Thurgood, Robert

Robert Thurgood

Robert Thurgood served with an Observation Post of the Royal Artillery and was originally captured in Tunisia. Taken to Italy, he escaped from PG 53 Sforzacosta  in the Marche shortly after the Armistice with Italy in September 1943. After several months of hiding in the hills, and living with peasant families, he eventually made it back to Allied Lines.

His story below, kindly supplied by his son, Lawrence, was originally published in 1948 in a bi-monthly magazine called Blue Star Bulletin after requests for articles from staff at Newcastle Breweries, where Robert returned to work after the war.

Robert ends his story with these words: “I will treasure memories of the kindly, warm-hearted, hospitable, loyal host of Italians, who protected and helped us in our peril, without thought of reward.”

Please click on the series of pdfs to read his story.

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