Britain at War 2013-08

LAWRENCE OF ARABIA: HIS FINEST HOUR TM

The Westland Whirlwind’s First Combats

£4.30

REAPING THE WHIRLWIND

Issue 76 AUGUST 2013

BRITAIN’S BEST SELLING MILITARY HISTORY MONTHLY

THE BATTLE OF AQABA 6 July 1917

A DUNKIRK LITTLE SHIP The Steam Tug Challenge

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Notes from the Dugout www.britainatwar.com Should you wish to correspond with any of the ‘Britain at War’ team in particular, you can find them listed below: Editor: Assistant Editor: Editorial Correspondent: Australasia Correspondent: Design:

Martin Mace John Grehan Geoff Simpson Ken Wright Martin Hebditch

Editorial Enquiries: Britain at War Magazine, Green Arbor, Rectory Road, Storrington, West Sussex, RH20 4EF or email: [email protected]. Advertising Enquiries: For all aspects of advertising in ‘Britain at War’ Magazine please contact Jill Lunn, Advertisement Sales Manager Tel: +44 (0)1780 755131 or email: [email protected]. General Enquiries: For general enquiries and advertising queries please contact the main office at: Britain at War Magazine Key Publishing Ltd PO Box 100, Stamford, Lincs, PE9 1XQ Tel: +44 (0)1780 755131 Fax: +44 (0)1780 757261 Subscriptions, Binders and Back Issues: Britain at War, Key Publishing, PO Box 300, Stamford, Lincs, PE9 1NA Email: [email protected]

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It was a chance remark at a dinner party. A relation had served alongside Lawrence of Arabia and they still had some of his papers and a collection of photographs. What a stunning collection of images they turned out to be. Some of these photographs, many of which detail the expedition in which Lance-Corporal J.W. Thomas accompanied T.E. Lawrence in his 500-mile trek across the Nefud Desert to the Red Sea port of Aqaba, form one of the main articles in this current edition – see page 61. Finds like these are not common but it does make me wonder just what other historical gems are still sitting at the back of drawers, or even in the proverbial dusty loft, awaiting discovery. I dream of stumbling upon a huge bundle of letters at a second-hand shop or a car-boot sale, tied with a frayed ribbon, untouched since 1918; or of uncovering a photograph album, with bent corners and scuffed skin, bearing the words “My War Years”. I also wonder how many such items have been lost or destroyed over the years. Families move or break apart. People die and the significance of the objects they leave behind is forgotten; the items themselves soon discarded. I remain, however, optimistic. I hope that one day I will find that bundle or that album! Martin Mace. Editor.

All newsagents are able to obtain copies of ‘Britain at War’ from their regional wholesaler. If you experience difficulties in obtaining a copy please call Seymour on +44 (0)20 7429 4000. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part and in any form whatsoever, is strictly prohibited without the prior, written permission of the Editor. Whilst every care is taken with the material submitted to ‘Britain at War’ Magazine, no responsibility can be accepted for loss or damage. Opinions expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect those of the Editor or Key Publishing Ltd. Whilst every effort had been made to contact all copyright holders, the sources of some pictures that may be used are varied and, in many cases, obscure. The publishers will be glad to make good in future editions any error or omissions brought to their attention. The publication of any quotes or illustrations on which clearance has not been given is unintentional. We are unable to guarantee the bona fides of any of our advertisers. Readers are strongly recommended to take their own precautions before parting with any information or item of value, including, but not limited to, money, manuscripts, photographs or personal information in response to any advertisements within this publication.

COVER STORY © Key Publishing Ltd., 2013

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The development of the Westland Whirlwind came from an Air Ministry specification issued in 1935. Though the Whirlwind promised to be a superior aircraft to the Hurricanes and Spitfires which were already far advanced in their development, it was not until 1938 that the first prototype was flown. As a result, much was expected of the Westland Whirlwind, especially following its first engagement with the Luftwaffe which took place at the end of December 1940 – as detailed on page 26. This month’s cover painting, by the renowned aviation artist Philip E. West, depicts Westland Whirlwind P7094, flew operational sorties with 137 Squadron before being allocated to 263 Squadron, where it carried the codes HE-T. For more information on this painting, or on the various prints that are available, please telephone The Art Studio on 01747 828810 or visit Philip’s website at: www.aviationfineart.co.uk

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Editor’s Choice:

Page 32

“THEN THE SCREAMS BEGAN” Sunday, 19 November 1944, was a cold, dark night with very low cloud and drizzle. There was no street lighting, for this was wartime, and the houses were blacked out. Many residents of the suburban community of Bickley, however, were having a good time at the dance in the Crooked Billet public house – that was, writes Jennie Randall, until 21.18 hours when a massive explosion shook the streets.

Features 26

REAPING THE WHIRLWIND

39

THE CONDOR KILLER

49

THE LESSONS OF WAR

61

LAWRENCE OF ARABIA: HIS FINEST HOUR

71

A DUNKIRK CHALLENGE

The Westland Whirlwind’s first engagement with the enemy took place at the end of December 1940, the first “kill” in the weeks that followed. Only six Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors were destroyed by the so-called “Hurricats”. Barry M. Marsden relates the story of one of those battles in the air at sea. The Second World War touched virtually every community in Britain. Amongst those that suffered death and destruction was one of the most famous names on the high street – Marks and Spencer. When T.E. Lawrence led a small band of Arabs across 500 miles of desert to capture the Red Sea port of Aqaba, his position as a daring military leader was assured. Amongst the assortment of yachts, launches and working craft of the “Little Ships” was the tug Challenge, which has been renovated and forms part of the National Historic Fleet.

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71

Regulars 77 89 95 106

UNCOVERING THE PAST: AIR RAID SHELTER EXCAVATIONS

Dr Gabriel Moshenska and Stewart Wild reveal how one archaeological project involved the excavation of a series of five public air raid shelters in Hendon.

THE TANK BANKS

To promote the sale of government War Bonds and War Savings Certificates, in 1917 and 1918 six Mark IV tanks toured the UK.

WALLS HAVE EARS, BUT WHAT IF THEY COULD TALK? Little remains to remind the visitor of one building’s use as a mess at RAF Westhampnett – that is until you make your way down into the cellar.

BOMBER COMMAND GALLANTRY: THE FRIENDLY FIRE VC

Seventy years ago, a friendly-fire incident over Turin sparked an epic struggle for survival and an official coverup. Steve Snelling charts the extraordinary flight of Stirling “O for Oboe” and her gallant crew.

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FIELDPOST

News, Restorations, Discoveries and Events from around the UK. Your letters.

KEY MOMENTS IN THE HISTORY OF THE BRITISH ARMY 8: Defeat in the West – British

prisoners of war at Dunkirk during June 1940.

55

CAMERA AT WAR

57

TANK TIMES

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DATES THAT SHAPED THE WAR

One soldier’s images taken during his service in Palestine in 1940. The latest edition of Tank Times from The Tank Museum at Bovington.

We chart some of the key moments and events that affected the United Kingdom in August 1943.

OF WAR 88 IMAGE 27 September 1939 – “Bumph Raids” Over Germany. REPORT 101 RECONNAISSANCE A look at new books and products. I WOULD SAVE IN A FIRE 114 WHAT A piece of the parachute which dropped SOE F Section agent, Yvonne Cormeau, codename Annette, in France on the night of the 22/23 August 1943.

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LORD ASHCROFT’S “HERO OF THE MONTH”: SERGEANT BRUCE OGDENSMITH DCM, MM Fewer than 200 men, mainly from the Royal Navy and Royal Engineers, served in the Combined Operations Pilotage Parties during the last three years of the Second World War. Between them they won ninety medals. Here, Lord Ashcroft examines the actions of one of those individuals, Sergeant Bruce Ogden-Smith DCM, MM, who undertook vital beach reconnaissance duties prior to the D-Day landings – such as that at Gold Beach (seen here) during Operation Bell Push Able.

Free Book!

See pages 46 and 47 Claim your FREE Evader or Pedestal book worth £7.99 when you subscribe to Britain at War magazine.

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Briefing Room

Briefing Room • News • Restorations • Discoveries • Events • Exhibitions from around the UK

RESTORED SUBMARINE UNVEILED

MPs have debated the part in the 1949 “Yangtze Incident” played by the destroyer HMS Concord, reports Philip Curtis. During the “Westminster Hall” debate, Labour MP Graeme Morrice claimed that the crew of Concord had been victims of a “cover up that may still be ongoing today”, and therefore denied recognition, because the British Government of the time had been anxious to avoid it becoming known that the ship had entered Chinese waters. He called for Concord veterans to be awarded the “Yangtze 1949” Clasp to the Naval General Service Medal. Concord assisted the escaping sloop HMS Amethyst, which, three months earlier, had been hit by Chinese People’s Liberation Army gunfire and stranded. Proposals put forward by councillors in the Buckinghamshire market town of Chesham may see a road being named in honour of a First World War Victoria Cross holder. Alfred Burt was a Corporal in the 1st Battalion Hertfordshire Regiment when, on the third day of the Battle of Loos, he undertook the actions for which he was subsequently awarded the Victoria Cross. The citation of the award includes the following: “His company had lined the front trench preparatory to an attack when a large minenwerfer bomb fell into the trench. Corporal Burt, who well knew the destructive power of this class of bomb, might easily have got under cover behind a traverse, but he immediately went forward, put his foot on the fuse, wrenched it out of the bomb and threw it over the parapet, thus rendering the bomb innocuous.” Alfred Burt died in 1962. Research by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and the Ministry of Defence has identified the grave of Company Sergeant Major Andrew Gale of The Queen’s (Royal West Surrey Regiment) in Belgian Battery Corner Cemetery, Belgium. CSM Gale was commemorated on the Tyne Cot Memorial to the Missing, but research has shown that the grave of a previously unknown CSM in this cemetery is his. CSM Gale was born in Hammersmith, enlisted in Battersea, and resided at 14 Quinton Street in Earlsfield with his wife, Olivia Emma, and their three children. He died on 28 September 1918. The CWGC and the MoD are appealing for relatives to come forward so that arrangements can be made to mark the grave with a suitable headstone. 6

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THE restoration work being undertaken on HMS Alliance, the only British submarine to remain from the Second World War and Cold War eras, was publically revealed on Friday, 5 July 2013. After decades of exposure to sea water and dampness that had caused severe corrosion, HMS Alliance, the centrepiece attraction at the Royal Navy Submarine Museum in Gosport, Hampshire, had been the subject of a £7m conservation and restoration project. The first full sight of the restored exterior was viewed by Museum staff, volunteers and former crew. Chris Munns, Director of the Royal Navy Submarine Museum, said, “This is an exciting milestone in our conservation project to

restore HMS Alliance for future generations. It was the first glimpse that submariners and our visitors have had to view the restoration work of the entire exterior of this fascinating submarine that is a major part of our maritime heritage and the memorial to the bravery and sacrifice of the 5,300 British submariners who have died in service.” The completion of the restoration to the exterior of HMS Alliance also marked the end of the second phase of the overall Alliance Conservation Project. The first phase, which was completed last summer, involved the construction of a cofferdam around the base of the submarine to ensure easy access for regular maintenance. The final phase of

works will start in the autumn of 2013, and will focus on internal conservation, new interpretation, state of the art lighting and soundscapes to bring the submarine to life. The Alliance Conservation Project will be fully completed ready for the historic submarine to be re-launched in the spring of 2014. Visitors to the Submarine Museum will be able to visit HMS Alliance throughout the summer holidays and during the internal restoration works. For more information please telephone 023 9251 0354, or visit: www.submarine-museum.co.uk

LEFT: The restored exterior of

HMS Alliance, as revealed at the beginning on 5 July 2013. (Courtesy of the Royal Navy Submarine Museum)

NEW HOME FOR CO-OP MEMORIAL A war memorial remembering Co-op employees who died in the two world wars has been moved and re-dedicated, reports Geoff Simpson. The memorial, commemorating sixty employees of what is now Anglia Co-operative, has been placed on display in the reception area at the Society’s new head office in Saville Road, Westwood, Peterborough, having been moved from the former HQ. Relatives of those who fell were joined by representatives of the Royal British Legion and Help For Heroes, as well as standard bearers from the Royal Naval Association, the Royal Air Forces Association,

the Royal Artillery and the Royal Engineers at a service conducted by the Rev Peter Denton, of All Saints’ Church, Peterborough. Amongst the sixty people who attended the ceremony was Mrs Jean Longworth, whose brother, Sergeant Harold Walker, was killed in action, aged 27, in February 1944 with The Essex Regiment and lies in the Sangro River War Cemetery. Mrs Longworth praised the ceremony and said of her brother, “I’ve never been able to go to his grave, so having this plaque brings his memory closer to home for me.” Anglia Co-operative started life in the 19th century as the Peterborough Co-operative Society. LEFT: The recently re-dedicated memorial. (Anglia Co-op)

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We welcome the submission of items of news. So if you have a story, information on an event, photograph or discovery to share then please write to us, or email us at: [email protected]

FLEET AIR ARM MUSEUM’S BATTLE OF ATLANTIC EXHIBITION UNVEILED

THE Fleet Air Arm Museum’s new exhibition telling the story of the Battle of the Atlantic, and the Fleet Air Arm’s role in it, was officially unveiled on Thursday, 11 July 2013. The ceremony was conducted by former First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Jonathon Band, who is Chairman of the National Museum of the Royal Navy, Admiral Terry Loughran, Chairman of the Fleet Air Arm Museum, and Captain Eric “Winkle” Brown CBE, DSC, AFC who, as a Martlet pilot, took part in the Battle of the Atlantic. The Fleet Air Arm Museum’s new exhibition will include a Fairey Swordfish, Fairey Fulmar and the newly restored

military campaign of the Second World War. It began on the first day of the war and continued until the German surrender in 1945. The battle to control the shipping lanes across the Atlantic involved thousands of ships and cost the lives of more than 30,000 Merchant Navy seamen. Its loss would, in all probability, have meant defeat in the war. For both Britain and Germany, it was the battle that neither side could afford to lose. The year 1943 is seen as the point when the balance of success in this battle shifted Grumman Martlet (see Issue in favour of the Allies– an 75). In addition to the aircraft advantage they maintained on display there will be a for the remainder of the war. representation of a German Winston Churchill once said U-boat conning tower, and the campaign to keep the a rare example of a German convoy routes open was “the Focke Achgelis dominating factor all through FA330A-1. This was a the war. Never for one moment collapsible autogyro could we forget that everything kite designed by Dr happening elsewhere, on land, Klages for use from U-boats for observation at sea or in the air, depended purposes. It was stored on its outcome.” For more information on in a watertight canister on deck the exhibition or the museum, when not in use, but could be please telephone 01935 deployed rapidly when the U-boat surfaced. Towed behind 840565 or visit the Fleet Air Arm Museum’s website: the submarine, the FA330A-1 www.fleetairarm.com could lift its pilot to height of some 100 metres, extending visibility to around twenty-five TOP: The Ruler-class escort carrier HMS Searcher pictured during the miles. Battle of the Atlantic. (Courtesy of the The Battle of the Atlantic Fleet Air Arm Museum) was the longest continuous

DEATH OF BATTLE OF BRITAIN CLASP HOLDER SQUADRON Leader Henry Collingham Baker, who died on 3 July 2013, aged 93, achieved success as a Spitfire pilot over Dunkirk and in the Battle of Britain, writes Geoff Simpson. He had joined the RAF on a short service commission in 1938. After war was declared, Pilot Officer Baker served briefly with 616 Squadron. He joined 19 Squadron at the end of 1939 and stayed with the squadron long enough to go into action during the Dunkirk evacuation. He was then injured in a road accident, leading to a two AUGUST 2013

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month stay in hospital.In late August 1940 Harry Baker went to 41 Squadron and he was promoted to Flying Officer on 3 September. From 8 October, Baker was with 421 Flight and flew “Jim Crow” anti-invasion sorties over the English Channel. Baker’s later wartime career included spells with 74 and 229 squadrons, commanding the latter in Malta, time as an instructor and as a ferry pilot. He was released from the RAF on New Year’s Day 1946.

The South African ambassador to Belgium, Mxolisi Nkosi, attended a service at Tyne Cot Cemetery on 9 July 2013, to mark the re-interment of three unknown South African soldiers. The ceremony was organised by the South African Embassy, located in Brussels, and the South African Defence Force. The remains of the three soldiers were found near a brick factory in Zonnebeke at the end of 2011. Indications are that these soldiers were never formally buried, but that their graves were covered during battle by mortar/artillery fire. Based on objects recovered, including unit insignia, as well as the location of the find, the remains were accepted as that of three unknown South African Soldiers that formed part of the 4th Regiment South African Infantry. On Friday, 5 July 2013, the Queen attended a service in Robin Chapel in Edinburgh. The chapel forms parts of The Thistle Foundation, a charity and housing complex supporting people with disabilities and health conditions. The foundation was established in 1944 to provide disabled veterans with medical support that would allow them to live with their families rather than in a hospital. The chapel itself was built in 1950 and was funded by Sir Frances and Lady Tudsbery in memory of their only son, 25-year-old Lieutenant Robin Tudsbery. Serving in the Royal Horse Guards, Lieutenant Tudsbery was killed on 30 April 1945, in the final days of the war in Europe. Plans to build a multi-million pound visitor centre on the White Cliffs of Dover to honour the heroes of the Battle of Britain have taken a major step forward following the announcement that the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust has raised the funds required to construct the Spitfire wing-shaped building. However, fund-raising will continue with the aim of collecting the final £1m needed to fund the high-tech visitor experience. It is anticipated that the centre will be completed by 2015, the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. The Australian government has contributed $700,000 to the refurbishment of the Franco-Australian Museum in Villers-Bretonneux. The Franco-Australian Museum was established by the Franco-Australian Association and opened on 25 April 1975. The museum is housed on the first floor of Victoria School which was built between 1923 and 1927 as a gift from the children of the Australian State of Victoria. 7

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Briefing Room

Briefing Room • News • Restorations • Discoveries • Events • Exhibitions from around the UK

AIRMEN HONOURED AT WARTIME ADVANCED LANDING GROUND A service of remembrance for those airmen who operated out of Staplehurst Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) in Kent during 1943 and 1944 was held on Sunday, 30 June 2013, writes Robin J. Brooks. The service began with a display by Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar’s Spitfire Mk.9, TA805 Spirit of Kent. Though much of the ALG was returned to farming in 1945, the Spitfire’s pilot, Dan Griffith, lined the aircraft up with the east-west runway, following the track of the original Sommerfeld Track runway. Staplehurst ALG was one of the first batch of ten Advanced Landing Grounds approved for construction, which started in January 1943. The

Amongst the list of forthcoming talks and events arranged by the various branches of the Western Front Association is one that has been organised by the Durham Branch. Taking place on Monday, 12 August 2013, the guest speaker is Peter Hart. An oral historian at the Imperial War Museum, Peter is a regular speaker at Durham WFA. His talk on this occasion is entitled “Field Marshal Haig: Britain’s Greatest Commander-in-Chief?” On 17 August 2013, the Birmingham Branch will be investigating the work of The War Graves Photographic Project – the talk will be held in Sutton Coldfield Town Hall. “Fallen Railwaymen of the Great War” is the title of Barry Kitchener’s talk on 21 August 2013. Over 18,000 railwaymen were killed in the First World War, and Barry’s talk will focus on the stories of several of these individuals and their part in the war. He will also look at the role played by railways in the conflict. Hosted by the Surrey Branch, the talk will be taking place in Cobham. Jeremy Mitchell, author of Shrapnel and Whizzbangs – A Tommy in the Trenches 1914-18, will no doubt enthral the Scotland (Tayside) Branch with an account of his father’s experience in the First World War. The talk takes place in Dundee on 31 August 2013. For full details of each talk, and the many others arranged, including how to attend, please visit: www.westernfrontassociation.com/ great-war-current-events 8

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airfield was a prototype for the type of temporary airfield which would be built in France after D-Day. When completed in 1943 Staplehurst became the home of No.126 Airfield, comprising Nos. 401 (Ram), 411 (Grizzly Bear) and 412 (Falcon) squadrons of the Royal Canadian Air Force flying Spitfire Vbs. They commenced Ramrod operations, escorting bombers to the Continent, before departing to Biggin Hill in late October 1943. After the airfield was upgraded, the Mustang P51Ds of the 363rd Fighter Group, part of the USAAF’s Ninth Air Force, arrived at Staplehurst. This unit incorporated the 380th, 381st and 382nd Fighter Squadrons. They flew fighter and bomber missions before, during and after D-Day. The group flew its last mission on 22 June 1944, following which it was moved across the Channel to the Continent, eventually pushing further into France as the enemy retreated. With the 363rd Fighter Group’s departure, Staplehurst ALG had served its brief, but very important, purpose. The steel track surface was removed and the site returned to agriculture; the derequisitioning was completed by October 1944 and the site was officially disposed of in 1945. Very little remains today to remind us of a very hectic period for the village of Staplehurst, though a footpath from Chickenden Lane runs almost parallel to the former main 10/28 runway. The service was conducted by

the Rev Andrew Miles. It included the laying of wreaths and a two minute silence before prayers were said and hymns were sung to the accompaniment of the Salvation Army Band. Lieutenant Colonel Kirk Bland, an intelligence officer from the Canadian High Commission,

attended and laid a wreath on behalf of the Canadians who perished whilst flying from Staplehurst. ABOVE: The memorial which commemorates the men who were based at the Advanced Landing Ground at Staplehurst in Kent during 1943 and 1944. (Courtesy of Robin J. Brooks)

“SALUTE TO THE ’40s” EVENT CHATHAM Historic Dockyard Trust has announced that Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar’s Spitfire Mk.9, The Spirit of Kent (seen here), will be participating in the “Salute to the ’40s” event which will be taking place at the Historic Dockyard Chatham on 21 and 22 September 2013. The Spirit of Kent will perform a twenty-minute display at 14.30 hours on both days of the fundraising “wartime” weekend. As well as the air display, the event will include the best in 1940s music and entertainment, including Britain’s three leading female performers. There will be vintage fairs, fashion, Home Front re-enactors and civilian displays, a spectacular 1940s village, vintage vehicles, military encampments, and Spitfire and Hurricane replicas on the ground. Alongside these attractions, the visitor will also have the opportunity to see the dockyard’s own Second World War destroyer, HMS Cavalier, plus all the galleries, other ships and exhibits at The Historic Dockyard. Tickets are now on sale with discounts for advanced purchases and Dockyard 12 month ticket holders. Two-day tickets are also available. For full details and to buy tickets in advance, call the ticket hotline on 01634 823826 or visit the event’s website: www.thedockyard.co.uk/salutetothe40s AUGUST 2013

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News Feature... News Feature... News Feature... News Feature... News Feature...

BOMBER COMMAND VETERAN TAKES TO THE SKIES AT 96

THIRTY years had passed since Wing Commander Thomas Murray DSO, DFC & Bar last took to the air at the controls of an aircraft. However, to mark his 96th birthday, on Monday, 1 June 2013 he was airborne once more, this time at the controls of a Cessna C172 operated by Goodwood Aviation, writes Mark Hillier. Wing Commander Murray was a pre-war regular RAF Officer, Cranwell trained on Avro Tutors, Hawker Harts and Audaxes. He was posted to 106 Squadron flying Fairey Battles and then Hampdens before moving to 49 Squadron to commence operations in December 1939, again on the Handley Page Hampden. Murray was awarded the DFC in 1940 for his involvement in a raid on Oslo harbour, the aircraft he was in being damaged by flak. He also took part in some of the earliest raids on Berlin, at the limit of the Hampden’s range – indeed, he ran out of fuel on one of these trips, just as the main wheels touched down at Horsham St Faith after being airborne for 8 hours 45 minutes. After being posted to an OCU for a rest between operations, Murray subsequently joined 207 Squadron in 1941, which was equipped with the illfated Avro Manchester. He carried out twenty operational trips in a Manchester, attaining the third highest number of operational sorties on the type. It was a tour he was lucky to survive due to the unreliability of the Manchester’s engines and hydraulics, amongst other problems. A Bar to Murray’s DFC was gazetted on 11 August 1942, the award being for his leadership as a flight commander on the squadron (though by this date he was Acting Squadron Leader) and also for his development of new tactics which increased the survival rates of the crews. He

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was subsequently posted to HQ Bomber Command in 1942. Murray did not return to operations until November 1944 when he took command of 138 (Special Duties) Squadron at RAF Tempsford, flying cloak and dagger missions in support of the SOE. He subsequently undertook a number of missions to drop agents and supplies to occupied Denmark and Norway in the Short Stirling, for which he was awarded the DSO in 1945. By the end of hostilities he had carried out seventy-four operational sorties, a total not equalled by many due to the high attrition rates in Bomber Command. Thomas stayed in the RAF postwar and served on Malta, at the RCAF Staff College, as well as at HQ Bomber Command at the time of the Suez Crisis. He converted on to the Meteor and Canberra before retiring in 1959. Having eased himself

ABOVE: Wing Commander Thomas Murray DSO, DFC & Bar at the controls of the Goodwood Aviation Cessna C172 in June 2013. After the flight, the instructor, Peter Taylor, said: “It was like he had last flown yesterday.” (All images courtesy of the author) LEFT: The medals awarded to Wing

Commander Thomas Murray DSO, DFC & Bar.

BELOW: A number of 138 Squadron’s Avro Lancasters en route to Juvincourt airfield in France, May 1945. This picture was taken between 8 May and 16 May 1945 during Operation Exodus, the repatriation of Allied PoWs. The formation leader is Lancaster PP675, an aircraft flown by Wing Commander T.C. Murray, 138 Squadron’s CO, during attacks on Potsdam (14 April 1945), Heligoland (17 April 1945 – a daylight bombing raid) and Regensburg (20 April 1945). into the Cessna, a glass screen cockpit C172, on 1 June 2013, Wing Commander Murray commented: “I would prefer conventional instruments.” Despite not being used to the “new-fangled” layout, Murray took control of the aircraft from the instructor, Peter Taylor, who allowed him to fly the Cessna for the rest of the flight, including over his home on the South Coast, as well as land back at Goodwood. On his return Wing Commander Murray remarked: “It’s like riding a bike, you never forget.” ■

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BORN in September 1919, and having entered the Royal Navy as a Cadet at Dartmouth in 1933, Ian Forbes survived the Second World War. Quite how is nothing short of miraculous. A Sub-Lieutenant by the outbreak of hostilities, his first taste of action, aside from convoy protection duties, occurred off Norway whilst serving on the sloop HMS Bittern, which sailed for Åndalsnes on 15 April 1940. However, Forbes’ involvement in the Namsos Campaign was a short-lived affair in light of the events of 30 April 1940, when, mistaken by the Luftwaffe as a cruiser, HMS Bittern was subjected to repeated attacks by Junkers Ju 87 Stukas in Namsos Fjord. Wave after wave of the dive-bombers were driven off, with at least two of the enemy aircraft having been shot out of the sky. Finally, though, one of the German bombs hit the sloop. It struck the quarterdeck at the base of a steel locker holding high-explosive demolition charges. There were two tremendous concussions as first the bomb and then the TNT charges exploded and a great flash streaked forward the full length of HMS Bittern, the blast reaching to the bridge where it

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ABOVE: The medals awarded to Commander I.D.S. Forbes DSC, RN. The announcement of the DSC in The London Gazette of 29 January 1946, stated that the award was “for great courage whilst serving in H.M. Ships Grasshopper and Stronghold in the face of a superior Japanese force off Sinkep Island in February 1942”. (Courtesy of Dix Noonan Webb; www.dnw.co.uk) LEFT: Commander I.D.S. Forbes DSC, RN.

His first post-war first appointment was in the cruiser HMS Ajax, and he continued to serve until placed on the Retired List in the mid-1960s. He died in 1992. (Courtesy of Dix Noonan Webb; www.dnw.co.uk)

BELOW: The first of the four ships sunk under Ian Forbes, the Bittern-class sloop HMS Bittern, ablaze in Namsos Fjord after having suffered a direct hit in the stern by a bomb, 30 April 1940. (Imperial War Museum; N64)

threw the captain to the deck. The ship was soon untenable and Lieutenant-Commander R.H. Mills gave orders for all hands except the forward guns crews to abandon ship. Fortunately, the captain of the nearby HMS Janus brought his destroyer’s bow alongside that of Bittern, allowing the survivors to trans-ship. HMS Bittern was finally abandoned, her fires burning uncontrollably. Soon afterwards, HMS Janus was ordered to sink her with a torpedo.

Forbes was amongst the survivors. He was then posted, as a full Lieutenant, to the cruiser HMS Aurora and then, in January 1941, the battleship HMS Prince of Wales. When, on 10 December 1941, HMS Prince of Wales was sunk by Japanese aircraft, Forbes managed to climb onto a Carley float along with Lieutenant-Commander Colin McMullen, the battleship’s gunner officer. “We had an agreeable time there for, perhaps, two hours as rescue operations were conducted by the escorting destroyers,” Forbes later explained. “We were fully aware that the Japanese ’planes would not return (Why should they?) and so there was an air of pleasurable release, sitting in a warm and sunlit sea. A British aircraft flew over from time to time, which was greeted with waving and ribald remarks. This, I believe, was reported as being a sign of wonderful morale. I don’t suppose our morale was any different from the rest of the Fleet but, when released from such an event, no one solemnly considers, at that moment, the vast historic implications, such as the fall of Singapore, the total ending of all Colonial possessions, etc. All hands are happy to be alive and to wave and cheer accordingly.” At length, Forbes was picked up by the destroyer HMS Electra and taken back to Singapore. He had survived again. Having in the interim commanded a “battalion of 300 sailors” for the defence of Singapore dockyard, and served as an Assistant Beach Master at the northern end of the Johore Causeway, withdrawing to Singapore Island with the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders, Forbes was eventually evacuated from Singapore Island on the river gunboat HMS Grasshopper.

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STORIES OF SURVIVAL REVEALED AS A ROYAL NAVY MEDAL GROUP IS SOLD AT AUCTION

12/07/2013 12:28

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Sailing on 14 February 1942 (though some accounts say the 15th), Grasshopper was one of the last ships to depart. As dawn broke that morning, out of the sky came a solitary Japanese bomber. HMS Grasshopper’s pair of 3-pounders swung into action, accompanied by an assortment of rifle and Bren-gun fire. Three bombs found their mark, crashing through the gunboat’s decks before exploding. “I began to realise that I had a charmed life,” Forbes later wrote. “For some reason I changed my position at the last minute a couple of paces to port. The bomb dropped. Where I had just been was riddled with large holes. I only got a small graze on my right forearm.” Two other ships in the convoy were hit and went down. HMS Grasshopper somehow remained afloat. “It wriggled and squirmed, gradually making towards the beach,” continued Forbes. “Survivors from the tug St. Breoch were ashore on one of the islands and told me later that they watched the Grasshopper’s last fight for two hours with bated breath. Each stick exploding completely enveloped the little ship in great curtains of water. But each time she popped out again with her 0.5 guns rattling away. Eventually a bomb hit us aft ... It was obvious that the after magazine should be flooded at once,

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but where the flooding valve should have been there was a gaping hole.” There were only two dozen survivors from HMS Grasshopper, one of whom was the man with a charmed life, Ian Forbes. Forbes was able to swim to a nearby island, from where he eventually made it to Tjilatjap harbour. Here he joined the destroyer HMS Stronghold, aboard which ship he found himself involved in the disastrous Battle of the Java Sea. Once again the ship Forbes was on was hit by the enemy, this time in the shape of a Japanese cruiser, and once again he found himself in the water on a Carley float. Forbes was rescued, but on this occasion it was by the Japanese. In his own words, Forbes went on to endure “three and a half years under the most savage soldiers and sailors on earth”, being incarcerated in camps in Maccasar and Java. Much of Forbes’ time in captivity was passed with Lieutenant-Commander George Cooper RN, who later published his experiences at the hands of the Japanese in the book Never Forget, Nor Forgive: “Often before and after a beating the victim would be subjected to judo-throwing. The guards would take turns, and, each time the prisoner, already suffering from the shock of his corporal punishment, staggered to his feet, he would be thrown again. He might be thrown twenty times, but that was not always the end of it.” Forbes, who was moved to Java in 1943, where he continued to endure such conditions until his liberation in August 1945. He was gazetted for the Distinguished Service Cross on his return from captivity. Forbes really was a survivor. Commander Forbes’ medal group, which had an estimate price of £4,000£5,000, was sold by the auctioneers Dix Noonan Webb during its Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria sale on Wednesday, 19 June 2013. It attained a hammer price of £7,800. ■

ABOVE LEFT: Taken from a Japanese aircraft, this picture captures the early stages of the attack, the initial high-level bombing, on HMS Prince of Wales (top) and HMS Repulse on 10 December 1941. A short, thick plume of black smoke can be seen emanating from HMS Repulse, which has just been hit by a bomb and is surrounded by at least six near misses. HMS Prince of Wales can be seen taking evasive action. The white smoke is from the funnels as the ships attempt to increase speed. (US Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph)

ABOVE RIGHT: Also taken from a Japanese

aircraft, this poor quality image shows HMS Prince of Wales at far left and HMS Repulse beyond her. A destroyer, either HMS Express or HMS Electra, is in the foreground. One published account states that this photograph was taken “after the first torpedo attack, during which the Prince of Wales sustained heavy torpedo damage”. (US Navy Photograph)

BELOW: As the disaster unfolds, some of

the crew of the sinking HMS Prince of Wales abandon ship, transferring, where they can, to the destroyer HMS Express. Moments later, the list on Prince of Wales suddenly increased and Express had to withdraw. The morning after the loss of the two great warships, Winston Churchill received the news by telephone from the First Sea Lord, Sir Dudley Pound. “Prime Minister,” the latter said. “I have to report to you that the Prince of Wales and the Repulse have both been sunk by the Japanese – we think by aircraft. Tom Phillips is drowned.” “Are you sure it’s true?” responded Churchill, to which Pound confirmed “There is no doubt at all.” “In all the war,” noted Churchill, “I never received a more direct shock ... As I turned over and twisted in bed the full horror of the news sank in upon me. There were no British or American ships in the Indian Ocean or the Pacific except the American survivors of Pearl Harbor, who were hastening back to California. Over all this vast expanse of waters Japan was supreme, and we everywhere were weak and naked.” (HMP)

AUGUST 2013

12/07/2013 12:29

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FIELD MARSHAL HAIG’S WAR DIARY IS INCLUDED IN THE MEMORY OF WORLD PROJECT

THE historical importance of a diary written by Field Marshal Douglas Haig during the First World War, and which is held by the National Library of Scotland, was recognised by its inclusion in the UK Memory of the World Register on 9 July 2013. The first additions to the UK Memory of the World Register were announced in July 2010 to highlight documentary heritage which holds cultural significance specific to the United Kingdom. The UK Register helps raise awareness of some of the UK’s exceptional, but lesserknown documentary riches by awarding them with the globally-recognised Memory of the World status. The UK Register complements the UNESCO Memory of the World International Register, which is a catalogue of documentary heritage of global significance and outstanding universal value. The diary entry for the moment of Haig’s great triumph, the Armistice on 11 November 1918, makes interesting reading and reveals the state into which the German Army had fallen. “Reports from Foch’s H.Q. state that meeting with German delegates (which took place in train in the Forest of Compiègne, not in Château as previously reported) began at 2 a.m. and at 5 a.m. the Armistice was signed,” wrote Haig. “The Germans pointed out that if the rolling stock & supplies of the Army (which have to be handed over by the terms of the Armistice) are given up, then Germans East of the Rhine will starve. Report says Foch was rather brutal to the

German delegates, and replied that that was their affair! “The state of the German Army is said to be very bad, and the discipline seems to have become so low that the orders of the officers are not obeyed. Capt[ai] n von Helldorf who tried to get back to Spa from Compiègne with the terms of the Armistice by night was fired at deliberately by the German troops and could not pass, while on another they broke up the bridges so that he could not proceed.” As we know the Armistice came

into force at 11.00 hours and at that time Haig had a meeting in Cambrai with the senior officers of the Fifth Army and General Kavanagh in command of the Cavalry Corps. They discussed the proposed move to a sector of the German frontier. “I then pointed out,” Haig continues in his diary, “the importance of looking after the troops during the period following the cessation of hostilities – Very often the best fighters are the most difficult to deal with in periods of quiet! I suggested a number of ways in which men can be kept occupied. It is [as much] the duty of all officers to keep their men amused, as it is to train them for war. Staff officers must – If funds are wanted, G.H.Q. should be informed & I’ll arrange for money to be found.” With the Germans having at last accepted defeat, there was time for relaxation and the inevitable photo call. “After the Conference, we were all taken on the Cinema! Gen. Plumer, whom I told to ‘go off and be cinema’ed’ went off most obediently and stood before the camera, trying to look his best, while Byng, & others near him were chaffing the old man and trying to make him laugh.” On average, fifty researchers per year come to inspect the collection of Haig’s papers at the National Library of Scotland. The collection is very extensive, filling over fifty feet of library shelving. It covers the entire life of Earl Haig from his birth in 1861 until his death in 1928. The bulk of the collection consists of Haig’s own papers, but it also includes papers of Lady Dorothy Haig, his wife. These consist mainly of documents relating to her biography of her husband and that of the historian DuffCooper. Over the years the papers have formed the basis of many biographies of Haig. ■

ABOVE: A portrait of Field Marshal Douglas Haig. Earl Haig died in 1928 and was accorded a state funeral in Westminster Abbey. Many men who had served under him in the First World War volunteered to line the route of the funeral procession. (HMP) LEFT: A page

from Field Marshal Douglas Haig’s diary. (Reproduced by permission of the National Library of Scotland)

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IT has been announced that the Medway Aircraft Preservation Society Ltd is to receive the RAF Museum’s Westland Lysander III, R9125, for restoration, writes Robin J. Brooks. This aircraft was built by the Westland Aircraft Company at Yeovil as part of Air Ministry contract No. 23637/39 and was one of a total batch of 367 Lysander Mk.IIIs. Powered initially by a Bristol Mercury XVA engine, and later by a Bristol Mercury XX, the aircraft was delivered to No.5 Maintenance Unit at Kemble on 2 August 1940, before being issued to 225 (Army Co-operation) Squadron at Tilshead on 20 September 1940. At this stage, the squadron was one of thirteen that formed No.71 (Army Co-operation) Group. Allocated to ‘B’ Flight, R9125 was soon in the air over the South Coast, tasked to undertake what were by then relatively routine anti-invasion patrols. During its seven months with the squadron, R9125 would be flown by several different pilots, completing thirty-six operational coastal patrol and photo-reconnaissance sorties, totalling 49¼ hours. It was subsequently discovered that six of 225 Squadron’s aircraft had cracked engine mountings (possibly including R9125). The aircraft affected were returned to the Maintenance Unit for repair before returning to Yeovil and converted for target towing duties on 18 September 1941. Used by the Central Gunnery School at Chilveston, and later Sutton AUGUST 2013

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ABOVE: The painting of Lysander R9125 that Mark Postlethwaite GAvA began during his RAF Museum Residency in August 2012. Entitled “Coastal Patrol”, it features R9125 in the markings of a 225 Squadron aircraft during a routine anti-invasion patrol overflying the South Coast resort of Worthing in West Sussex in the summer of 1940. Note the break in the pier, created in an attempt to prevent its use by the enemy in the event of an invasion, and the large concrete anti-tank blocks that line the top of the beach. For more information on the painting, and the various prints available, visit: www.posart.com BELOW: Westland Lysander III R9125 pictured at the RAF Museum prior to its departure to the Medway Aircraft Preservation Society Ltd at Rochester. (Courtesy of Les Chatfield) Bridge, during June 1942 R9125 was being operated by No.7 OTU at Limavady in Northern Ireland where it suffered Category B damage when it swung off the runway. After repair R9125 went to the Central Navigation School at Cranage on 31 December 1942. It served with this unit until 11 January 1944, returning to Westland on 11 February for repair and modification. Having been converted to a Special Duties aircraft, the Lysander entered its period of clandestine service when it was issued to 161 (Special Duties) Squadron at RAF Tempsford in Bedfordshire. This squadron was renowned for its SOE operations, although it is not recorded that R9125 ever

flew to France. It did, however, become the star of a Central Office of Information film called Now it Can be Told. Released in February 1947, the film tells the story of a Special Duties operation in France. It was whilst R9125 was at Tempsford that the first steps towards its preservation were taken. In a letter written in August 1945 to the Air Ministry Librarian (who had responsibility for preservation of historic relics at this time), the airfield’s CO appears to have identified it as being an airframe of particular interest. R9125 was later recorded as being on the strength of No.38 Group before being earmarked for storage and future display. After being seen at various Maintenance Units, it finally arrived at the RAF Museum’s store at Henlow in September 1967, eventually being put on display at Hendon in late 1971. The Lysander is expected to arrive at the Medway Aircraft Preservation Society’s workshop at Rochester Airfield during September 2013, when work will commence on the restoration. ■

