Taylor, R (Reginald)
Taylor, R (Reginald)
Private Reginald Taylor was the son of William and Catherine Taylor, of Brompton-on-Swale, Yorkshire. He served with the 1st Battalion, Green Howards.
During 1939 the battalion went over to France as part of the B.E.F.[1] They were withdrawn before the Battle of Dunkirk[2] only to be sent to Norway as part of a task force to fight off a German invasion there too.
Unfortunately, the British were outnumbered and only lightly armed, but still fought bravely especially at Otta.[3]
On the 28th of April 1940, the Green Howards managed to destroy 3 German tanks and kill many German soldiers. The battalion then withdrew at night, leaving the Germans to deal with their casualties. They had managed to hold off 7 German divisions for 24 hours, allowing precious extra time for the evacuation, which was completed by the 10th of June 1940.
The battalion returned to England to regroup, reman, and retrain and from May 1941, the Green Howards were training in the Londonderry area.
Private Reginald Taylor died the following month from pulmonary tuberculosis or TB.[4] He is commemorated on the Brompton-on-Swale War Memorial.
Date of Death: 15/05/1941 (Aged 27)
Service: Private, Green Howards (Yorkshire Regiment), 1st Battalion.
Service Number: 4387696
Burial Location: Londonderry (or Derry), City Cemetery, R.C. Plot. Sec. M. Grave 3.
[1] B.E.F. – British Expeditionary Force
[2] British suffered around 68,000 killed or captured at the Battle of Dunkirk, around 340,000 where rescued.
[3] Otta is a town in central Norway on the Otta river.
[4] Pulmonary tuberculosis or TB leads to wasting away of the body.
