Francis (Frank) Cyril Law Taylor

Memorial: Thornbury - St Mary's Church

Regiment: Royal Artillery

Medals: 1939–45 Star, War Medal 1939–1945

Rank and number: Lieutenant

Parents: Charles Paul and Frida Margaret Taylor

Home address: Home Address: The Hatch, Castle Street, Thornbury, Bristol. Lived: Maijan Tea Estate, Dibrugarh, Assam, India

Pre-war occupation: Tea Planter

Date of birth: 1911

Date of death: 26/05/1944

Buried/Commemorated at: Buried at Imphal War Cemetery India and commemorated on St Mary's church Memorial

Age: 33

Further information:

Frank's father was a solicitor and registrar to the county court and Frank had an older brother Charles who was also called up. Frank was a keen footballer having been a member of Thornbury Junior Football Club. After he had completed his education, Frank worked for the Upper Assam Tea Company.

Frank served with the Royal Artillery attached to 6 (Jacob’s) Battery 21 Light Mountain Regiment, Royal Indian Artillery. He joined up in 1941 and his knowledge of the country and the language meant that he saw service in the Middle East particularly India.

Frank died during the battle of Imphal. On the night of May 25th as it was getting dark Frank’s regiment was attacked by four enemy tanks advancing from the South which opened very heavy fire with 47mm shells onto their position causing serious casualties in the first few minutes. Frank was commanding a group of Gurkhas who were operating a 3.7-inch Howitzer gun sited in an anti-tank role. The gun pit received a direct hit that killed Frank and wounded all but one of the soldiers.

By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):

This information has been provided by Sarah Hands, Volunteer Researcher for the South Gloucestershire War Memorials Web Site.
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
https://www.cwgc.org/
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/
https://www.findmypast.co.uk/
https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/
Thornbury Roots - http://www.thornburyroots.co.uk/castle-street/the-chantry-later/#francistaylor
http://www.kaiserscross.com/304501/605901.html