John worked as a Valet in peacetime, having served in the Durham Light Infantry since 28th April 1924, being brought back to active service in the war, earning this medal as a “Territorial” part time soldier with 6th Bn before the war in 1937.

He served in the war in France with B Company, 10th Battalion Durham Light Infantry.

His German POW records with photographs show capture at Frevent on 19th May 1940, British POW records at Arras on 20th May 1940.

A good article with maps etc regarding the 10th DLI during these days can be read below by the Evenwood Ramshaw and District History Society

The 10th Battalion was hurried over to France on 25th April 1940, as a labour division, under strength, under equipped and under trained.

They would become swept up by the German “Blitzkrieg”, the 7th Panzer Division in particular were the ones who captured most of the 10th Bn DLI Men.

Being part of B Company, he would have been hit with C Company to the east of Ficheux, which lead to about 171 men killed or died of wounds and 868 men captured from the 70th Brigade.

In total from just the 10th DLI, there were about 37 men, 2 officers and 35 other ranks killed or died of wounds, and amongst Warburton was about 268 men and 14 officers captured.

The men were promptly taken back to German territory, specifically to “Camp XXIB” at Poznan in German Occupied Poland from June 1940 to December 1940.

Warburton would then be transferred to “Camp XXID 4” in Poland from December 1940 to June 1941.

He was then taken back to Germany, spending the rest of the war, until the allies reached Germany at Bau Ar Beit 21 at Blechhammer in Germany from 13th January 1942 – January 1945.

He was placed in a working camp and also sent to “Kommando” Working parties.

“B. A. B. 21” was not a pleasant place to be, Blechhammer, not part of modern Polish Kiedzierzyn-Kozle, was at the time being established as an imporant chemical manufacturing plant producing synthetic fuel for the Wehrmacht.

Many thousands of forced labourers, a mixed bunch of British Soldiers, Russian Soldiers, French Soldiers, Polands, Ukrainians and Jewish Prisoners were put to work there.

As the Allies worked there way through France and into Germany in early 1945, the camp was mostly abandoned, Warburton notes he left BAB 21 in January 1945, the same month that the prisoners still there were evacuated and forced to march for weeks on end to other camps.

He was at some time free’d from captivity during 1945, and signed off his POW Questionnaire on 11th May 1945.