Sigmond, Robert. Off at Last: An Illustrated History of the 7th (Galloway) Battalion, The King's Own Scottish Borderers, 1939-1945. Renkum, The Netherlands: Self-Published by Robert Sigmond, 1997.

ISBN 90-9010449-6
221 pages

Foreword; Acknowledgements; photos; documents; Sources; Index.

Appendices: 15 appendices, including OB, Honours and Awards, etc.

From The Netherlands comes R.N. Sigmond's self-published tribute to a British battalion, and a fine tribute it is.

The 7th Battalion was formed in 1939 during the "duplication" of Territorial battalions. The next five years were spent in rather tedious and numbing training and guard assignments including a stint in the Shetlands and then garrisoning Scapa Flow and the Orkney Islands. At the end of 1943 the battalion joined the 1st Airlanding Brigade of the 1st Airborne Division and began reorganizing and training for its new role.

On 17 September 1944 the battalion's relatively quiet existence came to an end when the men climbed into gliders and were towed across the Channel, over The Netherlands, and behind German lines to fields near Arnhem. There the battalion, as yet unblooded, found itself in one of the most costly actions of the war, isolated on the far side of the Rhine with its comrades from 1st Airborne. The battalion gave a good account of itself, but by the morning of 26 September the action was over and more than a hundred of its men were dead. Almost 600 Borderers were taken by the Germans as POWs. Only four officers and seventy other ranks returned to the safety of Allied-held territory.

The battalion was rebuilt in the UK in ensuing months but did not see action again until 9 May, after VE-Day, when it was airlifted into German-occupied Norway to disarm enemy forces and assist in the smooth resumption of power by the Norwegian government.

A number of men from the battalion were used in the filming of "Theirs is the Glory" about the Battle of Arnhem, but the battalion itself was disbanded and ceased to exist on 28 November 1945. In its six years of existence the 7th saw only ten days of combat but lost 90% of its strength.

The author spins this story with interwoven threads of firsthand recollections, official documents, and his own careful research. The actual fighting in The Netherlands makes up the bulk of the book, but Sigmond also covers the POWs, the few evaders with the Dutch underground, duty in Norway, and even the making of the movie. There is also a closing section on the survivors in the post-war years with photos of various reunions and battlefield tours.

A very engaging book. It should also be noted that, even though this is a self-published volume, the physical appearance and production standards are of the same high quality expected from the best professional publishers.

Good show!

Available from online booksellers, local bookshops, or directly from Robert Sigmond.

Thanks to the author for providing this review copy.