20 October 2022
Black stories from World War Two you might not know
We continue our exploration of black stories for Black History Month with a look at some soldiers from World War Two.
World War Two black stories
Who were the Commonwealth’s black service people of World War Two?
Black troops served in all major military branches during World War Two.
From logistics and transports to pilots and aircrew, naval crewman, frontline troops, and medical personnel, black people from around the world made a strong contribution to the war effort.
They came from across the globe, from East, West and South Africa, and from the Caribbean. Over 600,000 black men and women served with the Commonwealth between 1939-1945.
Here, we shine the spotlight on a couple of stories of these people to give you an idea of their wartime experience.
Sergeant Sidney Cornell
Image: Sidney Cornell, centre, with the men of B Company 7th Parachute Battalion (© Pegasus Journal/Solent News)
If you’re a keen gamer, you might have picked up the latest World War Two instalment of the Call of Duty (CoD) series, Call of Duty Vanguard.
In Vanguard, one of the player characters is British Army Lieutenant Arthur Kingsley, a black paratrooper sent on special missions behind enemy lines after showing exemplary courage in Normandy.
While Arthur is a fictional character, he was inspired by the real-life tale of paratrooper Sergeant Sidney Cornell.
Sidney was born in Portsmouth to an African American father.
By 1943, Sidney was serving with the Royal Army Service Corps. He volunteered to join airborne forces and attended training at RAF Ringwood.
On a course attended by 15 officers and around 210 troops of varying rank, Sidney earned distinction during his training. His course report records state Sidney was “Best performer in his section, intelligent, willing, cool, and keen.”
Sidney was then posted to B Company, 7th (Light Infantry) Parachute Battalion.
At this time, parachute infantry was a fairly new concept in military terms. Troopers had already been dropped into France, North Africa, and Sicily, but they were about to face one of their toughest tests to date: Operation Tonga, the airborne component of Operation Overlord and the Normandy Landings.
The 7th Parachute Battalion was tasked with capturing key Caen and Orne bridges, as well as woodland and farms to help clear the way for troops coming off the beach later in the day.
Like their comrades in the American airborne divisions, the British paratroopers ended up scattered all over Normandy, away from their drop zones and rendezvous points.
During his time in Normandy, Sidney served as a company runner. This was a dangerous task requiring courage and bravery. With Major Neale, Sidney was involved in clearing the Le Mariquet woods, and served under Neale’s replacement Major Keene in an attack on a German-occupied farm in the Bois de Bevant.
During the next five or so weeks, Sidney earned a reputation of incredible bravery and courage under fire. He was awarded a Distinguished Conduct Medal in February 1945 for his actions during the Normandy Campaign.
Part of his DCM citation reads: “This soldier was one of the parachutists who landed behind the German lines in Normandy on the night of the 5th/6th June 1944. During the next five weeks, he was in almost continuous action of a most trying and difficult nature. Cornell was a company runner and has repeatedly carried messages through the most heavy and accurate enemy mortar and Machine Gun fire.
“Four times wounded in action this soldier has never been evacuated and carries on with his job cheerfully and efficiently. Very many acts of gallantry have been performed by members of the battalion but for sustained courage, nothing surpasses Cornell's effort.
“His courage and many wounds have made him a well-known and admired character throughout not only his own battalion but also the whole brigade. Space does not permit a record of all his feats as he distinguished himself in practically every action and fighting took place daily.
“He is a truly magnificent parachutist, and I cannot recommend him too strongly for a decoration."
Sidney would see further action in the fighting around the Ardennes Forest in late 1944 and Operation Varsity in March 1945. By that time, he had been promoted to Sergeant.
Operation Varsity is the largest airborne assault to be carried out in one day and one location in history. It involved landing 16,000 paratroopers over the River Rhine to create a bridgehead for the Allied invasion of Germany.
Sidney would tragically lose his life during the Allied push into Germany.
