The Somerset & Cornwall Light Infantry
6 October 1959 - 10 July 1968
Osnabruck 1959/61
Plymouth Sept/61
Gibraltar/Tobruk 1961/63
Berlin 1963/65
Gravesend 1965/68
Enlisted into DCLI as a Band Boy in 1937, initially posted to 2nd.Bn. at Blackdown, soon after posted to 1st.Bn. in India. In 1940 returned to the Regimental Depot in Bodmin, from there he rejoined the reconstituted 1st.Bn. in the UK. He remained continuously with the Band of the DCLI. and on amalgamation with the Band of 1 SCLI until his discharge from the army in 1962 with the rank of Band Sgt.
SomLI – SCLI – he served in WW2 awarded 1939-45 Star – Africa Star – Burma Star – Defence Medal – Victory Medal.
So he was in at the very beginning of WW2, and was still in at the end. Harry was very proud of the Somersets.
Another great character (Cpl Harry Wright) and one of “Major Meredith’s boys”
Enlisted into the Som.LI. in 1935, and after a brief spell with the 2nd.Bn. at Colchester, he joined the 1st.Bn. in India. He served with the 1st.Bn.for the next 11yrs, including operations in Burma during WW2. He was promoted through the ranks and as ORQMS. he was a member of the Escort to the Colours party when the 1st.Bn. marched through the gateway to India before leaving India. In 1951 he was posted to 1 DCLI. as ORQMS. serving in Minden and the West Indies.
In 1955 he returned to 1st.Bn.Som.LI. in Plymouth as RQMS. and later moved with the Bn. to Malta and Cyprus. He was commissioned in 1957 as the 2nd. QM. and MTO. to the 1st.Bn. in Plymouth and Warminster, this was followed by a tour as QM.to the TA. Bn. at Bath. Following the amalgamation in 1959, he was QM. with 1 SCLI. in Gibraltar, Berlin, and Gravesend from 1961-66. He was then posted to the LI. Depot at Shrewsbury as QM. and retired from this post in 1968 having completed 33yrs. service.
Enlisted into the DCLI in 1946. After service in Greece, Malaya, and Mogadiscio he returned to the Regimental Depot at Bodmin in 1954 having been promoted up to the rank of Sgt. He was later posted to RMA. Sandhurst as CQMS. and then to 1DCLI in Osnabruck as CSM. of C Coy. and after amalgamation with 1 SCLI. In 1961 he was posted to the Regt. Depot as CSM Training Coy. and from there to the LI. Depot at Pontefract. He was then posted to the LI. Brigade Depot at Shrewsbury as RSM. Later he was posted to 1 KSLI. in Singapore and Malaysia. He retired from the army and later was fighting ill health and unfortunately not seen by his army friends. He was a much-loved father of his children, Christopher and Lisa.
Enlisted into the SCLI in 1962 and served in Gibraltar, Berlin, Gravesend, and Aden. (Unfortunately very brief details recorded in the Silver Bugle)
In 1915, aged 19, he walked 32 miles from Beacon to Bodmin and joined 4/5 DCLI (TA). It is said that Jan lived for the day he could be a soldier. A year later he enlisted with the Regular Army and was posted to 1DCLI in India. Shortly after the outbreak of the war the Bn moved to Iraq where he trained as a driver, after which he nursed his vehicle through a 2000-mile desert drive from Taji to Tobruk during May 1942. As a carrier driver at the battle of Bir-el-Harmat he managed to avoid capture together with much of the F echelon transport, but on the night of 28/29th June, as the column was stealthily threading its way through German positions towards El Alamein, they ran into heavy opposition and he was captured. As a POW he was part of the forced labour gangs working in the coal mines of Germany. He left the Army for a short time after the war and took a job as a bread roundsman. However he re-enlisted after a few months and was employed as a PSI (Permanent Staff Instructor) with 4/5 DCLI in Newquay. In 1952 he volunteered for Korea, and served with 1DLI throughout their operational tour. Returning to 1DCLI he went with the Bn to the West Indies as CSM E Company, stationed in British Honduras. On return to the UK he had a spell at the Regimental Depot, Bodmin before rejoining 1DCLI in Osnabruck and the amalgamation with the SOM LI. He remained with 1SCLI until 1961 when he retired from the Regular Army but he continued for another 10 years as PSI with the Cornwall Army Cadet Force. Our condolences go to his wife Violet.
