Josepth Vickers Hamilton, Welch Regt/Corps of Royal Engineers

[Kosakova]

I am currently researching my Grandfathers War History for my BA (Hons) Textile degree and am struggling to read some of the records, mainly the place names. Also, he was based in the N.W. of England and joined the Welch Brigade. Would this be because he was allocated to it when enlisting?
The other part I am really struggling with is reading the last two records on page 1 - ref: 240/42 and 107/42. Could anybody help me please?

On page 2, it shows he was compulsorily transferred to the Corp of Royal Engineers  (was this common?) and considered suitable for training on W.T. Workshops ? Again, I am struggling to read the locations.  There are two more pages showing he was transferred to India, which is the area I am particularly interested in, but I will post this separately in order to keep this post short.

[MaxD]

He started where the army put him, in the Welch regiment,  First in the holding battalion (where folk were sorted and trained) at Towyn and later posted to 19 Battalion Welch at Llanelly.  Dates clear I think.

In May 1941 he is appointed (on the same day) unpaid acting Lance Corporal and immediately paid acting Lance Corporal (seems peculiar but that is the way the army does things!)  He is at King's Lynn

In Dec 1941 he gets a second stripe, unpaid then paid acting Corporal.  At Downham Market.

There is a short 5 day admission to RAF Hospital North Creake (Norfolk - presumably the nearest to where he was stationed) in Jan 1942.

In March 1942 he is promoted to War Substantive Corporal (unlike acting rank, he now has to do something truly awful for his rank to be taken away.  War sub because it is valid only while he is serving during the war).

In July 1942 he attends a Wireless Telegraphy course at the Eastern and South Eastern Command WT School and gains a trade qualification of A II. 

He is then posted to 10th Battalion [Royal Welch]at Whittlesford Cambridgeshire in November 1942.  The hieroglyphics can be ignored, they are the reference of the posting.

On May 1943 he is compulsorily transferred to the Royal Engineers (why - because the army said so!) Inland Water Transport Workshop at Woolmer under 8 Docks Group.  This is an amalgam of the last entries on the first page and the first ones on the second sheet which are all to do with this transfer where he ends up with 980 Inland Waterways Workshop Company Royal Engineers.

In July 1943 he goes to the technical training Center at Longmoor for a course and the barely visible line below is where he leaves the course (ceases to be attached CTBA this unit...)

He changes trades after the course and from a wireless trade becomes a pioneer (that is also a rank to confuse things but not in his case.  He was substantive corporal, and transferred in that rank to the RE).

MaxD

[Kosakova]

Wow, thank you. You have given me so much to research further. I have already done an 8 week Research and Development project on him, but this was before I had his records and had made the wrong assumption that he would have joined the Kings Own at Lancaster as that was our nearest regiment. I've attached the other two pages that I received where it appears he does some plumbing and pipe fitting courses. Can I clarify what it means when it says: Volunt. deferred 6 months - is this him volunteering to go out to India? Also I've looked at the Royal Engineers site and they are closed to enquiries for 12 months. Does anyone know if their is any where else I can contact to try and find out where he goes once he lands in India until he leaves Japan please? I wondered about contacting the Imperial War Museum to see if they can help.

[MaxD]

Detail later (real life getting in the way!) but to pick up a couple of points.

He was in India from March 1945.  The voluntary deferment relates to him saying he wanted to stay in the army beyond the point at which, as a conscript, he would normally have been discharged.  The recording of this is, as is very often the case, a bit haphazard on his record. The "volunt deferred...date later" is a Jan 1946 entry in among the 1945 entries which is repeated but with a date this time on the bottom of the page - again quite typical.

I need to look more closely but in terms of finding where he was we need to confirm what it looks like, that he was with the same workshop throughout his career in the REs and we need to look for a war diary at the National Archives which hopefully covers the whole period, my first look suggest the diaries finish in Dec 1945.

Back in due course.

MaxD

[MaxD]

