大象传媒

I tried to join the local Green Howards unit before reaching the age of 17 and was told to come back after my 17th birthday in April 1939.
I then became a member of the Territorial Army, and was called up just before the start of the war.

Being too young for overseas service at this time, I transferred to the Royal Artillery anti-aircraft branch, serving during the Battle of Britain in Gosport in Hampshire, and later, in the defence of Liverpool, Manchester, Barrow-in-Furnace and the South of England.

The Battle of the Skies, having been won around 1943, led to the demand for anti-aircraft units being reduced - in terms of men and equipment. At this point I transferred to the airborne forces. Incidentally, my first company commander was Sir Hew Wheldon, who later became the Governor of the 大象传媒.

My first overseas assignment was during the Ardennes Offensive (known as the Battle of the Bulge). This was a very cold experience, in Belgium and Holland and living in the ground on the banks of the River Maas.

This was an Anglo-American exercise, which took place over Christmas 1944, and succeeded in halting Von Rundsted's breakthrough. Returning, we had a short leave and some re-organising, before embarking on the biggest airborne operation of the war, the Rhine Crossing.

This culminated in a multitude of operations, finally ending, as far as I was concerned, at Wismar on the Baltic coast. On the way, I was able to assist in the liberation of an American POW camp, taking the name and address of one particular internee from Pittsburg, Pensylvania, with whom I have remained in touch to this day.

My unit flew back to the United Kingdom to re-equip, and I had to find my own way back from germany, with my vehicle. I did this on a tank landing craft, courtesy of the United States Navy, and was accompanied by the music of Glenn Miller from the ship's PA system.

On arrival at home, we were kitted out with dark green equipment and clothing to go to the Far East, which was a shipboard operation and which having started, due to the surrender of Japan, was diverted to the Middle East.

This turned out to be a sort of policing operation during which time I served in both Palestine, Syria and Lebanon. After a year I came home on the Medloc route, ultimately to be released from regular service and back to square one - re-joining my first TA unit, the Green Howards.

After 18 years I finally left, as a WO11, with a certificate from the Lord Lieutenant of the North Riding, Sir William Worsley.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.