Lieutenant Guy Garland Reakes
Unit : "D" Company, 12th Battalion The Devonshire Regiment.
Army No. : 259079
Awards : Military Cross
Lieutenant Reakes was taken prisoner along with 50 other men of "D" Company on the 6th April 1945, when they were ambushed by four Panther tanks whilst moving towards Masloh on the eastern bank of the River Weser, and were left with no option but to surrender. He escaped, however, and rejoined the Battalion on the following day. For his role in subsequent actions, he was awarded the Military Cross.
On 18th April, 1945, the company to which Lieutenant Reakes belonged was given the task of occupying the western half of the village of Roche, in which it was known there were some German tanks, self-propelled guns and infantry. Lieutenant Reakes led his platoon, which consisted entirely of reinforcements uninitiated to battle conditions, forward, but they were engaged by enemy machine guns and bazookas from the outskirts of the village. Lieutenant Reakes immediately called on the leading section to follow him, and he led a charge which resulted in the annihilation of the enemy posts.
The section were then engaged at close range by a self-propelled gun. Lieutenant Reakes without hesitation and with complete disregard to his own safety, took the PIAT and engaged the self-propelled gun which he successfully destroyed together with the crew. Lieutenant Reakes received information that forty infantry and two tanks were approaching. With complete calm this officer disposed his platoon to meet the attack, and personally moved forward to engage the tanks.
Inspired by the action of their commander, the platoon drove off the counter-attack killing ten and capturing twenty, thus enabling the company to consolidate its objective.
Throughout all the operations since the landing in Normandy, Lieutenant Reakes has proved himself an outstanding platoon commander. His ready and vigorous acceptance of responsibility, his calm courage and his complete disregard of enemy fire have been an inspiration to his men on every encounter with the enemy.