Posted on 10/19/2012 6:31:45 AM PDT by DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis
The family of a war hero only discovered the full weight of his bravery after his death when his cremation left behind a huge pile of shrapnel.
Ronald Brown stepped on a land mine while on a mission in France in August 1944.
The blast peppered his left leg with red-hot fragments and he was forced to crawl two miles to safety.
But because of medical conditions of the day it was thought safer to leave shrapnel in his body.
He survived the war but only ever told his family the basic story and said the accident had left him with a 'bad knee'.
Mr Brown told loved ones he still had a 'bullet' in his leg and asked his grandchildren not to sit on his knee because of the pain it caused.
But when he died last week aged 94 his family had him cremated and were stunned when staff handed them back a big bag of shrapnel.
The bag contained a whopping 6oz of bomb shrapnel that he had been carrying around for 60 years.
Daughter Jane Madden, 55, of Exeter, Devon said her father told her there was a bullet in his knee from the war, never mentioning the pile of fragments.
She said: "I don't think he ever realised all that was in his leg - it weighed about six ounces.
"He'd said there was a bullet in his leg but I was imagining one romantic piece of metal.
"But when we went to scatter his ashes we asked whether the bullet had been found and they gave us this bag full of metal.
"It's just macabre really and amazing because he never used to complain about the pain. It just shows how brave he was."
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
A testimony to courage, sacrifice and the American spirit. May God rest his soul, he will be missed by his family and many who did not know him but will admire and respect his sacrifice.
wire, nails, and screws. I guess German war production was hard pressed. More of an IED.
Wow. Great story.
A real true blue red blooded American hero!!!
He was Brit.
British hero. Just sayin’.
Brits can be American heroes.
(Winston Churchill was one of the greatest American heroes ever, IMHO)
Is that the actual shrapnel?
I think so
What they would do is bury a conventional landmine, then cover it with extra shrapnel scrap pieces, then cover it with dirt. The extra stuff was for a greater range of wound producing damage to soldiers nearby........
Winston Churchill’s mother was an American...............
Churchill has granted honorary American citizenship in 1963.
Churchill has granted honorary American citizenship in 1963.
I’m guessing it is but I note a comparatively rare Robertson screw on the far left. Robertson owned the patent but had difficulty protecting it so he refused to license it’s manufacture.
God Bless ya.
Just think, he could have been President!.............
“”rare Robertson screw on the far left. Robertson owned the patent but had difficulty protecting it so he refused to license it’s manufacture.””
What’s there a Robertson manufacturing establishment MANY years ago in Sacramento? Left there 40+ years ago but I seem to remember it driving from the city into North Sacramento.
What’s = Wasn’t.....
Proofread and still didn’t catch it...
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