General Chat

James Harling, my 92 year old father, was a Coldstream Guard during WW2 and was one of a group of bodyguards known as Coats Mission, which was formed in 1940 by Major James (Jimmy) Coats to protect King George V1 and the Royal Family in the event of an invasion. My father travelled to Sandringham whenever the Royal Family stayed there.

Names my father remembers are: Wilson, Foggarty, Shooter, Blythe, McDonald, Taffy and Farmer.

I am trying to find any other members or their families who remember this mission and whether my father is the sole suriving member of this elite group of men.

We live in New Zealand, so I cannot visit London to find out anything.

Thank you
Patricia

Just got this from Wikipedia

From 1941 to 1942 a special British army unit existed for the purpose of evacuating the King and Queen and their immediate family in the event of German invasion. Led by Major James Coats, MC, Coldstream Guards, later Lieutenant-Colonel Sir James Coats, Bt, it comprised a company of the Coldstream Guards. There were five officers and 124 Guardsmen. They were equipped with ten vehicles - four armoured cars, two armoured Daimlers, and four Guy wheeled cars manned by the 12th Lancers and the Northamptonshire Yeomanry, in the Morris Detachment (commanded by Major Tim Morris, 12th Lancers). They were based in Bushy Park, London. The Guy wheeled cars were at Windsor.
The role of the unit, which supplemented the Guards battalions at London and Windsor, was to remove the Royal Family ahead of the advancing German army. It would be expected that the Royal Family would move from house to house as the strategic and tactical situation demanded.
Several country houses in remote locations, reportedly including Newby Hall, North Yorkshire, Pitchford Hall, Shropshire, Madresfield Court (Earl Beauchamp's home in Worcestershire), and a fourth unnamed house (possibly Bevere Manor, Worcestershire), were designated as refuges. Madresfield Court reportedly replaced Croome Court, Worcester (the home of the Earl of Coventry) in 1940. It was also a safe house for King George III in the late eighteenth century, in the event of an invasion by Napoleon.
After 1942 the role was taken over by the Household Cavalry.

Sounds exciting, I hope someone can help you.

Helen x

Thank you for the information and email address. I wrote to the Headquarters of the Coldstream Guards a few years ago, and never had a reply, but I'll try the email!

Yes, it's very interesting, dad has told me a lot about it. He fought in the North African desert in the 8th Army - they were known as desert rats - before the landings in Salerno. He's written quite a bit about his life during the war.

Patricia

Patricia,
I was wondering how your research had gone?
I am a military historian currently working on the defence of Britain in 1940/41. There are some papers at the Imperial War Museum in London for Lt Colonel Malcolm Hancock relating to the Coats Mission - I am visiting next week and will be happy to relay on to you any rosters I might find of those who were involved and any other information I might find. Your father's recollections would be invaluable to me, did you say he had written them down.
Best wishes
Andrew

I may be way off here, but I have a few letters written by my late uncle; John William COOKSON during the war. He wrote home from the desert; he says in his letters that they were the '8th Army'. He didn't write about any conflict (probably wasn't allowed to) but wrote about living conditions, supplies of food etc.

I have been unable to find anything more about the Mission and I would be very pleased to learn more. My father is very ill at the moment and I'm not sure if he is strong enough to pull through, so it's a very sad time for me.

My father was in the 3rd Batallion, No 3 Coy, Coldstream Guards. In Coats Mission, Lt Thompson was in charge of his platoon. He was at Elstree School.

All good wishes to you and your father,
Liz

Patricia, I do hope you can learn more about this time of your Dad's life and that he will find the strength to go on longer and be able to talk more with you about these duties etc.
i wish I had asked my father more about his service life, he was in the Palestine Police at one time, and was in Egypt, Burma and other places. My son has a couple of his medals and my nephew another two but I will have to try and find out what they are for and see if I can locate more details.
I know one medal is the Burma Star but no idea what the others were, he was in the Royal Bucks I think.

Lizx

Patricia; I am sending good wishes you your father; I hope he gets well again.

Liz - my late father in law had the Burma Star, I think. I know he was in Burma and when he was ill and disabled with arthritis he used to be visited by a member, Fred Fairey, who has also since passed on. When father in law (Walter Ellis) died the Burma Star members turned up at the funeral in all their uniforms and stood to attention. It made a sad day quite wonderful, this was in 1989 so I don't know if there are any members still alive.

I'll have a look at his medals later on; I'm don't know anything about these.

Dear Patricia,
Wondered if you had managed to find any more details, and how your father is progressing,
Liz

My darling dad has sadly passed away on the 4th June and I miss him terribly.
As I am writing his life story, I would still be very interested to hear from anyone about Coats Mission.
Thank you.

Patricia

awe dear
i just see this thread, and im so sad to read of your dad being so poorly he couldnt find anymore strength,
and on this fathers day, im sure as you send your thoughts out to him, hes there right beside you,

info about what the coats mission got up to may be found by contacting his company rather than the regiment,
my hubby was in the royal artillery,
however if i wanted to know specifics, id contact his unit, as he was attatched to a regiment within the artillery however they consist of batterys, within each regiment, and i know they keep lots of history,
sometimes they have ex servicemen who keep websites on it,

if you google coldstream guards, and regiment, and coy,
you should be able to find more, much more, and maybe specific to your dad,

im not sure if im being out of line here but feel i must mention, the name Shooter more than likely sounds like nick name, so he may appear in a group of the other names, with someone of welsh origin for Taffy,

sending you all the best in your search,
be very proud of your dad,

I am so sorry to hear your sad news, and send my sympathy to all the family.
Kind regards, Liz

nudged for jennifer