Syd Stubley
Dunkirk, 1940: By May, the Phoney War
was over and the Battle of France had begun. The German Army
sweeping in from the east moved westwards and then north towards
the English Channel, trapping the French and English forces along
the coast.
The flotilla of 'little boats', on their way to evacuate English
troops from Dunkirk, was too late for Lance Corporal Syd Stubley.
Captured, he began the long march to the German border. For a month
the prisoners tramped, with nothing to sustain them. Every now and
then, guards pinched their arms to keep them awake.
Syd spent five years in prisoner of war camps, made to do hard,
physical labour with just a diet of rotten potatoes. His weight
dropped to just 6st 5lbs.
Then, when the prisoners were on an eight-week trek from the
camp to Germany, Syd and a mate escaped. It was risky, but they
made a courageous dash for freedom, dodging their guards' bullets
as they ran into woods. For ten weeks they were on the run. Once
again potatoes kept them alive; this time they had to dig them out
of the ground with their bare hands.
One day, as an armoured vehicle came their way, they thought
that was it. But the soldiers were singing in English. They were
American GIs. They gave Syd and his mate cigarettes, a swig of
Croft's Original sherry and cheese. It was heaven to Syd after all
his deprivations. And Syd's war was over.
After the death of his wife, Syd spent his last years happily at
Lister House, one of The Royal British Legion Poppy Care Homes. A
sociable gentleman, Syd enjoyed the camaraderie of old soldiers and
never tired of reminiscing about his Service days.
