Paratroopers in Glaston -WW2

This account owes much to the research of Steve McLaughlin whose detailed writings can be read in Glaston Church.

Arrival
During the early months of 1944, thousands of men of the 1st Airborne Division of the British Army were spread across the counties of Lincolnshire, Leicestershire and Rutland. There were many airfields in the area and men were preparing for landings in Europe. Local people became used to the sound of aircraft as training exercises took place across the region. Paratroopers became neighbours to villagers of Somerby, townspeople of Melton Mowbray and the occupants of Grimsthorpe Castle among others.

USAAF Preparations at Cottesmore

In February, the American 82nd Airborne Division arrived at Cottesmore and were accommodated in a tented camp at Ashwell. After a short time, the camp was provided with the running water and steam heated showers required by the American troops. They soon acquired bikes and frequented local pubs along with British paratroopers.
The Polish First Independent Airborne Brigade, trained at R.A.F. Ringway (now Manchester Airport) then took up residence near Grantham. A tragic accident occurred in July when they took off from R.A.F. Spanhoe, near Laxton, for a training exercise in American planes. Two planes touched wings and crashed near Tinwell killing 8 American crew and 26 Polish paratroopers. There is a memorial in Tinwell Church.

4th Parachute Squadron RE

The squadron (a unit of the Parachute Regiment) formed in December 1942 was initially based at Moascar, a Royal Engineers’ training depot near the Suez Canal. Their purpose was to support infantry battalions as engineers, laying and clearing mines and building or destroying bridges. Men were chosen for their attitude as well as fitness and skills. The training was tough and many did not make the grade or returned to their previous units.
In March 1943, the squadron moved to Palestine and then to Tunisia where training continued until September when they had their first engagement with the enemy. Italy had surrendered to the Allies but the fight against the Germans continued. The squadron were sent to the ‘heel’ of Italy to clear routes in the area around the port of Taranto where they witnessed fighting as they carried out various duties including bridge repair and provision of sanitary facilities.
They returned to England in January 1944. They were given 28 days leave before they returned to spend a short time in Ketton before taking up residence in Glaston. With about 200 men they more than doubled the population. 1 Troop were billeted at The Three Horseshoes, 2 & 3 Troops (about 100 men) were at Bisbrooke Hall and the HQ of Officers, their Batmen & Drivers and probably Wireless Operators were at Glaston House.

Training

As soon as the men had moved into their billets at Glaston they were off again to Ringway where training resumed with a 5 day parachute refresher course in early March 1944. For the next 6 months their days would be filled with demanding preparations for future operations.
Locally, they were to be seen on regular route marches and they had frequent mine-laying drills. Ketton quarries provided a useful location for training in grenade-throwing, weapon-firing and assaults on ‘pillbox’ guard posts. They practiced using rafts and built bridges (then dismantled them) on the Rivers Nene and Welland. Their training was by no means all local. At Redmile, Nottinghamshire they learnt to build Bailey Bridges and FBE (Folding Boat Equipment) Bridges and built a 220m bridge in 3 ½ hours. They went on live firing practices
near Chesterfield in Derbyshire. Small groups, like wireless operatives and NCOs, traveled to Fulbeck Hall, the HQ of the 1st Airborne Division for specialist training. On one occasion a group of men went to a large garage in Finchley to learn about continental cars.
From May onwards, as major operations in Europe were planned, the Squadron took part in several larger exercises. They went to Yorkshire for the exercise ‘Rags’, they flew from Leicester airfield down to Wiltshire and to airfields near Grantham to practice low jumps and rendezvousing.

Off-Duty
Even off-duty life was not easy during the seven months they were in Glaston. Billets were crowded, facilities were basic, water was in short supply and their lodgings were shared by mice! Leave was rare but the troopers made the most of their free time in evenings and weekends. Many forged strong friendships within the squadron and locally.

There were two pubs in the village which provided extra cash for those with skills. One trooper was an excellent jazz pianist and another sketched cartoons of locals. Another source of income was working night shifts at Ketton quarries. This came to a halt when Major Perkins took command in June. He also put a stop to unofficial attire – one trooper regularly displayed an Iron Cross, another had acquired an American greatcoat and several wore non-regulation boots brought from Italy.
The squadron’s transport was concealed in the woods around about and was borrowed, with or without permission. The troops managed outings to Peterborough and Leicester which were not lacking in incident as one recalled. “On Saturday nights it was usually the dance hall above Burtons in Leicester, at the end of the night it was a dash to the hot-dog stall before catching the truck back to camp. Sometimes we would stop overnight and get a bed in an air raid shelter … but then we had to be up early to catch the newspaper van … eventually reaching Glaston in time for breakfast. On one occasion about a dozen of us missed the truck and walked the 30km back to Glaston. We set off about midnight and arrived around breakfast but this time we were put on a charge, not for being late but for taking so long to walk the 30km!”
Amongst the transport stores were Welbikes – small, light, 2-stroke, single seater motor-bikes designed for dropping by parachute. Although they had no lights, these were ideal for ‘borrowing’ to visit local girlfriends. Ordinary bikes were also ‘borrowed’ from Uppingham, another destination for nights out. A story still told locally recalls a bike hidden in a tree at Bisbrooke Hall overnight: another tells of a ‘borrowed’ double-decker bus.
On the night of September 17th, no phone calls were allowed and the squadron were confined to billets to write letters home but a number found their way into the Three Horseshoes for a final drink.

Operation Market Garden

Throughout the summer operations were planned, troops put on standby, then there were postponements and cancellations. After thirteen such occasions tensions were high when they were briefed for ‘Market Garden’. As they travelled to Spanhoe on 18th September, their packs were kept hidden to imply this was just another training exercise however the planes overhead the previous day, taking the first contingent of the 1st Airborne Division, left few in doubt.
The aim of the operation was to capture Rhine bridges near Arnhem providing a route for ground forces to take the Ruhr. It was not a success and there were heavy losses. Of the 155 men who left Glaston 18 were killed , 55 were taken prisoners and 82 were amongst those who held the area at Oosterbeek for nine days before being ordered to withdraw.

After Arnhem

The villagers of Glaston, knowing of the losses at Arnhem, seeing the rows of boots left behind and witnessing kit being packed up thought there were no survivors. In fact those who returned moved into new billets at Wragby. In December the depleted 4th and 1st Parachute Squadrons RE were amalgamated and, in May 1945, served in Norway overseeing the German surrender there.
In 1945 prisoners captured at Arnhem were liberated but the former tightly knit group were scattered. Some remained in the Forces, some returned to former jobs and some sought pastures new. Several returned to marry girls they had met in Glaston and at least half a dozen lived, worked and raised families in our local areas. Few talked about their experiences until years later when those still in touch gathered for re-unions in Glaston.

From the 1980s until a few years ago, a group met annually, visited their old billets, had a dinner together and shared a church service to remember their friends. In 2005 a seat in the churchyard was dedicated to the memory of the 4th Parachute Squadron RE and the names of those who fell are read out every Remembrance Sunday. In the park around Bisbrooke Hall saplings brought from Sonnenberg woods, Oosterbeek are now maturing.

The 4th Paras are not forgotten.