Footballer. A serving soldier n WW2, he was taken prisoner and sent to a camp in Italy. He volunteered to be an engineer, but found himself being sent to Auschwitz concentration camp. Here he witnessed the atrocities being meted out to most inmates.
As a British prisoner of war he was treated more leniently and had Sundays as days off work. He played as goalkeeper in the Auschwitz Football League. At the end of the war, as the allied forces were closing in on Poland, he and other prisoners were marched 900 miles into Czechoslovakia, and finally to Austria, where they were liberated by the Americans.
He eventually returned to his native Wales, where with the help of his wife, he recovered from the nightmares, nerve problems and paranoia brought on by his experiences.
Information from WalesOnline.
Ronald William Godfrey Jones was born on 30 April 1917 in Rogerstone, Monmouthshire, Wales, the eldest of the five children of William George Jones (1891-1955) and Daisy Jones née Derrick (1894-1982). His birth was registered in the 2nd quarter of 1917 in the Newport registration district, Monmouthshire.
His siblings were twins Leslie Charles Jones (1919-2003) and Melville James Jones (1919-1973), Doris Irene Jones (1920-2011) and Linda Dorothy Jones (1923-2001).
His marriage to Gladys Lilian Huggins (1916-2005) was registered in the 3rd quarter of 1938 in the Caerleon registration district, Monmouthshire and in the 1939 England and Wales Register they are shown as living at 32 St Edward Street, Newport, Monmouthshire, with his occupation being recorded as a 'wirer, wire nail machine'.
During World War Two he served as a Lance Corporal in the 1st Battalion, Welch Regiment. He was captured in 1942 while fighting in Libya and after nine months as a prisoner of war in Italy he was transferred to forced labour camp E715, part of the Auschwitz complex in Poland. He was awarded the 1939-1945 Star, the Africa Star and the War Medal 1939-1945.
The birth of their son, Leighton G. Jones, was registered in the 3rd quarter of 1946 in the Newport registration district and telephone directories between 1972 and 1984 list an R. W. G. Jones at 4 Highfield Road, Bassaleg, Newport, Monmouthshire.
As the Chairman of the Bassaleg and Rhiwderin Branch of the Royal British Legion he was awarded the British Empire Medal in the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours List for voluntary service to ex-Service personnel and their families.
He died, aged 102 years, on 8 September 2019 at the Royal Gwent Hospital, Cardiff Road, Newport, NP20 2UB. His funeral service was held at St Basil's Church, Bassaleg, on 3 October 2019 followed by a committal at the Gwent Crematorium.
Credit for this entry to: Alan Patient of www.plaquesoflondon.co.uk and Andrew Behan.
