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My first memory of the war was hearing Neville Chamberlain, the Prime Minister, announce on the radio that we were at war with Germany. I was three weeks short of my 8th birthday and with my parents, elder sister 14, brother 11, and baby sister of 6 months heard the news standing round the radio in the living room. There was an ominous silence and then our Welsh maid left the room, packed her belongings and walked out of the house to catch the train, three miles away and back to Wales. I wondered why! ‘War’ didn’t mean much to an 8 year old. I couldn’t envisage the horrors, the bombing and the deprivations and separations to come. I knew that the news was momentous and that was all.

Within a few weeks my elder sister and brother were evacuated with their schools to Suffolk and I continued at the village school, a walk of about one mile. I lived in the country in Kent with the nearest towns of Gravesend and Sevenoaks about eight miles away. The buses ran every two hours to Gravesend so that is where my brother and sister attended the Grammar schools. Very few people had a second car and with petrol being rationed we walked or cycled everywhere. People like doctors and farmers and those on essential war work were allowed more petrol.

The expected air raids did not materialise in the first six months so the children from the Grammar schools returned home from Suffolk. Soon afterwards the German bombing raids stared and Kent suffered so much because we were on the route from the channel to London. Hence the schools were evacuated again, this time the girls to Exmouth in Devon and the boys to Newton Abbot. As I had an elder sister to care for me I was allowed to go to Devon as well. There were six of us young ones accompanying the older girls. I can remember the day so vividly that we left home. My father worked in London and had already gone so it was left to my poor mother to see three of her children on to the bus. She was left with my little sister of just over a year old. Up to the point of leaving I was quite excited. All the packing and new school clothes it seemed like an adventure to me. The actual point of departure was different! I didn’t want to leave my Mum! We had no idea of our destination and how long we would be travelling. The poor parents — what agony they must have gone through. Can you imagine it?

When we got to the Grammar School we were issued with our gas masks and labels round our necks with our names on. We must have looked a sorry collection. Two trains eventually got us to Exmouth and my next vivid picture is sitting in church hall on chairs placed all round the edges of the room. We were then selected, like vegetables, by Exmouth families willing to take us in. My sister and I were near the end to be chosen as not many people wanted two evacuees. I think we were all thought to be cockney children and probably scruffy in our dress and habits. Charmian, my sister, and I were extremely fortunate as we were chosen by a delightful couple — retired bank manager and his wife — and were welcomed into their beautiful detached house with large garden and orchard. It overlooked the Exe estuary. We were extremely happy and very well looked after. Our foster parents worked very hard on voluntary work. He helped in the hospital and she collected National Savings. Every person in the land was encouraged to save money to pay for the war so there were collectors in every road or street.

Naturally evacuation was voluntary so not all the Grammar School was in Exmouth. Six teachers were enough for us and they were kind to us tinies. We had lessons in a large terrace house in the morning and then joined Exmouth Grammar in the afternoon. Some of the local girls teased us, called us names, pulled my plaits, and waited for us round corners and tipped our satchels out on the ground. What would they do today? After one year most of the girls, including Charmian my sister, and the teachers returned to Kent because the R.A.F. had successfully defended the skies against the might of the German Luftwaffe. Known as the Battle of Britain.

I spent a second year in Exmouth mixing happily at the local school. During the year I had my tonsils out and I remember the treat of a bowl of ice cream. Luxuries like that were in short supply. Even sweets were rationed. All children had a book of sweet coupons. Other ration books were for essentials like butter, sugar, tea, bacon and meat. Eggs too I think. We used to buy dried egg for cooking. We also though spam was marvellous in a gold coloured oblong tin — imported from America. Some people’s diets were better than pre- war as it was well balanced!

On returning to Kent I joined the Grammar School properly and travelled eight miles to and fro for the remaining 2-3 years of the war, air raids and bombing continued and many lessons we into the air raid shelters in the school grounds. The School bus used to stop sometimes on the way home and we hid in the hedges whilst the German planes went over. If they were heading back to Germany they would drop any bombs left, indiscriminately so as to be able to hurry home. I can still see the black cross on the underside of the wings.

This is becoming too long a narrative so I will state briefly my other recollections of a childhood in Wartime Britain.

The Blackout
No householder could show any light from any door or window. Lights would have lit the way for the enemy. No street lighting — didn’t affect us in the country. We all felt perfectly safe. We had one common enemy so there were no muggings and stealing from each other. All car headlights had black visors to send the beam on to the ground.

Windows
We put crosses of sticky brown paper over them to prevent them shattering into pieces in case of blast from the bombs.

Sirens
The wailing sound to warn us of the approach of enemy planes and then the welcome sound of the all clear when all was safe again.

Barrage Balloons
These inflated balloons held by hawsers were to prevent the enemy from low target flying. There was one such balloon stationed in the field opposite our house. The airmen stationed there used to come to our house for a bath and would give us tinned salmon sometimes as a thank you! My mother also had wives and sweethearts to stay.

Enemy aircraft
One German plane crashed on the field next t our house. How dramatic it was to a child. It burst into flames and it must have been a weekend or holiday time for we all rushed out and the adults were desperately anxious to see if they could rescue the pilot. The next day we all collected bits of broken plane to keep as souvenirs.

Search lights
These raked the skies to pick up the enemy aircraft and then our artillery could see then and fire. We could see London at night by the glow in the sky of the burning city after a bombing raid.

Incendiary bombs
These were small and dropped ain clutches and were for ignition of buildings. We kept sandbags to beat out these flames and one night these were several round our house which was only wood! One split the front gate in two and stayed there for weeks in an unexploded state. We also had stirrup pumps to put out fires. They were pretty useless and needed a lot of man power to raise a powerful jet. A bucket of water was much quicker.

War efforts
All we children had to help. We collected rose hips from the hedgerows to make syrup for the babies. No oranges or bananas in the war! We also helped to make jars and jars of jam at the Women’s Institute. Where did it all go? We also worked in the fields to help the land army and got paid 1/6d for a morning hoeing cabbages with a hand hoe!

We personally kept chickens, pigs, goats and rabbits and grew our own fruit and veg. so there was plenty to do at home. Obviously people living in the country fared better that the towns’ people.

News
No televisions during the war so the war battles seemed remote to us children. Nowadays, as in the Gulf War, the fighting is in the living room as it happens! All the radio news bulletins and the newspapers were censored as were all the letters going to and from abroad. My father was not called up otherwise I am sure I would have been more aware of the anxiety of waiting news. He was in the home Guard and of course had some horrendous journeys trying to commute to London everyday.

Doodlebugs — Jet propelled rockets 1944
These to me were the most frightening part of the war. They were a new concept, unexpected and deadly. They ‘putt-putted’ across the sky and the first night we rushed out to see what was happening. All you could see was a dark shape with red flames at the back. Suddenly the noise stopped. The rocket drifted down to the ground and exploded. They were targeted for London but Kent was littered with the ones that fell short or were shot down. I will never forget the suspense waiting for the explosion after the engine had stopped.

All of the letters my family exchanged while we were evacuated have been donated to the Imperial War Museum. The catalogue entry for them can be seen at:

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