Image: Sidney's headstone at Becklingen War Cemetery (Image by Dawntree1964 via Find a Grave)
Come April 7th, Sidney and the men of the 7th Parachute Battalion were tasked with capturing a vital bridge near the German town of Neustadt. Locals warned the Battalion CO, Major Reid, that the Wehrmacht had rigged the bridge to blow.
Time was of the essence so Major Reid ordered his men to get up to and across the bridge as soon as possible and knock out the German garrison guarding it. While a small group of 7th Battalion paras made it across, the bridge’s explosives were detonated.
Sidney was one of the men caught in the explosion. He was buried alongside his fallen comrades in a makeshift field burial. Now, he rests alongside 2,300 Commonwealth troops at Becklingen War Cemetery, Germany.
Flight Lieutenant Emanuel Peter John Adeniyi Thomas
Image: Flight Lieutenant Emanuel Peter John Adeniyi (© IWM CH 7168)
The RAF saw an influx of black servicemen from around the world during World War Two, including air and groundcrew. Over 3,000 came from the West Indies while more than 6,000 were drawn from Africa, including recruits from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Gambia, South Africa, and more locations across the continent.
The “colour bar” restricting “those not of European descent” from becoming officers was lifted for the duration of World War Two. Black men could, and did, take up commanding positions in each branch of the British military, including the RAF.
Emanuel Peter John Adeniyi, Peter or “Deniyi” to his friends, became the first West African to be commissioned as an officer in the Royal Air Force.
Peter came from a wealthy family in Lagos, Nigeria. His family seemed attracted to establishing firsts. For instance, his elder sister, Stella Thomas, became the first woman magistrate in West Africa.
The exploits of the RAF during the frantic days of the Battle of Britain proved the catalyst for Peter to take to the skies himself. Having read about the pilots and RAF’s Battle of Britain experience, he decided to enlist.
It’s interesting to see the motivations of black volunteers during both World Wars. Some would not be volunteers at all. Remember, the British Empire was still an entity during this time. However, others would volunteer their services.
For Peter, his reasoning, alongside admiration for Battle of Britain pilots, stemmed from his family’s experiences during one of the darkest periods of colonialism.
Describing his motivations, Peter wrote: “My great-grandfather was a chieftain. One day his rival betrayed him to a slave dealer. He was put on a ship along with 100 other slaves and was soon on his way to America. Ten days out in the Atlantic his ship was intercepted by one of Her Majesty’s ships. The slaves were rescued, and at Freetown (Sierra Leone), my great-grandfather regained his freedom.”
Peter travelled to the UK and by September 1942, the 25-year-old had become a pilot, the first West African to do so. He then quickly earned his commission.
Peter’s skill and courage, two necessary requirements as a wartime pilot, earned him two further promotions during the war. In 1943, he was promoted to Flying Officer. In September 1944, Peter reached the rank of Flight Lieutenant.
January 1945. Peter was serving with the RAF’s No.4 Radio School at RAF Madley. His role was to train new wireless operators by taking them up so they could practice working while in the air.
Image: Peter's headstone in Bath (Haycombe Cemetery) (Image by JohnM via Find a Grave)
On the 12th of January, Peter took off with trainee radio operator Frank Stokes for an airborne training session. The pair were flying over the Brecon Beacons mountain range in South Wales during a period of bad weather and poor visibility.
Tragically, the pair’s plane crashed into a mountainside. Peter amazingly managed to stagger out of the wreckage and seek help for himself and his passenger after a two-mile walk. Unfortunately, Peter would succumb to his injuries.
Peter is buried in Bath (Haycombe Cemetery). His parents left a touching personal inscription on his tombstone:
"FORGIVE MY GRIEF
FOR ONE REMOVED,
THY CREATURE WHOM I FOUND SO FAIR". MOTHER
The CWGC Non-Commemoration Report
For almost two years the CWGC Non-Commemoration team has been working hard to address historical inequalities in how our war dead were commemorated during the organisation's early days.
Our team continues to work to address and rebalance these historical inequalities. Read more about their work today and learn more about how we’re pursuing equality for all our war dead.