Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Three: Private D. Murdoch, 7th (Airborne) Battalion, King’s Own Scottish Borderers, killed in action during the defence of the ‘White House’ at the Battle of Arnhem, 21 September 1944

1939-45 Star; France and Germany Star; War Medal 1939-45, with named Army Council enclosure, in card box of issue, addressed to ‘Mr. G. Murdoch, 43 Bryson Road, Edinburgh 11, Scotland’, extremely fine (3) £180-220

This lot was sold as part of a special collection, A Collection of Medals to Second World War Casualties.

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David Murdoch served with the 7th (Airborne) Battalion, King’s Own Scottish Borderers during the Second World War. On Sunday 17 September 1944, as glider-borne troops, they flew into Arnhem as part of 1st Airborne Division in order to capture and hold the bridges over the River Rhine as part of Operation Market Garden: ‘K.O.S.B. landed on 17 September 1944 at just after 13:00 hours and were called to their RV by company piper Corporal Willie Ford playing “Blue Bonnets Over the Border” continuously for over twenty minutes while the Battalion regrouped. After a pitched battle at Johannahoeve Farm the Battalion, now numbering some 270, eventually fell back to the North East shoulder of the Oosterbeek Perimeter. Here over 19-20 September the remainder of the Battalion made its stand at a hotel called Dreyerod which would become known to its defenders as the “White House”. On 21 September after three days of continuous fighting the Germans made a determined and ruthless effort to crush the defenders of the White House. At 16:30 hours tanks and troops penetrated deep into the hotel grounds. In the bloody hand to hand fighting that followed the remaining K.O.S.B. made a bayonet charge that retook much of the hotel grounds. However, this small success came at the loss of over half the men who had taken up the original defence.’

Murdoch was one of those killed on 21 September, aged just 19. He is buried in Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Holland.