Thomas Kirby-Green
Thomas Kirby-Green | |
|---|---|
Mentioned in Despatches (twice) | |
| Relations | Maria Dorothea Diane (wife) |
Thomas Gresham Kirby-Green (27 February 1918 – 29 March 1944) was a British
Pre-war life
Kirby-Green was born in Dowa, Nyasaland where his father Sir William Kirby-Green was the British District Governor. His father was upcountry at the time of his birth and found a baby abandoned in the bush at the same time as his son was born. He rescued the child, named him "Putti" and brought him up as another son.[1] After growing up in Africa, Kirby-Green was sent to boarding school in England at Dover College where he became a house prefect and a member of the rugby team. On leaving school in 1935 he lived with his parents in Tangier and gained a private pilot's licence prior to joining the Royal Air Force. Kirby-Green was commissioned on 24 August 1936,[2] he trained as a service pilot at No. 8 Flying Training School Montrose and joined No. 216 Squadron RAF flying transport aircraft in Egypt from 27 May 1937 before being confirmed as a pilot officer on 29 June 1937.[3] During this period he regularly sailed to Tangier to visit his parents whilst on leave.[4]
In January 1938 he was transferred to No. 99 Squadron RAF at RAF Mildenhall and with the squadron converted to the new Vickers Wellington bomber later that year. During 1938 he competed in the RAF Athletics Championships representing the base and competing against Ian Cross representing RAF Marham who would also be involved in the "Great Escape" in 1944. He was promoted flying officer on 29 January 1939.[5]
War service
In January 1940, after completing a gunnery course, he joined
Prisoner of war
At 01:06 hours on the morning of 17 October 1941 he took off from
'Great Escape'
The original escape plan teamed Gordon Kidder up with Dick Churchill to travel posing as Rumanian woodcutters, but after Churchill was removed to another camp, Kidder was paired with deeply sun-tanned Tom Kirby-Green,[18] who had been in charge of security for organizer Roger Bushells "escape committee"; they would instead pose as Spanish labourers.[19][20] Despite Kirby-Green being buried by a cave-in in the tunnel,[21] he and Kidder were among the first 24 from the total of 76 men who escaped the prison camp on the night of 24–25 March 1944, in the escape now known as "the Great Escape".[22][23] The pair cleared the tunnel exit before the alarm was sounded and made it to the local railway station, where they were almost exposed when questioned by a female member of the prison camp censor staff. She involved a policeman, who was convinced by their mixture of Spanish and broken German and let them go.
| Nationalities of the 50 executed |
 21 British
|
 6 Canadian
|
 6 Polish
|
 5 Australian
|
 3 South African
|
 2 New Zealanders
|
 2 Norwegian
|
 1 Belgian
|
 1 Czechoslovak
|
 1 Frenchman
|
 1 Greek
|
 1 Lithuanian
|
They boarded the train for
Kirby-Green was one of the 50 escapers murdered by the Gestapo.[34][35][36][37] Originally his remains were buried at Sagan. He is now buried in part of the Poznan Old Garrison Cemetery.[38] At the Anglican St Andrew's Church in Tangier, there is a memorial to him.[39]
Post-war Czech investigators identified the participants in the murders of Kirby-Green and Gordon Kidder at Hrabuvka,[40] west of Ostrava, and notified their British opposite numbers on 2 December 1945.[41]
Kirby-Green's name was amongst those in the list of murdered prisoners which was published when news broke on or about 19–20 May 1944.[42] The Glasgow Herald of 19 May 1944 published an early list naming several officers including Kirby-Green.[43] Post-war investigations saw a number of those guilty of the murders tracked down, arrested and tried for their crimes.[44][45][46]
Awards
- Mentioned in Despatches for tenacity and devotion to duty in The London Gazette on 23 September 1941.[47]
- Mentioned in Despatches for conspicuous gallantry as a prisoner of war (none of the other relevant decorations then available could be awarded posthumously). It was published in a supplement to The London Gazette on 8 June 1944.[48]
References
- ^ Vance (2000), p.30
- ^ "No. 37693". The London Gazette. 15 September 1936. p. 5940.
