Lot Essay
Private Ronald Walter Sexton was killed in action in Normandy on 11.7.1944, while serving in the 5th Battalion, Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry.
The 5th Battalion had disembarked on 22.6.1944 and first witnessed action just five days later when six Tiger Tanks from an S.S. Panzer Division appeared unexpectedly in the Battalion's lines, shooting up their transport and causing 20 casualties, including the C.O. - all six tanks were eventually knocked out. On 11.7.1944, the Battalion attacked and captured 'Hill 112' in a night assault. It was a battle of shattering intensity even by the standards of the Normandy Campaign. Over the following day 12th S.S. Panzer - the Hitler Youth Division - made repeated attempts to re-capture the hill, which dominated the approaches to Caen. The Cornwall's fought against tanks at point-blank range and both sides used Artillery with an intensity compared to the days of Paschendaele. For the second time in a fortnight, the 5th lost its C.O. and by the end of 11 July, the day on which Private Sexton was killed, the Battalion's strength was down to below 100 men.
The 5th Battalion had disembarked on 22.6.1944 and first witnessed action just five days later when six Tiger Tanks from an S.S. Panzer Division appeared unexpectedly in the Battalion's lines, shooting up their transport and causing 20 casualties, including the C.O. - all six tanks were eventually knocked out. On 11.7.1944, the Battalion attacked and captured 'Hill 112' in a night assault. It was a battle of shattering intensity even by the standards of the Normandy Campaign. Over the following day 12th S.S. Panzer - the Hitler Youth Division - made repeated attempts to re-capture the hill, which dominated the approaches to Caen. The Cornwall's fought against tanks at point-blank range and both sides used Artillery with an intensity compared to the days of Paschendaele. For the second time in a fortnight, the 5th lost its C.O. and by the end of 11 July, the day on which Private Sexton was killed, the Battalion's strength was down to below 100 men.