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RAF MUSEUM’S LYSANDER TO BE RESTORED

12/07/2013 12:29

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VETERAN TO RETURN TO SICILY TO MARK THE 70th ANNIVERSARY OF OPERATION HUSKY

IN 1941, 20-year-old John Field, then an apprentice locksmith, took the decision to enlist in the Royal Navy, subsequently undergoing training as an Armourer, Gun Fitter. A year later John set sail on the troop ship RMS Maloja bound for the Middle East via the Cape Route. Having arrived in Suez, John was sent to an Allied base at Quassassin where he was put to work maintaining and repairing tank guns. Then, in early July 1943 Marine Armourer John Field set sail from Port Said on the SS Bergensfjord in preparation for Operation Husky, the invasion of Sicily. John was assigned to the one of the Mobile Naval Base Defence Organisations (MNBDOs) which had been formed by the Royal Marines. “As we approached Sicily we had

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to transfer into a landing craft to get in close,” John recalled. “Aircraft were bombing and machine-gunning us. The landing craft in front was hit and destroyed by a Stuka dive bomber. “There were three beaches, ‘George’, ‘Item’, and ‘Hal’, which was our beach. There was very little troop resistance ... Once we were near the shore we jumped into the water and waded the rest of the way. Then we ran up the beach and managed to take cover in a farmhouse.” The next day John and his comrades started their advance towards the port of Syracuse. “Our rations were biscuits and dry foods, anything that was light to carry. There was an incident about water and an officer told us not to drink from the springs. When we arrived just south of Syracuse we went up onto a headland. There was a lighthouse and a scattering of guns. We took over ten guns that weren’t damaged. “Two of the guns looked very peculiar. They were four-inch anti-aircraft guns which we used for barrage against attacking ’planes. One night, one of them exploded and the barrel fell off. Luckily no one was hurt. We couldn’t understand why this had happened till we found an Italian handbook with bits marked in red ink which [when] translated read, ‘On no account use more than seven shells when firing’.” By the evening of 10 July 1943, the seven Allied assault divisions, three British, three American and one Canadian, were well established ashore and the port of Syracuse had been captured. At this point, John’s MNBDO was deployed to repair guns across the island. On one occasion John found himself in the middle of a ferocious battle for the capture of the Primosole Bridge across the Simeto River, a key objective that would give the Eighth Army vital access for an Allied advance across the Catania plain, driving enemy forces back toward the Italian mainland. After Sicily, John came down with jaundice and was sent to Scotland on sick leave. Once recovered, he was involved in the testing of Landing Ship Docks in the Mediterranean, before being posted back to Suez. In 1945 he

LEFT: Operation Husky veteran John Field. (Courtesy of David Devins)

ABOVE: In this wartime image, John Field is standing on the right. (Courtesy of David Devins) BELOW: Allied equipment being loaded in preparation for Operation Husky – a number of US M4 Sherman can be seen lined up in the foreground. Whilst this image was taken at La Pecherie, Tunisia, John Field sailed with his unit from Port Said. (US National Archives) was sent out to India and the Far East, eventually returning to the UK in 1946. John, now 92, is to return to Sicily with his family, where he will retrace his steps across the island. He said “I wouldn’t have dreamt of going back if it wasn’t for Heroes Return. It will be marvellous after 70 years.” The trip is being made possible through the Big Lottery Fund’s Heroes Return 2 programme, which has been extended to enable veterans to apply for funding to make second trips. The programme deadline for closure is now the end of 2015. Heroes Return has, to date, awarded over £26.6 million to more than 54,000 Second World War veterans, widows, spouses and carers across the country for journeys in the UK, France, Germany, the Middle East, Far East and beyond. ■

AUGUST 2013

12/07/2013 12:30

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BATTLE TRAGEDY REMEMBERED AUSTRALIAN Battle of Britain pilot, Flight Lieutenant Richard Carew Reynell, has been commemorated in a ceremony organised by Shoreham Aircraft Museum and the Royal Borough of Greenwich, reports Geoff Simpson. As part of the ceremony, a memorial was unveiled at Point Hill Park, Blackheath, south-east London, where Dick Reynell fell on Saturday, 7 September 1940. He came from the town of Reynella, near Adelaide, South Australia, founded by an ancestor, John Reynell. Dick spent part of his youth in Britain and studied at Balliol College, Oxford, becoming a member of the University Air Squadron. He was commissioned in the Reserve of Air Force Officers (RAFO), but then took a short service commission in the RAF. He served with 43 Squadron and the station flight at Duxford and had a spell as an instructor before returning to the RAFO. Dick Reynell became a Hawker test pilot and, on the outbreak of war, was officially seconded to the firm by the RAF. On 26 August 1940, he was attached to his former squadron 43, “The Fighting Cocks”, to gain operational experience on Hurricanes. At this point the Vickers Supermarine test pilot Jeffrey Quill had just returned to the company after a spell with 65 Squadron to fly Spitfires in action. On the morning of 7 September 1940, the squadron’s former CO, Squadron Leader George Lott, DSO, DFC (who had been badly wounded on 9 July 1940, thus just missing the Battle of Britain Clasp), paid

a visit to RAF Tangmere and socialised at the Officers’ Mess. Amongst those he met were Reynell and Reynell’s friend, the new CO of 43, Squadron Leader Caesar Hull, DFC. Hull was a rumbustious 27-year-old South African who had been wounded with 263 Squadron in the Norwegian campaign. He had returned to 43, his original squadron, on 31 August 1940, to take command, the day after Squadron Leader “Tubby” Badger, Lott’s replacement, received injuries which would eventually prove fatal. During the afternoon of 7 September 1940, the Luftwaffe launched its first mass attack on London. After a day in which many came to believe that the relative lack of German activity was the prelude to invasion, the situation changed dramatically in the late afternoon. Shortly after 16.00 hours, the Observer Corps reported “many hundreds” of enemy aircraft approaching the Kent coast between Deal and North Foreland. As the historian Francis Mason wrote, “The people of London now began their months long ordeal; to them was to fall the doubtful privilege of the first capital city of the western world to survive the horrors of all-out air attack undefeated”. For the East End this was “Black Saturday”. Many of Fighter Command’s Hurricanes and Spitfires were thrown into the defence of London. The Fighting Cocks were scrambled from Tangmere and engaged the enemy force as it approached London.

Sergeant Deller was forced to bale out, but escaped uninjured. At about 16.45 hours, Dick Reynell was shot down and baled out, but fell dead near where his aircraft crashed. Caesar Hull died at the same time, apparently going to Reynell’s aid, despite being out of ammunition. The unveiling of the memorial on Blackheath was attended by members of the Reynell family and Australian historian, Andrew Rennie, who is writing a biography of Dick Reynell. Since 2006, the Shoreham Aircraft Museum has arranged for the unveiling of memorials at the crash sites in Kent and south-east London of seven Battle of Britain airmen. ■

MAIN PICTURE BELOW: The memorial to Flight Lieutenant Richard Reynell which was unveiled at Point Hill Park, Blackheath, on 28 June 2013. (Courtesy of the Shoreham Aircraft Museum) ABOVE: A group of officers pictured at Tangmere on 7 September 1940. In the back row, from left to right, are: Pilot Officer Upton, Pilot Officer van den Hove d’Ertsenrijck, and Pilot Officer Gorrie. In the front row, also left to right, are: Pilot Officer Cary, Flight Lieutenant Kilmartin, Squadron Leader Lott, Flight Lieutenant Reynell, and Squadron Leader Hull. Within three or so hours of this picture being taken, two of these men, Reynell and Hull, would be dead. (ww2images) LEFT: A portrait of Dick Reynell by the

aviation artist Geoff Nutkins. (Courtesy of Geoff Nutkins)

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AUGUST 2013

12/07/2013 12:30

THE medals and awards of Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Douglas Merriman GC, OBE, were sold by the military and medal auctioneers Bosleys on 3 July 2013. In April 1940, Dr Arthur Douglas Merriman was appointed to the post of Part Time Experimental Officer of Scientific Research at the Ministry of Supply. His salary was the equivalent of £500 per year. It was made clear when the appointment was made that the 47-year-old’s duties were office-based and in no way included any work in connection with unexploded bombs. Manchester-born Dr Merriman had served as an officer in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps in the First World War, becoming particularly interested in fuzes. On 25 September 1919, Arthur Merriman relinquished his commission, becoming a teacher in Wallsend before taking up the position of Secretary of Architects and Surveyors in March 1938. With the outbreak of war, Arthur Merriman’s knowledge of fuzes and ordnance in general was likely to prove valuable. As early as November 1939 he became in involved in bomb disposal work, being involved in the recovery of the first German unexploded bombs and electric fuzes from Sullom Voe in the Shetland Islands. The Ministry of Supply (MoS) had been handed the job of dealing with all “necessary further research and technical development arising in connection with the various methods for dealing with unexploded bombs”. The appointment of Merriman to a post with the MoS was a logical next step. His work was considered to be highly confidential and his “cover” story was that he was involved in office work for the location of air raid shelters. Despite the fact that he was not expected to work in the field, the sudden collapse of France in May 1940 and the start of the Battle of Britain changed everything. Britain came under aerial attack and the bombs started to fall. As early as 26 July 1940, Arthur Merriman was risking his life when he removed the fuze from a 50kg bomb. Two

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TOP: The medals and awards of Lieutenant

Colonel Arthur Douglas Merriman GC, OBE. (Courtesy of Bosleys)

ABOVE: Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Douglas Merriman. After the war Merriman was appointed the Deputy Lieutenant for London in 1955 and was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Surrey in 1969. He died in Streatham, South London, at the age of 79 in 1972. (Courtesy of Bosleys) days later he was dealing with the same kind of device at Yarmouth. It was in London, however, that Merriman encountered his most difficult task to date. On 11 September 1940, a 250kg bomb crashed through a building to settle unusually on the road in Regent Street, at the junction with Glasshouse Street, between the Austin Reed fashion store at 91 Regent Street and the Ford car showroom at No.88. The bomb, which had a delayed-action fuze, was ticking. “I shall not easily forget my feelings,” recalled Herbert Gough, Director of

Scientific Research, “and Merriman’s, when he and I walked out to that bomb, lay down, put our ears to the cold hard case and heard the tick, and knew we could not stop it. All we could do was to get as much explosive out as possible before it went up.” This was to be attempted with a steam sterilizer. Introduced in June 1940, as its name implies this was a device developed to cut a hole in bomb casing and emulsify the explosive fill. It would be the first time that this had ever been attempted on a live, ticking bomb. First of all, though, a hole had to be made in the casing. A wall of sandbags was built and a boiler to drive the steam-powered drill was prepared behind it. When steam was up, the drill began to work. After ten minutes it stopped, indicating (in theory) that it had penetrated the casing and the steaminjector nozzle started automatically pushing steam into the bomb. After an hour of this it had become apparent that something was wrong as the only thing coming out of the bomb was steam. Captain P.W. Kennedy, a technical advisor the War Office who was with the group, approached the bomb and saw that the cutter had failed to penetrate the casing. He altered its position and tried again. Still it failed to make a hole in the casing. Kennedy rolled the bomb over and tried again, this time it worked. There were, though, further problems and it was not until almost two-and-a-half hours later that the steam sterilizer began to drive out the explosive contents. Five minutes later the fuze ignited. Though half the plate glass windows in Regent Street were blown out, there was no other damage. For his part in the operation, Merriman became known as “The Saviour of Regent Street”. Both the Department of Scientific Research and the War Office agreed that Merriman should be decorated for his gallantry, but neither could decide who should put him forward and what level of award should be granted. The two bodies were worried about revealing the type of

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BOMB DISPOSAL GEORGE CROSS GOES UNDER THE HAMMER

12/07/2013 12:30

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RIGHT: A wartime drawing depicting another

wartime bomb disposal George Cross holder in action – in this case Second Lieutenant Wallace Andrews, 22/23 Bomb Disposal Sections, Corps of Royal Engineers. Andrews was awarded the George Cross for his actions on 26 August 1940, near Croydon. The announcement in The London Gazette of 17 September 1940, included the following: “While trying to extract the fuze of a bomb in order to forward it to the D.S.R. [Department of Scientific Research], some difficulty was experienced. After withdrawing it … the fuze dropped back into position actuated by what appeared to be magnetism or a spring. Removal was attempted several times without success. Second Lieutenant Andrews then placed his section under cover, and after tying a piece of cord to the ring of the fuze discharger, pulled, with the result that the bomb exploded. He was blown a considerable distance, and two of the men received splinter wounds.” (HMP)

BELOW: A view of bomb-damaged buildings around St Paul’s Cathedral. It was not just in the capital that Merriman carried out his bomb disposal duties. Throughout August 1940, for example, Merriman was dealing with unexploded bombs as far afield as King’s Lynn and Swansea. On the 15th, for example, he removed ten fuzes, of a previously unseen type, from eight 50kg and two 250kg bombs in a crashed bomber at Southampton (amongst these there was a long delay fuze and an anti-handling device). (HMP) work Merriman was undertaking – they were especially anxious that the word fuzes should not be made public. In the end it was announced, on 3 December 1940, that Merriman had been awarded the George Cross. The London Gazette announcement included little more than this simple wording: “For conspicuous bravery in connection with bomb disposal.” In endorsing the recommendation for the George Cross, Major General Taylor, the Director of Bomb Disposal, wrote that he considered Merriman had “more than earned the highest award for bravery that can be awarded”. Merriman was commissioned into the Royal Engineers in January 1941,

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with the temporary rank of Lieutenant Colonel, and was posted to the Middle East. In due course, he was also made a member of the Order of the British Empire, the recommendation for which included these words: “During the past two and a half years Lt Col Merriman’s investigations have produced results of the greatest importance in the sphere of Bomb Disposal work. Not only has he devised technique and apparatus for BD personnel in operational areas to enable them to immunise new types of fuzes, but his reports have, it is understood, had a considerable influence on the work of the Department of Scientific Research and Development in UK. His work in connection with enemy demolition equipment and technique has been equally valuable.

“He was sent under [War Office] instructions, at the end of the [Middle East] campaign, to investigate the steps taken by the Germans to deny the use of Tunis and Bizerta harbours to Allied Forces. Both harbours had been extensively mined and delay action firing mechanisms freely employed. Several casualties had already incurred during the first investigations, but Lt Col Merriman completed his work with marked success.” Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Douglas Merriman GC, OBE’s medals and awards were sold for £70,000. Also featuring in the sale was a Dickin Medal awarded to a carrier pigeon named Duke of Normandy. The original citation of 8 January 1947, stated that Duke of Normandy was “the first bird to arrive with a message from Paratroops of 21st Army Group behind enemy lines on D-Day, 6 June, 1944, while serving with APS”. It sold for £8,000. ■

12/07/2013 12:30

‘Britain at War’ Magazine, Green Arbor, Rectory Road, Storrington, West Sussex, RH20 4EF. [email protected]

LETTER OF THE MONTH

SIR – Having read the articles relating to the Dams raid in the May Issue, I noticed one or two slight errors or points of note which I would like to elaborate on. On page 11, you note the date of formation of 617 Squadron as 21 March 1943. The date is quite ambiguous, with the date Gibson was appointed, the date the crews started to arrive at RAF Scampton and also the date notices went out calling for volunteer crews all being used. However, according to Air Ministry Secret Organisation Memorandum 338/43 – “Expansion of Bomber Command – Formation of No. 617 Squadron” – the official date of the unit’s formation was 23 March 1943. On page 52 you note that Vickers Wellington MF628, used in the famous feature film can now be seen at the RAF Museum at Hendon. People visiting the museum might be disappointed as the aircraft is currently being restored at the Michael Beetham Conservation Centre at RAF Cosford, and is not scheduled to return to Hendon for some time. On page 61 there seems to be some confusion between the test weapon, dropped from a Wellington, and the full sized mine dropped from a Lancaster. The former was smaller than Upkeep (the Lancaster version). On 13 April, two were dropped from the Wellington, flying at 81ft and 90ft respectively, before the first Lancaster drop a couple of hours later, (from 150ft) just before lunch. As this latter example (the first drop of the full sized mine) sank, it was decided to lower the height, the second Lancaster drop of the day (some hours later during the early evening) being from only 60ft.

THE DAMBUSTERS

This almost cost the lives of the crew after the wooden segments making up the spherical covering broke off with several hitting the aircraft, one injuring Captain ‘Mutt’ Summers’ elbow. From then on all Upkeeps were dropped as bare cylinders. Page 66 refers to the first visit by 617 Squadron to Derwent. It’s a little difficult to determine when this was as in crew log books and other similar documents there are relatively few mentions of the place, the first coming on 9 April, when Gibson flew there. I have a record of all flights made by the squadron at the time (although those of Pilot Officer Cyril Anderson’s crew are incomplete) and there is no mention at all of Gibson, Young and Hopgood ever flying together during that time. Flight Lieutenant Hopgood flew with 617 Squadron for the first time on 31 March, but as second pilot to David Shannon, his next flight, and first as Captain not coming until 11 April. The article on Derwent is illustrated with a photograph taken from a Lancaster crossing the dam, supposedly Gibson’s. This is in fact one of the film Lancaster’s, with the photograph dating from the mid1950s. I have a copy from Dick Lambert, the pilot concerned. Two clues are the lack of exhaust shrouds on the cowlings, and the lighter coloured spinners (post-war Lancaster squadrons often employing red or blue spinners to denote Flights, these remaining on the film aircraft which had been taken from storage). The 617 Squadron memorial features the names of over 200 aircrew who were killed, but not all whilst serving with the squadron. One that immediately stands out is the crew of Cyril Anderson, lost after

returning to 49 Squadron. There were another 26 men who were known to have joined 617 Squadron upon its formation, including two complete crews, and, of those, five are confirmed to have been killed before the end of the war, although none of them, unlike Anderson, flew operationally with 617 Squadron. Page 79 features a photograph of Guy Gibson and Leonard Cheshire, a later Commanding Officer of the Squadron, enjoying a drink at the Petwood Hotel. In fact this is a ‘doctored’ picture, Gibson photographed at the Petwood, married to one of Cheshire from another time (actually enjoying a drink with the Australian, Keith Astbury, who has been ‘cut out’). A common error (page 80) is that Group Captain John Fauquier was 617 Squadron’s last wartime Commanding Officer. In actual fact it was Wing Commander John Grindon, posted in on 28 April 1945. By that time, coincidentally, the squadron had ceased operational flying, and so he started to prepare them for Tiger Force (the bomber force intended for the Far East) before the atomic bomb cancelled those plans. I hope the readers will find these points useful or of interest. Alex Bateman. By email.

ABOVE: An Upkeep falls away from a Lancaster – this photograph may depict a training flight, quite possibly at Reculver, involving a concrete-filled practice variant of the Upkeep. (HMP)

The author of the Letter of the Month may select a book of their choice (maximum value £25) from the extensive range of titles available at www.pen-and-sword.co.uk 22

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‘Britain at War’ Magazine, Green Arbor, Rectory Road, Storrington, West Sussex, RH20 4EF. [email protected]

BUCKHOLT FARM JUNKERS Ju 88 SIR – I was fascinated by the article in the June issue of Britain at War on the subject of the Junkers Ju 88 which crash-landed at Buckholt Farm, just to the north of Sidley near Bexhill on Sea. At the age of 14, I was one of the local boys who cycled out to look at the enemy ’plane but was kept well away by the police and army! Whenever we learned of a ’plane that had crashed, we all got there as quickly as possible to salvage what we could as mementos. Under my bed I had a large cardboard box containing all sorts of bits of twisted aluminium. If we could find a bit of metal with numbers or letters printed on it that was even more valued. My favourite bit of salvage was a piece of multi-core cable about twelve inches long, but I could only guess what that was part of. In 1943 I joined the Royal Observer Corps, having been declared “unfit for military service”. This gave me plenty of practice at aircraft recognition. Early in 1944 I volunteered for “seaborne service” for what was modestly described at the time as a “forthcoming operation”. As part of our preparation for this new experience, we were gathered together on the East Cliff at Bournemouth to see the RAF’s Enemy Aircraft Flight coming towards us. As I had witnessed

the real thing in the skies over East Sussex this was not a problem for me – and it was especially thrilling when the Ju 88 came towards us. For a brief moment I wondered if this could be the Sidley Ju 88, but I suspect that it wasn’t. As Seaborne Observers our job was not to shoot down enemy ’planes but to protect Allied aircrew as well as we could – but that is another story!

Deck – an officer of Argentinian descent – to fly the aircraft, as he had done several previous flights and knew the procedure. This proved fatal for P/O Deck as he was overcome by fumes when the latest modification did not work properly, apparently trapping rather than releasing the deadly carbon monoxide. The Typhoon dived into the ground and exploded. Only by finding a fragment of the pilot’s liver was the cause established. This incident is described in Larry Forester’s Fly For Your LIfe where he mistakenly identifies the pilot as “Dack”.

SIR – I was interested to read the letter from R. Fletcher in Doncaster. The injured airman he referred to would have been Pilot Officer Tony Burcher DFM, RAAF. Burcher flew with John Hopgood on the Dams raid. The aircraft was hit on route and again attacking the Möhne Dam. Tony baled out, but in so doing hit the tailplane and broke his back. His back was later set in concrete as the Germans did not have any plaster of Paris. He was duly sent to a PoW camp until released in 1945. Tony remained in the RAAF, but having married an English girl he returned to the UK and transferred to the RAF. He went on to serve in Malaya and Korea. On leaving the RAF he settled in Cambridgeshire and received a 75% pension from the Australian Government which was later upgraded to 100% owing to him still suffering with his wartime injuries. At the time of the premier of the film The Dam Busters in 1955 Tony was on an exercise in the Borneo jungle and brought out to attend this. It is interesting to note that he was, in view of his previous back injuries, carrying a 50lb back pack, the exercise being undertaken to see how aircrew, having been forced down, would survive in jungle conditions. Tony later went back to Tasmania to live as the UK’s conditions did not suit his back problems. Sadly Tony died in 1993. It is also interesting to note that on page 72 of the July issue [“Dover Attack”] that Second Officer Cyril Brown is at the investiture of his George Medal wearing the uniform of a Police Sergeant and not a Fire Service uniform. One wonders if he had a dual role as it states he was a former peacetime Police Officer and now a member of the Dover Fire Brigade.

Rob Davis. Shropshire.

Alan Cooper. By email.

Graham Warner. East Sussex.

ABOVE: The Buckholt Farm Junkers Ju 88 pictured at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough resplendent in its new RAF markings. (Courtesy of Andy Saunders)

PILOT OFFICER JAMES FREDERICK DECK RAFVR SIR – The photograph of the stained glass window commemorating aircrew from the same family who were killed shows one interesting name, that of Pilot Officer James Frederick Deck RAFVR (100648), who was killed on 1 November 1941, a few days before his 27th birthday. Early model Hawker Typhoons had a glitch with the exhaust system which resulted in exhaust fumes seeping into the cockpit, sometimes making the pilots ill. Whilst various modifications were being tested, the celebrated pilot Robert Stanford-Tuck was scheduled to fly one of these sorties. As the engine was started by the ground crew, Tuck was called to an important phone call and instructed P/O

PILOT OFFICER TONY BURCHER DFM, RAAF

AIRCRAFT CRASH ON WAUCHOPE ESTATE, EDINBURGH SIR – I am wondering if any of your readers could give me any information on the Second World War German fighter/bomber which crash-landed on the Wauchope Estate a mile north-east of Craigmillar Castle, Edinburgh. The only information I can find on this ’plane coming down in this area is that it was removed soon after it landed. Of exactly where it was shot down I can find no information. There were a number of German

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attacks in and around Edinburgh, such as on the Forth railway bridge and Rosyth naval base. I also know that there was, until about twenty years ago, German Air Force/Navy personnel buried in Portobello Cemetery. If I recall correctly, the only reference I saw to this was in a publication called Lothians at War. In this is the story of a German bomber chased by a Spitfire over the Portobello area and which dropped its bombs on a local park – Abercorn Park – to

lighten its load. This aircraft was brought down and crashed in the Drem area, near the East Coast main line, which is about two miles from what was RAF East Fortune during the War. Andy Weddell. By email. Ed – If you can throw any light on this matter, Mr Weddell can be contacted by email at: [email protected]

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‘Britain at War’ Magazine, Green Arbor, Rectory Road, Storrington, West Sussex, RH20 4EF. [email protected]

THE MOST HEAVILY ARMED FIGHTER? inclined alignment as the nose cannon. The wartime volumes of Aircraft of the Fighting Powers are still a superb publishing effort, but at least one pinch of salt is necessary. The general arrangement of the F.9/37 shows four Browning .303inch machine-guns installed on either side of the cockpit. These fired parallel to the line of flight – directly past the cockpit windows and well within the pilot’s peripheral vision. Since tracer rounds would most probably have been included in the loading, it had struck me as being potentially rather distracting for the pilot! There is no evidence that this installation was ever tried, nor is it clear how the weapons – or their belt feeds – could be accommodated so close to the fuselage skinning. The F.9/37 was originally to have had a pilot (with the use of nose cannon) and a gunner in a rear cockpit with four Browning .303-inch machine-guns. Both prototypes were actually completed as single seat fighters. The album photographs gave some clues to the earlier thinking, tied in with the idea of a retractable four-gun turret. None was ever fitted and I am not aware of any then extant turret design that might have been suitable. However, Glosters had made provision for a machine-gun installation, though of what form is not clear. A horizontal subframe was fitted in the gun bay, which suggested it might have been intended for a turret ring. What was more interesting was the forward bulkhead of the gun bay, which was deeply slotted for four barrels. Forward of these were troughs, the bottoms of which were horizontal. There is insufficient room for other than machineguns in the gun bay and it suggests that the levelled gun barrels were intended to retract into these troughs. The apparent

splayed-out appearance of the outer trough is an optical illusion, as the fuselage cross-section reduces to far into the cockpit at this point. The gun bay transparencies, of the completed L7999, show that no weapons were installed and the troughs were faired over, as with the nose ports. However, the main photograph in the article may therefore show a trial installation, since L7999 was reported at the Gunnery Research Unit in Exeter from 10 June to 7 August 1940. Who knows, maybe four Brownings were also tried out? Perhaps this might have been on some form of mounting, pivoted at the extreme rear, which would allow elevation into the slipstream? If it were so, it could have constituted a rather more serious attempt at Schrage Musik – ahead of the Germans too. All that can be confirmed is shown in the photograph of the dorsal Hispano installation. The outermost machine-gun slots in the bulkhead have been blanked off. The turret ring support frame was still present, but now filled with an inserted structure to support the barrels of the Hispanos. The greater length of these also entailed a modification to the rear gun bay bulkhead, which had its upper part removed, so that the breeches and ammunition drums could be fitted in the next bay aft. The Beaufighter is generally held as having been the most heavily armed of our fighters, having four Hispano cannon, plus six .303-inch machine-guns. I rather think the F.9/37 – with its five 20 mm cannon – has a better claim, at least for the brief period of its existence. R.J. Dennis. By email.

(Key Collection)

SIR – I was delighted to see your Issue 73 feature on the Gloster F.9/37, a “forgotten” aircraft from my home county’s much lamented manufacturer. The subject of its armament has interested me for many years, so the final entry in the specifications table deserves some expansion. I noted that no comment was made of a most unusual feature, in effect a modest British “Schrage Musik” installation. The main photo of L7999 actually shows that the Hispano cannon are not mounted parallel to the line of flight, but were actually angled upwards at 12 degrees. It is doubly interesting since all early shots of L7999 actually show the nose cannon apertures blanked off. The shot of the incomplete L7999 actually shows a metal rod standing in for a Hispano. The upward alignment is clearly shown. The late Roff Jones was an employee of Glosters. When they closed down, he was assigned to wait for two lorries sent by other elements of the Hawker Siddeley Aviation Group. They were to take away a large pile of documentation. If they did not turn up, Roff had been told to take the lot down the airfield at Brockworth and to burn it! Only one lorry came, but Roff had thought to save several photograph albums that were languishing in the pile. The subject of one of these was the Gloster F.9/37. The Putnam title on Glosters contains a caption about the Peregrine-engine L8002, stating that four dorsal Hispano cannon were installed, though only two were visible. The photograph had always seemed – to me – to show two of only three cannon. One of the album photos at last showed the dorsal cannons clearly, with the covers removed. It confirmed my analysis – there were only three. All three were angled to fire upwards, on the same

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REAPING THE WHIRLWIND It was faster than a Spitfire and carried heavier armament. As a result, much was expected of the Westland Whirlwind, especially following its first engagement with the Luftwaffe which took place at the end of December 1940.

D

uring the summer of 1940, 263 Squadron was partially reequipped with the RAF’s exciting new fighter, the twin-engine Westland Whirlwind. With its very heavy armament, excellent all-round vision and good performance, the Whirlwind was eagerly anticipated, though teething problems, particularly with its Rolls-Royce Peregrine engines, initially restricted its operational use. The Whirlwind was capable of 360 miles per hour, it had a range of 800 miles and, significantly, it was armed with four 20mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon grouped together in the aircraft’s nose to produce an immensely powerful concentration of fire. The development of the Whirlwind came from Air Ministry specification F.37/35 in 1935. Though the Whirlwind promised to be a superior aircraft to the Hurricanes and Spitfires which were already far advanced in their development, it was not until 1938 that the first prototype was flown. Two years later, the first squadron to be fully equipped with the Whirlwind was 263

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Squadron, which was reforming at RAF Grangemouth following the disastrous Norwegian campaign. Indeed, the first production Whirlwind was delivered to the squadron by its CO, Squadron Leader Harry Eeles, on 6 July 1940, though subsequent aircraft were slow in arriving. Despite this, with increasing Whirlwind availability at the end of November 1940, 263 Squadron relinquished its remaining Hurricanes and moved to Exeter to commence operations. After a brief settling in period, the Whirlwind recorded its first operational sorties on 7 December when Squadron Leader Eeles (in P6974), with Flight Lieutenant Smith (P6975) and Pilot Officer Hughes (P6976), flew a patrol off the South Coast. Just over a week later Squadron Leader John Munro arrived as CO and soon afterwards, on 23 December, the Whirlwind first encountered the Luftwaffe when Flight Lieutenant Smith, in P6970, sighted a Junkers Ju 88 during a patrol off Start Point, Devon. The Junkers disappeared into the thick cloud before Smith could attack. The New Year opened promisingly

when, on 2 January 1941, Flying Officer David Crooks and Sergeant Morton scrambled after a plot of a Ju 88 and although they did not make contact it was, however, damaged by a Spitfire from 234 Squadron. It was not long, however, until the Whirlwind was blooded. On 12 January, whilst on detachment at St Eval on the north coast of Cornwall, Pilot Officer David Stein, at the controls of P6972, with Sergeant Mason in P6968 as his No.2, took off at 09.40 hours for a patrol. The pair was soon forty miles south-west of the Scilly Islands, as he subsequently described in his combat report: ABOVE: The Westland Whirlwind was the RAF’s first single seat, twin-engine, cannonarmed fighter. The aircraft depicted here by the renowned aviation artist Philip E. West, serial P7094, flew operational sorties with 137 Squadron before being allocated to 263 Squadron, where it carried the codes HE-T. For more information on this painting, or on the various prints that are available, please telephone The Art Studio on 01747 828810 or visit Philip’s website at: www.aviationfineart.co.uk AUGUST 2013

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“After approx. 10 mins flying intercepted one J.U. 88. I chased the E.A. and eventually came at him from front quarter. As attack developed into full beam, I opened fire and gave him a four sec. burst. The enemy top gunner opened fire simultaneously, but stopped immediately. I saw my shells hit top of fuselage about distance from tail and a minor explosion occur. The E.A. went into a spiral dive into cloud – which was 10/10 – and, though I searched above & below, I did not see him again.” Stein claimed a “probably destroyed”. This seemed to be confirmed when radio intercepts later indicated that the Germans were trying to contact the AUGUST 2013

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aircraft. In recording this incident, the squadron log noted: “The combat is noteworthy as being the first occasion on which the Whirlwinds drew blood.” The following day, the 13th, Pilot Officer “Kitch” Kitchener, took off in P6988, with Pilot Officer Thornton-Brown in P6972, from RAF St Eval. They were patrolling about twenty miles south of Land’s End at 19,000 feet when they spotted a Heinkel He 111 slightly above them and some miles ahead. The two Whirlwinds immediately gave chase: “South of the Scillies, Pink 2 [Kitchener] found himself short of petrol, according to his petrol gauge, and opened fire from astern, firing a 4 to 5 second burst. The

ABOVE LEFT: Westland Whirlwind HE-N

photographed at Tern Hill in October 1940. It is believed that this was P6972, this being the aircraft flown by Pilot Officer Stein when he made the first claim for the type on 12 January 1941. (Reg Findlay)

ABOVE RIGHT: Whirlwind P6976/HE-X

crashed on landing whilst being flown by Pilot Officer Thornton-Brown after an interception patrol on 13 January 1941. Earlier in the day it had flown a similar patrol in the hands of Sergeant Cliff Rudland. This image provides a clear view of the Whirlwind’s characteristic armament. (263 Squadron records)

Enemy Aircraft took violent evasive action and Pink 2 closed to 300 yards but had only two shells left in the magazine and had to break off the engagement. The 27

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TOP: The Whirlwind’s first confirmed victory

was achieved on 8 February 1941 by Pilot Officer Ken Graham, who was flying this aircraft, P6969/HE-V (pictured here during a patrol over the West Country). He shot down an Arado Ar 196 but was apparently hit by return fire and also shot down. (P.H.T. Green Collection)

ABOVE LEFT: An informal picture of Flight

Lieutenant Cliff Rudland DFC. As a Sergeant, Rudland was the first pilot to spot the Arado floatplane which became the Whirlwind’s first victim, but was unable to fire on it in the bad weather. (64 Squadron records)

ABOVE RIGHT: Pilot Officer “Kitch” Kitchener claimed several Junkers Ju 88s damaged whilst flying the Whirlwind but was seriously injured in a crash after his last engagement. (H.H. Kitchener)

Enemy Aircraft did not open fire. “Pink 1’s petrol was also running low and he fired a short burst from astern at 800 to 500 yards range. Enemy Aircraft, which had been diving, now entered 28

Reaping the Whirlwind.indd 28

a patch of cloud at 3,000 feet, flying southwards. Towards the latter end of the engagement one of the Enemy Aircraft’s rear gunners fired tracer ineffectively. Pink 1 followed Enemy Aircraft down into the cloud with 440 m.p.h. showing on the clock. He leveled out and came out of cloud base at approximately 2,000 feet.” The German bomber escaped, with the two Whirlwinds returning to base seemingly low on fuel. As it transpired the fuel gauges were faulty. Such problems aside, more concrete success was not long in coming. On 8 February 1941, Blue Section, comprising Flying Officer Hughes in P6991 and Sergeant Cliff Rudland in P6989, took-off from Exeter at 08.40 hours for a practice flight. After twenty minutes Hughes and Rudland were diverted to investigate a plot detected by radar and designated as Raid 139. The pair was vectored over the sea and was orbiting twelve miles south of Start Point when Rudland spotted the distinctive shape of an Arado Ar 196 low-wing reconnaissance floatplane. The enemy aircraft then went into cloud but was spotted again by Hughes about 1,000 yards to his left. He immediately set up a beam attack and opened fire with a five-second burst at 450 yards, closing to 200 yards, but without any visible result, before the Arado disappeared into the murk once more. Meanwhile, Red Section, comprising Flight Lieutenant David Crooks in P6968 and Pilot Officer Ken Graham in P6969, had been scrambled from St Eval and vectored to Dodman Point south of the town of St Austell and further west from

the original sighting of the Arado. At about 09.40 hours Crooks ordered them to split up, with him flying above the cloud and Graham below. Seeing nothing above, David Crooks descended and as he emerged from the cloud he spotted Ken Graham’s Whirlwind heading west. He consequently did a gentle left turn to follow his colleague – only to find that he had disappeared. Two minutes later Crooks then spotted a floatplane diving out of the cloud and getting ever lower until it hit the water inverted with the floats uppermost and the black crosses clearly visible. At the same time the local Coastguard reported the sighting of two aircraft crashing into the sea three miles south of Dodman Point, one of them in flames. Sadly, 20-year-old Ken Graham did not return. He was, however, posthumously credited with destroying the Arado. The Whirlwind’s first “scalp” was AUGUST 2013

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an Arado Ar 196A of 5/Bordfleiger Gruppe 196, Flown by the Staffelführer, Oberleutnant Adolf Berger, the aircraft was coded 6W+ON. * Later in the month Squadron Leader Arthur Donaldson took over as CO of 263 Squadron. Throughout the following month its Whirlwinds regularly skirmished with the Luftwaffe over the Western Approaches. On 1 March, for example, Pilot Officer Thornton Brown, flying P6989, was leading Kitch Kitchener (in P6996) on a morning patrol. When about twenty miles off Land’s End they spotted a Ju 88 ahead. The Luftwaffe crew was equally observant; the bomber turned and fled. A long chase then ensued during which the Ju 88 was damaged. The same two pilots were involved in the next incident on the morning of the 5th. They had left RAF Predannack, Kitch leading in P6989 with Thornton-Brown in P6991. Once again they spotted a Ju 88 to the south, which was flying at 19,000 feet, but Thornton-Brown got lost in cloud whilst positioning to open fire. Having lost his No.2, Kitchener closed upon the enemy alone: “I approached for a port quarter attack but when I was within 300 yds E/A dived slightly towards cloud. I followed immediately astern at full throttle. Although E/A was kept in sight and the chase was started approximately over Land’s End it was not until we reached the Scillies that I was able to close to 400 yds. “There was light cirrus cloud all the way down to 4,000 ft a slight break at 4,000 ft but below this there was a thick black rain cloud. At 5,000 ft I gave a short AUGUST 2013

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burst as E/A was approaching thick bank of cloud. I saw damage to port wing just outboard of the engine. It was as if a mat had been blown up by the wind. I cannot describe it more accurately. I imagine that an HE shell exploded in the wing. E/A then entered thick cloud. “When I emerged, E/A was five miles to starboard still diving. At 200 ft it levelled off. I gave chase and within 5 minutes closed to 350 yds. I gave five short bursts exhausting all my ammunition and saw E/A go down appreciably and turn for home. I noticed that he turned very gently and took no evasive action. I think this may have been due to the damaged wing.” Six days later on the 11th Kitchener was scrambled once more and took off in Whirlwind P6985 at 16.40 hours. He was ordered up to 23,000 feet and sent over the sea to the south of the Lizard Peninsula where an hour after taking off he spotted an aircraft. Many years later he described the subsequent events: “Coming up from the area of the Scillies was a Ju 88 again, similar to the one that I had chased a few days earlier. He must have spotted me too as his nose went down and he opened up to full throttle with me diving flat out after him. At about 10,000 feet I had closed to about 400 yards and opened at the same time as his rear gunner did.

