GALLERY

The painting depicts river - the Litahni - which runs down a valley on Syrian border, and the bridge seen in the centre was being guarded by a Vichy French (under German control) machine-gun which was situated in a small cave high up on the mountain . A column of British army Cavalry - the Cheshire Yeomanry - were approaching the bridge from the south (from the viewers position) when they were attacked by the machine-gun just as they crossed the bridge. Unfortunately, six horses were killed, but no troopers were injured. The Troopers at the back of the column turned their horses into a small canyon on the right which was out of line of fire.

Detail of the previous picture showing two troopers who have dismounted and are in the process of returning fire and sending their horses to safety (towards the viewer and on the right was a narrow gully where the rest of the troop had gone to cover.) These two horses also escaped unharmed.

A detail depicts a trooper dashing across the bridge under fire from the Vichy machine-gun. However, according to the troopers who were interviewed, the French did not fire at the cavalry crossing the bridge, but seemed intent on cutting the bridge in half with their machine-gun fire, for which the troopers were very grateful ! Some two hours later, these troopers eventually made their way to the top of the mountain and circled around to get to the Vichy French only to find they had disappeared

The Waco Glider was an American Glider which was produced in large numbers in WW2, and was used by both British and American troops, especially in the Far East, but it was also used in the European Theatre. Much smaller than the Horsa, it would carry twelve troops or an anti-tank gun. Unlike the Horsa, it was not constructed of wood, but of steel tube covered in canvas. In the painting a damaged Waco is seen effecting a landing on a temporary, hurriedly built runway ’ somewhere in Burma’.

Just before midnight on June 5, 1944 six Airspeed Horsa gliders were towed across the English channel to effect an amazing feat of airmanship, later referred to by Air Cief Marshal Leigh-Mallory, commander of Allied Air Forces as ‘…the greatest feat of flying in WW2.…' when three of the gliders that were to attack the bridge over the Caen Canal (Pegasus bridge) dropped from 6,000 feet in the dark on a very wet and windy night (no landing lights of course on glider or ground) onto an area not much larger than a football field to finish up with all three gliders no more than 20 metres apart, and 50 metres from the Bridge which was their objective. All 100 troops led my Major John Howard then captured the Bridge to the great surprise of the Germans. The lead glider in this drop finished up just 50 metres from the Bridge just through the barbed wire fence that John Howard had asked the pilot to stop by when they had their briefing in England earlier that day. The other two gliders dropped within 10 metres of each other. Thee other gliders dropped by the river bridge some 300 metres away, and were equally successful in capturing their objective intact

Glider Pilots were unsung heroes during WW2, as they were an elite force, quite often dropping in behind enemy lines. Even today, many people are unaware of the role these magnificent men played during the war. This painting was produced to illustrate just what it meant to fly into battle in a glider. The painting depicts the cockpit of an Airspeed Horsa glider coming in to land behind enemy lines after being cast off from its tow plane several thousand feet above. The glider is full of troops - 30 + of them (or a Jeep and a 25 pounder Gun) fully loaded with arms and ammunition and each with a pack weighing about 30 kilos. In a drop such as Arnhem, there were dozens of gliders all coming down at the same time, and all looking for their own piece of space on which to land. In the painting it can be seen that the glider is taking incoming machine gun fire from the ground which is decimating the cockpit. The Sgt Pilot on the left has just been killed, his co-pilot is taking over. In a glider he only has one shot at getting down. He has no engines, so cannot go round again. He has no guns, so cannot fire back. He has no radio on which to call for help. He has no parachute, so not much point in jumping out. His sole objective is to get the troops who are sat behind him down as safely and as quickly as possible. He has to ignore the incoming, and get on with finding his ‘space’, but of course the Germans have also planted telegraph poles to make his job more difficult. If the pilot was lucky enough to have got down in one piece, his job was then to get back to UK so that he could do it all over again. And in the painting, that was all in daylight. Try that in the dark without lights ! It is not surprising that so many glider pilots were killed in action that finally they had to train RAF pilots to do the job. Many people are surprised to learn that glider pilots were not members of the RAF, they were a British Army Regiment - The Glider Pilot Regiment - and they were not conscripted into the Regiment, they were all volunteers. However, towards the end of the war, so many Glider Pilots had been killed in action that RAF pilots had to be specially trained to fly gliders.

This painting depicts the scene at the RAF Hangar at RAF Shawbury in Shropshire where a full sized replica of the Horsa Glider is well under way. The scene is set the day before an open day, and apart from volunteer craftsmen who are still working on not only the Horsa, but also on the WACO Glider and the renovation of the Tiger Moth, several visiting VIP’s are present. These are – from left to right – Major Ray Conningham (overcoat) who was in overall charge of the glider project, the late Richard Todd, actor who flew in the Horsa in WW2 (took part in the film ‘The Longest Day’ ) Brigadier Maurice Suttcliffe, Sqdn. Leader Martin Locke, RAF Shawbury, Arthur Shackleton (advising a young man what the Red beret signified) and Lt.Col ‘Nick’ Nicholls, all members of the Glider Pilot Regiment during WW2. The Horsa glider was built completely out of plywood and balsa wood, and special equipment like landing gear and instruments were provided to a specification designed for the Horsa. Because of their wooden construction, many gliders that did not make a good ‘three point landing’ were generally badly damaged on landing by hitting trees, buildings or ‘Rommels Asparagus’ - telegraph poles sunk into the ground to prevent gliders landing. Interestingly enough, the glider pilots found these poles quite useful because if one managed to land between two that were the right distance apart, they sheared half the wing off on each side of the glider and slowed it down beautifully! Although efforts were initially made to recover undamaged gliders, this proved to be generally impractical, and they were left behind wherever they landed (much to the joy of the farmers who used the wheels for farm trailers). Some years ago it was proposed that a full size replica should be made of a Horsa Glider, completely accurate to the original specification. RAF Shawbury in Shropshire agreed to make available a hangar in which to build the replica, and the project was underway under the direct guidance of Major Raymond Conningham (Retd) who was an expert on the Horsa Glider. The works was to be done by volunteer craftsmen, many of whom had worked in the aircraft industry for many years. Non wooden parts such as landing gear and rudder control equipment were provided by companies across the UK who gave their services at little or no cost. At present the Horsa is basically complete, but for some of the wing sections that are being produced at this time. Both the WACO glider and the Tiger Moth have now been beautifully restored, and all these aircraft can be seen on designated open days, details of which can be found by clicking on the link to R.A.F Shawbury..

