Rifleman
Londoner who experienced an extraordinary service life between his enlistment in 1938, his wartime service and his subsequent activities during the Cold War.Gregg describes himself as an ordinary soldier. His military ‘c
- Author
- Vic Gregg with Rick Stroud
- Publisher
- Bloomsbury Books
- Price
- £17.99
- ISBN
- 978 1 4088 13966
- Published
- 2016
Rifleman by Vic Gregg with Rick Stroud
Vic Gregg, a down-to-earth Londoner, lived an extraordinary service life spanning his 1938 enlistment, wartime experiences and Cold War exploits. He began with the Rifle Brigade in India, moved to Palestine just before war was declared and soon found himself in Egypt, driving the Italians back from Sidi Barrani before Rommel’s Afrika Korps forced a retreat.
After evading capture and returning to Cairo, Gregg impressed his superiors enough to earn promotion to sergeant and a posting to Popski’s Private Army. He operated alongside Popski, the Long Range Desert Group and the fledgling SAS. Following the victory at El Alamein he transferred to the Parachute Brigade, fought in Sicily and Italy, and returned to Britain to prepare for Operation Market Garden, landing at Arnhem on 18 September with 4th Parachute Brigade.
Captured in the ensuing battle, Gregg was sent to a labour camp in Dresden. He briefly escaped, was recaptured, and was still in the city when the Allied firestorm killed an estimated 30,000 civilians. His account of the devastation is vivid. Fleeing east with refugees, he encountered advancing Soviet forces and, remarkably, stayed with them as a mechanic until May 1945.
Demobilised back in London, Gregg was later recruited by British intelligence as chauffeur to the chairman of the Moscow Narodny Bank, drawing him into Cold War espionage and repeated trips to the USSR. He was a member of the Army POW Escaping Club.
ISBN 978 1 4088 13966. Bloomsbury Books. £17.99