ABOVE: Whirlwind I P6984/HE-H of 263 Squadron seen at RAF Exeter. During the summer of 1940, 263 Squadron lost many of its personnel in the sinking of HMS Glorious. In the months that followed Squadron Leader Harry Eeles supervised the introduction of the Whirlwind, using a few experienced 263 Squadron Norway veterans as the core of the unit. Some were soon posted out, but one that remained was Sergeant H.H. “Kitch” Kitchener who had achieved a number of victories against the odds flying the Gladiator biplane in Norway. (263 Squadron records) BELOW: A 263 Squadron Whirlwind, P7113, being rearmed with a 250lb bomb. The historian Philip J.R. Moyes made the following observations on the type’s armament: “The basic feature of the Whirlwind was its concentration of firepower: its four closelygrouped heavy cannon in the nose had a rate of fire of 600 lb./minute – which, until the introduction of the Beaufighter, placed it ahead of any fighter in the world.” (263 Squadron Records) “Just before he went into cloud I fired another burst and saw pieces coming off the top just behind the canopy. I couldn’t follow as his fire had hit my port engine which was streaming glycol and so I had to feather it. I headed back towards Predannack flying on my starboard engine but this too must have been damaged because as I approached the airfield I saw that it was on fire and it eventually stopped just before the runway and I spun in and crashed.” Kitchener was badly injured, suffering

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a fractured skull and a broken arm and was dragged from the blazing wreck just before it exploded. He spent a long period in hospital before returning to service, but his flying days were over. He left the RAF after the war and passed away aged 95 on 7 July 2010. The last of the claims in this early period of Whirlwind operations came on 1 April when Arthur Donaldson, in P6998, and Flight Lieutenant David Crooks, in P6989, flew an evening patrol, taking off at 18.35 hours. North of the Lizard they spotted a Dornier Do 215 that Donaldson attacked and damaged. Sadly, David Crooks’ Whirlwind crashed in flames near Helston. Although Donaldson had not heard him call that he was attacking, it was assumed that he too attacked the bomber but was hit by return fire and shot down. The 28year old Canadian from Toronto was laid

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to rest near Redruth in Illogan churchyard. * Whirlwinds continued to experience success, being used to escort Bomber Command raids into Europe as well as conducting their own Mandolin (attacks on enemy railway transport) and Rhubarb missions across the Channel. It was ideally suited to such operations as in addition to its powerful cannon the Whirlwind could carry two 250lb bombs or a single 500lb bomb. It was on 29 November 1943, that 263 Squadron flew its last Whirlwind mission, following which the aircraft were retired from service. Only one other squadron, 137 Squadron, received Whirlwinds, the total number of aircraft built for the RAF being just 114. When first devised the Whirlwind was a highly advanced aircraft and had its introduction into operational service not been delayed by engine problems it

TOP: One of 263 Squadron’s Whirlwinds at

RAF Exeter in the spring of 1941, this time pictured taxiing towards the photographer. Despite the relatively small number of Whirlwinds that entered service with the RAF, the type remained operational, virtually unmodified, for a remarkably long time. (263 Squadron Records)

ABOVE LEFT: A shot of a 263 Squadron

Whirlwind, HE-Q, in a sandbagged dispersal pen at RAF Warmwell during 1942. (263 Squadron Records)

ABOVE RIGHT: Another view of a 263

Squadron Whirlwind at RAF Warmwell during 1942. (263 Squadron Records)

BELOW: This atmospheric image of a 263 Squadron Westland Whirlwind was taken in the snow at RAF Exeter on 3 February 1941. Note the aircraft’s black and sky undersurfaces. (263 Squadron Records) might have been available for the Battle of Britain and its fame would have been ensured. As it transpired this magnificent aircraft has largely been forgotten. ■

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“THEN THE SCREAMS BEGAN”

Sunday, 19 November 1944, was a cold, dark night with very low cloud and drizzle. There was no street lighting, for this was wartime, and the houses were blacked out. Many residents of the suburban community of Bickley, however, were having a good time at the dance in the Crooked Billet public house – that was, writes Jennie Randall, until 21.18 hours when a massive explosion shook the streets.

F

or the men of Lehr und Versuchsbatterie No.444 (Training and Experimental Battery 444), their duties were potentially very dangerous. Even the smallest malfunction or error during the firing of a Vergeltungswaffe 2 (Vengeance Weapon 2 or V-2) could result in devastating consequences for those at or around the firing site. On Sunday, 19 November 1944, the mobile battery was located in the vicinity of Hoek van Holland, a port in the western Netherlands. Its personnel had a number of launch sites, such as one near a static bunker at the “fruit wharf”, where perfect little squares were soon burnt onto a concrete road a few hundred yards east of the station, or another next to the sanatorium on the road to Den Haag.1 BELOW: A then and now style photograph depicting damage to some of the houses located close to where the Crooked Billet was hit by a V-2 rocket on 19 November 1944. These properties, Nos. 1 to 7 Blackbrook Lane, are being repaired following the blast. (Courtesy of Carole Smith, via author. Artwork by Robert Mitchell)

Then the Screams.indd 32

Despite the risks, the V-2 fired by Lehr und Versuchsbatterie No.444 at 21.12 hours that night lifted off without incident. Capable of travelling at speeds of up to 3,600 miles per hour and having broken through the sound barrier, the rocket was soon on its way towards its destination. The technology of the day did not enable V-2s to be aimed at predetermined targets; they were just fired in the direction of London and could land absolutely anywhere. Flying at a maximum altitude of fifty-five miles, just six minutes after lifting off this V-2 slammed into the ground and exploded. * Young Raymond Wattenbach was standing in the dormitory of Bickley Hall School with his back to the window. He saw a light reflected in a wardrobe mirror, descending quite slowly until it disappeared from view. He may have been the only person to see the missile before it crashed into the ground, the whole school being shaken to its foundations.

At 9 Sunray Avenue, 17-year-old Bernard Pepper was in the living room, where he and his father were reading whilst his mother knitted. “We experienced a tremendously loud ‘whooshing’ noise and within half a second Mum and I were under the table, closely followed by Dad. After a second or two, the whole house seemed to lift up and drop down again, as if on a giant wave. We didn’t hear an explosion and we were left puzzled by the cause.” The cause was the 219th V-2 attack on the United Kingdom. The V-2 offensive lasted from September 1944 until March 1945. Almost 2,500 rockets were launched in this period against a number of targets, with the London area being hit by over 500 rockets and several hundred more landing in surrounding counties. An estimated 2,754 civilians were killed in London by V-2

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“THEN THE SCREAMS BEGAN”

the time, the atmosphere in the crowded attacks with another 6,523 injured. pub was in full swing, with a dance band When the V-2 impacted at Bickley, 11-year-old Sheila Mitchell was undressing playing on the stage in the ballroom and a darts match in progress in another bar. for bed. “Suddenly the ceiling of my William Jessop lived at 3 Parkfield Way, bedroom fell on top of me, before I heard which was less than 100 yards from the a very big bang. I somehow managed back of the Crooked Billet. “During the to get downstairs – the top of our house evening of Sunday 19 November 1944, had completely gone. Our family got we could hear the out of the house to see dance band music from a sight of complete “After a second or two, the the Billet dance hall, carnage. The 94 bus, which terminated in our whole house seemed to lift which was at the back our house. Suddenly, road, had no wheels, up and drop down again, as of there was a very big and there were bodies explosion, followed lying all over the road.”2 if on a giant wave.” by complete silence, The roof of the bus had followed by the noise of the rocket engine been torn off, landing in another street (sounding like a modern jet engine) ... altogether. We could hear the screams of people and The V-2 took six minutes from launch to impact on the heavy debris, including large pieces of concrete from the pub car park, thrown forecourt of the Crooked over the pub roof to land on our houses. Billet in Bickley, now “We were left in complete darkness, part of the London covered in soot, ceiling plaster and other Borough of debris. All of my family was injured, Bromley. At cut by flying glass. The metal window frames were so badly bent inward that we could not open them and all doors on the ground floor had been blown off the hinges into the hallway, blocking our exit from the house.” Nearby, at 4 Parkfield Way,

Then the Screams.indd 33

ABOVE LEFT: The view from Southborough

Lane looking towards the remains of what had once been Nos. 298-288 Southborough Lane and, beyond, the Crooked Billet. (Courtesy of Christine Regas, via author)

ABOVE: A then and now style comparison of the same view today. (Artwork by Robert Mitchell) BELOW: A V-2 is prepared for firing from a mobile launch unit. (US National Archives) Stanley Pilcher was walking downstairs when the rocket hit. “I remember the sudden blast, and all the windows going, doors going, front and bathroom ... The stairs came adrift, the pipes came out of the walls, the roof came off ... After the blast there was a deadly silence and then the screams began.” Ray Holledge, a RAF flying instructor at the time, was actually in the saloon bar of the Crooked Billet saying goodnight to his parents and other relatives when the rocket struck. “We had been celebrating my mother’s 57th birthday,” he recalled. “I was about to leave to keep a date at the Bromley Country Club in Crown Lane. Having reached the front corner entrance to the bar I had been called back as I’d forgotten my gloves. The centre of the rocket crater was in fact at this corner of the building. My mother, Eleanor

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ABOVE: A view of the back of the Crooked Billet taken in November 1944 in the aftermath of the V-2 explosion. As well as the civilians killed, three Royal Artillery personnel (Gunner John Clark, Gunner John Walker and Gunner William Webster) from 130 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery, Royal Artillery, which was located at nearby Thornet Wood, and a Royal Navy rating (Stoker First Class Reginald Groves of HMS Daffodil) also lost their lives. (Courtesy of Christine Regas, via author) BELOW RIGHT: A similar view of the rear of the Crooked Billet, though the fact that much of the rubble and debris has been cleared indicates that this image was taken at a later date. (Courtesy of Carole Smith, via author) BELOW LEFT: A young Peter Whitlock pictured outside 288 Southborough Lane, Bickley, a few years before the V-2 attack on 19 November 1944. This house was completely destroyed by the blast. Peter’s 11-year-old brother, Roy Whitlock, was killed in the explosion, though he is listed by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission as having been killed, at No. 288, on 20 November. This was due to the fact that Roy’s body was not recovered until 00.30 hours on the 20th, so that date was used on the death certificate. Peter, his mother and sister, were all seriously injured. His father, Private George Henry Whitlock, was away serving in the East Surrey Regiment at the time. (Courtesy of Jean Whitlock, via author)

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Then the Screams.indd 34

Wood. An immediate problem for the fire Holledge, was killed and everyone else and ARP rescue teams was the darkness. in our party badly injured. I was later told Orders were given by the sergeant in that friends of ours, named Les and Ada charge of the searchlight and generator Draper, pulled me out of the rubble and situated at the end of Parkfield Way that by so doing probably saved my life, as there was a subsequent further collapse of the searchlights be directed down the street towards the Crooked Billet. These the structure around us.” helped provide some illumination for the Christine Regas’s parents were also rescue workers. in the Crooked Billet that Sunday night, The Crooked Billet was obviously the her father playing darts in the bar on the focus of the rescue attempts. “It was opposite side of the pub from where the most unfortunate that rocket landed. “My father saw a flash and “After the blast there was a the complete front of the building was flung himself on the floor. Mum, facing the deadly silence and then the little more than a pile of rubble with the other direction, saw screams began.” badly damaged roof nothing but found still hanging over the area from which herself on the floor too. Strangely, my people needed to be rescued,” William aunt, living at 298 Southborough Lane, Jessop recalled. “A soldier was posted to sensed a vibration as the missile passed over the roof split seconds before landing. warn if the roof should start to fall whilst rescue workers and soldiers continued She dived under the table, my uncle to work despite this dangerous situation. following her.” I cannot recall how much time it took * before a warning shout went up that the The emergency services were soon roof was about to fall, but there was not on the scene, as well as soldiers from the nearby searchlight battery at Parkfield and sufficient time for all to get away before tons of roofing fell on the work area killing the heavy anti-aircraft gun site at Thornet

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ABOVE LEFT: The complete archive

photograph of the badly-damaged houses in Blackbrook Lane. Local residents recalled that the tarpaulins covering the roof remained in situ for some ten weeks. Note how blackout curtains can be seen in some of the windows. (Courtesy of Carole Smith, via author)

ABOVE RIGHT: This photograph of the

badly-damaged Crooked Billet is believed to have been taken from the rear of No.300 Southborough Lane some weeks after the explosion. Note the Anderson shelter in the foreground. (Courtesy of Christine Regas, via author)

RIGHT: The ruins of No.288 Southborough

Lane, where Roy Whitlock was killed, and the houses adjacent to it. The Crooked Billet was behind the photographer. (Courtesy of Carole Smith, via author)

BELOW: Another of our blended then and now comparisons of the damage caused to Nos. 1 to 7 Blackbrook Lane. (Courtesy of Carole Smith, via author. Artwork by Robert Mitchell) and seriously injuring some of the rescue workers, including soldiers. But without hesitation, those remaining all went back into the dust and rubble of the bombed and dangerous building. The heavy rescue of the Civil Defence Unit soon arrived, also ambulances with rescue doctors and nurses to attend to the walking wounded and [the] more badly injured extracted from under the rubble.” One of those that helped in the rescue efforts was 19-year-old Stanley Hollands

Then the Screams.indd 35

who was walking down Southborough Lane with his girlfriend Vera when the V-2 struck. “I started to help, tunnelling underneath the rubble, passing out glass and bodies, while Vera, a member of the Red Cross, gave first aid to the injured. I was covered in dirt and grime and desperate for a drink so I was quite pleased to see a mobile canteen had been established in the road and refreshments were being handed out to the fire officers and policemen. Sadly, for me there was no cup of tea. The urn was empty.” As the rescue teams cleared the rubble, casualties were being counted in their dozens. For 10-year-old Pauline Figgins it was the most tragic day of her life. “After I had gone to bed my parents decided that, as my mother had been at home all week, they would slip out for a quick drink at the Crooked Billet. When they arrived, my father left my mother to order drinks. It was then that the rocket hit. I remember being woken briefly by the explosion, which made my bed bounce, then the airraid siren went and I fell back to sleep. “The air raid wardens

and emergency services arrived at the Crooked Billet. I understand my father was buried and his clothes blown off. He was given morphia until he could be dug out and taken to hospital with, as it happened, only minor injuries. My mother’s body was found the following morning.” Lily Figgins, the wife of Albert, was aged 37 when she was killed.

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“THEN THE SCREAMS BEGAN”

ABOVE: This aerial photograph illustrates the devastation that could result from a V-2 explosion in an urban area – in this case the rocket which fell at the junction of Wanstead Park Road and Endsleigh Gardens in Ilford on 8 March 1945. Nine people were killed, fifteen seriously injured and nineteen slightly injured in this incident. Eight houses were destroyed, sixteen had to be demolished, thirty-three were rendered uninhabitable and a further 116 were seriously damaged. What this image does not show is a similar area of devastation which, just out of view to the right, was caused to buildings on Belgrave Road, the result of an earlier hit by a V-2 on 21 February 1945. (HMP) BELOW RIGHT: The Crooked Billet was rebuilt in 1957. For over sixty-six years there was no memorial to those killed in the area in November 1944, a situation which was rectified on 21 May 2011, when a Blue Plaque initiated by the Friends of Jubilee Country Park was installed and unveiled on the front of the reconstructed Crooked Billet. The gentleman on the far right of this view is Ray Holledge, who was amongst those pulled from the wreckage of the pub following the blast. He is wearing his RAF cap which was salvaged from the building’s ruins and returned to him whilst he was in hospital. (Author) BELOW LEFT: The Blue Plaque which was unveiled on 21 May 2011. (Author) Malcolm Smith was only ten months old at the time of the disaster. He was asleep when the V-2 exploded but suffered only relatively minor injuries as he was protected by a dressing table which fell on top of his cot. His mother managed to reach him but, due to the damage the house had sustained, she was unable to leave by the front door. Eventually she

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Then the Screams.indd 36

was able to get out through the side door but as she stepped outside, she tripped over the chimney stack which had been blown down by the force of the blast. She suffered extensive injuries and was discovered by the rescuers in a very dazed and confused state. However, in the confusion of her fall, baby Malcolm had flown out of her arms into the garden and was not seen by the rescuers who were more concerned with getting the mother off to hospital. It was only when his father arrived home and discovered that his baby was missing, that Malcolm was found. After being treated in hospital, Malcolm was reunited with his mother. However, as Malcolm’s wife remarked, “for the rest of his life on one thumb and under one eye he carried scars – a permanent reminder of that terrible night”. * Because of news censorship, the incident was played down in the press. In the first edition of the Bromley Times to be printed after the V-2 attack, there was a mere two-inch column on its front page which bore the headline, “Inn Destroyed”. The report, scant as it was, went on to state: “Casualties were caused, a proportion of them fatal, when a bomb fell in the forecourt of a large inn of modern design in Southern England recently. There were a large number of people on the premises at the time. The building was destroyed and an empty bus standing outside was damaged. Houses in the vicinity had roofs shattered and windows broken. The police, Civil Defence Services, N.F.S., Red Cross and

W.V.S. were soon on the scene, and all gave valuable assistance.” This gives little indication of the extent of the casualties or the scale of the destruction. In total twenty-six people were killed at the time of the explosion. A further victim, 45-year-old Marion Nasskau, died of her injuries at Bromley and District Hospital the following day. Dozens more were injured in the blast; sixty-five people were removed to Farnborough and Bromley hospitals, whilst a further thirty-four needed firstaid treatment.3 The devastation from the explosion extended over a radius of more than 300 yards. The destruction of the Crooked Billet resulted in the greatest number of casualties in a single incident experienced up to that date in the German V-2 offensive against the United Kingdom.4 It was also the largest single incident for casualties in the old Borough of Bromley during the Second World War. The impact it made upon the local community is still being felt today. ■

NOT FORGOTTEN: THE CROOKED BILLET The full story of the events of Sunday, 19 November 1944 is detailed by Jennie Randall in Not Forgotten: The Crooked Billet. Priced at £4.50 (including P&P), copies of this booklet can be ordered from The Friends of Jubilee Country Park, High Elms Country Park Office, Shire Lane, Farnborough, Kent, BR6 7JH. Please make cheques payable to: The Friends of Jubilee Country Park. For more information, please visit: www.jubileecountrypark.btck.co.uk

NOTES:

1. For more information on Lehr und Versuchsbatterie No.444 see: www.v2rocket.com 2. All the first-hand accounts in this article are drawn from Jennie Randall, Not Forgotten: The Crooked Billet (The Friends of Jubilee Country Park, Bickley/Petts Wood). 3. Lewis Blake, Bromley in the Front-Line (Selfpublished, Bromley, 1980), p.86. 4. Norman Longmate, Hitler’s Rockets (Frontline Books, London, 2009), p.205.

AUGUST 2013

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THE

CONDOR KILLER

I

f ever the epithet “born to fly” could be applied to anyone, that person was Norman Taylor, whose eyes were aimed skywards from a very early age. His adolescent ambition was to be a test pilot, and at the age of 19 he joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, attending a two-month ab initio flying course at No.11 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School (ERFTS) at Prestwick in Scotland from late march 1939. He soloed after ten hours’ instruction, completing fifty hours in the air. After Prestwick Norman was able to continue his flying with 9 ERFTS and in May 1940 he reported to No.10 Service Flying Training School at Ternhill, Shropshire. Whilst there he was lucky to escape death or injury when he forcelanded a North American Harvard trainer

To defend Allied convoys against attacks by long-range German Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors, in 1941 a small number of merchant ships were given Hurricane fighters which were catapulted into the air when an enemy aircraft was spotted. Only six Condors were destroyed by these socalled “Hurricats”. Barry M. Marsden relates the story of one of those battles in the air at sea. after its throttle jammed at 400 feet when he was carrying out an air-to-ground firing exercise. Norman managed to clear the aircraft’s cockpit seconds before it burst into flames. With an “above average” assessment, Taylor moved to No.6 Operational Training Unit at Sutton Bridge, Lincolnshire, where he gained thirty-four precious hours flying Hawker Hurricanes. Then on 7 August 140, as a Sergeant Pilot, he was posted to 601 (County of London) Squadron at Tangmere in Sussex, just in time to participate in the main stages of the Battle of Britain. Norman served

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Condor Killer.indd 39

with 601 for almost a year during which time he accounted for four Messerschmitt Bf 109s, one Dornier Do 17, one Junkers Ju 87 and one Messerschmitt Bf 110, all destroyed, plus shares in a Junkers Ju 88 and a Heinkel He 111. In addition he claimed a Bf 109 and a Ju 88 as probables, and damaged a Do 17 and an Me 110, a splendid record for which he was awarded a Distinguished Flying Medal in May 1941, being commissioned a Pilot Officer the same month. The citation for his DFM recorded his “great keenness and determination to engage ABOVE: The uninviting and somewhat daunting pilot’s-eye view of the incredibly short catapult ramp on a Catapult Aircraft Merchant Ship, or Camship. Firing a Hurricane from such a ramp necessitated a thrust of 3.5g at take-off. (All images are courtesy of Norman Taylor’s daughter, Mrs Sallie Ratledge, via author, unless stated otherwise) LEFT: Pilot Officer Norman Taylor

DFM, a studio portrait taken soon after commissioning in May 1941.

BELOW: In this photograph of a group of trainees at No.11 ERFTS, Prestwick, Scotland, in April 1939, Norman Taylor can be seen standing in the centre of the back row.

39

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THE CONDOR KILLER

ABOVE LEFT: A group of NCOs from 601

(County of London) Squadron pictured whilst on readiness in front of a Hawker Hurricane during the autumn of 1940. Taylor is the tall figure at the rear. In the front row, from left to right, are: Sergeant Jensen, Sergeant Hetherington and Sergeant Weightman.

ABOVE RIGHT: Camships often endured

appalling weather during Atlantic crossings. Here Hurricane V7253 takes on heavy seas during Empire Rowan’s voyage to Canada in late 1941. Empire Rowan was torpedoed and sunk by aircraft in the Bay of Collo, north-west of Bone, Algeria on 27 March 1943.

BELOW: A Hawker Sea Hurricane is launched from a Catapult Armed Merchant Ship at Greenock on 9 October 1941. Note the long flame from the rocket assistors. (Imperial War Museum; A9423) the enemy”. As an individualist and somewhat of a lone wolf, perhaps keen to experience other adventures, Taylor was intrigued by a circular asking for “officer volunteers who must be fully operational pilots” to apply to join an outfit called the Merchant Ship Fighter Unit (MSFU). Doubtless attracted by the potential daring and hazard of the enterprise, he volunteered and reported to Speke, near Liverpool, on 27 June, with nearly 500 flying hours in his logbook. The MSFU had been created to tackle the serious menace posed by long-

40

Condor Killer.indd 40

range German aircraft which had been attacking Atlantic convoys and reporting their positions to U-boat packs. The predominant threat was the four-engine Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condors flown by KG40 from their airfields on the Atlantic seaboard. These raiders had an operational radius of 1,250 civilian crew members. There were just thirty-five Camships miles and posed a real danger to Britain’s in service during the war, the majority of supply lines. which were Ministry of War TransportThe only short-term answer to the owned Empire ships and they were usually problem was to adapt merchant ships stationed at the head of the outboard as Catapult Armed Merchant Ships – port column of a convoy so they could “Camships” for short. The Camships manoeuvre into the wind for launching. were equipped with forward-mounted When the ship was in position, the team rocket-propelled catapults which would wait until the bows lifted on the launched fighters along a seventy-five crest of a wave and then foot ramp to engage ignite the rockets. these predators in the “The steel restraining The work had potential remote mid-Atlantic sea lanes. Dubbed “Hurricats” strop sheared and the for both excitement and but could also be or “Catafighters”, the grey-green Catafighter danger, mind-numbingly boring, war-weary Hawker hurtled along on its with long weeks at sea Hurricane Is which were not much to do. Many adapted for use were trolley, accelerating to and Catapilots completed considered expendable, 80mph at lift-off.” a number of voyages and once launched were without ever seeing a on a one-way mission, hostile aeroplane, let alone engaging one, as few combats were likely to take place and bad weather was also a drawback for near land. When the aircraft’s fuel was seasick-prone individuals. exhausted, the pilot took to his parachute In two years’ service, Camships and trusted to a convoy escort to rescue launched only eight aircraft against hostile him from the sea. enemy aircraft, notching up six victories. The team on each Camship consisted One Catapilot was killed. Inevitably the of one pilot for Atlantic runs (or two Camships became prime targets and pilots for voyages to Russia, Gibraltar twelve of the thirty-five were lost to and the Mediterranean), plus a fitter, a enemy action. rigger, a radio-telephone operator, a Norman’s initial ‘bang-off’ was on Fighter Direction Officer (FDO) 28 June 1941, in a lumbering Fairey and a Royal Navy torpedoman Fulmar, when he first experienced the who worked on the catapult. 3.5g force involved in the launches. Because they were operating on a From the beginning of July he took part merchant ship, the team members in similar launches involving Hurricanes. had to sign ships’ articles as

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ABOVE: Taylor and fellow-pilot Joe Birbeck

pose on Hurricat V6927, mounted on Empire Gale’s fo’c’sle catapult, whilst outward bound on the Liverpool-Gibraltar run in May 1942.

RIGHT: Taken from the opposite direction,

Norman is pictured here on V6927’s motor cowling. Details of the rocket-powered trolley can be clearly seen.

BELOW LEFT: Aerial predator of the Atlantic sea lanes was the Luftwaffe’s Focke-Wulf 200C Condor which had a long range and could shadow convoys in mid-ocean. BELOW RIGHT: Taylor, left, and Joe Birbeck, at full readiness, awaiting events to unfold, during the trip to the “Rock” in May 1942. The intensive tuition included positioning flights to Belfast and elsewhere. His first operational cruise was to Halifax, Nova Scotia in November 1941, accompanying a convoy on the Camship Empire Rowan. The passage to Canada was long and stormy, and the Hurricane (V7253) suffered a pounding from the heavy weather. The return trip, in December, was even rougher, with gales, blizzards and huge waves which further injured the exposed fighter. The convoy reached Liverpool on 5 January 1942. Taylor spent the next month at Speke where his logbook laconically recorded

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Condor Killer.indd 41

a force-landing in Hurricane Z3665 at Mostyn. On 14 May he re-joined Empire Rowan on the Gibraltar convoy run, shipping Hurricane V6927 on its catapult. On 25 October 1942, Norman joined the Camship Empire Heath, homeward bound in a sixty-fiveship convoy, with Hurricane V7070 mounted on her bows. Gibraltar convoys had their landward flank exposed to enemy airfields whilst sailing in both directions, especially KG 40’s base at Bordeaux-Merignac. Just before 10.00 hours on the bright, clear morning of 1 November with the convoy some 250 miles west of the Spanish coast, an air attack warning was hoisted by the convoy commodore. It was impractical to route Gibraltar convoys beyond the Condor’s operational range of 1,250 miles, and Norman’s convoy was not more than 700 flying miles from Bordeaux. For an hour nothing was seen, at which

point a low-flying aircraft appeared some eight miles away, ahead of the convoy and approaching from landwards. “Action Stations” alarm bells immediately clanged throughout the ship. Norman and his FDO, Sub-Lieutenant S.L. “Ginger” Ward (later described by Taylor as “the best FDO we ever had”), identified the aircraft as a Condor, flying too low to show up on the radar screens. The interloper was a Fw

41

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RIGHT: Hawker Sea Hurricane Mk.I V7070

sits expectantly on Empire Heath’s catapult trolley before a return voyage to Britain in October 1942. This was the aircraft Taylor was flying when he shot down the Condor on 1 November 1942, whilst protecting convoy HG 91.

BELOW RIGHT: Norman and Joe indulge in a spot of sunbathing on Empire Gale’s deck. The original tongue-in-cheek caption was “At readiness!” Launched on 29 April 1941 and completed in June 1941, Empire Gale survived the war, being scrapped at Hong Kong in July 1968. MAIN PICTURE BELOW: Whilst at Gibraltar Norman witnessed the preparations for the vital Malta convoys in mid-1942, taking this surreptitious shot of the great battleship HMS Malaya, a veteran of Jutland. The stern of the carrier HMS Eagle can be seen at centre left.

200C-3/U4 from 7./KG 40, which, coded F8+DS (and the werke number 0070), was piloted by Oberleutnant Arno Gross. The German crew of seven included a meteorologist, Heinz Knothe. Taylor rushed forward, climbed onto the Hurricat’s wing and then settled into the cockpit, donning his helmet and strapping himself in. As he started the Merlin engine and went through his pre-flight checks, his reserve pilot, P.D. “Paddy” O’Sullivan raced to the steel firing hut in the forepeak to gather the trolley’s safety locking-bolt keep-pins. The Condor now turned away to fly parallel to the convoy, maintaining an eight mile distance leaving SubLieutenant Ward, who was responsible for launching the Hurricane, unsure of the enemy’s intentions. He scrubbed the shoot, partly to avoid overheating the Merlin, giving the Catapult Firing Officer (CFO) - O’Sullivan – the switch-off signal, who relayed it to Taylor. However, the Condor continued to stalk the convoy from astern. The Luftwaffe crew may have watched as the second largest vessel in the convoy – Empire Heath herself – steamed out on the vulnerable flank of the lines of merchantmen. On this occasion the Camship had been placed at the rear to give her Hurricane maximum sea-space for launching. Taylor was ordered to restart his engine and the ship’s helm was put over into the wind to give the Catafighter a perfect take-off. With the menacing shape of the FockeWulf approaching from dead astern, Ward ordered the launch. O’Sullivan plugged in the safety link and raised his blue flag to inform Captain Robert Hamnett, Empire Heath’s Master, that the fighter was ready for launching. A second ringing of the klaxon warned the crew to take cover

Condor Killer.indd 42

from the imminent rocket blast and the Master waved his blue flag for O’Sullivan to initiate take-off as soon as possible. The CFO waved his own flag for the pilot to open his throttle and the Catafighter, still rigidly tethered to its cradle, vibrated as though eager for release. Taylor raised his right arm, waiting for the bows of the merchantman to lift with the swell before giving the signal to fire the banks of three-inch rockets which would send the Hurricane accelerating along the trolley. His preparations were ready – throttle nut tightened, one-third flaps, one-third starboard rudder to cancel out the warplane’s incipient swing to left, elevators and trim-tabs central, and left elbow firmly forced into the hip to prevent

the control column being drawn back too sharply. The stick had to be eased back gently or the fighter could easily stall into the sea. Norman jammed his head hard into the heavily-padded rest to absorb the velocity, and just as the bows lifted to the horizontal, he cut down his arm abruptly. O’Sullivan operated the firing switch, igniting the rockets with a deafening roar and a blinding coruscation of light. The steel restraining strop sheared and the grey-green Catafighter hurtled along on its trolley, accelerating to 80mph at liftoff. Taylor felt his face distort under the 3.5g pressure, jowls flattening against his cheekbones. O’Sullivan instinctively ducked as the aircraft’s starboard wing skimmed his firing hut, and the now-

11/07/2013 10:17

empty cradle slammed into the hydraulic buffers just above him. As clouds of acrid smoke swirled aft over Empire Heath’s superstructure, Norman raised flaps, slid his canopy shut, switched on IFF and, testing his R/T, banked round to port, back over the Camship. The R/T frequency was blanked by jamming, obviously from the Condor itself. The sun, glinting hard off the sea, hindered Norman’s vision, and he needed to know where his opponent was. Roaring back over Empire Heath, he saw sailors pointing southwest towards the Fw 200 which had swung away low over the waves as soon as its crew had noticed V7070’s

Condor Killer.indd 43

ABOVE: Roughly 250 miles west of Spain,

V7070 perches on its cradle a few hours before its combat with a KG 40 Condor. The ramp was offset to starboard to prevent flames from the blast-off damaging the bridge and to ensure that a mis-launch did not involve the ship running down the pilot.

BELOW:A Hurricat sits expectantly on its catapult ramp. (Courtesy of Chris Goss) remarkable launching pyrotechnics. The four-engine predator headed straight into the sun to make detection doubly difficult. Appreciating the skills of the KG 40 long-range fliers, Taylor guessed their tactics; snarling along at full boost, 2,600 revs a minute and approaching 300mph, he picked out the silhouette of the Axis aircraft some six miles up-sun. Norman gained rapidly on the Condor, recognising its sinister elegance, the streamlined fuselage, slender wings and stately empennage, all betraying the raider’s civilian pedigree. Still troubled by the off-sea glare, he rattled off a short burst from his battery of eight .303 Browning machine-guns. His intention was to force the Condor to turn away from the sun, but as he closed, the enemy gunners began hosing him with tracer from several positions. The Focke-Wulf increased speed and Taylor had to pull the boost override to

keep up. This was V7070’s final trip, and the strain on the over-revving Merlin was immaterial. In the event he had to reduce the full twelve pound boost pressure to a more moderate nine as a coolant leak sprayed glycol on his windscreen. Closing in on the dull sea-grey bomber from starboard and above, Norman endured blistering streams of tracer from the forward dorsal turret and a beam gun. Through intense defensive fire he crossed the Condor’s tail, ripping off a four-second burst from 150 yards before sliding away to port. As he broke away a burst slashed through his port wing, with one round emerging from the dead centre of the upper red and blue roundel. Hanging on above and to port of his adversary, Taylor realised that the Condor was steering for the sanctuary of a layer of cloud at 1,200 feet, rising like a lift as Oberleutnant Gross opened the throttles of his four growling Bramo Fafnir ninecylinder radials for the climb. It was a fatal mistake; as it nosed upwards, the hostile aircraft had to pass straight through the MSFU pilot’s GM2 gunsight. At an altitude of 300 feet and a range of only 200 yards Taylor only needed minimum deflection as the Condor drifted through the luminous ring of his reflector. A three-second stream of tracer, directed with deadly accuracy, tore into the vulnerable cockpit area, flailing the enclosed space with bullets and riddling the pilot. As he died, Gross dragged back on the control column, and the huge machine, its 108-foot wingspan

11/07/2013 10:18

THE CONDOR KILLER

ABOVE LEFT: Sub-Lieutenant S.L. “Ginger”

Ward, described by Taylor as the best Fighter Direction Officer, or FDO, he ever knew.

ABOVE RIGHT: Though poor quality, this

image depicts the moment that the warworn corvette HMS Sweet Briar plucked Taylor from the Atlantic after his combat with Oberleutnant Arno Gross and his crew.

BELOW: This remarkable photograph shows V7070 returning to the convoy after destroying the Fw 200 Condor on 1 November 1942. Shortly after it was taken, Taylor baled out and nearly drowned! looking enormous as it reared above the Hurricane, began a steep climb, with the doomed gunners still ripping off bursts of fire which snaked around Taylor as he followed. The Hurricane pilot was unaware he had dealt the Focke-Wulf a mortal blow, especially as his quarry abruptly stalled away, plunging towards the ocean in a shallow dive, seemingly to resume its wave-hopping routine to frustrate the defender into further wastage of ammunition and fuel. Wrong-footed by the unexpected dive, Norman pulled his straining fighter round to follow. He looked on, astounded, as the Condor failed to ease out of its dive and smashed, with alarming suddenness, into the slate-grey sea. Great curtains of spray rose up, hiding the doomed giant, and, as the boiling water subsided, only the great squared-

44

Condor Killer.indd 44

off swastika-decorated fin and rudder cleared the trailing edge of the starboard wing. Once free he pulled the D-ring and remained, marking the attacker’s felt his parachute open with a jerk. He demise. Taylor jubilantly screamed his watched with some regret as his faithful success over the R/T as he orbited the V7070 dropped her port wing and glided wreckage in the unlikely event that into the Atlantic in a graceful curve. some of the crew had survived. As the Unfortunately Taylor had twisted his projecting empennage slid beneath the harness on jumping and during his ninetywaves, only a wide patch of fluorescent second descent he could not control his dye was left to indicate where seven fall. He hit the sea hard and on his back. men had died. Having managed to release the dragging Taylor was now some forty miles canopy, as a non-swimmer, Norman away from the convoy. He climbed to kicked off his flying boots and struggled 2,000 feet and contacted his FDO who to inflate his lifejacket. The seal on his air gave him a vector to steer. At midday bottle stubbornly refused to break, and he had the ships in sight, and, still though he managed to stay afloat his legs exhilarated, brought V7070 low over the became entangled in the waterlogged mastheads, completing a succession of parachute whilst the dinghy behind his slow rolls to announce his victory. back was caught up in Empire Heath “The “whoop-whoop” of the shroud lines. After manned the side for the dangerous him, the crew dancing sirens echoed over the surviving combat, his despairing and cheering on deck, water as every vessel in the thought was that he was whilst the “whoopto drown at the whoop” of sirens convoy saluted his feat.” going end of it! echoed over the water Struggling violently to free his dinghy, as every vessel in the convoy saluted his Norman rapidly exhausted himself, feat. Only then did Norman notice the swallowing copious draughts of seawater. bullet-strikes on his port wing and eased Sinking “for the thirty-third time” under off the aerobatics. At this point he was questioned over the R/T, O’Sullivan asking the impetus of a huge wave, he glimpsed a lifebelt ahead, and clung on gratefully, for precise details of the combat, as not unaware that the wave was caused by all Catapilots survived their bale-outs the blunt, thrusting bows of HMS Sweet and important lessons could be gleaned Briar. The lifebelt was still attached to the from his combat tactics and those of his corvette’s stern, and the hapless pilot was adversary. Having ensured that the pick-up vessel, involuntarily towed until the line mercifully broke. He lay wallowing desperately until the corvette HMS Sweet Briar, was on strong hands dragged his soaked and station, Ward ordered his pilot to jump. spent body into a boat. Norman was no stranger to the parachute At 12.30 hours, cocooned in a warm – in August 1940 he shot down a Bf 109, blanket, Norman was handed aboard the but was hit by the bandit’s Number 2 and escort and treated to a welcome dose of was forced to bale out over Gravesend. Navy rum. A hot bath, dry clothes and Aiming to hit the sea just ahead of the further tots restored his strength and by escort, Norman jettisoned his canopy, 15.50 hours he had been returned to his throttled back to 150mph, and, thrusting own ship. In his logbook he recorded himself head-first out of the cockpit,

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11/07/2013 10:18

ABOVE: The morning after the action – Norman, on the right, is shown with fellow pilot P.D. “Paddy” O’Sullivan, far left, FDO Sub-Lieutenant “Ginger” Ward and Empire Heath’s Master, Captain Robert Hamnett. The catapult is now empty, with V7070 gone forever. BELOW LEFT: A view that shows just how short the catapult ramps on Camships were. (Courtesy of Chris Goss). BELOW RIGHT: Norman Taylor’s grave marker at Gütersloh proudly describes him as “One of the Few” – a statement that could relate to his earning of the Battle of Britain Clasp or to his service in the Merchant Ship Fighter Unit. The clipped top corners indicate that Norman’s is a non-Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstone, his death occurring outside the designated war years which, in terms of the CWGC’s work, were between 3 September 1939 and 31 December 1947. spending twenty minutes “in the drink”, later advising any future intrepid Catapilots to “take my tip and learn to swim”. In truth, the training of MSFU pilots had become more rigid since his

AUGUST 2013

Condor Killer.indd 45

recruitment, and included courses on bale-out procedures and survival in the water. The reward for Taylor’s exploit was swift and justified – an immediate Distinguished Flying Cross. Both the AOC 9 Group and the C-in-C Western Approaches sent congratulatory telegrams, with the former adding “Well done, MSFU”. The award, gazetted in December 1942, paid tribute to the pilot’s skill in the desperate combat, adding that: “His courageous and skilful work earned the admiration of officers of the ships in the convoy who witnessed the operation.” The convoy reached Britain on 8 November, with Taylor earning a welldeserved rest. He remained with the MSFU until April 1943, adding droguetowing and ADDLs – Aerodrome Dummy Deck landings – to his repertoire. He was eventually posted away, returning to his native Derbyshire to take up a stint with Rolls-Royce in Derby. Here he was promoted Flight Lieutenant and received the Air Efficiency Award.

After some two years as a service test pilot Norman was posted to 245 Squadron, flying Gloster Meteor jets, progressing to another Meteor unit, 222 Squadron as a flight commander in February 1946. He subsequently flew Tempest 2s with 33 Squadron in Germany, before a spell at the Empire Flying School in October, by which time his logbook showed a substantial list of the aircraft types he had piloted. Norman’s final move, in January 1948, was to the Station Flight, 135 Wing, RAF Gütersloh, where he flew Harvards on instrument rating tests – a far cry from the fast jets he had piloted over the previous few years. On 29 April 1948, he took off in Harvard IIB KF569, one day before his fifth wedding anniversary, accompanied by Flight Lieutenant R.L. Simms. A short time later, whilst landing at Wunstorf, west of Hanover, the trainer lost power on approach and spun in, killing both occupants. It was a tragic and poignant end to an exemplary flying career. Only 27 at the time of his death, Norman Taylor was interred at Gütersloh, his headstone bearing the proud words “One of the Few”. No fighter pilot could wish a finer epitaph. ■

45

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11/07/2013 10:42

British Prisoners of War After Dunkirk

As Prime Minister Winston Churchill famously declared, the evacuation of Allied forces from Dunkirk between 26 May and 4 June 1940 was a “miracle of deliverance” following the “colossal military disaster” of their defeat in France at the hands of the Germans. The seeds of this defeat lay in the Allies’ outdated defensive strategy and fighting methods, while the Germans pioneered a revolutionary new form of warfare known as Blitzkrieg (“lightning war”). This involved the close co-ordination of fast-moving mechanised forces and aircraft to bypass defensive positions and to shock enemy forces, leading them either to surrender quickly or fall back in disarray. The German offensive began on 10 May 1940, with an invasion of the Netherlands and Belgium. When the Allies advanced to meet this attack, the Germans unleashed a second offensive through the Ardennes, an area of rolling hills and dense forest that the Allies had mistakenly believed was impassable to tanks. This unexpected move outflanked both the Allied forces advancing

(Image: NAM 1991-03-148-18, Neg. 136202)

KEY MOMENTS IN THE HISTORY OF THE BRITISH ARMY: 8

DEFEAT IN THE WEST into Belgium and the great system of defences that the French had constructed along the Franco-German border, the Maginot Line. The Germans then advanced swiftly to the French coast, cutting off the Allied armies in the north from the rest of France and winning a decisive victory. At this point the Germans paused just long enough for the Allies to fall back on Dunkirk and organise an evacuation. In a brilliantly improvised operation carried out in the teeth of persistent attack by the Luftwaffe, hundreds of vessels of all sizes, many crewed by civilians, rescued soldiers from the port and surrounding beaches. A total of 338,000 British and French troops were evacuated, a figure that few had believed was possible. Yet many thousands of Allied troops were not so lucky and were captured, as this photograph shows. But while the Allies lost all their heavy equipment, the evacuated force was to provide the nucleus of an Army that kept Britain in the war. NEXT MONTH: Yomping! – British troops advance across the Falklands, 1982

www.nam.ac.uk

Each month, through a series of ten iconic images from its archives, the National Army Museum’s Justin Saddington documents key moments in the history of the British Army since 1914, presented in order of historical importance.

