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At the age of fifteen years I applied to join the Royal Navy. On 2nd March 1939 I was called to go to H.M.S. Ganges at Shotley near Ipswich to start training. After the initial first weeks we were selected to go into the various branches of the Navy. I passed to go into the Signal Branch, having good eyesight, intelligence and education.

During my training the war broke out on 3rd September 1939, I remember that day well.

After war was declared all of us boys went to Liverpool, billeted in an old Hospital on the waterfront near the docks. Whilst there, we used to go to New Brighton across the Mersey for swimming and life saving lessons. HMS Ganges was taken over as a training centre for conscripts for service in the Royal Navy.

We did not stay long at Liverpool because of the air raids. They sent us to HMS Impregnable at Davenport, Plymouth which was bombed more than Liverpool! At the Impregnable passing out ceremony we were inspected by Winston Churchill who was first Sea Lord at the Admiralty. He presented me with a medal for the best laid out kit of my course.

Soon after joining Emerald, four German Destroyers were sighted in the channel. We set out from Plymouth into the channel and soon sighted the destroyers on the horizon. We gave chase and the Emerald, a Cruiser built at the end of WWI, flat out at 33 knots (shake, rattle and roll) could not get within gun range of the destroyers, so we radioed for air support from Plymouth.

A short time later a large bomber appeared overhead, everyone cheered, we thought it was a Blenheim. It circled us and a little later, four or five bombs dropped at us but missed and exploded in the sea. It was then that we realised the Blenheim was a German Dornier Bomber.

On looking over the side of the ship we could see four or five torpedoes approaching us from the German Destroyers, but they were spent out due to the distance between us and we were able to avoid them. The destroyers made it into Brest, France, so we retired to Plymouth.
At Christmas 1940 my cousin Jack Gilding from Fenhouses came to the ship to see me. He was in the Sherwood Foresters and stationed at Plymouth Barracks. He invited me to his mess Christmas dinner, but said I would have to be a soldier for the day. He brought me an army uniform and I went ashore and changed in the public toilets and then on to my slap up Christmas dinner. We got so drunk I could hardly change back to my navy uniform before going to my ship.
In January 1941 we went to Portland before leaving the UK in a snowstorm for warmer climes. We finished up in the Persian Gulf on the river Euphrates outside Basra, because the King of Persia (now Iraq) died and his boy son was King with a protectorate who was pro-German. Emerald had to protect the boy King because of the oil supply Bahrain was in jeopardy.

After a few days there I finished up on top of an aircraft hangar with a heliograph which was a system of mirrors reflecting the sun as light for Morse code. Was it hot, 120oF in the shade, I sweated blood. I lived on a river patrol boat HMS Bluebell when I wasn’t on watch on the hangar roof. The only reason I was on the roof was to tell the ship by signal if there was any activity from the army.
On board the Emerald and Bluebell we lived on tinned corned beef and ships biscuits. The corned beef was liquid with grease floating on it due to the heat and the biscuits tasted like sawdust. I stayed there a few weeks and then was sent to Bahrain to a Ghurkha unit defending the oil installations. I lived with the officer in charge for several weeks.
Altogether, the Emerald was in the Gulf for six months and two or three men died from malaria which was rife from all the mosquitoes flying about from the river marshes.
After leaving the Gulf we went to India (Karachi, Bombay, Madras) and Colombo in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).
We escorted inward and outward journeys, to Durban or Cape Town, where we were treated to hospitality unheard of in the UK. We also escorted convoys to Rangoon in Burma where Cousin Jack was fighting the Japs in the Chindits. Unfortunately I never saw him as he was in the jungle.
On going to Singapore early in 1942 for a refit we went through the Malacca Straits at night and met HMS Dauntless coming out from a refit. For some unknown reason it altered course to port instead of starboard, as two ships passing should alter course to starboard.
Consequently the Dauntless’ bows collided with the Emerald. At that time several men were sleeping on the upper deck waist between the two sets of torpedo tubes due to the heat. The collision caused the first set of torpedo tubes to be swept back and piled on top of the second set of tubes, but seven or eight men were trapped in between, and the wooden deck planks were ripped up and the bodies cut up by the mesh under the decking.

We went on to Singapore Naval Base for a refit in King George V floating dock. The crew lived ashore in fleet accommodation for several months while the refit took place.
After the refit we left Singapore for South Africa again and started escorting convoys to Rangoon until it fell to the Japs, and then to Singapore again. Several of the troops in the convoys were Australian and they played up hell in Cape Town and were banned from landing there.

February 1942 we escorted the last convoy into Singapore whilst the Japs were invading it. The Emerald managed to get out safely and we escorted the Oxfordshire (a large hospital ship) out. At the same time Admiral Somerville, Commander in Chief Singapore, came on board Emerald. We took him to Colombo in Ceylon where he set up HQ as C in C East.

On the way to Colombo we called at Bahrain in Dutch Samatra. The other convoy escorts to Singapore, namely Ajax, Achilles, Danae and others went out to engage the Jap fleet and they (our ships) were all sunk by the Japs, who overwhelmed our few ships. That was a lucky escape for the Emerald, because we had the C in C on board for Colombo.

After leaving Colombo we returned to Portsmouth in July 1942. I got twenty eight days leave after two years abroad. and I got married to Mabel on 10th August 1942 at Boston Stump with a special licence which cost me £2-2/- instead of the normal 7/6 normal licence fee.

After two weeks leave I was recalled to join the Naval Commandoes. I went back to HMS Mercury and was kitted out with a .45 colt revolver in a huge leather holster from the 1914 war, a pedal generator (like an exercise bicycle) and an Aldis Signal Lamp. I was then sent to Inverary, Scotland to train for landing parties. After training I joined the M.V. Warwick Castle in Lock Fine. This ship was full of American Rangers (commandoes).

