Moncton man says more should know of uncle who fought with famed WW II Devil's Brigade
Kent Robinson says more New Brunswickers should know the name Lt.-Col. Thomas Cail MacWilliam.
Robinson's uncle died in the Second World War while serving in the Devil's Brigade, an elite commando unit with both Canadian and Americans soldiers that served as the model for the U.S. Navy SEALS.
MacWilliam led an attack up a mountain and through a heavy firefight with German soldiers, according to history of the unit.
"I think New Brunswick and Moncton should be very proud of MacWilliam," Robinson told Information Morning Moncton.
MacWilliam was born Feb. 16, 1915 in Cails Mills, north of Moncton, and enlisted in July 1940 in Saint John.
MacWilliam was a New Brunswick Ranger when the Second World War began. He was seconded to the First Special Service Force, which became known as the Devil's Brigade. The force's members were trained in parachute jumping, mountain climbing and skiing.
Robinson said his uncle was deployed to the Aleutian Islands in 1943. The chain of Alaskan islands had been invaded by the Japanese, but they had already retreated by the time MacWilliam was deployed.
A few months later, the force was deployed to Italy and tasked with taking mountains held by the Germans. MacWilliam fought in the attack on Monta La Defensa. The 3,140-foot high mountain needed to be captured before an advance to Rome.
Climbed steep cliffs
The battle began in early December 1943. About 75,000 artillery rounds were fired on the crests and approaches of the mountain, according to a history on the U.S. Army Special Operations Command website.
Soldiers climbed the final 500 feet up steep cliffs in the dark, coming up behind the German positions as dawn approached.
After what was described as firefights in close quarters, the Germans abandoned their positions and escaped down the mountain. The following days saw constant constant rain, snow and freezing temperatures with German shelling and counter-attacks. The battle was the basis for the 1968 movie The Devil's Brigade.
The unit's history says that of the 3,000 men involved, 73 were killed, 313 wounded and nine missing in action.
A mortar round killed MacWilliam on Dec. 3, 1943.
The Moncton Daily Times reported his death Dec. 15, 1943, noting MacWilliam had advanced quickly through the ranks, becoming one of the youngest Canadian officers to attain his rank.
The 28-year-old left behind a pregnant wife, Harriet Newcombe MacWilliam, and a son he never met.
He's buried in the Cassino War Cemetery, about 120 kilometres southeast of Rome, where there are more than 4,200 Commonwealth graves, according to Veterans Affairs Canada.
Building named in his memory
Robinson said MacWilliam's widow was called a few years before her death and invited to Fort Bragg in North Carolina. It's the largest army base in the United States and home of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command.
She was there in November 1992 with her son, Thomas A. MacWilliam, as the 3rd Special Forces Group dedicated its headquarters building to the Canadian officer, naming it MacWilliam Hall.
A 1993 publication noted the two assisted the 3rd Group commander in unveiling a portrait of MacWilliam. The commander said the special forces traces its lineage directly to the Devil's Brigade that MacWilliam was part of, so it was appropriate to name the building in his memory.
"He's remembered and honoured in a foreign land," Robinson said of his uncle.
"But I don't think too many people in New Brunswick have heard his name and I think they should."