ACenturyofWarfareAug2013.indd 48

12/07/2013 07:14

The Second World War touched virtually every community in Britain. There was no escape from the German bombs which fell indiscriminately on the great and the small. Amongst those that suffered death and destruction was one of the most famous names on the high streets of the UK – Marks & Spencer. This iconic institution played its full part in the war, including housing officials of a very secret organisation at its London headquarters.

Lessons of War.indd 49

T

he Second World War is generally considered to have been the first total war, in that every endeavour and aspect of the lives of the combatant nations was directed towards the war effort. So it was with Marks & Spencer. As early as 1938, notes one account, a full time AirRaid Precautions Officer had been engaged “to study these problems and help to organise and encourage our staff to learn to offer their help in an emergency”. Twenty-five per cent of Marks & Spencer’s staff was trained in first-aid or anti-gas precautions and served as wardens, fire-fighters or decontaminators. Indeed, by the outbreak of war in September 1939, £20,000 had already been spent on these and other measures. Staff members were also encouraged to enrol in the Army, the men being granted the necessary time off for training and to attend camp at full pay. At first, though, the war seemed far away – until the sudden invasion of France and the evacuation of the

MAIN PICTURE BELOW: The Marks & Spencer store in Plymouth pictured after the events of 22 April 1941. That night the city suffered the second of five ferocious attacks which left it devastated. During this onslaught, this store was hit by an oil bomb which penetrated the roof before bursting into the second floor. Within seconds the building was a mass of flames. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive) BELOW: Members of staff at the Exeter store (which was located in Fore Street) pictured whilst on duty as Firewatchers. Note that the individual on the right is holding a German 1kg Incendiary Bomb. The Exeter branch was destroyed during a Luftwaffe attack in the early hours of Sunday, 4 May 1942. The bomb concerned had fallen on a furniture shop opposite, shortly after when the Marks & Spencer store “simply collapsed … and in a few seconds the building was burning from end to end”. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

11/07/2013 10:20

THE LESSONS OF WAR

ABOVE: Within three months of the

destruction of its Plymouth branch, Marks & Spencer had opened a temporary store in the city’s old Pannier Market. This traded until a permanent replacement was opened in November 1951. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

BELOW LEFT: This relic of the Blitz is held by The Marks & Spencer Company Archive. As the inscription on the front states, it serves as a reminder of the night of Sunday, 24 November 1940, when the Bristol store, located in Castle Street, was destroyed in a German raid. The first Marks & Spencer store to be destroyed in the war was that in Harlesden, which was hit on the night of 17/18 November 1940 – for the remainder of the war the site was used as the location of a static water tank. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive) BELOW RIGHT: Wherever possible, business continued as normal. This is the Café Bar in the Ealing store as it appeared in 1940. Note the sign on the right which reads “Register here for cheese and preserves”. By 1942, Café Bars serving hot, healthy lunches without using people’s ration allocation were operating in eighty stores across the country. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive) BEF placed the company’s Kent stores on the frontline. As the troops arrived from Dunkirk, trained staff were on hand to help from the Dover, Ramsgate and Margate branches. Ralph Salaman, the company’s Head of Air Raid Precautions, who was visiting the Dover store at the time, recalled the scene at Dover railway station:

50

Lessons of War.indd 50

“There were train-loads of soldiers, many wounded, bandaged up and being carried into the railway carriages. I saw several Marks & Spencer girls in their store uniforms on duty on the platforms, giving cups of tea.”1 Soon to follow was the Battle of Britain and the Blitz. Virtually half of the company’s stores and offices were damaged to some degree, particularly during the latter. Of this number, sixteen stores were completely destroyed and four were partially destroyed. Eight staff members were killed and fifty-six injured; 67-year-old William Grisdale, for example, was killed on 13 March 1941, whilst on duty as a Firewatcher at the store in Wallasey, Cheshire. The very first of the stores to be damaged was that in Harlesden in northwest London. This was hit on the night of 17/18 September 1940, as the Store Manager, Mr Greenhill, later recalled: “Harlesden was an L-shaped store and a bomb fell almost on the corner [of the L]. As there was nothing on the roof in those days, it burned outwards in both directions. When I arrived in the morning it was to be met by a very dazed and rather pathetic looking staff whose chief reaction was that it was a very dirty trick to have played on them by the

enemy – burning ‘their store’.” It was not just in London that the company’s stores came under attack. On the night of 12/13 December 1940, Sheffield was attacked by 336 aircraft. The first of the enemy bombers dropped incendiary bombs, thirty of which landed on the roof of the store. Worse, though, was to come. “At 9.30 p.m. the building received a direct hit by a high-explosive bomb near [the] front of the store – explosion in stockroom,” recorded Mr Smith the Chief Firewatcher. “A few minutes later another bomb hit the corner of the building wrecking the shop front. A third high-explosive bomb then struck and exploded near the food section: by now the store was well ablaze – nothing could have saved the building now – terrific fire. Decided at 12.15 a.m. to leave the building.” Coventry, of course, suffered a devastating raid on 14 November 1940. The attack was carried out by 515 German bombers from Luftflotte 3 and from the pathfinders of Kampfgruppe 100. The attack, code-named Operation

AUGUST 2013

11/07/2013 10:20

LEFT: Staff Firewatchers on the roof of Marks

& Spencer’s Kirkcaldy Store during 1941. Marion Cotterill, seen here third from the left, recalled that “if you were on duty during the night, you still had to be on the counter the next day”. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

BELOW RIGHT: Utility Clothing was introduced towards the end of 1941 by the British Government with several purposes in mind: raw materials were in short supply and had to be conserved; manufacturers needed to become more efficient in their working practices; and clothing prices had to be kept down. Such items of clothing, which were sold by Marks & Spencer, carried the readilyidentifiable CC41 utility clothing label. Some accounts state that the CC41 stood for “Civilian Clothing 1941”, others that it meant “Clothing Control 1941”. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive) RIGHT: This pair of pyjamas is typical of

the utility wear sold by Marks & Spencer during the war. Just visible is the CC41 label. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

Mondscheinsonate (Moonlight Sonata), was intended to destroy Coventry’s factories and industrial infrastructure, although it was clear that damage to the rest of the city, including monuments and residential areas, would be considerable. The latter certainly turned out to be the case, and the Marks & Spencer store in Smithford Street was just one of more than 4,000 buildings that were destroyed that night. A Mr Vincent, a company stocktaker who happened to be working at the Coventry store that week, had volunteered to help undertake firewatching duties. That night he was on the roof as the bombs started to fall. The nearby Woolworths and BHS stores were amongst the first to be hit, and burning embers and sparks from these buildings set the Marks & Spencer store on fire. “I was on the roof of our store,” Mr Vincent wrote in a report he compiled five days after the event, “smothering sparks for as long as I could, then a bomb burst

AUGUST 2013

Lessons of War.indd 51

BOTTOM: Marks & Spencer’s Sheffield store

was bombed during the night of 12 December 1940, in one of the heaviest raids of the war on a British city. During the attack numerous incendiaries fell on the roof, but were all successfully dealt with by the Firewatchers. The damage was done by a high explosive bomb that fell at about 21.30 hours, followed by a second and then a third a few minutes later. These left the store a blazing shell. A temporary store in a converted cinema – the Lansdowne (seen here) – was opened on 25 April 1941. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

so we [Mr Hawkins the firewatcher, and two porters, Mr Richards and Mr Willis] scurried down to the shelter. By then all around us was a roaring furnace. How we got away was a mystery but the efforts of the lads were great and worthy of praise in the way they tried to save the stores against an overwhelming enemy. The fire and blasting of bombs beat us, we had no earthly chance. I am sorry that we could do no better.”

through the roof and I found my way to the sales floor and burst my way out through the front windows. I managed to get to the shelter and there a bomb burst the shelter door in on me as I was closing it. Then a land mine exploded on top of our toy stores above the shelter, and we went up to the top and tried to smother the fire that was coming through until the flames were licking all around us. “I saw it was no use staying any longer

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THE LESSONS OF WAR

The last of Marks & Spencer’s stores to be destroyed was the one in Lewisham, which was devastated by a V-1 at 09.41 hours on Friday, 28 July 1944. The flying bomb exploded when it hit the roof of a street level air raid shelter outside the shop. Other stores nearby, such as Woolworths and Sainsburys, were destroyed, as was the Post Office and a number of passing buses, in what was the worst V-1 incident in South London (the blast area from which extended up to 600 yards in all directions).2 This disaster was witnessed by a young WAAF: “We were almost opposite Marks & Spencer ... when ... I suddenly hear a queer sound – a sort of crackling noise ... I instinctively looked up at the very low clouds and there it was, right over the top of us like a huge black whale’s head, coming through the white cloud almost at roof level, and as I shouted ‘Get down, Mum’, and tried to push her to the ground, I saw it fall on Marks & Spencer and explode ... We were thrown into the air and blown about like bits of paper or leaves and there was dust and screams all around and then awful silence and we were lying on the ground with our heads towards the scene of the explosion ... I noticed Mum’s white summer coat covered in blood and she was moaning, and we could only lie there and wait for help.”

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This V-1 claimed the lives of five members of Marks & Spencer staff; a further twenty were injured. One of the dead was 15-year-old Sales Assistant Alice May Thompson, the youngest employee killed during the war and who had celebrated her birthday only the week before. The number of customers killed and injured in the store is unknown but the total number of casualties equalled fifty-nine deaths and 299 injured. * Rationing severely affected a business such as Marks & Spencer. There were, however, certain foods that were not subject to such controls. Amongst these were slab cakes, but because of the general shortage of food, the slab cakes became highly sought after. As a result Mrs Wood, the Departmental Supervisor at the Hereford store, initiated her own method of ensuring a fair distribution of cake: “The slabs would be cut into four portions and each customer was allowed one piece which would be 1½ pounds in weight and cost 1/3d per pound. Regular customers would form a queue long before it was booked in, sometimes even before it was delivered, and no amount of persuading would get them to disperse. They would say that they knew it was on its way as Charlie, a well-known railway delivery man, was coming with his horse and cart.” The war affected the company in a variety of other ways. One of the lesserknown involved its Head Office at Michael House, in London’s Baker Street, which was taken over by one of the most secret and important organisations of the war – the Special Operations Executive. Following its requisition by the SOE, the top (fifth) floor of Michael House was cut off from the rest of the building by a solid brick wall screen, and while company staff entered the offices by the main entrance in Baker Street, SOE personnel had their own entrance at the rear in Kenrick Place. Security men were often to be seen testing the effectiveness of the screening by tapping the brickwork with hammers to detect any weakness and the company’s staff was told to avoid any conversations with people they did not know anywhere near the building. They were advised that they should limit talk to strangers to “Good morning” or “Good day”. The SOE was, and has remained, cloaked in mystery and intrigue. Part of the reason for this is that a large proportion of the SOE’s records were removed, or “weeded out” as it has been called, whilst others were lost in a fire after the war. The foremost historian of the SOE, M.R.D. Foot, described this as follows: “A fire broke out in Baker Street early in 1946, and a great many important files are said to have been burnt before it

was got under control.” Paul Bookbinder’s history of Marks & Spencer tells a somewhat different story. Michael House continued to be occupied by SOE officials until 1946 and their departure was marked, as Mr Bookbinder records, “almost literally in a blaze of glory when a bonfire of secret documents on the Michael House roof, tended by an SOE operative, suddenly got out of hand and only the timely arrival of the fire brigade prevented it from spreading and possibly achieving what the enemy bombardment of London had not: the destruction of Marks & Spencer’s Head Office.” Clearly then, the loss of so many secret documents was not an unfortunate accident as it is often portrayed, but an intentional act at covering up some of the activities undertaken by the SOE that were considered too sensitive to ever be revealed to the general public. War meant that men had to fight, and of the 2,000 male employees of the company in 1939, more than 1,500 were in the armed forces by 1945, including fifty-nine who had become prisoners of war. The war cost the lives of ninety-six of those men. Decorations or Mentions in Despatches awarded to the company’s staff in the forces totalled 124 and included Distinguished Service Orders, Distinguished Service Crosses, Distinguished Flying Crosses, Military Crosses and an Air Force Cross, plus foreign decorations from the United States, Canada and Norway. In 1944 the company started producing a special staff newsletter,

MAIN PICTURE RIGHT: One of the worst incidents to befall a Marks & Spencer store occurred on 18 December 1942. On this date, a German raider dropped four bombs, some of which fell on Terminus Road in the East Sussex coastal resort of Eastbourne. The company’s store was devastated in the blasts. The town’s Civilian Roll of Honour records that nine people were killed in the shop, the youngest victim being just 9 months old, the eldest 77 years old. This is the scene at the store in the aftermath of the attack, with rescuers following the “silent routine” as microphones are used to listen for the sound of survivors. (Courtesy of the Andy Saunders Collection) ABOVE LEFT: A wartime Police report which

details the destruction of the Eastbourne branch on 18 December 1942. (Courtesy of the Andy Saunders Collection)

LEFT: ARP and Rescue personnel take a

moment’s rest during work on the shattered remains of the Marks & Spencer store in Eastbourne. (Courtesy of the Andy Saunders Collection)

ABOVE RIGHT: The presentation Spitfire,

Mk.Vb W3215, which was named The Marksman. W3215 was lost on 24 March 1942, when, as part of 411 Squadron RCAF, it was flown on a Circus sweep to Abbeville marshalling yards in Northern France by 21-year-old Pilot Officer John Sills. Attacked by fighters from JG 26, both pilot and aircraft were lost. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

ABOVE FAR RIGHT: The damaged

Canterbury store, on the far right, pictured after the Luftwaffe’s Baedeker attack of 31 May 1942. The still smouldering ruins that surround it show how close the building came to complete destruction. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

11/07/2013 10:20

THE LESSONS OF WAR

The Forces Bulletin, which was sent to staff serving in the armed forces. It gave information on servicemen who had been injured, killed or captured, as well as news from the stores at home. With the men away serving in the armed forces, it meant that the female employees had to take on much of the responsibility for running the business. In this respect, all the smaller stores were run by female managers. The promotion of women to managerial roles had its occasional funny side. A head office executive was visiting one of the stores at 08.00 hours one morning to find the recently promoted manageress on her hands and knees with a bucket and brush scrubbing the entrance to the store. In reply to the executive’s enquiry as to why the manageress was cleaning the entrance

Lessons of War.indd 53

herself, she said, “Well, you see, the porter is my grandfather and I don’t like to ask him”. Women were also called up to work in the general war effort and, in anticipation of this, in 1942 the company asked for volunteers to work together at a Royal Ordnance factory at Radway Green in Cheshire. Eventually 500 of them worked at the site. Similarly, the company’s expertise in merchandising and distribution led to a request from the War Office for the formation of a unit of its employees to serve in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps (RAOC). This was put to the staff by Director Edward Sieff: “This will provide our employees who have already registered or are about to register for military service, with an

opportunity of serving in HM Forces with their own colleagues, and of making full use of the experience which they have gained with the company.” The response was immediate and within a month more than 200 recruits were undergoing basic training at Woolwich Barracks. As it transpired the men were not kept together but were distributed to other RAOC units. The staff of Marks & Spencer contributed to the war effort in other ways as well. Early in 1941, a staff collection raised £5,000 for the presentation to the

11/07/2013 10:21

ABOVE: Even in the immediate aftermath of the war, rationing and problems over the availability of stock remained – for every business in the UK. This queue was pictured in 1946 outside the temporary Marks & Spencer store that had been opened in Wallasey after the permanent one had been destroyed on Thursday, 13 March 1941. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive) LEFT: With a score of 98%, the Canterbury

nation of a Supermarine Spitfire. A Mk.Vb, serial number W3215, this aircraft was named The Marksman. W3215 is perhaps best known as being the aircraft in which 609 (West Riding) Squadron’s Sergeant Thomas Rigler achieved remarkable success on 22 June 1941, when he shot down three Luftwaffe aircraft in a single day in the Dunkirk area. A plaque of recognition of The Marksman was hung adjacent to the Company’s Roll

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store team were the winners of the 1944 local Firefighting Ladies Challenge Cup for Business Premises. The team seen here are, from left to right: Mrs Beaumont, Mrs Twyman and Miss Tharrat. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

BELOW LEFT: Marks & Spencer staff in the

uniform that was worn during 1939 and 1940. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive)

BELOW RIGHT: The victory display that was created at the end of the war by the staff of the Falkirk store. (Courtesy of The Marks & Spencer Company Archive) of Honour at Head Office. It is inscribed with the words: “In the hour of peril Marks & Spencer Limited earned the gratitude of the British nations, sustaining the valour of the Royal Air Force and fortifying the cause of freedom by the gift of a Spitfire Aircraft. ‘They shall mount up with wings as eagles.’” * The contribution made by Marks & Spencer was in many ways exceptional, yet it was also typical of what so many organisations, big and small, managed to do under the most difficult of circumstances. Though it survived as a business, the end of the war did not mean an end to the difficulties that

the conflict had brought. As Simon Marks said in his address to the shareholders in 1945, hard times were still ahead: “All the material requirements of our civilization – housing, foodstuffs, clothing, and amenities – are short in supply and heavy in demand. The nation is hungry for them, not only in quantity and quality, but above all at a price it can afford to pay. But if the needs of the peoples are to be satisfied in the necessary quantities, quickly and at reasonable prices, the methods and techniques learned in the war will have to be applied.” ■ The M&S Company Archive has a collection of over 70,000 historic items and was unveiled at the University of Leeds’ Michael Marks Building in March 2012. A permanent exhibition, celebrating the role that M&S has played in peoples’ lives since 1884, is available at the M&S Company Archive in Leeds. The exhibition charts the development of the iconic British retailer from its roots at Kirkgate Market to the present day. The exhibition is free and more details can be found on the M&S Company Archive website: www.marksintime.marksandspencer.com

NOTES:

1. Paul Bookbinder, Marks & Spencer: The War Years 1939-1945 (Century Benham, London, 1989), p.51. 2. For more information, please see: www.flyingbombsandrockets.com

AUGUST 2013

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NO PEACE FOR PALESTINE

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The Balfour Declaration set out a vision for the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, whilst defending the rights of existing Arab communities in Palestine. Neither Jew nor Arab was prepared to accept this compromise and British troops had to help keep order even in the very midst of the Second World War. Amongst those sent there in 1940 was Steve Roberts’s father-in-law, who went armed with a camera as well as a gun. Even as the First World War raged, the politicians were planning for a world after the conflict. This in particular included the territories of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans would be stripped of much of their territorial possessions. In 1916 control of the southern portion of their empire was mandated to France and Britain under the then secret SykesPicot Agreement, which divided the Arab region into zones of influence. Lebanon and Syria were assigned (mandated) to France, whilst Palestine (today’s Jordan, Israel and West Bank) was mandated to Great Britain. When Turkey surrendered, this division of land was implemented. In 1923, the British divided the Palestine mandated region into two administrative districts. Jews would be permitted only the land west of the River Jordan. The territory to the east of the Jordon was allocated to the Palestine Arabs and named TransJordan (meaning “across the Jordan River”). It was later simply called Jordan. This division of territory did not mean that all the Arabs

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moved across the Jordan; many remained in the predominantly Jewish west. In August 1929, relations between the Jews and Arabs in Palestine broke down. The focal point of this discontent was who controlled Jerusalem. The primary cause of trouble was the increased influx of Jews who had emigrated to Palestine. The number of Jews in the region had doubled in ten years. In May 1936, more violence occurred and the British had to restore law and order using the military. Thirty-four soldiers were killed in the process. The violence did not stop. In fact, it became worse after November 1937. For the Arabs there were two enemies – the Jews and the British authorities based in Palestine via their League of Nations mandate. For the Jews there were also two enemies – the Arabs and the British. Therefore, the British were pushed into the middle of a conflict they had seemingly little control over as the two other sides involved were so driven by their own beliefs. In a 1939 White Paper, Britain sought to limit Jewish immigration from Europe, which only resulted in a program of illegal immigration into Palestine. This volatile environment was then thrown into further disarray by the outbreak of the Second World War. Nevertheless, an uneasy truce occurred during the war when hostilities were largely put to one side and about 6,000

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Palestinian Arabs and 30,000 Palestinian Jews joined the British forces, forming the Palestine Regiment. This truce, however, would only be temporary. It was into this potentially inflammatory situation that Stephen Roberts’s father-in-law, Sergeant Arthur H. Bean, arrived in January 1940. As a territorial Arthur had been called up in August 1939, two weeks before the outbreak of war and was to spend six years on active service before finally being demobilised in October 1945. Arthur went out to Palestine with the Middlesex Yeomanry, 1st Cavalry Division. One of the first pictures in Arthur’s album – marked here as Picture 1 – is of the docks at Haifa, where he may have disembarked. Picture 2, also in Arthur’s album, is a shot of HMS Repulse at Haifa, though it was taken, it is believed, in 1938. Picture 3, meanwhile, shows Sergeant Bean at work. On arriving in Palestine Sapper James Grew, who serving with the Royal Engineers, described how, “When our troopship anchored off the coast of Palestine, at Haifa, a host of small boats swarmed around the ship. Arab lads were diving into the sea for coins that were being thrown from the ship. Arab traders were selling all sorts of things, but mainly oranges.” He went on to explain why he was there, “Our main job, whilst in Palestine was trying to control the flow of immigrants into the country. British troops had to turn away all illegal Jewish immigrants, whether they arrived by sea or over land. It was an unpleasant and thankless task.” On 10 June 1940, Italy declared war on Britain and sided with Germany. Within a month, the Italians had attacked Palestine from the air, bombing Tel Aviv and Haifa, inflicting many casualties. The Italian bombing of Mandated Palestine was part of an effort by the Regia Aeronautica Italiana to strike at the UK and the Commonwealth wherever possible in the Middle East. Many other coastal towns such as Acre and Jaffa also

suffered, but Haifa was targeted in particular because of its port and refinery. The issue of Time Magazine of 29 July 1940, reported a bombing at Haifa by Savoia-Marchetti SM.82 bombers during the previous week, with a dozen casualties. According to the magazine, the Italians claimed a huge success, which the British did not deny. Where the British oil pipeline from Mosul reaches tidewater, “Ten big Italian bombers, flying at great altitude from the Dodecanese Islands, giving the British bases on Cyprus a wide berth, dumped 50 bombs on the Haifa oil terminal and refinery.” The bombing started fires, which burned for many days afterward, and the refinery’s production was blocked for nearly one month. The drama of the attacks is captured in one of Arthur Bean’s images – Picture 4. The original caption states: “Air raids on Haifa - direct hits on oil tanks.” The last Italian bombing attack on the territories of Mandated Palestine, which hit Haifa and Tel Aviv, occurred in June 1941. There was little damage and few casualties. The Luftwaffe also participated in this final raid. The other images seen here depict a little of the events faced by British troops in Palestine in 1940. Pictures 5 and 6, for example, depict the aftermath of an ambush on the JeninNablus road whilst Picture 7 shows the effects of an Arab attack on a railway line. The last image included here, Picture 8, was taken during a parade at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery at Beersheba, a town on the edge of the Negev Desert some fifty miles south-west of Jerusalem. As for Sergeant Arthur Bean, having spent a year serving in the region, he was posted away to the Western Desert, and duty with the Eighth Army, in 1941. ■

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August 2013

Tank Times

Published by The Tank MUSeUM, Bovington, Dorset, UK, BH20 6JG

Tel: +44 (0) 1929 405 096

www.tankmuseum.org

FROM The OUTReACh OUTR OFFICeR Felicity Wood

21 September 2013 Vehicles & VeTerans Ve erans wanTed wan ed FOr FO new eVenT eVen The Tank Museum and Britain At War Magazine have teamed up to present a new event for 2013. Museum Event Manager Vicki Pol said; “This new September event will allow us to examine a specific aspect of the British wartime experience. We’re starting by looking at the National Service years.” National Service, effectively conscription, was in place between 1939 and 1960 with the last conscripted soldiers leaving the service fifty years ago. From 1949, males aged 17-21 years were expected to serve in the armed forces for 18 months and conscripted National Servicemen saw active service in Korea and during the Suez Crisis. British Forces supported the UN response in defence of South Korea in a conflict which began in 1950 and ended in 1953 sixty years ago this year. “The Korean War is often overlooked when we examine our military history, so on this sixty year anniversary it is fitting that we shine a light on it”, said Vicki. “As a result, we Korean Campaign Medals are really keen to hear from any Korean and National Service Veterans – particularly those that served in tanks – as we put together the programme for the event.” The Tank Museum wants to hear from Royal Armoured Corps National Service Veterans about their experiences if they have photographs of their service. These can be brought in to the event or copies e-mailed in advance to: [email protected]

Inside... ● The he T34 ● what’s on ● VCC UPDATe UPDAT ● TANKFeST TANKF PICS ● TANKS FOR The MeMORIeS

The show will feature period vehicles from The Tank Museum collection – such as the Soviet T34 and British built Centurion tanks. The Museum is also inviting owners of National Service era vehicles to exhibit their vehicles and take part in arena displays. There will be talks from veterans on the vehicles they served in, along with a range of other family activities and a variety of stalls to browse. Normal admission prices will apply, and Annual Pass holders will be admitted free – but MVT members and Britain At War subscribers will be able to save over 30% on the normal admission price. If you have an appropriate military vehicle you would like to exhibit, please contact us on: 01929 405096 x211 or [email protected].

The Tank MUSeUM - The WORLD’S BeST COLLeCTION OF TANKS An Independent Museum and Registered Charity No 1102661

Building the Vehicle Conservation Centre doesn’t just mean we get a new building in which to store our vehicle collections. The Heritage Lottery Fund has also given us the opportunity to build links with the local community. As Learning and Exhibitions Assistant, I facilitate visits by groups of school children and help to create displays in the Museum. However, the focus of my job is working in partnership with local groups across the County. I’m developing projects that will engage the community with the work we do at the Museum and inspire them with the topics of our future exhibitions. The Museum’s new outreach programme is now well underway, with lots of interesting projects starting to get off the ground. The theme of each project is linked to the forthcomming exhibitions ‘War Horse to Horsepower’, which opens in 2014 and ‘Making Tanks’, opening in 2015. Outreach work often means bringing the Museum to people who wouldn’t otherwise be able to visit. For example I’ve been working with an Age UK Day Centre in Dorchester, talking to their visitors about how horses have been used in both war and peace time. I brought along some horse related equipment from our collection to spark discussion. Many of the day centre visitors had ridden or worked with horses, and we had some great conversations about their experiences. Continued on page 2...

The Tank MUSeUM - August 2013

www.tankmuseum.org

Tel: +44 (0) 1929 405

FROM The OUTReACh OFFICeR Continued...

Greeting cards

The Tank Museum, has launched a new beer in association with the Dorset Brewing Company.

It’s also exciting to have the opportunity to tell Museum visitors about the good work community organisations carry out. We’ve created a new ‘Community Exhibition Space’ in the Museum, to host displays created by local groups. First to be featured are Muntsys from Weymouth, a group for adults with additional needs. Their ladies craft group has created some handmade greetings cards inspired by those made by First World War soldiers for their loved ones. I’m also keen to find out what activities the Museum could offer local families. I’ve visited Bovitots and the Sure Start Children’s Centre, to help out with activities for mums

The T-54 taking part in the mock battle

a OTher rec an r Ord TankF Tank ankFesT!

Tiger 131

You can get the latest updates on the Museum’s community work as it happens by following me on twitter @TankMuseumCF. There will be regular updates on our website, linked to the articles on the progress of the Vehicle Conservation Centre. In addition, if you’d like to find out more information about project work at the Museum, please email me: [email protected]

There were more vehicles than ever taking part in arena displays and the weather was again superb for the weekend spectacular. TANKFEST 2014 is taking place on the weekend of the 28 & 29 June. Tickets are available now from The Tank Museum website –and if you buy before September, you’ll get your tickets at the 2013 price!

The artist with his work

An original oil painting depicting Tiger 131’s final moments in military service was sold for £10,000 at a fundraising auction during TANKFEST. Above: The Irish Defence Force produly displaying their Rolls Royce Armoured Car. Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff, Lt. Gen. James Everard welcomes them.

The British Army display included a combat recovery scenario. Below: The Royal Engineers build a bridge against the clock.

“Panzer Marsch” was painted by Nicolas Trudgian and donated to The Tank Museum. It was sold to military vehicle collector and Tank Museum Appeal Board member Bruce Crompton. The money will be used to ensure that Tiger 131 remains a running exhibit for generations to come. 3’x2’ prints of the painting are also being sold to raise funds for the Museum’s most famous exhibit costing £90 from the Museum shop.

Below: The newly restored Pak L43/41, towed by a guest SdKfz 7.

Leopards open the show.

Wargaming.net, developers of the popular ‘World of Tanks’ computer game, has sponsored the development of an Education Centre at The Tank Museum. A grant of £80,000 has allowed a previously unused room to be transformed into a contemporary, state-of-the-art classroom with a modern AV system and a suite of 20 high spec computers.

Felicity Wood Learning & Exhibitions Assistant

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“Landship” is now available to buy from The Tank Museum gift shop, price £3.50 per bottle.

It was another record breaking TANKFEST, with visitor numbers crossing the 11,000 barrier for the first time.

Sure Start and toddlers. I’m also planning a family opinion day in July, as I’d love to get local people’s views on the events and activities we’re planning to offer.

“Landship” is a pale gold, clean tasting and medium bodied ale which has been launched to commemorate the centenary of the First World War and the invention of the tank.

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The Tank MUSeUM - August 2013

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Tel: +44 (0) 1929 405

David Willey: Now and in 1969

tanks Memories for the

We all have fond memories of days out and family holidays – and now The Tank Museum wants to capture the recollections and photos of past visitors.

“The Tank Museum has been welcoming visitors since the 1920’s and since then, thousands upon thousands of people have passed through the doors – all of them leaving with powerful memories and often photographs of their visit,” said Project Volunteer Phoebe Myles. “These photographs are of particular interest – because in capturing that moment in time they have reinforced individual memories and captured a moment in the history of The Tank Museum itself,” she said. “We want our past visitors to share their photos with us, along with a caption that tells us when the image was taken and what made the visit memorable.” The Tank Museum was founded primarily as a military teaching collection after World War One. It was in the 1950’s that The Tank Museum became a popular destination for tourists as increased car ownership made the Dorset countryside more

Your Memories....

accessible. In the fifties and early sixties, admission was free and many visitors still fondly recall how they were able to climb on the exhibits in the days before Health and Safety legislation put a stop to it. The submitted images will be posted in an on-line exhibition to be hosted on the image sharing website flickr. flickr Specifically, Phoebe is looking for images taken before 2000. Current members of staff have been among the first to submit their images to the project. Curator David Willey has supplied a black and white snap that was taken in 1969, when as a six year old he visited The Tank Museum with his father. He said; “I still remember the sights and smells to this day – as a child it was brilliant to come and see the tanks. One of the best things about working here is seeing other families making the same kind of memories I did all those years ago.”

There is still much work to be done before the building will be ready for Museum visitors. Whilst the Workshop team is busily moving tanks into the new building, the Exhibitions team is working to create a new Conservation in Action exhibition. The Vehicle Conservation Centre will be open to the public in time for the Britain at War show on 21 September 2013.

submit your pics: [email protected]

Robin Chandler was on his first Scout Camp when he visited The Tank Museum in 1947. He can be seen in this photograph on the bottom row, 1st right. Robin become a pilot in the RAF; but his fascination with tanks increased when in 1956 he went on detachment to the 9th Lancers and was given experience crewing the Centurion tank. Robin revisited the Museum in 2012 and brought his photo with him. He was photographed by the same Mark II tank that his Purley Scout troop had stood beside in 1947.

Mark Turner first visited The Tank Museum whilst on a coach holiday with his family in 1973. Mark clearly remembers having his picture taken with the Panzer IV, having been fascinated by German tanks thanks to films like Kellys Heroes. He remembers he was very disappointed to discover the stay at the Tank Museum only lasted an hour! Mark returned to The Tank Museum to take this photograph at Tiger Day in 2013.

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As part of a wider programme of developments at The Tank Museum, the VCC provides 40,000 sq. foot of publicly accessible and environmentally controlled storage. Over one hundred vehicles will ultimately be stored in the facility, allowing the Museum to continue collecting and creating new exhibitions in the currently overcrowded halls. It will also mean that for the first time in many years, rarer items that have been off display in poor storage conditions will be housed in a suitable space for the public to view.

If the project is successful, The Tank Museum will create an exhibition of the photographs and the memories of previous visitors.

Richard Smith, Director of The Tank Museum, first visited in 1974 at the age of two (pictured here on the left). He was on a traditional seventies ‘bucket and spade’ holiday a time when the things-to-do list consisted of; the beach, Corfe castle, and The Tank Museum. Whilst very young, something about the Museum must have stuck in his mind. He returned to the Museum to complete his undergraduate dissertation on the Battle of Cambrai before returning to take over the reins of the Museum in 2006.

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Our Vehicle Conservation Centre (VCC) is now complete, with the finishing touches to the outside of the building having been made just before TANKFEST.

The Tank MUSeUM - The WORLD’S BeST COLLeCTION OF TANKS An Independent Museum and Registered Charity No 1102661

WIN an ARMORTEK 1/6th scale Centurion model worth £6,000! The leading model manufacturers have donated the prize for the Museum’s latest fundraising raffle. The prize is ready to run, finished in bronze green and fitted with High Efficiency Motion Pack, Sound System and remote control unit. If you receive your Tank Times by post, you will find your tickets included in the envelope. If you would like to take part, please contact us using the details on the back page. The draw will take place during The Armortek Show here on 28.9.13.

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The Tank MUSeUM - August 2013

FROM The

eDITOR

This is the 20th edition of Tank Times, and it is with some sadness I must announce that this edition is to be my last. I’ve worked on Tank Times since the first edition in January 2008, when we reported on the appearance of our Mark IV tank in the Lord Mayors Show and carried an update on the progress in building what is now The Tank Story exhibition hall. We printed around 1,000 copies of that first edition. Five years and six months on, we have well over 15,000 readers. Despite continuing economic uncertainty, we’ve had the strongest start to the year ever. We have another record breaking TANKFEST under our belts, are looking forward to opening the Vehicle Conservation Centre in September and launching the War Horse to Horse Power exhibition in April. The Tank Museum has come a very long way since 2008 and will continue to push the boundaries in the future, with more exciting plans surrounding the World War One centenaries still to be announced. Thanks must go to our friends at Key Publishing, producers of Britain at War and Military Machines International magazine, who have helped bring our humble newsletter to an even wider audience. It’s been an exciting five years, and there is still so much to look forward too. This is what will ensure that Tank Times continues to be a compelling read in a further twenty editions time – whatever format we will be delivering it in to you by then! I promise I will be leaving it in good hands – but now is as good a time as any to give us your feedback on Tank Times - The Tank Museum’s free quarterly newsletter. [email protected]

www.tankmuseum.org

The T34 da id FleTcher daV eXa XaM Xa a Mines The MOsT a aMOU s rU r ssian Tank Tank OF FaMOU wOrld war war TwO Although built in the Soviet era when military construction had top priority, the T-34 was an outstanding tank by any standards. Not only was it tough and simple to operate (so long as you were strong yourself), it was built in prodigious numbers. During the war about 65,000 of both models, the T-34/76 and T-34/85, were built and effectively outnumbered any other type of tank built anywhere in the world. The T-34 had some interesting features. It was powered by a rugged V-12 diesel engine rated at 450 hp and ran on a toughened up version of the American Christie suspension. But the thing most people talk about in respect of the T-34 is its sloped armour which, in theory, renders armour that much thicker and encourages incoming rounds to be deflected. One thing that will strike you if you look closely at a T-34 is the crudity of the welding where the armour plates join, and the rough finish of the castings on the turret, for instance. This has led many people to denigrate Russian workmanship although in fact, where a close fit and good surfaces matter, it is just as good as anywhere else. The difference is that the Russians were not interested in a smart external finish for their tanks. They simply wanted to win a war with them. Another thing you should notice on the T-34 is how far forward the turret is. It comes up virtually to the top edge of the glacis plate and leaves no room at

all for hatches above the heads of the driver and hull machine-gunner, such as you will find on most other tanks. Instead the two men who occupy the front of the hull are expected to enter through a large hatch in the sloping front plate of the hull. This not only leads to a very undignified method of getting in, it also means that it is a lot more dangerous getting out in a hurry in the face of the enemy. Incidentally, the opening in the front of the hull is not a very good idea, even if it is covered by a heavily armoured hatch. It spoils the integrity of the armour on the hull front. Inside, the tank is spartan indeed. There are very few padded areas to protect the heads of the crew. Rather each man, or sometimes woman in this case, is given a padded hat to wear. Most of the ammunition for the main armament is kept in steel boxes which form the floor of the tank so after an intense action, when many of these are empty, the floor itself becomes quite uneven. On the other hand, towards the end of 1943 a new version of the T-34 fitted with a powerful 85mm gun was ready to enter service. The new gun required an enlarged turret which in turn enabled an extra crew member to be included. Now at least the tank commander did not also have to load the gun, as he did in the T-34/76. This gave the tank the firepower to match some of the later German tanks, which it already outnumbered anyway.

Tel: +44 (0) 1929 405

whaT’s On

Summer Displays 25/7/13 - 4/9/13

Summer Holidays Tonnes to see and do; free talks, tours and family activities. Tank Action Displays (1pm, weekdays only) Tracked Vehicle Rides daily (extra cost applies).

Saturday 28/9/13

The Armortek Show Meet the world’s leading manufacturers of 1/6th scale armour kits and see the biggest display of Armortek models ever assembled.

Saturday 28/9/13 - £10

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T.E. Lawrence, Lawrence of Arabia, was just one of a number of British officers operating with the Arabs in guerrilla actions against the Ottomans during the First World War. Yet when he led a small band of Arabs across 500 miles of desert to capture the key Red Sea port of Aqaba, his position as a daring military leader was assured and a legend was born.

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he Turkish Ottoman Empire stretched from Mesopotamia to North Africa and deep into Europe as far as Romania. For many decades, the nations of which the empire was composed had sought independence, including the Arab nation. The movement defined as Arab Nationalism can trace its origins to the 1860s, but it was only in the early years of the twentieth century that it took on a recognisable form. Pressure from the Arabs for autonomy increased in the second decade of the twentieth century and when Turkey joined the Central Powers on the outbreak of war in 1914, the Turks feared that the Arabs would use the distraction of the war to make a bid for independence. As a consequence many of the leading figures amongst the Arab nationalists in the key centres of Damascus and

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BELOW: The Arab Revolt underway. This picture, taken by T.E. Lawrence himself on 3 January 1917 from the back of a camel, shows Faisal bin Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi, Sharif and Emir of Mecca, leading Arab fighters northwards towards the Red Sea port of Al Wajh. It was from Al Wajh that the assault on Aqaba was subsequently launched. This is one of a series of images that belonged to Lance Corporal 1489 J.W. Thomas, who, as a member of the 1/6th Battalion Manchester Regiment during its time in Egypt, was assigned to T.E. Lawrence as a signaller. On the back of this picture, Thomas had written: “On the march. Me leading Fusal’s [sic] bodyguard with the banners.” (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James) ABOVE LEFT: A portrait of T.E. Lawrence

taken while he was serving as British Liaison Officer to Emir Faisal at the Versailles Peace Conference in 1919. After the war, the commander of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, General Sir Edmund Allenby, wrote the following of Lawrence: “I gave him a free hand. His cooperation was marked by the utmost loyalty, and I never had anything but praise for his work, which, indeed, was invaluable throughout the campaign. He was the mainspring of the Arab movement and knew their language, their manners and their mentality.”