Anyone that has been to the Firth of Forth in Scotland, cannot have failed to have been impressed by the immense grandeur of the Forth Railway bridge. Particularly impressed was the Sqdn leader of the flight of six Beaufighters that were stationed nearby during WW2. These planes were specially adapted to carry torpedoes and were used to seek out and destroy German Uboats that were operating in the Atlantic and North sea at that time. On a particular occasion, the flight went out following a report of a Wolf Pack of submarines in the North sea, and the Beaufighters managed to sink three of them. When they returned to their base later, their Leader was so pleased at their success that he decided to lead the flight on a loop under the Forth bridge. Unfortunately for him, the Base Commander took a dim view of the Sqdn Ldr’s celebratory wheeze, and gave him a very large Rocket. The incident was quietly forgotten, and never reported by the press, but a ground crew member who serviced the planes afterward commissioned the srtist to produce the painting some fifty years later.

The aircraft in the painting is a Halifax which in WW2 was part of the Pathfinder Squadron , which meant that they flew out ahead of the mainstream bombers who were to bomb designated targets. As their name suggests, they dropped various colored marker flares which indicated to the bombers which targets to attack with which ordinance. Often, targets were difficult to see because of the various fires on the ground and bursting Flak around the planes, and so the flares were used to identify them. Naturally the Pathfinders had a very warm welcome from the Germans, because of course they realised that the main bomber force would be right behind them. On this occasion, the Halifax in the painting was very badly damaged by the Flak but managed to drop all its flares, but eventually crash landed. All the crew were killed except for Sgt ‘Bill’ Sinclair the Pilot who was thrown out through the windscreen. He was injured, but made a prisoner of war. After the war he went to live in Vancouver, Canada where he died in 1995.

The Blue Funnel Liner SS Eumaeus (painted in wartime Battleship grey) was caught by an Italian submarine near Freetown, South Africa. It seems that the submarine was out of torpedoes, and decided to sink the Eumaeus by gunfire, using it’s two deck mounted guns, The painting was commissioned by the Liverpool Daily post for the 50th anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic, and auctioned at St Georges Hall in Liverpool to provide funds for the King George V Fund for Sailors.

THE CAPTURE OF PEGASUS BRIDGE. At 00.16 hours on June 6th, 1944, the bridge over the Caen Canal (later to be named Pegasus bridge, because of the trained for this operation. A force of 181 men of D Company, 2nd Battalion, Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry under Major John Howard, shoulder patch used by the British Airborne Troops) was captured by troops who had been specially backed up by two platoons of B Company, thirty Royal Engineers and six members of the Glider Pilot Regiment. Three Gliders were to land next to each of the two bridges, the bridge over the Orne and the bridge over the Caen Canal. These bridges were garrisoned by about fifty German troops. Having been cast off from their towing planes high in the sky, the Gliders swooped silently down to their targets. The lead Glider for the Orne bridge smashed through the barbed wire defences as planned, but knocking everyone on board unconscious as it did so. The second Glider landed five metres away, and the third also five metres away in a marshy area near the pond, where one man drowned before he could be rescued. Regaining consciousness in seconds, Major Howard's men rushed from their gliders and overpowered the still sleepy Germans who were taken completely by surprise. The attack, which only took a few minutes, was led by Lieutenant Danny Brotheridge, who was the first Allied soldier to be killed in action in Normandy. Five other men were wounded in the attack. Minutes before, troops of the 7th, 12th and 13th Battalions of the 5th Brigade had parachuted out of the skies and were being fiercely attacked by the German defenders. By 0230 hours, the 7th Battalion was fighting desperately on both banks of the Orne against units of the German 716th Division, and two Battalions of Feuchtingers XX1 Panzer Division, which had attacked just after 0100 hours. One Company of the 7th, under great pressure at the Orne bridge had to hold on knowing that they would not be relieved until early in the afternoon . This relief came when the first of the Commandos, having fought their way from Ouistreham, arrived just two and a half minutes behind schedule to join the small force of the Oxford & Bucks Light Infantry, which with the help of the 7th Battalion, had held on for 12 hours against heavy artillery and mortar attacks. One Company, with all it`s Officers killed or wounded had held on without relief for 17 hours, it being 1400 hours when No. 6 Commando crossed the Orne bridge to reinforce the9th Battalion of the Parachute Brigade. Those Commandos, under Lord Lovat had fought their way through enemy strongpoints, destroyed a German Battery firing on to the beaches and marched nine miles to reach the Orne bridge, and were only two minutes late. Such was the courage and determination, which earned the bridge over the Orne, the name Pegasus Bridge. The name was derived from the 'Pegasus' logo worn on the shoulder of the Parachute Regiment. The painting depicts the scene as Major Howard welcomes the arrival of Lord Lovat and his re-inforcements. www.battlefields-art.com

The ferryboat in the picture was operating out of Singapore during WW2, and then the Japanese over-ran Singapore during the course of which they attacked the ferryboats. Two Zero bombers circled the boat, dropping bombs and strafing the boat. Fortunately, none of the bombs scored a direct hit, but one bomb exploded close to the stern of the boat and caused it to start sinking. Life boats were launched, but the Zero’s continued to circle the boat, firing at the helpless civilians in the lifeboats. Several people were killed, but the majority survived. The painting was commissioned by the son of the Captain of the Ferryboat boat , who also survived.

