Some of the rarest Allied forces memorabilia of the Second World War, labelled as ‘the stuff of which collector’s dreams are made’ will be going up for sale.
The medals belonged to Captain Leslie Scott, part of a special unit made up of just 360 Allied parachute-trained special forces volunteers, many of them German-speaking.
It was created in March 1945 to provide teams to be parachuted behind enemy lines to aid allied prisoners of war, who were feared to be in danger of being massacred in the German camps.
The family found his collection of Special Allied Airborne Reconnaissance Force (SAARF) wings and didn’t think much of it.
But his family were not aware of this as they thought it was ‘just a cook’ and only found out when they tried to sell them online and saw bids of thousands of pounds.
Jess Tarver of auctioneers David Duggleby said: ‘So the Special Allied Airborne Reconnaissance Force was in existence for just five months, involved less than 400 troops, only 96 of whom were British – which is why the SAARF wings really are so incredibly rare.’
They only found out of his amazing military heroics after his death when they found the wings tucked in a drawer as they cleared his London flat after he died aged 89 in 2008.
For the last 16 years, they have been left in an attic of a house in the village of Duffield near York until relatives had a clear-out and put some of the items up for sale on eBay which attracted high offers from bidders.
Captain Leslie Scott was part of the special unit of just 360 Allied parachute trained special forces volunteers, many of them German-speaking
The items were enlisted and following expert advice, they will now go on sale, with one collection of wings, medals and photos expected to sell for £2,500
Viewings are taking place David Duggleby’s Vine Street Saleroom in Scarborough on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday
Holly Hammond, pictured, a specialist valuer and catalogue curator, with the memorabilia which is expected to sale for £2,500
The items were enlisted and following expert advice, they will now go on sale, with one collection of wings, medals and photos expected to sell for £2,500.
Jess Tarver of auctioneers David Duggleby said: ‘This elite unit was brought together in a matter of weeks and involved just 360 British, American and European parachute-trained special forces volunteers, many of them German-speaking.
‘As the invading Allied forces closed in on Berlin from the West and the Russians came in from the East, there were mounting concerns for the safety of PoWs being held in the German camps, indeed there really were fears that there could be massacres.
‘The SAARF plan was to parachute in three-man reconnaissance teams close to the camps to monitor conditions and call in the cavalry if things turned ugly
‘In the event, there was only one mission in which teams went in by parachute and it got off to a disastrous start.
‘Half the 18 men in the six teams sent to monitor Stalag XIA and other camps in the Altengrabow area were captured by the Germans and taken into the Stalag.
‘However, the mission ended miraculously well when they persuaded the camp commandant that with Allied forces fast closing in he should permit the evacuation of prisoners. He provided them with a radio to call in transport.
Captain Scott, third from left on the back, had told his family he was just a ‘cook’ during the war
Captain Leslie Scott, pictured, in India when he was with the Royal Artillery
‘After that SAARF missions were inserted more conventionally, without behind the lines parachute jumps, and then the war over.
‘The unit was for a time involved in the interrogation of German troops and the hunt for war criminals but it was disbanded eight weeks after VE Day.’
The auction also includes a collection of medals, photos and memorabilia relating to Sergeant Raymond William Greenley, the first British paratrooper to be dropped east of the Rhine on March 24, 1945.
Viewings are taking place David Duggleby’s Vine Street Saleroom in Scarborough on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
The auction begins at 11am on Thursday. Visit www.davidduggleby.com to see the catalogue.