LEFT: A view of the kind of terrain over which T.E. Lawrence’s Arab forces operated in 1917. As Lance Corporal J.W. Thomas noted on the reverse of the image, “Not a tree or shrub to give shade. Blistering hot by day, blistering cold by night.” (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

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Beirut were arrested, tortured and later executed. These and other oppressive measures prompted Grand Sharif Hussein bin Ali, the guardian of the holy city of Mecca, to enter into an alliance with Britain and France sometime around 8 June 1916. The British High Commissioner, Henry McMahon, promised Hussein that after the war the Arabs would have their own nation stretching from Persia to Egypt. The Arab Revolt began with attacks upon the Turkish garrisons at Medina and Mecca. Though Medina remained in Turkish hands, by the end of September 1916 the Arabs had seized many of the Red Sea ports with the help of the Royal Navy and taken 6,000 Turkish prisoners. The Arabs had far less success in the Hejaz region of what is now Saudi Arabia, which was held by a strong Turkish force of 15,000 men. Britain sent a number of Army officers into the Hejaz to help the Arabs, amongst which was a young Captain T.E. Lawrence who was sent from Egypt to assist the Hashemite forces in the Hejaz in October 1916. Lawrence, who had graduated from Oxford with First Class Honours, had been working as an archaeologist in the Middle East before the war and knew the area well and understood the Arabs and their customs. He was quickly accepted by the Arabs and became a close friend of two of the principle Arab leaders, Faisal

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(later King Faisal) and Abdullah. Through this friendship Lawrence was able to co-ordinate the activities of the Arabs in support of British forces in the region. The Arabs, according to Lawrence, “demanded a war-cry and banner from outside to combine them, and a stranger to lead them”. With considerable aid and money from Britain and France the Arab Revolt’s momentum was maintained. Lawrence persuaded Faisal not to continue throwing his men at the walls of Medina but instead to attack the Hejaz railway. This tied down large numbers of Turkish troops in guarding and repairing the line without incurring Arab casualties. By early 1917, some 70,000 Arabs had joined the revolt, but between them were only twenty-eight thousand rifles. The attacks on the Hejaz railway, nevertheless, did not require rifles, and throughout 1917 attacks upon the railway caused immense disruption to Turkish supplies. These actions did not necessarily include Lawrence. Other British officers, such as Lieutenant-Colonel Stewart Newcombe, Lieutenant Henry Hornby and Major H. Garland, led many of these attacks. The operation for which Lawrence has become most notable is the Aqaba campaign of 1917. Aqaba is a port on the Red Sea. Whilst now part of Jordan, it was still held at the time by the Turks, being the only remaining Ottoman port on the Red Sea, and it posed a threat not only to the revolt but also to British forces in Palestine and Egypt, as it was from here that the Turks had mounted an attack upon the Suez Canal in 1915. It was also suggested by Faisal that the port could be used by the British to supply his Arab

ABOVE: Another of Lance Corporal Thomas’ images taken during the Arab Revolt – or the Hejaz Campaign as he referred to it. It shows Arab chiefs waiting at dawn outside Faisal bin Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi’s tent at dawn for interviews one morning in December 1916. It is believed that this is the camp that was established at Nakhl Mubarak, near Yenbo, another Red Sea port south of Aqaba. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James) LEFT: Faisal bin Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi’s

camp at Wadi Ais. Amongst his travels in the desert, between 10 March 1917, and 13 April 1917, Lawrence met Faisal at this Wadi, where he also spent time recovering from illness, and then conducted two raids against the Hejaz Railway from there. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

MAIN PICTURE BELOW: Starting in early 1917, many of the Arab fighters began attacking the Hejaz Railway, a narrow-gauge line which, vital to the Ottoman forces, ran from Damascus to Medina through the Hejaz region. One of its principal functions was to improve the economic and political integration of the distant Arabian provinces into the Ottoman state, as well as to facilitate the transportation of military forces. Despite being repeatedly damaged during the fighting in the First World War, much of the line remains in use today. This empty phosphate train is pictured on a stretch of the railway near Aqaba. (Courtesy of Berthold Werner) forces as they moved further north in their bid to capture Damascus. An attack from the land was considered impossible because it was surrounded by the Nefud Desert which was believed by many to be impassable. Lawrence would prove the doubters wrong. The point of departure on this 500-mile journey was Al Wajh (also known as Wejh), a small coastal town situated further south on the coast of what is now north-western Saudi Arabia. Lawrence’s partner in the mission was Auda, a tribal leader who famously had married twenty-eight times, been wounded thirteen times and had killed

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LAWRENCE OF ARABIA: HIS FINEST HOUR

seventy-five men in battle (Turks he did not count). “By May the ninth all things were ready,” wrote Lawrence in his famous book The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, “and in the glare of mid-afternoon we left Faisal’s tent his good wishes sounding after us from the hill-top as we marched away.” Lawrence set off with a small band of just fifty warriors but with him he carried £20,000 in (British) gold, given to him by Faisal to pay others to join him as they met them on the way. This was not necessarily as easy as it may sound, as exemplified by the observations of one man Lawrence encountered at their second stopping place, El Kurr. In response to Lawrence’s promises of liberty and freedom for the Arabs, the man poured scorn on such notions, demanding to know “what more to eat or drink these sore and bloody sacrifices would bring”. They marched on through desert and hills, the journey vividly described by Lawrence: “In the morning we rode at five. Our valley pinched together, and we went round a sharp spur, ascending steeply. The track became a bad goat-path, zigzagging up a hill-side too precipitous to climb except on all fours. We dropped off our camels and led them by the head-stalls. Soon we had to help each other, a man urging the camels from behind, another pulling them from the front, encouraging them over the worst places, adjusting their loads to ease them. “Parts of the track were dangerous, where rocks bulged out and narrowed it, so that the near half of the load grazed and forced the animal to the cliffedge. We had to re-pack the food and explosives; and, in spite of all our care,

lost two of our feeble camels in the pass. The Howeitat killed them where they lay broken, stabbing a keen dagger into the throat-artery near the chest, while the neck was strained tight by pulling the head round to the saddle. They were at once cut up and shared out as meat.” The little party stopped where it could find water, the Turks having destroyed many of the wells in the region. They slept with nothing overhead but the stars and the moon; they breakfasted on camel meat. They encountered just slight resistance from small bands of Arabs in Turkish pay and it is a strange fact that Lawrence’s force lost more men through snakes and scorpions than enemy action. In order to disguise the true nature of the operation, Lawrence mounted further attacks on the Hejaz railway, hoping that the Turks would think he was marching towards Damascus or Aleppo. On one occasion he undertook

ABOVE LEFT: In describing the terrain

encountered during the journey north from Al Wajh to Aqaba, Lance Corporal Thomas wrote the following on the reverse of this photograph: “Some idea of the conditions Lawrence had to overcome, volcanic boulders – burning hot, no shelter or water.” (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

ABOVE RIGHT: Captioned by Lance Corporal

Thomas as having been taken during the operations against Aqaba, he also added: “Trigger happy Bedouin swarming around the area. Notice the casual way they carried their arms. Glad to get away from them without being killed accidentally!” (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

Lawrence recalled. “They slept on, in the valley, while we crowned the hills in wide circles about them unobserved. We began to snipe them steadily in their positions under the slopes and rock-faces by the water, hoping to provoke them out and up the hill in a charge against us. Meanwhile, Zaal rode away with our horsemen and cut the Maan telegraph and telephone in the plain. “This went on all day. It was terribly hot – hotter than ever before I had felt it in Arabia – and the anxiety and constant moving made it hard for us. Some even of the tough tribesmen broke down under the cruelty of the sun, and crawled or had to be thrown under rocks to recover in their shade. “We ran up and down to supply our lack of numbers by mobility, ever looking over the long ranges of hill for a new spot from which to counter this or that Turkish effort. The hill-sides were steep, and exhausted our breath, and the grasses twined like little hands about our ankles as we ran, and plucked us back. The sharp reefs of limestone which cropped out over the ridges tore our feet, and long before evening the more energetic men were leaving a rusty print upon the ground with

“We kicked our camels furiously to the edge, to see our fifty horsemen coming down the last slope into the main valley like a run-away, at full gallop, shooting from the saddle.”

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one such attack entirely single-handedly. After an astonishing journey of eight weeks, Lawrence’s party, which had increased to 500 men, finally reached Aqaba. The place itself was not actually garrisoned by the Turks. The Turks, however, did keep a small, 300-strong force at Aba el Lissan to protect it from landward attack. In addition to this force, there was also a Turkish infantry battalion of approximately 450 men present. On 2 July 1917, Lawrence’s force approached the outpost at Aba el Lissan. “Fortunately the poor handling of the enemy gave us an unearned advantage,”

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MAIN PICTURE TOP: A panoramic view of

Wadi Rum which is located to the east of Aqaba. This part of what is now Jordan was well known to T.E. Lawrence and Faisal bin Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi’s Arab fighters who passed through the Wadi several times during the Arab Revolt, including during the assault on Aqaba. In his book, The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, Lawrence included the following in his account of Wadi Rum: “Our little caravan fell quiet, afraid and ashamed to flaunt its smallness in the presence of the stupendous hills.” (Courtesy of David Bjørgen)

ABOVE and BELOW LEFT: Two views of the Arab forces on the march, “in the hills around Aqaba”, during the Hejaz Campaign. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James) BELOW RIGHT: As Lance Corporal Thomas wrote on the back of this picture, this is a group of “partly trained volunteers for Fusal’s [sic] campaign”. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

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every stride. “Our rifles grew so hot with sun and shooting that they seared our hands; and we had to be grudging of our rounds, considering every shot and spending great pains to make it sure. The rocks on which we flung ourselves for aim were burning, so that they scorched our breasts and arms, from which later the skin drew off in ragged sheets. The present smart made us thirst. Yet even water was rare with us; we could not afford men to fetch enough from Batra, and if all could not drink, it was better that none should. “We consoled ourselves with

knowledge that the enemy’s enclosed valley would be hotter than our open hills: also that they were Turks, men of white meat, little apt for warm weather. So we clung to them, and did not let them move or mass or sortie out against us cheaply. They could do nothing valid in return. We were no targets for their rifles, since we moved with speed, eccentrically. Also we were able to laugh at the little mountain guns which they fired up at us. The shells passed over our heads, to burst behind us in the air; and yet, of course, for all that they could see from their hollow place, fairly amongst us above the hostile summits of the hill.” The battle was clearly not going well and, after all the suffering of the march through the desert, the prospect of failure depressed Lawrence. He had in fact given up. He put down his rifle and pretended to have heat-stroke. Auda saw Lawrence lying listlessly on the ground and he went up and poked fun at him. In angry response Lawrence said of Auda’s men that “they shoot a lot and hit a little”. This cutting insult stung Auda into a towering rage. He ran back up the hill like a “madman” shouting to his men to get their camels ready. He then pointed to the enemy and called out “With Auda there” and charged off down the valley, with bullets and shells crashing into the earth around him. “We kicked our camels furiously to the edge, to see our fifty horsemen coming down the last slope into the main valley

“Our rifles grew so hot with sun and shooting that they seared our hands.”

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like a run-away, at full gallop, shooting from the saddle,” continued Lawrence. “As we watched, two or three went down, but the rest thundered forward at marvellous speed, and the Turkish infantry, huddled together under the cliff ready to cut their desperate way out towards Maan, in the first dusk began to sway in and out, and finally broke before the rush, adding their flight to Auda’s charge. “Nasir screamed at me, ‘Come on’, with his bloody mouth; and we plunged our camels madly over the hill, and down towards the head of the fleeing enemy. The slope was not too steep for a camel-gallop, but steep enough to make their pace terrific, and their course uncontrollable: yet the Arabs were able to extend to right and left and to shoot into the Turkish brown. The Turks had been too bound up in the terror of Auda’s

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LEFT: Some of the Arab fighters

on the move during the Arab Revolt, a picture that was taken at some point during 1917. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

BELOW LEFT: A view of the Mosque and harbour at Aqaba after the town was captured on 6 July 1917. The capture of Aqaba helped open supply lines from Egypt up to Arab and British forces further north in Transjordan and Greater Palestine, and more importantly alleviated a threat of a Turkish offensive onto the strategically important Suez Canal. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

furious charge against their rear to notice us as we came over the eastward slope: so we also took them by surprise and in the flank; and a charge of ridden camels going nearly thirty miles an hour was irresistible. “My camel, the Sherari racer, Naama, stretched herself out, and hurled downhill with such might that we soon outdistanced the others. The Turks fired a few shots, but mostly only shrieked and turned to run: the bullets they did send at us were not very harmful, for it took much to bring a charging camel down in a dead heap. “I had got among the first of them, and was shooting, with a pistol of course, for only an expert

BELOW: A view of Aqaba pictured, in 1917, from the sea – more specifically the deck of HMS Hardinge. It was on HMS Hardinge that Lance Corporal Thomas spent some leave after the attack on Aqaba – “Took me with them for a break!” he noted. During the Battle of Aqaba a small group of British naval vessels appeared offshore of Aqaba itself, in support of Lawrence’s force, and began shelling the town. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James) could use a rifle from such plunging beasts; when suddenly my camel tripped and went down emptily upon her face, as though pole-axed. I was torn completely from the saddle, sailed grandly through the air for a great distance, and landed with a crash which seemed to drive all the power and feeling out of me. I lay there, passively waiting for the Turks to kill me.” Though he only realised it afterwards, Lawrence had actually shot his own camel in the head! The Arabs, inflamed at earlier witnessing the slashed throats of the women and children of a small post that

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the Turks had attacked, showed no mercy. According to Lawrence only 160 Turks were taken prisoner, with more than 300 dead and dying scattered over the open valley. * Lawrence wrote a letter to the Turkish garrisons that faced them in front of Aqaba, recounting what had happened at Aba el Lissan and threatening them with a similar fate unless they surrendered. They surrendered. After entering Aqaba, Lawrence rode to Cairo to tell the British authorities of the astonishing capture of the port. At the Egyptian capital Lawrence was able to expand upon his scheme for the next stage in operations against the Turks to the recently appointed commander of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF), General Edmund Allenby. The EEF under the command of General Archibald Murray had suffered two heavy defeats at the hands of the Turks and Allenby needed a new strategy. Lawrence gave him that strategy. “The advantages offered by Arab co-operation on lines proposed by Captain Lawrence,” he told the War Office, “are, in my opinion, of such importance that no effort should be spared to reap full benefit therefore.” The proposed guerrilla warfare which Lawrence had demonstrated the Arabs could accomplish in conjunction with an offensive drive by the EEF, “may

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cause a collapse of the Turkish campaigns in the Hijaz [Hejaz] and produce farreaching results, both political as well as military”. This marked the turning point in the war in the desert. From this point onwards the EEF and the Arabs co-ordinated their efforts closely, with Allenby’s men facing the Turks directly whilst the Arabs continued to harass outposts and attack communications. Together the EEF and the Arabs pushed the Turks northwards and eventually, on 1 October 1918, Damascus fell and Turkey requested an armistice. Though the war had ended, there was no peace for the Arabs and the promise of one great Arabian nation was not fulfilled. Nor was there peace for Lawrence. Britain’s failure to grant the Arabs complete autonomy weighed heavy on Lawrence’s mind and, though he was made a full colonel and served under Churchill at the Foreign Office, he resigned his commission and returned to the ranks to serve amongst ordinary men where he was more comfortable. ■

TOP: Arab fighters on their camels muster

behind their banners. Despite the success of the Battle of Aqaba, the town was not fully secured for several months. Turkish troops operating through Wadi Itm recaptured the Abu el Lissal blockhouse in early August and threatened Aqaba itself, precipitating a number of skirmishes outside the city. However, the arrival of Arab reinforcements, the presence of British warships and, eventually, aircraft dissuaded them from attacking the town outright. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

ABOVE RIGHT: An oasis pictured during the

Hejaz Campaign. A hand-written comment on the reverse of the image suggests that the individual on the right is in fact T.E. Lawrence. (Courtesy of Steve and Liz James)

BELOW: In the 1980s this impressive rock formation in Wadi Rum was named “The Seven Pillars of Wisdom” after Lawrence’s memoir, commemorating the fact that he based many of his operations here during the Arab Revolt. Indeed, the ruins of a building that can still be seen by the visitor near this spot in the Wadi are reputed to be those of Lawrence’s accommodation. Much of the filming of David Lean’s 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia was undertaken in Wadi Rum. (Courtesy of Thomas Edward Lawre)

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The Western Front Association founded 1980

the

Great War 1914-18:

understood

The war in the Middle East is regarded as a “sideshow” to the Western Front. And it was a war of movement and cavalry actions that could not occur in France and Flanders. It was instrumental in the final defeat of Turkey. The Arab revolt, with Lawrence involved, has become legend - but how important was he to ultimate victory?

The Great War is a fascinating subject, with a complex blend of military, social, science, political and economic history. To understand more about the 1914-18 period, and to appreciate the contexts in which the war in the Middle East was fought, join us at The Western Front Association.

The Western Front Association understanding the Great War 1914-18: explore | learn | share www.westernfrontassociation.com The Western Front Association is a registered charity no 298365

that shaped the WAR

SEVENTY YEARS ON, WE CHART SOME OF THE KEY MOMENTS AND EVENTS THAT AFFECTED BRITAIN IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR 3

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Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr William Thorne, the MP for West Ham and Plaistow, questioned the Minister of Fuel and Power over the case of four Italian prisoners of war who, for more than four weeks, had travelled to a saw mill in a chauffeur-driven car, at a cost of £95 in hire charges and many gallons of valuable fuel! As the debate continued, the Secretary of State for War was asked whether he had any information concerning the circumstances in which 24-year-old Rifleman Brynley Harcombe, 2nd Battalion King’s Royal Rifle Corps, was shot and killed on 8 June 1943, at Stammlager VIII B. Whilst he was unable to answer the query, Sir James Grigg went on to confirm that so far in the war sixty-nine British PoWs had been shot dead in German PoW camps. “Some have been shot while attempting to escape,” he added, “and that is usually regarded as legitimate. There are a number of cases which we consider unjustifiable, and we have protested against them, and we are keeping account of these cases from the point of view of any trials of war criminals after the war.” The award of the George Cross to Lieutenant Hugh Randall Syme GM & Bar, RANVR was announced in a supplement to The London Gazette. The citation gave little information other than the award was for “for great bravery and undaunted devotion to duty”. Syme had carried out nineteen mine-recovery operations in twenty-one months of hazardous duties. The most important had taken place in November 1942 at Weston-super-Mare where he

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defuzed a new mine known as a Type T. He endured painful electric shocks while insulating the detonator wires and at one stage hung upside down in a mud hole. Other clearance officers found the information he had gained from the Type T invaluable. Syme’s George Cross made him the most decorated member of the Royal Australian Navy at that time. The award of the George Medal had been gazetted on 27 June 1941, again for “gallantry and undaunted devotion to duty”, the Bar following on 9 June 1942.

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of the disproportionate quantity of labour and material required”, was 90,000. A further 2,750,000 houses had been subject of temporary repairs, and of this number over 1,250,000 of these had also “received extended repairs”.

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Flying Officer Lloyd Allan Trigg DFC, RNZAF was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross for his actions on this date. The pilot of a Coastal Command Consolidated Liberator (BZ832, ‘D’), Trigg and his crew were operating out of Bathurst, Gambia when they spotted and attacked the Type VIIC U-boat, U-468, commanded by Oberleutnant zur See Klemens Schamong. The U-boat’s flak hit the Liberator several times, but Trigg continued to attack. Six depth charges were dropped before the Liberator crashed into the sea, killing all onboard. Two of the depth charges exploded close to the U-boat with devastating effect; U-468 sank within minutes and less than half the crew managed to abandon ship. Following his rescue, Schamong gave a full account of Trigg’s actions. It is stated that this is the only occasion a Victoria Cross has been awarded solely on the testimony of an enemy combatant.

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The First Quebec Conference, code-named Quadrant, began in Quebec. The main politicians present were Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Canada’s prime minister, William Lyon Mackenzie King, who hosted the series of meetings. Lasting until 24 August, the conference involved discussions on a variety of topics, including the planning for the D-Day landings, co-

It was reported that the number of houses in the UK damaged by enemy action so far in the war, and which remained unrepaired, “because BELOW: On Monday, 2 August 1943, Handley Page Hampdens of 455 Squadron RAAF attacked a convoy off the Norwegian coast. One of the aircraft involved, L4105/D, suffered serious flak damage to its tail – half the elevator was blown away, the starboard fin twisted and the port rudder fouled by debris. The crew was forced to lash a rope around the rudder bar and took turns helping the pilot, Flying Officer Iain Masson, hold the aircraft straight as they limped back to Leuchars for a crash-landing. This image shows L4105 in the aftermath of that crash-landing. On 9 June 1944, The London Gazette carried the announcement of the award of the Distinguished Flying Cross to Masson: “Now on his second tour of operations this officer has taken part in several attacks on enemy shipping and has displayed courage and skill of a high order. In May, 1944 [sic], Flying Officer Masson participated in an attack on a large and heavily armed convoy. Despite intense anti-aircraft fire, this officer pressed home his attack with the greatest resolution. His aircraft was repeatedly hit and sustained much damage but he flew it back to base where he effected a successful crashlanding. His determination on this occasion was typical of that he has shown throughout his tour.” (ww2images)

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DATES THAT SHAPED THE WAR DATES THAT SHAPED THE WAR DATES THAT SHAPED THE WAR

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DATES THAT SHAPED THE WAR DATES THAT SHAPED THE WAR DATES THAT SHAPED THE WAR

LEFT: Though it was one of the most successful

U-boats of the Second World War, U-106’s career came to an end on Monday, 2 August 1943, when it was attacked and sunk off northern Spain. The Type IXB U-boat was on its tenth war patrol when it was initially attacked by a Vickers Wellington of 407 Squadron RCAF, which dropped a pattern of six depth charges, on 1 August. Badly damaged, U-106, commanded by Oberleutnant zur See Wolf-Dietrich Damerow, was then attacked the following day by Short Sunderlands of Nos. 228 and 461 (RAAF) squadrons. According to the Allied crews and photographs taken of the attack (one of which is seen here having been taken by a member of Sunderland ‘N’ of 228 Squadron), the U-Boat partially exploded, before sinking vertically. Twenty-two of U-106’s forty-eight-man crew were killed. (HMP)

BELOW: The drive for Messina underway –

Gunners of 66 Medium Regiment Royal Artillery are pictured in action on the slopes of Mount Etna at dawn on Wednesday, 11 August 1943. Six days later the Sicily campaign came to an end. (Imperial War Museum; NA5854)

time, the crews of No.5 Group, bombing in the last wave of the attack, had practised the “time-anddistance” bombing method for their part in the raid.

operation on the atomic bomb, future dealings with Italy, and intensifying the Strategic Bombing Campaign against Germany.

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The Sicily Campaign ended with the Allied capture of Messina. The Axis evacuation, a highly successful operation, was also terminated. In the course of the latter, the Germans had evacuated some 52,000 of their troops, 14,105 vehicles, 47 tanks, 94 guns, 1,100 tons of ammunition, and about 20,700 tons of equipment and stores, whilst the Italians had evacuated 62,182 men, 41 guns and 227 vehicles. Overnight, Bomber Command carried out a raid against the German research establishment at Peenemünde on the Baltic coast. There were several notable features. There was a Master Bomber controlling a full-scale Bomber Command raid for the first time; there were three aiming points – the scientists’ and workers’ living quarters, the rocket factory and the experimental station; and the Pathfinders employed a special plan with crews designated as “shifters”, who attempted to move the marking from one part of the target to another as the raid progressed. At the same

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Bomber Command opened the preliminary phase of the Battle of Berlin by undertaking a series of three major raids on the German capital. During these attacks, Bomber Command undertook a total of 1,652 sorties and lost 125 aircraft. Operations against Berlin were suspended in early September due to difficulties in marking targets within the city. On this date the Royal Navy sloop HMS Egret was the first ship ever to be sunk by a guided missile. At the time, Egret was serving with the 1st Support Group in company with the sloop HMS Pelican and the frigates HMS Jed, HMS Rother, HMS Spey and HMS Evenlode. Whilst undertaking anti-submarine patrols in the Bay of Biscay thirty nautical miles west of Vigo, Spain, the 1st Support Group was attacked by a force of Dornier Do 217E-5s from II Gruppe of Kampfgeschwader 100, the first unit to go into action equipped with the Henschel Hs 293A guided airto-surface missile. In the attack, one

of the two covering destroyers, HMS Athabaskan, was badly damaged. HMS Egret, meanwhile, was hit by one of the guided missiles which detonated the ammunition in her after magazine. The resulting explosion blew the sloop to pieces with the loss of 194 of her crew. Also killed in the sinking were four RAF Y-Service electronics specialists onboard to operate the electronic surveillance equipment designed to monitor Luftwaffe bomber communications.

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Overnight a number of Operational Training Unit (OTU) crews launched the first in a series of raids in which trainee crews bombed ammunition dumps located at a number of locations in Northern France. A handful of Pathfinder aircraft marked each target, one of the purposes of which was to accustom OTU crews to bombing on markers before being posted to front-line squadrons.

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If evidence of the turning tide in the Battle of the Atlantic was needed, it was reported that just four British, Allied or neutral ships, of 25,000 tons, and one escort, had been sunk during August. The Kriegsmarine, meanwhile, had suffered much worse, with twenty U-boats being lost.

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THE

DUNKIRK CHALLENGE The evacuation of the BEF from Dunkirk in May and June 1940, one of the most pivotal moments of the Second World War, will always be remembered for the collection of private boats that crossed the Channel to help save the troops. Amongst the assortment of yachts, launches, pleasure boats and working craft of the “Little Ships” was the Steam Tug Challenge, which has now been renovated and forms part of the National Historic Fleet.

C

harles William “Mick” Wenban was, as his father had been before him, a licensed waterman and lighter-man on the River Thames. Times, though, were hard. Since the declaration of war in the autumn of 1939, many of the Thames bound ships had been diverted around the country in the expectation that the country’s capital would be subject to enemy

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bombardment. This left the watermen largely unemployed. A number of them used to congregate each day at the Royal Terrace Pier at Gravesend looking for work – and usually finding none. Then, one day at the end of May 1940, the Royal Navy came calling. It asked for volunteers from amongst the experienced men. They could not be told what they were going to do or where they were going, but they were needed immediately. At that time Mick Wenban lived about two minutes walk away from the Royal Terrace Pier and so he rushed home, packed a kit bag and, after leaving a message for his wife, who was a Staff Nurse at Gravesend Hospital, he set off. Two hours later he found himself on board the Steam Tug

Challenge, which, after loading up with coal and water, headed for Ramsgate. * Challenge was built in 1931 by Alexander Hall & Co Ltd., Aberdeen, for the Elliot Steam Tug Co., London, and was the second tug to bear the name Challenge in the Elliot fleet. The previous Challenge had been built in South Shields in 1884 and broken up in 1931. The replacement Challenge is 110 feet in length with a beam of 26 feet 1 inch, and she draws 12 feet 3 inches. Her engine is a triple expansion steam engine developing 1,150hp. The boiler was originally built to be fired by coal, but later it was converted to oil firing. Now that little Thames tug was going to play its part in one of the most dramatic episodes in maritime history. ABOVE: Steam Tug Challenge pictured leaving Shoreham-by-Sea on Saturday, 4 May 2013, en route to Southampton after a major refit. (Courtesy of Dave Cassan) LEFT: An early archive picture of Challenge

underway. Note the open bridge. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban)

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ABOVE: Charlie Parker, the Master of Challenge before, during and after the Second World War. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban) ABOVE RIGHT: One of a series of images

taken by the crew of Challenge during Operation Dynamo, in this case whilst en route to Dunkirk, this picture shows a passing coaster full of Allied troops rescued from Dunkirk. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban)

BELOW: The view that greeted the tug’s crew as they approached Dunkirk and its surroundings. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban) It was at 18.57 hours on Sunday, 26 May 1940, that the official signal was sent by the Admiralty that set in motion Operation Dynamo. The following day just 7,669 men were evacuated back to Britian and as Captain William Tennant, the senior naval officer on shore at Dunkirk immediately realised, an enormous number of small boats capable of manoeuvring close to the beaches were needed if the British Expeditionary Force was to be saved. Consequently the small-craft section of the British Ministry of Shipping telephoned boat builders around the coast, asking them to collect all boats with “shallow draft” that could navigate close inshore. The various boatyards, from Teddington to Brightlingsea, were searched by Admiralty officers, and

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yielded upwards of forty serviceable motor-boats or launches, which were assembled at Sheerness on the following day. At the same time lifeboats from liners in the London docks, yachts, fishing-craft, lighters, barges and pleasure-boats, coasting vessels, skoots, motor boats and other small craft – including rowing boats for inshore work off the beaches – were called into service. The final total of the so-called “Little Ships” amounted to some 1,300. Tug boats from the Thames were also urgently required but, as Admiral Ramsay, the man in charge of Operation Dynamo, explained “there was always the difficulty of arranging for the personnel to man them”. This is why Mick Wenban and his fellow watermen found themselves approaching Dunkirk harbour on 31 May 1940. The men stranded on the beaches were in poor condition and desperately short of water. Consequently, the first instructions given to Challenge’s Master, Gravesender Captain Charles Parker, was to tow a barge filled with fresh drinking water over to Dunkirk. “We got to Dunkirk,” recalled Mick Wenban, “and received directions to put the barge ashore further along the shore. So we steamed along to the position they said, but instead of British troops we found Germans had occupied the ground. We quickly turned about back to Dunkirk harbour and this time we were told to go

to La Panne. Challenge had just let go of the barge having run it at the beach at full speed ahead, when we watched a dive bomber come in to attack. “The ’plane went for the barge and dropped a bomb which blew the barge right out of the water. There were five Army men on the barge. According to my information only one man survived, and he was a Gravesend man who I later met in Dover.” Challenge was then asked to help berthing vessels against the Mole at Dunkirk harbour. Dunkirk could, at that date, boast one of the most modern harbours in Europe but already the docks and quay walls had been reduced to rubble. Damaged and wrecked ships lay everywhere. One single pier remained, the outer Mole on the north side of the harbour. This pier had not been designed for the handling of goods or to allow passengers to gather along it for embarkation, but it was all that was left and was the only possible place where ships could be berthed. It was from here that large numbers of Allied personnel were eventually rescued. Mick Wenban’s son, also called Mick, remembered another incident at this time about his father, which was told to him by a fellow waterman Taf Weekes: “He [Mick] was talking to an Army Captain, apparently, and what happened was a Messerschmitt or something went over

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and strafed the tug and everyone hit the deck and when Dad looked down he thought, ‘Oh blimey someone’s left a tin helmet’. When he picked it up it was the officer’s head inside it. The strange thing is on the tin helmet it has got Guards, I am not sure if it was Grenadier or whatever, but on one side of it is a hand painted skeleton holding up the letter 13.” Just what it was like at Dunkirk was described by anti-aircraft gunner Leslie Shorrock as he arrived at the coast: “A vast queue of men, three or four abreast, stretched from the top of the beach down to the sea, a distance of hundreds of yards. It was a very warm sunny day, with a clear blue sky, the sea appeared very calm and immediately in front of me, approximately one quarter of a miles from the beach, a large ship was sinking bows first … As I stepped onto the beach at the top I saw immediately in front of me, lying on his back on the sand, a dead British soldier, partly covered with a gas cape and on top of his chest his army pay book, with his name written thus, David Barraud RASC.” For those on the beaches, and patiently waiting to be rescued, it was a tense and anxious time, as Sub-Lieutenant John D. Graves, a young Royal Naval Reserve officer, who was onboard the paddle steamer Medway Queen, recounted: “In the first faint light of dawn, could be made out long lines of men standing still like human piers stretching

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out into the water – knee, waist and even neck high in it; standing so patiently there in full equipment, boots, rifles, packs, tin helmets and all, with sergeants passing or rather swirling their way up and down the lines with a word of encouragement here and a command there.” Whilst many of the troops behaved in an orderly fashion, this was not always the case, as John Rutherford Crosby RNVR onboard the paddle steamer Eagle III experienced: “The men waded and swam out, and many of them had to be hauled on ropes straight up the side of the ship and over the rails. The snag was that when a rope was thrown to a man, about six grabbed it and just hung on, looking up blankly with the water breaking over their shoulders, and it was a hell of a job getting them to let go so that the rest could get pulled aboard. It was a case the whole time of ‘To Hell with you, Jack! I’m alright.’” After helping the Navy, Challenge set back under orders for Dover. “On our way back we found a damaged destroyer loaded with troops” continued Mick Wenban, “We got a line to her and towed her back to port, where the troops were able to disembark safely.” She arrived back at Dover on 1 June where further towing tasks were completed. One of these was to issue ladders around to Navy ships in the harbour. These were later used to enable thousands of troops to embark from the Dunkirk harbour arm down to the deck of

the rescuing destroyer. Challenge was back in Dover harbour when the destroyer HMS Worcester collided with the passenger ferry SS Maid of Orleans. At 20.00 hours, Challenge, along with the other tugs Crested Cock, Sun VII and Sun XIII, took them in tow, hauling HMS Worcester to the Prince of Wales Pier. In the collision, some men had been thrown in the water and Mick Wenban jumped in and rescued one or two of them, helping them onto a nearby French pinnace. Then at approximately 21.30 hours Challenge was ordered to steam back to Dunkirk and “pick up or rescue anything”. At 23.00 hours she was off North Goodwin in a line with Ocean Cock, Crested Cock, Fairplay I, Sun VII, Sun XI and Sun XII, all heading towards Dunkirk with the same orders. “We were under ABOVE: Seen from the deck of Challenge, this is the Gravesend-based Watkins tug Tanga pictured towing small boats towards the beaches at Dunkirk. The hospital ship in the background, Paris, was sunk by German aircraft whilst crossing the Channel on 2 June 1940. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban) BELOW LEFT: It was not only Allied personnel that were brought to the UK from Dunkirk – the crew of Challenge spotted this disconsolate group of German soldiers about to be shipped to Dover. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban) BELOW RIGHT: A group of British soldiers which, having been plucked from the beaches at Dunkirk, is about to be transferred to the decks of Challenge. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban)

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ABOVE: The dangers of participating in Operation Dynamo are exemplified by this view of a badly-damaged ship, pictured by the crew of Challenge, off Dunkirk. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban) ABOVE RIGHT: A number of other tugs

served alongside Challenge at Dunkirk. In this case the tug Persia, operated by Messrs. William Watkins Ltd, was photographed packed with troops whilst en route to Ramsgate. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban)

BELOW LEFT: The crew of Challenge pictured after their return from Dunkirk in 1940. Mick Wenban can be seen second from the right in the trilby hat. After the excitement of Operation Dynamo Wenban volunteered for the Royal Navy. However, his eyes had been damaged when he jumped into the oil-covered water to rescue the men from the Maid of Orleans and his application was turned down. (Courtesy of Mick Wenban) BOTTOM: The Steam Tug Challenge as she

would have appeared just before and during the Second World War. Today she has a covered bridge. (Artwork by David Cassan)

command of a naval officer this time, although the vessel was still under the red ensign,” said Mick Wenban describing that final trip across the Channel. “When we got there, there was a lot of noise going on from German guns. There were many big fires.”

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The great risk the ships faced at Dunkirk was in becoming stranded on the sands. To avoid this, the ships would drop anchor in deep water and then go astern on it, so that the vessel was facing out to sea, ready for a quick getaway. Challenge was anchored in just such a fashion whilst Captain Parker scanned the shore with his binoculars. Mick Wenban junior recalled what he was told by his father: “He [Charlie Parker] was looking on the quay and he was saying there are all these soldiers there. Mick ask them if they want to step back. So Dad jumped up on the stern of the tug and he was shouting to them on the beach ‘come on lads we’ll take you back’, and they all start saying ‘Achtung’ and they start firing at them and someone said, ‘Jesus Christ they’re bloody Germans!’” If the Germans were in Dunkirk harbour it meant that there were no more Allied troops left to save. “It was obvious that our little tug could do no more, although we were told to try and bring back anything we could see,” Mick Wenban senior related. “Our officer eventually ordered the tug back to Dover.” Challenge was one of the last vessels to leave Dunkirk *

After returning to the Thames, she was fitted with a flying bridge to mount an Oerlikon anti-aircraft gun, and a forebridge for two Lewis guns. Her work in 1941 and 1942 included towing Maunsell sea forts into position off the East Coast. In the early hours of 1 June 1942, for example, Challenge, in company with the

CALL TO VOLUNTEERS NATIONWIDE

From the Dunkirk Little Ships Restoration Trust The Heritage Lottery funded “Challenge to the Future” restoration project nears completion. Challenge is to celebrate this at the St Katharine Docks London Classic Boat Festival, which takes place from 11 to 15 September 2013, marking twenty years since her rescue by the Dunkirk Little Ships Restoration Trust at St Katharine’s and sixty years since she left service. Challenge will voyage each year from Southampton around the UK and near continent, taking her unique heritage to the Public. We welcome assistance from seamen, engineers, helpers and more. Interested? Then please call 07860 25 47 06 or contact via: www.stchallenge.org

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tugs Crested Cock and Watercock, left Tilbury with HMF (His Majesty’s Fort) Sunk Head, one of the naval forts, in tow. By 22.30 hours the same day, the fort was in position some twelve and a half nautical miles off Harwich. After this tow, an official is reputed to have remarked: “Now we have the right tugs and the right tugmen ABOVE: ST Challenge heads out to sea once again. (Courtesy of Dave Cassan) RIGHT: These two small plaques serve as

reminders of Challenge’s part in the Dunkirk evacuation. (Both HMP)

BELOW LEFT: The bows of Challenge, pictured at Shoreham-by-Sea in 2013, prior to the tug’s departure for Southampton. (Courtesy of Dave Cassan) BELOW CENTRE: Repairs to Challenge’s funnel serve as evidence of the damage caused by the V-1 explosion in 1944. (Courtesy of Dave Cassan) BELOW RIGHT: Challenge pictured whilst helping tow the Maunsell sea forts into position off the East Coast. This is one of the naval forts, each of which consisted of a pontoon barge on which stood two cylindrical towers on top of which was the gun platform mounting two 3.75-inch guns and two 40mm Bofors guns. Each fort was laid down in dry dock and assembled as a complete unit. They were then fitted out — the crews going on board at the same time for familiarization — before being towed out and sunk onto their sand bank positions.

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for this job.” On 4 June 1943, the erection of the Nore army forts commenced in the Thames Estuary. One of the tugs which were involved in this task, which was completed by 4 July the same year, was Challenge. In 1944, Challenge was tasked with towing sections of the Mulberry harbours used in the D-Day landings. A statement to Parliament in March 1945 noted the following: “One hundred and thirty-two tugs, including British, American, French and Dutch, were employed in towing the units of this harbour from sheltered anchorages in the United Kingdom to the Normandy coast. Nearly 1,000 tows were made for this purpose in June and July. Tugs were mobilised from far and wide to accomplish this mighty task, made the more daunting by the rough and unseasonable weather in the Channel. The moorings in the British area alone included 242 buoys, requiring the handling of 3,265 tons of mooring gear.”

