What did your family do in WW2?

[tibilicus]

Any ones know or have grandparents who were in the thick of it i.e D.day or even more interesting anyone know or have relatives who were in Berlin in the final days of the war finishing of the Nazis?

[Somebody Else]

My grandfather ran a bookies from his artillery battery overlooking a racecourse in India.

[Kaiser of Arabia]

anyone know where I can get semi-accurate to accurate German rosters from WWII? I need to know what unit my great uncle served in ;) i know im pitiful

[Butcher]

Actually I agree, it would be interesting to find exactly who my great-grandad was with in Stalingrad.

[Kaiser of Arabia]

I need to know if he served with the Werhmacht or Waffen (hopefully the Waffen SS, they were elite), and his first name.
They're not that many palisch's out there. Not that many that served in france from a regiment from Burgenland/Styria and became an america POW in Texas.

[Slyspy]

My paternal grandfather served on corvettes escorting convoys to and from the States, Canada and Russia. Nasty business bobbing around in the Atlantic in a coatal patrol vessel!

His brother served on torpedo boats guarding the Channel, and was involved in various other coastal defence roles.

My paternal grandmother was a nurse and saw some terrible things on the wards in Haslar and other hospitals.

My maternal great-uncle saw remarkably little action in North Africa with the army. Rommel must have been scared of him lol!

Think my maternal grandfather was in the army too, but we don't talk about him. Families!

My maternal grandmother worked in some capacity on the railways, I forget what exactly.

PS

My maternal great grandfather served and died on the Western Front in WW1 as a sergeant in the artillery. He was killed by German artillery while he and others from his unit were on stretcher duty in the last year of the war. We have his medals, his tobacco tin (of all things) and the letter his CO wrote to his widow. He had never seen his youngest daughter, my grandmother.

[Lazul]

Well, being from sweden, i hardly have anything to say since nobody in my family went to finland like some swedes did.

But, my grandfather had one incident. Days after the germans invaded Norway he was send to guard the border to norway. Once they arrived Norwegian Artillery on trucks came driving in full speed not bothering to stop by the border and just drove further into Sweden screaming and pointing behind them.
My grandfather and his friends understod why soon after when several Panzers came hunting after artillery that just got away. The Panzers stop infront of them and then turned around without a word. (Panzer III or IV maybe?)
The thing is that the Swedish soldiers didnt have any weapons at that point due to logistic problems, only the officers had some small arms. And against Panzers, they had nothing, maybe a handgrande or two.

... good thing Germany hadnt declared war on Sweden or I wouldnt exist.

[xxrulerofswedenxx]

my grand mother mother hated the germans her son's ( donno who dose are xd) were wanted by the germans they escaped and fled . my stepfather his dad was in the ristance of belgium whil his dad's brother was an S.S er stationed in finland etc and fought at berlin in the final hours of the nazi reich after the war he was recruited for the precursor of the CIA and worked for them until 1947 . and my grand parent's from my mother side where to young they where born in 1944 so .

[rickinator9]

My mom said a few years ago that my grandfather used to steal german telephone poles for winter(for firewood). He was eventually caught and when he spoke to the german officer there, the officer was sympathetic and let him go.
My grandmother had people who were hiding from the germans. She was a farmers daugher, so when the dutch femine of 1944 began people from the cities came to her farm for food.

[HopAlongBunny]

My father served in the Naval Reserve here in Canada; his father served in the cavalry in WW1.

He would say very little about his service which was typical of most servicemen I met who served in WW2. I didn't even realize one person I knew my whole life had landed at Juno beach until I attended his funeral. A lot of amazing stories have died with that generation.

[Fisherking]

When I was growing up it seemed that every adult male with the exception of my Grandfathers (exempt because they were farmers) had been in one or another of the military services. Everything from Air Force to Marine Corps.

One aunt was a Nurse posted to England. Most of the women worked near home and were nurses or teachers.

One Uncle commanded a bomber squadron . One served with Pappy Boyington. One was a combat engineer who fought on New Guinea . One was a Marine who fought through most of the island campaigns. He said Tarawa was the worst of them all.

Some were at Normandy all the way to the occupation. Some from North Africa all the way to Italy at the end of the war.

It seemed as though someone was at every major battle fought by the Americans in the entire war.

One was killed on Bougainville.

For most of his service my dad was on one of the smallest ships in the navy, an LCI. Most of his stories were about the terrible storms in the Pacific. When the war ended he was in route to Japan with a full load of troops for Operation Olympic.

