Temporary Captain Frederick C Scholes

Frederick ‘Freddie’ Charles Scholes was born in Bolton in 1913, the son of Fred and Linda Scholes. He was a Schoolmaster and the husband of Joan Scholes (nee Hudspith), of Beckenham, Kent.

Attested into the Territorial Army (deferred enlistment) in October 1940. His previous employment as a foreign language teacher – he was fluent in both French and German - singled him out for specialist employment in Field Security (FS). Then still a trade within the Corps of Military Police, this discipline - which included counter-intelligence, agent-handling and interrogation, soon moved to the new Intelligence Corps.

Frederick Scholes was posted for initial training at Winchester and then on to FS. A Cambridge graduate he returned there for his FS training, after having spent some time as an instructor at School of Military Intelligence at Matlock. In his two years in the ranks Frederick Scholes was rapidly promoted having been been an A/CSM after a year.

He was commissioned through OCTU into the Intelligence Corps in October 1942 – his OCTU report suggests that his leadership was 'very good'. He reported to the Int Corps Deport at Pembroke College, Oxford (perhaps to his disgust!) in October 1942. After a further period at the School of Military Intelligence (SMI) Matlock – this time as an officer student rather than as an NCO instructor, his first employment as an officer was as General Staff Officer (GSO) 3 Int, HQ 6 Airborne Division in July 1943.

Capt Scholes qualified as a military parachutist on course 82 which ran at RAF Ringway in September 1943. The jump records record ‘Capt Schoules [sic] Above average, a very good jumper.’ He served in 6th Airborne Division Headquarters as General Staff Officer Grade 3 (Intelligence) assisting with the planning for the Normandy invasion. Having parachuted into the Orne Bridgehead as part of HQ 6 Abn, his fellow GSO 3 , John Max, Parachute Regiment, was killed in a glider crash on D Day – they were deployed in different manners, intentionally, to prevent them both becoming casualties, he was in the Divisional HQ in Ranville, Normandy. Part of his duties entailed liaison with the Div Field Security Section – 317 FSS, and receiving their CI reports - the discipline he’d been trained in.

A popular officer in the HQ and Mess, Frederick Scholes was killed in action on 16 June 1944, aged 31 years. The Div HQ having come under concentrated enemy artillery fire, most personnel had “gone to ground” – when the stonk had finished, the body of Capt Frederick Scholes was discovered by Sgt Fraser Edwards of 317 FSS, who had been en route to give his daily section report, he had died instantly.

His widow Joan received confirmation on 29 June 1944. Captain Freddie Scholes now buried at Ranville War Cemetery, Normandy, grave number IIA.C.12.

Compiled by Mark Pitt