to our own. A weapon on my left banged into rapid single shots. Although I was completely exposed, I opened fire. I had emptied and exchanged two magazines, when a series of 'cracks' over my head made me duck. I knew what that sound was! For a while I lay still. There were more 'cracks' and someone kicked my right foot? The man on my left side shouted and I caught the word ' .....hit...'. I lifted my head to see who had kicked me but there was no one there. A lot of movement through the wood to my left caught my attention. A group of men came into view. One detached himself and stooped over the man on my left. He called to the group and four men lifted the recumbent figure up and marched off with him. I saw sergeant stripes on the solitary man's arm who jerked his hand and called 'come on with me....' I looked over to my right where my section leader, Corporal B lay. He rose and yelled, 'Smudger, come on.' Two other figures on his right side also got up and all three moved to catch up with the larger body. I jumped up to move after them and felt something peculiar about my right foot. I looked down and saw the back of my boot was torn open. I did not stop to investigate as the group was leaving me behind. It was clear we were pulling back from contact with Jerry."

   It should come as no surprise to readers that the situation grew substantially grimmer, and the authors—still relying in large measure on the voices of the veterans—follow the battle through to the bitter end.
   The next chapter chronicles the rebuilding of the battalion, although ultimately it turned out the unit had only a single mission remaining. In May 1945 the South Staffords were airlifted into Norway to assist in disarming the German garrison and maintaining order during the transition period while the exiled government resumed control.
   Although it fought briefly in Sicily and mainland Italy before the bloody battle at Arnhem, in many ways the history of 2nd South Staffordshire closely resembled that of their comrades in 7th KOSB, including garrison duty in Norway at the end of the war. Likewise, this book about the South Staffords closely resembles Robert Sigmond's book about the 7th KOSB. The layout is clean and attractive (although a touch crowded and the extended italics can become a bit wearing) and the physical production of the book is up to the highest standards.
   The text is accompanied by ample photos. Some are wartime portraits of individual South Staffs, with too many carrying captions indicating KIA at Arnhem. Among the most interesting are group shots of troops in the Netherlands during the battle, taken by Dutch civilians, and many including smiling locals crowding around the soldiers. The authors also supply some great wartime and pre-war photos of Arnhem from the air as well as excellent photographs of various buildings and blocks where the fighting raged. These match up very nicely with some well-executed maps. Almost fifty pages of appendices encompass a great deal of supplementary information, including rosters of officers, lists of men killed in action, and a complete roll for the battalion as of 17 September 1944 with name, rank, unit, service number, and fate.
   In sum, fine work by Junier and Smulders and another great book from Robert Sigmond's specialty publishing business.
   Available from online booksellers, local bookshops, or directly from R.N. Sigmond.
   Thanks to Sigmond for providing this review copy.