James William Edward Cocks
He was a pool petroleum worker in 1939.
- Family History
- Military history
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He was the son of Mr and Mrs James W C Cocks. James Cocks and Gladys Haywood were married in 1942 and their son John was born a year later. They lived at 160, Linton Lane, Sneinton Dale, Nottingham.
In September 1944, the 2nd Battalion, Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) was actively engaged in the Italian Campaign as part of the 3rd Infantry Brigade within the 1st Infantry Division.
Around 13–14 September 1944, the 3rd Infantry Brigade (including the 2nd Sherwood Foresters) was launched into intense, bloody assaults to capture high ground and ridges near Gemmano and Monte Colombo (south of Rimini). The battalion sustained heavy casualties during these multi-day mountain infantry attacks against deeply entrenched German forces.
Key Context for September 1944:
After earlier heavy combat in the Anzio beachhead (January–March 1944) and the capture of Rome in June 1944, the battalion pushed north alongside the Allied advance toward the Gothic Line (a formidable German defensive line in the northern Apennines).
The battalion suffered continuous losses during the bitter mountain and defensive fighting through late summer and mid-September 1944, with various company commanders and personnel wounded or evacuated (such as Major Michael Fauvelle being severely wounded in mid-September 1944).
James William Edward Cocks
Nottingham Evening Post 5/9/1944