WWII enquiry

[colin lloyd]

[*]After the success of my last request to help with my family unanswered questions .I hope your society can help and advise me with my Gt uncle Alfred Lloyd's WW2 record. As kids my Brothers and I would try to get him to recount some of his stories, as Our Dad said He served in most of the war. But like many of his generation he just got on with running the families coal business.Saying there was not much to tell.
I recently came into the possession of some of his mementos,the main item is a panoramic photo of his regiment ..305 COY PIONEER CORPS taken in February 1943 .It shows him wearing corporals stripes along with aprox300 men including officers and the regimental dog!!! ,Also with that picture is a small card to his parent,s, wishing them a happy Christmas and printed on it is Holland 1944. It is very small 3" x 4" Maybe Army issue. I have a similar card from my father to folks at home from HMS CHARLESTOWN again dated Christmas 1944.I do not have either their service numbers,how do I obtain them? and is there a Forces Data base I can apply to.
Thanks Colin Lloyd

[AndyJ]

Hi Colin,

I can help with that question. There are very few official records of UK servicemen online for the Second World War. However, you can request a copy of your great uncle's service record from the Ministry Of Defence's Army Personnel Centre (it costs £30). Details here. Additionally, there are plenty of sites which can provide background information about service conditions, the various campaigns and so on. Try the Forces War Records, or Fold 3 (the latter is owned by Ancestry and is largely American in content but there is some British stuff there too), and possibly most helpful from your perspective, The National Army Museum.

The Pioneer Corps has been absorbed into the Royal Logistic Corps and so you will find them represented within the RLC Museum. There will also be a number of Old Comrades associations around the country from whom you may be able to find individuals who might have served alongside your great uncle, although sadly, there aren't that many WW2 veterans left now. More details on how to get in touch here.

Incidentally, if you didn't already know, members of the Royal Pioneer Corps were referred to as 'Chunkies' by their fellow, non-RPC soldiers. I'll leave you to work out why!

[MaryA]

Colin I've split this topic from the last post you made as it could become confusing if there were any additional answers to the original. You should be able to EDIT your top message here to change the subject to something more appropriate.

[MaryA]

Thank you Alex for that background, it helps me with my own uncle's military service in the Pioneer Corps.

[retiringtype]

Their military records will still be with The Ministry of Defence. You can apply for copies but there is a fee. See https://www.gov.uk/guidance/request-rec ... -personnel

You won't need their service numbers if you have their dates of birth. But you will need their death certificates.