This painting was also commissioned by the Liverpool Daily Post and shows officers on the bridge of HMS Stork, a sloop under the command of Captain ‘Johnny’ Walker during the Battle of The Atlantic. A proud Liverpudlian, Captain Walker was an unconventional man who did not like to wear a uniform on board his Boat. In the painting he is seen (far left) wearing his favourite leather jerkin over an old grey sweater. On this occasion, a type 7 U-boat No U574 had just torpedoed HMS Stanley, a destroyer - the oily smoke from which can be seen in the background. HMS Stanley had been giving cover to a convoy - HG-76 in the South Atlantic. Captain Walker quickly located the U-boat and attacked it with depth charges, when it was badly damaged around the conning tower and had to surface. The wily skipper of the submarine surfaced close to the Sloop, and followed the sloops every move so that the guns could not be depressed far enough to fire on the sub. Eventually a member of the German crew attempted to reach the aft mounted anti-aircraft guns, and so Captain Walker immediately turned his Sloop at 90’ to the sub and rammed it. The submarine sank immediately and Captain Walker picked up the four survivors. Sadly, Captain Walker never lived to see victory, as he had a heart attack and died before the end of the war. This painting was raffled in HMS EAGLET at Liverpool Docks during the 50th Commemoration of the Battle of the Atlantic, and raised over six hundred pounds which was donated to the King George V Fund for Sailors.

Towards the end of WW2, the situation in Holland had become extremely serious, with about 1,000 people dying every week from cold and starvation.. RAF Bomber command decided to do something about it. The Chiefs of Bomber Command in the area met, under a white flag, the German High Command, namely Riechkommissar Seyss-Inquart and his cohorts and informed the Germans that as from ‘tomorrow morning’ flights of Lancaster bombers from the RAF and B-17 bombers from the American USAF would fly over the area during daylight hours, but instead of dropping bombs they would be dropping food. The Germans did not accept this saying that it was simply a ruse for spying, and that they would shoot down any planes which appeared. The Germans were informed that this was not debate, but that the Allies were simply informing the Germans of their intentions.. The next day Lancaster bombers appeared over a private airfield near Rotterdam. The planes were flying very slowly - 150 knots, and very low - 50 metres. The Germans could not believe their eyes, but they did not shoot. Over the next two weeks the Allies between them dropped 12,000 tonnes of food to the starving Dutch. The Lancaster featured in the painting - ‘Q’ Queenie was the only plane shot at during the whole operation. A German guard on the roof of a factory in Rotterdam could not resist it when a Lancaster flew 50 metres over his head, and fired a magazine from his Schmeisser Machine Pistol into the plane. Fortunately no one was hurt, but it was found after the plane had landed, that bullets had gone through the starboard wheel housing and missed the tyre on both sides of the wheel by 2.5 cms. (1”) . The Lord smiles down on the righteous ! At the Nuremburg War Trials, Reichkommissar Seyss-Inquart was sentenced to death for war crimes, and duly hanged.

The ship in the painting below is the SS City of Corinth, an Ellerman line merchant ship based in Birkenhead during the 1914 - 1918 war. The artist’s father was the wireless officer on this ship, his third in as many months, the previous two ships having been torpedoed under him by German Uboats. In 1917 the City of Corinth was returning to the UK from Singapore with general cargo when she was torpedoed 12miles off the Lizard, Cornwall, by Uboat UB 31, skippered by Oberleutnant Braun. All crew members abandoned ship in an an orderly manner, and the ship sank by the stern shortly after the lifeboats had pulled away. The forward port lifeboat was the first to get away, and came around to the starboard side of the ship , and as it did so, a crew member on that lifeboat had the time and the inclination to take a photograph on a box Brownie camera of the scene depicted in the painting, which was copied exactly from that photograh. Because the original photograph was in a sepia colour, it took several months research to ascertain the correct colours of the ship, some of which were painted grey during WW1. The UB 31 was sunk on May 2, 1918 in the Dover straights whilst having a gunfight with an armed trawler. Airship Z-29 joined in the battle and UB-31 was forced to dive where she struck a deep mine, and she was sunk with all hands.

The battle of Rorkes Drift, Natal, South Africa when 4,500 Zulus attacked a mission in which there were 139 British troops of B Company 2nd Battalion of 24th Regiment of Foot, (South Wales Borderers). Of the men involved in this action, only 96 were fit for active service, the rest being hospitalized in the Mission’s hospital having been wounded in a previous skirmish. After ten hours of fierce battle, the Zulus were repulsed with massive losses, and the Mission was saved. As a result of this action, no less than eleven members of the Company were presented with the Victoria Cross, which to date is the highest number of that medal to be awarded in one action.

Seen carrying the British Union flag in the painting is Sgt. Luke O’Conners, who was awarded the V.C medal for Valour for his actions in the battle of Alma. Lieutenant Harry Astruther (lying on ground behind Sgt O’Conners ) had been carrying the Flag, but was shot dead, and although severly wounded himself O’Conners grabbed the flag from him and carried it to the Russian Redoubt where he planted it as the Redoubt was taken. Sgt O’Conners eventually rose to the rank of Field Marshal, the only soldier in the British Army to hold every rank . The painting is from a painting by artist Louis William Desanges.

The Wynnstay Arms in Ruthin, North Wales is pictured in one winter’s night in 1850, some hard travelers just arriving in their Stage Coach. It is believed that the Inn was formerly called the Crossed Foxes, and this seems to be borne out by the mosaic tiled floor in the main entrance which has a pair of crossed foxes set in the tiled floor. Original Painting on Daler Board, mounted and framed behind glass. Size overall, 650mm x 520mm. Price 380 euros +p+p

The name of the Horse is ‘Strands of Gold’, or Boysie, as he was affection ally known . The artist was commissioned to paint him after he had won the Hennesy Gold Cup in 1988. Unfortunately, at the time Boysie was ‘resting’ at Martin Pipes Stud Farm in Devon, and had put on a bit of weight……... However, artist’s licence prevailed, and the North Wales owner was very happy with the result. Sadly, Boysie has recently passed away at his retirement home. He died very peacefully at the age of 31.