Enlisted into the RAPC in 1940 and after a few months transferred to the Som. LI. Served with the 7th.Bn. throughout the campaign in North West Europe. By the end of the war, he had been promoted up to the rank of Sgt. He was later promoted to CSM. and served with the 7th.Bn. and then the 1st.Bn. in BAOR. He was then posted to the KOYLI and served in Malaya and again Germany. He was commissioned into the Som.LI. as QM. in February 1959 and served in that capacity with the 1st.Bn. and after amalgamation with the SCLI and Som. LI. TA. until his retirement in October 1964.
Enlisted into the DCLI. in the 1930s and posted to the 1st Bn. in Dinapore, The Andaman Islands, and Muzzafarpur. He was promoted up to the rank of Sgt. and was posted as PSI.to a Platoon of 4/5th. DCLI serving on the Isles of Scilly. On mobilization he went initially to 4 DCLI, then in 1943 he was posted to 2 DCLI in Italy and promoted to RSM. After the war, he returned to 4/5th. DCLI. In 1954 he was awarded the MSM. and the same year he was commissioned as QM. at the Regt. Depot at Bodmin. In 1957 he was posted to 1 DCLI. and he served first at Bodmin then Osnabruck and after amalgamation with SCLI. He retired from the army in 1965 but was immediately re-employed by TAVRA as QM. Cornwall AFC. He finally retired in 1977 having served the Crown for 45yrs.
Before the commencement of WW2, he was due to go to Durham University, the war intervened however and he found himself in training with the 10th. Devons. He was then commissioned into the KAR. serving in Burma with the 1/6th. Tanganyika Rifles.
Immediately after the war he transferred to the DCLI and was posted to 5 DCLI in Germany. He was later posted to 1 DCLI in British Somaliland. There followed another long period of secondment with the 7th. Kenya Rifles and the 6th. Tanganyika Rifles in Nairobi and Mauritius. He was posted to 1 SCLI in Osnabruck shortly before the Bn. returned to the UK. and was based at Seaton Barracks, Plymouth. He was for a short time OC. C Coy. He retired within a few months of the Bn. returning to the UK.
Was called up for NS. completed his service, returned to civvy street, and after a very brief break, enlisted into the Som.LI. and served with this Regt. then the following amalgamation, with 1 SCLI and later the LI. from 1956-1973 in the UK. Osnabruck, Gibraltar, Aden, Cyprus, and Norway. He was an outstanding Bugler and took part in the Edinburgh Military Tattoo and many Regimental events including 4 Tattoos in his home city of Bath. His last appointment before leaving the army in 1973 was Bugle Major at the LI. Depot Shrewsbury.
Enlisted into Som.LI. and served with this Regt. then the following amalgamation with 1 SCLI. in the UK. and Osnabruck from 1957-1960.
Murdered by Provisional IRA in Newcastle, County Down. David was a Plymouth man who enlisted into the SCLI. in 1967. He served in Northern Ireland as a member of the Signals Platoon. He was discharged from the army in 1970 and returned to Northern Ireland where he joined the RUC., he worked his way up through the ranks from Const, Sgt to Inspector. He was wounded when the IRA bombed the Ulster Polytechnic killing two constables. He won three commendations. His community work in Newcastle will always be remembered with affection by the community, and its very success in reconciling religious differences was probably the reason for his assassination. He left a widow and two daughters.
Died at Taunton Deane Somerset – George as he was known was from the Somerset levels and was a withy grower. He was part of the Somerset DLI draft and spent his NS service with SCLI as a driver. He leaves a daughter Anthea.
