Corporal Albert Osborne

Albert Osborne was the son of William Alfred and Mirriam Louise Osborne, of Walworth, London.

Private Osborne enlisted into the Royal Fusiliers on the 7th March 1939, and was serving in the 9th Battalion when he volunteered for airborne forces in late 1940 or early 1941. This was when Britain only had a fledgling ‘Airborne’ unit, No 2 Commando, which later became the II S.A.S. Battalion. He did his Parachute Course in either late 1940 or early 1941. By late 1941 the battalion had been renamed and became the 1st Parachute Battalion, Army Air Corps, and was part of the 1st Parachute Brigade.

Albert originally served in the Anti-Tank Platoon and saw service in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy. Back in the U.K. by 1944, he had been promoted to Corporal and was a Section Second in Command in the Assault Platoon for Arnhem. Corporal Albert Osborne was killed in action on Thursday, 21st September 1944, in Oosterbeek as the battalion was forming part of ‘Lonsdale’ Force to hold the south-eastern part of the perimeter.

He died on 21 September 1944, aged 23 years old. He is now buried at Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Arnhem.