Guy Branch
Encyclopedia
Flying Officer Guy Rawstron Branch EGM
(1913–1940) was a Royal Air Force fighter pilot, one of The Few
he was killed in action on 11 August 1940. After his death the next-of-kin were obliged to exchange his Empire Gallantry Medal
for a George Cross
which had been created in 1940.
, the son of Charles Churchill Branch and Mary Madelaine Bernadette Branch (née Rawstron). He was educated at Eton
and Balliol College, Oxford
. On 7 May 1937 he was commissioned as Pilot Officer in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force
. On 25 March 1939 in Lewes
he married Lady Prudence Mary Pelham, daughter of the 6th Earl of Chichester
.
. Branch escaped but then returned to the aircraft to free the trapped pilot and pull him clear. For his actions he was awarded the Empire Gallantry Medal
on the 25 March 1938
Branch by then a Flying Officer was a Hawker Hurricane
pilot with 145 Squadron
. On the 8 August 1940 he was credited with destroying two Junkers Ju 87
s. A few days later on 11 August 1940 while flying Hurricane serial number
P9251 he was killed in action over the English channel.
Branch was buried in the churchyard at Quiberville
, France
. His name recorded on the Battle of Britain Monument in London
and at the Battle of Britain Memorial, Capel-le-Ferne
.
Empire Gallantry Medal
The Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry, usually known as the Empire Gallantry Medal , was a British medal awarded for acts of the highest civilian gallantry . King George V introduced it on 29 December 1922...
(1913–1940) was a Royal Air Force fighter pilot, one of The Few
The Few
The Few is a term used to describe the Allied airmen of the Royal Air Force who fought the Battle of Britain in the Second World War. It comes from Winston Churchill's phrase "Never, in the field of human conflict, was so much owed by so many to so few"....
he was killed in action on 11 August 1940. After his death the next-of-kin were obliged to exchange his Empire Gallantry Medal
Empire Gallantry Medal
The Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry, usually known as the Empire Gallantry Medal , was a British medal awarded for acts of the highest civilian gallantry . King George V introduced it on 29 December 1922...
for a George Cross
George Cross
The George Cross is the highest civil decoration of the United Kingdom, and also holds, or has held, that status in many of the other countries of the Commonwealth of Nations...
which had been created in 1940.
Early life
Branch was born in 1913 in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, the son of Charles Churchill Branch and Mary Madelaine Bernadette Branch (née Rawstron). He was educated at Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
. On 7 May 1937 he was commissioned as Pilot Officer in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force
Royal Auxiliary Air Force
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force , originally the Auxiliary Air Force , is the voluntary active duty reserve element of the Royal Air Force, providing a primary reinforcement capability for the regular service...
. On 25 March 1939 in Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
he married Lady Prudence Mary Pelham, daughter of the 6th Earl of Chichester
Earl of Chichester
Earl of Chichester is a title that has been created three times in British history. It was created for the first time in the Peerage of England in 1644 when Francis Leigh, 1st Baron Dunsmore, was made Earl of Chichester, in the County of Sussex, with remainder to his son-in-law Thomas Wriothesley,...
.
Accident and award
On 8 January 1938 Branch was a student pilot was flying as a passenger in a Hawker Demon with Pilot Officer Crawley when it crashed and burst into flames at RAF UpavonRAF Upavon
The former Royal Air Force Station Upavon, more commonly known as RAF Upavon, was a grass airfield, military flight training school, and administrative headquarters of the Royal Air Force....
. Branch escaped but then returned to the aircraft to free the trapped pilot and pull him clear. For his actions he was awarded the Empire Gallantry Medal
Empire Gallantry Medal
The Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry, usually known as the Empire Gallantry Medal , was a British medal awarded for acts of the highest civilian gallantry . King George V introduced it on 29 December 1922...
on the 25 March 1938
Battle of Britain
During the Battle of BritainBattle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
Branch by then a Flying Officer was a Hawker Hurricane
Hawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...
pilot with 145 Squadron
No. 145 Squadron RAF
No. 145 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron that operated during World War I, World War II and the Cold War. Its motto was Diu noctuque pugnamus .-History:...
. On the 8 August 1940 he was credited with destroying two Junkers Ju 87
Junkers Ju 87
The Junkers Ju 87 or Stuka was a two-man German ground-attack aircraft...
s. A few days later on 11 August 1940 while flying Hurricane serial number
United Kingdom military aircraft serials
In the United Kingdom to identify individual aircraft, all military aircraft are allocated and display a unique serial number. A unified serial number system, maintained by the Air Ministry , and its successor the Ministry of Defence , is used for aircraft operated by the Royal Air Force , Fleet...
P9251 he was killed in action over the English channel.
Branch was buried in the churchyard at Quiberville
Quiberville
Quiberville is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.-Geography:A village of tourism and farming situated by the mouth of the river Saâne in the Pays de Caux at the junction of the D2, the D75 and the D127 roads, some west of Dieppe...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. His name recorded on the Battle of Britain Monument in London
Battle of Britain Monument in London
The Battle of Britain Monument in London is a sculpture on the Victoria Embankment overlooking the River Thames in central London, England which pays tribute to those who took part in the Battle of Britain during World War II...
and at the Battle of Britain Memorial, Capel-le-Ferne
Battle of Britain Memorial, Capel-le-Ferne
The Battle of Britain Memorial is a monument to aircrew who flew in the Battle of Britain. It is sited on the White Cliffs at Capel-le-Ferne, near Folkestone, on the coast of Kent. It was initiated by the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust, and opened by the Queen Mother on July 9 1993...
.