On 3 July 1944, Challenge was damaged by a V-1 flying bomb in the Royal Albert Dock and was repaired at Rotherhithe. She still bears the marks of this attack. After the war, she continued in Thames service and was converted from coal to oil firing at Sheerness in 1964. Not only is Challenge the only surviving steam tug to have served at Dunkirk during Operation Dynamo, she is also the last example of a large purposebuilt, Thames ship-handling tug. As such, she is a true national treasure and is proud to be registered in the National Historic Fleet. ■

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on 8 le ows b a ail Wind v A W re & O N e Fi dl n i K

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A ROYAL ARTILLERY VETERAN HAS RETURNED TO THANK THE ITALIAN VILLAGERS THAT HELPED HIM EVADE CAPTURE ALMOST SEVENTY YEARS AGO continued Eric. “It did terrible damage. We were trapped behind a watertight door and the front of the ship was going down. I had never before anticipated the thought of dying, but I thought I would die. But the sailors finally managed to get us out, and somehow they kept the engines going and we limped back to Alexandria.” Around 360 personnel were lost in the

bombing, of whom 100 were soldiers; a further 280 were injured. After extensive damage control had been undertaken, Orion limped on to Alexandria at twelve knots, providing a spectacular sight as she arrived in the harbour with the mast wedged into the her funnel and significant battle damage. After the Allied withdrawal from Greece, Eric found himself once again in the desert. Here his troop was involved in a running battle with Italian and German forces from El Alamein up to Tobruk. When Rommel’s forces surrounded the town, Eric’s troop was forced to surrender. Marched across the desert to Benghazi, Eric survived on half a pint of water a day and hard biscuits before being shipped to a PoW camp at Macerata in eastern Italy. “We had to make the best of it. I spent my time making things from old tins. I made bellows to make force draft fires and one chap made a grandfather clock which actually worked! We were treated pretty fairly by the guards but rations were low and we were very dependent on Red Cross parcels, which often got filched.” When Italy capitulated news was received that the Germans were soon to take over the camp. Consequently, Eric and two comrades decided to make a daring night time escape LEFT: Lance Bombardier Eric Batteson. (Big Lottery Fund’s Heroes Return 2 Programme)

BELOW: British artillery in action during Operation Compass, following which Lance Bombardier Eric Batteson found himself sent to Greece in April 1941. (HMP)

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A CELEBRATORY RETURN FOR PoW ESCAPEE LANCE Bombardier Eric Batteson crouched in the dark watching the camp guard’s every movement before seizing his split second moment to escape to what would be an uncertain and precarious freedom high in the Italian mountains. Now, thanks to the Big Lottery Fund’s Heroes Return 2 programme, the 92-year veteran from Chester has made an emotional pilgrimage to thank the villagers of Colleregnone, in the municipality of Montemonaco, who took great risks to feed and shelter him. He even stayed in the same house owned by the same family who gave him refuge. Having completed his field training as a Lance Bombardier in the Royal Artillery in 1939, Eric Batteson first fought in Egypt in 1940, before being deployed to help defend Greece. “If we hadn’t moved back we would have been totally swamped,” he said of the fighting there. “The Germans were much better armed. The British Matilda tanks were no match for the Panzers and the Stuka attacks were terrible, we were relentlessly dive bombed. I was asleep in the back of a truck when one attack began. My battery commander, the signaller, and driver all leapt out into a ditch but I was still in the truck when two huge bombs landed, one in front and one behind. I was very lucky that day.” Eric was duly evacuated from Crete on the Leander-class light cruiser HMS Orion bound for Alexandria. On 29 May 1941, Orion was attacked by Axis aircraft. “I was in the forward part of the ship when a bomb went down the ammunition hatch and exploded,”

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SUBSCRIBE & SAVE by slipping through an unlocked gate and scrambling to freedom in the Italian mountains. Guided west by the stars they climbed by night but then switched to daylight travel to avoid stumbling over ledges in the dark. Reaching the village of Colleregnone, tired and starving, they spotted a farmer up a fruit tree and took the gamble to approach him. Eric recalls: “My memory is centred on those wonderful people who helped us. At first we would hide out in isolated places and the village girls would bring us food. Then after five months the snow came and the families hid us in their houses. They were taking a great risk. The

16

Germans had recently rounded up eleven young men from a neighbouring village and shot them as a warning to anyone collaborating with the Allies.” The three men were eventually betrayed and re-captured by the Germans, being transported by train to a PoW camp in Germany. “Here there were heavy Allied bombing raids,” Eric explained. “We weren’t very popular. We would see civilians pushing their dead relatives in wheelbarrows. We were glad the German soldiers were protecting us. But treatment was a bit mixed, especially from the prison guards running the forced slave labour gangs. They were regularly bashed about. One man was shot dead because he didn’t want to urinate in front of the others.” As the Allied bombing increased Eric and his compatriots were deployed to clean up after an intense raid damaged a local oil refinery. He said: “One guy was always doing subtle sabotage and would put cement powder into air pressure instruments, and slightly open the valves on oxy acetylene canisters so that when they came to be used they were empty.” Eric remained at the camp until he was liberated on 14 April 1945, before arriving back home in time for VE day. Following his return to Collegerone, Eric said: “I think we must have been legend in that village, they remember everything. I used to be a whistler and they told me ‘don’t do that, Italian men don’t whistle’. They passed this down to their children who still joke about it. I can’t tell you what I feel about these people. They did so much.” *

Since 2004, over 51,000 people have made commemorative trips with funding from the Big Lottery Fund’s Heroes Return schemes with grants totalling over £25 million. The Big Lottery Fund has also extended its Heroes Return 2 programme so that it no longer has a fixed deadline for applications. This will ensure Second World War veterans from the UK, Channel Islands and Republic of Ireland who have yet to take advantage of the funding since the programme opened can continue to apply for grants to cover travel and accommodation expenses to enable them to make trips back to places across the world where they served. They can also receive funding to take part in an official commemoration in the UK. For details contact the Heroes Return helpline on 0845 00 00 121 or visit: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/heroesreturn

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TOP LEFT: The building in which Eric

Batteson was given shelter in the village of Colleregnone. (Big Lottery Fund’s Heroes Return 2 Programme)

TOP RIGHT: Eric Batteson, front left, pictured sat next to his wife with relatives of the villagers who gave him shelter whilst evading German forces in Italy. (Big Lottery Fund’s Heroes Return 2 Programme)

LEFT: Eric Batteson pictured in North Africa

prior to his capture. (Big Lottery Fund’s Heroes Return 2 Programme)

BELOW: The Leander-class light cruiser HMS

Orion, on which Eric Batteson was evacuated from Crete.

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10/07/2013 16:37

UNCOVERING THE PAST: AIR RAID SHELTER EXCAVATIONS Perhaps the most common of all Home Front heritage sites from the Second World War, as well as being some of the most neglected, are the air raid shelters. Dr Gabriel Moshenska and Stewart Wild reveal how one archaeological project involved the excavation of a series of five public shelters in Hendon.

C

ompared to some councils in the 1930s, the London Borough of Hendon arrived rather belatedly at the realisation that air-raid shelters would be required for the population in the event of war. While some councils took the bombing of Barcelona in 1936 or the Munich Crisis of 1938 as an urgent impetus to provide air-raid protection, shelter construction in public spaces in Hendon appears not to have begun until mid-1939. In April of that year the Council voted to reject a resolution, proposed by Southall Borough Council, to push for the construction of deep, bomb-proof underground shelters. These had proved their worth in the Spanish Civil War, and a number of reputable engineers and scientists such as Ove Arup and J.B.S. Haldane were pushing for a British equivalent, particularly in dense urban areas. Elsewhere in London the pursuit of this enhanced protection in the interest of their residents, and in defiance of central

government, led to legal actions against the Borough of Finsbury and some of its officers. However by 1939 the increased threat of war had added a sense of urgency and by the end of May that year shelters were under construction in eight parks in the borough. At the same time, the Home Office had promised funding of £24,207 for shelters to accommodate as many as 12,000 people. It was planned that these would be built of corrugated steel with concrete walls, stretched around the edges of local parks, and covered with a layer of earth for enhanced blast protection. By mid-June of 1939 the construction

ABOVE: The interior of one of the five air raid shelters at Sunny Hill Park in Hendon pictured during the excavations in July 2010. The shelters were built from shuttered concrete which was cast in situ. Indeed, traces of wooden shuttering were noticed by the archaeological team on the walls and ceiling. Note the ladder leading to the emergency exit shaft at the far end. (Courtesy of Nick Catford) LEFT: The entrance to one of the shelters

in Sunny Hill Park is revealed during the excavation. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska)

RIGHT: The same shelter once the

surrounding undergrowth and soil had been completely cleared. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska)

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ABOVE: Work to remove the concrete cap

from one of the emergency exit shafts on the Sunny Hill Park shelters begins. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska)

BELOW LEFT: The same exit shaft with the concrete removed. Beneath the wooden cover is a metal ladder attached to the end wall of the shelter. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska) BELOW RIGHT: The original steel cover is replaced over the emergency exit shaft. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska) of shelters at Sunny Hill Park, a large open space amounting to twenty-two hectares, had not yet been begun, and elsewhere shortages of materials were holding up the process. With just a few weeks of peace remaining, in August of the same year the council put the construction of shelters in public spaces out to tender, and accepted the bid of Rigg & Remington Ltd to build shelters of

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a capacity to seat around 12,000 people at a cost of £37,500. Under government rules, the London Borough of Hendon was obliged to provide shelters for ten percent of its resident population – approximately 17,000 people. The initial plan laid out in early September 1939, shortly after the outbreak of war, was for this to be divided up: 3,400 people would use the council-built shelters from the first stage of construction, while another 1,500 would use empty shops in the borough that had been converted into reinforced shelters. The remaining 12,000 would be accommodated in the shelters to be built by Rigg & Remington Ltd. Shortly afterwards, as the urgent construction of shelters around the country put a strain on concrete and steel resources, these figures were revised. Shop shelters would now house 5,000 people, while another 2,950 would use

the small number of structures that Rigg & Remington had produced up to that point. It was decided that another 5,650 would be housed in surface shelters that would be built out of bricks and mortar – a more plentiful resource at the time. However, the fluctuating availability of metal frameworks from Steel Ceilings Ltd caused these plans to be revised repeatedly over the following few months. In October 1939 heavy rainfall caused flooding in some shelters in the borough, and the poor cleaning and maintenance of shelters by park staff became an issue of concern. Park keepers reported that on their early rounds at 07.00 hours there were still too many people sleeping in the shelters, so that cleaning had to wait until later in their working day, by which time many were reoccupied. Construction of shelters continued through this period; shortly after the war began land next to St Mary’s CE School

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RIGHT: On one shelter wall the archaeological team found the words “A. Fairgrieve Adams … Medical Officer”. A search of the council’s records revealed that Alfred Fairgrieve Adamson had been the London Borough of Hendon’s medical officer for many years, including throughout the Second World War, before retiring in 1954. With further examination, it transpired that the wording was part of a poster that had been glued to the wall of the shelter. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska)

BELOW LEFT: The shelters had clearly been equipped with electric lights and ventilation: a heavy insulated cable appeared through the side walls and was connected to this Bakelite fixture attached to the side of one of the toilet cubicles. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska) BOTTOM: An emergency exit shaft for one of the air raid shelters in Sunny Hill Park. (Courtesy of Dr Gabriel Moshenska)

on Church Terrace was requisitioned for the construction of a school airraid shelter. By mid-March 1940 it was recorded that all of the planned trench shelters in the borough had been completed. The shelters in Sunny Hill Park can thus be dated with reasonable certainty to the period mid-June 1939 to mid-March 1940. The construction of shelters was only one of the impacts of the Second World War on Sunny Hill Park; in October 1940 the railings around the children’s playground were removed for scrap to aid the war effort. Many parks were turned over to agricultural uses, and Sunny Hill Park was no exception. In the spring of 1941 land in the park was allocated to form thirty-one allotments, and in

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November 1942 a standpipe was installed near the allotments at the request of residents. Several parks in Hendon were used for grazing animals, and in 1941 Mr Hinge of Church Farm applied for grazing permission on Sunny Hill Park. His application was refused, but a compromise was reached in which for an annual fee of £15 he could cut and remove grass from the park for animal feed. This arrangement was renewed annually through to at least 1947. In the summer of 1941 the 10th Company of the Hendon Home Guard laid a telephone cable along the eastern side of Sunny Hill Park, linking their depot on Great North Way with their headquarters, the location of which is unclear. By this time the war had transformed Sunny Hill Park from its prewar role as a venue for public meetings, theatre, music and play into a part of the Home Front: stripped of its iron and hay, and dug up for planting and for air-raid shelters. With this knowledge, the question being asked in 2009 was what traces of these wartime uses remained? Later that year, Hendon and District Archaeological Society (HADAS), in conjunction with University College London’s

Institute of Archaeology, decided to ask Barnet Council’s permission to carry out an investigative archaeological dig on some strange surface structures (including what looked like the top of a filled-in concrete staircase) almost completely covered by nettles, brambles and ivy in Sunny Hill Park. In due course, Barnet Council’s Parks Department granted permission for the dig to proceed and cleared away a massive amount of undergrowth. The local residents’ association was enthusiastic, and it was agreed that digging would start on 12 July 2010, for a maximum of two weeks, under the direction of Dr Moshenska. It was soon realised that the team was dealing with probably five parallel rectangular structures, each with a stairway at one end and overgrown square concrete-capped brickwork at the other. The latter were presumed to be an alternative exit shaft to some kind of shelter.

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Digging commenced at the first staircase that was partially visible, work which necessitated the removal of a large quantity of rubble and earth, along with bits of rusty corrugated iron. It took four days’ effort to reach the bottom of the stairs, at a depth of around three metres, and to clear a way around the brick blast wall, which was in remarkably good condition. Entering the shelter itself, Dr Moshenska was delighted to find that it was more or less empty of rubble, only slightly damp, and contained a few rusty artefacts – buckets, scrap metal, electric cable and suchlike – and a small amount of graffiti. At the far end of the shelter, alongside a brick wall whose purpose was to screen off a compartment for a chemical toilet, a decaying vertical metal ladder led up to the sealed surface hatch that served as an emergency exit. There was no evidence of chairs or benches, and seemingly no holes in the walls to which benches might have been fixed. With the limited time available to the project, it proved possible to enter only 80

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two of the five apparent shelters, though the decision was taken to try to smash the heavy concrete cap off the exit hatch of shelter number three. After a lot of hard work by students and members of HADAS this was achieved on Sunday, 18 July 2010. Shelter number three was, unsurprisingly, very similar to number one. It contained some post-war debris – beer bottles and rusty cans for example – which were believed to have been left by individuals who had broken in, possibly in the 1960s, before the council had finally covered the hatch with a thick layer of heavy concrete. The survey of the shelters revealed that their dimensions were exactly the same: 18.23 metres long, 2.14 metres wide and 2.00 metres high. On Thursday, 23 July, the staircase of shelter one was backfilled and the concrete cap replaced on the hatch exit of shelter three. Importantly, Barnet Council had agreed that one of the shelters could be preserved for future visits and further study. Consequently, the concrete cap of the emergency exit of shelter three has now been replaced by a welded hatch secured by a padlock. As the project continued, and the finds were recorded and evaluated, one unexpected piece of “treasure”’ arrived from an unlikely source. A local schoolboy, 6-years-old David Wolffe, appeared on site and showed the team where to find an original wooden sign that had once pointed the way to the shelters in Sunny Hill Park. The sign was found to be in remarkably

ABOVE: An interior view of the sealed-up staircase of one of the Sunny Hill Park air raid shelters. (Courtesy of Nick Catford) LEFT: The original wooden air raid shelter

sign being displayed at the excavation site in 2010 by David Wolffe.

good condition for a wooden artefact that was nearly seventy years old, though a number of rusty nails and holes that seem to indicate that it may have found later use as part of a fence. David informed the excavation team that he had found the sign hidden behind a hedge near his house on the edge of the park. Like the shelters that it had once directed the people of Hendon to, the sign had lain forgotten for many years. ■

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

Uncovering Britain’s Wartime Heritage A lecturer at University College London, Dr Gabriel Moshenska has a particular interest in Second World War archaeology. In his latest book he sets out to provide an expert introduction to Second World War archaeology in the UK. Covering a variety of sites across the country, he identifies and examines some of the types of physical evidence that have survived, providing an insight into the Home Front and the wartime experience of the British people. For more information or to order a copy please visit: www.pen-and-sword.co.uk

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04/07/2013 10:28

SERGEANT BRUCE OGDEN-SMITH DCM, MM

Jon Enoch/eyevine

Fewer than 200 men, mainly from the Royal Navy and Royal Engineers, served in the Combined Operations Pilotage Parties during the last three years of the Second World War. Between them they won ninety medals. Here Lord Ashcroft examines the actions of one of those individuals, Sergeant Bruce Ogden-Smith DCM, MM, who undertook vital beach reconnaissance duties prior to the D-Day landings.

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ar produces an incredible array of different heroes: dashing fighter pilots who have survived countless dogfights, courageous soldiers who have fought shoulder to shoulder with their comrades whatever the odds, and sailors who have shown phenomenal gallantry in defence of their precious ship. Some heroes, however, are more low-key and their missions are far more secret. Bruce Ogden-Smith, who received two gallantry awards during the Second World War, undoubtedly fits into this category, for he left his unseen mark on the conflict by swimming silently in the dead of night to enemy-held beaches. Before the end of 1943, the Allies were actively planning how to invade German-occupied France and thereby create a Second Front. By then, America had entered the war and the Allies were able to plan from a position of strength. Operation Overlord was the codename given to the long-awaited Allied invasion of France. Operation Neptune was, in turn, the codename given to the naval assault phase of Operation Overlord. Its aim was to gain a foothold on the Continent so that once Normandy was secured, the assault on Western Europe and the downfall of Nazi Germany could begin. However, before the detailed planning of the

TOP: US troops landing on Omaha Beach

on 6 June 1944. Amongst those who came ashore on this stretch of the Normandy coast that day, acting as a guide for the Americans, was Sergeant Bruce Ogden-Smith. (Conseil Régional de Basse-Normandie/US National Archives).

ABOVE: A photograph of Sergeant Bruce Ogden-Smith. (The Lord Ashcroft Collection)

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ABOVE: Sergeant Bruce Ogden-Smith’s medals. (The Lord Ashcroft Collection) ABOVE RIGHT: The landings underway at

Gold Beach on 6 June 1944. More specifically, this is King Red Sector at La Rivière, a stretch of the D-Day beaches reconnoitered by Ogden-Smith after swimming in from out at sea. Gold Beach had three main assault sectors. These were designated (from west to east): Item, Jig (split into sections Green and Red), and King (also in two sections named Green and Red). A fourth, named How, was not used as a landing area. On 6 June 1944, Gold Beach, which lay between Le Hamel and Ver sur Mer, was assaulted by the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division. (Conseil Régional de Basse-Normandie/US National Archives)

MAIN PICTURE BELOW: A stretch of Gold Beach as it is today – note the remains of the Mulberry Harbour in the bay at Arromanchesles-Bains. During the reconnaissance of the beaches in this area, undertaken by OgdenSmith and Scott-Bowden during Operation Bell Push Able, it was discovered that the sand, in places, was thin and supported by weak peat material. (www.shutterstock.com) invasion could even begin, intelligence was needed about the nature of the beaches that the Allies intended to land upon. Enter Sergeant Ogden-Smith, one of the most courageous, colourful, yet least known, characters of the Second World War.

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Ogden-Smith had initially been drawn into the world of clandestine operations by his brother, Colin, who was a Special Forces officer. Bruce Ogden-Smith began as a member of the Small Scale Raiding Force (SSRF) and, on the night of 3/4 October 1942, he was one of seven men from SSRF and five from No.12 Commando to take part in a daring intelligence-gathering raid on German-occupied Sark in the Channel Islands. Operation Basalt, which used torpedo boats, was a complete success. Local islanders passed on invaluable information to the twelve men and an “informative” German prisoner was captured and brought to Britain. However, it was for an utterly different mission that Ogden-Smith became renowned and that was for swimming to French beaches in the dead of night to gather intelligence – a clandestine activity that become known as “beach reconnaissance”. By this time, OgdenSmith had joined the Commandos’ fledgling Special Boat Section – now better known, under the auspices of the Royal Marines, as the Special Boat Squadron (SBS). He was transferred

to the SBS in January 1943 and was actively employed in the Middle East. However, by the end of 1943, he was back in Europe and soon he was given his formidable new assignment. The success – or failure – of the Normandy landings depended on accurate and detailed topographical information about the beaches and coastal towns along the French coast. Aerial photographs helped identify locations and the British public handed in holiday photographs and postcards gathered in northern France too. Despite this, much more detailed information about the target beaches and their approaches was still required. The Allies needed to ascertain such things as the geological composition of the beaches, the depths of certain channels, hidden underwater banks and, critically, the exact positions of the elaborate German defences. In conjunction with details of tides and weather, these could then be taken into account when planning the landings. The stakes were high – faulty

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intelligence would jeopardise the entire project and cost lives. One of the best accounts of the heroic activities of Ogden-Smith and his companion Logan Scott-Bowden can be found in Dawn of D-Day by David Howarth. The author writes: “Probably everyone who fought his way ashore on Gold beach believed that they were the first Britons to set foot on it in the past four years, but they were not. Two soldiers had been there, on New Year’s Eve … The men were two Commandos called Logan Scott-Bowden and Bruce Ogden-Smith; the first was a major and the second a sergeant, and they were the chief exponents of the curious art of swimming ashore by night and crawling out of the water unobserved.” In fact, a small unit for the reconnaissance of beaches had existed for years. It owed its existence to a naval navigator, Lieutenant Commander Nigel Willmott, who was convinced that it was foolish to land an army anywhere on a hostile shore using only charts and photographs. For example, when landing tanks and trucks, it was also crucial to know the hardness of the sand. After years of half-hearted support, Willmott found his ideas gaining enthusiastic support in the highest quarters. By this time it was mid-winter and, being in poor health, he was not well enough personally to collect samples from French beaches. However, Wilmott was nevertheless well enough to train

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others for the role, including Scott-Bowden and Ogden-Smith. Ogden-Smith, the scion of a family that had made fishing tackle for nearly 200 years, could easily have become an officer. When people asked him why he had not opted for officer training (and the prestige and comforts that went with it), he explained that he was quite happy as a sergeant. In fact, he had once given in to temptation and started an officers’ training course, but this ended abruptly when he wrote rude words on an intelligence test that he thought was a waste of time. Once again, David Howarth writes: “When asked why he made a practice of swimming ashore on hostile beaches, he simply said that he liked it – it was not too bloodthirsty, and yet was quite exciting. In short, Ogden-Smith was one of those brave but eccentric soldiers who can be a great asset to an army if it does not have too many of them: a square peg who had luckily found a square hole.” During the winter of 1943-4 and the ensuing spring, Scott-Bowden and Ogden-Smith were taken across the Channel whenever there was a moonlit night. They were dropped off within a few hundred yards of the shore, by small landing craft or midget submarines, and then swam to the beaches. Much thought had gone into providing them with simple but effective

ABOVE LEFT: The specially adapted fishing

reel and line which Ogden-Smith took with him to Normandy to assist in the beach reconnaissance work. Of the mission on New Year’s Eve 1943, Major General Logan ScottBowden CBE, DSO, MC later recalled: “As we swam back through heavy surf towards our rendezvous point, I thought my companion [Ogden-Smith] was in trouble, when I heard him shouting. But when I turned to help, he only wished me ‘A Happy New Year’. I told him to, ‘swim you b*****, or we’ll land back on the beach’. However I wished him ‘A Happy New Year’ in return, and we used our infrared torches to signal to our support boat, then rendezvoused with the MGB.” (The Lord Ashcroft Collection)

ABOVE RIGHT: On 16 January 1944, HMS

X-20, crewed by Lieutenant K.R. Hudspeth DSC & Bar RANVR and Sub-Lieutenant B. Enzer RNVR, transported Lieutenant Commander Nigel Willmott DSO DSC RN, Major Scott-Bowden and Sergeant OgdenSmith across the channel to undertake Operation Postage Able. During this mission, which was intended to last four days, periscope-level reconnaissance of the shoreline and echo-soundings were undertaken during day time, whilst at night the two divers (Scott-Bowden and OgdenSmith) made their way ashore.

equipment. They wore loose-fitting waterproof suits, and each of them carried a torch, compass and watch. Their other equipment included an underwater writing tablet, an auger with which to bore holes in the beach and bring up

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ABOVE: Scott-Bowden and Ogden-Smith went ashore on two nights during Operation Postage Able, surveying the beaches at Vierville-sur-Mer, Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer (seen here on 6 June as American troops go ashore) and Colleville-sur-Mer on what became Omaha Beach. On the third night they were due to go ashore off the Orne Estuary (Sword Beach), but by this stage fatigue and the worsening weather caused Lieutenant Hudspeth to terminate the operation. BELOW: Looking down on Omaha Beach at Colleville-sur-Mer – another stretch of sand investigated by Scott-Bowden and OgdenSmith who, having donned their cumbersome rubber swimming suits and kit, then swam 400 yards to the shore. (www.shutterstock.com) cores of the material it was made from, receptacles for carrying the cores, some meat skewers, and a reel of fine sandcoloured fishing line with a bead on it at every ten yards. They also had to be armed in case they were discovered by enemy guards on the beach. So they swam with a fighting knife and a .45 Colt (one of the few firearms that still worked when full of salt water and sand). However, their main aim was, of course, not to be spotted at all and to return, unnoticed by the enemy, with their priceless intelligence. Eventually, the two men had visited so many beaches that they found it difficult to remember them all. However, their landing at La Rivière was significant because it happened on New Year’s Eve. Indeed, as the New Year of 1944 approached, Ogden-Smith had crawled to

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where Scott-Bowden was lying listening to the conversation of two sentries on the sea wall. On the stroke of midnight, Ogden-Smith quietly wished his comrade a happy and prosperous New Year. The two men did more than just collect samples. They measured the gradients of beaches and charted sandbars offshore where landing craft might have become stranded. David Howarth writes: “In the middle of January they were on top of the fatal shingle bank at Omaha [beach]. They made an entirely uneventful tour of Utah [beach]; but on a second visit to Omaha, a sentry came along the beach between them and the sea and tripped over their fishing line. It was through this accident, exciting at the time, that the American Army was able to land with the assurance that the beach was not mined; because if it had [been], the sentry would not have been there. “The two men bore a charmed life. They were not only never seen, but every time, when they finished their probing, they waded out through the waves again and swam three hundred yards to sea and flashed their torches away from the land and waited, and every time, before cold and cramp and exhaustion crippled them, their boat came in and picked them up again. In the quest for mud, they swam ashore on thirty beaches.” Ogden-Smith’s Military Medal was announced on 2 March 1944, but no detailed information was published about why he had received it. The award was simply announced under a general heading “in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the field”. His investiture had been planned for 6 June 1944, but he was unable to attend as this was also the date of the D-Day landings. In fact, Ogden-Smith and ScottBowden were on Omaha beach again,

this time as guests of the American Army which had taken them as their guides. Ogden Smith’s Distinguished Conduct Medal was gazetted on 15 June 1944 and was announced for the same classically vague “gallant and distinguished services in the field”. However, his confidential recommendation noted that Ogden-Smith had showed “courage, coolness and ability in assisting Major Scott-Bowden to carry out the first experimental beach reconnaissance”. Scott-Bowden was also decorated with two gallantry awards for his bravery: the Distinguished Service Order and Military Cross. At the end of the war, Ogden-Smith is believed to have returned to his home in Wales, where his wife had been working in a factory during the war, where he died in December 1986. This wonderful man was, fortunately, a hoarder so when, in September 2006, his medals came up for auction at Dix Noonan Webb, they were accompanied by some fascinating artefacts. These included several small pieces of fabric taken from a kayak used by Ogden-Smith and Scott-Bowden off Normandy; his original Commando fighting knife used as a silent weapon and for probing mines; and his specially adapted fishing reel and line made in his father’s workshops and taken to Normandy to assist in beach reconnaissance. It was that very same reel and line that had once been trodden upon by that enemy sentry on Omaha beach. ■ SPECIAL FORCES HEROES Lord Ashcroft KCMG PC is a Conservative peer, businessman, philanthropist and author. The story behind Ogden-Smith’s medals appears in his book Special Forces Heroes. For more information visit: www. specialforcesheroes.com Lord Ashcroft’s VC and GC collection is on public display at the Imperial War Museum. For more information visit: www.iwm.org.uk/heroes For more information on Lord Ashcroft’s work, visit: www.lordashcroft.com. Follow him on Twitter: @LordAshcroft.

AUGUST 2013

12/07/2013 12:32

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03/07/2013 10:05

“BUMPH RAIDS” OVER GERMANY

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n 3 September 1939, the day that war was declared, three Armstrong Whitworth Whitleys of 51 Squadron, which was commanded by Wing Commander J. Sylvester, were put on standby for sorties to Germany. Though each bomber was fully fuelled, none was loaded with anything more aggressive than 1,800lb of propaganda leaflets. Dispersed at RAF Leconfield, three of 51 Squadron’s Whitley IIIs, which were fitted with Armstrong Siddeley Tiger engines, were supported by seven more from 58 Squadron. All ten aircraft were soon ready for Nickel operations, as the leaflet-dropping sorties were code-named. Such missions ensured that the phrase “Nickelling” entered the RAF’s lexicon, though they were generally known as “Bumph Raids”. At 20.30 hours the first of the Whitleys, K8938 MH-A of 51 Squadron, which was flown by Flying Officer Milne and his crew, took off from Leconfield to undertake the first of the RAF’s “bumph” sorties, missions that would occupy the Whitley squadrons throughout the so-called Phoney War. Once airborne, 51’s Whitleys headed for the northern German cities of Hamburg and Bremen; this was the first occasion that the RAF penetrated into German airspace in the Second World War. The Whitleys encountered no significant opposition, with the last one touching down back at Leconfield at 06.30 hours on the 4th. As well as leaflet drops, the 4 Group Whitleys also conducted a number of night reconnaissance operations. Indeed, on 27 September 1939, six Whitleys of 51 Squadron left RAF Lintonon-Ouse and positioned forward at Reims in France. From there, three of the bombers then headed out over Germany. Flying Officer Milne and his crew of Flying Officer Hayward (Second Pilot), Sergeant Ritchie (Observer), AC1 Lyne (Wireless Operator) and AC2 Haregreaves (Rear Gunner), reconnoitred roads and railways in the Ruhr area. Dropping low over Dortmund, they also flew along the Rhine at altitudes as low as 1,000 feet – the first occasion that an aircraft had flown that low on a reconnaissance over Germany. Two of the Whitleys managed to return to Reims whilst the third landed at Le Bourget. The limited navigation aids of the period, combined with the onset of autumn weather, meant that these “bumph raids” were 88

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27 September 1939

no sinecure. Indeed, despite an appalling weather forecast, five of 51’s old Tiger Whitleys took off from the French airbase at Villeneuve at 17.40 hours on 27 October 1939. Tasked to with dropping propaganda leaflets, one crew turned back in the face of heavy weather whilst others suffered dreadfully from the effects of the cold and severe icing. Nonetheless, Nickels were dropped over Stuttgart, Munich and Frankfurt before the bombers headed back to France. One crew landed back at Villeneuve having battled through the weather, while another ran into heavy flak which compounded their problems, though they too eventually landed safely. Flight Lieutenant Wynton’s crew was not so lucky. During the return, with six inches of ice accreted on the wings, Whitley K9008/MH-J went into a steep dive. By an almost superhuman effort, Sergeant Hyde, the co-pilot, managed to coax the aircraft to a relatively soft landing in France. However, even greater hardships overtook the fourth crew which, whilst over Munich, discovered that the ventral “dustbin” turret had remained stuck down after dropping the Nickels. Then, on the way home, the starboard engine gave trouble, whilst near the Franco-German border a cylinder head blew off. Losing height and in ever thickening snow clouds, the port engine then also began to fail. With hills ahead, Sergeant Bowles, the captain, ordered the crew to bale out. The Whitley glided to a relatively soft landing. At this point, a cut and dazed Sergeant Griffin, the rear gunner, who had been blissfully unaware that the rest of the crew had baled out due to his intercom having failed, dashed into the wreckage to search for his colleagues. Puzzled at finding the cockpit empty he limped to a nearby village only to discover them restoring their spirits in a local café! Soon afterwards 51 Squadron, along with the other 4 Group squadrons, began re-equipping with more reliable Merlin engineequipped Whitley IVs and Vs. With these the crews continued the “bumph raids” through into 1940. The image seen above depicts two of the Tiger-engine Whitley IIIs of 51 Squadron, K8979/MH-B and K8978/MH-P, prior to departing RAF Linton-on-Ouse for Reims on 27 September 1939. It was from the latter that the crews flew reconnaissance and leaflet sorties over western Germany. (Courtesy of 51 Squadron Records)

AUGUST 2013

11/07/2013 11:21

THE TANK BANKS In November 1917 two tanks took part in the Lord Mayor’s Show in London, generating great public interest. The National War Savings Committee then decided to despatch six Mark IV tanks on a tour of the UK. As John Ross explains, the primary purpose of the campaign was to promote the sale of government War Bonds and War Savings Certificates. Consequently, those six tanks soon earned the nickname “Tank Banks”.

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D

ating back before 1535, the Lord Mayor’s Show is one of the longest established and best known annual events in London. Even the outbreak of war in 1914 failed to bring the tradition to an end. In fact, the show in 1917, held on Friday, 9 November, was a particularly memorable event. “This year’s Lord Mayor’s Show … will be remembered as the most dignified and impressive of modern times”, wrote one reporter. “Apart from the Lord Mayor himself (Alderman Charles Hanson), in his coach, and representatives of some of the City Companies, the procession was, in reality, a great naval and military pageant, and the presence in it of the Overseas contingents gave it an Imperial character. It was an epitome, not only of the fighting services, but of the whole national war effort, including the work of the women in munition-factories, on the land, and in various other activities.”1 If there was one thing that caught the reporter’s eye, however, it was the presence of two tanks in the procession.

“Vehicles never before seen,” he continued, “perambulating London streets. They aroused much enthusiasm.” “Brilliant sunshine favoured the Lord Mayor’s Show,” noted a correspondent for the Evening Telegraph and Post. The streets through which the possession made its way from the Guildhall to the Law Courts was thronged with sightseers, MAIN PICTURE BELOW: One of the six Tank Banks pictured whilst on display in Trafalgar Square, London, late in 1917. The partially visible number on the rear suggests that this is Tank 130, Nelson. One of the crew of Nelson during its time as a Tank Bank was Corporal “Billy” Brandon. A veteran of the tank’s use at Cambrai in November 1917, Brandon was Nelson’s driver. In one speech supporting the Tank Bank tours, Brandon is reported as saying: “All the boys at the front are hungry for peace, but, if it is to be peace branded with the words ‘Made in Germany,’ the lads in the trenches will try to forget their hunger and fight on, since no other than a British peace will suit them.” (HMP) INSET BELOW: Another view of Tank 130,

Nelson, in Trafalgar Square. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum

11/07/2013 11:22

THE TANK BANKS

and the soldiers and sailors taking part in the pageant were loudly cheered.” For those present, there was the opportunity to see captured German and Turkish field guns and howitzers – even a captured German aircraft was wheeled out for the public to see. Once again, though, it was the presence of two British tanks that made the day for this witness. “Outstanding features in the procession were the presence of two tanks,” he noted. The interest that these two armoured giants generated was quite understandable for it was the first time that the general public was able to see for themselves one of the most remarkable inventions of the First World War. Following the Lord Mayor’s Show, which involved a pair of Mark IV tanks, at least one of the new “wonder weapons” was exhibited in Trafalgar Square. It proved to be a popular draw and a decision was taken to capitalise

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on this by the National War Savings Committee. Six travelling tanks – Egbert (141), Nelson (130), Julian (113), Old Bill (119), Drake (137) and Iron Rations (142) – were despatched around the country to promote the sale of War Bonds. The tanks, all Male versions, travelled by rail and at each location the skeleton crew had to reinstate the sponsons, drive into the town or city centre and then act as a platform for speakers and as a sales point for bonds. The itinerary was often gruelling; occasionally the timetable lists a tank appearing at two different locations on a single day. The use of tanks was a success, and large sums of money were raised for the war effort. In some instances company directors offered incentives to their employees to participate in the scheme. Notable amongst these were the directors of the Great North of Scotland Railway (GNSR) based in Aberdeen who offered prizes to the value of £100 to employees that purchased bonds. The bonds were sold in £5 units but for staff that had a little less money to invest, War Savings Certificates at 15/6 each were the

ABOVE: One of the two Mark IV Male tanks that participated in the Lord Mayor’s Show on Friday, 9 November 1917. (ww1images) LEFT: A fund-raising lapel flag from Bristol’s Tank Week which was held between 17 and 22 December 1917. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum)

BELOW LEFT: Tank 119, Old Bill, pictured during Birmingham’s Tank Bank week, 31 December 1917 to 5 January 1918. On occasions such as that seen here, the tank would arrive with great fanfare, after which civic dignitaries and local celebrities would greet the tank and speeches would often be made atop it. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum) BELOW: For its Tank Week, Leicester received the support of Tank 119, Old Bill. This picture of Old Bill was taken as it negotiated Leicester’s Bowling Green Street. Note the damage caused to the roadway in the bottom right corner. (ww1images) alternative and purchasers of these would also be entered into the prize draw. For a bit of excitement prospective investors could buy their bonds and certificates at the tank itself – Tank 113, which was named Julian. Julian had arrived in Aberdeen on

AUGUST 2013

11/07/2013 11:23

THE TANK BANKS

Sunday, 27 January 1918, being unloaded at the city’s Guild Street goods yard – it had travelled courtesy of the Caledonian Railway on a London & North Western Railway (LNWR) platform trolley wagon. The LNWR was the largest railway company in Britain at that time and ran what is now known as the West Coast Main Line from London to Carlisle. It served many industrial enterprises and the wagon that transported Julian was originally designed to transport boilers and other heavy pieces of engineering equipment. Once on show in Aberdeen, the full force of patriotism was used to encourage all Aberdonians to part with their cash. The Gordon Highlanders, for example, escorted the machine along Guild Street, Bridge Street and Union Terrace with bayonets fixed. Under the statue of William Wallace a large hill of earth had been constructed and defended with barbed wire. It was

AUGUST 2013

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on this that Julian did its stuff, crushing all the fortifications before him. Lord Strathclyde, the Chairman of the Scottish War Savings Committee, and Aberdeen’s Lord Provost Taggart, both in uniform, ceremoniously purchased the first savings bonds. In the case of Lord Provost Taggart, the sum involved amounted to £50,000, a figure which was invested on behalf of the Corporation. During his speech, Lord Provost Taggart remarked: “We want your money not to continue, but to end the war.” From Union Terrace, Julian travelled along Schoolhill, St Nicholas Street to Union Street to take up residence at the Castlegate. Throughout its journey, sightseers were so numerous that anyone wishing to move to find a better view had great difficulty in doing so. The citizens of Aberdeen did the campaign proud by raising £2 million during the fundraising “Tank Week”. Julian was to be supported in its efforts by leaflets advertising Tank Week being dropped

LEFT: Civic dignitaries draw Leicester’s

Tank Week to a close. The poster in the background would suggest that the amount raised exceeded £2 million. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum)

MAIN PICTURE BOTTOM: A large crowd has gathered to watch Old Bill, Tank 119, as it made its way up Leicester’s Horsefair Street during the city’s Tank Week. (ww1images) BELOW: A contemporary postcard depicting Julian’s arrival in Aberdeen. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum) by a naval airship and RFC aircraft, but bad weather prevented this taking place on every day except one. The excitement of Tank Week came to a close at 21.00 hours on Saturday, 2 February 1918. On that night searchlights operating from the roof of the Royal Athenaeum focused on the tank on which Lord Provost Taggart stood to bring the proceedings to a close. Police and Special Constables had difficulty in controlling the assembled crowd and barriers threatened to give way as the tank commander gave the command “steam up” and the machine started to roll. A small cart was flattened in this movement and children dashed forward to grab this souvenir

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TOP:

Tank 130 Nelson pictured during its travels. The tank’s “on tour” crew is lined up in front of it. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum)

ABOVE: A surviving National War Bond, the purchase of which was supported by Julian. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum) RIGHT: A typical advertisement announcing

the impending arrival of a Tank Bank – in this case Julian’s visit to Coupar.

of the tank’s visit. Some women also gathered the broken wood for use as firewood rather than mementos. Leaving the Castlegate the machine headed towards Market Street and into the Guild Street goods yard. The gates were closed, the crowd cheered and Julian was made ready for its departure to Dundee. Two days later, The Courier, one of Dundee’s newspapers, announced the arrival of Julian, urging the city’s population to support the war effort with this message: “The famous tank ‘Julian’ had arrived in this City, and he now awaits your visit. Having heard well of Dundee citizens – how they have given their men to fight, their women to work on munitions, and otherwise, he expects a great reception. 92

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“You know that Victory must be ours, and you also know that money is wanted to ensure that success. Julian wants you to lend your money, not to give it away, but lend it at a good interest. Send him back to Headquarters telling him how Scotland has done her share in all things, how nobly she had played her part.” By 25 March 1918, Julian had gone south and was to be found outside Walsall Town Hall where it helped raise £832,207, a little short of the one million pound target that had been set for that location. The tank’s tour continued, and on 23 July 1918, it was announced that Julian was back in Scotland. “The tank Julian at Dumfries yesterday opened a fresh war savings tour of the Scottish counties,” reported The Courier. “Lord Strathclyde, addressing a large crowd, said if the Chancellor of the Exchequer got £9 per head from the people of Scotland before October 1 he would be able to pay for the war, and there would be no need to resort to a less agreeable way of raising the money.” In due course, the Great North’s Weekly Circular 2841 gave notification of another of Julian’s movements: “Tank Bank ‘Julian’, Montrose to Macduff.

