Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
‘Dad did impressions of Hitler to keep spirits up in prisoner of war camp’
ON the 80th anniversary of the capture of thousands of British soldiers at St Valery in the Normandy region of France, a Dundee woman has shared her dad’s story of capture, bravery and escape.
Joseph McTavish, then a corporal, was captured by the German Army on June 12 1940, alongside almost 10,000 other British troops, in what is often referred to as “the forgotten Dunkirk”.
The young man, who was born in Dundee in 1911, joined the Army at the age of 18.
He spent almost 10 years in India as a colonial soldier, returning home just once i n 1937 to marry his wife Willamina.
Two years later, Willamina gave birth to their first child, a boy named Joe.
Just a month after that, the new father returned to the military with 4/5 Battalion The Black Watch i n order to defend France against the Nazi invasion after the oubreak of the Second World War.
Joseph failed to escape at Dunkirk, and had to retreat to the town of St Valery.
He fought alongside other British troops and members of the French Army but they were unable to hold out against the Germans.
Following his capture by enemy forces, Joseph was forced to take part in a gruelling march to a prisoner of war camp in Poland, losing two of his friends along the way.
He spent five years at the camp, being made to mine coal in order to fuel the German war machine.
Joseph made three failed attempts at escape, with his last ending when Nazi soldiers found him hiding in a chicken coop.
Joseph’s daughter, Jean Prevost, said: “He didn’t talk about it much but my mum said he would have nightmares about it.
“He didn’t like talking about the war. He was a quiet man and he came back different.”
While life i n the prison camp was hard for Joseph and his fellow captives, he would try his best to keep his friends entertained.
According to Jean, her father would mock the Nazis and do i mpressions of Hitler to keep spirits high.
He was eventually freed by Russian troops in 1945, before returning home to his family.
The veteran was awarded the Military Medal for his bravery in the conflict.
After the war, he began working for the Post Office, retiring after 25 years service.
Joseph died in 1985 but Jean is proud to tell his story.
She said: “He was a quiet, unassuming man.
“When I was little, I asked what he got his medal for and he said ‘for being stupid’.
“He was always good to me and Joe – he was an upright person.
“He was well liked, especially by those he worked with at the post office.”
Joseph was just one of thousands of British troops captured at St Valery 80 years ago.
Countless others were marched off to prison camps, dying along the way or on arrival.
A monument now stands in the French town, commemorating those who lost their lives, as well as those who were captured.