Sherwood Boys

Biography of a Battalion Volume 2: September 1943–March 1946

Michael Somerville

• Publisher: Fonthill Media
• Year: 2026
• Topic: History
• eBook ISBN:
  9781036156558
• Subtopic: Military Biographies
• Index: History

This is the story of the 2/5th Sherwood Foresters, a Territorial battalion that during the full span of the Second World War developed from a group of untrained young men from Derbyshire into a hardened unit of veterans from every corner of Britain, capable of facing, and beating, the might of the Wehrmacht. It provides a unique view on the British army through the lens of a single battalion, drawing on over 150 personal accounts, both oral and written, as well as official documents.

The first volume followed the battalion from its formation in 1939, through its baptism of fire at Dunkirk and reconstruction in the UK, to victory in North Africa. This second volume picks up the story with the landings at Salerno and subsequent battles in Italy. It ends with a post-war Europe edging towards the Cold War as veterans of fighting the Nazis found themselves confronting communist forces in eastern Europe. Together these two volumes describe the exertions of training, the terrors of battle, the hardships of captivity, and the challenges brought by peace.

Sherwood Boys is a battalion epic, researched, assembled and written for readers wanting to comprehend the Second World War from the perspective of the ordinary British soldier. It is written as a tribute to those men who were called upon to do the extraordinary—and did so.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half-Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Preface
• Contents
• List of Maps
• Main Characters
• Prologue: April 1939–August 1943
• 1 Apprenticeship: Salerno, Italy, September 1942
• 2 Escapees: Italy, September 1943
• 3 Coming of Age: Volturno River, Italy, October 1943
• 4 Journeymen: Central Italy, November–December 1943
• 5 Allies: The Garigliano, January–February 1944
• 6 Interlude: Middle East, February–June 1944
• 7 Back to Work: The Gothic Line, July–September 1944
• 8 Weatherbeaten: Italy, September 1944
• 9 Veterans: Cesena and Cosina, Italy, October–November 1944
• 10 Policemen: Greece, November 1944–April 1945
• 11 Prisoners: Germany, September 1943–June 1945
• 12 Retirement: Austria, May 1945–March 1946
• Epilogue: England, 1946–2011
• Appendix 1: Roll of Honour
• Appendix 2: Honours and Awards
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index
• Plates