Thomas Riley Bray
He was a bricklayer improver (apprentice) in 1939.
- Family History
- Military history
- Extra information
- Photographs
He was the son of Thomas and Elizabeth Bray and the brother of Clara, John and Albert Bray of 7, Rowton Terrace, Radford, Nottingham. He was the husband of Ivy Bray of Nottingham.
MEDJEZ-EL-BAB MEMORIAL Face 24.
In April 1943, the 2nd Battalion, Sherwood Foresters were fighting in the final, intense stages of the Tunisian Campaign in North Africa as part of the British First Army.
Key Events in April 1943:
Capture of Point 174 (24 April 1943): The battalion fought a fierce engagement to capture a strategic hill known as Point 174, subsequently holding their ground against German infantry and Tiger 131.
Use of Captured Weapons: Troops from the battalion were famously photographed on 27 April 1943 in a forward trench using a captured German MG 42 machine gun.
Campaign Context: Operating within the 3rd Infantry Brigade of the 1st Infantry Division, their relentless pressure helped squeeze the Axis forces, leading to the collapse of the North African bridgehead the following month.
Private Bray lost his life on the day of the battalion’s fiercest engagement of the Tunisian Campaign—the assault on Point 174, a highly strategic hill in North Africa.The 2nd Battalion successfully captured the position from deeply entrenched Axis forces and subsequently held it against severe German infantry and armored counter-attacks. Private Bray was one of the casualties of this brutal, decisive battle that ultimately helped secure the Allied victory in Tunisia.
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Thomas Riley Bray
Nottingham Evening Post 7/11/1944