| Accession Number | P02551.017 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white |
| Physical description | Black & white |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Miretin, Czechoslovakia. September 1945. Miretin villagers at the unveiling of the memorial ...
Description
Miretin, Czechoslovakia. September 1945. Miretin villagers at the unveiling of the memorial erected in honour of Private Lawrence Phillip Saywell, 17th Brigade Company, Australian Army Service Corps, by the "grateful inhabitants of the village of Miretin". This memorial was erected five months after Private Saywell was murdered - shot in the head by a German SS Patrol on 8 May 1945 (VE Day). Just to the right of the memorial, marked with an x, is where the murder took place. Private Saywell is buried in the Evangelical Cemetery in Miretin. The villagers of Miretin sheltered Private Saywell, 26403 Private Sydney O. C. (Mac) Kerkham of New Zealand and two Russians after they escaped from Kommando E7010 (a prison camp in Bohemia). In return Saywell, Kerkham and the Russians offered to assist the Czech partisans in their sabotage operations. In November 1945 the President of the Czechoslovak Republic awarded Private Saywell the Czechoslovak Military Cross for his "brave and eminent services to our State in the battle for liberation".