Denis St John Batty Atkinson

This story is shared by the Trust with kind permission from Mavis Williams, Researcher.

Denis St. John Batty Atkinson was born on the 7th of May 1924 and baptised on the 5th of July 1924 according to the Baptism entry of Christ Church, Insein, Bengal, India. He was the son of Denis Jackson & Nina Oliver Atkinson, (formerly Hartwell, née St. John). He was born into a military family. Nina's father was General George St John and Nina's first marriage was to General John Hartwell. They had a daughter, Diana Hartwell, who was born in 1912. But the marriage was not to last after she met Colonel Denis Atkinson in India.

John and Nina divorced in April 1921 when John was granted a decree nisi on the grounds of his wife's misconduct with Denis Atkinson. They had been living separate lives for a couple of years and the news article in the Nottingham Journal reported: "he wrote her a letter in which he implored her for all our sakes to make up your mind to play the game and rejoin me. Later his wife wrote to him stating that it was no use going on as they had been, and she could not live with him again"

Denis and Nina married in December 1921 and they had three children: Daphne, born 1921; Angela, born 1923; and Denis, born in 1924.

Denis and Nina were to travel many times across the oceans, back and forth due to Denis’ career in the Army and then his job as Deputy Conservator, Burma when he first joined the Burma Forest Service on the 1st of October 1920. But Denis would go to school in the UK. He is recorded as living at Millbank, Crumpton Hill, Herefordshirein the household of Edward Newhouse, a Farmer and retired civil engineer, his wife, Elsie G. Newhouse and Joan H. Newhouse, with another possible family member, whose details are redacted. There were 5 other people, other than Denis St. John Atkinson, living there.

Denis would serve in the Royal Marines on LCA 577, 526th Assault Flotilla, HMS Queen Emma, on D-Day. They would land men of 1st Battalion, Canadian Scottish Regiment on Mike Green, Juno beach.

But he was one of at least eight men of the flotilla who were killed on the beaches as, by the end of D-Day, over half of the flotilla's craft had been lost. Most had been abandoned on the beaches due to damage from mine or mortar fire.

His half sister, Diana, published an obituary notice in a local paper

British Normandy Memorial - Additional Information

Unfortunately, we do not have a photo of Denis St John Batty Atkinson. If you are aware of one or you are related to Denis we would love to hear from you so we can add to his story.