In November 1942 we invaded North Africa at Angew beach outside Oran. I went ashore with my .45, my generator on my back and waded up the beach. I set up a signal station to communicate with the Warwick Castle for stores and covering fire against the Vichy French who put up little resistance. After a few hours they gave up and surrendered. From Oran we sailed to Algiers and took it over, again with little resistance.

The Warwick Castle returned to the UK and on the way was sunk. I went to Bone on a landing craft. Mabel did not get my letters for weeks after the invasion and on hearing the Warwick Castle was blown up she got real worried wondering where I was.

At Bone we took a school over for a start as billets. Later we took over some barracks near to the docks. This building was called HMS Cannae. This happened about Christmas 1942 into January 1943. Bone became our front line port for the 1st Army. Bizerta, fifty miles away, was the German front line for its army.

The docks at Bone were about as big as Boston Dock, but it was packed with ships, both Merchant Navy and Royal Navy. The Signal Station was the flat roof on top of the Harbour Master’s House, which is where I worked for eighteen months. There was a high bank and wall surrounding the back of the docks from the town.

Whilst there, the docks were bombarded day and night by dive bombers from Bizerta. They were mainly Stukas a Dyhedral wing plane like a seagull, but when it dived it screamed and was hair raising until one got used to it. They tried several times to get the Signal Station but never succeeded.

One of our duties was to fire a red verys flare as air raid warnings over the docks. We also had an oil drum as an incinerator to burn old signal messages. One day I was burning some when I felt a flash and a bang whilst leaning over the incinerator, some fool had thrown a verys cartridge in it. I escaped with singed hair and eyelashes and small lump of brass cartridge case in my arm.

Another close shave was when I was walking along the dock road near the railway sidings, when a Stuka appeared above and came screaming down. I dived under the rail trucks and rolled away from the road. The Stuka dropped its bomb and it fell not far from where I was but failed to explode. The case split into two from top to bottom. Of course the dive bombers bombs were very small, but could do a lot of damage.

The Signal Station was awarded the D.S.M., but as only one person could receive it, it went by vote to the Yeoman in charge, namely Yeoman Barlow.

I stayed at Bone for eighteen months until I applied to go on a Leading Signalman’s course in May 1944. I went to Malta HMS St Angelo. Whilst there, the Italian fleet surrendered. I went out to it with others off the Algerian coast and took the whole fleet back into Malta. In July 1944 I went to Taranto in Southern Italy to join HMS Abercrombie, which was having repairs in dock after the battle of Salerno.

On completion of the repairs the ship went back to Malta for working up trials, as it had a new crew which required getting together. Whilst in Malta we went out to sea to practice air gunnery and were following a sleeve target towed by a plane when we finished up in one of our own minefields, with two or three mines going off and causing damage.

The Captain and Navigator were court martialled while the crew were paid off and I returned to England.

I went to HMS Mercury for a Yeoman of Signals course. I got Mabel, and our son Derrick, lodgings with Phyl and Howard Pretty at Fareham. We kept friends with them until they died. After passing my exams I went to a hunt class destroyer HMS Zetland as Yeoman in May 1945.

The war in Europe has ended and I got home for the victory celebrations. The May Fair was in Boston at that time and we had a night out.

In June 1945 my ship Zetland went to Alexandria for a tropical refit before going into the Pacific to fight the Japs. The refit, consisting of extra air vents, refrigerators etc, lasted several weeks. During that time I was infected by otitis of the ears due to the heat. I was in Alex Naval Hospital for five days. They then sent me on leave for two weeks to Nathanya, Palestine Army rest camp near Tel Aviv. I stayed a week and then went to Jerusalem YMCA for the second week. During this week we went on coach tours of Bethlehem, Jordan, Dead Sea and other holy places.

When I returned to Zetland VJ Day, August 1945, was proclaimed. The refit was in vain and we went back to Portsmouth. From there we went to Londonderry in Northern Ireland to escort some U Boats to Russia. When we returned to Portsmouth I went back again to HMS Mercury on a course for a higher grade Yeoman of Sigs. Whilst there, my daughter Marie was born and I was able to get home to see her and Mabel.
January 1947, as Yeoman of Sigs, I went to HMS Cleopatra. Our first trip was to escort HMS Vanguard, a battleship, to South Africa. On the Vanguard was King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Elizabeth (now our Queen) and Princess Margaret. We were met by the South African Navy who continued the escort to Capetown. The Cleopatra then returned to the UK for early Easter leave after calling at Gibraltar.

On arriving at Portsmouth in March 1947 England was snowbound. I went on leave to Boston, changing trains at Peterborough. We should have arrived in Boston at 3.30am, instead in was 10.30, due to snow. On going back on board Cleopatra, we again went to South Africa to meet the Vanguard and escort her back to Portsmouth. During the voyage the royal family came on board the Cleopatra and met the crew.

After this, the Cleopatra went on a showing the flag cruise all around Sweden and Denmark. We were met at most ports by local people and invited home with them for a meal and drinks.

On returning to Portsmouth I applied for a discharge by purchase, as I still had six years to serve of my twelve years engagement; I had served abroad and hardly seen Mabel and my children. I was given permission to purchase my discharge for the £100, which I had received as war gratuity, provided I had a job to go to either in the Police Force or the local Mines.

I applied to join the Lincolnshire Constabulary, was accepted and left the Navy in July 1947. I went immediately into the Police Training School at Mansfield.

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