John Connolly

This story and photo is shared by the Trust courtesy of Brian Dilley, researcher with information provided by Jim McGrory, Great Nephew of John Connolly.

John Connolly was born in Glasgow in 1908 where his parents had gone for work in the late 1890s. he was one of eleven children. His father James worked as a coalminer there. The family returned to Clay Keady Co Armagh when John was three, and his father rented a farm there.

The Connolly family suffered more than their fair share of tragedy over the years. John’s oldest brother, Anthony, died from Spanish flu in 1919 aged 23. His sister, Margaret, died aged 30 leaving a young infant son. His youngest sister, Teresa, died from tuberculosis in 1934 and their mother died in childbirth in 1920 when they were all still very young.

Despite all of this, he was said to be a Jolly character.

As a young man, John went back and forth between Scotland and England for work and eventually settled with his new wife, Teresa Hughes, in the city of Armagh after their marriage in 1939.

John and Teresa on their wedding day

 

He joined the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Ulster Rifles (2RUR) the following year. After crossing the channel on D-Day, 2RUR made their way to the assembly point at Lion-sur-Mer. They then moved to Périers Ridge, a high point overlooking the beaches to the north and Caen to the south, where they dug in for the evening. On 7th June, the Rifles received orders to move Southwest from Périers Ridge to capture Cambes, a village six miles inland that was surrounded by woodland and a 10 foot high stone wall. Cambes was considered to be a gateway into Caen, the original target for the allies to capture on D-Day itself.

The village of Cambes had been believed to be lightly held by the Germans, but the high walls made it difficult to confirm and gave the Germans a significant advantage over the approaching troops, who would have to approach across open fields. At 17:00 hrs D Company launched a company strength attack on the village. They moved along the track between Le Mesnil and Cambes behind a squadron of tanks from the East Riding Yeomanry. The rest of the battalion followed closely in reserve. A number of men were lost along the track to enemy snipers on the edge of the wood and accurate mortar fire.

When they reached the wood, they came face to face with the stone wall. The Company split into two, with two platoons in each half. One half attacked the village through the left side of the wood and the other through the right edge. Immediately the Company had broken through the wood, crossfire from machine guns opened up resulting in more men becoming casualties, including the Company Commander, Captain John Richard St Leger Aldworth.

Having realised that the village was actually well defended as an outpost, the troops withdrew with the rest of the battalion to Le Mesnil. They had to leave the wounded behind. The Battalion returned on 9th June with a Battalion strength attack to capture the village, and found the bodies of the men that had been left behind.

The toll from the unsuccessful attack was one officer and 14 other ranks killed, John being one of them. One officer and eleven other ranks were also wounded or missing, and two stretcher bearers who had been tending the wounded were also killed.

John’s great-nephew, Jim, recalls that his father never talked much about him, which was typical of the older generations in Ireland. Tragedies such as these were seldom mentioned.

John is now laid to rest in La Delivrande War Cemetery in Douvres. His headstone bears the inscription:

In loving memory of John.
Always remembered by his wife, brothers and sisters.
R.I.P.