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The reluctant hero

Henry James Aconaduring the war years

THEIR motto is Who Dares Wins and those were the words spelled out in flowers at the funeral of World War II veteran Henry James Ancona, a member of the original Special Air Service (SAS).

Mr Ancona, of Hazeleigh Gardens, Woodford Green, who served with the 1st Battalion SAS regiment, died peacefully following a short illness. He leaves five children and 13 grandchildren.

Scores of family and friends, and two representatives from the SAS, attended his funeral service at St Paul's Church, Woodford Bridge last week, followed by his burial in Longwood Gardens, Barkingside.

He was buried alongside his wife Esme, who died two years ago.

A Woodford resident all of his life, Mr Ancona joined the army as a fresh-faced 16-year-old little realising the life-changing and perilous task which lay ahead of him.

He was first posted to the L detachment - the forerunner of the SAS, from 1940 to 1941 and was then selected to be part of the elite force of soldiers of 1st Battalion SAS Regiment from October 1942 to November 1945, completing campaigns in the Western Desert and Europe.

During the war, Mr Ancona had several miraculous escapes.

But despite his bravery and courage, Mr Ancona, was always a reluctant hero who refused to accept campaign medals, only producing his distinctive SAS cap badge and arm band to his family two weeks before he died.

His son, John, of Collier Road, Romford said: "Dad would never accept any medals.

"He believed every man deserved a medal - and a lot of good men had died.

"He lost lots of close friends - good men that you could trust.

"He always said he was one of the fortunate ones.

"He was a very private man - he kept a lot to himself and he rarely spoke about his experiences during the war.

"The war years changed him - he found it hard to adapt to outside life when he was discharged - when you think about everything he'd been through, it's no wonder.

"They just discharged them then - not like today.

"But then, dad would never have accepted any support, he was a fiercely independent person." It was only over the past few years that he opened up a bit more after seeing programmes about the SAS on the television. He used to get annoyed because some people who claim they were there were not actually there at all.

"Dad was as sharp as a razor all his life - his mind was always 100 per cent."

Despite his reluctance to wear medals, Mr Ancona Snr kept certificates of his service, including a personally signed thank you from the King of Norway for being part of the British forces who liberated Norway from the Germans on May 8, 1945.

His service certificate outlines awards of the 1939/45 Star, the Africa Star with 8th Army Clasp, Italy Star and France and Germany Star and is dated November 16, 1945 and signed by Lieutenant Colonel Commander Paddy Mayne, the fearless leader of the 1st Bt SAS Regiment.

Describing one of his father's close shaves during the war, Mr Ancona said: "Dad was shot in the leg during action in either Sicily or Italy and was collected by a Red Cross ship and taken to Malta.

"Half an hour after he was taken off the ship it was sunk." Mr Ancona was also one of the troops on board a German Lancia lorry captured by the SAS in Termoli, Italy when it received a direct hit in October 1943. His son said: "Dad woke up and thought hed lost his legs because he couldn't move them. He looked down and saw that another fellow was holding on to his legs.

"Only three of them came out of it alive and two died within 15 minutes. One had his shoulder and arm blown off and the other had severe stomach injuries.

"Dad's regiment number was 13 which I didn't find out until I rang the regiment to inform them of his death - it seems it must have been his lucky number."

Another injury Mr Ancona received was from a German Shepherd dog which bit into his right hand while he was attempting a rescue from a prisoner of war camp in Italy. He had to pull the dog under his body and put his whole body weight on top of it to muffle any barks.

Mr Ancona always spoke highly of his leader, Colonel Mayne, a hardened commander who, at one point during the Termoli campaign fought a single-handed battle in which, with characteristic ferocity, he killed a dozen of the enemy.

John Ancona said: "Dad had a great regard for Paddy Mayne, known as the Rogue Warrior of the SAS.

"Dad was also mentioned in another book, Parachute Padre, written by the regiment's Padre, J Fraser McLuskey, who is still alive today."

Speaking of the only time his father had a cigarette during the war, Mr Acona said: "Two days after the lorry at Termoli was hit they had to go back and remove personal ID from the bodies.

"He said the stench was so bad that he had to leave a cigarette burning in his mouth. I can't imagine what it must have been like."

BEFORE embarking on his various campaigns Mr Ancona and his comrades had to complete rigorous training which sometimes proved as dangerous as the real thing.

One trial rescue procedure involved picking up troops from the ground using a hook suspended from the plane but this almost dislocated Mr Ancona's shoulders when he was hauled up by the hook, spinning wildly in mid-air.

The men also practised low height parachuting, giving them literally seconds to release their chutes and land safely on the ground.

Much of the training took place in England, one of the places, being Manchester City's former football ground, Maine Road.

Following the war, Mr Ancona met his future wife, Esme, who served with the Women's Auxiliary Air Force during the war. The couple were married in 1946 and went on to enjoy 57 happy years of marriage together.

His daughter, Teresa, who lives in South Woodford, said: "Mum and Dad were one of the first people to move into Hazeleigh Gardens when it was first built." A confirmed animal lover, Mr Ancona had a life-long passion for German shepherd dogs which he bred and kept throughout his life and he also enjoyed pigeon racing.

He worked as a draughtsman after the war and travelled all over the country during his career, working as an architectural surveyor. He also enjoyed travelling with wife Esme and the pair took holidays in Australia, Canada and Spain.

In more recent years he worked as a security guard at Claybury Hospital where his wife worked in the canteen. Hospital chaplain Michael Pritchard, who knew Mr and Mrs Ancona, conducted Mr Ancona's funeral service.

Commenting on the service, daughter Teresa said: "The flowers were just beautiful � there was an SAS shield standing three feet high and wings � I think Dad would have been very proud.

"We also had a carriage and horses and everyone we spoke to at the funeral said it was a fantastic send-off. "

Asked whether his father had thought the sacrifices of war had been worthwhile, considering the society of today, John Ancona said: "Dad used to look at the way the country is going now and he wondered why they had to go through all they did. He thought the country had gone to pot.

"He saw that people born and bred here are treated as second class citizens and he believed there was going to be a lot of trouble because of this. "

The family has a celebrity connection � they are distantly related to the impressionist Ronni Ancona, famous for her Posh Spice take-offs on the BBC programme The Big Impression, where she stars alongside Alistair McGowan.

John said: "My dad's grandad's brother would be her grandad. He was a retired naval commander and he spoke to my dad a couple of times.

"I can see where Ronni gets her sense of humour from, a lot of us have a wicked sense of humour."

Mr Ancona is survived by his brother, Dennis, 71, and leaves five children, Terry, who lives in Spain and Teresa, Patricia, John and Denise, who all live in the Redbridge area.

A selection of Mr Ancona's war-time memorabilia, including medical kit provisions, such as morphine and sutures, as well as silk maps of Europe and a swastika Mr Ancona cut from a German flag in a prisoner of war camp, are going to be used as museum pieces by the SAS Regimental Association.

11:41am Thursday 7th August 2003