WW2 veteran 'amazed' to be awarded highest honour

A 99-year old veteran has been awarded France's highest military distinction in recognition of his service during World War Two.

Douglas Charles Cracknell, from Cransford, near Framlingham, Suffolk has been awarded the Legion d'Honneur by the French government.

Mr Cracknell said: "I was really amazed, it's not often I'm stuck for words, but I was. I know I'm nearly 100 but it doesn't just sink in."

On the 70th anniversary of D-Day, the then French President François Hollande pledged to honour all those British veterans who had served in his country during the war.

Vicky Dann, Mr Cracknell's granddaughter, said he "landed in Normandy in late June 1944 and fought alongside his comrades across north-west Europe, whilst taking part in some of the fiercest and bloodiest battles of the entire conflict".

Mr Cracknell, who was part of the 5th Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry as a rifleman, landed in Arromanches, Normandy, on 22 June 1944.

He said he was "scared stiff" to be fighting in France.

"To think that we were in a foreign country and didn't know where we were and you didn't know who your enemy was." he said.

Ms Dann said the family had previously applied for the medal for her grandfather but been unsuccessful due to a lack of information about his service.

But with help from a friend in the military, they managed to piece together more details about his experiences.

These included fighting for control of strategic positions, coming under mortar fire, and pushing into Germany.

Mr Cracknell was wounded twice during the war.

The first time was in the Netherlands when a bullet hit the weapon he was operating and wounded his face. Later, he was in Hamburg when a shell blast caused shrapnel wounds and a temporary loss of hearing.

"You just lived life, you didn't know if you were going to be here the next day or not," he said.

It was while he was on leave that he met Sheila Dix, who asked him for a cigarette. They married two years later and remained together for 70 years until she died in 2020.

Ms Dann said her grandfather was "overjoyed" to have been awarded the honour, "not just for himself but for all those men who lost their lives from his regiment and throughout the rest of the war".

She added: "It's so important that these people get recognition for the things that they went through."

Mr Cracknell will receive his medal at a ceremony at Framlingham College, where he worked as a boy.

The presentation will be made by the French military attaché.

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