- Contributed by
- Douglas Laybourne
- People in story:
- Katleen Laybourne, Douglas Laybourne, Leonard Laybourne, Ruth Snaith
- Location of story:
- Northern Germany nr Celle
- Background to story:
- Army
- Article ID:
- A7647429
- Contributed on:
- 09 December 2005
Dad in the uniform of The Royal Scots, taken Christmas 1941 at the Majestic Studio, South Shields.
Pte Thomas Raymond Laybourne 3060464
My father was a signaller with the 7/9 Royal Scots attached B Company and was killed in action on the 8th April 1945, aged 27. I understand that he was with HQ set up on the first floor of a house, possibly in the town of Celle in Northern Germany. A german machinegun post was firing in their direction at irregular intervals and my father, a radio operator unfortunately had stood up and been shot as he passed by a window.
I believe that initially he was buried by the bridge at Celle, which crosses the River Weser until later being interned at a British War Cemetary.
The first knowledge me and my twin brother Leonard, had of his death was on being greeted at the gate by our great aunt Ruth Snaith, instead of our mother Kathleen after we'd walked home from school at the tender age of five! "Your Mammy's not well, because your Daddy's not coming home" but probably said in a more tender way.
Previously he had been rescued, not from Dunkirk but from another port in France (St. something?). It was probably on that occasion when as little babies we were taken by train from Newcastle upon Tyne to London with our mother to see him.
Later on, in the year 1944 we were whisked from a cinema in Rowlands Gill by taxi, then by train from Newcastle to London to see him just before he returned to the War.
Our only real lasting memories of him were when he was at home on leave in Rowlands Gill Co, Durham in 1944. He'd chase us around the garden with his Lee Enfield 303, just dressed in his vest and kilt!
Apart from the telegram notifying my mother and a letter from his commanding officer and the last letter Dad wrote home, we have no other record of his time in the army. Perhaps a former soldier who served with him, can fill in the gaps for us, having read this.
He was moved from a temporary grave to Plot III, Row K, Grave No.2, Soltau (Becklingen) British Cemetary, which is 7 miles South-South-East of Soltau, Germany. In 1971 we visited his grave while Len was serving in the REME in Hameln.
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