‘I stood on a mine and heard a click’

As a cinema devotee with a deep appreciation for historical narratives, I wholeheartedly recommend adding “Remembrance Sunday: the Cenotaph” to your watchlist. The story of Gunner Roy Quinton, a 101-year-old veteran, is not just a tale of war and conflict, but a testament to resilience, love, and the indomitable human spirit.

Add Remembrance Sunday: the Cenotaph to your watchlist

Instead, it was during and following the three-year span of service he spent in that country, particularly during and immediately after the Second World War, when his love for the place truly blossomed.

As a member of the Second Army Group Royal Artillery, Gunner Roy Quinton participated in the Battle of Monte Cassino, a four-month offensive against German lines in early 1944 that eventually led to Rome’s liberation. However, this victory came at a heavy price, with approximately 55,000 Allied lives lost, including around 8,000 British soldiers. Now, eight decades later, the veteran soldier reminisces about his harrowing experiences as he navigated through the war-torn terrain filled with debris near the ancient mountaintop Benedictine abbey while under heavy fire, all from the comfort of his cozy kitchen.

‘I stood on a mine and heard a click’

Roy, aged 101, shares that he was skilled in handling signals. His role involved keeping the lines of communication active, which entailed fixing wires during lulls in enemy artillery fire. However, this wasn’t without danger as we were continually under attack. Finding protection was a constant source of fear.

That noise was dreadful. You could hear the ominous whooshing and whistling as it drew near, followed by a sudden silence before a deafening explosion of the shell and scattered shrapnel. Miraculously, no one in my unit was hurt. It seemed as if luck was on our side.

During this year’s Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance at the Albert Hall, broadcast live on BBC1 on Saturday night, Roy’s recollections about Monte Cassino and the Battle will feature in a special tribute segment.

We were under fire… the sound of shelling was terrible

He recalls gazing upward at the sky, watching as the monastery collapsed under bombings during the fight,” he explains.

At 18, when Roy got summoned, he was the offspring of a prosperous clothing merchant. “I was pampered beyond belief,” he confesses. “My ambition was to attend university and delve into language studies. Languages had always been my forte.” (Paraphrased)

However, the war unexpectedly disrupted their plans. Following his basic training, he embarked on a ship towards Algiers in January 1943, enduring 11 nerve-wracking days navigating the treacherous waters of the Bay of Biscay. Their primary objective was to avoid German U-boats lurking to sink Allied vessels en route to the North African campaign, which by then was nearing its conclusion. Upon arrival, they moved eastwards towards Tunisia, marking Roy’s introduction to active combat.

In my role, I delivered communications to the officers, narrowly avoiding being crushed by a tank, which left me petrified of landmines. One time, I unknowingly stepped on one and heard a clicking sound, but thankfully, it was not armed.

Certain experiences leave a lasting impression. One moment that has stayed with me is witnessing nine fallen enemy soldiers, each with fatal gunshot wounds, their bodies bleeding profusely as if their injuries were blooming like flowers under the sunlight. Such images are impossible to erase.

In September 1943, Roy’s platoon made a sea voyage across the Mediterranean to reach Italy. By this time, Sicily had already been conquered, and now the focus was on capturing the Italian mainland itself, which was a significant objective. Despite the fact that the battles fought in Italy were among the costliest for the Allied campaign, those who experienced combat there often felt underappreciated compared to those who participated in the D-Day landings of 1944, labeling themselves as “the forgotten forces.

During that period, they were also called “D-Day Evaders,” a term which the soldiers countered by composing a bitterly humorous tune.

Roy acknowledges with a nod, reminiscing about the words sung to the melody of “Lili Marlene”: ‘Gaze at the mountains through the dirt and rain, you’ll see crosses, some with no name written/Enduring sorrow, labor, pain all gone/The lads beneath them rest forevermore/Those who missed D-Day, they’ll stay in Italy.’

I remember looking at the sky, seeing the monastery crumble

Following Monte Cassino Roy’s platoon’s advancement towards Rome, prior to their journey to Perugia, where he encountered Irene, who happened to be the station master’s daughter. By this point, he had become proficient in Italian, as a means of keeping his thoughts occupied amidst the perils that surrounded him.

Despite constant danger, the threat was always looming. In the final months of the conflict, he came close to being struck by shrapnel. “My friend lay there, wounded gravely,” he recalls. “A shell fragment had pierced his chest. I said, ‘You’ll pull through mate, you’re heading back to England.’ He managed to tell me that it didn’t matter to him because earlier that day he had received a letter from home informing him that his spouse had left him for someone else. He passed away in the ambulance en route to the military hospital.

1946 found me, Roy, back in London, where I joined the Inland Revenue, later branching out to establish my own tax consultancy. My beloved Irene and I built our “happy home” together, and our three sons expanded our family with seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. We spent our years holidaying in Italy multiple times a year until we were well into our eighties.

This summer marked the end of a 78-year marriage for Irene, as she passed away at the age of 99. “I feel so lonely without her,” expresses Roy. “If possible, I’d like to visit Italy one more time.” He yearns to return to the place that, despite the hardships and heartache it brought him, also offered him love beyond measure.

2024-11-07 20:20

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