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Auction: 17002 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 336

Gwell angau na Chywilydd

'Better Death than Dishonour'


The following words, written at the time of the Korean War by John Bowler, M.C., of the 1st Battalion, The Welch, are profoundly relevant to the men whose honours and awards are described herewith. They neatly summarise - with good humour - the challenges faced by The Welch, not least the perilous patrol work that was undertaken by most of them. Evidence for the cost of such work is to be found in the ensuing pages, including at least two men who were wounded and another - Private William Patrick Moore - who was killed in action.

To accompany these words, we end with a reference to a British Pathé news feature, an emotive film depicting the men of 1st Battalion, The Welch on the eve of their departure to war: 32 of them would not return.

'Patrols are one means of fighting this static war, and affect our lives to quite an extent, for it is only on them that we see and fight our enemy. Whilst we have been here we have done every conceivable type of patrol from large fighting raider to the small three-man reconnaissance of the wire.

The countryside has changed considerably from the hard-frozen ground winter, there is now no scarcity of vegetation and the paddies are holding water well; in most places they are now becoming waist deep. The hills have undergrowth of up to five feet on them, and specialise in creepers, hidden holes and dead branches - therefore one generally has the choice of three courses: going into the paddies sounding like a young porpoise in spring, over the hills, and sounding something like what Sabu must have heard when he saw the 'The Dance of the Elephants', or move noiselessly along one of the few paths. The trouble about paths is they seldom lead in the right direction, and secondly, the Chinese are probably on them as well. On the whole the men are moving very quietly now, and the noise is not nearly as bad as it sounds at that time.

All our patrols are now done by night, fighting, ambush or reconnaissance. Few will forget the interminable hours of waiting during an ambush when the second hand of a watch moves as if it were an hour hand; the strain of the reconnaissance as one creeps nearer and nearer. Nor will anyone forget the first shot that breaks the darkness of night, that feeling of shock, of fear, followed by that feeling of intense activity that leaves no room for other feelings. We have lost many good men on patrols and found others.'

John Bowler, M.C., 1st Battalion, The Welch; as quoted in Men of Harlech, No. 92/52.

http://www.britishpathe.com/video/welch-off-to-korea

Full title reads: 'Welch Off To Korea'.

Southampton, Hampshire: 1st Battalion the Welch Regiment board their troopship bound for Korea.

GV Troopship Empire Fowey tied alongside. SV Pan troops on deck. SV Private Arthur Powell of Hereford writing home. CU Private Arthur Davies of Ffynnongrowe writing home. CU Sergeant Williams saying goodbye to his two children. SV Lance-Corporal James Swarbrick of Preston gives light to Corporal John Penwarden SV Towards Taffy the goat being marched along dockside. SV Troops cheering Taffy. SV Taffy being led up gangway. SV Towards soldiers running up steps to top deck. SV Relatives waving from dockside. SV Soldiers waving. LV Soldiers waving as ship moves.

The Korea Medal awarded to Private E. E. Sandford, The Welch Regiment, who was wounded during a severe hand-to-hand encounter in No Man's Land on the night of 21 July 1952

Korea 1950-53 (22467540 Pte. E. E. Sandford, Welch), good very fine

On the night of 21 July 1952, a fighting patrol from 'D' Company, Welch Regiment, led by 2nd Lieutenant K. J. Davey, penetrated No Man's Land and bumped into the enemy. In the fierce hand-to-hand encounter that ensued - Sten guns and hand grenades were deployed at point-blank range - Private J. O'Hara was killed and nine were wounded, including Private Ernest E. Sandford; Privates J. Edmunds and P. Booth were posted missing.

2nd Lieutenant Davey then fought a successful rear-guard action and, despite being subjected to intense mortar fire, led his patrol back safely to the Battalion lines. Immediately on his return he organised two more patrols to recover the casualties and the body of Private J. O'Hara. He was awarded the M.C.

One of the wounded men, Private Mathias, who was evacuated to Japan, sadly died. Of the two men posted as 'Missing Presumed Killed in Action', Edmunds was indeed killed: after the War his identity discs and some of his remains were handed over by the North Koreans to the Americans and he is buried in U.N. Pusan Cemetery.

Private Booth, who was also wounded, was taken P.O.W. Such was the serious nature of his wounds - he was left 'virtually blind' - that he was repatriated following an exchange of prisoners in April 1953. He became a resident of St. Dunstan's Home for Blind Ex-Servicemen, where he died in 1976.


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