Remains of Coldstream Guardsmen laid to rest in France

Two young World War 2 tank crewmen who were reported missing have finally been laid to rest.

The service for Guardsman Bayliss was attended by 10 members of his family including his nephews, grandsons and great grandsons. The services were conducted by the Rev Martin Robbins CF, Chaplain to 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards (Crown Copyright).

Guardsman (Gdsm) William Bayliss, aged 22, and Gdsm David Blyth, aged 25, were serving with 1st (Armoured) Battalion Coldstream Guards in Normandy when their tank was destroyed.

The remains were found by a farmer ploughing a field in the hamlet of La Marvindière, near St Charles-de-Percy, in Normandy. The ground had not been disturbed since World War 2, when a pair of Sherman tanks, operated by soldiers of the Guards Armoured Division, were destroyed there on 4 August 1944. A Coldstream Guards cap badge was found close by.

The remains of Gdsm Bayliss were idenfitied after his nephew agreed to assist with DNA testing. Having found a positive DNA match to some of the remains, the rest were then tested and a further match was found to the son of Gdsm Blyth.

Burial services for both soldiers, organised by the MOD’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC) were held at CWGC St Charles-de-Percy War Cemetery in France on 19 September 2023.

Peter Blyth lays a wreath at his father's grave (Crown Copyright).

Rosie Barron, JCCC case lead said:
“This has been a fascinating and complex case to research and it is very rewarding to have seen a positive result for the families of Gdsm Bayliss and Gdsm Blyth. Gdsm Bayliss was a young man with an exciting future ahead of him. He was recently married and had just discovered he was to become a father. Gdsm Blyth had a wife and young son who grew up not knowing what had happened to his father and spent nearly 50 years searching for answers. The focus is often placed on the sacrifice made by soldiers such as Gdsm Bayliss and Gdsm Blyth, but this story also brings home the reality of life for those they left behind: young widows who struggled without their husbands, a daughter who would never meet her father and a son who only knew his father as an infant. I am very pleased to have had the opportunity to meet Gdsm Bayliss’ grandsons and wider family and Gdsm Blyth’s son, Peter, and to have been part of their stories.”

The services were attended by both families, including Gdsm Bayliss’ grandson, Dean Taylor and Peter Blyth, the son of Gdsm Blyth.

Dean Taylor, grandson of Gdsm Bayliss said:
“To suddenly hear that William Bayliss had been found in a field in France, a field that had remained untouched since the second world war was unbelievable. The sacrifice of William Bayliss’ life was known, he gave his life that we might live, the family were very proud of this, he was lost at war, presumed dead. In April 2023, a letter from Rosie Barron at the JCCC to the next of kin suddenly gave life to William Bayliss, the letter informed us that William Bayliss’ remains had been found. William Bayliss became alive to the family, a real person, a Father-in-Law, a Grandfather, a Great Grandfather, a Great Great Grandfather and an Uncle. The family have had the joy of being able to reconnect with distant relatives to William Bayliss. May God bless William Bayliss for his sacrifice, without William many of us would not be here. May he now rest in peace with his comrades. It has been an honour to attend William Bayliss’ burial service in France. We feel William Bayliss is our hero and he fills us with immense pride.”

Peter Blyth, the son of Gdsm Blyth said:
“It was a happy coincidence that the ploughing of a field that had lain fallow since 1944, exposed human and materiel remains lost in an action fought by units of the Guards Armoured Division in August 1944. However, it is through the hard work and dedication of the JCCC War Detectives and their colleagues of the CWGC that have given me the privilege of being present today of the laying to rest of my Dad, Guardsman David Blyth Coldstream Guards, in this beautiful, serene setting, in the company of contemporaries, some of whom he may have lived, fought and died with. Sadly, this has come too late for his wife, parents and siblings. So, on their behalf, mine, us, “bloody marvellous, Rest in Peace Dad.”

The services were attended by serving soldiers of the Coldstream Guards and were conducted by the Reverend Martin Robbins, Chaplain to 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards.

The Reverend Robbins said:
The Regimental family of the Coldstream Guards places great importance on remembering and honouring the service of those comrades who have gone before us. At its heart this story is essentially a very human one. A story of young men with their whole lives ahead of them torn away from all that they knew and loved, to answer a call of service to others and deter a tyrannical ideology from destroying a way of life which we hold dear today. In answering that call these men paid the ultimate sacrifice, but in doing so left a legacy which is enjoyed today throughout western Europe. A legacy hard won and achieved at great cost. A legacy for which we will always be grateful”

The headstones will now be cared for in perpetuity by the CWGC in France.

