WHAT’S IN A WORD.

I hate the word blog. In my family, in North East Derbyshire, ‘having the blog on’ used to mean having taken the huff because someone had offended you. So before I write anything under the heading ‘Blog’ I have to leap over this initial objection and get to the point, which is as follows.

I need to answer the question,’Why am I interested in servicemen who died behind the lines in Italy?’

Well, I have been living in Italy as a resident for twenty-four years, and had a house here before that date. A chance meeting with an Australian airman got me interested in the Second World War in Umbria where I used to live. Visits to war cemeteries in Assisi and Bolsena alerted me to the fact that some of these men died before the passage of the front.

I set out to find out why.

My journey of discovery began with the train bombed at Allerona near Orvieto by the USAAF. I started to make contact with the families of the survivors, and also, sadly, with the families of some of the deceased.

I began to investigate the fate of the submariners serving on HMSubmarine Saracen, and the whole thing ‘took off’ from there.

More about Victor James Crosby, Roy Charlton Elliott and William Holt next time

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