TO commemorate the 1940’s bravery of old soldiers who served in the Worcestershire Regiment during the Second World War, the call has gone out for volunteers with very 21st century skills.

June 6 this year is the 75th anniversary of D-Day – the massive hit-back at Hitler military operation in which the regiment played a central role – and to mark the milestone the Mercian Regiment Museum (Worcestershire) is creating a biographical database of all those soldiers who served with the Worcesters during WW2, in whatever theatre or capacity.

Museum curator Dr John Paddock, said: “To that end we need help. We are seeking to recruit some dedicated volunteers to assist us in collating and processing this information. We need individuals who are enthusiastic and have basic IT skills, with an eye for detail. Full training and support will be given to anyone who answers the call.”

The Worcestershire Regiment was in the vanguard of the D-Day invasion of Normandy. It fought its way from the landing beach at Arromanches through the street fighting in Mouen – where the 1st Battalion’s capture of the town was described as “one of the slickest attacks of the war” - to become the first Allied troops across the River Seine at Vernon.

Meanwhile on the other side of the world, the 2nd and 7th Battalions of the Worcestershire Regiment played an important role in Battles of Imphal and Kohima.

Fought between March 8 and July 18, 1944, these were the turning points of one of the most gruelling campaigns of the Second World War. The decisive Japanese defeat in north-east India became the springboard for the Fourteenth Army’s subsequent re-conquest of Burma.

Kohima is often referred to as the “Stalingrad of the East”.

Faced by 15,000 Japanese, the British-Indian troops commanded by Col. Hugh Richards of the Worcestershire Regiment held a tight defensive perimeter centred on Garrison Hill. Between 5 and 18 April, Kohima saw some of the bitterest close-quarter fighting of the war.

In one sector, only the width of the town’s tennis court separated the two sides and when on April 18 the relief forces of the British 2nd Division arrived, Col Richards’ defensive perimeter was reduced to a shell-shattered area only 350 metres square.

Anyone interested in volunteering for the Mercian Regiment Museum should call 01905 721982 or email museummercian@btconnect.com.