Joseph William Ekins (15 July 1923 – 1 February 2012) was a British soldier. He gained recognition for his action as a
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
tank gunner in France during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, in which Ekins destroyed four
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
tanks near
Saint-Aignan-de-Cramesnil
Saint-Aignan-de-Cramesnil () is a former commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Le Castelet.
Population
Personalities
This village is known as ...
in a day, including three
Tiger I
The Tiger I () was a German heavy tank of World War II that operated beginning in 1942 in Africa and in the Soviet Union, usually in independent heavy tank battalions. It gave the German Army its first armoured fighting vehicle that mounted ...
tanks (numbers 312, 009 & 314). One of his opponents on that day, 8 August 1944, was the German tank commander
Michael Wittmann
Michael Wittmann (22 April 19148 August 1944) was a German Waffen-SS tank commander during the Second World War. He is known for his ambush of elements of the British 7th Armored Division during the Battle of Villers-Bocage on 13 June 1944. Whil ...
; whether Ekins fired the round that destroyed Wittmann's Tiger is disputed.
[Lord Boardman letter to Radley-Walters, 13 June 1999] Ekins died on 1 February 2012.
Operation Totalize
During
Operation Totalize
Operation Totalize (also spelled Operation Totalise in recent British sources) was an offensive launched by Allied troops in the First Canadian Army during the later stages of Operation Overlord, from 8 to 9 August 1944. The intention was to bre ...
the
1st Northamptonshire Yeomanry
The Northamptonshire Yeomanry was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1794 as volunteer cavalry. It served in the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War before being reduced to squadron level in 1956. It ceas ...
and elements of the
51st (Highland) Infantry Division
The 51st (Highland) Division was an infantry division of the British Army that fought on the Western Front in France during the First World War from 1915 to 1918. The division was raised in 1908, upon the creation of the Territorial Force, as ...
reached the French village of St. Aignan de Cramesnil during the early morning of 8 August 1944. While B Squadron stayed around the village, A and C Squadrons moved further south into Delle de la Roque wood.
C Squadron moved to the east side of the woods and the understrength A Squadron took post in the southern portion, with '3 Troop' on the western edge of the wood. From this position they overlooked a large open section of ground and were able to watch as German tanks advanced up 158 from the town of
Cintheaux
Cintheaux () is a Communes of France, commune in the Calvados (department), Calvados Departments of France, department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy Regions of France, region in northwestern France.
Geography
The commune is lo ...
. On orders from the troop commander, they held their fire until the German tanks were well within range.
Ekins, the gunner of Sergeant Gordon's
Sherman Firefly
The Sherman Firefly was a tank used by the United Kingdom and some armoured formations of other Allies in the Second World War. It was based on the US M4 Sherman, but was fitted with the more powerful 3-inch (76.2 mm) calibre British 17- ...
(called
Velikiye Luki
Velikiye Luki ( rus, Вели́кие Лу́ки, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪjə ˈlukʲɪ; lit. ''great meanders''. Г. П. Смолицкая. "Топонимический словарь Центральной России". "Армада-П ...
, as A Squadron's tanks were named after towns in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
), had yet to fire his gun in action. With the Tiger tanks in range, the order was given to fire. What followed was an almost 12-minute battle that saw Ekins destroying all three Tigers that '3 Troop' could see (there were seven Tiger tanks in the area heading north, along with some other tanks and self-propelled guns).
A short time later, the main German counter-attack was made in the direction of C Squadron. A Squadron (less Sgt Gordon, who had been wounded and had already bailed out of the Firefly) moved over to support them and in the resulting combat, Ekins destroyed a
Panzer IV
The ''Panzerkampfwagen'' IV (Pz.Kpfw. IV), commonly known as the ''Panzer'' IV, was a German medium tank developed in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 161.
The Panze ...
before his tank was hit and the crew was forced to bail out. After the battle, Ekins was reassigned to another tank within the squadron as a radio operator and remained in this position for the rest of the war.
Speculation surrounding Wittmann’s death
After the war, Wittmann's death was attributed to
1st Polish Armoured Division
The Polish 1st Armoured Division (Polish ''1 Dywizja Pancerna'') was an armoured division of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. Created in February 1942 at Duns in Scotland, it was commanded by Major General Stanisław Macze ...
, the
4th Canadian Armoured Division
Fourth or the fourth may refer to:
* the ordinal form of the number 4
* ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971
* Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision
* Fourth (music), a musical interval
* ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...
, the
144th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps and the
Second Tactical Air Force
The RAF Second Tactical Air Force (2TAF) was one of three tactical air forces within the Royal Air Force (RAF) during and after the Second World War. It was made up of squadrons and personnel from the RAF, other British Commonwealth air forces, ...
,
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
. Reid examined these claims and dismissed them based on the units' war diaries.
In a 1985 issue of ''After the Battle Magazine'', Les Taylor, a wartime member of the 1st Northamptonshire Yeomanry, claimed that Ekins was responsible for the destruction of Wittmann's tank. Veteran and historian Ken Tout, a member of the same unit, also published a similar account crediting Ekins. Historians have supported this position and it is the widely accepted version of events. According to Hart, Ekins's unit was positioned in a wood on the right flank of the advancing Tiger tanks. At approximately 12:47, they engaged them, halting the attack and killing Wittmann.
Reid postulates that A Squadron of the Sherbrooke Fusilier Regiment,
2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade
The 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the Canadian Army that saw active service during World War II. The brigade was composed of the 6th, 10th and 27th Canadian Armoured regiments and saw service in northwest Europe, landin ...
, positioned on the left flank of the advancing German tanks, was responsible instead. Situated on the grounds of a
château
A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions.
Nowaday ...
at Gaumesnil, the unit had created firing holes in the walls and engaged the advancing German tanks, including Tigers. The British tanks were between and away from the German line of advance, whereas the Canadian squadron was around away.
Later life
After the war, Ekins returned to Rushden, Northamptonshire and went back to work in the shoe factories near his home town. He retired 34 years later, after becoming a manager of one of the factories. He married and had two children.
Footnotes
Sources
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External links
Tank Museum veteran podcasts includes two by Ekins
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ekins, Joe
1923 births
2012 deaths
British Yeomanry soldiers
British Army personnel of World War II
People from Rushden
Tank personnel
Northamptonshire Yeomanry soldiers