A memorial to French villagers has been unveiled at the National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas. Kerry McDermott tells veteran Len Owens’ story
In 1944, Sgt Len Owens was part of a communications unit behind enemy lines in the village of Moussey in occupied France.
Sixty six years later the veteran, now aged 87, has battled back after a stroke to pay tribute to Moussey’s unsung heroes, without whom he says he may never have made it home.
A plaque marking their bravery has now been unveiled at the National Arboretum at Alrewas.
At the age of 24, Mr Owens, of Walsall Road, Lichfield, was a wireless operator serving with the Phantom Regiment in support of an SAS unit hidden in the forests to arm and organise the French resistance.
Mr Owens and his unit were sending information back to Britain from the area, to help arrange drops of supplies and ammunition.
The soldiers were being chased by two German divisions, and were waiting for the US army to catch them up at their hideaway in eastern France.
“The Americans ended up stopping in Nancy,” Mr Owens said, “We were left marooned.”
The Nazis rounded up 220 men and boys from Moussey and ordered them to reveal the whereabouts of the hidden unit. Mr Owens said: “They were offered an amnesty in return for information about where we were in the forest. Not one stepped forward.”
All 220 villagers were marched off to concentration camps – and 140 of them would never return. To this day Moussey is still known as the Valley of the Widows. Four years ago Mr Owens, who lost three friends from his unit in Moussey, devoted himself to building a special garden at the National Memorial Arboretum in their memory.
Now the spot also pays homage to the bravery and sacrifice of the French civilians who paid the ultimate price for their silence.
Plaques commemorating the villagers were unveiled at the arboretum on Sunday watched by two descendants of the Moussey villagers who had travelled especially for the ceremony.
“There will have been other situations like this in France which are just not known about in this country,” said widower Mr Owens.
“So I decided to have the names of the 140 villagers become part of the memorial, as well as those of my three mates and 31 SAS killed by the Nazis.
“It’s about time this country knew about what went on in Moussey and the sacrifices these people made – they were just ordinary citizens.
“It could well be that I am alive because of them. I had a stroke a while back and my short term memory is shot to pieces. But I will never forget what happened back then.”
2 Comments
Dear Readers,
Sergeant Len Owens called me five years ago and said he had a problem. I asked him what it was and he said that he needed a piece of Coral Granite from a quarry in the area of Moussey to be the centre piece of his memorial to the Phantom Signallers, the SAS, the girls of Special Operations Executive and most of all to represent the resolve of the men and boys of Moussey who would not reveal the whereabouts of the SAS camp in the mountains above Moussey. Three members of the Allied Special Forces Association popped over and had a one tonne piece of Coral Granite cut in the quarry and were back at the Arboretum in 32 hours.
When Len visited Moussey in April 2005 he told the Mayor Jacques Defrance that he felt he was to blame for the deaths of so many young men.
Len was calmly told that it was he and his colleagues who had saved them and that he had no need to reproach himself for trying to help the French people who had lived for 4 years in vitual slavery.
“The Spirit of Resistance helps Free a Nations Sole”
We hope that this addendum is permitted to be published.
Thank you for your time.
Regards,
Mike Colton
Allied Special Forces Association
P.O. Box 32, Hereford HR1 9DF
Hello,
I am 19 and I live in Moussey. I like very much “my” little village and I proud of this plaque! This part of our history of the world was bad but now it’s important to learn that and it is very fascinating.
Soory for my bad English…
Thank you.
Regards,
Nicolas Lucile