Paternal granddad was A Coy, 1st Bn South Lancs. Landed in the first wave on D-Day and went from there to Bremen at the tip of the 3 Div spear (two wounds I believe, but I don't know much about his service as he never told his kids anything about the war and he died long before I could speak to him). From there to Palestine for the creation of Israel.

The other was RASC (I believe, I'm waiting on Glasgow sending me his records). North Africa and Italy. He knew Alemein and Cassino as far as I know and had time to watch the 1945 Italian Cup final (I believe it was a regional competition because the main competition was suspended in 1943. Either way, the referee was executed by partisans after the match despite trying to do a runner over a bombed out stand).

My paternal Nan and her sister (possibly cousin, it's a long time since I was told the story) were strafed by a German bomber while walking across fields in Storeton on the Wirral. Neither were hit but were appropriately scared.

I'm not sure on the rest. I know two people on the paternal side died on the Burma railway because both my Nan and Granddad despised Japs. I don't know about what the others did in World War 2 or the Great War though.

Originally Posted by legal_eagle

I think you're definitely winning so far mate - tracing your family's service back to the peninsular war is very impressive...a lot of my family have service history but the farthest back I can trace it is to the 2nd Boer War - but all I know about that is that one of my great great grandfathers was there, I have no idea what he did. My Grandfather once told me that we had an ancestor who had fought in American Revolutionary War (on the British side of course!), but I only have his story about that one, I don't even know what his name was or what relation he would be, if it is actually true that is! My grandad, god love him, was a good one for embellishing and even making up stories for us when we were kids - but he was definitely at El Alamein and from there on to the end...I have his service record and medals, including Africa Star, which I treasure more than my own medals - I only wish I had the WW1 medals from the Great Grandfathers - they have long since vanished and no-one in the family seems to know where they are....

I'm extremely lucky I suppose, I have an 'old' family name, I've managed to locate records without any real difficulty (it's amazing what a few quid will do).

Even though my family has at least 200 (attributable) years service; nowadays I wouldn't want my wee boy to join up when he's old enough. He's 6 years old now and already decided he's going to become a soldier. About a year and a half ago, he told me that he wanted to try my helmet & ECBA on (I work abroad, I've got my own set.....), so I let him try it on, please bear in mind the bottom of the ECBA was dragging on the floor & the helmet was fucking massive on him. He looked cute as fuck, but at the same time it broke my bloody heart to think of him possibly putting it on for real in the future.

I brought my first car when I moved from someone who fought at El Alamein, he was captured and spent the rest of the war in POW camps, the first near Glasgow and the 2nd in Norfolk, I moved to Italy.

He seemed to be quite happy to be captured, rubbish food, guns, tents, clothing everything "Vecchio" old.

My father in law fought with the Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade, went on to join the 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division, again never talked about it, medals lost or never even claimed.

Maternal side.
Mother served WW2 as a WAAF wireless operator.
Her elder sister ATC, not sure what she did.
Eldest brother TA RE prewar, then commissioned in RA for war service, served Alamein & Sicily, then trained as an AOP, killed Holland November 1944.
Another brother Merchant Navy.
Non from the family, that I can trace, served WW1, they were all too busy building ships on the Clyde.

Paternal side.
Old man, regular crab, rigger on Hurricanes. Spent most of the war in Aden where the pilots were trained for desert flying.
Younger brother RM, involved day 1 D day.
WW1. Grandfather served in Army Cycle Corps, (or as his sons called it 'The Gas Pipe Cavalry')
His eldest brother Served Yorkshire Regt, killed May 1915 in one of the first gas attacks, commemorated on the Menin Gate.
Another brother called up called up in 1917 spent most of his time in hospital with pleurisy and eventually invallided out without getting to France.
Their sister died in the 1918 'flu pandemic.
Grandmother's brother Tank Regt, killed Poziers 1918, No known grave, commemorated Poziers memorial to the missing. My father was named after him.
A brother in Yorkshire Regt survived the war.

Originally Posted by philc

I brought my first car when I moved from someone who fought at El Alamein, he was captured and spent the rest of the war in POW camps, the first near Glasgow and the 2nd in Norfolk, I moved to Italy.

He seemed to be quite happy to be captured, rubbish food, guns, tents, clothing everything "Vecchio" old.

Brilliant! - my Great Uncle (by marriage not blood) was captured in Normandy and spent the rest of the war in Scotland - when it all ended his home was in what became East Germany and so he never went back, married and divorced a Glasgow girl and is still alive and well in England to this day 91 years old! He has never returned to Germany in all those years.

Better mention my Grandmother too - she's long gone but a fiery Shankill girl as a grandmother still has the power to scare even after death! And she wouldn't be happy if I didn't give her her dues! She was nursing in London in 40/41 throughout the Blitz..

Dad was RAF crash crew, Mom was CWAC in WW2. Paternal Grandfather saw service with the Cameronians during WW1. Maternal GF was a farmer in Sask, but had done his bit in South Africa at the turn of the century. One remote ancestor on my mom's side was at Queenston Heights during the War of 1812.

This thread > Family Military Photos < May be of interest. I can't be arrsed to type it all out again.

Great Grandfather on the Paternal side joined the RAF just after it formed in WW1, he was an aircraft rigger and sadly died of the Influenza that swept Eurpoe in 1918.

Great Grandfather also on that side was a sapper during WW1 and would never speak of his war (Mining on the front), when he recieved his medals he threw them in the fire where my Grand father saved them. I now have them.

The first son of the Raf guy was captured in Singapore where he died.

The second son Joined the RE and went to N Africa where he then transferred to 4 Para Sqn and eventually dropped in to Arnhem and remarkably survived bt swimming the Rhine.
He's 97 and wont talk about it.

My grandfather served in an anti aircraft battery.

Unfortunately, he only managed to shoot down one plane. It was a Spitfire.