A rare and emotive Second World War clandestine operations M.B.E. group of three awarded to Lieutenant A. W. O. Newton, an ‘F’ Section, S.O.E. agent who was parachuted into France as a saboteur instructor in June 1942, captured in April 1943, and brutally tortured before being sent to Buchenwald: his brother suffered the same fate but both survived to be liberated by the advancing Allies in April 1945

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, M.B.E. (Military) Member’s 2nd type breast badge, in its Royal Mint case of issue; 1939-45 Star; War Medal 1939-45, together with related G.VI.R. “Loyal Service” badge and original O.B.E. warrant, this in the name of ‘Alfred Willie Oscar Newton, Lieutenant in Our Army’ and dated 13 August 1945, the medals very fine and better, the warrant torn in several places (Lot) £400-500

M.B.E. London Gazette 30 August 1945. The original recommendation states:

‘This officer was parachuted into France with his brother on 30 June 1942 as a saboteur instructor to a circuit in the unoccupied zone. In this capacity he worked for a period of nine months, throughout which period he showed outstanding courage and devotion to duty. He travelled continuously and organised and trained sabotage cells in various regions, in particular Lyon, St. Etienne and Le Puy. These groups subsequently carried out effective sabotage on enemy industrial installations and railway communications. Newton was arrested in April 1943 with his brother and incarcerated at Fresnes, where he spent over a year in solitary confinement. He was later transferred to Buchenwald concentration camp where he suffered grave hardships. He was liberated in April 1945 when American forces occupied the camp. For his courageous work in the French Resistance and his remarkable endurance during his two years in captivity, it is recommended that he be appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (Military Division).’

No better summary of the wartime story of S.O.E’s famous “Twins”, Alfred and Henry Newton, maybe found than that published in E. H. Cookridge’s Inside S.O.E.:

‘The two saboteurs selected for the job by Buckmaster [the destruction of the German radio station at St. Assise] were Alfred and Henry Newton, twin sons of a former Lancashire jockey who had been a racing trainer in France and had lived there with his family for many years. The brothers had become well-known on the Continent as variety artistes, “The Boorn Twins”, performing a comic tap-dancing act. When the Germans invasion came, Alfred and Henry, who had both married French girls, decided to try and bring their families to England. Alfred Newton had three children, Gigi 10, Jimmy 9 and Coco 3.

They trecked in night marish conditions along roads crowded with refugees to Penzon in the Vendome. There the men were apprehended by the Vichy police, interned as “enemy aliens” and put into a works battalion. After many difficulties the twins escaped to Spain, were arrested by Franco’s police and taken to the internment camp at Miranda de Ebro. They were not released until Christmas 1941. At the British Embassy in Madrid they learned that their families had been evacuated from France by the Red Cross and brought to Lisbon for repatriation to Britain. During the sea journey they had all been drowned, when their ship, the Avoceta, was torpedoed in an Atlantic gale on 25 September 1941.

By the time the brothers arrived in London they had but a single thought between them - vengeance on the Nazis. They were given an opportunity almost immediately. I know of hardly another case where a rank-and-file agent was directly enrolled with S.O.E. Nearly always the volunteers came from the Forces. But the story of the Newton twins had become known to British Intelligence officers at Gibraltar and was reported to Headquarters in London. When they arrived aboard the destroyer H.M.S. Hesperus in Liverpool, they were taken to a Field Security Officer, given tickets to London and asked to see a Major at the War Office.

This officer gave them an address near Baker Street. The address was 6 Orchard Court, Portman Square, and the man who welcolmed them was Major Lewis Gielgud, the chief recruiting officer of the French Section of S.O.E.

Henry Newton spoke for them both: “Give us a couple of tommy guns and a bunch of hand grenades and we know bloody well what we’re going to do.”

Major Gielgud had some difficulty in explaining that it was not as simple as that. But he realized that he had two men who would shirk no task, however dangerous or difficult. He decided they were ideal material for training as saboteurs. For several weeks, at Special Training School No. 17 for industrial sabotage at Hertfordshire, the twins were put through their paces. They were circus acrobats and as tough as they come. When the Chiefs of Staff ordered the destruction of St. Assise transmitter, Buckmaster had no doubt whom he wanted for this job.

At last the big day came. Peter Churchill was to be dropped ahead of the Newtons, who had become “Arthure” and “Hubert”, two French artisans, to conduct them to the German radio station. The signal heralding their arrival to the local reception group was to be: Les durs des durs arrivent (The toughest of the tough are arriving). The target was of the utmost importance. The St. Assise station was used by the German naval command for directing U-boats in the Atlantic. Its destruction would have caused a breakdown in these communications and probably saved the lives of many British and Allied seamen. Many weeks of preparations preceded the despatch of the two saboteurs. The Newton twins were taken to the big S.O.E. radio station at Rugby and shown all over its installation, to learn what they had to look for at St. Assise. A “safe house” was prepared at Le Pepiniere, eight kilometres from St. Leu, in the vicinity of the German transmitter. R.A.F. reconnaissance aircraft brought back scores of aerial photographs of St. Assise and the twins were briefed for endless hours.

On 28 May Buckmaster and Major Guelis, the briefing officer, came to Wanborough Manor with the latest report of the Meteorological Department, which forecast perfect weather. Eventually they all drove to Tempsford airfield. “Arthure” and “Hubert”, rigged up in old suits of an authentic French cut, were put aboard a Whitely, with a load of propaganda leaflets from the political Welfare Executive which were to be scattered on the way. But the aircraft developed engine trouble and the S.O.E. men had to be transferred to a Wellington.

Just when they were inspecting their parachuting gear, “Gerry” Morel ran on to the tarmac. “The operation is off. Sorry, you’ll have to get out,” he told them. The twins were livid.’

However, as confirmed by the activities described in the above recommendation, the “Twins” were indeed actively employed in France shortly afterwards. Cookridge continues:

‘A few weeks later Alfred and Henry Newton were dropped on another mission - to teach sabotage to Resistance groups in the Lyons area. They were getting into their stride and did some excellent work when, through the betrayal of a V-man, an Alsatian named Robert Alesch who posed as a priest and was known as “The Bishop”, they were caught by the Gestapo. The twins underwent unspeakable torture at the Gestapo H.Q. at Lyons, at the hands of it notorious commander, S.S. Sturmbann-Fuhrer Barbie and his thugs. They never gave any of their comrades away and spent the last two years of the War at Buchenwald, where they had a miraculous escape from the gallows, and were freed in 1945.’

Robert Alesch was tried and executed after the War.