Royal Artillery in Greece 1945
Matthew Wilson
I have confirmed my grandfather Major James Rudolph Coleman Burrows
(70774) was in the Royal Artillery and in Greece 1945. (He may have
been there earlier and
later.)
I have been told he was in British Intelligence, and made the honorary
mayor
of Piraeus (the port city of Athens) for reasons unknown, and that he
had dealings with Greek partisans. (Most likely WW2 as well as Greek
Civil War.)
He was also based in Cairo during the war, which I believe was the
local HQ for Allied operations, as well as the Greek gov't in exile.
*Does anyone know the details of the Royal Artillery in Greece or
Cairo
during the war years?
*Were they in any way involved with the Raiding Support Regiment,
which was in the area at the time?
*Was the British Military Mission to Greece based in Cairo?
*Were British liaison officers assigned to partisan groups?
*Was any Allied group besides SOE operating on the ground in Greece?
---------
I have tried to track down specific books relating to this period, but
most appear out-of-print, or are very rare. Any knowledge you could
share, as well as thoughts and opinions are gratefully received.
Kind regards,
Matt
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Lance Visser
> Can anyone help me with a bit of a mystery?
>
> I have confirmed my grandfather Major James Rudolph Coleman Burrows
> (70774) was in the Royal Artillery and in Greece 1945. (He may have
> been there earlier and
> later.)
>
> I have been told he was in British Intelligence, and made the honorary
> mayor
> of Piraeus (the port city of Athens) for reasons unknown, and that he
> had dealings with Greek partisans. (Most likely WW2 as well as Greek
> Civil War.)
>
> He was also based in Cairo during the war, which I believe was the
> local HQ for Allied operations, as well as the Greek gov't in exile.
>
> *Does anyone know the details of the Royal Artillery in Greece or
> Cairo
> during the war years?
There were a number of artillery units in Greece in support of the
indian and british military units within greece. Its possible that
while your grandfather was in the royal artillery, he was actually
serving in some sort of other role. If you want to investigate I would
suggest trying to get his service record or determine which unit
he was in. Cairo was a large base area with lots of troops in it or
moving through it for the entire war.
> *Were they in any way involved with the Raiding Support Regiment,
> which was in the area at the time?
Quite possibly. The raiding support regiment is listed associated
with royal artillery in one place I looked.
> *Was the British Military Mission to Greece based in Cairo?
> *Were British liaison officers assigned to partisan groups?
>
> *Was any Allied group besides SOE operating on the ground in Greece?
The entire 4th Indian Division was in Greece from November 1944 to
1945 or 1946. I think the 2nd British Parachute brigade and at
least part of the 9th Commando group were present.
2nd British Parachute brigade
9th Commando group (elements)
I have 11th Field Regiment listed as being in Patras in December 1944.
But there were likely other artillery units in greece. Patras was
secured and operated as a port for basing formations in greece out
of.
There were multiple partisan factions in Greece after the war and
the british worked directly with cooperative elements among the
partisans. The conditions in greece were civil war.
> ---------
> I have tried to track down specific books relating to this period, but
> most appear out-of-print, or are very rare. Any knowledge you could
> share, as well as thoughts and opinions are gratefully received.
There is a published history of the 4th Indian Division that contains
their perspective on events in greece.
You can also order copies of the war diaries of the "raiding support
regiment" from the public records office (UK) (pro.gov.uk). Its hit-and-miss
as far as whats in the archives for this sort of unit (possibly
nothing), but if you want to try, the documents would be:
WO 170/4825
WO 170/4825
WO 218/101/1
I would really suggest starting by getting your grandfather's service
record or figuring out which unit he was serving with. Its a big
topic and the more you can narrow down his involvement, the easier it
would be to track down relivant information.
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