大象传媒

I was called up on the 1st December 1939 and posted to the headquarters company of the R.A.S.C as a driver. We started our training at Chipping Camden in the vale of Evesham.

In January 1940 our company was sent to France, and stationed at Arras. Our task was to supply front line troops with food and equipment etc. All was fairly quiet, but occasionally we were bombed and machine gunned by the enemy aircraft.

Then on the 25th May our company was ordered to Armantiers. On arrival we were told to destroy our stores and equipment and all our vehicles, except one open black truck with a Lewis gun mounted on the back, and two staff cars. Then we had to proceed to Dunkirk as best as we could. Our rations were one small tin of bully beef and one packet of hard biscuits between two men. (I think the biscuits must have been left over from World War One!!)

The road we took was very slow because of the refugees and the Belgian army travelling towards Dunkirk and because of attacks from the air by enemy aircraft.

We had to reach a river bridge before midnight on the 27th May because the bridge was being blown up by the Royal Engineers. We made this by a few minutes, and then we had to destroy our remaining vehicles, and proceed on foot to La Panne.

On arrival, about midnight, we had to wait to get onto the beach. I laid down in the front garden of a house and fell asleep. We were woken by someone calling out "grub up". Having had nothing to eat since the 25th it was music to our ears, but unfortunately whilst we were queuing at the makeshift cook鈥檚 wagon we were ordered to make our way to the to the beach and water鈥檚 edge. Whilst queuing to get to the ships that lay off the beaches we were attacked by enemy aircraft. Many men did not get up after these attacks, they were either killed or wounded.

Then we were ordered to wade out to a ship called The Waverley, it was acting as a minesweeper, but taking on as many men as possible. Fortunately, in hindsight, I was unable to get on this ship as it was full to overflowing and had to return to the beach. After about thirty minutes a sailor arrived sculling a folding boat, (he was drunk and said, "come on you lucky b鈥"), he took us to a merchant vessel called "The Beal". It had been transporting coal around the coast. We managed to climb up a rope ladder and settle down on deck, (this was no easy task as we were all soaking wet and carrying rifles). Some of the men were already in the hold amongst the coal dust. As soon as we were loaded the Captain was ordered to leave without escort as enemy aircraft were attacking everything in sight. After a short time we were attacked, bombed and machine gunned, luckily no one was injured. A bomb had dropped just off the rear of the ship, causing some damage to the propeller, this slowed us down and it took 17 hours to reach Ramsgate.

Naval ships and other boats were all passing us quite fast. Luckily for us we did not meet any more enemy ships or submarines.

On arrival at Ramsgate we learnt that The Waverley had been sunk with all the rescued men on board, with only a few survivors picked up, most of our company were missIng. We marched to the railway station, very dirty, tired and hungry. Someone came to the station with a butcher's basket full of sandwiches, which were soon eaten, it was the first time we had eaten since we left Armantiers! When we arrived on the platform and boarded the train we were given a Dixie of tea, a bar of chocolate, a meat pie and a packet of cigarettes. This also happened again at Olympia, our next stop on our way somewhere up North. After we got off the train people were lining the routes as we marched to a large racecourse, giving us money, cigarettes, sweets and invitations to visit them and have a meal when we were free. It was quite an experience.

This story was added to the site by Melita Dennett on behalf of Dennis Black, who fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

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