My wife is German. Her Grandfather was an Aircraft Engineer for Messerschmitt. He did a lot of the work on the Me 262. On the other side of her family they were ethnic Germans living in the Ukraine. Her grandfather was drafted into the Russian Army, given up for dead, and her Grandmother fled at the end of the war with 6 children, on foot from around Kiev all the way back to Germany. They arrived in Dresden and left there only hours before the bombing.

Most of her parents stories are of the hardships and privation during and after the war.

[edyzmedieval]

Great grandfather was a decorated veteran in the Romanian infantry in World War I, fought on the frontlines against the German troops.

Grandfather was a decorated veteran (Iron Cross and all) in the Romanian Air Force in World War II, Eastern Front.

[Fragony]

I suspect I don't don't have any good news from my mom side at least. My grandpa detested jews, I suspect he was NSB member but I never asked my grandma. He wasn't all that pleasant alltogether.

[Sp4]

A bunch of people from my family served in the military but I only know of my grand uncle, who served on the Eastern front and was captured and later let go. Another grand uncle was captured by Americans on D-Day and my grandfather was captured somewhere in Belgium.

[Jack50]

Nothing grand in my family although all three boys of my fathers side (my grandfather and 2 great uncles) served in Italy with the "Red Bull" division. They left Denmark in 1937 to come to America and then signed up in 1941. Were overseas by 1944 and basically just did their service. My father was born in 1941 and served in the Navy after high school on board a destroyer and I carried on with a tour of duty with the USMC in 1982. We all just thought it was part of being in our case an American, as it would to any other countries men who fought and served for their country.
My mothers' father was a railroadman and so was exempt from service as he was needed in the states to run trains across the country.

[Strike For The South]

Paternal Grandfather spoke Russian. He fought in Italy, and Overlord. Then after the war spent 6 years in the CIA interrogating Russians Was deployed to Korea when the unit he attached to was nearly obliterated. They sent him home after that.

Maternal Grandfather was an engineer on the Lexington.

Both of my grandfathers keep their medals in boxes in the basement. My paternal Grandfather hasn't spoken a word of Russian in 50 years, even with little Stirke begging him to.

[Zim]

Maternal grandfather was in the Pacific theater. He joked that his job was to guard laundry detergent, as he apparently stood guard over a depot for chemicals. He talked a lot more about his training than my other grandfather, intimating to us that he was told to stab prone enemies with his bayonet in case they were faking dead, among other things. Paternal grandfather fought in Germany. He won a medal for bravery but wouldn't talk about it. As he had German family I wasn't surprised he didn't like to discuss his actions in the war.

[Catiline]

Both Grandfathers were in reserved occupations, one as an engineer who repaired damaged aircraft, the other as a petrol tanker driver.

[The Lurker Below]

both my grandfathers had several young children and were not selected to serve.
my wifes grandpa was highly decorated for action in Italy. he refused to speak to anybody about it.

thanks for starting this thread OP, many very interesting stories shared here.

[drone]

Maternal grandfather flew bombers for the Army Air Force in the China-Burma-India theater. B-17s and B-24s mainly, but the CBI was on a shoestring budget with lots of improv, so he did lots of strange stuff besides delivering explosives. No idea what my paternal GF did, I don't think he served but I've never asked.

[TinCow]

As mentioned in another thread, my maternal grandfather served onboard the USS Sangamon, an escort carrier. He started as a Lieutenant in August 1942 and served throughout the war as one of the radar operators. Due to the top secret nature of radar at the time, he was required to carry cyanide with him to take his own life in the event that he was captured. He served on the USS Sangamon throughout the remainder of the war in the Pacific, and was present for several major battles. At Okinawa, the carrier was hit by a kamikaze attack, which did severe damage to the ship. Fortunately, the fires were kept under control and the ship was able to make its way back to Pearl Harbor, where it was still located at the end of the war.

One of my maternal grandmother's cousins served in the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front. I do not know much about what he did or where he served, but I recall being told that he was captured and spent several years in a Soviet POW camp, only returning to Germany several years after the war ended.

I do not know anything else about any other family members, though I think it is a fair assumption that distant relatives on my father's side perished in the Holocaust. His family came from Lodz, Poland around the turn of the century.

[Brandy Blue]

My maternal grandfather was a chemist who did some kind of secret work for the British. According to family legend he was involved in bomb design, but he never talked about his work, even to his wife, so I don't really know.

I don't know what my paternal grandfather did. My father hardly ever talks about his family, and I've never met them.

[Scurvy]

My paternal Great-Grandfather drove a truck, and his brother drove an ambulance. I think mainly in France.

