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Extracts from Arthur’s Letters to his wife, Gladys, April - June 1944

3-4-44 Redesdale Practice Camp, near Newcastle on Tyne Sorry to have kept you waiting for news so long, darling, but it has really been unavoidable as you will see…

Left Felixstowe at 6 a.m. last Friday, reveille having been at 4. a.m. On the Thursday evening I went to the pictures and saw quite a good show. It was called ‘The Butler’s Dilemma’ and is a really funny picture with the war entirely excluded from it, and it’s a great relief to find a picture which doesn’t feature some aspect of the war these days.

I travelled on a small 5cwt truck with 5 other people and our combined kits and other gear so was very cramped for space. It was a cold day but every 2 hours we stopped for 10 minutes which gave us an opportunity of reviving the circulation.

Fed on a sandwich and a mug of coffee at midday and towards evening came to our camping area — Burleigh Park somewhere in Lincoln. It was a bleak, cold evening as it had been a cheerless, dull day, and no atom of cover was provided so we huddled up in the vehicles or on the ground. Since we were moving off at 1 a.m. I merely sat in the driver’s seat and dozed for an hour or so. A hot meal was prepared and gave us some comfort.

We travelled the roads all the night and during Saturday, when it was colder still, as we were getting a long way north. That evening we camped at a military camp near Catterick in Yorks. and again there was no cover. By this time it was very cold and the skies looked threatening; the countryside was bleak and uninviting, being thickly carpeted with frost during the mornings, and sometimes shrouded in damp mists.

I made myself as comfortable as possible at the side of my vehicle, my blankets spread on a ground sheet, my greatcoat on these, and, luckily, overall a waterproof cover used for protecting the car’s bonnet. Thoroughly tired I went to bed at 8, after the usual hot meal of stew — mainly potatoes in gravy — and slept very warmly and comfortably. I heard rain pattering on my covering during the night but huddled right down so that my head was protected and was in no wise disturbed by it.

Reveille was at 7 a.m. and reluctantly I crawled from my cosy bed and found it had been raining hard and the ground was drenched. It was far colder now and the rain had changed to sleet and hail. Moved off at 1 p.m. and snow fell continuously and the countryside became grimmer as we passed through the moors of Yorkshire and Durham.

That night we had an exercise, a night occupation in full war paint, and no cessation of the foul weather. Of course, our part of the convoy was not met at 8 p.m. as should have happened. At 2.30 a.m. we were still touring around the rendezvous searching for the responsible person. We did eventually contact the battery captain and were guided towards the gun positions which we never reached because it involved going through apparently impassable marshes. Better than the guns though we did eventually reach the Q van where the hot suppers were, and ate, or I should say gobbled, because rain was cascading down into our mess tins, the familiar stew.

Afterwards our vehicle made for the camp where we are now situated and, at 5 a.m., I climbed into bed under cover.

We are situated amid the hills of Northumberland, within 10 miles of the Scottish border, and it’s a barren looking spot with no houses or farms in view. There’s a rough, shaggy kind of ram with curling horns above its ears, which roams wild through the camp. Their wool reaches nearly to the ground and they’re the only cattle one sees in this little valley.

The ground in the camp is a quagmire at all times. However, it’s far more comfortable here because we have huts to sleep in and the usual wooden beds. These huts are nicely warmed so we shall be very comfortable in them but I expect we shall spend a good many nights on operations.

How are you, my precious… I do hope you are quite well. Also I trust you’ve not been disturbed by raids. It’s a long time since I heard and I’ve no idea what’s happening and must await your news…I can scarcely see here any longer as I have no light in the room and it’s getting dark outside. I’m longing to hear that you are well…

9-4-44 Thanks for your Thursday’s letter which I’m only replying to hurriedly now since I’ve just packed all my kit preparatory to leaving this camp at 1 p.m. this afternoon. There’s a night operation at a nearby place this night, then on Monday morning we shall begin the journey back to Felixstowe which I expect we’ll reach on Tuesday night or Wednesday. I can then write you a decent letter my dear.

You must keep your spirits up my dear one, and be patient — the war will end and then we can set about being really domestic in a house of our own, with dogs, a garden, and, of course, our Marian.

13-4-44 I don’t know if my letters reached you safely as I’ve had to entrust them to despatch riders to convey to the post at various remote places in the wilds of Northumberland.

Well the latter part of the scheme wasn’t nearly so unpleasant since the weather was greatly improved and, with the rain and mists gone, I found the scenery quite picturesque. The sun shone at times and then it became pleasant among the hills and dales. However, it’s a bleak district on the whole and the villages are small and scattered.

You will have heard over the wireless that all leave for the services has been cancelled. Whether as a temporary measure or otherwise I really can’t say. I don’t know whether to hold out any hopes of another leave; all I can do is wait and see. Naturally I’m terribly disappointed having been banking on a leave after the scheme and I know you’ll be equally unhappy darling but we mustn’t be depressed. After all until the invasion begins we’ve no possible means of ending this wretched war.

15-4-44 I’m glad to hear that there have been no raids recently and hope this will continue to be the case. I imagine the Nazi air force is fully occupied with the tremendous Allied raids and won’t have time nor machines to waste on attacks on London.

Poor Bill is very cut up because he’s just had news that his eldest brother has been killed in Burma. His other brother, whom he hasn’t seen for years, is home from India but he can’t get a leave to go and see him.

18-4-44 I hope you are quite fit… I’ve not heard from you since receiving your last Wednesday’s letter, although I know it’s not for want of writing dearest. All the fellows are awaiting mail and I notice on some of the letters which have arrived the censor’s stamp, so there’s no doubt that this is the cause of the delay. I’m afraid my letters to you are subjected to the same process and are, doubtless, equally late in reaching you but I warned you of the possibilities of such delays and, therefore, hope to have allayed your anxieties.

21-4-44 I was very pleased to receive your Monday’s letter yesterday evening darling, having been anxious to hear from you and know that all is well. It’s impossible in these uncertain times not to feel anxiety when news is lacking, despite the knowledge that the delay is caused by the army postal authority and cannot be avoided.

You mustn’t be frightened about the future my dear: I shall be alright and, when the war is over, will be returned to you safe and sound…

Well dear I am occupied much as usual these days. I’m still engaged in my new job and, I think, making satisfactory progress. I never do any work on the guns now as I’m no longer attached to a gun sub and am quite satisfied with this arrangement. My time is spent studying the various instruments and formulae which I should understand to make a success of the job. Otherwise I attend parades as usual but am exempt from fatigues.

27-4-44 I see from your Sunday’s letter that you’re feeling a bit depressed and anxious about the second front but you must try not to worry darling. It may not last very long; in fact when we’ve managed to secure suitable landing places and can push in our armies and materials the Nazis cannot long resist us, since there’s no doubt we shall work in conjunction with the Russians who are already more than a match for the armies confronting them, and we shall at first strike at several points to further the dispersal of the enemies forces. The general impression seems to be that this year will see the crushing of the enemy forces and, providing we make no mistakes at the outset, I favour this opinion because, in spite of the fighting qualities of the Germans, they no longer have superiority of men and materials and will, I believe, find it beyond them to maintain a war on two fronts of the colossal size to which those battle fronts will grow. Also, I don’t think it’s too much to expect the morale of the German nation will be gravely shaken by the terrific air raids now in progress and this attack on their morale is as serious as the material damage we are inflicting.

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