Can I ask a question ? We know about soldiers being Shot at Dawn in WW1 .... but did it happen in WW2 also ?? I've Googled but haven't been able to find anything ... ( sorry if this has been asked thousands of times before !! ) Annie
No British soldiers were actually executed for "cowardice", though many were sentenced but commuted. Apart from murder (which was also punishable by death in the civil courts) only 4 were executed for other reasons - 3 for mutiny, and 1 for treachery. I don't know about soldiers from the Empire. British Courts Martial
Schurch Schurch who was found guilty of Treachery and hanged is one I have come across. He was being watched by the Security Service prior to joining the Army as he was associating with an Italian Fascist group in London. His application to join the Army was noted,but allowed. Early in 1942 he was a member of 14 Coy. R.A.S.C. which was a strange coincidence as Lt.Neville Heath was also with 14 Coy. Heath was later to be executed for murder. The late Cpl.Tom Swallow served with Schurch in the Company Office and told me that he had been caught stealing the Officers Whiskey and sent further forward.(Capital Offence in itself). The name used by him when working as a "Stool Pigeon"was Captain Richards,R.A.S.C., a name he had used on a forged Leave Pass a year earlier. Tom's movement from Benghazi to Italy was speeded up when he came across Schurch in the P.O.W. Camp. The Germans"borrowed" Schurch at one point to do a few jobs for them. The strangest part of the Schurch saga was that he was of Swiss Jewish Ancestry,and before being caught in Rome he had obtained a Swiss Passport from the Embassy.
Thank you Gentlemen ! Kyt .... Stephens site is always an education isn't it ? I agree with you Roxy ... a very interesting site ! Brian ... I had already come across Schurch while I was looking for something else ... and then found John Amery .... which is another fascinating story ! Theodore Schurch - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia John Amery - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