Iain Lower, Companion of The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, CWGC Director of Global Strategy & Commonwealth Relations and Communications said:
"We are deeply honoured to care for the final resting places of Guardsman William Bayliss and Guardsman David Blyth at St Charles-de-Percy War Cemetery. Their memory shall endure eternally under our watchful care and commitment. Their sacrifice and service are indelibly etched in both stone and history. The presence of their families during this solemn occasion was profoundly moving, serving as a poignant reminder of the legacy and sacrifices borne by those left behind.”

Gdsm William Bayliss (courtesy of the Bayliss family), Guardsman Ryan Joy presents a Union flag to Dean Taylor, the grandson of Guardsman William Bayliss (Crown Copyright).

Gdsm William Bayliss

Gdsm Bayliss was born on 12 May 1922 in Banbury, Oxfordshire. He was one of 6 children born to William Bayliss and his wife Florence. Before the war William lived in Rugby, Warwickshire, the home town of his mother, and worked as a machine mender. He enlisted into the Army on 7 October 1941 and on 10 November 1942 was posted to 1st (Armoured) Battalion Coldstream Guards, where on 18 December, he qualified as a Gunner Operator. In May 1944, William married Estelle Rose Tyler. Their daughter, Gabrielle Ann Bayliss, was born on 11 February 1945, 6 months after his death.

Gdsm David Blyth (courtesy of the Blyth family), Peter Blyth stands at his father's graveside with the military party which included serving soldiers of the Coldstream Guards (Crown Copyright).

Gdsm David Blyth

Gdsm David Blyth was born on 11 February 1919 in Sutton-on-Hull, in East Yorkshire. He was one of 9 children born to John Blyth and his wife Clara. Before enlisting into The Coldstream Guards on 21 August 1937, he worked as a labourer for the Hull Co-Operative Wholesale Society. Having completed his training, he was posted to 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards on 4 March 1938.

On 29 September 1939, following the outbreak of the Second World War, Gdsm Blyth embarked for France with the British Expeditionary Force. He was evacuated as part of Operation Dynamo on 1 June 1940. On 26 August 1940, he married Mary Keating, in her home town of Cleethorpes, in Lincolnshire. Their son, Peter Blyth, was born in Cleethorpes on 31 May 1941.

In June 1941, 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards became part of the newly-formed Guards Armoured Division. Gdsm Blyth qualified as a Driver Mechanic on 24 April 1942. Gdsm Blyth was posted to 137 Tank Delivery Squadron in 1943 which was later redesignated as 268 Forward Delivery Squadron.

Martin and Dean Taylor, the grandsons of Guardsman William Bayliss and Peter Blyth, the son of Guardsman David Blyth at the graveside (Crown Copyright).

Battle at La Marvindière

After the D Day landings on 6 June 1944, the success of Operation Overlord, and subsequent operations, the Guards Armoured Division disembarked in Normandy on 30 June.

On 30 July, Operation Bluecoat began and the Guards Armoured Division took part in the Allied advance through Normandy. On 1 August, Gdsm Bayliss, Gdsm Blyth and the rest of their crew were attached from 268 Forward Delivery Squadron to 2nd (Armoured) Battalion Irish Guards and their tank was placed under the command of Lieutenant (Lt) John Charles Fitzgerald Keatinge, an Irish Guards Officer.

At 5:30am on 4 August, 2nd Battalion The Irish Guards left La Marvindière. No.1 Squadron moved to the road facing north and east. In the afternoon, the enemy withdrew from Montchamp and moved towards Le Busq without seemingly knowing that 2nd Battalion Irish Guards were there.

No.1 Squadron came into contact first. Two tanks, commanded by Serjeant (Sjt) Martin Holmes Brennan and Lt Keatinge were knocked out by a German Panther tank. Sjt Brennan was killed and Lt Keatinge was mortally wounded. In total 2nd Battalion The Irish Guards lost 4 tanks and 14 men killed that day.

The crew of Lt Keatinge’s tank were recorded as having died as a result of the fighting on 4 August 1944. On 10 August, casualties were removed from the 4 tanks and later buried in St Charles-de-Percy War Cemetery. The remains found at La Marvindière are believed to be additional remains, with both soldiers most likely already buried in unknown graves within the cemetery.

Gdsm Bayliss and Gdsm Bltyh were listed as missing, as was Gdsm Leonard George Markham. They were commemorated on the Bayeux Memorial. The fourth crew member, Gdsm Eric Wyatt, was wounded, but succumbed to his injuries on 9 August 1944. He is buried in Bayeux War Cemetery.