The sons and daughters of an “unsung hero” wrote to Prince Charles asking for their late father to be officially recognized for his bravery during the war.
Hazel Bancroft and her family are seeking a posthumous award for Gunner Basil William Bancroft, who enlisted in the Royal Artillery and later became a prisoner of war in the Far East.
Born in South Africa, Mr. Bancroft, who raised his family in Borehamwood, never shared his story with his children and it was only after his death and the birth of the internet that his family learned of his acts of heroism.
In her letter to Prince Charles, the youngest daughter Hazel said: “Like so many veterans from the Far East, our father rarely spoke of his experiences as a prisoner of war.
“It was only after his death in 1986, with the publication of The list of prisoners in 2010 through Richard’s son, another POW, Reuben Kandler, and the publication of documents by the National Archives, that we learned of his bravery and resilience.
“He (Basil) risked his life countless times to escape overnight from Saigon POW camp to bring back much needed medical supplies, food and money, even if two previous escapees had been arrested and executed.
“In September 1943, he was the first Japanese prisoner of war to successfully escape from the Saigon camp. Aided by French clandestine units, he crossed Indochina for eight months to the Chinese border.
“With the help of the British Army Aid Group in China, he traveled to India where he is believed to have been recruited as an undercover agent by the Allied intelligence services.”
Basil William Bancroft
Mr. Bancroft arrived in the United Kingdom in the 1930s as a merchant seaman and in 1938 enlisted in the Royal Artillery. In 1941, his regiment was deployed in Malaysia.
Hazel says research has revealed that her father was recommended for an award in October 1945, which was never followed, and that she believes he and his wife, Daisy, never knew about it.
The Bancroft’s wrote to Prince Charles ahead of the 76th anniversary of the Victory over Japan on August 15.
Hazel concludes her letter to The Royal: “We respectfully ask you to consider a posthumous award recognizing that Daddy’s actions were important then and still count today.
“It is perhaps 76 years after the end of the war in the Far East and 35 years after his death; and yet we regret that we never had the opportunity to tell him how proud we are and how tell his story.
“We believe his spirit lives in us, as well as in his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. A posthumous recognition of his bravery would mean the world to us all.”
