Rifleman Jack Schofield killed 29th June 1944
#9thInNormandy
As James highlighted in our last blog post (Holding the line at Grainville), the allied soldiers advancing through Normandy suffered casualty rates on a par with those witnessed on the Western Front during the First World War.
Adrian Smith has researched the casualties of The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in depth, and has calculated 9th Cameronians losses throughout Operation Epsom (26th June – 1st July 1944) as 87 killed or died of wounds, 169 wounded, and 12 men taken prisoner.
One of those killed on 29th June was 20 year old, Rifleman Jack Schofield of Heywood, Lancashire.
© South Lanarkshire Council
This is the official letter received by Jack’s mother, informing her of her son’s death in action on 29th June 1944. The letter is dated 16th July 1944.
© South Lanarkshire Council
Commemorative scrolls were issued to the families of all British service personnel who lost their lives in the Second World War.
© South Lanarkshire Council
Jack and the other men of 9th Cameronians who were killed on 29th June were buried near to where they fell, in the vicinity of Grainville-sur-Odon. In July 1945 the battlefield graves in the area were concentrated into the newly formed St. Manvieu War Cemetery, Cheux.
© South Lanarkshire Council
Update 7 July 2023
The following images have been very kindly shared by Mr John Baird, who’s father was Officer Commanding 9th Cameronians Pioneer Platoon during the Normandy campaign.
Comments: 4
Sad tale of a brave man.
Great work on the articles.
On 28 June 2023, I visited the Cemetery at St Manvieu, and the British Normandy Memorial at Ver-sur-Mer. My father was the Commanding Officer of the Pioneer Platoon of the 9th Battalion during Operation Epsom. That cemetery contains the graves of many of his comrades killed between 26 and 30 June, including that of Rifleman Schofield, whose name is on Column 116 of the Memorial.
Hello John, thank you very much for taking the time to comment. If you have any photographs from your visit that you would like to share I would be delighted to add them in to the post. You can drop me an email at barrie.duncan@southlanarkshireleisure.co.uk if you’d like to get in touch. Thanks again, Barrie
The Column shown in the photograph, Column 116 of the British Normandy Memorial, also contains the names of two other members of the 9th Battalion of the Cameronians.The names are clearly visible in the photograph: they are Rfm ELC Wallace and Rfm DK Wilson, both of whom died also on 29 June 1944.