Everyone this post is not WW2 related but i hope you will allow me some latitude , 28 years ago today my best friend and comrade Bombardier Greg Boothroyd , G Troop , 4th Field Regiment , Royal Artillery was killed in action in Rhodesia as it was then. I never forget this day and not many days go past when i don't remember him , RIP Boothy never forgotten mate, Paul
If ever a topic is worthy of latitude, it's this one. I'm sorry that you lost your friend under such circumstances, Paul.
Here are his details from the Armed Forces Memorial Roll Of Honour. Roll of honour | Armed forces memorial
Thanks very much for the link to the Armed Forces Memorial it had never occurred to me that he would be on there , the only place i knew he was commemorated was the Royal Artillery Memorial at Larkhill as i was there when the commemoration service took place. The date of death concerns me as we were told on the 11th of Jan i'm sure !! or has my memory failed me and i have been commemorating him on the wrong day for all these years !!! I;ll have to look into this cheers WW, regards paul
Just a few more details , Greg was killed by a landmine together with a Sgt from the Scots Guards , we were in Rhodesia as part of OP Agila which was a Commonwealth Monitoring Force sent to Rhodesia in December 1979 to disarm the Rhodesian Political Guerilla groups of ZIPRA under Joshua Nkomo and ZANLA under the now infamous President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe who had both fought a bloody and brutal 14 year war against the Rhodesian Security Forces under Prime Minister Ian Smith in order that elections could take place. 1500 troops were deployed , 800 from the UK and the rest from some of the people who always step forward to help when we need them Australia,New Zealand, Fiji, Kenya. One of Britains engagements that never made the headlines due to the Political situation, we didn't want people knowing that British soldiers were dying clearing up this mess !!! And what a mess it has become !!!! Regards Paul
We had some family friends who left Rhodesia as they called it very soon afterwards. They always moaned about the British weather and the life they used to have back in the days of white rule. Pity Mugabe has made a real mess of the place. Here's a bit more on Op Agila from Britian's Small Wars website. >>> Operation Agila
Paul, Hope you don't mind but I was at the National armed forces memorial (& memorial arboretum) today and found your mate, so I paid my respects to him. __ He's listed on a panel to the right of one of the main statues, there's a carving of a door being opened by one of the statues, and the crack of the door opening allows a beam of sunlight to shine through on the 11th of the 11th (rather poor picture I'm afraid as the light was terrible) . Cheers, Adam.
Hello Adam, I don't mind at all !! All i can say is thank you for paying your respects and for taking the photo , having seen your post i have been very moved by your efforts on my behalf . It is great to able to see his name on the wall at the memorial and to know that he is not forgotten. He was a great lad , a true South Yorkshireman from Doncaster and was like a big brother ( even though he was only 24 ) to all us younger lads in the Troop , he looked after us and kept our heads right and focused on the job when the shit was flying wherever we were , he was a Professional soldier and Gunner through and through. His poor Mum and Dad suffered more than most in a peacetime situation , a year after Greg was killed his older brother John was killed in a motor cycle and a year later his younger brother Richard also died on a motorbike, all three brothers gone in 3 years !!!! He is buried at a cemetery in Doncaster and is also remembered on the Royal Artillery Memorial in the Garrison Church at Larkhill. Many many thanks my friend, Best regards Paul
Good work, Adam. Paul, what a terrible few years for the family. Really, really sad, as you say to lose three sons in peace-time.
Paul that's a grim story. As we know, the Armed Forces Memorial's obviously not going to bring anyone back, but I can tell you it's a fitting place for your mate's name to be on and confirms that all these men & women are being remembered and respected by many who are grateful to them. Apologies for picture overload but as I just inserted these on a.n.other forum I thought I'd include them here too: With a great deal of blank space waiting to carry more grim news: Cheers, Adam.
Adam thank you for sharing these pictures, not only do you pay a tribute to the fallen but the pictures are quite artistic too.
Adam, Many thanks for the photos they are most welcome , i'm hoping to get there myself sometime this year. regards Paul
