大象传媒

FORWARD.
SOME OF THE MISSING PIECES.

I do not know just what has prompted me to start writing about certain events which happened so many years ago, I do not know, now that I have started if it will even be finished. There are many stories about the sea and the second world war, but this is a personal story which I hope will be of interest to my family, so I will carry on and see what happens.
I have always thought of the last war as a very large jigsaw puzzle which has been laid out with all the pieces face up on the table.This particular puzzel consists of various parts which I was personaly involved in.
The Family have attempted to put the puzzel together but some of the parts are missing which makes it difficult to get a clear picture, so they get frustrated and put the pieces back into the box.Other members of the family or friends would often bring some missing parts and gradually the picture took shape.
In the case of the last war, certain pieces fitted into place quite easily, usualy obtained from books and newspaper articals, such events as 'The Battle of Britain' 'The Battle of the Atlantic'and 'Dunkirk' etc, and as the war progressed so the various events were placed in position, building the larger picture.
At sea the war continued with the sinking of the German Battleship 'Bismark' 'The Battle of the River Plate' and the 'Convoys'across the Atlantic and to Russia and Malta.
But there are still many small pieces missing or mislaid, especialy in some of the lesser known theatres of the War, many personel experiences which were to small and insignificant to make the headlines, but are all part of the overall puzzel.
I am hoping that by writing this story of some of my own experiences, others may be able to fit some of their own pieces into the puzzel and so help to add a little more to the overall picture.

Chapter one. GIBRALTER.

The usual Mediterranean weather was very much as one would expect for the time of the year, which I think was about June or July 1941.Plenty of Sun, and a calm sea.
HMS Manchester gradualy came into view round Europa Point, the most southern tip of Gibralter,shaped her course into the Bay of Algeciras, and entered into the Harbour where she made another slight course alteration, the boom defence gate was opened to allow her to enter No.1 Dock that had been made ready to receive her.
This class of ship has always been described in the Navy as a good looking ship, and when standing out in the Bay waiting for the sigal to enter Harbour she did look very nice even though it was obvious she had taken a battering.
But more importantly she looked a very business-like vessel and quite capable of dishing out punishment to any enemy ships which may enter her range.
It was not generally known at that time, why the Manchester was returning to Gibraltar and put straight into a repair dock, but we learnt later that she had suffered severe damage from a Torpedo attack whilst attempting to get through to Malta, and that many ships company and Army personnel who were being ferried to Malta as Garrison relief where dead or wounded.
On entering the dock, the gates were closed and pumping out was started immediatly, the Manchester settled down and the work was started at once to get the injured ashore. Some of the dead who were still in the damaged compartments had also to be got out and taken ashore.
This grim task went on well into the night, the compartments were then cleaned out to enable work to be commenced on temporary repairs.
HMS Manchester was to be made seaworthy enough to be able to cross the Atlantic to Philadelphia in the USA. Although at that time her real destination was not known, it would be some time before our paths would cross again.
At that time I was serving aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal and little did I realize that in a few months time the Manchester would become my next ship.

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