An oil painting of Ludlow Castle in Shropshire. Painted in Oil on board, picture is 280mm x 420mm. Reduced price, 65 euros +p/p

Orihuela Mountain is in Almeria (Andalucia), Spain and sits on a flat plain between Torrevieja and Murcia. The town of Orihuela is situated on the Rio Segura. Original painting in Acrylic on Daler Board, mounted and framed behind glass, this painting is 680mm 900mm. Price 450 euros +p+p

This is an original Acrylic painting of an Inn called the Dymock Arms, and it is on the Denbighshire / Shropshire border at Penley. The pub was for some years the local of the Artist, who wanted the painting to look a little more dramatic, so he photographed the pub on a sunny day in July and set the pub on a very frosty snowy night in the winter. After the Artist moved to Spain, the pub was sold and unfortunately was burnt down a few years later. The painting is on Daler board, glazed, mounted and framed.

This painting of the RNLI Lifeboat stationed at Moelfre, Anglesey, North Wales depicts a rescue which took place on the occasion of the commemoration of the WW2 Battle of the Atlantic. The Lifeboat was launched following a mayday call from the white motor Yacht in the painting, MV Sasoon that had come into Liverpool Bay to see the amassed collection of warships (they are just visible above Sasoon) which were being inspected by the Duke of Edinburgh aboard the Royal yacht Brittania. Unfortunately, the Sasoon’s engines had failed due to water in her fuel, and the Lifeboat was turned out and towed the Sasoon into sheltered waters. This painting presented to the RNLI, and was later raffled increase their working funds by one thousand five hundred pounds.

In 1944, when the Americans landed on D Day and moved west toward Brest, they were advised that they should not by-pass St Malo as there were 10,000 Germans in the Citadel (the medieval town) and they were led by a fanatical Nazi General. The town had to be captured. The General was General Andreas von Aulock, and he had been asked by the French authorities to surrender in order to save the old medieval city. He replied that ‘…he would defend the city to the last man, even if that last man has to be myself….’ He held out for more than two weeks despite shelling from American artillery and bombing by the RAF, and only after being advised that the city would be covered in Napalm did he agree to surrender. The Citadel was totally destroyed. After the war, von Aulock was so moved by the amount of damage he had caused, that he spent the rest of his life (and a lot of his money) helping the French to rebuild the wonderful city to it’s former glory

A still life typifying a Spanish 'Tapas' lunch. Original painting, image size 140mm x 126mm Price 195 euros + P+P unframed

Lance Corporal Joseph Coulter was in the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers and had gone through almost all of WW1, but was sadly cut down whilst helping a wounded colleague. He was awarded the Military Medal for bravery, but never lived to see how proud his family in Ireland were.

This is the first picture in the following series of nine paintings which form the basis of a children’s story book. The Story is about a white dog called Snowy, that is the pride and joy of a Doctor and his wife who live in a smart area of London in 1902. One day the dog is stolen by a ‘Totter’, or Rag & Bone man, and whisked away on his cart. The first painting shows the Doctor and his wife ineffectually shouting and waving at the Totter to get him to give them their dog back.

Picture No 2 shows the dog after capture tied up in an old stable telling his tale of woe to a couple of friends that he has met, a black cat and a little mouse.

Picture 3 shows the dog now tied up in the Totters back yard, and receiving a beating for barking. The Totter is waiting for a client to come and buy the dog.

Picture 4 tells that the dog did indeed escape - his rope rubbed through on the tin sheet, and he ran for miles before finding a butchers where he is begging for something to eat. Unfortunately the young man running out waving an old boot is not impressed……..

Picture 5 shows the poor dog hurtling down the pavement to the surprise of some passers -by, closely followed by an old boot.

Picture 6 shows Snowy dirty, dishevelled and with a bleeding paw, having travelled many miles on a foggy night to get back to his home confronted by a policeman. The lady is the owner of the Dog, but the policeman does not care - he has to arrest this stray dog. ‘Leave it to me Madam……’

Picture 8 shows that Snowy is very keen to get home, and despite his fear of the police,eventually finds his way back home, The Lady told her husband the story, and she is confident that Snowy will get back home. Later, they hear a dog bark outside, and when they open the door, there is Snowy. '...I told you so...' she said.

After an examination by a Vet, lots of food and a nice bath, Snowy is soon back to his old self, and everyone lived happily ever after…..

The heavily modified Jeep in the painting is being driven by a Lieutenant Mitchell who was one of the Long Range Desert Group formed by Major R A Bagnold in 1940. Their object object was to operate behind enemy lines and cause confusion amongst the enemy, . The SAS , formed in 1941 by David Stirling became a close knit unit with the LRDG, and provided, in many cases the transport for the SAS to strike far behind enemy lines to great effect.

The Horsa Glider. This painting entitled `SURPRISE, SURPRISE` shows a Horsa Glider landing at speed in the Arnhem, Holland, area during the WW2 operation `Market Garden` , in September, 1944. In this particular scenario, the Glider is landing at a German troop site near one of the pine forests , catching the occupants completely by surprise. The Leutnant was having a shave, and has hastily grabbed his Schmeisser Machine Pistol and a magazine and has bravely run out in the hope of getting a few rounds into this monster which has suddenly arrived in their midst. The motorcycle outfit has just arrived on site, and with a great deal of panic are trying to accelerate away again. Unfortunately for all of them, they have no chance. The Horsa, barrelling in at about 100mph with leaves, stones and bits of timber flying in all directions must have been an awesome sight to behold, and, taking with it the fence and barbed wire, the fate of the German troops can easily be guessed. This scene was not drawn from any particular event, but was perfectly feasible and probably happened at some stage. The Horsa was a very large plane, and could arrive very suddenly and almost silently – until it roared along the ground, crashing through undergrowth, hedges, and the like, when it`s presence and noise would frighten the wit`s out of all but the bravest. I have been told by Glider Pilots that when landing and catching the enemy by surprise, the effect was generally to cause them to run frantically in the opposite direction! Who could blame them. Unfortunately but understandably, there are no Horsa Gliders left for exhibition purposes. However, as you read this there is a team of skilled volunteers, working from original drawings, who are building a full size replica which will be accurate in every detail, and this will hopefully be on display in the not too distant future at a museum in the Midlands. www.battlefields-art.com.

