大象传媒

Part 2: (Military Service)
Army Enlistment 鈥� Infantry Training - Embarkation 鈥� Torpedoed - a Gordon Highlander 鈥� into Germany: Gennep to Goch, the Rhine Cross and beyond. (cont鈥檇. Part 3)

I celebrated my 18th. Birthday on 9th. May 1944, and an Enlistment Notice dated 10th. May required me to report for basic infantry training to Queen鈥檚 Barracks, Perth (Depot of the Black Watch). I was in Perth when the D-day Landings took place on 6th. June.
Following Primary Training, I was posted to 28th.Training Battalion, Hollywood, Co. Down 鈥� a specialist unit for the development of potential leaders. Here, I attended No. 16 Officer Selection Board (September 1944) where I was told 鈥渢o come back later鈥� (i.e. Not Yet). 鈥淏rigade Training鈥�, under active service conditions with live ammunition, followed at Langholm, Dumfriesshire in the cold winter of 1944. In December, I had 2 weeks Embarkation Leave prior to leaving for North West Europe. My ego was deflated on a Glasgow Tramcar when a matronly Conductress initially refused me a 鈥淧enny Forces Special鈥� on grounds that I was 鈥渢oo young to be a sodger鈥�!

My AB64 (Army Service and Pay Book) showed that I had mastered the Rifle, Sten and Thomson Sub-Machineguns, the PIAT Anti-Tank Weapon, the Bren Machine Gun and Hand Grenades; experienced Gas; received numerous inoculations, and successfully completed the 鈥淔inal 25-mile Route March鈥� with full equipment. I was judged to be battle-ready, badged as Highland Light Infantry, and sent off for Active Service in North West Europe.
A full trainload of newly-trained recruits left Langholm Station in the early hours of early January, 1945. We steamed into England, most of us for the first time, cheered on or stared at curiously at many local stations, until we arrived much later at S4 Transit Camp in Grays, Essex. Meanwhile, heavy fighting continued in Europe. After the heroism and disappointment of Arnhem, the Germans had launched their surprise offensive in the Ardennes. The Battle of the Bulge saw American and British troops locked in bitter fighting over Christmas 1944 and into the New Year. Reinforcements were urgently needed, and we waited for embarkation orders 鈥� and our first exposure to enemy attack.

Around 200 troops embarked at Tilbury on HMLST415 (Landing Ship Tank) on 15th. January 1945. The ship was already loaded with heavy transportation and other supplies for the B.L.A.(British Liberation Army), and we moved off Southend to join several other supply ships waiting to cross the Channel. LST 415 sailed that evening, at the tail-end of the convoy. Conditions on board were crowded and uncomfortable, and the lighting subdued. With two companions, I sought a space to sleep on a small area of gangway outside (we later learned) the Ammunition Store. In the early hours of 16th. January we were rudely awakened by Crew entering the ammo depot. Almost immediately 鈥渁ll hell鈥� broke loose. The ship鈥檚 warning siren sounded 鈥淎ction Stations鈥�, we felt two dull thuds which brought the ship to a shuddering halt, and naval guns opened up from various directions. In the general confusion, there was no need to tell us to assemble immediately at our Boat Stations on Deck where we watched flares and tracers light the night sky over a cold, but fairly calm, North Sea. LST415 had been hit by two Torpedoes (at the Crews鈥� quarters in the stern) from a Nazi E-Boat which had been lurking in the shadow of a large Bhoy to avoid radar detection. By use of her Water-tight Compartments the ship stayed afloat, with its stern now partially submerged.

The E-boat had lost no time in escaping into the night and, soon, LST159 manoeuvred skilfully alongside. The assembled troops were then ordered to leap from the rail of our stricken ship to the deck of the rescuing vessel 鈥� not the happiest prospect on a dark night, but fear of the cold North Sea below lent us wings! All aboard, LST159 sped us back to Tilbury, soldiers without weapons or equipment, many without boots.

[LST415, which had seen action at Sicily, Salerno, Anzio and Normandy, was towed to land and beached on the South Coast of England. I later learned that 6 Royal Navy crew died that night, with as many more injured. I believe there were a few Army casualties during the transfer, but numbers I cannot confirm.]

