MI9 Escape and Evade Report of Sapper Alan W Gauntlet during Op Market Garden

The following is his M.I.9 report, conducted on the 20 November 1944:

 Captured : Oosterbeek, 26 Sep 44.

Escaped : Apeldoorn, 1 Oct 44.

Left : Holland, 24 Oct 44.

Arrived : U.K., 24 Oct 44.

Date of Birth : 3 Jul 25.

Army Service : Since Jul 43.

Peacetime Profession : Student Engineering.

Private Address : Sandledene, Station Road, Fordingbridge, Hants.

I was in the Arnhem operation and was in the Divisional Headquarters grounds at Oosterbeek (N.W. Europe, 1:250,000, Sheet 2a and 3a, E 67) on 20 Sep 44, having been wounded that day. I remained here until 26 Sep, when I went to the regimental aid post centre. The Germans captured this centre at 0930 hours.

 We were moved to the Divisional Headquarters grounds and were there until 1400 hours, when we were transferred to Arnhem hospital and from there to Apeldoorn (Z 70) hospital. We were here until 1 Oct 44.

 At about 1200 hours L/Cpl Johnson and I were walking through the hospital grounds when we discovered we were not being observed. We darted behind a shed and after some time were able to make our way over some rough ground and barbed wire to a road.

 We noticed some people watching us from a house. A man came out, recognised us as being English, and motioned us to lie low. He returned with another man and led us through some gardens to their air-raid shelter. They kept us there till dark, when we were taken to a market gardener's shed. From this point we were helped on our journey.

In a further report for I.S.9 on the 20 November 1944, he gave some details of those who had assisted them and their locations:

The shed at APELDOORN (N.W. EUROPE, 1:250,000, Sheet 2a and 3a, E 70) was owned by a chemist called DE BRUIN. We were here until 5 Oct 44, when we were moved to the house of an ex-sailor called ‘HENK’. That night Pte. REID (S/P.G. (H) 2783) [7265240. Pte. James Reid. No 2 Surgical Team, 16th Para Field Ambulance, R.A.M.C.] joined us. We all three stayed here until 12 Oct, when we were moved to a house belonging to a radio dealer, also in APELDOORN, where we stayed until 16 Oct. On 16 Oct we were moved by cycle to LUNTEREN (E 58), helped by a Dutch Army Captain with an English wife, living in APELDOORN. Here Reid left us and we were taken to a small farm about three km’s N.W. of LUNTEREN, owned by two people who were known as ‘TUNIS’ and ‘ANNA’. We stayed here until 21 Oct and were then taken by a member of the Underground (name not known) to a wood just North of RENKUM (E 57) and evacuated with the remainder of the party.