- Contributed by听
- Ethel Ashman
- People in story:听
- Ethel Ashman (nee Eden) and her father George
- Location of story:听
- Soham, Cambridgeshire
- Background to story:听
- Civilian Force
- Article ID:听
- A5999809
- Contributed on:听
- 03 October 2005
![](/staticarchive/9b198250601fbef5206700be629ee72f4f3346e3.jpg)
George Eden and the Lands Girls in Soham
My father, George Eden, was a native of Soham and, during the war, worked for the War Agricultural Committee. He was told one day that he was to be working with a bus load of Italian prisoners based in a compound in Ely. He travelled with them, to Swaffam Fen where they were to work. He found them very hard working chaps and got on very well with them. They used to make toys out of spare pieces of wood which they sold for cigarette money. After those he had German prisoners and also Ukranians, all of whom were also hard working. The next lot of prisoners that he had were 鈥渃onscientious objectors鈥 whom he found were lazy and wouldn鈥檛 work as they thought that it was beneath their status to have to work on the land. Towards the end of the war he had Land Army Girls who were all hard working and a happy bunch of girls. I鈥檝e sent a photo 鈥 my father is on the right hand side of the picture.
Ethel Ashman
Formerly of Soham
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