Brian Paddon
Encyclopedia
Group Captain
Brian Paddon DSO
(born 1908), was a Royal Air Force
pilot
who became a Prisoner of War
and successfully escaped from Colditz Castle
during the Second World War
, Surrey
the son of the Reverend Charles Salmon Paddon and his wife Nellie Symington Paddon. In the 1911 Census of Redruth in Cornwall Paddon aged two is living with his parents at Lannarth Vicarge.
(on probation) in June 1929. He obtained his Royal Aero Club
Aviator's Licence #10796 on 3 September 1932.
He was shot down flying a Bristol Blenheim
light bomber of No. 40 Squadron RAF
during an attack at St-Valery on 6 June 1940 as part of the Battle of France
. He was captured and became a Prisoner of War
.
he was first sent to Oflag IX-A/H
at Spangenberg
before shortly afterwards leaving for Stalag Luft I
at Barth, arriving there on 12 July 1940, where he became the Senior British Officer.
After several escape attempts from various camps, he was sent to Oflag IV-C
at Colditz Castle
arriving there on 14 May 1941 with three other officers including Airey Neave
.
After several more attempts to escape, on 11 June 1942, he was sent to a Court-martial
at Stalag XX-A
for insulting a German officer during one of his previous escape attempts. However, he managed to escape from his cell, and with the aid of other British Prisoners of War, left the camp with a work party, slipped away and travelled to Danzig. He stowed away on a Swedish ship and successfully reached neutral Sweden on 18 June. He returned to the UK on 6 August 1942.
He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
and promoted to Group Captain
.
Paddon had married Sheila Mary Mansell in 1935 but she died in Malta on 23 September 1939.
He married again in 1948 to Anita Williams, they had a daughter born in Southern Rhodesia in 1953.
Paddon retired from service on 10 November 1950.
Group Captain
Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks above wing commander and immediately below air commodore...
Brian Paddon DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
(born 1908), was a Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
pilot
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
who became a Prisoner of War
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
and successfully escaped from Colditz Castle
Colditz Castle
Colditz Castle is a Renaissance castle in the town of Colditz near Leipzig, Dresden, and Chemnitz in the state of Saxony in Germany. Used as a workhouse for the indigent and a mental institution for over 100 years, it gained international fame as a prisoner-of-war camp during World War II for...
during the Second World War
Early life
Paddon was born in CarshaltonCarshalton
Carshalton is a suburban area of the London Borough of Sutton, England. It is located 10 miles south-southwest of Charing Cross, situated in the valley of the River Wandle, one of the sources of which is Carshalton Ponds in the centre of the village. The combined population of the five wards...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
the son of the Reverend Charles Salmon Paddon and his wife Nellie Symington Paddon. In the 1911 Census of Redruth in Cornwall Paddon aged two is living with his parents at Lannarth Vicarge.
Royal Air Force Service
Paddon joined the RAF on a short service commission as a Pilot OfficerPilot Officer
Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer...
(on probation) in June 1929. He obtained his Royal Aero Club
Royal Aero Club
The Royal Aero Club is the national co-ordinating body for Air Sport in the United Kingdom.The Aero Club was founded in 1901 by Frank Hedges Butler, his daughter Vera and the Hon Charles Rolls , partly inspired by the Aero Club of France...
Aviator's Licence #10796 on 3 September 1932.
He was shot down flying a Bristol Blenheim
Bristol Blenheim
The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...
light bomber of No. 40 Squadron RAF
No. 40 Squadron RAF
No. 40 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was formed in 1916 at Gosport as No 40 Squadron RFC and was disbanded for the last time in 1957.Edward Mannock gained 16 of his 73 victories while with 40 Squadron, 15 of which he shot down while flying a Nieuport Scout...
during an attack at St-Valery on 6 June 1940 as part of the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
. He was captured and became a Prisoner of War
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
.
Prisoner of War
After passing through the interogation and transit camp of Dulag luftDulag luft
thumb|right|Sgt. Edward Hill of [[Manchester, England]], freed from five years of captivity at Dulag Luft, by the American Seventh Armored Division, First Army, circa 29 March 1945...
he was first sent to Oflag IX-A/H
Oflag IX-A/H
Oflag IX-A/H was a German Prisoner of War camp at Spangenberg castle in Germany during the Second World WarIt was used from 1939 to 1945, and housed mainly British POWs but also some French Air Force personnel early in the war....
at Spangenberg
Spangenberg
- Geography :Spangenberg lies in the Schwalm-Eder district some 35 km southeast of Kassel, west of the Stölzinger Gebirge, a low mountain range. Spangenberg is the demographical centrepoint of Germany.- History :...
before shortly afterwards leaving for Stalag Luft I
Stalag Luft I
Stalag Luft I was a German World War II prisoner-of-war camp near Barth, Western Pomerania, Germany, for captured Allied airmen. The presence of the prison camp is said to have shielded the town of Barth from Allied bombing...
at Barth, arriving there on 12 July 1940, where he became the Senior British Officer.
After several escape attempts from various camps, he was sent to Oflag IV-C
Oflag IV-C
Oflag IV-C, often referred to as Colditz Castle because of its location, was one of the most famous German Army prisoner-of-war camps for officers in World War II; Oflag is a shortening of Offizierslager, meaning "officers camp"...
at Colditz Castle
Colditz Castle
Colditz Castle is a Renaissance castle in the town of Colditz near Leipzig, Dresden, and Chemnitz in the state of Saxony in Germany. Used as a workhouse for the indigent and a mental institution for over 100 years, it gained international fame as a prisoner-of-war camp during World War II for...
arriving there on 14 May 1941 with three other officers including Airey Neave
Airey Neave
Airey Middleton Sheffield Neave DSO, OBE, MC was a British soldier, barrister and politician.During World War II, Neave was one of the few servicemen to escape from the German prisoner-of-war camp Oflag IV-C at Colditz Castle...
.
After several more attempts to escape, on 11 June 1942, he was sent to a Court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
at Stalag XX-A
Stalag XX-A
Stalag XX-A was a German World War II PoW Camp located in Thorn/Toruń, Poland. It was not a single camp and contained as many as 20,000 men at its peak. The main camp was located in a complex of fifteen forts that surrounded the whole of the city...
for insulting a German officer during one of his previous escape attempts. However, he managed to escape from his cell, and with the aid of other British Prisoners of War, left the camp with a work party, slipped away and travelled to Danzig. He stowed away on a Swedish ship and successfully reached neutral Sweden on 18 June. He returned to the UK on 6 August 1942.
He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
and promoted to Group Captain
Group Captain
Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks above wing commander and immediately below air commodore...
.
Paddon had married Sheila Mary Mansell in 1935 but she died in Malta on 23 September 1939.
He married again in 1948 to Anita Williams, they had a daughter born in Southern Rhodesia in 1953.
Paddon retired from service on 10 November 1950.