He enlisted into the SOM LI in 1933 and following training was posted to the 2nd Battalion in Blackdown Army Camp, Nr Kingsbridge, Devon. He was later posted to the 1st Bn in Poona where he quickly became an NCO in the Signals Platoon. When war broke out in 1939 he was posted to Taunton, where as a Sjt and later a WO2 (CSM) he became involved in the training of recruits for the new Battalions of the SOM LI which were forming. He returned to the 1st Bn in India in 1947 and was appointed RSM in January 1948. The Regiment had the honour of slow-marching proudly through the Gateway of India in Bombay, when on the 28th February 1948, the Bn was the last British Regiment to leave that country after partition. The Guards and Colour Party on that occasion were trained and brought up to their usual high standard by the RSM. On its return to England the Bn amalgamated with the 2nd Bn in June 1948, with RSM Bartlett remaining as the Bn RSM. Shortly afterwards the new Bn took over the duties at the Light Infantry Brigade Training Centre at Bordon in Hampshire. In November 1952 the Bn was posted to Malaya were it remained for three years. During this tour he was mentioned in dispatches and also received the Meritorious Service Medal (MSM). The Bn returned to England in 1955 and marched through Taunton in a welcome home parade to Jellalabad Barracks the Regimental Depot. In 1957 he was made a Member of the British Empire (MBE) His last appearance with the SOM LI was at the parade of the Bn in Warminster on 12th September 1959 to mark the amalgamation with the DCLI. He had served a total of 11 years as RSM of the 1st Bn, a record in the history of the Regiment. Now badged SCLI he subsequently served at SHAPE as RSM until 1963. The last 4 years of his service were spent back in the tropics, as RSM to the Recruit and Personnel Selection Unit in Singapore. After retirement in 1968 he became manager of a chicken farm in South Wales and finally as a security officer with Trust House Forte in Llandudno.
Enlisted into the Som.LI. in 1938. He served at the Depot and with the 1st. 2nd. and 5th. Bn’s during and after WW2. He left the army in 1946 but after a short time, he re-enlisted into the Som. LI. He subsequently served as a Provost NCO and then as a Provost Sgt. in Som. LI and later SCLI. He served in Austria, Borden, Germany, and the Middle East.
Enlisted into SCLI at the age of 17yrs. in 1962 and served for 6yrs. including Aden and Germany. Left the army in 1968.
Educated at St. Pauls and RMA Sandhurst. Commissioned into the DCLI in 1951 and joined the 1st. Bn. at Bulford. In 1953 he was posted to the Regt. as a Training Subaltern, later he was posted to 1 KSLI. in Kenya. There then followed a period spent at the War Office after which he returned to the Regt. Depot as Adjutant. He resigned from his commission in 1963.
Enlisted into the KOYLI (no date given) and later transferred into the DCLI. He served in Malaya, Germany, West Indies, and Berlin. He also served two tours of duty at the Regt. Depot at Bodmin. Following amalgamation, he served with the SCLI and became a greatly respected figure of the Bn. He retired from the army in 1969.
Enlisted into the Som.LI. in 1936. Before WW2 he served at the Depot and with both the 1st. and 2nd Bn’s. During the war, he saw active service with Som.LI. in Burma and North Africa. After the war, he served with the Regt. in Germany, Singapore, and the Middle East. At the time of the amalgamation, he was serving at the Regt. Depot and he was the NCO featured in No:1 Dress of the SCLI on the front cover of the Light Bob magazine. He retired from the army in 1962 after 26yrs. of service.
At the time of his death, he was the Chief Clerk at the LI. Office, Taunton. Enlisted into Som.LI. and following training was posted in 1947 to the 2nd.Bn. in Austria where he was employed as the Typist to the Adjutant. (who was at the time the Regt.Sec.) He subsequently served in clerical posts in the 2nd.Bn. later the 1st.Bn. and the Regt. Depot, during this period he was promoted through the ranks, and in 1960, following amalgamation, he was posted to the Regt. Depot of the SCLI at Bodmin as RQMS. He held a variety of other senior clerical posts within the army before retiring in 1976 having served for 28yrs. Not content with this he enlisted into the 8th. UDR. as RQMS and held that post until leaving in 1981 and joining the LI. Office at Taunton.
