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My
father Lewis (Lew) Seccombe Farmar Edwards was born on 13th
January 1914 and died on 2nd February 1993. He served in 'B'
Company, 1st Bn Queen Victoria's Rifles (also known in 1937
as Kings Royal Rifle Corp). His army number was 6142398.
Here
is a photograph (click to enlarge) taken from the books entitled
"The Second Great War" published by The Waverley
Book Company Ltd and edited by Sir John Hammerton.
The
text below the image says "Riflemen of Calais Fame - Men
of the Queen Victoria's Rifles were among the small British
force which held out gallantly in Calais towards the end of
May, 1940. Above, men of this Territorial regiment are seen
on their way to a training camp shortly before the war. Photo,
Courtesy of the London "Evening News"". Dad had
it marked in the book as "my mob".
He undertook a forced march from Poland to Germany in 1945
as documented in the "Forced March" section.
For
all that he saw and all that he felt, he never seemed down
about his experiences and had fond memories of his friends
which always made him smile.
 He
was a PoW initially at Stalag XXA and then moved in 1941 when
Stalag XXB was opened. He was camp tailor in Stalag XXB and
recalls the PoWs putting on shows to amuse themselves. Dad
played the violin in the camp band also. Take a look at the
Stalag XXA/B
photographs and dad appears to be in them!
I
also recall him telling me that the PoWs all spoke a form
of German that even the German's did not understand.
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Back
Row (L-R)
Johnny Johnson (RPs), Jack Smith (Signals), Frank Crockford
(Driver)
Front Row (L-R)
Ron Harwood (Signals), Dad: Lewis Edwards (Signals)
'B' Company - 1st Bn QVR
Whitbread Hop Farm, Beltring, Paddock Wood, Kent
September 1939 - May 1940
This photograph was taken by Lindsay McLennan, 857 High
Road, N. Finchley, N.12
Phone. Hillside 3161 |
Family
and Background
My
father was born in Bromley (Kent) in the County of London
on 13th January 1914. His birth was registered in the
District of Poplar.
| Father |
John
Lionel Edwards, bricklayers laborer |
| Mother |
Emma
Edwards (nee Grim) |
He
lived at 149 Brunswick Road, Bromley and had two brothers
(I think). His elder brother, John, fought in the First World
War and he had a younger brother, George, whom he was very
close to.
My
pal Geoff did a bit of a geneology search for me and found
out a bit more based upon the 1901 census:
| Name |
Age |
Place
of Birth |
Status |
Current
District |
| Emma
G. Edwards |
24 |
Limehouse,
London |
Wife |
Bromley,
London |
| John
L. Edwards |
24 |
Stepney,
London |
Head |
Bromley,
London |
| John
L. J. Edwards |
2 |
Poplar,
London |
Son |
Bromley,
London |
His
first marriage was to Mrs F A Edwards and they lived at 16
Albany Road, Hersham, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey. They subsequently
divorced and he married my mother in 1966 and they lived at
68 Pares Close, Horsell, Woking, Surrey. During this
time he worked as a collector for Charringtons Solid Fuel
and also as a security guard for Securicor.
My
mother and he separated around 1979 and divorced shortly afterwards
and he lived with his third wife, Yvonne, at 91 Fairway, Chertsey,
Surrey. She had three grown up children.
Dad
continued working for Charringtons for some time and when
he retired, he became a security guard for an industrial estate
in Weybridge and finally worked for Wimbledon Stadium Greyhound
Kennels in Hersham, Surrey. He ended up in a home in
Addlestone, Surrey, for around 6 months before he finally
died in 1993.
|
Dad
with his cat, Snoopy, in his garden in Chertsey
(click to enlarge) |
On
the left below are the medals that my father received for
serving in WWII. On the right are the medals that his brother,
John, received
for serving in the First Great War. Click to enlarge the images.
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WWII Medals |
First World War Medals
4198 PTE. J.L. Edwards. 7-LOND. R. |
Please
be aware that information and images on this page are ©
Krista Salter. Please do not reproduce or download any information
or images without first seeking permission from Krista. |
