大象传媒

A BRIDGING GALLOP: FROM VERNON ON THE SEINE THROUGH BELGIUM AND HOLLAND INTO GERMANY 鈥� THE END OF WW2 AND HOMECOMING - MY SECTION 鈥� SOME REFLECTIONS AND RECENT BATTLEFIELD VISITS

30th August to 5th September 1944. From Vernon we advanced rapidly. The countryside was of great interest to me since my father, also a Royal Engineer, had been in the First World War in this area of France. We passed through Amiens, Arras and Lille, all very familiar to him. I felt rather proud that I was following in his footsteps. (He, Charles Young, at that time was living in the family home in the Wiltshire village of Shrewton, and was a Clerk of Works at HQ Southern Command at Wilton, near Salisbury. He was awarded the BEM for his work). We moved on again very quickly to Tournai, just inside the French/Belgian border where we halted for a few days. We had travelled over 260 miles from Vernon.

We moved again rapidly to the Belgian capital city, Brussels, which had been liberated a few days earlier. We had a wonderful reception: thousands and thousands of people were out on the streets to greet us as we came through. Next, to Antwerp, passing through Westmeerbeek, and Deinze. We reached Bourg-Leopold on September 17th. From there we moved up to Grave and to Nijmegen around the 24th September. The paratroops had previously landed at Arnhem and our expectations had been that we would join them and advance together into Germany. But as we all now know, this episode at Arnhem was a great disaster and we lost a lot of men there.

At Son on 24th September we built a class 40 bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal. We arrived in Geldrop and Galleen around December 4th/5th and stayed in a farmhouse at Rijkvoort. The farmer and his wife had four sons. We spent Xmas Day 1944 in the cowshed but were able to sleep in a room in the farmhouse. To get to our quarters we had to pass through the room where the farmer and his wife were asleep in bed! Guard duty was two hours on and four hours off, so with four to six soldiers coming through at odd times of the night there wasn鈥檛 much peace for our hosts! In the middle of the room was a hob fireplace, always with hot milk waiting for us before we turned in. Heavy artillery guns (in all about 1800) were deployed over quite a wide area around the farm.

March 5th, 1945. Our next destination was Venlo. I went with an advance party of six men in a half-track vehicle, driven by Billy Stephen, -Sergeant Everleigh was in charge of our party. Our task was to find a 鈥榟arbour area鈥� for our Company who were due to follow the next day or so. We found an area with some empty houses that we thought suitable. It was here at Venlo that we built the largest Bailey Pontoon Bridge we were ever to attempt: a class 70 bridge over the River Maas.

The next day Billy Stephen drove his half-track from our harbour area to the main road. To reach it he had to drive through the nearby field. Unfortunately, we didn鈥檛 know that the field had been mined. Billy鈥檚 front wheel went over one mine. He was killed immediately. The vehicle caught fire, burning it and him, or what was left of him. We later reached the remains of the vehicle and removed his charred body. We wrapped poor Billy in a sheet and put him in a chicken house overnight. The next day we put him into a 3-ton truck and took him to a temporary graveyard behind a public house in Venlo. We dug the grave and held a service before we buried him. It was a nasty and very sad experience, and one that I shall never forget.

On March 8th 1945 we started to build the class 70 Bailey Pontoon Bridge over the Maas. When finished the bridge would take all the heavy traffic needed for the crossing of the Rhine on March 23rd. (A transporter carrying a tank would weigh 70 tons).

March 23rd, 1945. We moved from Venlo into Germany to Xanten on the Rhine. Here we built a 1200 ft class 40 Bailey Pontoon Bridge within 24 hours. And it was here, on April 5th, whilst doing bridge maintenance, that I celebrated my 30th birthday and returned home for my first leave.

On my return we continued to advance towards the river Elbe, passing through Bucholt and Espel to Lingen. Here we built a class 70 floating bridge over the River Ems. From Lingen we went to Celle and on to Artlenberg where we built the last bridge of the war, another class 40, about 1200 ft long. We were quite badly shelled here and had to run for cover several times. We had travelled well over 1000 miles since our first bridge at Vernon.

