80 years on: Heroic story of Burslem's Jack Baskeyfield who fought Nazis alone
The infantry sheltering in the trenches around Oosterbeek in Holland heard the roar of the tanks before the killing machines came into view. Hunkered down in the shelter of a trench, Lance-Sergeant John Daniel Baskeyfield muttered words of encouragement to the men under his command.
Sgt Baskeyfield, remembered in his home town of Burslem as 'Jack', was in charge of a six pounder anti-tank gun at Oosterbeek on September 20, 1944. Jack, a butcher before he was enlisted in the British Army, had transferred from the North Staffordshire Regiment to the 2nd South Staffordshire Regiment for one simple reason.
The South Staffords had become an airborne troop, the men who remained with or transferred to the regiment were considered among the bravest in the British Army. They were taken into battle in gliders, initially towed by heavy aircraft before being let loose to fly freely behind enemy lines, where they were expected to capture objectives before the main infantry force caught them up.
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This week marks 80 years since Sgt Baskeyfield's death, but in his native Stoke-on-Trent his valiant sacrifice is still remembered with pride and honour. Prior to this operation, Jack, aged 22, was already a veteran of the disastrous Sicily campaign - which had left him floating in the Mediterranean Sea for around eight hours.
This time, on September 17 at Arnhem, a small city on the Dutch-German border, the landing was more successful and the troops secured their immediate position. However, events had quickly started to go wrong. First the divisional commander was reported missing. Then, strong German defences meant that the Staffords were unable to break through to link with the 1st Parachute Brigade.
By day three of the attack part of Operation Market Garden, Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery's plan to end the war by Christmas around 100 men, the remnants of the Staffords force, withdrew to Oosterbeek, along with about 400 men from the 1st Parachute Brigade.
It was here that they made their stand. On September 20, Jack Baskeyfield ordered his charges to wait until they could see the enemy Tiger Tanks up close before they fired, knowing that by holding their nerve, they would give themselves the best chance of destroying the machines.
The urge to fire as the heavy machines rolled into view, causing the ground around them to shake, must have been all but overpowering. But Sgt Baskeyfield ordered his men to wait, until finally, with rounds exploding all around them the Tiger Tank came within 100-yards of where they were sheltering.
Now, finally Sgt Baskeyfield gave the order. The shell hit and the tank exploded in a ball of flames, engulfing its entire crew. Time and again Sgt Baskeyfield ordered his men to wait until the last moment until firing, destroying a second Tiger Tank and a self propelled gun.
Then disaster, as finally one of the tanks fixed its sights on the gun crew, firing its murderous shells into the trench. When the dust and smoke cleared only Sgt Baskeyfield was still moving, the rest were all either dead or badly wounded. Sgt Baskeyfield himself was bleeding heavily from a serious leg wound.
But the first wave of the attack had been beaten back. Stretcher bearers arrived in Sgt Baskeyfield's trench, to carry him back for treatment at the regimental aid post.
He waved them away, refusing to leave his post. In the tense moments while the surviving Staffords waited for the Nazi attack to resume, it was Sgt Baskeyfield who kept up spirits, shouting words of encouragement and instruction to the men sheltering in neighbouring dugouts.
He ignored the pain from his leg wound and braced himself for the next attack. When it came, it was of even greater intensity than the first. Enemy artillery and mortars opened fire as the tanks once again came rumbling up Oosterbeek.
The Staffords fought every survival instinct they had to take cover, or run, instead returning fire at the seemingly impenetrable tanks, driven on by their brave lance sergeant. Jack was now all alone in his trench, but he continued to man his anti-tank gun single-handed, leading by example as he fired shot after shot.
Finally, his gun was put out of action but still the valiant ex-butcher fought on, crawling under fire to another six pounder gun. When he reached it, the entire crew had been killed, so Sgt Baskeyfield operated it single handed. As an enemy self-propelled gun sighted his position, lumbering into attack, another soldier crawled across to help him, but was killed instantly.
The Nazi gun inched towards a killing position, but Sgt Baskeyfield would not run. He managed to fire two shots, hitting the enemy machine with the second and knocking it out of action.
He prepared to fire a third shot but a supporting tank had seen the danger and fired first. The shell was a direct hit on the gun emplacement. Lance Sergeant John Daniel Baskeyfield was killed instantly. But his actions were not in vain. Jack's bravery was sighted as the main reason for keeping the surviving troops together and keeping the enemy tanks at bay.
For his outstanding bravery that day, he was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross, the highest honour the British Army can bestow. The citation said: "The superb gallantry of this NCO is beyond praise. During the remaining days at Arnhem stories of his valour were a constant inspiration to all ranks."
"He spurned danger, ignored pain and, by his supreme fighting spirit, infected all who witnessed his conduct with the same aggressiveness and dogged devotion to duty which characterised his actions throughout."
His bravery was immortalised in a film, Baskeyfield VC, shot in the Potteries and released to widespread acclaim in 1969. A memorial plaque was also rededicated at Swan Bank Church in Burslem and a bronze statue commemorating his bravery stands proudly at Etruria.
Stories of the hero will continue to be told in households across the Mother Town along with the rest of the Potteries for generations to come.