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Sheppard, Robert Marcelin "Patrice"

Date of birth:
March 1st, 1922 (Épinay-sur-Seine/Île-de-France, France)
Date of death:
September 18th, 2002
Service number:
230992
Nationality:
British (1801-present, Kingdom)

Biography

Bob Sheppard grew up in France. After the fall of France and English inhabitnants were interned by the Germans, Bob Sheppard decided to escape to join his family in England. After a long and strenuous route he succeeded at this. In the UK he joined SOE.
For his first assignment he was dropped together with Robert Boiteux as a weapons instructor.
When he escaped after being arrested by the Gestapo (see the MiD citation below) he was deployed in the Saint Etienne area. When London ordered him to return to the UK he was betrayed by his guide en route to the Pyrenees.
After being held at Fresnes Prison where he was brutally interrogated he was held in concentration camps Neue Bremm, Mauthausen, Natzweiler-Struthof and finally Dachau where he was liberated by American troops on 29 April 1945.
Postwar he became much involved in many concentration camp committees.

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Period:
Second World War (1939-1945)
Rank:
Lieutenant
Unit:
F Section, Special Operations Executive (SOE), British Government
Awarded on:
November 15th, 1945
Recommendation:
"This officer was parachuted into France on 1st June 1942 as assistant organiser and arms instructor to a circuit in the Lyon area. He was dropped several miles away from the reception ground and landed on the roof of a gendarmerie.
A cordon was thrown round the house, and he was arrested and imprisoned in Lyon. He was subsequently interrogated by the Gestapo, and conducted himself with outstanding bravery and remarkable presence of mind.

SHEPPARD escaped from gaol in February 1943 and succeeded in fighting his way to the Spanish frontier. A large force of Gestapo was, however, on his track, and he was re-arrested near the border and later taken to Fresnes prison where he suffered severe hardships which he bore with great fortitude and endurance. He was later deported to Germany, where he spent more than a year in various camps, including Dachau, when he was repatriated in early May 1945.

Although this oficer was unable to carry out the mission for which he was intended in France, he displayed remarkable perseverance, personal bravery and resourcefulness in captivity.

It is strongly recommended that he be Mentioned in Despatches."

Signed by Major-General Colin Gubbins
3rd August, 1945
Mentioned in Dispatches
Period:
Second World War (1939-1945)
Rank:
Lieutenant
Unit:
F Section, Special Operations Executive (SOE), British Government
Awarded on:
January 16th, 1946
Croix de Guerre (1939-1945)

With Bronze Star

Sources

Photo