On Thu, 04 May 2006 10:35:07 +1000, Steve Jones <sajones@bigpond.net.au> wrote: >I am helping my cousin's husband who knew very little about >his Dad... >Dad was Denis Charles RIDDLE born >1919 Camberwell, London, England. He was in Signals in the British >Army during WW2 and stationed to the Pacific. He married Kathleen >RICKERBY from New Zealand about 1953/4... >I am trying to find more information on Denis Charles RIDDLE Sr >and his records from WW2 to help fill in the gaps of Knowedge. It seems to be your lucky day! There are two places I check first when searching for men who served in the British Armed Forces in WW2. Both sources are on-line, are free to access, and thousands and thousands of names. One is the Debt of Honour Register at http://www.cwgc.org/debt_of_honour.asp?menuid=14 which is run by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Although it only lists people who died, which is not the case here, sometimes you can find previously-unknown members of the family you are researching. The second on-line source is the London Gazette. This was a government newspaper, and it was used to make official announcements. Many of these related to personnel serving in the Armed Forces, and of particular interest are the announcements concerning the commission, promotion and resignation of officers, and the award of decorations and gallantry medals to all ranks. Although you may have no indication he was an officer or was awarded any decoration, it's always worth looking, just in case... The search engine for the on-line London Gazette is at http://www.gazettes-online.co.uk/archiveSearch.asp?WebType=0&Referer=WW2 and my own tips for searching it are at http://www.military-researcher.com/LGTipsFrameset.html There are at least three announcements in respect of Denis Charles RIDDLE, and they relate to his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the Royal Corps of Signals in 1943, the award of the Territorial Efficiency Medal in 1947, and the award of the first clasp to the Territorial Efficiency Medal, also in 1947. ------------------ SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 13 APRIL, 1943 PAGE 1695 <http://www.gazettes-online.co.uk/archiveViewFrameSetup.asp?IssueNumber=35977&pageNumber=5&SearchFor=&PageDuplicate=n&selMedalType=&selHonourType=> The undermentioned cadets to be 2nd Lts.: — ROYAL CORPS OF SIGNALS. 14th Mar. 1943: Denis Charles RIDDLE (267338) ------------------ ------------------ SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 18 APRIL, 1947 PAGE 1710 <http://www.gazettes-online.co.uk/archiveViewFrameSetup.asp?IssueNumber=37933&pageNumber=2&SearchFor=&PageDuplicate=n&selMedalType=&selHonourType=> The following Officers are awarded the Efficiency Medal (Territorial): — ROYAL CORPS OF SIGNALS. Lt. (now T/Capt.) D. C. RIDDLE (267338). ------------------ ------------------ SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 18 APRIL, 1947 PAGE 1709 <http://www.gazettes-online.co.uk/archiveViewFrameSetup.asp?IssueNumber=37933&pageNumber=1&SearchFor=&PageDuplicate=n&selMedalType=&selHonourType=> The following Officers are awarded the Efficiency Medal (Territorial), 1st Clasp: — ROYAL CORPS OF SIGNALS. Lt. (now T/Capt.) D. C. RIDDLE (267338). ------------------ Assuming this is the right man, although it doesn't tell you where he served in WW2, or with which unit, it does at least confirm that he served with the Royal Signals, that he was an officer, and gives you some other useful details. Contemporary Army Lists will list him, and will give you the dates of his promotions to Lieutenant and Captain. These may be available at large libraries in Australia. See http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/RdLeaflet.asp?sLeafletID=267 and http://www.military-researcher.com/ArmyListSet.html for more information on these books. Now that you have his Personal Number (267338), his rank, his name, and his Corps, there is enough information to apply for his Service Record, which should be in the hands of the Ministry of Defence. It can only be obtained by (or with the written permission of) the serviceman himself or his next of kin. For more information, see http://www.veteransagency.mod.uk/service_recs/service_recs.htm http://www.veteransagency.mod.uk/service_recs/service%20_recs_army.htm http://www.veteransagency.mod.uk/contact_us/contact_us_faqserpens.htm Forrest -- Forrest Anderson, Edinburgh, Scotland. E-mail: forrest@military-researcher.com Website: www.military-researcher.com Forrestdale Research - Military Genealogical Researcher