Typical scene on a warm Spanish evening where a shepherd and his dog are sitting by a fire keeping an eye on his flock of sheep. Painted on Canvas image size 230mm x 290mm. Price unframed 175 euros, unframed.

A small country church which are often found in the middle of nowhere in the mountains of Spain. Painted on canvas. Image size 260mm x 460mm; Price unframed 140 euros +p+p

One of a series of old doors . The doors are situated in France and Spain. Image size 127mm x 122mm painted on canvas. Price of original painting unframed 150 euros plus P+P.

Portrait of William Elved Jones of North Wales, brother of the artist's wife.. Elved volunteered to join the Royal Marines in 1940, and despite being tropedoed more than once and being held by the Japanese in Burma, Elved survived the war and died in 1994. The painting is a gift from the artist's wife to Elved's wife who still lives in their original pre-war house.

Portrait of Great Friend and relative, David Sims, who has now left us.

One of a series of old doors . The doors are situated in France and Spain. Image size 127mm x 122mm painted on canvas. Price of original painting unframed 150 euros plus P+P.

The painting depicts a bayonet charge up a ‘Ride’ in a German forest (Reichwald) by Major Max Morrison MC, then attached to the 53rd Welsh Regiment. Major Morrison had ordered a machine gun to fire up the Ride just above head height to keep the German’s heads down, whilst he and his men did a bayonet charge up the Ride, despite the fact that in the centre of the Ride there was a self propelled anti-tank gun (tracked), and two machine gun emplacements at the top of the Ride. Major Morrison and his men charged up the Ride, which was very boggy with major Morrison leading, armed with a ‘borrowed’ Sten Gun. He preferred to have a Sten gun he said “ because he would normally be armed with a pistol …which was no good to man nor beast, and it immediately identified you as an officer, and thus a target…” The SP Gun was attacked by some of the platoon and the crew killed. The rest of Major Morrison’s men charged on up the Ride, and Major Morrison personally charged the right hand machine gun, which was situated behind logs which had been piled up to form a defensive position. Morrison jumped on top of the logs and opened fire with his Sten gun, killing the officer in charge, and the rest of the men. He then turned his guns on the other position and killed those of the men who had not already been killed by his platoon. Amazingly, only two of Major Morrison’s men were killed in the charge up the Ride. For this action in the Reichwald forest, Major Morrison was awarded a Bar to his Military Cross. The original of this painting is in the East Lancashire Regimental Museum in Blackburn, Lancs. Major Morrison, had been awarded the Military Cross for valour at Juno beach on D Day, 1944, when he landed with the Liverpool Irish Regiment, then attached to the 3rd Canadian Regiment. On this occasion he also personally charged two sandbagged machine-gun posts on the sand dunes at Juno, attacking them with a Sten-gun and hand grenades, as they were stopping his men from reaching the beach. There is a painting commemorating this event that is now held by the family of Max Morrison. . Max Morrison had an active business life in Finance after the war, and retired to Ruthin, North Wales where he was chairman of the local Conservative Association, Max Morrison died of Cancer in 1993. His family have a Stained Glass window in the Catholic Cathedral in Liverpool.

Trooper Hession of Princess Charlotte 5th Dragoon Guards is seen parading on his horse above the army camp which lies under the lee of the mountains of the North West frontier. The painting was commissioned by the Great Grandson of Trooper Hession, Mike Hession. Unfortunately, Mike Hession knew nothing of his Great Grandfathers Regiment, or what rank he was. The only photograph he had was one quarter of an inch square! Twelve months later after much correspondence with various bodies, the secret was uncovered and Mike got his painting.

This picture of Lord Nelson and Lady Hamilton was commissioned by friend if the artist, Mike Hession who had discovered that he was in fact a distant relation of Lady Hamilton. Mike also commissioned the painting to the left, featuring his Great Grandfather. who had been in Princess Charlotte's v Dragoon Guards and is seen parading on the hills above the encampment on the North West Frontier..

11th Century castle at Rhuddlan, North Wales, situated on the river Clwyd.

In June 1944, Villers Bocage in Normandy was a small quiet town which suddenly became a vitally important place to both the Allies and the German Army. It was built around what had become a very important crossroads , and was then embroiled in a series of fierce tank battles.Haupsturmfurher Michael Wittmann, the renowned German tank commander had already destroyed twelve British tanks with his Tiger tank, whose firepower was far greater at longer range than the British tanks. However, during the ensuing battle, Wittman’s tank was hit by an anti-tank gun which blew off a track, and he had to be rescued by German troops. The Germans held the town and the British by-passed it with a view to taking it later, and in August, they did just that. However, word had come down that the town had been mined against Tanks, and so it was decided that in order to recce the town two men were to go in to do this. The two men were Troop Sgt. Phillip ‘Tashy’ Davies, and Gunner J Griffiths.. They went so far in a Jeep, and then on foot they moved carefully up the main street which now had very few standing houses. Suddenly Sgt Davies heard a noise coming from the remains of a house, and , Sten gun to the fore entered a doorway to find three Germans standing with their hands up, waiting to be taken prisoner. The three men were an officer and two private soldiers. Sgt Davies gave his Sten gun to Gunner Griffiths, and asked him to lead away one of the soldiers, and Sgt Phillips ‘appropriated’ the Schmisser MP40 machine pistol from the officer together with his P38 pistol, and marched him ,and the very young soldier - that appeared to be the officer’s driver - away to captivity. The original of this painting is in the Officers Mess of the 51 (Scottish) Brigade Headquarters at Stirling, Scotland. During WW2, 51 (Scottish) Brigade was known as the 51st Highland Division, which was a Territorial Army division. www.battlefields-art.com

