King, Private Arthur Sydney

Service highlights

  • Service number: A11526
  • Rank: Private
  • Born: 20 December 1920 in Sheffield, England
  • Family: Son of John Joseph King and Edith Hope King
  • Came to Canada: 1929, settling in Usborne Township near Kirkton
  • Enlisted: 28 September 1939 with The Perth Regiment at Stratford
  • Overseas: Sailed with the regiment to England in October 1941
  • Transferred: 1 June 1943 to 1 Canadian Special Base Depot
  • Mediterranean: Sailed 7 June 1943 and disembarked at the Canadian Depot in Algeria on 13 July 1943
  • Posted forward: 31 August 1943 to The Saskatoon Light Infantry, serving with 1st Canadian Infantry Division
  • Killed in action: 23 October 1943 during the fighting at the Biferno River crossing in Italy
  • Burial: Moro River Canadian War Cemetery
  • Commemorated: St. Marys Town Hall World War II plaque and the St. Marys Cenotaph bronze plaque

A Life and Service Remembered

Arthur Sydney King was born in Sheffield, England, on 20 December 1920. His father, John Joseph King, died not long afterward from wounds he had received during the First World War. In 1929, Arthur came to Canada with his mother and settled near Kirkton. After school, he worked on his stepfather’s farm, the kind of steady work that quietly shapes a person.

He enlisted with the Perth Regiment at Stratford on 28 September 1939 and trained in Canada before sailing to England in October 1941 where they continued their training. By the spring of 1943, preparations were underway for the invasion of Sicily and Italy, and reinforcements were urgently needed. Arthur was moved into the reinforcement system, transferred on 1 June 1943 to 1 Canadian Special Base Depot, then sent into the Mediterranean. He disembarked at the Canadian Depot in Algeria on 13 July 1943, and by 31 August he was forwarded to the Saskatoon Light Infantry.

The Saskatoon Light Infantry served as a support battalion, built around medium machine guns and heavy mortars that could be allocated where the division needed extra firepower. That meant Arthur’s service was shaped by constant movement and urgent calls for help rather than the clear lines of a single battalion’s story.

In September 1943, he took part in the pursuit of German forces up the toe of Italy. In October, the fighting pushed through places like Motta, San Marco, and Campobasso. On 23 October 1943, the 2nd Canadian Infantry Brigade waded across the Biferno River to try to capture the villages of Colle d’Anchise and Spinete. What followed was bitter and confusing, with heavy congestion at the crossings and intense mortar fire falling on the support elements trying to get over. In the middle of that chaos, Arthur was killed, likely by enemy mortars.

He was buried in the Moro River Canadian War Cemetery in Italy. He was survived by his stepfather, T. Foley, his mother, Edith Hope Foley, and his stepsister, Doris May Foley.

Major battles and operations

  • Home service and training: Enlisted with the Perth Regiment in 1939, trained in Canada, then served in England from October 1941
  • Reinforcement movement for the Mediterranean: Transfer to 1 Canadian Special Base Depot on 1 June 1943, then onward via Algeria in July 1943
  • Service with Saskatoon Light Infantry: Support battalion role providing machine gun and mortar support under divisional control
  • Italian Campaign, September 1943: Pursuit of German forces up the toe of Italy
  • Italy, October 1943: Motta, San Marco, and Campobasso fighting
  • Biferno River crossing, 23 October 1943: Attack toward Colle d’Anchise and Spinete, heavy mortaring at the crossings, killed in action

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