大象传媒

I was in the Lancashire Fusiliers. I joined at the age of 15: I was a boy soldier in 1936, but I was too young to go to France. I turned 18 the day after the Second World War was announced.

Within one hour of war being announced I was told I would be stationed at Dover; we had it confirmed 24 hours later and were told exactly what we were to be doing. I was a member of the Prince of Wales鈥檚 volunteers, but when the Prince of Wales abdicated we changed our name to the 鈥楽outh Lancashire Regiment鈥� then later the 鈥楲ancashire Fusiliers鈥�.

I served all through the war as a regular soldier, until in 1942 we was sent to India to Burma to relieve the Chindits over there. It took some doing but eventually I got used to being there- first of all there was the heat. Then of course the illnesses - fortunately there wasn鈥檛 much Delhi-belly around, but we had malaria several times amongst us: the tablets you had to take to cure you sent you yellow! Aside from that there was the fighting - We were posted to Kohima and we fought and fought 鈥� You can鈥檛 even begin to imagine the conditions there.

One day when fighting we lost 200 men in 10 minutes. The Japs were positioned in large numbers at top of a hill; just waiting for us. I was a bugler in the Ack Ack platoon, and we came under attack. Also in that battle my best friend鈥檚 knee shattered, so I carried him to First Aid, left him there and then carried on fighting, but it was to no avail- we were simply being slaughtered and pushed back. Afterwards I went back, and helped to count the dead and then bury them. All the friends I鈥檇 served with were gone. I was very lucky to have been spared.

In another battle I was wounded in the arm and shattered my ear drums; then I was sent back to a hospital in Assam. I stayed there for three months and then I was transferred to the Indian Army where I served in the 71st Army- based at the Reception Camp in the Military Police.

I served in the Regular Army until November 1945 then went back home 鈥� that was Bilston near Wolverhampton.

The Kohima Epitaph is especially moving for me because of everything we all went through- 鈥淲hen you go home, tell them of us and say, for your tomorrow we gave our today鈥�.

This story was submitted to the People's War site by Ros Collin of the 大象传媒 Radio Shropshire CSV Action Desk on behalf of Bill Costin and has been added to the site with his permission. Mr Costin full understands the site's terms and conditions.

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