Above tank, weighing over 20 tons, will be conveyed by 3.50 a.m. Goods Train from Kittybrewster to Macduff.” Julian left Montrose having helped raise the sum of £45,394 and 19 shillings. The position of Macduff station at the top of a hill overlooking the town may have given the crew a “bit of fun” in taking the machine into the town for the fund raising event. Before that though the tank had to be made ready. The sponsons, the side compartments that held a quick firing 6-pounder gun, were, for example, closed up inside the tank to reduce its width for transportation. This was a vast improvement on the earlier Marks of tank where they had to be completely removed before being loaded onto a rail wagon. Even so it was not an easy task to ready the tank as the sponson still had to be pushed out in a sequence of prescribed moves. This was done by disconnecting a pin and clevis mechanism arrangement from the main engine bearing; this allowed the sponsons to be swung out one at a time then bolted into place. Finally, the gun was lowered from extreme up elevation to mid-point. At this point the jacks on the war flat could be dropped to stabilise the AUGUST 2013

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transport wagon before driving the tank off. On the personnel side, whilst an operational tank required a crew of eight the “on tour” crew complement was four, the minimum number of operators needed to drive the machine. In addition to the military personnel Miss Findlay, Director of the War Bonds Savings Committee, and her secretary, Miss Morrice, also accompanied Julian on his travels. Thursday, 26 September 1918, was a busy day for the team as after collecting £12,000 from the people of Macduff, Julian travelled on to Banff and added another £15,130 to the total. A question remains as to whether the rail wagons were moved to Banff to collect the tank, or it drove back to Macduff for loading. Which ever it was, a movement by rail that is not noted in the Weekly Circular took the tank to Portsoy on the Friday. After leaving the station at that town Julian took up position in the square and Miss Findlay, Miss Morrice, and tank commander Captain McIntosh were joined atop the tank by Bailie Rae and Portsoy Town Clerk, Mr Bannerman. By the end of the day £10,786 2s 6d were added to the War Bonds total. Another move by rail, again not recorded, saw Julian depart Cullen station on Saturday morning (28 September 1918) and take up position in that town square. Here Provost Forbes opened

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proceedings by inviting Miss Findlay to speak. She told the assembled crowd that Cullen had a reputation and she hoped that the day’s proceedings would further enhance it; in the event a further £5,000 was deposited in the Tank Bank. It is also noted in the reports that Julian “caused a considerable stir in the town”. The next stop on the tour was Portknockie, but as the day of the move was a Sunday, Julian was driven along the road from Cullen at a top speed of 3mph, burning two gallons of fuel per mile. As elsewhere, the arrival of the machine generated a great deal of interest and the tank was met by excited villagers a mile from the town and escorted into the centre of the village. Portknockie had in April 1918 contributed a massive £40,000 to War Weapons Week. Not surprisingly when Julian was opened for business on the morning of Monday, 30 September 1918, this fact was referred to as an encouragement to maximise deposits to the tank bank. Considering Julian was only in Portknockie for the morning, the contribution of £5,000 was a good one. Another bone-shaking trip saw the tank reach Findochty in the afternoon, where Provost McKee of that village encouraged the inhabitants to contribute. With £500 invested by the school’s war saving campaign the total for Findochty reached an amount in

ABOVE LEFT: A picture of Julian outside

West Ham’s former Town Hall in Stratford Broadway on 5 March 1918. Towards the end of the savings campaign, another of the Tank Banks, Egbert, was the prize in a competition to award the community which had raised the most money by the sale of War Bonds per head of the population. That award went to West Hartlepool, which raised £31 9s 1d per capita between 1 October 1918 and 18 January 1919. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum)

ABOVE RIGHT: Another shot of Julian

and its crew during one of the tank’s many Tank Week appearances. Left to right are: Lieutenant Bryce, Gunner Raynor, Sergeant Johnstone and Gunner Peake. (Courtesy of Derek Bird, WFA North Branch)

BELOW: Tank 113 Julian pictured during one of its appearances in England – on this occasion during Worcester’s Tank Week which was held between 18 and 23 March 1918. Many of the individual sums donated during the various Tank Weeks were not insignificant amounts. When Tank 141, Egbert, participated in Preston’s Tank Week (21 to 28 January 1918), for example, one of the largest contributions received was £100,000 from Blackburn-born mill owner William Birtwhistle. When Egbert proceeded on to Blackburn itself the following week Birtwhistle donated a further £116,000, making it quite clear that he would not be outdone by Preston! (HMP) the region of £4,000 to £5,000, a not inconsiderable sum considering the bulk of the men folk were away south fishing. Aware that the war was undoubtedly entering its final phase, the residents of Portknockie and Findochty had been informed: “The turn of the tide has come. Help your Forces to push home the splendid advantages they have won.” Moving on, Julian

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was expected to arrive in Buckie on the Monday night, but broke down on the journey from Findochty. The intrepid tank crew spent the night carrying out repairs and Julian finally made it to Cluny Square at 05.00 hours on the morning of Tuesday, 1 October 1918. A marquee had been set up and the town was in carnival mood with the scholars of Buckie High School given a holiday to celebrate the triumph of the town in at last attracting the visit of a tank – an active campaign to bring a machine to the town had been underway for several months. Following the day’s fund raising Julian was escorted from the Square to Buckie station by the youngsters of the town. His bad behaviour in breaking down on the way to Buckie was added to on his departure as whilst manoeuvring on to the rail wagon he knocked over the hydrant handle that supplied the water from line side tank to the water crane for the refilling of

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locomotive boilers. The escorting crowed and members of the support crew were soaked by the escaping water. The following note appeared in Weekly Circular 2842 giving official notice of the rail movement on 2 October: “Tank Bank ‘Julian’, Buckie to Elgin. Above tank, weighing over 20 tons will be conveyed by 5.10 a.m. Goods Train from Buckie to Elgin.” The now standard routine was followed and, after unloading, the tank drove to the High Street and set up for fund raising in front of St Giles Church. The guest speaker on this occasion was the Duke of Richmond and Gordon, who did a grand job in persuading the local population to contribute to the War Loans effort. A single large payment of £2,000 from the Prudential Assurance Company, for war bond insurance, was handsomely added to by the local population with a total of £175,132 being reached for the day’s business. No further visits were made in Moray and the tank disappeared from the area. Julian’s last recorded sighting in Scotland was on 9 November 1918, when its departure from Peebles back to the Tank Depot at Bovington ended this particular Tank Bank’s tour. * On 14 May 1918, Mr Bonar Law made the following statement in the House of Commons: “The tanks have supplied a great many of the millions which the War

MAIN PICTURE ABOVE: This statue of William Wallace still stands guard at the spot where Julian was parked during its visit to Aberdeen. Some older citizens recall Julian’s visit to the city, and a number of them refer to the area of town around the Castlegate, where it was put in 1918, as “the tank”. In Aberdeen the subsequent trophy tank was sited at the Broadhill and remained there until 1940 when it was taken for scrap. (Author) ABOVE: At the end of the war 264 “war battered” tanks were distributed to towns and cities across the UK in recognition of their fund-raising efforts. These included both Aberdeen and Elgin. The Elgin tank was a female variant, service number 8601, named Leprechaun. It was put on display beside the Drill Hall in Cooper Park and remained there until October 1937, when it was sold by Elgin Town Council to a Glasgow scrap merchant. This is the brass plaque that commemorated the contribution of the people of Elgin and district and which was removed from Leprechaun before it was scrapped. It is now on display in Elgin Museum. (Author) LEFT: As well as the six official Tank Banks, a

number of other tanks were often employed to support the work of the National War Savings Committee. This Mark IV Female training tank was pictured carrying out such a role in Bolton’s Victoria Square during 1918. (Courtesy of The Tank Museum)

Bonds have produced, and much of this money has come from the pockets of the poor man, who before the War had no money to invest, but who is now in a position to do so.” Exactly how much the Tank Banks raised will be never be known, but they undoubtedly played their part in securing the Armistice in November 1918. ■

NOTES:

1. Illustrated London News, 17 November 1917. 2. Evening Telegraph and Post, 9 November 1917.

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Nestled at the foot of the South Downs adjacent to Goodwood airfield in West Sussex is a Grade II listed farmhouse that was constructed in the early 19th Century. Tucked back from the road and surrounded by outbuildings, little remains to remind the visitor of this building’s use as a mess by those stationed at what was RAF Westhampnett – that is, discovered Mark Hillier, until you make your way down into the cellar.

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T

he serene setting and stately architecture of Woodcote House belies the fact that this building was the scene of many late night parties and much revelry. Woodcote House is not only of architectural interest but it is also intertwined in the fabric of the wartime history of the adjacent RAF Westhampnett. Early letters from the Battle of Britain period state the airfield was actually known as RAF Woodcote, a title drawn from the farm and house of that name. This rural retreat was commandeered to act as an Officers’ Mess in 1940 and remained as accommodation for the pilots right through to 1945. Many hundreds of RAF, American, Polish and Commonwealth pilots have slept under its rafters, including individuals such as Squadron Leader Sandy Johnstone, the CO of 602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron, Wing Commander Douglas Bader, the Tangmere Wing Leader, Johnnie Johnson and Baron Michael Donnet, amongst others. The list is long and distinguished! The airfield next door was created on land belonging to Frederick Charles Gordon Lennox, The Duke of Richmond and Gordon. He had a private pilot’s licence and been flying from a nearby field before the war. This early

airfield was to the north of Woodcote House, but as the skies darkened with the threat of war, in 1938 the flat land to the west of the farm was requisitioned by the Air Ministry. Its role at this stage was to be that of an emergency landing ground for RAF Tangmere. At this point in time, it was just a field with no purpose-built facilities, only a lonely windsock. The airfield’s status changed just prior to the Battle of Britain when it was upgraded to a satellite airfield with grass runways. Only then did some basic facilities start to appear, a watch office being amongst the early structures built. For those who had been used to the relative comfort of the Mess provided at established RAF bases, the basic nature ABOVE: This is believed to be the earliest photograph taken at the Officer’s Mess at RAF Westhampnett. Taken alongside the southern elevation of Woodcote House, it depicts personnel from 602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron soon after their arrival in August 1940. In the back row, left to right, are: Medical Officer W. Michie; Pilot Officer S.N. Rose; Sergeant A. McDowall; Flying Officer J.S. Hart; Flight Lieutenant H. Grazebrook (Intelligence Officer); Sergeant G. Proctor; Flight Lieutenant J.A. Douglas; Sergeant R.F.P. Phillips; Pilot Officer A. Lyall; Sergeant G.A. Whipps; Pilot Officer D.H. Gage; Flying Officer P.C.C. Barthropp (holding Mr. Jackson); Taylor (Anti-Aircraft Officer); and Pilot Officer H.G. Niven. In the front row, again left to right, are: Flying Officer C.J. Mount; Flight Lieutenant R.F. Boyd; Squadron Leader A.V.R. Johnstone; Flight Lieutenant J.D. Urie; and Flight Lieutenant D.M. Jack. (Courtesy of the 602 Squadron Museum) LEFT: The south elevation of the former RAF

Westhampnett Officers’ Mess as it is today. The 602 Squadron photograph that can be seen above was taken between the two large ground floor windows. (Author)

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WALLS HAVE EARS, BUT WHAT IF THEY COULD TALK? LEFT: An early aerial photo of the north-

east corner of the airfield at Westhampnett, with the Officers’ Mess at Woodcote House labelled No.6. This image is orientated so that north is actually in the same direction as the arrow by the number 10. The airfield entrance is directly opposite the house – though the entrance to the airfield today is further south. The perimeter track can be seen in this photograph, and as this was constructed after the winter of 1940/41, its presence helps date the image, taken by 610 (County of Chester) Squadron, to around the spring of 1941. The other buildings marked are: (1) Cookhouse; (2) CO’s office; (3) Engineers’ office; (4) Guard Room; (5) Woodcote Farm; (7) the airfield itself; (8) the road to Lavant; (9) the road to Chichester; and (10) the road to Goodwood. (© 610 Squadron Association)

BELOW LEFT: One of the most impressive pieces of artwork in the cellar at Woodcote House. It is undoubtedly a legacy of 350 (Belgian) Squadron which, under the command of Squadron Leader Michael Donnet DFC, decided to leave its mark on the entrance to the Officers’ Mess “den”. (Author) BELOW RIGHT: The pilots often relaxed by playing archery in the grounds of Woodcote House – as this image of 41 Squadron’s Bob Middlemiss testifies. Bob went on to be posted to Malta where he flew alongside George “Screwball” Beurling. Bob was later awarded the DFC after three victories in Malta. (Courtesy of Bob Middlemiss DFC, CD)

of Westhampnett may have come as a shock. A number of early written accounts refer to pilots being accommodated in the farmhouse and other nearby cottages, the airfield itself only possessing two flight huts. Squadron Leader (later Air ViceMarshal) Sandy Johnstone later recalled the first time that he saw Westhampnett. “We have Westhampnett to ourselves,” he wrote of his squadron’s arrival at the height of the Battle of Britain on 15 August 1940. “But it is nothing more than three large airfields knocked into one with the old boundary fences replaced with camouflage paint … A belt of trees lines the eastern boundary, with two nissen huts nestling underneath. These will do for the A Flight crew rooms. A further two nissen huts on the north side will house B Flight, but they don’t have any protection from trees. “As for the living quarters, the airmen are billeted in buildings connected to dog kennels on the road to the racecourse,

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whilst the officers and NCOs have the use of empty farmhouses close to the airfield boundary. I am glad now that I insisted on having our camping equipment put on board the Harrows!”1 Aircraft maintenance had to be carried out in the open; airmen also found themselves sleeping in tented accommodation, in cattle sheds, even in the Duke’s Kennels or under the grandstands at Goodwood racecourse. However the officers did not get a bad deal and in fact some enjoyed the informality of Woodcote House and found the accommodation much more homely. Despite extensive research, it is difficult to establish which buildings around the airfield were used by the RAF, and, if so, for what purpose. Fortunately a photograph in the archives of the 610 Squadron Association provided a key to unlocking the secrets of the airfield

accommodation. Taken in 1941, it showed the airfield entrance and the Officers’ Mess. Along with first-hand accounts, this confirmed that Woodcote House was predominantly used by officers, whilst Fishers Cottage, a thatched property inside the airfield boundary, housed the NCO pilots. The officers lost no time in improving their mess. Indeed, by 3 September 1940, Sandy Johnstone was able to note: “We have made such strides with the Mess that we were able to invite Frank Carey and some of his 43 Squadron colleagues to dinner this evening, when they expressed themselves satisfied with the standard of cuisine in the farmhouse.”2 Nigel Rose, then a Pilot Officer with 602 Squadron, later recalled his arrival at Westhampnett: “I wrote to my parents on the 14th

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August – ‘we live for the moment in a typical Sussex Rectory with a delightful smell of soap, flowers and new mown grass. There are also wasps in abundance of which we bagged two ‘certains’ and three ‘unconfirmed’ at tea just after we arrived.’” In 2011, Nigel returned to the Mess to meet Woodcote House’s current owner, Malcolm Stoddard, to tell his story and to reminisce. He recalled how much he enjoyed the peace and tranquillity, a welcome retreat from the hectic action he faced in the air. In fact he was not alone in recording how agreeable the accommodation was – as Wing Commander Bob Middlemiss DFC, in 1942 a newly-promoted Pilot Officer with 41 Squadron, noted: “We were billeted at ‘Woodcote House’, a lovely old house with beautiful and well

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cared-for lawns. It was a very pleasant area to rest when off duty.” It seems that in the early years of the war, the Mess really was a place to relax and unwind after long days at readiness and after sustained periods of intense combat. When pilots did get any leave they often hit the regular spots in nearby Chichester, such as the Unicorn Public House, or attended parties at RAF Tangmere’s Mess. As mentioned, the other early accommodation for pilots was at Fishers Cottage, a thatched property on the airfield’s eastern boundary. Initially used by the NCO pilots, it later housed both officers and NCOs. One of the first pilots to recall the accommodation was David Denchfield of 610 Squadron, then a Sergeant Pilot: “The aircrew NCOs were in a largish cottage in its own grounds just behind A Flight. Billy Raine and myself were in a large downstairs room, later joined by Sam Hammer. A sitting room led off this, as did the stairs to the upstairs rooms used by Hamlyn, Bill Ballard and the other NCO pilots. Two erks had a small room off ours alongside a kitchen, and they kept the place clean, woke us up for early morning readiness and generally looked after us with great dedication.” In the months after the Battle of Britain, various RAF squadrons came and went

ABOVE LEFT: Most of the signatures on the

cellar ceiling are dated 1944. The name at the bottom of this image is almost certainly from a Polish pilot of 303 (Polish) Squadron. At the top appears to be the signature of Squadron Leader T. Koc, also of 303 Squadron and from 1944. (Author)

ABOVE RIGHT: Pilots of the 309th Fighter

Squadron pictured outside Fishers Cottage in 1942. (© Strawn family)

BELOW: A photograph of the south elevation of Woodcote House which was taken in 1942 by Bob Middlemiss DFC, CD, a 41 Squadron pilot when billeted there. (Courtesy of Bob Middlemiss DFC, CD) from Westhampnett. It was in 1942 that the Americans arrived. The 309th Fighter Squadron was activated as part of the 31st Fighter

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Group at Baer Field, Fort Wayne, Indiana on 30 January 1942. Transferred to the Eighth Air force in the middle of May, the squadron shipped for Britain in early June, arriving at RAF High Ercall, Shropshire, on 11 June 1942. The Squadron was equipped with Spitfire Vbs and assigned the squadron code WZ. They set about familiarising themselves with their new Spitfires, training and learning RAF methods until, on 4 August 1942, they moved to Westhampnett, and became integrated with active RAF squadrons. Following the 309th Fighter Squadron’s arrival, Woodcote House became the mess for ‘A’ Flight. Lieutenant Harry Strawn, one of the ‘B’ Flight pilots,

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recorded in his diary that many a game of Poker was played here during down time. For his part, Harry was billeted in Fishers Cottage. In his diary he recalled: “The field is very well camouflaged and at first I didn’t see it. It’s a grass field, but very nice indeed. Our quarters are a bit different now, as I’m living in an old mansion. Spike Schofield and I have a room on the second floor. We are not far from the field now. In fact I can look out of my window and see my ’plane from here. It’s a change to be in something like a home even if it’s old. We have a beautiful garden in the back with some flowers.” In total during the Second World War, forty-one different squadrons were based at Westhampnett at various times between 1940 and 1945, from the Battle of Britain through to VE Day. Further recollections of both messes being used for entertaining and parties exist from 1943, when 485 (NZ) Squadron and 610 (County of Chester) Squadron were in residence. It seems that the basement of Woodcote House had been turned in to an “officers’ den”. Colin Hodgkinson, a pilot with 610 Squadron, subsequently wrote that one night when a group of pilots returned from the Unicorn Public

ABOVE: A recent aerial photograph of the airfield at Westhampnett – which is now known as Goodwood. Woodcote House is arrowed top right. (HMP) LEFT: Lieutenant Sam Junkin of the 309th

Fighter Squadron reads a paper on the steps of Fishers Cottage in between sorties. (©Strawn family)

BELOW LEFT: A signature of a 349 (Belgian) Squadron officer. Under the paint on one of the beams in the cellar it is possible to make out the words “Visitors book” with an arrow pointing to the ceiling! (Author) BELOW RIGHT: “Resting” over an archway in the cellar at Woodcote House is this nude, though it appears that at some point in the past an attempt has been made to remove her from the wall. (Author) House in Chichester they found the Mess was in darkness and the cellar – the officers’ den – was closed. “When we got back some three hours later to Woodcote – the house on the edge of the aerodrome where we had our quarters – there seemed no good reason why the party should die. There was drink, mainly beer, but the fire in the hall was out and the night very cold. We were not in a state to let this be an excuse for going to bed. The … cellar

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ABOVE: This picture of Fishers Cottage was

taken by Doug Brown, of 485 (NZ) Squadron, during his time at RAF Westhampnett. Note how the windows and doors have all been left open in an attempt to air the house after a fire broke out during a party. (Courtesy of Doug Brown)

ABOVE RIGHT: Fishers Cottage as it is today, the thatched section of the roof long since gone. (Author)

BELOW LEFT: Many of the signatures are undecipherable but in places, squadron numbers and dates can be found. Indeed, the earliest dated scribble in the basement states: “When I wrote this I was young and good looking. 1942”! (Author) BELOW RIGHT: A photograph taken during one of the many parties thrown by 485 Squadron at Fishers Cottage. Sergeant Doug Brown can be seen in the middle of the throng. (Courtesy of Doug Brown) being either shut or empty – I can’t recall which – we set about groping around for wood. But the only wood in sight was the bannisters up the wide stone steps which led to the floor above. They were old and looked temptingly inflammable. Within five minutes they were torn out, broken up and providing a splendid blaze.”3 Eventually, at about 03.00 hours, remembering that the operation later in the day was a “big show”, Hodgkinson decided to call it a day. “I heaved myself up, gave an expansive good night to my friends and rolled towards the stairs. But [the] rum and the heady stench of burning varnish

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had had their effect. At that stage of my progress in walking [he had been previously badly wounded] I could get up stairs without using bannisters, although I preferred them to be there. There was no doubt that I needed them now. “All went well until I had got nearly to the top when, losing my balance, I slowrolled sideways and outwards, clutched wildly at where the bannisters should have been and fell like a log some nine feet to the floor below.” Despite having been knocked unconscious, Hodgkinson was simply put to bed by his colleagues. The concussion he suffered ensured that he would not be flying that afternoon. * During 2011 the author was allowed access to the cellar at Woodcote House. As he ducked below the low ceiling in the poorly lit basement, to his amazement he found that the ceiling and walls were covered in pilots’ signatures and various bits of artwork, all of which appeared to be from the period 1943 to 1944. As you descend the steps in to the cellar, the visitor is almost immediately greeted by the sight of a large number “340” painted on the wall. In fact, 340 (Belgium) Squadron was in residence at Westhampnett from 4 July 1944, under the command of Squadron Leader M. Donnet DFC. Though it is apparent that the whole ceiling of the cellar is covered in signatures, many are

unfortunately indecipherable, possibly penned whilst under the influence of a few beers! Standing in the basement, it is not hard to imagine the “officers’ den” heaving with pilots, chatting, singing and enjoying the camaraderie. If only the walls could speak! Most of the names seem to be dated 1944, and some of the signatures have squadron numbers next to them such as 349 or 350. In one place a Polish signature is apparent – this is believed to be from a pilot of 303 (Polish) Squadron which was also at Westhampnett in 1944. Just how many of those pilots who signed their names on the ceiling during a party or visit, only to be lost on operations in the coming months, will probably never be known. It is unlikely that the signatures in the basement of Woodcote House will survive forever, with dampness and the passage of time taking their toll. For the time being, however, the former Officers’ Den remains a remarkable time capsule from the Second World War and an unusual part of the history of RAF Westhampnett. ■

NOTES:

1. Air Vice-Marshal Sandy Johnstone CB, DFC, Enemy in the Sky: My 1940 Diary (William Kimber, London, 1976), p.94. 2. Ibid, p.114. 3. Colin Hodgkinson, Best Foot Forward (Corgi, London, 1978), pp.145-6.

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Main Image: “Dambuster Heroes”, by Philip E. West, www.aviationfineart.co.uk

NEXT MONTH: SEPTEMBER 2013 ISSUE ON SALE FROM 29 AUGUST 2013

DAMBUSTERS 70: FINDING THE HEIGHT

Speed, range and height were the critical criteria for a successful Upkeep release during the Dams raid, Operation Chastise. Speed could be controlled by the Flight Engineer manipulating the throttles and range by the Bomb Aimer using his special sight. As Rob Owen, Official Historian of the No. 617 Squadron Association, explains, height was a trickier problem.

THE ALCONBURY EXPLOSION

At 20.30 hours on the evening of 27 May 1943, USAAF ground personnel were arming B-17 Flying Fortresses when a 500lb bomb detonated on the flight line at RAF Alconbury. The explosion was devastating, and as debris from the blast rained down, the shockwaves travelled hundreds of feet in every direction. In an instant, nineteen personnel were killed and twenty-one others were injured.

THE FALL OF JERUSALEM

At the beginning of 1915 a German-led Ottoman force invaded the Sinai Peninsula and attacked the Suez Canal. It marked the start of the fighting in the Middle East. When, two years later, General Allenby’s Egyptian Expeditionary Force captured Jerusalem, it was the first defeat of a Central power in the First World War that resulted in a substantial loss of territory.

Next Issue_76.indd 100

BY ROYAL COMMAND

When an attack on a German-held hill near Salerno ran into trouble, Company Sergeant Major Peter Wright lost his temper and stormed three machine-gun posts to regalvanise the stumbling assault. Steve Snelling tells the remarkable story of the Coldstream Guards hero who became a VC winner by Royal command.

PLEASE NOTE THAT CONTENT IS SUBJECT TO ALTERATION

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F T

Al e cond the Arctic

Reconnaissance Report... The Britain at War team scout out the latest books, DVDs and items of interest.

DAM BUSTERS Failed to Return

BOOK OF THE MONTH

Robert Owen, Steve Darlow, Sean Feast and Arthur Thorning Publisher: Fighting High www.fightinghigh.com ISBN: 978-0-9571163-4-4 Hardback. 128 pages RRP: £19.95

Illustrations ✔ References/Notes ✔ Appendices ✘ Index ✔

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The Dams raid of 16/17 May 1943 has been the subject of so many books, particularly in recent months with the increased attention shown due to the 70th anniversary of Operation Chastise, that it may seem superfluous to add yet another title to that long list. Dam Busters Failed to Return is, however, a little different from the rest. Instead of merely repeating the story of the design, development and deployment of the bouncing bombs (though the book does open with a brief explanation of the build-up to Operation Chastise, as one would expect), the authors have concentrated on the crews of the eight Lancasters that crashed, either through accident or enemy action. To do this, they have delved, in detail, into the backgrounds and earlier service histories, as well as the final moments, of some of the fiftysix men who did not return (of whom, three were captured and became prisoners of war) – Pilot Officer Vernon Byers, Flight Lieutenant Bill Astell DFC, Pilot Officer Tony Burcher DFM (PoW), Flight Sergeant John Fraser (PoW), Pilot Officer Robert Urquhart DFC and Squadron Leader Melvin Young DFC & Bar. Their complete life stories are examined from childhood through to joining the RAF and selection for 617 Squadron. With regards to the choice of subjects for 617 Squadron, it is interesting to read the memo from No.5 Group outlining the future recruitment policy for the new squadron: “As the work is not expected to be arduous full use should be made of crews who have completed two operational tours and who apply to take part in further operations ... the future policy should ensure that a high percentage of the aircrew personnel are time expired experienced crew that need a rest from normal operations.” Some rest! Amongst the three airmen that survived the loss of their respective Lancasters, to be taken prisoner, was rear-gunner Tony Burcher. When his aircraft, ED925, was hit the hydraulics failed and he had to turn his turret round by hand and then clamber back into the fuselage to retrieve his parachute. As he was planning to leave the stricken bomber he saw the badly injured Wireless Operator, Sergeant John Minchin, edging down the fuselage. Burcher took the only decision he could and, hoping for the best, pushed Minchin out of the aircraft, pulling his D-ring at the same time. As for Burcher, he also then pulled his ripcord whilst inside the Lancaster. At the very moment he had finished gathering his parachute up in his arms, the bomber exploded. Burcher was blasted out through the open doorway, colliding with

the tailfin as he started his descent. Burcher would survive and eventually found himself being held in Stalag Luft III. Minchin was, sadly, one of the fifty-three who died. Amazingly, as one of the authors, Sean Feast, describes, there was another survivor from ED925 – the bomb aimer, Flight Sergeant John Fraser. Having heard his skipper shouting at his crew to abandon their aircraft, Fraser immediately opened the escape hatch to see the tops of trees uncomfortably close. Having also released his parachute inside the Lancaster, Fraser let it billow out in front and take him with it. The account in the book includes a discussion regarding the circumstances around Fraser’s capture; some surviving wartime records suggest that this was on 17 May itself, whilst his family state that he managed to make his escape from the immediate area and evaded for ten days, living off the land, before being captured, exhausted, near the Dutch border. Tony Burcher damaged his back on landing and was in no condition to make a serious attempt at evasion. He did, however, manage to crawl into a culvert where he remained for almost three days before finally surrendering to a young member of the Hitler Youth. To have helped John Minchin escape the Lancaster before saving himself, showed Burcher’s courage and selflessness. Clearly a hero by anyone’s standards, his life after the war was not a happy one. A series of “dubious” business ventures and a period in jail for fraud tarnished his reputation. This slightly different approach to the Dambusters story provides some interesting facts about many of the men that took part in one of the most famous bomber raids of the Second World War. It shows us how these ordinary men from all walks of life were thrust into the heat of war at what today would be considered a very young age. These ordinary men, with all their strengths and failings, achieved something remarkable. It is a shame that so many were killed on that night in May 1943 – all of whom are remembered in a Roll of Honour at the back of the book – and did not live to see the effects of the attack nor receive the accolades they so richly deserved. • Reviewed by Alexander Nicoll.

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Reconnaissance Report... LUFTWAFFE FIGHTER-BOMBERS OVER BRITAIN The Tip and Run Campaign 1942-1943 For all the great prose and considered analysis of the historians, nothing compares with the accounts of the men that actually did the fighting. The collection of huge numbers of first-hand accounts is one of the hallmarks of Chris Goss’s publications, and Luftwaffe FighterBomber Over Britain is typically crammed with the dramatic words of the airmen that flew the so-called “Tip and Run” attacks against Britain between March 1942 and June 1943. Almost every page of this richly illustrated book includes a quote from one of the combatants. An example is the account from Feldwebel Albert Hell (a disturbingly appropriate name) describing a raid on 31 October 1942. After releasing his bomb, he turned for home: “During the return flight I suddenly felt a hard blow, saw smoke coming from my engine and the aircraft began to shake. At the same moment I pulled the joystick, gained some height, jettisoned the canopy and, after unfastening the seat belts, I jumped over the aircraft’s tail unit keeping a firm hold on the ripcord. I pulled the ripcord, the parachute opened at once and after swinging back and forth I hit the ground.” Just what it was like to be on the receiving end of the “Tip and Run” raids is also vividly described, such as that which was delivered against the South Coast resort of Hastings on 11 March 1943. This particular attack was carried out by, it was believed, twenty-six aircraft. Twenty-five bombs were dropped, killing thirty-eight people, wounding ninety others, thirty-nine seriously. Forty houses were destroyed and the railway line was blocked. Not all the bombs proved destructive, though, as teenager Don Spear, who had been walking along the seafront between Hastings

MAVERICK ONE The True Story of a Para, Pathfinder, Renegade

David Blakeley “First in” is the official motto of the Pathfinders, a Special Forces unit of airborne personnel trained for insertion behind enemy lines on reconnaissance, demolition and similar missions. Pathfinder selection is a brutal physical and psychological trial lasting many weeks and which rivals that of the SAS. Having served in the Parachute Regiment (at one point he was the youngest Captain in the British Army), Captain David Blakeley went on to become second in command of the Pathfinder Platoon and saw action in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is his remarkable story. Publisher: Orion Books; www.orionbooks.co.uk ISBN: 978-1-4091-4412-0 Hardback. 309 pages RRP: £18.99

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and St Leonards at the time, observed: “I heard the roar of an aircraft behind me and turned and faced a Fw 190 flying down the middle of the road at rooftop height. His target appeared to be a large block of flats, Marine Court, which at that time was part occupied by the RAF. “As the Fw 190 was almost above me, the pilot released his bomb and he started to bank left. The bomb flew through the air, hit the road and bounced over the railings into the sea, sending up a column of water.” Just as dramatic an event was experienced by a man who was in hospital in Ashford recovering from a hernia operation: “The warning went just before the raid started and all patients who could went to the shelter. Several others and myself were still confined to bed ... There was a lot of anti-aircraft fire when suddenly there was a loud explosion – one of the Fw 190s had been hit ... Seconds after, a lump of ceiling crashed down between my bed and the old gentleman in the next bed. On inspection afterwards, they found a lump of the Fw 190’s engine had come through the roof and lodged in the cross beam between our beds.” Not all were so fortunate that day, such as the Fireman on a locomotive. “When we reached him,” recalled a Fitter in the Locomotive Works at Ashford, “he was conscious and screaming in his agony. As he was being stretchered away, his cries of ‘God, dear God, please let me die’ haunted my dreams for many weeks.” Such tip and run raids were not always one-sided, and whilst many of the accounts are from German pilots, RAF combat reports are equally represented. The book also includes more than thirty pages of appendices, detailing the number of fighterbomber raids, losses incurred and the pilots involved. It is difficult to imagine a more comprehensive, exciting and well-presented book on this episode of the air war over Britain. There is little doubt that this book, originally published in hardback in 2003, is considered the standard work on this subject. · Reviewed by Alexander Nicoll Chris Goss Publisher: Crécy Publishing; www.crecy.co.uk ISBN: 978-0-85979-176-2 Softback. 344 pages RRP: £10.95 Illustrations ✔ References/Notes ✔ Appendices ✔ Index ✔

FADING EAGLE Politics and Decline of Britain’s Post-War Air Force

Ian Watson When the Cold War ended in 1991, many western nations, Britain not least among them, were determined that modern warfare as understood was at an end. In some cases air power became side-lined, despite being relied upon extensively since. In an era of high demand on the UK’s armed forces, in tandem with less and tightly-managed funding, there have been questions raised over the future and direction of the RAF. In this book Ian Watson reminds the reader of the continued importance of the RAF, as well as examines the last few decades and what lies ahead. Publisher: Fonthill; www.fonthillmedia.com ISBN: 978-1-78155-117-2 Hardback. 256 pages RRP: £25.00

WINGED CRUSADERS The Exploits of 14 Squadron RFC & RAF 1915-1945 Michael Napier

One of the oldest and most distinguished squadrons in the RAF, No.14 Squadron currently flies the Beechcraft Shadow R1 in the Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance role in support of ground forces in Afghanistan. The squadron’s latest incarnation, therefore, has a remarkable parallel to its original formation in 1915 when it flew in support of the Army on operations in Arabia, most notably the Arab forces led by T.E. Lawrence. Remaining in the area after the First World War, this association is reflected in its badge, which includes a winged plate charged with a cross throughout and shoulder pieces of a suit of armour. At the same time, the squadron’s motto is, uniquely for the RAF, a quotation from the Koran in Arabic – “I spread my wings and keep my promise”. Michael Napier’s book is a model of what a squadron history should be. In nine well illustrated chapters he fully describes the unit’s activities not only through the First and Second World Wars, but also the interwar years when it flew operations in Transjordan and Palestine. Napier’s well written text is complimented by extensive footnotes and appendices, including a very useful list of references and all the aircraft flown during the period covered. Also included are camouflage and marking notes and sixteen colour profiles by artist Peter West. This excellent book will appeal to former squadron members, historians and modellers alike. Volume 2 will cover the years from 1945 to date. Publisher: Pen & Sword; www.pen-and-sword.co.uk ISBN: 978-1-78159-059-1 Hardback. 324 pages RRP: £25.00

AIR FORCE LIVES A Guide for Family Historians

Phil Tomaselli Presented in the now familiar format and style of Pen & Sword’s ancestry and genealogy publications, the author reconstructs the records of a representative group of men and women, including an RFC fitter who won the Military Medal on the Somme, an RAF pilot who flew in Russia in 1919, an air gunner from the Second World War, a Battle of Britain pilot and a typical WAAF. Using evidence gleaned from a range of sources – archives, memoirs, books, libraries, oral history and the internet – he reveals how the lives of such individuals can be explored. Publisher: Pen & Sword; www.pen-and-sword.co.uk ISBN: 978-1-84884-743-9 Softback. 158 pages RRP: £12.99

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BOOK REVIEWS and NEWS Reconnaissance Report... SURVIVOR ON THE RIVER KWAI The Incredible Story of Life on the Burma Railway

Reg Twigg Called up in 1940, Reg Twigg found himself caught up in the worst military defeat in modern British history – the fall of Singapore to the Japanese in 1942. What followed were three years of hell, moving from one PoW camp to another along the Kwai river, and being put to work building the infamous Burma railway. Reg made the deadly jungle, with its malaria, cholera, lethal snakes and exhausting heat, work for him. He trapped and ate lizards, harvested pumpkins from the canteen rubbish heap and with his homemade razor became camp barber. Publisher: Viking; www.penguin.com ISBN: 978-0-670-92277-2 Hardback. 317 pages RRP: £16.99

TOMMY AT WAR 1914-1918 The Soldiers’ Own Stories John Sadler and Rosie Serdiville This book provides an insight into the lives and ordeals the British soldiers, and those of the Empire, experienced in the First World War on the Western Front. The authors disclose the effects of the war, in the front line and behind, from personnel of every class and background. Combining anecdote and unique testimony, the accounts gathered cover the outbreak of war, the race for the sea, the Somme, the events of 1917, the German offensive and much more. This is the human story of the First World War, told by those who lived through it. Publisher: The Robson Press; www.therobsonpress.com ISBN: 978-1-84954-514-3 Hardback. 355 pages RRP: £20.00

IF HITLER COMES Preparing for Invasion: Scotland 1940

Gordon Barclay Between May 1940 and the summer of 1941 the British people expected a German invasion. This period saw an unparalleled effort to prepare the defence of the United Kingdom against such an event. Although the Second World War is possibly the most written-about conflict in history there are few detailed accounts of the efforts made in those months to prepare Scotland for an invasion. This highly illustrated book (which includes many useful maps and unusual images) rectifies that, the author examining both what was built and what survives now. Recommended! Publisher: Birlinn; www.birlinn.co.uk ISBN: 978-1-84341-062-1 Softback. 318 pages RRP: £20.00

THE MEN WHO BREACHED THE DAMS 617 Squadron ‘The Dambusters’

Alan W. Cooper This account includes the whole lead up to the final mission, including the development of the bouncing bomb and the forming of 617 Squadron. The raid itself is viewed from both British and German camps; many of the aircrew who took part in 617’s operations give their accounts, as do several Germans, including Albert Speer, the Armaments minister. Interestingly, there is an eye-witness account of the raid from a man who was a gunner on the Möhne dam, telling of the damage after the raid and how he and his companions shot down one of the attacking aircraft. Publisher: Pen & Sword; www.pen-and-sword.co.uk ISBN: 978-1-78159-074-4 Softback. 223 pages RRP: £12.99

UNSHACKLED SPIRIT Prisoners of War and The Secret Spitfire

Colin Pateman Unshackled Spirit was an unusual presentation Spitfire, a Mk.IX, which was purchased through funds raised by Allied prisoners of war whilst imprisoned in Germany. In this book the author explains how this remarkable achievement was possible. In addition, he has compiled a selection of PoW accounts. These descriptions are supported by extracts from prisoners’ treasured wartime logs, including poems, artwork, letters home and personal thoughts, and an examination of the vital committees and institutions that strove to support the plight of these men. Publisher: Fonthill; www.fonthillmedia.com ISBN: 978-1-78155-191-2 Hardback. 319 pages RRP: £20.00

THE SECRET OF BLETCHLEY PARK POST OFFICE Around 1900 a small building was added to the side of Bletchley Park mansion to serve as the Butler’s quarters close by the kitchens, cellar and stores. When Bletchley Park became the location of the UK’s main decryption establishment, the Government Code and Cypher School, at the start of the Second World War, Quartermaster

the 1960s.