Next page now up to April 1946.
To save repeating things, first a number of general points:
The left column can usually be ignored, it is the reference of the piece of paper on which the event is recorded in the unit.
Which unit he was with is in the second column, it helps that he spent his whole RE service in 980 Inland Water Transport Workshop Company (the word Hy for Heavy is added in one iteration).
The place, either a town or the command he was in (UK, South East Asia Command, India, Allied Land Forces South Asia) are in the 4th column followed by the date the event actually occurred (give or take in some cases!).  Next is the rank he held at the time and finally the signature of the officer certifying the entry.
6 Sep 1943 at Loch Naw (it looks like) he does a plumbers course and awaits re-mustering.  (He is changing trades again).  Here his unit is still 980 Coy but he is obviously away on the course.
29 Dec 43 – this entry is confirming his remustering  - now he is a plumber and pipe  fitter B III (his grade and pay level) with effect 24 Dec 43.
May 1944 promoted unpaid acting Sergeant then paid on the same day.
29 Oct – 7 Nov 1944 granted  leave with Ration Allowance at Standard Local Rate (money to buy food while on leave).
23 Nov 1944 promoted War [Substantive] /Sergeant
23 Dec 1944 has 7 days leave with RA/SLR
3 Feb 1945 entry relates to his unit not him.  It records the “ownership” of the 980 Company passing from 21 Army Group to the direct control of the War Office.
The 21 Jan 1946 entry is covered already.  Clerks often used blank rows on a form to squeeze stuff in even if out of sequence – makes it all much more interesting!
28 Feb 1945 he is promoted to acting Warrant Officer Class II with the appointment of Mechanist Quarter Master Sergeant.
To india 12 Mar 1945 and granted War [Substantive] WO II (MQMS) with effect 25 Nov 1945.
In Jan 46 (go back a bit) is that voluntary deferment without a date which is then recorded as occurring on 7  March 1946 at the bottom.
Out of sequence are his admission on 14 March 1946 to 52 Indian General  Hospital (can’t find its location) and his subsequent (April 1946) medical downgrading to B1 (Permanent) (essentially unfit for front line service OK for base/garrison type duties.  As he was working in a workshop it made no real difference.

More in due course.

MaxD

[MaxD]

I've gone back, having found a good RE history and corrected the title of his unit which was Inland Water Transport (Heavy) Workshop Company.

Looking now at the last page, I have a feeling something is missing.  ALFSEA  headquarters moved from India to Singapore in Sep 1945 (History of the RE) and you will see he went to Japan from Singapore in 1947.  His record doesn't show a move so I can't be sure when he moved from India.   You will note that he was only in Japan for a month. He was a pretty senior man now in his trade and it may be that he went in an advisory capacity to the RE units who were there helping in the reconstruction.  Need to think about that a bit more.

MaxD

[Kosakova]

Max, thank you ever so much, I really appreciate this. My laptop has gone in for repair today so I may not be checking in as often as I normally would, so please bear with me.From the little my father told me before he died, my grandfather saw some fighting whilst out east but he never really talked about it. That’s what made me think that he had been in Burma, together with him having scars on his body that he said was from leeches.

[Kosakova]

Hi Max, you mention a good history of the RE book/document. Is this something I can access to read up on? I can access things through the university library if I have the full details. I start back at uni next week and can't wait to start researching this in detail. I'm going to London in March, do you think it would be helpful to visit anywhere whilst I'm there?

[MaxD]

Hi Tracy

Good timing!  I had prepared some suggestions for your continuing research.

His service up to May 1943 was all in the UK and his initial time in the holding battalion is not worth looking at.  There is no war diary for 19 or 10 Battalions - unsurprising, they were based in UK.  What they were doing and where you would find out I suggest at the museum:
https://royalwelsh.org.uk/  The museum don't have info on individual soldiers.

I suggest you concentrate on the Royal Engineers from 1943 onwards when he is in the same unit throughout and with which he served overseas. 
This link http://www.rootschat.com/links/01ot5/ is to the History of the Royal Engineers from the year dot.  I'd suggest Volume 9 is what you want specifically. 

The link also has links to the RE in-house Journals.

With these it will be a question of checking out the contents of the history and journals for mention of the Inland Water Transport units and with fingers crossed for 980 IWT Workshop Company Royal Engineers.  Be aware though that the IWT were one of the lesser known elements of the RE so it may well not appear at all!  Nonetheless anything on the RE in Burma/India/Singapore late 1945 on will be good background.  The history does mention post war Japan, page 578 onwards  - the bit about allied supervision of Japanese contractors would fit my theory that he went as a senior advisor to one or other of the units that were there..  There are I think too many RE units there to try to find mention of one individual for just one month in 1947!

It would be good if you can visit the National Archives at Kew.  There are 5 war diaries entitled 980 Company RE from May 1943 to Dec 1946 which almost completely cover his service with them  Although the word "workshop" doesn't appear in the title, I don't find any other 980 Companies and the places coincide with his dates  (UK up till Mar 1945 then Far East until Dec 46 (doesn't quite go far enough!).  There is nothing beyond Jan 1947 when he went to Japan.

There is also a war diary for 52 Indian General Hospital https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C2738517
- it won't have his personal records but it should say where it was while he was there,

There is a lot there, check out the links and shout if you need more now or when you are back at uni again - don't forget to study your uni subject(s) though, the military side can become addictive!

MaxD