5 World War 2 Heroes worth knowing
Thousands of heroes, both military and civilian emerged in the Second World War
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom! No it’s not a scene from Blackadder Goes Forth, it’s the sound of the Royal Artillery anti-aircraft guns firing at the Luftwaffe from the banks of The Thames Estuary, at Shoeburyness, Essex. One can only imagine what is was like for the aircrews on the receiving end as exploding shells peppered the night sky. It must also have been terrifying for the citizens hearing the deep throbs of HE 111H, carrying their loads of munitions down the Thames Estuary, destined for British factories and docks.
It’s that time of the year where the nation comes together to remember those who gave their lives in the name of freedom. It will be the first Remembrance Sunday since 1952 without Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth. King Charles III will lead this year’s act of Remembrance. As November 11th approaches, I thought it would be fitting to write about 5 World War 2 heroes, and I’ll start with someone close to home.
Tadeusz Wozniak - Escapee
Tadeusz, known as Ted, or Taddy, was my grandfather. Born in Poland in 1927, to Roman Catholic parents, Ted was taken away from his family by the German army, aged 14. In 1944, he, along with 5 compatriots escaped from a labour camp in Tyrol, Austria, before making a daring mountain crossing into neutral Switzerland.
Ted and his friends eventually made their way to Gainsborough, in Lincolnshire, England, where they were mobilised by the Polish Army. With the war in Europe won, the allies began to reduce their ranks, and with that came Ted’s discharge papers.
It wasn’t long before Ted found his feet in the Steel City of Sheffield, where he met Mary, his wife to be. The pair married, and settled in Chapeltown, Sheffield, and Ted found work at Chapeltown’s famous Izal factory, where he worked until his retirement. Many of you over the age of 40 may recall Izal lavatory paper, nicknamed John Wayne paper, because it was rough, tough and took no sh**!
Ted and Mary had one child, my father, also called John. Had Ted not taken the decision to escape the tyranny of the Wehrmacht, he and my grandmother would never have met, and I would not be sat here writing this post.
Interestingly, Ted did not like to talk about the war, and he certainly did not like the Germans. His hearing was affected after the Germans blew up a tunnel whilst he was forced to dig for raw materials. One day he told me exactly which prison hut the German’s kept him in. At the time I didn’t have a notebook or my phone to record the conversation, and he wasn’t one for repeating himself. Ted’s tenacity to find freedom earns my respect, and a place in my top 5 heroes of World War 2.
Anna Leska - Pilot
From one brave Polish soul to another. Ana Leska was one of the many pilots on the Air Transport Auxiliary. She began her military career flying the RWD-13, a relatively primitive 3-seater monoplane. Many Polish citizens fled after Germany invaded them on 3rd September 1939, including Anna. She made her way through Romania and France (British Poles) to Britain.
Anna flew over 1,500 sorties, delivering an array of RAF planes to frontline air squadrons. Arguably the most famous plane Anna delivered was the Supermarine Spitfire. Flying the Spitfire is a dream for many aviators and Anna flew over 550 of them.
Anna’s skill, tenacity and endurance should not be underestimated. Anna, and her ATA colleagues did an amazing job in the face of adversity. Geoffrey Wellum wrote how difficult it was to master the Spitfire in his book First Light. When you consider Anna Leska flew everything from flying boats to fighter planes, it puts things into perspective. I wonder how many kills Anna would have chalked up had she fought in the famous 303 squadron?
Alan Turing - Mathematician and code breaker
The German’s had an unbreakable cryptographic machine, named Enigma, or so they thought. Much has been written about Alan Turing’s tenacity to work tirelessly with a small team of code breakers. Benedict Cumberbatch played Turing in “The Imitation Game.”
Sadly, Turing took his own life, aged 54, two years after being outed for his sexual preference, because at the time, homosexuals were not accepted in society. Thank goodness times have changed.
At the time of his death, the public had no idea what he had contributed to the war effort. Sixty years later, Queen Elizabeth II officially pardoned Turing.
Turing not only defeated Germany’s Enigma, he pioneered artificial intelligence. Had it not be for Turing’s ingenuity, Britain may have succumbed to the pressures mounted by Hitler’s Wolfpacks. The deadly U-Boat crews were responsible for sinking millions of tons of Allied shipping in The Atlantic Ocean.
The world owes a lot to Turing, the father of modern computer science. Breaking a code with 159 billion billion seemed impossible, but it wasn’t for Turing and his colleagues.
Stanley Christopherson DSO MC TD- Commanding Officer, Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry
What happens when you take a horse mounted regiment, and convert them to armour? You get an unconventional unit capable of spearheading the 8th Armoured Brigade, from D-Day, to the end of the War in Europe.
The SRY suffered many casualties, and Stanley Christopherson was quickly thrust into the role of Commanding Officer, a steep learning curve for anyone at that time of the war. Christopherson and his men fought valiantly from the beach landings in Normandy. The SRY recognised the Sherman’s quick rate-of-fire, using it to their advantage against superior German armour.
German panzer crews would either bale out, or brew up. Men like John Sempken MC and David Render lead by the front, following the example of their CO.
Despite suffering heavy casualties, the SRY maintained good spirits throughout the war, partly because of the excellent leadership skills of Christopherson and Padre Skinner. Despite facing the might of the SS and other German armoured units, the SRY became one of the most decorated British units to serve in the Battle of Normandy.
Lieutenant Airey Neave - Escapee
Like my grandfather, Airey Neave escaped from a German prison camp. Lieutenant Neave is credited as being the first British officer to escape from Colditz Castle. The castle housed many allied officers, all of whom had made escape attempts form other POW camps.
The Germans thought escape from Colditz was impossible. Neave and his fellow inmates had other ideas. French Lieutenant Alain Le Ray became the first officer to escape Colditz in April 11, 1941. Nine months later, on 5th January, Neave would also escape the clutches of the Germans.
Sadly, Neave survived the war, only to be killed in a terrorist attack. On March 30th 1979, Neave, a Conservative Party MP and Margaret Thatcher’s shadow secretary of state for Northern Ireland, was killed by a devastating car bomb attack in Westminster. The Irish National Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack.
Escapes by Le Ray and Neave raised morale among allied prisoners of war, while simultaneously causing lots of chaos and embarrassment for German guard units.
Thank you for reading the Woz Report, a publication I’ve launched to ask questions. Why did the German army decide taking a 14 year old boy from his home? It will never make any sense.