POW killed by wounds more than 60 years later

8:28am Thursday 2nd August 2007

Comments (5)   Have your say »

A war hero has died from horrific injuries inflicted by Nazi torturers more than 60 years ago.

Peter Vernon-Ward had his legs smashed by rifle butts while in a prisoner of war camp in Poland in 1939.

Three years ago the wounds ruptured and doctors warned him he would be slowly poisoned unless one of his legs was amputated.

Brave Peter refused the operation but the poison has now finally cost him his life as he slept. He was 86.

Peter joined the Second World War effort at the age of 17 and was sent to Dunkirk, in France, as part of a decoy operation.

But the fresh-faced soldier was captured almost immediately alongside 1,000 other men and sent on a gruelling march to a work camp near Auschwitz.

Many of his fellow men died during the ordeal which became known as the "death march" but for those who survived the horror was just beginning.

Peter was told by the Nazis he would work digging in mines near the Auschwitz concentration camp. But the young soldier refused and was tortured by Gestapo henchmen who smashed his legs with their rifles.

In agony Peter eventually relented for fear of being shot and spent five years working in the mines.

What his torturers did not know was that Peter and a fellow captive were hatching an escape plan - and one night burst free from their prison.

After weeks on the run, hiding in farmland barns and being helped by kindly local families, Peter spotted an American patrol and knew his ordeal was over.

He was brought back to England on a US troop carrier, and after the war settled in Hassocks with his new bride Eileen. The couple had five children and moved to Patcham, Brighton, where Peter worked as a store executive and later an accounts manager.

More than 50 years later the ulcers in Peter's legs, caused by the Nazi torture, perforated. Doctors advised the grandad his suffering would be eased if part of his leg was amputated, but Peter refused the operation.

He was nursed by his devoted wife until he died, on Sunday, at their bungalow in Hassocks.

Peter's son, Bob Vernon-Ward, a well known antiques expert and musician, today paid tribute to his father.

He said: "He was such a determined and dignified man and there was no way he was going to give in to the enemy and have his legs amputated all those years later.

"He even refused painkillers right up until he died, despite being in agony a lot of the time. I would like to say thanks to all the carers who looked after him over the past three years.

"My dad had nightmares every day of his life but never talked to me about what happened during the war until a couple of years ago.

"He was a strict but fair father and his strength of spirit and Christian belief lives in all of us.

"He was a very meticulous man and wore a tie every day. To me he had the inner strength of 100 men. He was a hero and we salute him."

His family said Peter had a passion for cricket and bowls and loved motoring and gardening. He could often be seen attending war memorial services in Sussex.

Peter is survived by his wife Eileen, son Bob, daughters Chrissie, Amy, Caroline and Susie and 11 grandchildren.

A funeral service will be held at St Cosmas and St Damian church in Keymer, near Hassocks, on Tuesday at 2pm.