Sergeant-Major Leslie Doughty

Leslie Doughty was born on 12 October 1916 in Digby, Lincolnshire, and attended to Digby village school until age 14 when he left to become a farm worker. He enlisted at Lincoln barracks into the Royal Artillery on 5 November 1934 aged 18.

Leslie served in Egypt during his service and left the army in 1937. His commanding officer advised him to become a male nurse and gave him a recommendation for a position at Harmston Hall Hospital, Lincolnshire. He was training to be a nurse when he was called up on 18 June 1939 and joined the 56th Anti-tank Regiment. He was with the British Expeditionary Force around Lille where he was Mentioned in Dispatches. He escaped from France via Dunkirk on a boat called the Daffodil. He was a member of the 223rd Independent Anti-tank Battery with Ian Toler as CO. His leadership skills were quickly recognised and he was promoted to Sergeant on 17 May 1941.

He remained with the battery until it became part of the 1st Air Landing Anti-Tank Battery. He went to Africa with the 1st Airborne Division and saw action in Africa, Scilly and Italy. He was awarded another MID for action in Scilly in March 1944. He was promoted in Italy to Acting Battery Sergeant Major and held that rank until Arnhem. He returned with the Battery to England in 1943 and they were billeted in Heckington. He was virtually home being only 10 miles from his birth place and 20 miles from both the hospital and where he lived with his wife Kitty and son Robert.

He went to Arnhem in the first lift and landed without injury and went with Major Arnold and B troop to the bridge where he was eventually captured on the Thursday morning. He was taken prisoner and transported to Stalag XIIA Limburg from 26 September 1944 to 8 October 1944 and then to Stalag IIA Neubrandenburg from 10 October 1944 to 28 April 1945.

After repatriation he was discharged from the army in 1946 and returned to Harmston Hall Hospital to finish his training and work as a nurse, retiring in 1973. He had another son, Peter, after the war.

He was an active member of the Lincoln Parachute Regimental Association and regularly attended the Battery reunions held at Heckington where he would parade the men after church on Sunday and march them to the pub. He would also regularly go to Arnhem to pay his respects to men who weren’t so lucky.

He was a well-liked and well respected man who you could trust and rely on. He was immensely proud of being part of the Airborne Brotherhood.

Leslie Doughty died on 22 August 2001.