Roy Mills Death; After almost three years as a prisoner of war, a Korean War veteran died a few weeks before his 93rd birthday. After six days of fierce battle at the Battle of Imjin River, Cinderford’s Roy Mills was captured. He was Gloucester’s Glorious Glosters’ oldest surviving veteran. Kenny Durham of the Gloucestershire regiment’s Forest of Dean Branch called his acquaintance “remarkable character”.
Imjin River, fought 22–25 April 1951, was a turning point in the Korean War. About 4,000 British 29th Brigade troops, including 700 from 1st Battalion, The Gloucestershire Regiment, fought over 27,000 Chinese 63rd Army soldiers. About 400 Glosters fought a desperate stand on Hill 235, later nicknamed Gloster Hill. The Gloster Hill standoff gave UN forces time to regroup and stop the Chinese push on Seoul.
Gloucestershire Museum Soldiers Gloucestershire Museum’s Gloster Hill Soldiers in black and white.
At Gloster Hill, 400 soldiers fought until their ammo ran out. People gathered at the cenotaph in Cinderford, Mr. Mills’ hometown, in September 2023 to honour him. Starvation, torture, and sickness plagued the soldier until his 1953 release. “He was one of the unfortunate soldiers to be captured and spent a gruelling time under the Chinese care,” he claimed. Roy probably deserved a bravery award in battle.
“Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and it was thought that we should do something for him,” he said. Roy outlived 15 valiant Forest of Dean troops. Eight suit-clad guys hold huge flags on a local street. September saw a Cinderford centre event honouring Mr. Mills. Mr. Mills volunteered to climb down the hill and bring back water to nourish the men and cool rifle barrels during the siege.
“Our dad offered to descend the hill with jerry cans on his back. “They couldn’t survive without water,” claimed his son Kenny Mills. The Glosters received the Presidential Unit Citation, the highest US medal for bravery in battle, for their heroics during the Battle of the Imjin River.
