Guardsman Thomas Begbie
Survivor of WW2
Date of Death:
Service Biography
Thomas Begbie was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, on 3 July 1910. He married Verda Janet McCartney and farmed in the Ormstown area before enlisting at Montreal on 2 August 1940 with the Canadian Grenadier Guards. He later served with the 22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards), qualifying as a loader/operator and serving overseas in the United Kingdom and Northwest Europe. He landed in France on 5 September 1944 and later returned to Canada in July 1945. Begbie was discharged as a Guardsman on 13 September 1945. After the war he returned to the Ormstown area and was later employed as a textile mill foreman. He died at his home in Ormstown on 23 March 1967, aged 56, and was buried in Ormstown Union Cemetery on 26 March.
General Information
Conflict:
WW2
Regimental No.:
D26819
Cause of Death (in war):
Survived
Branch:
Army
Regiment:
Canadian Grenadier Guards
Battalion:
22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards)
Company:
Date of Birth :
Place of Birth:
Edinburgh, Midlothian
Date of Enlistment:
Age at Enlistment:
30 years
Date of Discharge:
Age at Discharge:
35 years 2 months
Date of Death:
Age at Death:
56 years 8 months
Country Born:
Scotland
Trade or Calling:
Farmer
Next of Kin:
Verda Janet Begbie (wife), Ormstown, Quebec
Address at Enlistment:
Ormstown, Quebec
Religion:
Presbyterian
Place of Enlistment:
Montreal, Quebec
Was a Prisoner of War:
No
Height:
5 ft 8.3 in / 173 cm
Weight:
147 lbs / 67 kg
Chest:
37.0 in / 94 cm
Expansion:
3.0 in / 8 cm
Marital Status:
Not Specified
Prior Military Experience:
No
Saw Service in:
Europe
Place of Discharge:
Montreal South, Quebec
Discharge Type:
Regular/End of Service
Discharge Notes:
Battle Died/Wounded:
Length of Service:
1868 days in service
Buried at:
Ormstown Union Cemetery, Ormstown, Quebec
Links
Ranks
| Conflict |
Rank |
Regiment |
Branch |
Unit |
Company |
Date From |
Date To |
| WW2 |
Guardsman |
Canadian Grenadier Guards |
Army |
22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards) |
|
|
|
| Reduced to permanent rank of Guardsman 8 Jul 1944; final/discharge rank. |
| WW2 |
Lance Corporal |
Canadian Grenadier Guards |
Army |
22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards) |
|
|
|
| Reverted from Acting Lance Corporal to Lance Corporal; conduct sheet confirms L/Cpl in May and July 1944. |
| WW2 |
Acting Lance Corporal |
Canadian Grenadier Guards |
Army |
22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards) |
|
|
|
| Temporary appointment. |
| WW2 |
Guardsman |
Canadian Grenadier Guards |
Army |
22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards) |
|
|
|
| Transferred to 22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment; gunner/operator / loader-operator duties. |
| WW2 |
Guardsman |
Canadian Grenadier Guards |
Army |
Canadian Grenadier Guards |
|
|
|
| Initial rank. |
| WW2 |
Guardsman |
Canadian Grenadier Guards |
Army |
|
|
|
|
Awards
| Conflict |
Award |
Action |
Date of Award |
Date of Citation |
Source |
| WW2 |
1939-45 Star |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
France and Germany Star |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Defence Medal |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp |
|
|
|
|
| WW2 |
War Medal 1939-45 |
|
|
|
|
Service Chronology
1910-07-03 — Born
1935-10-10 — Married Verda Janet McCartney
1940-08-02 — Enlisted as Guardsman D-26819
1941-04-16 — Daughter Joyce Jane Begbie born
1942-02-08 — Absent without leave; forfeited one day's pay
1942-03-16 — Taken on strength, 22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards)
1942-05-05 — Eye-clinic outpatient assessment
1942-07-15 — Qualified loader/operator, Group C
1942-09-21 to 1942-09-22 — Absent without leave
1942-09-26 — Taken on strength Canadian Army Overseas
1943-07-20 — Remustered gunner/operator 'C'
1943-10-16 — Appointed Acting Lance Corporal
1944-01-16 — Reverted to Lance Corporal
1944-05-24 — Reprimanded for neglect prejudicial to good order and military discipline
1944-07-08 — Reduced to permanent rank of Guardsman
1944-08-15 — Struck off strength to 25 Canadian Armoured Delivery Regiment
1944-08-24 — Taken on strength of 22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment from 25 Canadian Armoured Delivery Regiment
1944-09-03 — Embarked from United Kingdom
1944-09-05 — Landed in France
1945-06-26 — Struck off strength of 22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment for repatriation to Canada
1945-07-05 — Medical Board examination
1945-07-30 — Overseas service terminated / returned to Canada
1945-09-12 — Medical Board proceedings approved
1945-09-13 — Discharged as Guardsman to return to civil life on demobilization
1945-10-18 — Wartime will returned to Thomas Begbie
1967-03-23 — Died at home; occupation recorded as textile mill foreman
1967-03-26 — Buried
1995-01-05 — Military personnel file requested by Ronald T. Begbie
Notes
Born in Edinburgh and later settled in the Ormstown area. He had completed junior matriculation/Grade 13 and about six months of general studies at Daniel Stewart College in Edinburgh. Before enlistment he worked in farming, machinist work and telephone-relay inspection/testing. At discharge he intended to return to farming; by 1967 he was working as a textile mill foreman.
[Previous notes - manual reconciliation required]
Born at Edinburgh, Scotland, July 3rd. 1910.
BIRTH 3 JUL 1910 • Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland DEATH 23 MAR 1967 • Ormstown, Le Haut-Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Canada
ATIP Request confirmation number EA2026_0171020
Additional Service Notes
Served with the Canadian Grenadier Guards and 22nd Canadian Armoured Regiment (Canadian Grenadier Guards). He qualified as a loader/operator in July 1942 and later served as gunner/operator. His rank history included Acting Lance Corporal and Lance Corporal before he was reduced to Guardsman in July 1944. He served 1,038 qualifying overseas days, with service in the United Kingdom and Northwest Europe, landing in France on 5 September 1944. He returned to Canada in July 1945 and was discharged as Guardsman on 13 September 1945.
[Previous notes - manual reconciliation required]
Additional Next of Kin Notes
Wife: Verda Janet Begbie (née McCartney), married 10 October 1935, wartime next of kin. Children documented in the service file include son Herbert Ronald Thomas Begbie and daughter Joyce Jane Begbie, born at Ormstown 16 April 1941. Mother Mary Begbie, a widow, lived at 13 Church Street, Lennoxville, Quebec. The father's name is not stated in the reviewed file. The 1967 obituary names children Ronald, Joyce, Sandra and Dale.
Version: 3 Last modified: 2026-09-20 03:07:40
by: marc
