Identity
Person No.
28165
Service No.
11607
Last Name
First Name
Dorien Dudley
Initials
D D
Date of Birth
Unknown
Est. Birth Year
Age at Death
41
Military Service
Death Record
Date of Death
Cause of Death
Killed in action. In the North Italian village of Carpane on 27 September 1944 the Germans executed 16 Allied soldiers captured fighting with Italian partisans in that area. Escaped with other South Africans from a nearby POW camp and joined up with local partisans to carry on fighting the Germans. They became such a thorn in the flesh of the Germans that a special operation was mounted in the Monte Grappa region to capture them. They were eventually captured and murdered by the Germans. Every year on this day since the end of the war the villagers of Carpane have held a memorial service at this spot by the side of the road where they were killed. For many years the identity of the 16 was not known and the monument was simply inscribed to "16 unknown". It was only about 4 or 5 years ago that their identity was uncovered by Sonia Residori, an Italian academic researcher
Grave Reference
Location
Additional Information
Notes
Son of Guy Dudley and Maud Lilian Wheelwright; husband of Johanna Viola Pohl Wheelwright, of Lusikisiki, Cape Province, South Africa. On Jeppe High School for Boys Roll of Honour
Citation
Unknown
External Source
Unknown
South African War Graves Project