French honour for war veteran
A war veteran who parachuted into France to help resist the German occupation has been awarded the highest French military honour.
Mr Alexander Sutton, 86, of California Road, Farndon, travelled to London with members of his family to receive the Légion d’Honneur from the French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, during a ceremony at the Royal Hospital, Chelsea.
Two other British and three French veterans received the award with him.
The order of the Légion d’Honneur was established by Napoleon, who wanted a reward to commend civilians and soldiers.
Mr Sutton heard that he was to receive the award via a letter from the French Embassy in London.
The notification said: “Having obtained the agreement of Her Majesty’s government, the French government would like to award you the Croix de Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur in recognition of your involvement in the Provence Landing of August, 1944.”
Amphibious
Mr Sutton was a 20-year-old paratrooper on August 15, 1944, when he was parachuted into the small town of Le Muy with his battalion as part of Operation Dragoon, to prevent any German counter-attack from reaching the Normandy landing beaches.
Operation Dragoon, although relatively unknown, was a large and complex operation with both amphibious and airborne components.
Despite his youth, Mr Sutton was not worried about what he might have to face.
“You don’t think about it. That’s what you are paid to do,” he said.
The operation got off to an inauspicious start.
“We were dropped 26 miles from where we should have been. We just had to march back,” said Mr Sutton.
It was, however, a success.
“We just formed our line of defence and when the Germans came I do not think they had the will to fight much,” said Mr Sutton.
The Allied forces moved inland and the success of the invasion sparked a major uprising by resistance fighters in Paris.
The capital was liberated a few days later, on August 25, 1944.
Later that year, when Mr Sutton was being transported by ship to an Italian naval base off the heel of Italy, he had a terrifying experience.
“We were about 11/2 miles from land when we hit this mine. It blew the ship in two. Anyone not on the deck didn’t stand a chance.”
Mr Sutton was on deck, but almost half the crew of more than 400 were killed or seriously injured.
“It was pitch black and you couldn’t see a thing. You’d hear splashing about in the water in front of you and then nothing. Then you knew that was another one gone,” he said.
After 21/2 hours the survivors were picked up by a battleship.
He remembers another incident, when he was in North Africa training for an operation in Sicily, for quite different reasons.
“It was early morning, still dark, and I landed on a 20ft cactus,” he said.
Despite having to have dozens of large painful spines removed by poultices and tweezers, he received little sympathy from his colleagues.
“I was the laughing stock of the battalion,” he said.
Liverpool-born Mr Sutton remains in touch with many of his former paratrooper comrades, and has attended reunions throughout Europe.
He said that although their numbers were dwindling, and the health of some was poor, their shared experiences meant it was important to them to stay in touch.
Mr Sutton, whose wife, Marjorie, died 14 years ago, has six children, who were all with him in London to see him receive his award.
He also has 16 grandchildren, plus great-grandchildren.
“Of course they’re proud. We’re a very close family,” he said.
Mr Sutton moved to Farndon 27 years ago after retiring early from the education offices at Liverpool City Council. He first lived with his daughter, Alison, who used to keep the Rose and Crown, before moving to California Road.
The highlight of his visit to London came, he said, as he and his family were leaving the ceremony for a celebratory drink, and three French soldiers spotted his medal and saluted him.
“The beauty of this medal is that a French soldier, by law, has to salute it. That was the best bit for me.”
