No 11 Beach Signal Section.

[Chris Weddell]

Hello All,

            A cover and letter dated April 1943 posted to the No 11 Beach Signal Section, Royal Signals. However much I have looked I cannot find No 11 Beach Signal Section anywhere. Does any one have any ideas about them. Are they part of the Combined Services Operations of that time.

I cannot find this APO 4545 or where it was based?  Does anyone know.

                                              Cheers

                                                Chris  :o

[Michael Dobbs]

Chris

I cannot offer a location but can provide the following information:

APO 4545 EFM telegraph service authorised (Post Office Circular of 2 December 1942)

1/4/1943 used for Belgian troops transferred from Nigeria to Middle East with the address ℅ APO 4545 - but unfortunately I did not record where I got this information from.

I have a similar cover with the letter enclosed addressed to the same Sergeant Harrison with No 11 Beach Signal Section, this was postmarked DEPTFORD SE8 on 8 APR 1943.

Regards, Mike

[Chris Weddell]

Mike,

        Thank you very much for this. That is a great help. I think I can now put it in Egypt and with a little checking I think I can even name a camp which comes to mind for this.

I will check the Sgt's Records as well. I will post back here if my hunch is right.

                                                    Cheers

                                                      Chris

[Michael Dobbs]

Chris

Whilst looking for something else I looked through my Telegraph Service collection and came across this EFM telegram addressed to the same Sgt Hattison with 11 Beach Signal Section.  My write up shows that the telegram was received in Cairo and passed to the Private Telegrams Bureau of 4 BAPO.  It was then sent to Palestine where it received FPO 155 d/s - this may perovide more of a clue as to the location of 11 Beach Signal Section.

Mike  :D

[Chris Weddell]

Mike,

        Thanks for this. I have a new cover to him which i must try and find as i think this was from a Palestine FPO also.

                                                              Cheers

                                                                Chris

                                       

[Chris Weddell]

Mike,

      I have just found this bit of information from an old Dix Noonan Webb Medal auction catalogue on line dated for the 8th of September 2015 lot 475. This is the foot note from the lot which is very helpful.

James Cravenhill Scott, a native of Lambourn, Berkshire who was born in July 1914, enlisted in the Royal Berkshire Regiment in June 1940. Transferring to the Royal Signals in March 1941, he qualified as a signaller and wireless operator and was advanced to Lance-Corporal in December 1942. Posted to the Middle East as a member of No. 11 Beach Signals Section in May 1943, he was actively employed in the Sicily landings, and afterwards in Italy and France and Germany. Advanced to Corporal in April 1944, he was released in January 1946.

[Michael Dobbs]

Chris

Thanks for the update - next time I go to The National Archives I'll try and search files relating to Sicily invasion, in particular looking for ORBATS to see if they list 11 Beach Signal Section.  If they do that will provide information as to which larger unit they came under.  Still puzzled with the potantial Palestine connection.

Mike

[Chris Weddell]

Mike,

        I found this from a member of No 5 Beach Signal Section.I haven only pasted the relevant part of this 1st person article so I have given a link to the full article.  The web address is https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/85/a5776185.shtml


"Reformed once again at Dundonald, B.5. were sent for signal exercises, etc, with the Royal Corps of Signals — first to Dundee until New Year's Eve, when we arrived at Dunblane in time to celebrate (my first) Hogmanay! There until March 1943 when we were despatched to board the CPR Landing Ship 'Duchess of Bedford' at Greenock. A few days later, sailed to Liverpool for nearly a week and then, mid-March, left in convoy for voyage via Freetown and Cape Town, eventually arriving Port Tewfik mid April. Transferred to 'S S Devonshire' from which we did a landing full-scale exercise at Akaba (or Aquba). Then section sent by rail up to Hadera (Palestine, as was) for about a month, during which time we were transported to the plains near Damascus on another big exercise. Back to Tewfik, then returning to 'Duchess of Bedford', on which we set sail for what turned out to be the Sicily 'Husky' Operation — B5 landed just south of Syracuse."

This is good as it gives locations in Egypt and Palestine around the dates of our items.

                                                  Cheers

                                                    Chris