Tunisia to Germany: Leonard Arthur Burrows' WWII Campaign

My father, Leonard Arthur Burrows from West Kensington, London, served in the Army for much of the Second World War. He was eventually injured by a grenade in the Reichswald Forest on the edge of Germany in 1945 and was invalided out.

He enlisted in the East Surrey Regiment in September 1940 after getting sacked from his job as a plumber's mate. I have brought in a copy of his service record showing all his postings. He was posted to Number 2 Commando and then part of 1st Army in Tunisia. Whilst in Tunisia, my dad used to tell us a story about how he and some mates got bored and nicked a Bren gun carrier for the day. He was disciplined for this!

He landed in Sicily with 8th Army and took part in battles up to Monte Cassino. He was injured and sent back to the UK to recover and train for the invasion of Normandy. He landed on D-Day+3 and fought with the 8th Army through France. Whilst fighting on the borders of Germany, his unit shot a German soldier and he kept a memorial leaflet that he was carrying (see photos). During the war, he was promoted up to a Brigade Sergeant Major.

He was injured by a grenade in the Reichswald Forest when they were invading Germany. He lost half of his ankle. He came back to the UK and married my Mum. After spending a little while as a plumber, he became a publican.

My Dad rarely spoke about the war afterwards and only would talk about it after a drink or two.