Robert Budd turned this building into an undercover mailroom. Bletchley Park had to be especially careful that mail did not provide enemy agents with clues as to the site’s real purpose, so they used undercover PO Box numbers, such as PO Box 111 Bletchley, and routed mail through different locations such as department stores. When the war ended in 1945, the code-breaking operations moved to what is now GCHQ, and Bletchley Park became a training centre for the General Post Office (GPO). Around 1947 the undercover mailroom was turned into a sub post office and shop serving delegates attending training courses. It continued in this role for nearly forty years, even after the GPO split to become Royal Mail and British Telecom in

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When Bletchley Park opened as a museum in 1994, the post office became the Park’s first gift shop and began issuing its much sought after first day covers and stamp issues. In May 2012 the first phase of a refurbishment project was opened by Michael Sefi, Keeper of the Royal Philatelic Collection. He revealed that his father was a senior army officer who had frequently visited Bletchley Park to collect ultra-secret messages. Sir John Marriot, the Keeper before him, was recruited to Bletchley Park as a code breaker in 1943, providing another interesting link between stamp collecting and code breaking. The post office now houses an exhibition of undercover mail, as well as provides an insight into life on the Home Front. It has just released a special stamp sheet called “The Home Front Remembered” to celebrate the role of Second World War re-enactors, especially relevant as the period is now passing from living memory. Only 500 sheets have been issued as a numbered limited edition specially printed for Bletchley Park Post Office by Royal Mail. Previous issues such as the Battle of Britain Flight and Vulcan Bomber are now fetching many times the original issue price. Later in 2013, Bletchley Park Post Office will be releasing another sheet featuring “Pigeons of World War 1”. Other issues are planned for the 2014 commemorations of the First World War, as well as the events of the Second World War, for which an the advance list is available. Demand is likely to be high as during 2014 new exhibits will be unveiled at Bletchley Park that will focus increased attention on the vital role the code-breakers of Bletchley Park played. For more information, please telephone +44 (0) 1908 363489, or visit: www.bletchleycovers.com

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Reconnaissance Report... HIDDEN HISTORY The Secret Origins of the First World War The authors of this thought-provoking book make the extraordinary claim that a small group of rich and powerful men sought, as early as 1890, to “bring the whole uncivilised world under British Rule, for the recovery of the United States, for the making of the AngloSaxon race but one empire”. Led by Cecil Rhodes and backed by the fortunes of the House of Rothschild, the secret society that he formed sought to perfect a system of emigration in which British settlers would take over all of Africa and South America, and integrate the United States into the British Empire. The objective of all this was “the foundation of so great a Power as to render wars impossible, and promote the best interests of humanity”. The authors claim that what is defined as the “Secret Elite” provoked the Boer War so that the Boer colonies could be defeated and incorporated into the British Empire, stating that Jan Smuts, who was once Rhodes’ close friend, “allegedly” defected to the Boers and encouraged them to initiate a war they were certain to lose. During the war in South Africa, Germany had shown moral support for the Boers. This worried the Secret Elite. Germany was rapidly becoming the most powerful nation in Europe and a direct threat to the Secret Elite’s plans for world domination. So Germany would have to be dealt with next. To this end, talks were held in secret with Belgium. From 1905 onwards Britain planned, with Belgium, operations in the event of a German invasion. It was the invasion of neutral Belgium which prompted Britain to declare war on Germany but, according to the authors, this was all premeditated. To explain this, it must be understood that a neutral nation cannot form treaties of alliances with other countries as this means they are no longer neutral – they have taken sides. But Belgium

THE LIGHTNING BOYS 2 True Tales from Pilots and Engineers of the RAF’s Iconic Supersonic Fighter

Richard Pike The sequel to The Lightning Boys, this book continues the theme of tales from pilots and other personnel connected with this iconic aircraft, giving an insight into post-war fighter operations. In twenty separate stories the reader is taken through situations as diverse as intercepting sixty plus enemy aircraft, a desperate struggle in a cockpit flooded by tropical downpours, the difficulties of being affected by a sudden and painful toothache at high altitude, an encounter with an unidentified flying object, or an out-of-control Lightning in the skies over Germany. Publisher: Grub Street; www.grubstreet.co.uk ISBN: 978-1-909166-13-4 Hardback. 186 pages RRP: £20.00

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did have a secret agreement with Britain, one devised by the Secret Elite. The authors quote the words of an American journalist, Albert J. Nock: “To pretend any longer that the Belgian government was surprised by the action of Germany, or unprepared to meet it, to picture Germany and Belgium as cat and mouse, to understand the position of Belgium otherwise than that she was one of four solid allies under definite agreement worked out in complete detail, is sheer absurdity.” Belgium posed as a siren on the rocks, the authors declare, set there to lure Germany into a trap, “whimpering a pretence of innocence”. If Germany had not invaded Belgium, the Secret Elite had to have a Plan B. This, it is claimed, involved British agents buying up large quantities of old German rifles which were then smuggled into Ireland. This was in July 1914. If a few weeks later Germany had not invaded Belgium, then it would have been blamed for arming the Irish republicans. One way or another, the Secret Elite were going to make sure there was a war with Germany. Equally remarkable is the fact that Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey, a member of the Secret Elite, claimed that he had sent telegrams to Russia trying to prevent war, and which were presented to Parliament as “proof” of his peace efforts, but these, state the authors, were never actually sent. The powerful secret group doctored official documents to cover up their activities in the run up to war. Docherty and Macgregor do not mince their words. They say that Germany was driven into war, and that it was not responsible for that terrible conflict. They also point out that other historians have questioned the origins of the First World War and have also announced Germany’s innocence. As the authors acknowledge, their views are not recognised by most historians nor are they likely to be in the immediate future. Their arguments, however, are powerful. The sequel to this book, promised by Docherty and Macgregor, details the conduct of the war as controlled by the Secret Elite and should prove equally interesting. · Reviewed by John Grehan Gerry Docherty and Jim Macgregor Publisher: Mainstream Publishing; www.mainstreampublishing.com ISBN: 978-1-780-57630-5 Hardback. 463 pages RRP: £20.00 Illustrations ✔ References/Notes ✔ Appendices ✘ Index ✔

DOROTHEA’S WAR The Diaries of a First World War Nurse

Dorothea Crewdson In April 1915, Dorothea Crewdson, a newly trained Red Cross nurse, and her best friend Christie, received instructions to leave for Le Tréport in northern France. Filled with excitement at the prospect of her first paid job and a great adventure, she began writing a diary. Over the next four years Dorothea would witness and record some of the worst horrors of the First World War. The pages of her diary offer a rare glimpse of the incredible work of a nurse in this conflict and the view of the war from a female perspective. She died in 1919. Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; www.orionbooks.co.uk ISBN: 978-0-2978-6918-4 Hardback. 357 pages RRP: £16.99

PEGASUS TO PARADISE

Michael Tappenden The effects of war are profound. Even in our medically enlightened 21st century, where post-traumatic stress is recognised, we still hear of so many cases of servicemen and women struggling to adapt to civilian life after experiencing the trauma of war. Pegasus to Paradise explores this issue by relating in fiction the true life drama of Corporal Ted Tappenden, a veteran of D-Day. Ted, it appears, was with ‘D’ Company, 2nd Battalion Oxford and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, commanded by Major John Howard. As is well-known, on 6 June 1944, this glider-borne company’s objective was to seize the bridges over the Caen canal and Orne river. The landing of the glider carrying Ted Tappenden (it was that piloted by Sergeant Walwark, which touched down at 00.06 hours on D-Day) is vividly described by the author: “The brake parachute deployed and slowed them slightly. The glider hit the ground again, the wheels tore off and the glider bounced and slewed wildly across the ground, sparks flashing off the stony ground, and then slammed into the barbed wire defences exactly as planned, just fifty yards from the bridge. The pilots still strapped into their seats, crashed through the crumpled remains of the glider’s nose and landed unconscious in the darkness outside. “Inside the wreckage of the glider it was still and silent. Ted could smell freshly churned earth and crushed grass, but couldn’t move and nor could anyone else ...” The fighting that Ted subsequently experienced left its mark on that young man. When he returned home after the war he was not the same man his wife Florrie remembered. How the war changed both their lives is the subject of this book. No doubt the difficulties Ted and Florrie endured in post-war Britain were repeated across the land. Nowadays, whilst we can talk openly about such matters, it is still a subject we are struggling to fully understand and accept. In Forties and Fifties Britain such things were not discussed. The war may have ended in 1945, but the suffering went on. Publisher: Acorn; www.acornindependentpress.com ISBN: 978-1-909121-31-7 Paperback. 364 pages RRP: £8.99

AND THEY LOVED NOT THEIR LIVES UNTO DEATH The History of Wortsead and Westwick’s War Memorial and War Dead

Steve Smith The men of the Norfolk village of Worstead who served, fought, suffered and died in many of the main campaigns of both wars world wars are remembered in this book. They took part in famous battles such as Gallipoli, the Somme, Third Ypres, the Battle of France, the Fall of Singapore, the Battle of Berlin, Salerno, Normandy, Italy and the Reichswald Forest in Germany. They include individuals from cavalry regiments, infantry regiments, the Army Service Corps, the RAF, the Royal Artillery and more. This book tells their story. Publisher: Menin House; www.tommiesguides.co.uk ISBN: 978-1-908336-50-7 Softback. 296 pages RRP: £16.99

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THE FRIENDLY-FIRE VC Seventy years ago, a friendly-fire incident over Turin sparked an epic struggle for survival and an official cover-up. Steve Snelling charts the extraordinary flight of Stirling “O for Oboe” and her gallant crew.

S

earchlights stabbed the summer sky over Turin as Short Stirling Mk.III EF452, “O for Oboe” (HA-O), settled into its bomb run. Aside from an easily rectified over-heated engine, everything about the mission had gone like clockwork. All the navigational markers had been found and, after the “long flog” over France, the target was finally within sight. Behind lay the Alps, their snow-

capped peaks glistening in the glare of a full moon. To 21-year-old Acting Flight Sergeant Arthur “Art” Aaron, the Stirling’s pilot, they were a reminder of happier days. His mother was of Swiss extraction and, as a boy those same mountains had been a playground. For now, though, his mind was focused on the task in hand. It was his first trip to Italy, captaining one of 112 Stirlings despatched that night. Compared with what he had become accustomed to over Germany, resistance appeared weak. So light, in fact, was the flak that he decided to descend to 11,000 feet to ensure greater accuracy. Ahead, clearly discernible in the brilliant moonlight, was another Stirling, twitching from side to side as it made its final approach. Given the desultory nature of the Italian opposition, its curious movements seemed unnecessarily nervous. With Aaron maintaining a straight and level course, the distance quickly closed. At 800 yards, the leading Stirling was still weaving, the oil-coolers beneath its four engines clearly lit by exhaust glows. By the time Aaron ordered “bomb doors open” the gap between them had narrowed to just 250 yards. At that moment, just as the Flight Engineer, Sergeant Malcolm “Mitch” Mitchem, leaned forward in the copilot’s seat to turn the bomb door switches, all hell was let loose.

Suddenly the front of the cockpit exploded into a million shards of glass, spraying the pilot and engineer as darts of coloured tracer shot past them and through the fuselage. Looking out through the shattered remains of the windscreen, a horrified Mitchem saw “the rear turret of the other Stirling firing a stream of tracers from its four machineguns” straight towards them. At that range, it could hardly miss. According to Mitchem, “it raked our Stirling from wingtip to wing-tip and back again”.1 One bullet sliced through his flying boot, wounding him in the ankle. Another passed between his legs and struck the navigator, Sergeant Cornelius “Bill” Brennan RCAF, killing him outright. Amid the carnage and confusion, there were shouts over the intercom. Then, without warning, the stricken bomber lurched in a diving turn to port that quickly grew steeper as the aircraft dropped like a stone earthwards. Friday, 13 August 1943, was only seventy-five minutes old and what had appeared only minutes earlier the most straightforward of operations had, in an instant, turned into a

MAIN PICTURE:

Described as resembling a dinosaur, the ungainly-looking Stirling, once airborne, was said to assume “the grace and agility of a huge dragonfly”. Though soon overshadowed by its more powerful four-engine rivals, the Lancaster and Halifax, it was well-loved by its crews, including that of Flight Sergeant Arthur “Art” Aaron, who considered it not only a joy to fly but an aircraft capable of withstanding enormous punishment. This is a picture of 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron’s “Q for Queenie” running up its engines prior to take-off from RAF Downham Market in 1942. (All images courtesy of the author unless stated otherwise)

ABOVE: Flight Sergeant Arthur Louis Aaron, VC, DFM (1922-1943) pictured during his time as an aircrew cadet. Born in Leeds, he was educated at Roundhay Secondary School and won a scholarship to Leeds College of Architecture in 1939. A keen rock climber with a fascination for flying, he joined the Leeds University Squadron of the Air Defence Corps, later the Air Training Corps.

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LEFT: Three bomber boys together. Arthur

Aaron can be seen in the centre, whilst his close friend and navigator, Bill Brennan, a Canadian from Montreal, is on the right. Aaron’s tail gunner, Tom McCabe, is on the left. The three are pictured on their arrival at No.1657 Heavy Conversion Unit at Stradishall in Suffolk in March 1943. It was there that Aaron, who had completed his Operational Training Unit course on Wellingtons, learned to fly the larger fourengine Stirling bomber and where his crew of five grew to seven with the addition of Flight Engineer Malcolm “Mitch” Mitchem and MidUpper Gunner Jimmy “Rich” Richmond.

RIGHT: The “office” – a view inside the cockpit of a Stirling with a pilot, on the left, seated at the controls.

desperate battle for survival. The altimeter was unwinding at a fearful rate and Mitchem could not understand why Aaron was doing nothing to stop the ’plane diving. Then, in the inky darkness, he saw him waving his left arm and pointing down. At first, he could not see what his pilot was trying to indicate, but then the grisly truth became terrifyingly clear. “As we turned away from the moon, the light streamed in and I saw his face,” he recalled. “It was a dreadful sight. He had been hit in the side of the face. His oxygen mask had gone and his lower jaw had been torn away so that he couldn’t speak and his right arm, which had almost been severed at the elbow, hung down uselessly on his lap.”2 Though he did not know it then, Aaron

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had also suffered severe wounds to his chest. Yet, despite the pain and the shock from his appalling injuries, he somehow summoned the strength to make sure Mitchem knew what he had to do next: “I realised that he was waving his arm to signal me to take over.”3 As Aaron slumped unconscious in the pilot’s seat, the 22-year-old engineer applied all his considerable strength in a frantic bid to save the aircraft from crashing to destruction. “By this time,” he later wrote, “the diving turn to port had built up to a dangerously high speed (270 knots) and the altimeter was unwinding rapidly. “I set about retrieving control … by straightening the turn. Fortunately, I was big and strong. I got the turn straightened by brute force on the ailerons/rudder and it then took all my strength to ease the elevators back with my arms and both legs round the control column until the Stirling started to ease its dive and finally levelled.” “O for Oboe” had fallen 7,000 feet in

a matter of seconds. Realising they would have to regain height if they were to make it back over the Alps, Mitchem used the bomber’s dive momentum to climb as quickly as possible before taking stock. Their home base at RAF Downham Market in west Norfolk lay over 600 miles, and more than 3¾ hours’ flying time, away. Never had it seemed so distant, even to an airman of Mitchem’s experience. A pre-war regular and former “Halton brat” from the West Country, he had spent the early part of the war in the Middle East as technical ground crew before the introduction of four-engine bombers created the need for flight engineers. Transferred back to the UK, he teamed up with the rest of the crew at No.1657 Heavy Conversion Unit at

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Stradishall in March 1943. An all non-commissioned officer crew, they were the usual Bomber Command mix. As well as Mitch Mitchem and “Art” Aaron, on board were two Canadians, Sergeant Cornelius “Bill” Brennan (Navigator) and Flight Sergeant Allan Larden (Bomb Aimer), two Yorkshiremen, Arthur Aaron and Sergeant Jimmy “Rich” Richmond (Mid-Upper Gunner), a Mancunian, Sergeant Thomas “Mac” McCabe (Rear Gunner), and a former bus conductor from Northampton, Sergeant Thomas “Jimmy” Guy (Wireless Operator). All were in their 20s with the exception of the diminutive Guy who, at 35, seemed positively ancient to the younger crew members. Since joining their first operational unit, 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron, at Downham Market in April, they had completed twenty missions together and were a close-knit unit on and off the ground.

Friendship, however, did not prevent Art Aaron exerting a quiet but firm authority over his crew. Rich Richmond recalled: “As the captain, Arthur had a few rules and we all respected him. We stuck to ‘no smoking’ in the aircraft, no booze during the day if we were due to fly that night.”4 A university graduate and student architect from Leeds, Aaron was easygoing and mild-mannered socially, yet demanded nothing but excellence in the air. His own skills as a pilot were quickly apparent. Cool and calm on operations, he had the lightest of touches with the Stirling. While his take-offs were smooth enough, his landings were, in Richmond’s words, just “like putting down a basket of eggs”.5 To Mitchem, Aaron seemed a natural leader. “There was none of that ‘wizard prang’ nonsense. He just struck me as a good chap to have around in an emergency.”6 As part of his constant drive for greater efficiency, Aaron insisted on each one of them gaining experience of another crew member’s job. It was not just about wanting to create a cohesive team, but ensuring they were able to cope

instinctively in a crisis. In their three months on “ops”, there had already been a few hairy moments, most notably during a raid on Remscheid in Germany’s industrial heartland. Incendiaries from another bomber flying above them had set their aircraft on fire, making it a target for the German ground defences. Searchlights quickly found them, but, as Mitchem recalled, Aaron “calmly and very skillfully manoeuvred us out of the cones before the flak latched on and we returned safely to base after extinguishing the fire”.7 Serious though that had been, that drama over the Ruhr a fortnight earlier seemed like nothing compared to the life or death struggle that they were now engaged in. With navigator “Bill” Brennan dead behind him and his skipper grievously wounded and unconscious next to him, Mitchem’s brain was working overtime as he tried to make an initial damage assessment of Stirling EF452. “The throttle-control pedestal had been badly damaged and many cables severed,” he recalled. “[There was] no throttle or propeller setting for three engines (the two inboard and the starboard outer); the starboard outer was low on power and the only engine which could respond to control was the port outer. “The engines had been set on ‘economical cruise’ and the disabled engines remained in that ‘fail-safe’ condition for the remainder of the flight. “The auto-pilot (‘George’) control box was dangling from the cockpit roof and completely out of action. Flying trim controls were also out of action and could not be used to ease the strain on the control column which required constant forward pressure to stop the nose coming up into a stalling position. So much so that to ease the strain on my arms I had to take one leg off the rudder bar and jam my knee between the front of the seat and the control column.” Unable to carry out fuel checks or assess engine damage, Mitchem concentrated on trying to gain height as he guided the bomber back on a

ABOVE: RAF Downham Market, 1943. Canadian Bomb Aimer Allan Larden, from North Bay, Ontario, is pictured standing far left, with fellow crew members, “Rich” Richmond, sitting centre, and Tom McCabe, sitting right, as they pose with ground crew at the Norfolk base. LEFT and RIGHT: Sergeant Jimmy “Rich” Richmond, Arthur Aaron’s Mid Upper Gunner, came from York. He regularly travelled home on leave with his pilot, who had bought a second-hand car shortly after arriving at Downham Market. He recalled: “I often took the Micky out of Arthur when he drove his car as he treated it like an aircraft, all the time [driving] with both hands on the steering wheel. He would be pulling and pushing as if to gain height or make a landing.” 108

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reciprocal compass course for home. His fellow crew members, meanwhile, dealt with the casualties. Larden, who had emerged from the nose section, helped Guy to lift Brennan’s lifeless body and place it between the main spars on the floor of the fuselage already awash with leaking hydraulic oil. Then they squeezed into the cockpit to remove Aaron, half-carrying and halfdragging him to the emergency cot where they tried to make him as comfortable as possible. Resting his head on a parachute pack, they put a shell dressing over the gaping hole where his jaw had been and attended as best they could to his right arm which had been shattered at the elbow and was held on only by a few sinews. Rudimentary first aid complete, Larden went up front and climbed into the pilot’s seat to help relieve some of the pressure on Mitchem who was struggling to hold the bomber in the face of a howling gale roaring through the shattered windscreen. Communicating via the still-functioning intercom, they decided to press on northwards. O for Oboe was now flying at about 6,000 feet, not high enough to cross the Alps, but with the help of the moon they hoped they might be able to pick their way over the foothills and through valleys to find a safe route home. Without a navigator to guide them, they roamed up valley after valley until finally they saw a rocky cliff looming straight ahead of them at the same height they were flying. “Full take-off power was applied to the one good engine,” continued Mitchem, “and we started a crabbing climb … The higher ground was rearing up closer and closer.” By the skin of their teeth, they cleared it, the jagged outcrops clearly visible in the moonlight. No sooner were they over it, than a wide plain opened up before them and what looked like an ocean beyond. But where and what sea it was, they had no idea. Richmond scrambled down from his mid-upper turret to swap places with Larden while the Bomb Aimer went back to the navigator’s station in search of charts. As they crossed the coast, he spotted a distinctive headland and coastline which he correctly identified as being near the Italian port of Spezia on the north Mediterranean coast. How they had arrived there was a

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baffling mystery. Instead of heading north, they had somehow travelled south-west. As Mitchem remarked: “We must have twisted and turned our lost wandering way down through the Maritime Alps.” With no chance of making it over the Alps, the crew hastily re-considered their limited options. They decided to fly south with the idea of reaching Sicily, which had been invaded by Allied forces a month earlier, or Malta. The problem was finding either of them. None of their charts went beyond northern Italy and though the wireless operator had managed to contact Allied bases he was unable to decode their messages. So, he was instructed to transmit in clear Morse and finally, to their “huge relief”, he received an acknowledgement from Bone in Algeria. “Bone advised against Sicily, where ground fighting was very fluid, whilst Malta was notoriously difficult to find,” noted Mitchem. “They suggested [we] continue south with a chance of air/sea rescue on ditching whilst more reliable fixes and bearings were obtained.” Armed with all the information he needed, Larden, who had jettisoned the aircraft’s bombs, and Guy plotted a course for Bone, which was estimated to be some 400 nautical miles away. Mitchem doubted they had sufficient

ABOVE LEFT: A sergeant armourer checks

the fuze of a 1,000lb General Purpose bomb before it is winched by hand into the bomb bay of a 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron Short Stirling sometime during 1942 or 1943.

ABOVE: A report of a combat by Aaron’s crew during a mission to Dusseldorf on 11 June 1943. It was one of twenty operations flown by them prior to the raid on Turin on the night of 12/13 August 1943. BELOW: In relaxed mood. “Rich” Richmond, seated far right, and Tom McCabe, seated next to him, have their picture taken with ground crew beside veteran Stirling “J for Johnny” (N3721) in 1943. “I forget how many trips it did from Downham Market, 50-plus, and always managed to get home,” wrote Richmond. In fact, it flew sixty-one operations before suffering damage during the Hamburg raids of July 1943 and was transferred to a Heavy Conversion Unit. fuel to make it. Though, given the damage sustained, supplies were “much better than expected”, only a favourable tail wind could save them from going into “the drink”. To stand even the faintest chance of making landfall, he knew they would have to conserve every last drop of fuel. With the rear-gunner checking the fuel-

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RIGHT: A graphic but erroneous depiction of Arthur Aaron’s final mission was published in The Victor comic in 1984. It shows Stirling “O for Oboe” being attacked by an Italian fighter, an invention created by senior RAF officers to cover-up the friendlyfire incident.

BELOW: Safe landing. Ground crew point to bullet holes in the cockpit canopy of Stirling EF452, HA-O, on the edge of Bone airfield, where it came to rest after its epic flight from RAF Downham Market. As well as discovering a bomb “hung up” in the bomb bay, maintenance staff charged with salvaging its engines found a large number of British bullets, clear evidence that “O for Oboe” had fallen victim to friendlyfire rather than an enemy fighter over Turin. (Via Steve Smith, 218 Squadron historian) pump warning lights, he, therefore, began carefully draining all the smaller fuel tanks into the engines and the four main tanks, opening the cross-feed/balance valves so that all the engines would run until all fourteen tanks were empty. All the while, as O for Oboe droned on across the Mediterranean, Aaron lapsed in and out of a morphia-induced stupor. Despite his pain and discomfort, his only thought was for the safety of his crew. Unable to speak, he motioned to Guy to bring him a pencil and a piece of paper to write on. Then, in an astonishing feat of willpower, he summoned the strength to scribble a brief note with his left hand. Guy took the blood-spattered scrap of chart paper from him. It simply read: “How can we navigate?” Guy showed him their rough course and the bearings passed to them by Bone and, exhausted by the effort, Aaron

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slipped back into unconsciousness. Up front, with Larden, Mitchem and Richmond taking it in turns at the controls, thoughts were turning to the end-game. They discussed the prospects of trying to ditch or land the aircraft, something none of them had ever attempted before, though they had made a few practice approaches with Aaron at the controls. They also considered the possibility, should they indeed reach North Africa, of baling out. In the end, they concluded that parachuting was out of the question since their injured skipper would have no means of controlling his descent even if the static line ’chute they planned to rig actually functioned. Finally, they made up their minds. Encouraged by their prolonged spell at the controls, Larden and Mitchem felt confident enough to have a go at a ‘wheels-down’ landing. It was a brave decision that was soon to be put to the test in extraordinary circumstances. Unbeknown to any of them, they

were fast approaching their epic journey’s end. They had dropped to 2,000 feet to help their weakening pilot with his breathing when suddenly, out of the darkness, they spotted a faint glimmer of light that became steadily brighter before dividing into three separate beams of search light. Convinced that they could not yet have reached Bone, they feared the lights might be a decoy, so flew on past them. As they did so, Guy radioed for another bearing only to discover, to their astonishment, that the lights were indeed from Bone. The response was immediate. “All who could cheered,” recalled Mitchem. The moment of truth had arrived. Against all the odds, they had flown hundreds of miles across Europe to the North African coast in a shot-up Stirling, without a pilot or a navigator. Now they faced the greatest challenge of all: getting down safely. For the next few minutes, they flew a figure of eight pattern circuit of the airfield, keeping it in view, while Guy received landing instructions. The news was not good. The strip was much shorter than normally required for four-engine bombers. Worse still, the far end of the runway was blocked by a crashed Wellington bomber. “That settled it,” Mitcham decided. “A wheels-up belly-landing was the safest option.” With Larden and Mitcham at the controls, they

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decided to land to the left of the strip so that the runway lights on the right could be kept in sight through what little remained of the windscreen. Before they could begin their descent, however, there was a sudden change of plan. “As we circled overhead Bone,” Mitchem recalled, “the wireless operator shouted to Art that we would soon be on the ground, and with that he rallied.”8 Guy spoke to Larden and Mitchem by intercom. What he said to them seemed to beggar belief. “He told us that Art was insistent on coming forward and helping to land the aircraft.” In fact, it had only been with some difficulty that the wireless operator had managed to restrain him from crawling forward on his own. Despite the intense pain that every movement wrought in him and the certain knowledge that any effort was liable to reduce his already diminishing chances of survival, Aaron was determined to take responsibility for saving his crew. Realising that he could not be denied, Mitchem went back and with two others helped carry him forward. His face was smothered in bloody dressings and his right arm strapped across his chest. Whatever strength he possessed must have been ebbing fast, yet he showed no sign of giving in. Lifting him as gently as possible, they set him down alongside Larden in the lefthand pilot’s seat. “The windscreen in front of him was right out,” Mitchem recalled. “He was in the full slipstream with no oxygen mask, but it was his seat and that’s where he would do his landings from. That was his job and in spite of everything that was what he wanted to do.” Because of his injuries, Aaron could not be strapped into the seat. Instead, Mitchem stood behind him, ready to lock his strong arms through Aaron’s parachute harness in an effort to prevent him being pitched forward on impact. With Larden prepared to use all his strength to help with the controls, O for Oboe began its perilous descent. “Art AUGUST 2013

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started an approach from way, way out,” said Mitchem, “and lined up on the strip using his good arm – he had exceptionally strong wrists. [But] as we neared the ground, he was not satisfied with the alignment and waved his hand to Larden to apply power to go round again. “This happened twice more and it became obvious that he was not aware, because of his injuries, that the intention was to belly-land to the left of the strip, or that only one engine was controllable. “His loss of blood and strength, combined with the effects of the morphia and his inability to hear or voice communicate or use both arms, was preventing him from completing an approach which he knew to be inherently wrong. He had no knowledge of the critical fuel state, as the fuel warning lamps, were now blinking. “I warned Larden that this would be the last chance. An out of fuel ‘enginecut’ was imminent and this would be

ABOVE: A detailed air-to-air shot of a Short Stirling. Though in no doubt that “O for Oboe” had been shot-up by another Stirling, Mitchem insisted the crew never felt any anger towards the perpetrator. “These things happened,” he said. “The tail gunner was an isolated person, and it had been a long flight. He may have dozed off, or suffered oxygen starvation and suddenly woke up to find us right on top of him. His finger was probably still on the button and he must have instinctively just let fly. It was just an accident, a tragic accident.” LEFT: Bomb Aimer Flight Sergeant Allan

William Jessup Larden. He was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal for his “outstanding skill and determination” in helping fly and land the crippled bomber. Gazetted on 24 September 1943, the accompanying citation concluded: “Although he had never previously landed an aircraft, Flight Sergeant Larden came down perfectly with the under-carriage retracted. In the face of extreme peril, this airman displayed courage, coolness and resource of a high order.”

BELOW: A chance to relax. Larden, on the right, lights a cigarette for Wireless Operator “Jimmy” Guy as part of an official press shoot to mark their remarkable achievement. Guy, the oldest member of the crew, was instrumental in ensuring the accuracy of Stirling EF452’s flight across the Mediterranean to Bone. Together with Mitchem, he was awarded a Distinguished Flying Medal, gazetted 12 October 1943, for “exemplary conduct and unswerving devotion to duty”.

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disastrous at such a critical stage of landing. [But] on the fourth approach, just short of the threshold, he tried to go round again and reached across with his left hand to push the throttles forward. “Only the port-outer could respond. The Stirling yawed to the right and climbed into a stalling attitude. The landing strip lights disappeared beneath

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the aircraft. My arms were locked in Art’s parachute harness. So, Larden pushed Art’s hand off the throttle pedestal and his body away from the controls.”10 What seemed to Aaron an inconceivable violation of his command was greeted with a look that Larden would never forget. For now, though, he was too busy to care. As Mitchem gripped his pilot, the young Canadian Bomb Aimer eased the column forward to counter-act stalling, guessed where the ground was, levelled O for Oboe and eased it down. “It was pitch dark, silent and a huge cloud of dust blanketed everything,” wrote Mitchem. As the aircraft came to rest, the crew put into action their previously worked out evacuation plan. Guy, McCabe and Richmond scrambled from their crash positions to exit via the top-rear escape hatch and ran along the roof of the fuselage to the top-forward escape hatch which Larden and Mitchem had prised open before lifting Aaron up into their arms. The indefatigable pilot was still conscious when they carried him across the port wing of the bellied bomber to be eased down onto the ground where an ambulance was waiting to take him to hospital. For the exhilarated survivors, tension quickly gave way to relief as Richmond

LEFT: The striking five-metre tall bronze

sculpture of Arthur Aaron which stands in the centre of Leeds. It was created by Yorkshire-based artist Graham Ibbeson to honour sacrifice in the cause of freedom. “The sculpture is not just a war memorial,” he said. “It is dedicated to Aaron, but it is more about what he represents.” Aaron was selected to be the subject of a sculpture to mark the millennium from a list of notables in a poll of thousands of Leeds residents. The statue was unveiled on 24 March 2001 by “Mitch” Mitchem. Some years earlier the last surviving member of the crew of “O for Oboe” remarked: “Whatever adversities I run into in life I console myself with the thought that each and every minute since Friday August 13, 1943 is a bonus for me.”

BELOW: The survivors from the crew of “O for Oboe” line up for an historic photograph in North Africa, complete with a change of uniform. Left to right are: “Mac” McCabe, “Rich” Richmond, Allan Larden, “Mitch” Mitchem and “Jimmy” Guy. Mitchem’s left ankle, wounded in the initial burst of fire that killed Bill Brennan and seriously wounded Arthur Aaron, has been bandaged. delivered his own inimitable verdict on their narrowest of escapes from an extraordinary 8½-hour mission that had spanned two continents. “Eee!” he shrugged. “I’ve had worse rides on a double-decker bus.”11 Only later did it emerge how lucky they had been. Not only had the circuits kept them away from unseen high ground, but bullets were found to have punctured one of the main undercarriage wheels. Had they stuck to their original plan of a

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wheels down landing, they would have almost certainly slewed off the short runway; had they bellied to the left of the landing strip as also intended before their pilot’s brave intervention then they would have ploughed through a hidden line of parked twin-engine bombers and almost certainly detonated a special fuzedelay bomb that was found to have “hung up” in the bomb bay. As Mitchem put it: “Providence, or whatever you wish to call it, was with us that night.” Sadly, there was to be no happy ending for their courageous captain. Nine hours after landing, having expended every last ounce of energy in a vain attempt to assist his crew, Arthur Aaron succumbed. It remained only to investigate the original incident and to honour the crew for their epic achievement. There was no doubt at all that O for Oboe had been a victim of “friendly-fire” over Turin. As well as the eyewitness accounts of members of the crew, there was tangible evidence recovered from the wreck. Doug Smith, a ground crew engineer attached to No.351 Maintenance Unit, was among a party sent to salvage the aircraft’s engines in order to repair another damaged Stirling. He recalled finding “a load of British bullets” from the engine fins. “They were .303 bullets,” he said, “and I handed them in and never heard any more about it.”12 His inspection revealed the full extent of the damage inflicted: “It had clearly been sprayed by machine-gun fire, but the worst section was the windscreen. A concentrated burst must have gone straight through, right where the pilot’s head was.” According to “Mitch” Mitchem, the identity of the other aircraft involved was quickly known. “We knew it was another Stirling,” he said. “We even knew which

squadron it was from because there was only one combat reported from the entire group on the approach to Turin that night. But before any official action could be taken that same crew went missing.”13 By the time squadron commanders came to make recommendations for awards to the crew of O for Oboe a cover-up was in place. The citations which accompanied Allan Larden’s Conspicuous Gallantry Medal and the Distinguished Flying Medals awarded to Jimmy Guy and Mitch Mitchem variously referred to their bomber being attacked by an “enemy” or “hostile” fighter. When it came to dealing with Arthur Aaron’s self-sacrifice, the question was initially fudged. Air Vice-Marshal R. Harrison, Officer Commanding 3 Group, chose to skate round the issue, mentioning only that the Stirling had been “hit by machine-gun fire from an aircraft”.14 Obfuscation, however, turned into deliberate deception when the citation for Aaron’s posthumous Victoria Cross was eventually published in The London Gazette. The Stirling became an “enemy fighter” so that the story presented to the public was a straightforward saga of heroism against the odds in the face of enemy action, rather than a terrifying ordeal resulting from a tragic error. Fortunately, no such subterfuge was required so far as Aaron’s conduct was concerned. Medical evidence had shown that had he lain still and not exerted himself he would, despite his terrible wounds, “probably have recovered”. Ultimately, he died from exhaustion, having struggled “with his last breath, to ensure that his aircraft and crew did not fall into enemy hands”.15 The measure of his sacrifice was summed up by the closing sentence of the draft citation: “In appalling conditions

ABOVE LEFT: When senior officers came to

consider a recommendation that Arthur Aaron be awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross, an inquiry was requested to discover whether it was “(a) very probable, (b) likely or (c) unlikely that Flight Sergeant Aaron would have saved his life had he been content to lie down in the aircraft during the return flight”. The brief statement, pictured here, represents the findings of the medical investigation.

ABOVE RIGHT: This memorial to RAF

Downham Market’s two Second World War VCs – Flight Sergeant Arthur Aaron and Squadron Leader Ian Bazalgette – near St Mary’s Church, Bexwell was unveiled in May 1983, almost forty years after the Turin raid. Among those attending the ceremony was “Mitch” Mitchem DFM.

BELOW: Flight Sergeant Aaron was buried in Bone War Cemetery. His grave can be seen at plot II.B.3, not far from the last resting place of his Navigator, Sergeant Cornelius “Bill” Brennan RCAF, who lies at plot I.C.5. Bone War Cemetery contains 868 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War – of this number, 101 are RAF personnel. (Courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission) he showed the greatest qualities of courage, determination and leadership, and, though wounded and dying, he set an example of devotion to duty which has seldom been equalled and never surpassed.” As Mitch Mitchem said of his skipper: “You couldn’t deny him. He was so full of character and courage.” ■

NOTES:

1. Much of this article is based on an account of the last flight of Stirling Mk.III “O for Oboe” which was written by Malcolm Mitchem, for the author, in March 1993. 2. Author interview, July 1983. 3. Ibid. 4. Letter from Jimmy Richmond to the author, February 1993. 5. Ibid. 6. Author interview, July 1983. 7. Letter from Malcolm Mitchem to the author, March 1993. Aaron was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal for this action (gazetted 19 October 1943) and “completing 19 sorties, the majority of which have been over areas where severe opposition is usually encountered”. The recommendation for the award ended: “He has proved himself an exceptional captain and leader.” 8. Author interview, July 1983. 9. Ibid. 10. Account written by Malcolm Mitchem, for the author, in March 1993. 11. Ibid. 12. Author interview, July 1983. 13. Ibid. 14. Victoria Cross Recommendation by Air ViceMarshal R. Harrison, 8 October 1943. 15. Draft VC citation, October 1943.

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GEOFF SIMPSON ASKS A TOP CURATOR OR TRUSTEE WHICH SINGLE ITEM IN THEIR COLLECTIONS THEY WOULD REACH FOR IN THE EVENT OF A DISASTER.

A PIECE OF THE PARACHUTE USED BY SOE AGENT

The Secret Army Exhibition at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu Beaulieu in Hampshire has been celebrating being named “best large visitor centre 2013” by VisitEngland. Tourists come for beautiful New Forest surroundings and the National Motor Museum. For those interested in military history an added reason for making the journey is the new Secret Army exhibition. The exhibition tells the story of the men and women of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) who came to the Beaulieu “Finishing School” to complete their training. “The exhibition,” declares Beaulieu’s website, “will introduce visitors to the training schools, instructors, secret agents and unsung heroes of the SOE. Some 3,000 agents … were trained at a number of large country houses scattered across the Beaulieu Estate, before returning to occupied Europe to work with Resistance groups.” Archivist Susan Tomkins did not take long to choose the exhibit to be rescued first in the latest fictional fire conjured up by Britain at War Magazine. At first glance her nomination is pretty insignificant, though in fact it epitomises the heroism of SOE. “My choice is a piece of the parachute which dropped SOE F Section agent, Yvonne Cormeau, codename Annette, in France on the night of the 22/23 August 1943,” Susan wrote. “Her mission was to work as wireless operator for George Starr’s Wheelwright circuit in south-western France. She sent over four hundred near perfect messages in difficult conditions, before being overrun by the successful Allied advance through France after D-Day. “The parachute silk was kept by Yvonne’s reception committee and some was later given to her as a token of the esteem in which she was held. A piece of the silk was donated to our Secret Army exhibition by Yvonne’s daughter Yvette Pitt and is something we treasure for its direct connection with the deeds that we commemorate.” Fluent in German and French, such were Yvonne’s skill

and abilities that Colonel Maurice Buckmaster OBE, the head of F Section, once said: “She was always incredibly precise in her activity under conditions of great strain without a single mistake.” The SOE historian Squadron Leader Beryl Escott noted that “she lasted thirteen months, with 402 messages carefully tapped out in coded Morse in no more than 20 minutes each, without a single miscode. Almost a record!” Some historians attribute Yvonne’s determination to the events of 24 November 1940. That night her husband, Rifleman Charles Cormeau of the 10th Battalion Rifle Brigade, was killed when their London home was bombed. Amazingly Yvonne’s life was saved by a bath which fell over her head and protected her. Similar luck also followed her in France during her service with the SOE. On one occasion she escaped from the Gestapo by jumping out of a window and running off, shots being fired at her. In the days after D-Day, whilst near the village of Castelnau, she was shot in the leg whilst escaping from a German ambush. For her wartime service, Yvonne was made an MBE and chevalier of the Légion d’honneur. She was awarded the French Croix de Guerre. ■ · Beaulieu is open every day, except

Christmas Day, from 10.00 hours. Closing time depends on the season. For more information on the exhibition or the museum as a whole, please visit: www.beaulieu.co.uk

ABOVE: The piece of parachute silk selected by Susan Tomkins for this month’s item to be saved in the event of a fire or similar disaster. ABOVE RIGHT: A portrait of Beatrice Yvonne Cormeau.

MAIN PICTURE: The 13th-century Beaulieu Palace House.

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