King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry
Born: 19th May 1926.
Story
Denis was the son of Harold Hall (1901-1977) and Sarah Ann Howson (1899-1973), who had married in Garforth on 30th October 1920. Their first son was Leslie Hall who also served in the army for ten years, including throughout the Second World War, in which he was held as a prisoner of war for three years. Denis had three uncles from Garforth who served in the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, including Tom Howson who was killed 27th September 1915, and his brother Frank who was shot in the back, and had to use a wheelchair after the War. Another of Denis’s maternal uncles Frank Howson served in the Second World War, and lost a leg in Italy. Frank also won the British Empire Medal, on 29th June 1944.
Denis was educated at Kippax Council School, and used to play cricket for Kippax, and was an excellent fielder in the Barkston Ash League. He worked at Peckfield Colliery, Micklefield as a haulage hand. The family lived at 12 School Lane before the War, and then moved to 35 Sandgate Terrace.
On 24th May 1950, whilst serving in Penang, Malaya, a terrorist threw a hand grenade through an open N.A.A.F.I. (Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes) canteen window. Denis saw the grenade roll under the table, retrieved it, and threw it back out through the window. The room was full at the time due to a dance being held, and a game of billiards being played. Denis was watching the game of billiards, and such was the speed with which he acted, most people in the room were unaware that anything had happened. The grenade failed to explode outside. This event was news to his father Harold, who said that Denis had wrote letters home about his leisure time pursuits, descriptions of places, and vague references to military operations, but he’d never mentioned anything about the hand grenade. He added to the Yorkshire Post: “I am not surprised, knowing him. He is quiet, but sharp as a needle.” He later added that whilst he was a capable, left-handed batsman, he excelled as a fielder, which probably helped with the grenade.
His mother Sarah added that Denis had always disliked fuss, which explained his reluctance to even take credit for the incidence, even going as far as to not volunteer his name when the authorities investigated the incident. Sarah was on a day trip to Bridlington when she heard the story of her son’s bravery, and said that in his last letter home, Denis had mentioned that he hoped to enter a billiards competition at the Penang N.A.A.F.I.
On 9th June 1950, shortly after he had been promoted to Corporal, it was announced that Corporal Denis Hall had been awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) for his actions on the previous month. Denis’s citation for the B.E.M. stated: “Corporal Hall showed great courage, coolness and presence of mind and his act might well have saved many lives.” He was also awarded a carton of beer as a thank you.
On 3rd August 1951, it was reported that Denis was scheduled to leave Malaya, but had informed his parents that he and his colleagues were first attending a tribute service for them all to pay their respects to those in the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry Regiment who had been killed during their campaign.
After the service, Denis was expecting to be sent to Barnard Castle, Teasdale, County Durham (pictured below) for a few days when he returned to England, and then after a month’s leave, he was expecting to go to Germany. He was a Regular Soldier and had spent 2½ years fighting in the jungles of Malaya.
After he left the Army, Denis worked as a Tester for a Copper Works in Pontefract, where he met and married Lily Thorpe (1924-2002) on 17th March 1956. Denis passed away in 1996.
Kippax Roll of Honour 