The Gorges du Malpasset with the Colle Galisia on the horizon

On 4 November, a group of twenty-five British and Commonwealth escapers, escorted by thirteen partisans, started out from Ceresole Reale intending to reach France via the Colle Galisia, Led by partisan leader Alberto Fattucci - 'Tenente Vittorio'. All but three met their deaths during a blizzard. The survivors were two partisans – Carlo Diffurville  and Giuseppe Mina – and Tpr Alfred Southon, 50 Recce Regiment, 22nd Armoured Brigade. Tpr Southon had been sent from PG 53 Macerata to work camp PG 112/5. The following account is taken from his Escape and Evasion Report:

Photograph taken in the early '50s when Alfred and his family visited the area

The Armistice was announced to us on the 8 September and we were warned not to break camp, but by 10 September it was clear that if we did not, then we should be captured by the Germans, and we all left and split up. Some tried to get into Switzerland. From 10 Sept '43 until my escape into allied lines was arranged, I spent the most part with a farmer who I helped on the farm.  (The farmer was Ronchetto Attilio of Borgiallo, San Carlo Canavese, who was prepared to run the risk of looking after him. 'I was fed, clothed and sheltered and even if on the run they sent me food'.)

I first had a period of two months roaming around avoiding the Germans: had joined some partisans who however did no operational work, and it seemed a waste of time to stay with them, when I could do some work. Occasionally the Germans or fascists would raid that area, but I had a safe retreat in the mountainside where I would hide until the search had died down. I reached Allied Lines on 17 November where I was put into hospital.

Whilst at San Carlo Canavese, on 1 November 1944 two Italians had arrived in the area and had begun to make enquiries for British evaders. They were, of course, regarded with suspicion, and were finally forced to produce their credentials at pistol point.  One of them handed round a letter signed by Lt. Woods ( of the American OSS, based in  Val d'Isère in France)  which told us to trust the bearer.  News went round the district that a meeting would be held at the local café to hear Vittorio's proposition, and on 2 November some twenty odd British evaders, some of whom I had never seen before, and some I knew slightly, turned up at the café.

Vittorio's proposal was that he would get any of us who so wished across to France without difficulty, and that those of us who wanted to come should be at the arranged rendezvous the following morning. I believe most of the men accepted and we received 100 lire. Some men got boots, but apart from that our clothing was ill-suited to the proposed journey.

By 1830 hrs we were assembled at the church on the mountainside just behind Borgiallo. Moving in single file, but forming into pairs at one hundred yard intervals upon a given sign, we made our way in fair weather to Locana. We spent a night in the mountains and reached the outskirts of Locana about midday on 5 November. From there we went to Noasca and there picked up arms and ammunition which we carried into Ceresole, which point we reached early on the morning of 6 November. The weather, which had been quite good until then, showed signs of deterioration – slight snow, slight wind and heavy sky. Nevertheless we proceeded to Lago di Agnel, which we reached at 1700 hrs without incident.

On arriving at Lago di Agnel we had a good meal – in fact we consumed all available rations.

We had not had breakfast and about 0930 hrs we heard Vittorio telephoning somebody in Ceresole that he would send three men down to collect some food. In spite of this he came in to us at 1000 hrs to tell us to get ready to move off at once – without food. He had already told us that we would reach the next village in from six to seven hrs. where there was plenty of food. I presume he referred to Val d'Isère.

I cannot say that heard the men persuade 'Vittorio' to carry on without any food, but I certainly heard some of them saying amongst themselves, 'Let's get going', 'Let's push on and eat when we get there'. Be that as it may, we started off soon after 1000 hrs for Galisia. The weather worsened still further and as we climbed the mountainside the wind grew keener and snow fell more steadily until, on reaching the top at about 1700 hours, the wind was very severe and knife edged. My clothes froze to my body, the cold was intense. We carried on until after dusk - about 1830 hrs. Meantime this progress had been slow as 'Vittorio' stopped the column several times whilst he went on to recce, finally coming back to say that we must remain put, take as much shelter as we could, but not to sleep; to try to keep moving about to keep up circulation.

