Leslie John Pocock, Corporal (known as Les Pocock)

Mr Pocock is pictured here second from left

Mr Pocock served in the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry for six years. He had served in Northern Ireland, the African Theatre of War and took part in the invasion of Italy firstly at Salerno in September 1943 and then at Anzio Beach Head in January 1944. The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry was composed of eight battalions. Mr Pocock initially served in the 2nd Bucks but finished in the 7th Bn, 167 Brigade, 56th London Division (Black Cats) which was the 5th Army under General Mark Clark.

The purpose of the Italian Campaign was that the Allies wanted to establish a position in Italy so they could attack the German territories and resources and relieve the Soviet Union from the German advance. The secondary purpose was to tie up German forces that might be used to resist the channel invasion. Following the landings at Salerno, Mr Pocock was relieved after 10 days to re-arm and then was back into action at Gaigliano which was very tough going and was then withdrawn again.

The Salerno campaign lasted four months. Salerno was the best possible landing site for the area and as such the Germans anticipated that it would be used by the Allies. It was therefore fiercely contested. The original objective of securing Naples, 50 miles away, was abandoned in favour of holding the Salerno beachhead. However, Naples eventually fell after a three week campaign. What the landing did make possible was a campaign that diverted substantial German forces away from Normandy ahead of the D-Day landings in June 1944.

After being withdrawn from Salerno, Mr Pocock’s division was moved to Torre del Greco near Naples, and sailed from Pozzuoli in LCIs (Landing Craft Infantry) to Anzio.

The Anzio operation was planned as a way of supporting the Monte Cassino offensive, but in fact the success of the landings largely depended on success at Monte Cassino. Anzio was 60 miles behind the German line, and a breakout there could only be sustained by a simultaneous Allied breakthrough at Cassino. By the time the beachhead at Anzio was established, the chances of a quick victory at Monte Cassino were already in doubt. In the end, the Allied victory at Monte Cassino only came on 18th May and a breakthrough at Anzio shortly after that. The Anzio campaign lasted 6 months.

In February 1944, during the Anzio operation, Mr Pocock became a prisoner of war and was taken by the Herman Goering Troops along with other POWs through transit camps as far as Arrezo in the south of Florence. Approximately 300 to 400 US and Allied forces prisoners were taken at Anzio.

From Arrezo Mr Pocock spent two days travelling in cattle trucks, with around 40 men to a truck, to Stalag VIIA POW camp and was eventually moved to Oflag VIIB in May 1944. In April 1945 the POWs

were marched from Oflag back to Stalag VIIA where they were liberated. During his time in the POW camps, Mr Pocock and his companions kept up to date with how the war was progressing through a secret radio that they assembled and dismantled daily.

On VE Day, 8th May 1945, Mr Pocock celebrated his 28th birthday, where he waited on Landshutt Airfield for the Dakotas to fly thousands of ex-POWs to Rheims and other places. During that time he worked in a main office helping complete forms, etc, to assist in the transportation back to Britain of around 50,000 POWs who had been prisoners for around four to five years. Mr Pocock himself returned to Britain within a few weeks of being liberated.