At just after midnight on November 11th 1939, the inhabitants of the town of Charmes in the Vosges region of eastern France had a rude awakening as a large plane flew noisily over the town. People rushed out into the streets and saw a large twin engined bomber with RAF markings flying just above roof top, with the inside of the fuselage on fire, one engine not working, and the other engine on fire and belching smoke and flames. The plane was almost certain to crash on the town, but by the light of the flames in the cockpit, the pilot cold be seen fighting with the controls, obviously trying to stop the plane landing on the town. He succeeded, and the plane just missed the town and crashed in a small wood nearby. The pilot was found alive, but died very shortly. The rest of the crew had perished in the burnt out plane. The plane was a Whitley bomber, nicknamed the ‘flying coffin’ because it was very vulnerable due to its poor speed and maneuverability. It had flown out of its base at Villeneuve near Paris on an operation to drop ‘Nickels’ or propoganda leaflets over Germany to try to persuade the German people not to support Hitler in his threats against Europe. At this time France was unoccupied. A team of RAF engineers came to the site, and painstakingly cleared every last nut and bolt, piece of wood and metal from the site, and they were taken away for examination. No cause was found for the crash of the plane, and it was put down to an accidental fire. In 1994, the French government decided that a memorial should be built at the crash site to honour the pilot and crew of this Whitley, who at any time could have bailed out and saved themselves, but who decided to stay with the plane. The daughter of the pilot, Sgt Pilot Walsh was discovered living in Canada, and the Mayor of Charmes invited her and her husband to a special commemoration weekend where the memorial was officially established where she was honored and given the freedom of the town, David Thorp was commissioned to paint a commemorative painting of the Whitley flying over Charmes, and this painting was later presented to the Mayor and dignitary’s of the town of Charmes by the artist. He also visited the site of the crash to see the memorial, and discovered that the site was almost a perfect circle in the wood, and although fifty three years had gone by, nothing - not even grass had grown inside that circle. Intrigued, David Thorp got his metal detector from his car and spent one hour going meticulously over the site, but did not get one ’Bleep’. The RAF had done a great job. As David walked off the site, idly swinging his detector which was still switched on , it suddenly bleeped. The cause of the bleep was investigated and David uncovered the splayed out copper jacket of a bullet, but the ’core’ of the bullet was missing. He took the bullet back to UK and gave it to a friend who was a Ballistics expert. He told him that the bullet was from a German 7.92mm Machine gun, and had contained a steel armour piercing core, not a normal lead core, and that it had been fired from a German Messerschmitt night fighter - the only plane in Europe at that time to be fitted with this ammunition. So the answer to the mystery was that the plane had been shot down by the Germans. Apparently, after that visit to the site, grass is now growing.

1957 Design for a Glass Fibre sports car body, to be used in conjunction with the 1955 Ford Anglia chassis. In those days such cars were known as a 'Special'. Today they are called 'Kit Cars'.

This painting is of a WW1 tank that was involved in one of the biggest tank battles of WW1, when over 300 tanks were employed. The Battle of Cambrai (20 November – 7 December 1917) was a British campaign of WW1. Cambrai, was a key supply point for the Siegfried Stellung which was part of the German Hindenbug Line, and the nearby Bourlon Ridge would be an excellent platform from which to threaten the rear of the German line to the north. The battle took place at Flesquieres, near CambraI. It has often been stated that the battle was first large-scale use of tanks in a combined arms operation, but the French had earlier deployed large numbers of their own tanks in April and May and October 1917, and the British more than 200 at Ypres in June and July of the same year. Initially the British tanks were successful at Cambrai, but the German artillery and infantry defences exposed the inadequacy of their armour and the vehicles became mostly ineffective after the first day. The battle was largely an artillery-infantry engagement that achieved surprise and technical superiority against strong fortifications, but weak German infantry and artillery defences were quickly reinforced to the British cost. During the first day of battle, on 20 November1917 she was hit by five 77mm shells, Of the crew of seven, two were killed and the remainder were rescued by the commander, Lt Heap, who received a Military Cross for his bravery in that action. The Germans had already captured at least another British Tank, and they used this to tow Deborah 51 down into a massive bomb crater. The Germans buried her more than three metres underground, but nobody is quite sure why, possibly to use as a bunker. For many years, local knowledge was passed down to the effect that there was tank buried somewhere, but it was not known where. After a ten year search, she was recovered in 1998 by Phillipe Gorczynski, who is owner of the Hotel Beatus at CambraI. Phillipe is going to build a museum around Deborah who is currently residing in an old barn. (See photograph of Deborah in ‘Accommodation’

During the long dark night after the bridge over the Caen Canal ( Pegusus Bridge ) had been secured, Sgt.‘Wagger’ Thornton and Private Clare, who was carrying a PIAT,)anti-tank weapon) and Arthur Roberts who was carrying a captured German Spandau Machine-gun were walking up from the bridge past the Café Gondree towards the ‘T’ junction when they heard tanks up ahead. Wagger said to Clare “..give me that bloody thing…..” and grabbed the PIAT, jumped in the ditch and Clare loaded the PIAT with one of only two rounds that they possessed. Arthur Roberts got down in the garden of the house across the road to give support with the Spandau. The ‘tanks’ were in fact Hotchkiss self propelled 88mm anti-tank guns. The leading tank turned down out of the ‘T’ junction towards the Bridge. Wagger was determined not to miss, and as PIAT’s are only good for 50 metres at best, he waited until the tank was 20 metres away when he could see it better, and gave it the good news with the PIAT. He must have got a perfect shot and the tank exploded so spectacularly that the other tank and support troops took off at high speed believing that the British had an anti-tank gun by the bridge. The tank burned for a very long time, with a spectacular firework display as various types of ammo ignited. Had the German tanks got anywhere near the bridge, it is unlikely that the British troops would have been able to hold out, and would probably have had to abandon the bridge, so Wagger’s attack was both exceptionally brave and fortuitous. His action may not only have saved the whole of the operation to capture the bridges, it could have brought the success of D Day itself into question. This painting is not for sale, being the property of Project 65.

