Documents recently unearthed reveal details about the final 24 hours of Eric Fletcher Waters, the father of Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters who died in Italy’s Battle of Anzio on Feb. 18, 1944.
The documents, from the National Archives in Kew, were discovered by World War II veteran Harry Shindler, 93, who started his research after learning of Roger’s recent trip to Italy to pay tribute to his father.
“I was very moved that he wanted to find out more about his father’s death and the circumstances of how he was killed,” Shindler tells the Daily Mail.” I don’t know who Pink Floyd are, my music stops at The Beatles.”
The remains of Eric Waters, a second lieutenant with Z Company of the Royal Fusiliers, were never recovered. But his name is on a memorial in Cassino, Italy, commemorating the fallen soldiers.
An entry in the War Diary made at 11:30 a.m. Feb. 18, 1944, reads: “Lt Waters killed and Lt Hill wounded, situation now critical. Message received over air that assistance would now be too late.”
The younger Waters wrote about the battle in “When the Tigers Broke Free” from the film “Pink Floyd The Wall,” and later a part of Pink Floyd’s “The Final Cut” album.
Read more about the battle at the Daily News website.
