Uncle Jack: Saved by his Bible on D-Day

Corps Treasurer Gwen Smedley (Caterham) and Jackie Hopkins share the story of Uncle Jack and his D-Day Bible.

John Moyes – known as Jack – was born in 1918 into a Salvationist family in the Fulham area of London, soldiering at Walham Green Corps. When he was in his late teens, Jack and his brother, Stewart, attended South Croydon Corps, where they both played in the band. Jack later transferred to Caterham before enlisting in the armed forces on 16 July 1939, aged 21.

Standing at 5ft 10in tall, Jack was a gentle giant.

He joined the 7th Armoured Division, famously known as the ‘Desert Rats’, serving under the command of Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery in the Western Desert Campaign in North Africa during the Second World War. The division fought in key engagements of that conflict, including in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and participating in the Allied liberation of Italy. The division was then withdrawn and dispatched to Britain to prepare for the Battle of Normandy.

Between 1939 and 1946, Jack enjoyed six opportunities for leave. During one of these he married his wife, Carrie, who was from Belfast. Carrie remembered him returning home and not recognising him as he walked through the door: he had developed alopecia and had not a hair on his head.

At 7.25am on 6 June 1944, Jack was part of the first wave in the Normandy landings. Disembarking his landing craft, Jack waded through the water and on to the beach among a flak of bullets and shelling. Once he had reached a safe spot, he noticed he had been shot. He opened up the bag worn around his chest to find a bullet had gone through the canvas, through his daily reading book, covered by thick cardboard, and into the pig skin cover of his Bible, where it stopped at the last few pages. The Bible had saved his life.

Surviving the Normandy landings, Jack continued his military service through western Europe and into Germany. In May 1946, Jack was demobilised and sent home.

Jack continued to soldier at Caterham Corps, where he served as corps sergeant-major, Scout master and young people’s band leader. He also played in the band.

He never really spoke about his time at war. His D-Day experience was known to Carrie, but the rest of the family had no idea. One day, Carrie was having a meal with Gwen, her niece, and the family when Carrie showed them the Bible. While she was revealing this, Carrie’s great niece, Jackie, was in Normandy at that very moment, on the same beach Jack had landed on.

In the years since, Jack’s family has taken his Bible back to Normandy for a D-Day anniversary commemoration and shown it to both British and American veterans. It is treasured by Jackie, along with Jack’s military papers and medals. Recently it was displayed at Caterham Corps to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings.

Jack passed away when he was only 61 years of age, but he led a happy and good Christian life, impacting the lives of many people, both young and old.