Moderator's note: this thread was split from the thread "Photos needed" where a request for photos of Priest Kangaroos led to research by Mark Tonner into the location where the first Priest Kangaroos were converted.
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Originally posted by Mark W. Tonner
Hope this clears up your questions concerning "69" and "HD 69".
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Yes it does! I wonder if you could help with another Kangaroo-related query?
Quote:
Quote from The Canadian Priest Kangaroo:
In the evening of 31 July the DDME 1st Canadian Army, Brig. G.M. Grant, was instructed to set up an organization to convert 72 Priest SP Guns, to APCs by 9 August. The date, however, was soon changed to 6 August with 'as many as possible'. (...) An AWD (Army Workshops Detachment), code named 'Kangaroo', was set up in two fields near Bayeux with the camp sited in the protection of a neighbouring orchard, about twenty miles from the start line (...) The 72 Priest Kangaroos were baptised in battle on the night of 7 August 1944 and were used in action throughout the rest of the month.
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With your knowledge of troop movements and such, could you make an educated guess about where the Kangaroo AWD site could have been located?
Geoff and I are trying to locate the site. We now have the name of a local collector, plus the museum at Bayeux has a 105-mm howitzer barrel and cradle on display which were clearly dug up from the ground. I will be sending them some letters asking for information but it would help to narrow down the search area.
Thanks,
Hanno