BUCKLER, Kenneth George

Kenneth was born 1918 in Newport to Albert George & Elsie Emily (nee NEWBERY) BUCKLER of 2 St James’ Street, Newport.

The Western Desert campaign was fought between the Commonwealth forces all based in Egypt, & the Axis forces (German & Italian) based in Libya. The battlefield, across which the fighting surged back & forth between 1940 & 1942, was the 1,000 kilometres of desert between Alexandria in Egypt & Benghazi in Libya. It was a campaign of manoeuvre & movement, the objectives being the control of the Mediterranean, the link with the east through the Suez Canal, the Middle East oil supplies & the supply route to Russia through Persia.

Kenneth, a regular soldier, in a mechanised unit, was listed as Missing In Action presumed Killed in the desert, during fierce fighting near El Agheila on the 14th February 1941, aged 22. He is commemorated on the Alamein Memorial to The Missing together with 11,868 of his missing Second World War comrades.

Kenneth is also remembered on the Newport Borough War Memorial.