He was the son of Oscar John Smith, a Post Office Clerk, who had served in the First World War from 1914 with the Royal Engineers Postal Section.
Cyril married Phyllis Mary Treasure on 22 Sep 1939. Their son Michael was born in 1942.
| Unit or location | Role | Posted from | until |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Dorset Scout Section | Scout Section Sergeant | 07 Mar 1941 | 22 Jun 1944 |
Cotham Secondary School, Bristol
Accounts Clerk for Quarry owner
Cyril's first military experience was with the Officer Training Corps at his school in 1927-1929. He had served before the war in the Territorial Army, enlisting with 241st Field Battery, Royal Artillery on 9 Jan 1934 as Private 834234. The Battery were based in Bristol, Cyril's then home. After attending the annual camp in 1934, he remained with them until 27 May 1936, when he was discharged at his own request.
He enlisted in the Wiltshire Regiment in June 1940, shortly after Dunkirk. He attended the Regimental Depot at Le Marchant Barracks at Devizes in Wiltshire for his basic training. His service record states that he was 5 foot 11 inches tall, weighing 133 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. He was medically rated A1, the highest category. He was promoted to unpaid Lance Corporal on 12 Nov 1940.
On 7 Mar 1941 he is recorded as being posted for Special Duties (Auxiliary Units). On 3 Jul 1941 he was promoted to Corporal.
Promoted to Sergeant he became the senior non-commissioned officer in the Scout Section. On 22 Jun 1944, he was struck of the strength of Auxiliary Units and a week later was permanently attached to the 8th Battalion the Devon Regiment. On 28 Aug 1944 he was sent to Europe as part of a reinforcement draft and returned to the 4th Battalion the Wiltshire Regiment on 6 Sep. Wounded in the head on 3 Oct he remained with his unit. He was killed in action in Europe on Valentine's Day 1945.
After his death, Group Commander Fortnum wrote to his Patrol leaders as follows;
Bloxsworth,
Wareham,
April 20th 1945
Dear
Sgt Smith I/C Scout Section was killed in action last month. He leaves a widow & three small children in a bad way.
It has been suggested that all Groups might like to subscribe a donation to the widow, and acting on this assumption to save time I have sent to Maj Wilson, who will make one cheque to the whole amount. I have allowed for 10/- per patrol in addition to myself.
Will you let me have your donation in due course.
G Fortnum
https://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/2041998/smith,-cyril/
John Pidgeon (Fortnum archive)