Albanian Assignment
By David Smiley
Gubbins SOE
By Peter Wilkinson, Joan Bright Astley

Bob Lancaster

New Member
Hello everyone,

I am an ex 22 SAS and Australian 1 Commando veteran based in Australia. In 2019 prior to Covid I commenced a pilgrimage to visit all the WW II SAS grave sites throughout Europe.

In 2022 I will be flying back to France to carry on the pilgrimage. I therefore seek any information and advise and backgrounds on individuals who served in the SAS who were KIA or murdered when taken prisoner who are buried in France and Italy.

I have already attended many graves in France and the SAS Memorial at Sennecey La Grande.

I have compiled a list of those graves I have not visited and note information on this site relates to some but not all of them.

Any assistance and advice would be apprecaited.

Regards

Bob Lancaster
 
Do you have the SAS and LRDG Roll of Honour? Has all the names and locations, plus relevant bios. New edition due soon I believe. Well worth having.
Happy to advise re Rom Cemetery and associated sites for the Bulbasket graves. Suspect you will have seen the Normandy ones already.

Will Ward
 
Do you have the SAS and LRDG Roll of Honour? Has all the names and locations, plus relevant bios. New edition due soon I believe. Well worth having.
Happy to advise re Rom Cemetery and associated sites for the Bulbasket graves. Suspect you will have seen the Normandy ones already.

Will Ward
 
Hi Will,

I have tried to get hold of the Roll of Honour volumes however they sold out within a short time of being released.

I have not heard or found anywhere where I can purchase them. If you know please advise.

I have been offered to view the SAS Association Volumes in London however I will be based in France not the UK.

I have already attended Rom and many other grave sites in France.

I intend to pay my respects at the following sites this year:

Paris / Clichy
Recey - Sur ource
Marissel/ beauvais
Villequiers
Choloy
Graffigny
Varennes
Moussey
Velorcey
Mouenmoutier
Chilleurs

if you are on Instagram or Facebook you can see the previous graves I have paid my respects and see the ones listed above when I get there this year.

IG plantagenet_manor
FB. Robert Lancaster

if you know of anyone will to part with their volumes of the toll of honour or prepared to lend them please get back to me.

I look forward to your reply.

regards

RL
 
Hello everyone,

I am an ex 22 SAS and Australian 1 Commando veteran based in Australia. In 2019 prior to Covid I commenced a pilgrimage to visit all the WW II SAS grave sites throughout Europe.

In 2022 I will be flying back to France to carry on the pilgrimage. I therefore seek any information and advise and backgrounds on individuals who served in the SAS who were KIA or murdered when taken prisoner who are buried in France and Italy.

I have already attended many graves in France and the SAS Memorial at Sennecey La Grande.

I have compiled a list of those graves I have not visited and note information on this site relates to some but not all of them.

Any assistance and advice would be apprecaited.

Regards

Bob Lancaster
hello bob - my father commanded the burial party at Moussey in 1945 - SQMS J Alcock also of 22 SAS in 1960s. There are two Moussey in Alsace Lorraine - go to the most southern one for this burial site. As a boy, I lived on the 22 SAS base at Hereford. Later I worked in Queensland. Now back home in Yorkshire - much work has been done on SAS grave sites already - did you know that - Graham Alcock
 
hello bob - my father commanded the burial party at Moussey in 1945 - SQMS J Alcock also of 22 SAS in 1960s. There are two Moussey in Alsace Lorraine - go to the most southern one for this burial site. As a boy, I lived on the 22 SAS base at Hereford. Later I worked in Queensland. Now back home in Yorkshire - much work has been done on SAS grave sites already - did you know that - Graham Alcock
Hi Graham, I have now managed to attend all the SAS grave sites in France less 3 that I intend to visit. I met the mayor of Moussey and gave him an SAS medallion to join his other SAS mementos. I visited all of the grave sites and memorials and the mayor of another village also opened the bar and served me a beer from the one where the SAS officer nicked a bike when a German patrol turned up. I am helping Damien Lewis with his new book about the SAS in WW2.
 