My maternal Grandfather was a chef in North Africa

[Kagemusha]

My paternal Grandfather fought both in Winter and Continuation War´s.He was a pioneer. My maternal Grandfather fought on both wars also and he was a petty officer in infantry.
My paternal Grandfather stopped hunting after he had returned from Continuation War, by hear say he had stated that he had shot enough for one life time.

My maternal Grandfather died already when my mother was an infant, so i never met him, but based on the family talks of that side.He had lots of problems adjusting into normal life after the war and died rather young, apparently partially because of unhealthy life style.

[GenosseGeneral]

I need to know if he served with the Werhmacht or Waffen (hopefully the Waffen SS, they were elite) [...]

You better don't wish that... they were elites in terms of cruelty, murder and fanatism.

My grandfather maternal-side served in an infantry unit and was heavily wounded during the invasion of France. I heardhim once talking about lying left in a barn for hours and nearly bleeding to death, until he was finally found by a pair of medics. In winter 44/45 they had to flee from east Prussia from the Red Army. I think 1 or 2 of his brothers fell during the war and I think one of his siblings also died on the flight. Another great-uncle was a quite decorated soldier, however.

A great-aunt paternal side did serve as a secretary in the occupied Ukraine. God knows what orders she recorded... the area where she worked at a Jewish population of roughly 20000 before the war. Guess what was left over after the German troops left. My father said, even years after it (in the 60s/70s) she wanted him to listen to march music. There have been some more nazis in this branch of the family, i've seen quite some photos of people wearing Wehrmachts- or Hitler youth uniforms in an album.
My great-grandfather served in some kind of airborne unit. No parajumpers, however. They jumped ot of Ju53 flying very closely over fields.
My grandmother paternal side was a child at that time and was in Hamburg during the firestorm in 1943. Her legs were scarred for her whole life because she got burned. We still own the chinaware they could rescue in suitcase. It was all that was left for them.

[Whacker]

My maternal grandfather was in the US Army, I don't know a whole lot about him or what he did. I know he fought on Cebu, and at one point was trapped behind enemy lines for a week. He brought back a Japanese rifle that still had the Chrysanthemum on it, which mom gave me. Unfortunately he died of lung cancer long before I was born, and my maternal grandma is long since dead as well. Mom will have to tell me what she knows one of these days.

My paternal grandfather was a signalman and a cook, and he served on two destroyers in the Pacific, I don't have the names of them handy. Grandma gave me a lot of his stuff, including his tags, ribbons, pictures, a few other things. I haven't gone back and traced the deployments of the two ships he was on, but the family is most certain that he saw some action, probably against kamikazes, but he never talked about it. He was pretty messed up thoughout his life, dad wasn't on good terms with him so I never knew him or grandma too well, he died back in 2004. Dad and a good family friend who was in Vietnam both think that a lot of his problems were because of his experiences during the war.

[CountArach]

One of my great grandfathers served on the Kokoda Trail in Papua New Guinea, where a lot of conscripts were sent (fun fact: Australian law prohibitted conscripts from serving overseas, but Papua new Guinea was technically considered part of Australia, so it was fair game to send conscripts there to fight the Japanese). All I know is that for years after the war he would wake up screaming and he didn't ever talk about it.

Other than that, not too much to report to the best of my knowledge. I know that another great grandmother and father had to flee Hungary because of rising anti-Semitism before the war, but what happened during the war I have never found out.

[InsaneApache]

Both grandads were too old to fight in WW II but my maternal grandad managed to get accepted by the RAF (He was an ex-British Indian Army sergeant) as they were still a relatively new branch of the armed forces they were a bit more flexible about age. He worked the barrage balloons in Heaton Park , Manchester.

I had an uncle and a great-uncle (both only dying this decade) who were at Dunkirk. The uncle went on to fight in the Royal Artillery and was one of the first into Belsen. The great-uncle was sent to the middle east and served in Mesopotamia. (Iraq)

My dad was only 16 when the war ended but joined the Royal Marines in 1946 so he managed to find time to shell Koreans and Chinese a few years later.

[Alexander the Pretty Good]

I think my maternal grandfather was infantry in the Pacific. He died way before I was born. My paternal grandfather joined the navy to avoid the draft and because he heard they had the best food (so I know where those genes come from :P). He was on a destroyer and then a cruise; the former in the Pacific the latter in the Atlantic. My dad says it's possible the two saw each other out in Hawaii (and I guess it's true that it's possible) but not that likely. :D

[gaelic cowboy]

Both my grandfathers did not take part in WW2 as they had enough of fighting with the civil war and kicking the British out of Ireland.

My father was to young and even if he was he would not have been encouraged to join in a fight with England.

There struggle during WW2 was putting food on the table and raising a family in very very harsh economic conditions.