News Page
January 2012
Arnhem hero's lost Military Medal medal found after 70 years!!
While looking at her Grandfathers WWII navy medals that her Mother had given to her, Sue Baker of Stafford spotted the MM of Sapper Phillip Hyatt among them. Her family had no idea how the medal came to be among her Grandfathers possessions.
The medal was damaged and missing its ribbon but Sue wanted it to be returned to the family of Sapper Hyatt. She searched the web, found this site and contacted me for assistance. I knew that Phil had died in the early 1980's but that he had family living in Australia and Canada.
In 2008 Sue Rogers, the niece of Phil Hyatt and who lives in Canada, had also found this web site while researching her family tree. Through the site I was able to help put her in touch with long lost family living in Australia.
Through this previous contact I was able to tell her of the amazing find of the original MM that had been won near Sonnenberg House in Oosterbeek . She contacted the widow of Sapper Hyatt in Australia who said that she, her niece should have the medal.
Some of the story of the medal mystery is slowly unfolding. Both the family of Phil Hyatt and Sue Baker lived many years ago in Brighton UK, not far from each other. After he had been presented with the medal at Buckingham Palace Sapper Hyatt gave the medal to his Mother to keep. Some years later the Hyatt family became estranged and Phil Hyatt emigrated to Australia. There is still no explanation though of how the medal left the family.
Phil Hyatt visited Arnhem in 1982 and about that time gave his medals to the Hartenstein Museum in Oosterbeek. The MM is probably a re-issued copy.
I went to the National Memorial Arboretum to meet Sue Baker and see the medal before it was sent on to Canada and re-united with the appreciative and proud family members.
January 2012
A temporary site search facility has been added to a number of pages while the site is updated generally
January 2012
Site Name URL www.4parasqnre.co.uk now re-instated
