194 Pages
ISBN 978-1-917120-71-5
Colour Images
 
Bob Challoner knew that war was on its way in 1937. Aged 45, small in stature with only one eye, and still suffering from wounds sustained twenty years earlier, he applied to rejoin the army.

His was a distinguished First World War record, being Mentioned in Dispatches and awarded a Military Cross. Despite this, his first encounter with the army recruiters was less than positive. They tried to let him down gently, asking whether he really wanted to engage in active service again? Not so easily deterred, Bob enquired through other channels and managed to rejoin the Army.

At the outbreak of war, he was appointed Commanding Officer of 111 Company of the Pioneer Corps. Major Challoner had accepted that his days of front-line action were over and instead focused on moulding his new recruits into an effective dock labour company to maintain the Allies’ supply lines. Little did he know that he and his men would be called upon to defend against Rommel’s tanks and he would receive a second Military Cross and again be Mentioned in Dispatches for his actions. After being captured by the Germans and imprisoned in Bavaria and France, Bob, determined to rejoin the fight, led an audacious 13 man escape attempt with the help of the French Resistance.