Enlisted into the 4th Bn.DCLI. in 1940 later moved to the 1st. Bn. and during WW2 served with the Bn.in the Middle East. In 1946 he was promoted to RSM. From 1948-50 he was posted to the 4/5th Bn.DCLI(TA). He was then posted back to the 1st.Bn. as RSM. serving in Germany and Jamaica. In 1957 he was posted to the Regt. Depot as RSM and was in post when the amalgamation took place and it became the Regt. Depot of the SCLI.
He was awarded the MBE in 1959. In 1960 he was commissioned into the DLI. and posted to Berlin where he was at first the Messing Officer and then the MTO. He remained as MTO when the Bn. moved to Hong Kong. In 1965 he was posted back to 1 SCLI and went with the Bn. for their tour in Aden. He retired from the army in 1967.
Enlisted into DCLI as a boy soldier in 1941 and served in that Regt. and with Som.LI. and following amalgamation with 1 SCLI until 1967 when he retired after 26yrs. service. During this time he was an Orderly Room Clerk and was promoted through the ranks to Sgt. In the 1950’s he was the Officers Mess Sgt. with 1 DCLI in Minden. He later served as PSI with the 4/5th.Bn.DCLI from 1955-57 then in the same post with Som LI.(TA) from 1961-67 and with the Somerset Yeomanry from 1967-68. From 1969-70 he was the School Staff Instructor (RSM) with the Monkton Combe School CCF. He was commissioned into the Somerset ACF. in 1969 and then in 1974, he was appointed as Chief Executive Officer, Gloucester AFC. He retired from this post due to ill health in June 1981.
Enlisted into the DCLI in 1930 and served with the Regt. in India and Iraq. During the war, he served with the DCLI in the Western Desert as part of the 8th.army. He was taken prisoner in June 1942 south of Tobruk. In 1943 he escaped from the POW camp in Italy where he was interred but was recaptured. He returned at the end of the war to England and following further service with the DCLI he was discharged in 1948 after 18yrs services.
In 1950 he re-enlisted into the DCLI and served with that Regt. at various postings up until the amalgamation in Osnabruck. He served with 1 SCLI until he retired in 1962 having attained the rank of CSM. He had served a total of 30yrs.
Maj. Watts died tragically whilst in hospital aged 59yrs. Enlisted into the army in 1939 and served during the war with the 6th.Bn. Som.LI. and the Kings African Rifles. After the war, he returned to Som LI and in 1946 he served with the 2nd. Bn.in Greece and Austria, later he was posted to the LI. Training Bn. at Borden. From 1949-51 he was posted to the Regt. Depot at Taunton as the Depot Capt. In 1951 he left for a 2nd. tour with the KAR and on completion of this tour, he returned to 1 Som LI. in the UK and later moved with the Bn. to Malta and Cyprus.
Following the amalgamation, he served in Osnabruck with 1 SCLI until December 1959 when he retired from the army due to increasing deafness.
Enlisted into TA on 1st. July 1951. Served with 255 (Medium) Regiment Royal Artillery. Later called up for National Service and served with 1 Som, LI. in Malaya, and the UK until discharge in 1956. 1st January 1958 rejoined 1st. Som LI. as a regular soldier moved to Osnabruck on amalgamation. Served with the Bn. in Gibraltar, Berlin, Canada, Norway, Aden, and Northern Ireland. On the formation of 1LI. served in Lemgo, Colchester, again in Northern Ireland, and Tidworth. Baggy was presented with the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal, besides Malaya, South Arabia, and Northern Ireland GSM.
Annegret Burford died on Monday 8th August 2016. Annegret was the widow of John Burford (Baggy) who died in 1978 aged 44. Annegret was a regular attendee of the annual SCLI/LI/Rifles reunion held in Taunton.
L/Cpl Cox served in the SCLI and 1LI. He saw service with 1SCLI in Aden and with 1LI in Northern Ireland.