From Artlenberg we moved on to L眉beck in North Germany. This is a lovely old town. Then on to Neumunster with the intention eventually of going up to the Kiel Canal but at this point Germany capitulated and peace was declared. After quite a long wait we were sent home. I shall always remember this lovely old town where we made a many friends. From L眉beck we travelled south by train. It took three days and nights to reach Calais and was not a comfortable journey as the trains were continually being shunted here and there. Eventually we arrived at Folkestone. It was here that I was taken ill and admitted to hospital with bronchitis. I spent a week in hospital before being released. I then travelled to Guildford for demob and returned home to Shrewton with mixed feelings but above all elated that I had been able to take part in the adventure of a lifetime.

The twelve soldiers in the photograph were Sappers of the No 2 Section, 72 Field Company, Royal Engineers. Reading from left to right, back row: Maurice, then Jim Goody an eletrician who came from Essex, Fred Riddle from Godalming in Surrey, a game keeper (Fred used to sign our weekend passes as Captain Anderson, forged of course!) Next was Joe Tag, a butcher in his father鈥檚 shop, from Rugeley in Staffordshire, followed by "Tich" Jones, 5 foot nothing who nearly drowned when we landed on D-Day. Then Corporal Bert Stocks from Winchelsea near Hastings, he had been a conductor on Hastings busses. But took over his father鈥檚 pub in Winchelsea. I visited him years later, then myself Roy Young, and on my left, Harry Jones from Manchester who later joined a Bomb Disposal Unit.

In the front row is Jim Maconnel, a carpenter from Scotland then Jimmy Love, also a carpenter from Scotland and next Stan Fisher, a plumber from Bournemouth. Then Mickie Matthews, driver of our 3ton truck, who helped me wrap up poor Billy Stephen when he was killed at Venlo. Billy and I had been together for six years and worked well together, never a cross word. When WW2 ended, this true band of brothers had to part company with mixed feelings of joy and sadness.

鈥淭hinking back鈥� 鈥淚f we had not gone to France on D-Day I dread to think what would have happened had the Germans come here to England. I think we would have been transported to Germany for many years. I would just like to mention also that my brother was at this time in the Fleet Air Arm and also that my sister's husband, Archie Barrell, was in the RAF. Archie went out to the Middle East for a time and eventually came home because his father had died. Another thing I shall always remember is the comradeship that developed with the men that I was in the army with, we were like a big family and we relied on each other. I never thought I would see the day, when we were de-mobbed, and grown men had tears in their eyes because they were all being sent home. It just shows how close we were to each other from having been together for six years. It was a very wonderful experience in my life, especially so because my father had also been a Royal Engineer鈥�.

A new beginning
After the war I returned to Normandy in 1987 with some members of the 4th and 5th Battalions, the Wiltshire Regiment. My brother, Doug, came with me. We toured the beaches together: Juno, and also to Omaha where the Americans had such a very bad time. We went back to the actual spot where 72 Field Company RE had landed on D-Day at St Aubin and St Berni猫res-Sur-Mere. We visited many different cemeteries, especially at Bayeux, where thousands of British and German soldiers lie buried.

We also went to Arromanches, and to the museum visited by the Queen some years earlier. We went to Corseulles and on to Baron where we received a wonderful reception. The Wiltshire Regiment had been located here at Baron for a period during the war.

We visited the American cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mere, consisting of 9,386 graves. We visited the very famous Pegasus Bridge where the gliders landed and courageous men captured the bridge.

Later, in1988, we went to Arnhem and stayed in a motel with friends from the 4th and 5th Wiltshires. We went to Lochem, Eindhoven and to Groesbeek, where there was an airborne museum.

In 1992 we visited Vernon. Nothing looked quite the same as it had during the war! We took part in a great parade and attended a very good reception given by the French people. General Montgomery's son and the Lord Mayor of Vernon also attended. We visited the different cemeteries where Wiltshire Regiment soldiers lie buried. In one cemetery we placed a wreath on the grave of Jim Wickes on behalf of my friend Geoff Young. Whilst we were there my brother Doug and I visited the Monet gardens. This was on the other side of the river from Vernon and about three miles downstream.

Doug and I were made honorary members of the Wiltshire Regiment and this is something we are both very proud of. I had not been very far from the Regiment at various periods of WW2. I pay tribute, as a Royal Engineer, to the infantry of my home county, Wiltshire, to their courage and to their achievements.

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