Fountain-Joseph-Frank

To honour those who served their country

“In this their finest hour”

1049955

Gunner

Joseph Frank Fountain

1901/06/17 - Born Abbotts Ripton

1924/01/21 - Enlisted

Royal Artillery

3/6 Heavy Anti Aircraft Regiment

Service

After training in Wiltshire in 1941, the 6 H.A.A. were entrained to Nottingham and then on to Yorkshire were they were given leave before being transported to Liverpool where they were issued with Kaki Drill uniforms before embarking on the Monarch of Bermuda, bound for the Middle East.

Monarch Bermuda

They sailed North to the Clyde to join the Convoy William Sail 12X and sailed with sixteen ships plus escorts. Eventually sailing to the Middle East early November 1941.

Stopping at Freetown, Sierra Leone on the 28th November with shore leave. They then they sailed to Durban, South Africa, berthing 18th December 1941 and being given shore leave.

As Japan had then entered the war by attacking Pearl Harbour and invaded Malaya it was decided to split the Convoy, send half to the Far East and the other half to the Middle East.

Aorangi

On returning from shore leave the 6th H.A.A. were transferred to the Aorangi, but because of the muddle, their stores were not loaded with them.

The convoy now became D.M.1 and sailed 24th December 1941, arriving at Singapore 13th January 1942.

The convoy disembarked together with the 18th Division to find the docks ablaze and the Japanese having control of the air. Singapore was under siege.

It was now found the shells had not been transported with the 6th H.A.A., an urgent message was sent for more shells but they did not arrive before Singapore fell to the Japanese.

1942/05/02 - WO 417/42, Casualty List No. 813. Missing.

1942/10/12 - WO 417/52, Casualty List No.952. Previously shown on Casualty List No.813 as Missing, 15/02/1942.

Japanese PoW

PoW No. IV 13664

Japanese Index Card - Side One

Japanese Index Card - Side Two

1942/04/04 - Oversea in Nissyo Maru to Saigon, French Indo-China with 1118 PoWs (All Ranks) called ‘Saigon Battalion’

Commander Lt-Col. Frances Edgar Hugonin’s Party (Awarded OBE 1946/09/12)

New PoW No. IV 13812

1942/04/09 - Arrived Saigon with half the PoWs down with dysentery because of the bad conditions on board the Nissyo Maru

Worked on docks unloading cargo - sabotage took place which involved puncturing petrol drums with nails. Damaging lorries by removing nuts and bolts, putting sand in engines, aeroplane fuselage, plane controls.

Escapes:- Baxter & Cassidy. At large 36 hours. Imprisoned on recapture in Cholon gaol, Indo-China. PoWs informed by Lt. Col. F. E. Hugonin RA, their commanding officer, that they were betrayed by the French military at Saigon to the Jap military police. They were both executed.

1943/06/22 - Transported to Thailand with 700 PoWs under Lt-Col. Hugonin

New PoW No. IV 6767

1943/06/29 - No. 1 Jungle camp Kinsaiyok (27 Saigon Battalion - Camp Ldr. Hugonin)

Lt-Col. Hugonin protested to the Japanese about the shortage of food. They threatened to shoot him if he protested again but he stood firm. He was well respected by the men under him.

1943/08 - Tha Sao Hospital (Commander Lt-Col. Knights. Norfolks)(125km from Nong Pladuk)

1944/10 - Tha Muang Camp (39km from Nong Pladuk, base camp at the end of railway construction)

1945/09/04 - Liberated Thailand

1945/09/25 - WO417/96_2, Casualty List No. 1867. Previously reported on Casualty List No. 952 as Prisoner of War now not Prisoner of War. Previous Theatre of War, Malaya.