大象传媒

CHAPTER FIVE

KANDY AND COLUMBO

Our destination was Kandy, 3,000ft up in the centre of the island. This was to be our Signals HQ. Kandy is a beautiful little town, set in a river valley, within a ring of mountains. In the centre is a large decorative lake, with a small island, once a Raja鈥檚 pleasure garden. Close by the lake is the octagonal 鈥淭emple of the Tooth鈥�, supposedly containing a sacred relic of Buddha 鈥� a tooth rescued from his cremation in India in 483BC.

Buddhism is the main religion of the country. This soon becomes obvious by the number of statues of Buddha, temples and shrines, and everywhere shaven-headed Buddhist monks in saffron robes, carrying their begging bowls, from which they get their only supplies of food, donated by believers.

Our HQ and living quarters were in a small set of barracks on rising ground on the outskirts of the town. Our Maintenance Section Workshops and Office were a requisitioned large bungalow in Brownrigg Street, just into town. The extensive walled-in garden was now our lorry park. From there it was only two minutes walk to the town鈥檚 busy main street, with a good range of interesting shops and a fruit market. Pineapples, so refreshing in the hot weather, were very cheap. We ate them until our mouths became sore.

I shall always remember the 鈥渁blutions鈥� at the barracks where we had to wash and shave 鈥� talk about primitive! You went down some steps into a solid stone building - it was half underground. Everything was cold stone, except the metal basins, set in a thick stone bench, with only cold water on tap. There was a 鈥減lunge bath鈥�, about 12ft by 10ft in size, and 4ft deep, continuously fed with cold water running directly from a spring in the hillside.

Coming back, weary from a day鈥檚 work, feeling all hot, sweaty and sticky, it was gorgeous to jump over the wall and plunge, naked into the ice-cold water. The shock made you gasp for air, but it was wonderfully refreshing and invigorating!

Weekends were spent exploring the many exotic sights and scenes in the surrounding area, also watching the working elephants bathing in the Mahaweli River, being soaped and scrubbed by their mahouts (A39). Visiting the Peradenia Botanical Gardens (A38) with 150 acres and thousands of different tropical flowers, shrubs and trees. Making the stiff climb to the top of a local hill to see the vast expanse of rolling hills, carpeted with luscious green tea plantations, dotted with white tea factories. On approaching one of these factories the enticing aroma of roasting tea-leaves wafted out to meet you.

All this sightseeing kept my camera working overtime, Ceylon is a photographer鈥檚 paradise. Unfortunately only black and white films were available in those days, so I could not capture the colours. As in all tropical countries there is much more colour than in England, and the colours are stronger, brighter and richer. I was lucky to find a local Sinhalese artist who painted the enlargements of some of my best pictures, but have often wished many more had been coloured, even though they were rather expensive.

COLOMBO
1942

From Signals HQ at Kandy detachments were posted to several locations around the island, including Colombo, the main city and port and a Naval Base, and Trincomalee, which, with it鈥檚 magnificent natural harbour, was the main Royal Navy Base and Fleet anchorage. Towards the end of February I joined the Colombo detachment, to look after their lorries and motorbikes, and I had a motor bike for my own use to get around town and to breakdowns.

We were stationed in the Echelon Barracks, near to town center, which was known as The Fort. The two-storey barrack blocks, with the usual wide verandahs, formed a square around a compound large enough for several football and hockey pitches.

Beyond the far side of the compound there was only a road to cross to the beach and the sea. From there a promenade, flanked by a spacious green or common, stretched several hundred yards south. At the far end stood the grand, imposing Galle Face Hotel. Along the back of the Galle Face Green, as the common was called, ranged a row of very large guns, their massive barrels pointing out to sea.

On the other side of the barracks, beyond The Fort, which was the business center and European area, was the large Harbour. The real native part was Petteh, Colombo鈥檚 large, teeming, pungent bazaar district, a riot of fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, game, gold and silver treasure, brass and tin junk, all glistening in the sun.

Driving in town and on many roads in Ceylon was like an obstacle course. Buses were the worst 鈥� old, dirty and rickety, they charged around like berserk monsters. There were mad, lumbering lorries, carefree taxis, wavering overloaded bicycles, plodding bullock cards, wandering cows, dogs, goats, hens and occasionally elephants.

We found the native Sinhalese people 鈥� their language Sinhala 鈥� easy going, friendly and always polite. The Tamils, Hindus from India living mainly in the North, were a more dour, distant type of people.

