Testimonianze

Grenadier Sam Stephens 

BATTLE OF CAMINO, ITALY  -  Grim record of life on the front line 

(from: http://beehive.thisisnottingham.co.uk)  

  thoughts about Monte Camino, his experiences and his memories. These are extracts from one of the five non-fiction books he has published. They will strike a chord with many old soldiers who were there.

"Breakfast. Tinned bacon and sausage. Never enough, we can always eat more but rations are limited." "We walk in single file towards the mountain, cross-country. We do not follow roads or paths. I am exhausted, very nearly collapse many times. I keep going by thinking of the folks back home." As they arrive at the base of the mountain Trooper Stephens volunteers to go forward on a recce mission. He finds a cave full of Italians sheltering from the shelling. "The mountain seems to resemble hell as all the trees and vegetation are on fire."
The Guards, part of the 56th Black Cat Division, received their orders. The Coldstream Guards will take the village of Camino, the Grenadiers will attack the mountain.  The Coldstreams run into fierce opposition but manage to take three streets, allowing the Grenadiers to get through. "My way is blocked by dead (German) bodies recently killed but not yet stinking. My foot sinks into bodies but I am soon across onto solid rock. "I am shocked to see how young they are, how opposite they are to what we expected as a fierce, arrogant, invincible opponent."
As night falls, Sam Stephens curls up behind some rocks, unable to move even when he needs the toilet. Around mid morning a sniper picks him out and he is shot in the leg. "I kept very still in case, being seen, I am shot again. I pretend to be dead."
Sam, home from New Zealand where he has lived since 1948 and staying with his sister Hazel in Woodthorpe, says: "The reality of getting shot is very different to what you see on TV. "At first you feel nothing, then a needle sharp pain. I did not realise until a second or two had passed. You don't fall down like they do on TV." Throughout the day Sam Stephens lay in pain as the Germans launched a mortar bombardment that went on for several hours. Having lost all their Officers, a Sergeant takes command, but he is killed. Responsibility falls to a Corporal but he has his leg blown off. The Guardsmen are leaderless. “ I am now delirious,” writes Sam, 82. “Halucinating. Another dawn arrives. How long does it take to die?” Respite comes with low cloud which reduces visibility. Sam is hauled to a safer place but then the Germans begin shelling with heavy explosives. “More friends are killed. What are we doing 3,000 feet up a damned mountain in this foreign land?”
They finally got Sam Stephens away from Mount Camino and into hospital. He would return later and see more action as the Italian campaign moved north. After the war he was posted to Trieste, an international hotspot where street riots were a daily occurrence.
He emigrated to New Zealand in 1948 when work was scarce in Britain but returned several times to his home town. Later this month he will keep a special appointment, joining more veteran guardsmen in Horse Guards Parade, London when they will be remembering fallen comrades. “The memories are very strong of that time. I would love to discuss it with some of the youths of today who wander about.”

My Thanks go to Mr Smart and the Nottingham Evening Post for permission to publish this article on our Branch Website.
G.E.Hallam Nottinghamshire Branch. Ass.Secretary.

1st May 2004