This was a commission to paint a 12th Century castle that was dismantled in 1779 in favour of a 'modern' Chateau. The castle and the surrounding area represent the actuality of the period as far as can be ascertained.

Tom, great friend of the artist, lived in Spain for many years. Served in the SAS in WW2, Parachuted into Greece, landed badly and pushed his spine up into his skull. Spent one year in traction to get his spind back to normal. After the war, worked in Celon for many years running tea plantations, Eventually moved to Spain, spoke fluent Spanish, German some Russian. He drove, even at 91, every day 20 k each way to the beach on the Costa Brava to swim, summer and winter. Died aged 93 at his second home in Germany. A real gentleman.

In the painting a wounded German officer - on the horse with a British wounded soldier are being taken into captivity in June 1944 after the battle of Tilly sur Suelles, Normandy. The battle was very fierce and was captured and lost 23 times by the Allies and the Germans. Finally the Allies prevailed and the German prisoners are obviously pleased to be captured.

The painting depicts one of several Football games that took place in Belgium on Christmas Eve, 1914. In this game between the 6th Cheshire and the German 40th Saxon Regiment, the British soldier in Khaki on the left, and about to kick the ball is Private Williams from North Wales. Pounding up in support on the far left is Sgt Frank Naden (who finished the war as a full Colonel) . On the far right the German officer is about to light a cigarette for Lt. Charles Bertram Brockbank, 6th Cheshire's. Lt Brockbank survived the war and became a WW2 Captain in the Home Guard in Chester where he would have had meetings with the Artist's father who was a Captain in the Home Guard in the neighbouring County, Denbighshire. Apparently the Germans won the game In 1984 Pt. Williams apparently gave an interview on BBC Grandstand where he described the match and the lead up to it.

The painting to left features 2nd Lt. Lewis John Rowley Atterbury, who had just arrived in France in February, 1915. Having just arrived from England 2nd Lieutenant Atterbury's uniform does not sport the regulation "Cuff" insignigiving the officers Rank. During the course of the war officers were singled out by German snipers who could easily recognise their officer status from the sleeve insignia. Many officers - against regulations - started removing the Cuff insignia and replacing them with "pips" on the shoulder boards. This move was later made official by the war department in 1916

2nd.Lt. Atterbury had lived in Canada since he was 18, and when war between Britain (and its Commonwealth) was declared in 1914, Lewis enlisted in the 2nd Field Company of the Canadian Engineers. He sailed for Europe with the first contingent of the Canadian Expeditionary Force, two thirds of which were British Born Canadians. In France he took part in the Second Battle of Ypres, and was one of a group of 27 volunteers who held a bridge over the Yser for a whole day against an overwhelming number ofn the enemy. In January 1916 he was awarded a commission in the London Regiment (Royal Fusileers).
Initially 2nd Lieutenant Atterbury was attached to a Reserve Battalion and not wishing to spend the rest of the War in England, he managed to arrange a transfer to the 1/4th Battalion of the London Regiment, and joined them on the Somme in a draft of new officers on or about September 20 1916.

At this point, the British front line was being pushed slowly eastwards. Combles had been captured and the next targets were the villages of Lesboeufs and Morval, on the Transloy Ridge. The attack was launched in early October, and struggled from the start against well-placed German machine guns. After a break for regrouping, the attack was resumed on October 7, with four companies of the 1/4th Battalion involved. The attack was not successful and at the end of the day the Battalion had suffered 300 casualties and the survivors could not even fill one company.
Five officers were killed, including 2nd Lieutenant Lewis Atterbury, who was seen to fall under machine-gun fire. His body was never found. He was listed as missing, but his death was not formally acknowledged until May, 1917.
His name is engraved on Panel 9D ion the inside of the Memorial to the Missing of The Somme at Thiepval

The above painting depicts an British Expeditionary Force unit of the Royal Horse Artillery with its 18pounder artillery gun (so-called because the shell it fires weighs 18 pounds), its Limber ( a two wheeled trailer carrying two soldiers and 24 shells for the gun) behind which the gun is attached for towing by six horses. This particular unit was the 2nd Army Corps of the BEF in France in 1914, and was commanded by its Commander-in-Chief—General Sir Horace L. Smith-Dorrien. This unit of the BEF has been in action at Mons, Belgium and has been pushed south by the vastly superior force of the German army. In fact they were pushed all the was south of Paris to the river Marne, but after mounting fierce counter attacks, together with the French 5th Army they succeeded in turning the German advance and were now once more in pursuit of the enemy. The long, hard retreat in appalling weather had caused great hardship and losses of both men and horses - vital for pulling the guns. The painting depicts the men regrouping after their long drawn out ordeal and, whilst bivouacking at what was once a very nice farmhouse, they were taking the opportunity to bring up reserve horses to replace some of their horses that had been killed by shellfire the day before.. The 19th infantry Brigade who were attached to the unit were also bivouacked nearby, and two of their soldiers can be seen marching through the RHA lines. In the British army soldiers who joined a mounted brigade were taught that their horses were the most important thing that they possessed, and that they should treat them as pets. This was generally done and the 'Drivers' of horses became really attached to their mounts and naturally became very upset when one of their charges was injured or killed. It should be remembered that during WW1 there was little, if any motorised transport and that horses were the only prime mover for guns and equipment, and therefore they were vital to any army. An army without horses was not a viable army. Horses were therefore very vulnerable to attack from the opposing side. On the left of the painting can be seen a very muddy horse that is part of a team of horses and mules that were used as an ammunition relay. The Limber only carries 24 rounds and these can be used up quite quickly so additional shells are sent to replenish the Limber by horses or mules. Due to the weight of these shells a horse or Mule can only carry eight rounds at a time. On the right of the picture will be seen a horse that was an original part of the team, She has been cleaned up and ‘dressed’ with the tackle needed for her to once more be part of the six horse team which will pull the Artillery gun and Limber (all-up weight just over two tonnes) into battle very soon. She is reluctant, and Her Driver is coaxing her gently forward and is saying to her “Come on, old girl, once more into the breach..” knowing only too well that both he and her may not see out the day. Information on the background to the painting was drawn from the book “With the Guns of The BEF” and is accredited to the author Arthur Corbett-Smith who was an officer with the 2nd Army Corps. www.battlefields-art.com

