Private James Knapper

James Knapper was the son of James and Sarah Knapper, of Fenton, Stoke-on-Trent. He enlisted in the Dorsetshire Regiment and volunteered for airborne forces.

Private Knapper successfully completed his parachute training on course number 97 at RAF Ringway on the 3rd to the 15th January 1944. His course report stated ‘Very good all round – cheerful’. He was posted to 1st Battalion, the Parachute Regiment, and took part in Operation Market Garden (Arnhem).

Pte Knapper was killed in action in the Wolfhezerweg – Amsterdamseweg area on the night of 17/18 September 1944, aged 26. He has no known grave and is commemorated on the Groesbeek Memorial to the missing.

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