Lorries came down the 75 miles from Kandy several days a week for supplies, sometimes I had to accompany them into the docks to collect stores. The harbour was packed full with ships, the warehouses were full and overflowing, goods were stacked high on the quayside. There seemed to be no one in charge, all was chaos. You could help yourself to almost anything you wanted and no one stopped you. This was because several convoys of ships bound for the Far East had had to unload their cargoes here and in Bombay. It was to late and too dangerous for them to venture any farther East.

Although we lived in sight of the sea we could not bathe in it because the coast here was protected by anti-invasion defences and barbed wire. However, just beyond Galle Face hotel, Colombo Swimming Club and pool were free to members of the Forces. We made good use of these amenities. Colombo is always very hot and sticky, the daytime temperature rarely drops below 80F at any time of year.

For a swim in the sea we could go five miles down the coast to Mount Lavinia, one of the many long stretches of unspoilt, sandy, palm fringed beaches. The sea was warm enough to bathe in all year round. Here we could also watch the native fishermen bring their boats ashore, large sailing canoes, each balanced by an outrigger on one side. It was easy to imagine their ancestors doing just the same, with exactly the same type of boat, many centuries ago.

Thus life in Ceylon continued, calm and peaceful, the strife of war seemed far away. Soon though, we would get a sharp reminder not to become too relaxed or complacent. It is time for another short diary of events鈥︹��.

CHAPTER SIX

THE 鈥淩ISING SUN鈥� SCORCHES ON

January 1942 Following the surprise attacks in December in the Far East, the Japs continue their advances into Burma and down the Malay Peninsula, driving all before them. Singapore comes under air attack.

February 1st The last British Army troops withdraw from Malaya onto Singapore Island.

February 15th Japs capture Singapore 85,000 British and Allied troops surrender.

February 19th Admiral Nagumo鈥檚 鈥淭ora Tora鈥� Carrier Strike Force bombs Port Darwin, Australia.

February 27th Battle of Java Sea. Allied Fleet almost wiped out.

February 28th Japanese Forces land on Java

March 8th Java surrenders. 93,000 Dutch, 5000 British and American Troops surrender.

March 8th Rangoon in Burma surrenders.
During March Japanese advance island-to-island down the East Indies, capturing strategic ports and Naval bases. Burma being over-run.

March 22nd Adaman Islands in Bay of Bengal occupied by Japanese.

It now seemed only a matter of time before the Japanese launched an amphibious attack on Ceylon to gain complete control of the Indian Ocean. At least for the moment we could thank our lucky stars that our 34th Indian Division had not been sent to Singapore. A 鈥淗istory of the British Army in the Second World War鈥� (Peter Young & J P Crawford) describes what could have happened to us鈥�..

"The British 18th Infantry Division was sent to India at the end of 1941 and immediately diverted to Singapore, where part of the Division was deployed forwards to the mainland. The Division was largely destroyed or taken prisoner in the fighting on Singapore Island".

In fact, all through January, convoys continued to pour thousands of reinforcements into Singapore, just in time for the last of the fighting and to be taken prisoner. The very last convoy, of four vessels bringing the tail end of the 18th Division, arrived on February 5th, ten days before the surrender. The transport ship "Empress of Asia" was set on fire by enemy bombers, most of her crew were taken off safely, but many of 18th Div weapons were lost with the ship. (see letter)

Following the debacle at Singapore, and the loss of the East Indies Naval Bases, the pitiable remnants of the Royal Navy Eastern Fleet limped back to Trincomalee and Colombo. On Churchill's orders this fleet was to be rebuilt with whatever ships could be spared from Britain. At present it was no match for the far superior Japanese Navy, and hoped to keep out of action until reinforced.

Thus at the beginning of April 1942 Colombo Harbour was packed with Warships and Merchant Ships, making a sitting target for enemy air attack. The only air defence for Colombo was a squadron of Blenheim Bombers, some Navy Fulmars and 22 Mark 11B Hurricanes at Ratmalana civil airport. A well-camouflaged airfield was constructed on Colombo Racecourse, and at the end of March 9 Hurricane Mark 11B's and 5 Mark 1s were transferred from India. Some of the Hurricane pilots had been in air battles over Singapore and Java , as recounted by Terence Kelly in his book "Hurricanes over the Jungle". At Koggala, on the South West coast, there was a reconnaissance unit of long-range Catalina flying-boats.

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