Montgomery driver’s medals for gallantry go under hammer
BRAVERY medals awarded to Field Marshal Montgomery’s wartime driver will be auctioned today.
John “Jack” Burford was alongside Monty from El Alamein, Egypt, in 1942 to the end of the Second World War.
The Military Medal was presented to 23-year-old Jack by King George VI for his “great gallantry and devotion to duty under fire, on dangerous missions during fierce fighting around Sicily’s Mount Etna in August 1943”. Monty wrote: “He never failed or faltered in his duty. His personal courage under fire was an example to us all.” Jack, from Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, died in 2006 at 85. He did not tell a soul about his experiences. The medal collection is expected to fetch up to £6,000 at Bonhams in London.