大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War site by Karen Joyce from Westree Learning Centre and has been added to the website on behalf of Fred Spicer with his permission and they fully understand the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

I was called up to Royal Scots on the 13th July 1943 as an 18 year lad. I spent 12 weeks in this regiment in Edinburgh and then went to Sittingbourne on the 16th November 1943. This is where I joined the HLI ( Highland Light Infantry) and trained around the lanes of Kent. We ran 5 miles before breakfast on a cup of gun fire (tea).

We moved to Newhaven for the invasion of Normandy on the 24th June at Midnight. I was 19 years old. We landed at Normandy on the Sunday morning 鈥� mid-summers day 鈥� 25th June. We travelled on Landing Craft Infantry and climbed down the rigging and into the barges which took us to the shore. We were called D Company and the Company Commander was Major William Bowie, who is now 94 years old. Once, while in Normandy, he shot our barrels of Calvados (apple brandy) so that we couldn鈥檛 drink, or we wouldn鈥檛 be of much use to him!

We moved to the hedgerows and from there to the front line 鈥� Hill 112. We were on night patrol looking for the enemy. It was very eerie, as we avoided mines and snipers. Eventually we broke out and travelled quickly through France to the Belgium border. During this time we liberated Lille and Antwerp. In late August, early September we liberated Middle Beers in Holland. The Germans were using a church spire as an observation point but this was damaged so badly with Light Anti-aircraft guns that it could no longer be used as an observation point and the Germans were defeated. During this time the local people were sheltering in cellars and the Burger Master came running into the street shouting that we were damaging the church!

After the liberation of Middle Beers we spent 2 days travelling to Arnham, this was longer than we had planned for, as the German鈥檚 were on either side of the road picking out the trucks. Dead bodies were hanging from the wagons and trees. The gliders that were transporting all of the medical supplies, including plasma and blood were shot down and blood was covering the trees and land. There were dead pilots still attached to their parachutes, hanging from the trees.

We were only in Arnham for about 2 days when the Generals realised that we were not going to be able to successfully capture it and so we withdrew and went to the Dutch/German border at Weese and Goch, with the intention of reaching the Rhine by Christmas. Unfortunately, we had to withdraw again as the opposition was too great. Two good friends of mine, Jack Faithful and Eric Hall who, like me, were only 19 years of age, were killed in rifle fire.

From here we went to the Ardennes to relieve some American forces. We were here over Christmas and stayed about 3 weeks. It was the coldest place on Earth to me as we slept in mud, snow and water. I was delighted to go home for a weeks leave in January 1945, but on the 1st of February I was transported back to the front line.

I spent a month going through the Reichwald Forest on the German/Dutch border on foot. We battled by hand and rifle as the Forest was too dense for tanks. When I emerged, after one month, the first words I said were 鈥淎h, Daylight!鈥�

We moved north towards the Rhine, the engineers had got there before us and created a Pontoon bridge so that we were able to cross the river. Whilst we were crossing it was like the greatest firework display you had ever seen. Guns and flares flashed, and you could see the red circle of tracer bullets flying through the air.

At the end of April we landed in Hamburgh, which is where we were when Churchill announced the end of the war.

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