- ^ "No. 34413". The London Gazette. 29 June 1937. p. 4180.
- ^ UK, Outward Passenger Lists, 1890–1960 & Inward Passenger Lists, 1878–1960
- ^ "No. 34600". The London Gazette. 21 February 1939. p. 1214.
- ^ Vance (2000), p.31
- ^ "No. 34989". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 November 1940. p. 6493.
- ^ England & Wales, Marriage Register, Dec Quarter 1940
- ^ National Probate Calendar, 1944 – TG K-Green
- ^ Vance (2000), p.31
- ^ "No. 35284". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 September 1941. p. 5572.
- ^ Chorley (1993), p.163
- ^ Carroll (2004), p.57
- ^ Vance (2000), p.32
- ^ Vance (2000), pp.91 and 114–115
- ^ Andrews (1976), p.36
- ^ Carroll (2004), p.104
- ^ Burgess (1990), p.142
- ^ Vance (2000), p. 202
- ^ Andrews (1976), p. 52
- ^ Carroll (2004), p.174
- ^ Read (2012), pp.92–93
- ^ TAG Archives – The Great Escape
- ^ Vance (2000), pp. 226–227
- ^ Andrews (1976), p. 53
- ^ Carroll (2004), p. 204
- ^ Read (2012), p. 102
- ^ Vance (2000), p. 263
- ^ The Spectator – reconstruction of the executions
- ^ Burgess (1990), pp. 240–241
- ^ Read (2012), pp. 84–87, 108–109
- ^ Andrews (1976), pp. 94, 99
- ^ "Stalag Luft III: The Fifty". Pegasus Archive.
- ^ Burgess (1990), p. 271
- ^ Read (2012), p. 305
- ^ Andrews (1976), pp. 196, 207
- ^ Carroll (2004), p. 250
- ^ Commonwealth War Graves Commission – T G Kirby-Green
- ^ "St Andrew's Church, Tangier, Morocco". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Colin Kirby-Green and Hrabuvka
- ^ Andrews (1976), pp. 93–97, 106–107
- ^ Western Morning News, Dundee Courier, Yorkshire Post, etc. 20 May 1944
- ^ Glasgow Herald page on line – article naming officers
- ^ Read (2012), pp. 288, 291
- ^ Vance (2000), p. 310
- ^ Andrews (1976), p. 196
- ^ "No. 35284". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 September 1941. p. 5572.
- ^ "No. 36544". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 June 1944. pp. 2618–2619.
Bibliography
- Ted Barris (2014). The Great Escape. Dundurn Publishing. ISBN 978-1459728448.
- Simon Read (2012). Human Game. Constable. ISBN 978-1-4721-1262-0.
- Sean Feast (2015). The Last of the 39-ers. Grub Street. ISBN 978-1909166158.
- Jonathan F Vance (2000). A Gallant Company. Pacifica Military. ISBN 978-0-935-55347-5.
- ISBN 978-0-593-05408-6.
- ISBN 978-0-393-32579-9.
- ISBN 978-1-59114-097-9.
- ISBN 978-1-55591-536-0.
- Arthur A. Durand (1 January 1989). Stalag Luft III: The Secret Story. Patrick Stephens Limited. ISBN 978-1-85260-248-2.
- William R Chorley (1992). RAF Bomber Command Losses, Volume 3. Midland Counties. ISBN 0-904597-89-X.
- Allen Andrews (1976). Exemplary Justice. Harrap. ISBN 0-245-52775-3.
- Vance, Jonathan F (2000). A Gallant Company: The Men of the Great Escape. Pacifica Military History; (Mar 2001). p. 41. ISBN 978-0-935-55347-5.
External links
- Project Lessons from the Great Escape (Stalag Luft III), by Mark Kozak-Holland. The prisoners formally structured their work as a project. This book analyses their efforts using modern project management methods.