WW2 Combined Operations Memorial Fund. . The memorial that has now been built at the National Arboretum at Lichfield, Stafford has been funded entirely by Geoffrey Slee, the designer and organiser of the Memorial, and by public donations from home and abroad. To obtain further information on this site, please go to www.combinedops.com and just follow the Memorial link at the top of the website’s page.
Prints of this painting in full size (850mm X 670mm) and three smaller sizes are now available, and prices and sizes can be found by going to COMBINEDOPS.COM There will also be a small number of Artists Proofs available
There are only 73 three quarter sized prints, and they are of a signed and numbered Limited Edition, (one for each year between the formation of the Combined Operations Command in 1940 to 2013) and demand for these is expected to be high, so please register an interest or reserve your print as early as possible by email, telephone or by letter.
Prints are now available to buy. Please go to the COMOP site www.combinedups.com to find out all the details fo availability and prices. (see also 'Gallery Shop')

Combined Operations - A Normandy Beachhead

The painting by David A Thorp is of the landing area on Sword Beach Normandy, France early on D-Day morning, June 6th 1944. It's an hour or so since the first assault troops landed but the approaches and the beaches remain extremely hazardous. It does not portray a particular event but all the actions described did take place in the area over the space of a few hours. With the artist's skill they are brought together in a seamless montage that recognises the vital contribution of each of the three services in the largest amphibious Combined Operation in history, the likes of which will never be seen again.
A Combined Operations memorial has recently been Dedicated in the grounds of the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire England, and the painting has been gifted to the associated Memorial Fund. The painting will soon be raffled to raise much needed funds for the construction and maintenance of this unique and important memorial, so we would appreciate your support.

The artist worked in close co-operation with the Late Tony Chapman, erstwhile Archivist and Historian for the LST Landing Craft Association (Royal Navy) who provided historical and technical information over several months and Geoffrey Slee, owner of the Combined Operations website and the driving force and funding behind the memorial project.

Suffice it to say that had this painting been produced without any specific craft or specifications being insisted upon, the work would have been easily finished in four to five weeks. But due to the expertise and dedication of both Tony Chapman and Geoff Slee, the painting took five months of intensive work. During the course of the painting, 1,060 emails and sixty emailed photographs were exchanged between Geoff, Tony, other military sources and the artist. The result is truly a product of a Combined Operation !

To obtain more information on Combined Operations (set up during WW2 by Winston Churchill), the Memorial site and its construction, the painting and how to obtain prints, CLICK HERE and when on site scroll down to read about the Memorial, after which click MEMORIAL in the red bar at the top of the page , then click the PAINTING and PRINTS Link on the left.

Painting (38cms x 30) depicts 'Galloping Jack' Seely on his wonderful horse Warrior. This horse was Colonel Seely's own horse and they went to war together in 1914. They both went through four years of war together, and apart from a few small injuries both survived daily charges into German shell and machine-gun fire, and fially retired back to their home on the Isle-of-Wight in 1919. Warrior died at the age of 33 in 1941, and Col. Seely (Lord Seely - 1st Baron of Mottismore,) died just six years later whilst still working as an MP at Westminster. In 2014 Warrior was posthumously awarded the animal Victoria Cross - The Dikin Medal, in recognition of his great bravery.

In June, 1941, No 11 (Scottish) Commando effected a landing near vthe river Litani Following the successful action at the Litani River, on June 9 1941, by members of No 11 (Scottish) Commando, several awards were made to some very brave me who acted in an exemplary fashion, and with no thought to their personal safety. In particular, Lt. Eric Garland was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) and also a bar to the Military Cross that he had previously received for his actions at Dunkirk. In his citation, Colonel Bob Laycock said of Lt Garland “ Lt Garland displayed throughout the action cool and clear headed leadership and complete disregard for his own safety. He was the first individual to cross the river and personally ledthe party which cut the enemy wire on the far side under heavy fire. On one occasion he deliberately stood up and exposed his position to a sniper that was causing severe casualties amongst the men, and on locating the source of the sniper fire Lt Garland manned of of the Bren gun's and shot the sniper dead.. Lt. Garland also put out of action a 75mm Gun which was covering the river by acdcurate fire from a captured anti-tank gun. Following the successful action at the Litani River, on June 9 1941, by members of No 11 (Scottish) Commando, several awards were made to some very brave me who acted in an exemplary fashion, and with no thought to their personal safety. In particular, Lt. Eric Garland was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) and also a bar to the Military Cross that he had previously received for his actions at Dunkirk. In his citation, Colonel Bob Laycock said of Lt Garland “ Lt Garland displayed throughout the action cool and clear headed leadership and complete disregard for his own safety. He was the first individual to cross the river and personally ledthe party which cut the enemy wire on the far side under heavy fire. On one occasion he deliberately stood up and exposed his position to a sniper that was causing severe casualties amongst the men, and on locating the source of the sniper fire Lt Garland manned of of the Bren gun's and shot the sniper dead.. Lt. Garland also put out of action a 75mm Gun which was covering the river by acdcurate fire from a captured anti-tank gun.