Hi Graham, I have now managed to attend all the SAS grave sites in France less 3 that I intend to visit. I met the mayor of Moussey and gave him an SAS medallion to join his other SAS mementos. I visited all of the grave sites and memorials and the mayor of another village also opened the bar and served me a beer from the one where the SAS officer nicked a bike when a German patrol turned up. I am helping Damien Lewis with his new book about the SAS in WW2.
 
SAS trooper Charlie Radford mentions the Moussey ceremony in his book SAS Trooper - he describes how my father prepared them - This sort of research you are doing has already been done extensively. Father always maintained he was on Loyton but he actually was on Pistol 30 miles to the north. I used to teach in Australia in QLD.
Graham Alcock
 
SAS trooper Charlie Radford mentions the Moussey ceremony in his book SAS Trooper - he describes how my father prepared them - This sort of research you are doing has already been done extensively. Father always maintained he was on Loyton but he actually was on Pistol 30 miles to the north. I used to teach in Australia in QLD.
Graham Alcock
Hi again - be aware that trooper Ashe of Kent was from Pistol and not from Loyton as one book writer has claimed. I have recently completed a book on a 2 sas operation - 131,000 words. book. Graham
 
Hi Grahm,

"This sort of research you are doing has already been done extensively" ..... Not really sure how to answer that. I fully understand research has been carried out and in fact most grave sites I have visited all over France, even in very remote locations had already been visited by the SAS Association. Also the Roll of honour book has already been compiled. I am doing the pilgrimage for myself, no one else. I reached out to see if anyone could help as I could not get hold of the Roll of Honour book which details all the graves. I have been offered to review the book by the SAS Association, however I have done my own research. As indicated in a previous post I have now visited all the grave sites in France other than 3 and I will visit them in due course. I will be travelling to Italy and Germany and will also be paying my respects at grave sites in those countries. It is and has always been a personal thing.
 
Hi Grahm,

"This sort of research you are doing has already been done extensively" ..... Not really sure how to answer that. I fully understand research has been carried out and in fact most grave sites I have visited all over France, even in very remote locations had already been visited by the SAS Association. Also the Roll of honour book has already been compiled. I am doing the pilgrimage for myself, no one else. I reached out to see if anyone could help as I could not get hold of the Roll of Honour book which details all the graves. I have been offered to review the book by the SAS Association, however I have done my own research. As indicated in a previous post I have now visited all the grave sites in France other than 3 and I will visit them in due course. I will be travelling to Italy and Germany and will also be paying my respects at grave sites in those countries. It is and has always been a personal thing.
Hi again - do you know W. R. from Kent regarding your research on war graves for SAS? My wife and I were on holiday in Italy some years ago and when at Monte Cassino we saw, 2 SAS graves there = they were right at the back to the right side as you go through the front gate - I once mentioned this to W.R and he said he had not known them. So see if you can find them. My father's commanding officer in Italy was Roy Farran when he was part of the Italy Detachment in 1945. Dad also landed at Taranto in 1943. I spoke with Roy when I worked in Canada. Father's old 'cobba' from WW2 is still alive - Jack Paley of 2 SAS- Jack also lives in Canada. Harry Vickers of 2 SAS once gave me a copy of the list of SAS war dead. But then he later asked for it so they do exist. Have you seen a booklet called 'Honour to the Airbourne' - in there are lists of SAS awards.
I cannot give you openly the address of A.R. but if I contact him and he agrees that might be a way forward. You are doing a good thing - dad was very emotional after we visited Moussey in 1982 - Dad shot five or six of the enemy when they trapped him and his men in a cottage in the forest when on Pistol and he next shot 3 of his pursuers - he was so lucky to get away - all done on Operation Pistol. I have been to this cottage - it is a holiday cottage now for tourists.
As regards authors or writers on the SAS - most never go to the operational areas themselves - I have found my father's own report was probably changed in one part by SAS intelligence - it was a sensitive issue, so they altered it. Dad never saw his report so he had no need to be concerned about how he told his story to me and it does differ regarding the shoot-out at the cottage - this will all be in my book. Good luck in Italy -Graham
 
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