The Cheshires in the Canal Zone

Tom Radford, The Cheshire Regiment. This picture was taken on the Suez Cairo Road.
In the background you can just about make out the well camouflaged vehicles.

The 1st Battalion sailed from Liverpool in the troop ship Empress of Australia in April 1951 and landed at Famagusta, Cyprus.  The delightful pre-trouble, colonial atmosphere enjoyed by the Battalion was rudely interrupted by the Middle East situation.  In Iran the British oil fields were being nationalized, and in September 1951 Egypt abrogated the Canal Treaty with Britain.  The First Battalion was flown on its first ever airlift to Port Said.  Initially they were deployed to Port Said over 1,000 strong, short of transport and mostly on foot, they took over various installations.  ‘A’ Company took over responsibility for the cold storage depot, ‘B’ Company secured Port Fouad and the Transit Camp, and ‘C’ Company moved first to the docks, but subsequently became Reserve Company with Battalion Headquarters in Golf Course Camp.  ‘D’ Company also occupied the docks and Support Company moved into the centre at Port Said, occupying the deserted and looted NAAFI Britannia Club.  Our mission was to restore and maintain law and order and to assist the civil power.  We were warned the task would take three weeks but in the event we stayed in the Canal Zone for nearly 3 years.

In truth the security duties did not keep the Battalion busy enough, but the irrepressible Commanding Officer, the rubicund Colonel John Cubbon (known to all as the Red Ant) had the determination that his thousand-man National Service Battalion should be ‘sensibly tired every night’, and they were.

In 1952 the Battalion moved to El Ballah, leaving ‘B’ Company to guard the El Firdan Swing Bridge across the Canal, and were able to prevent Egyptian reinforcements from the Sinai reaching Cairo during the riots in July 1952.  Twenty-four hours later the Battalion became the lead unit lined up on the Cairo Road to advance on Cairo but the operation was cancelled.

For the remainder of the tour the Battalion was based in Hodgson's Camp, Suez, at the southern end of the Canal, living in EPIP tents (European Purpose, Indian Pattern) bleached white by the unforgiving sun.  These tents last saw service in the Western Desert Campaign in the early 40's.  While stationed at Suez there followed an intensive period of ‘Guards and Duties’ with an outpost at Kilo 99 on the Cairo Road, and the guarding of the vital water filtration plant on the edge of Suez town. At Christmas 1953 the Battalion moved at short notice into the desert to deny the Egyptian Army movement over the ‘Erskine Line’ into the Canal Zone.

In July 1954 the 1st Battalion Royal Scots came from Korea and relieved our Battalion.  We sailed home on the troop ship Empire Fowey, moving swiftly from Lichfield to Colchester and then to Berlin where a more settled life was possible.

The Battalion served with honour and distinction during their 3 years spent in Egypt.

According to the list of casualties, which we at this website have obtained from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, there are four members of this Battalion buried in the Suez Canal Zone.  How they died shall remain a mystery, if not from terrorism, then it could be by accident, disease, or some other means, but this we may never know.

Aye, Jock Marrs and Richard (Dick) Woolley.