By this time one of the men, John....complained that he could no longer stand. I was in the same condition, and we were put in a hole on the side of the rock.

The morning of 8 November the weather was in much the same state as the previous day. The rest of the party moved off, leaving John and me with two Italians in charge, with the promise that they would send back for us about mid-day. They did NOT come, nor did anybody come the following day. On the morning of 10 November (11 November, author's note) the Italians decided they would try to reach the refuge hut which they believed to be not far away, and they said they would send us help if they found anybody there, otherwise they would push on until they did find help.

Shortly after the Italians had left us there was a fall of snow from the rock which sealed our 'cave'. We forced and kept an air passage through the snow – it still seemed to be snowing. John was not a talkative man, and we both thought our own thoughts and spoke but little. We ate handfuls of snow and melted some to drink by filling up a bottle with it and thawing it by the warmth of our bodies. John had meantime become a bit light-headed and rambling and died in his sleep during, I think, the night of 13/14 Nov. I awakened to find he was dead.

In the late afternoon on 17 November I heard men calling to one another and clambered to our air hole and called for help. I think I managed to actually move the snow, because the men came across and got me out. They carried me to the refuge hut about 15 minutes walk from where we had all spent the night, lit fires, gave me new clothes and food.

One of them went off to fetch a doctor who arrived in the early hours of 18 November. More rescuers arrived. I remember with particular gratitude the coffee Corporal Fraser gave me on the way down from the hut. I was being carried on a litter made from a ladder. At Val d'Isère I received first aid and was then taken to Bourg St. Maurice  where I received more treatment. On 19th November I was moved again to the F.F.I. (Les Forces Françaises de l'intérieur)Hospital at Aix les Bains.

 

According to the records of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, on 17 October 1945 the bodies of thirteen unidentified and seven identified victims were concentrated into Milan War Cemetery from Val d'Isère together with a further victim from the Gorges du Malpasset. One of the unknown victims was later identified as Pte. Haydn J. Rogers.  The other identified men were Spr Douglas M. Lee, Gnr William D. Stenning, Rfn  George S. Haldane, L/Bdr  William T. Anderson, L/Cpl  Frank Lee, Fus  John J. Stephenson, and Pte  Horace B. Sladden.

 

List of victims:

6337018   L/Bdr ANDERSON William T., Royal Artillery

4980344   L/Cpl BAILEY Eric L., Sherwood Foresters

956607    Gnr BURKE Richard, Royal Artillery

5436197   Pte EVANS Cyril, Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry

3712896   Fus HALDANE George S., King's Own Rifle Regiment

5256060   L/Cpl LEE Frank, Worcestershire Regiment

882619    Gnr PAUL Glyn, Royal Horse Artillery

1594453   Gnr RAYNOR Frederick W., Royal Artillery

5385384   L/Bdr RATTUE Walter H., Royal Artillery

7886257   Tpr RICHARDSON Harry, Royal Armoured Corps

1092153   Gnr RIGGS Donald, Royal Artillery

884641     Gnr ROBERTS Glyn T., Royal Artillery

2695974   Gdsm RYMER Frederick W., Scots Guards

3090529   Pte ROGERS Haydn J., South Wales Borderers

6914941   Fus SAMS Ivor, Northumberland Fusiliers

4981751   L/Cpl SARGEANT Frank, Sherwood Foresters

4543820   Pte SHEPHARD John, West Yorkshire Regiment

6291737   Pte SLADDEN Horace B., Buffs

1515791   Gnr STENNING William D., Royal Artillery

4276229   Fus STEPHENSON John J., Northumberland Fusiliers

1088532   Gnr THOMAS David, Royal Artillery

76117        Spr LEE Douglas M., South African Engineer Corps

213969     Cpl LEE James McC., Union Defence Force

75580        Spr LEE R.M., Union Defence Force