Francis Sydney Marshall

Conflict: 
WW2
Additional Information: 

Son of Francis Brooks Marshall, and of Emily Marshall (nee Archibald), of Auckland City, New Zealand; husband of Isobel Myrtle Marshall, of Glen Eden, Auckland.

References:
  • CWGC
  • Wright (1966)
  • BDM Online
NZ WAR GRAVES

Biographical Notes:

“The four 2-pounders of B Troop were disposed with B1, B2 and B3 just behind the leading platoons of the 20th and B4 nearer to the escarpment. C Troop had been sited to fire northwards from the eastern end of the feature; but Major Levy, the 31 Battery commander, brought it into action behind 29 Field Battery once the direction of the attack became apparent. When the tanks finally approached 20 Battalion they did so with great caution, halting and firing smoke grenades or shells to blind the gunners. B1 and B3 got away one round and four rounds respectively before being put out of action and the survivors of B3 were shot down when they tried to get away. B2 fought a brave action which lasted a good deal longer. The last part was a solo effort by the only survivor of the gun crew, Bombardier Marshall. ‘He must have been shooting at gun flashes’, says a witness, ‘for it was impossible to see tanks in the thick smoke’. Marshall continued to fire after the infantry in front had surrendered to the tanks and he was still firing when the attack moved on to the 18 Battalion area and the gun A4 was overrun. He had been captured in Greece and then escaped, vowing he would never again be taken prisoner. In the end a tank ran right over his gun. The Germans must have been impressed; for Marshall was the only New Zealander on Belhamed they bothered to bury in their short occupation of that feature.” [Wright (1966)]

Public Contributions:

Submitted by: Shane Paramore
Relationship to casualty: My Grandmother's Cousin
Parents - Edward Francis Brooks Marshall and Mary Ethel Archibald. Wife - Isobel (Bell) Myrtle Strong married 1938 Born - 3 Nov 1914, Auckland Died - Belhamid, Libya, 1 Dec 1941 Service no 22781, 7th... Read More

Personal Tributes:

Casualty

Service Number: 
22781
Name:
Francis Sydney Marshall
Date of Birth:
03 November 1914
Place of Birth:
Auckland, New Zealand
Date of Enlistment:
Not known
Occupation on Enlistment:
Insurance Agent
Unit:
Royal New Zealand Artillery, 7 Anti-Tank Regiment

Casualty Details

Cause of Death:
Killed in action
Date of Death:
01 December 1941
Day of Death:
Monday
Age at Death: 
27
Conflict: 
WW2

Embarkation Details

Text in italics supplied by Cenotaph Online, Auckland War Memorial Museum

Cemetery

Cemetery Reference: 
6. C. 22.
Cemetery Location: 
Libya
Francis Sydney Marshall
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