When researching the grave of David O’Connell, I looked up his record on the CWGC site for information about his burial site and whether his body had perhaps been relocated to Schoonselhof. As is so often the way with research, something else eye-catching turned up at the same time.
On the Graves Registration Form, above David’s name, there appear four members of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, all killed at the same time on 20 January 1945, the day before David. They were Frederick John Warner (25 years old), Robert William Chatten (31 years old), William Hodge (33 years old), and Charles William Espin (20 years old). All were Privates.
What was the story behind this sad loss of what must have been a unit of non-combatant veterinary staff?
WAR STORIES 