Back in S4 Transit Camp (actually in Aveley, near Grays) we gained a brief notoriety as 鈥淭he Survivors鈥�, and enjoyed a few free beers! The Army lost no time in re-equipping us and, within a week or so, most of us were aboard LST160 bound for Ostend, but stuck off Southend for some days in thick fog. We arrived in a snow-covered Ostend, after a very rough crossing, on 28th. January, 1945.

The bitter Battle of the Bulge had eventually proved a costly disaster for the Wehrmacht, and British forces, including the 51st. Highland Division, had now pulled back to Holland from the Ardennes. While we reinforcements moved into No. 50 Regimental Holding Unit at Knokke on the Belgian coast, British and Canadian forces prepared for 鈥淥peration Veritable鈥� 鈥� the assault on the vaunted Siegfried Line. The fortress towns of Cleve and Goch were heavily bombed by the R.A.F. who, with the U.S. Air Force, now dominated the skies over Germany. 鈥淰eritable鈥� continued through the bloody battles of the Reichswald Forest. While the 鈥淏ig Three鈥� - Roosevelt, Stalin and Churchill 鈥� met at Yalta to agree the division of Germany, Canadian forces penetrated towards the River Rhine, and British units fought their way through the Reichswald and into the Dutch border town of Gennep. On 13th. February, my companions and I were moved by train to Bourg Leopold.

On 16th. February, my Draft moved forward in T.C.Vs. (Troop Carrying Vehicles), through our Artillery lines, into the 51st. Highland Division battle area. We were greeted at 鈥楤鈥� Echelon with a new cap badge and Tartan flash and told, 鈥淵ou are now a Gordon Highlander鈥�! Without any delay 25 of us then moved forward to Battalion Headquarters in the shattered town of Gennep in a captured German truck. Here we were greeted by the Battalion Adjutant and were allocated to our various Infantry Companies. Thus I found myself a member of No.13 Platoon, 鈥淐鈥� Company, 5/7th. Bn. Gordon Highlanders, part of XXX Corps attached to the 1st. Canadian Army on the frontier of Germany. Our Company Commander, Major John Brayley (a Canadian and, I later learned, related to Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie-King) gave us a few encouraging words. I was quite content to be 鈥渁 Gay Gordon鈥�. At least two Uncles (of 5 brothers) had served in the Regiment in the First World War with my father 鈥� who was then about my age when seriously wounded in 1917. I had a feeling of 鈥渃oming home鈥� as my companions and I were welcomed, reservedly, by a tired-looking selection of Reichswald and Ardennes veterans, a very few of them survivors of North Africa, Sicily and Normandy. We were shelled that night by German Self Propelled (S.P.)Guns.

GOCH 1945 was a key road and rail centre, and 鈥渁 strong bastion of the Siegfried Line鈥�. At first light on 19th. February, XXX Corps (5th. Black Watch, 1st.Gordons and 5/7th. Gordons) mounted a dawn attack on the town. I moved with 鈥淐鈥� Company in single file along the Kessel-Goch road, with Black Watch units ahead in extended order in broad fields on our left, bursts of black smoke showing shells dropping around them. Soon we also began to attract small arms and artillery fire, while our own barrage rumbled above.
We had a brief halt by a roadway crater which the Royal Engineers had already spanned with a Bailey Bridge. Enemy shelling and bombing intensified. Fortunately, there were some nearby Slit Trenches in which the Platoon took cover. Suddenly the ear-splitting scream of a dozen sirens seemed to fill the universe, followed by the crumps around us of several exploding Bombs. Shaken, I looked up from my trench. 鈥淢oaning Minnie鈥�, a voice explained, 鈥測ou鈥檒l get used to those!鈥� This introduced me to the German Multi-barrelled Rocket Launcher, the Nebelwerfer. We moved almost immediately, forward, into the town while Stretcher Bearers carried casualties through our ranks, and several German prisoners doubled past us, pale and drawn, towards our rear.

There followed 4 days and nights of unmitigating misery. A fortress town of concrete strong-points and reinforced cellars, R.A.F. bombing of Goch had reduced much of the town to rubble, now adapted to defensive positions and strewn with anti-tank mines. As we came into the shattered streets, we were met with mortar, Spandau (machine-gun) and sniper fire from a determined resistance which included German Parachute units. Little progress was possible and we took cover in several houses and engaged the enemy throughout the day with small arms fire. Artillery and mortar fire continued all night, and dawn found us hollow-eyed and weary, facing new threats from Germans who had infiltrated around us in the night, and had cut-off No.14 platoon and inflicted some casualties. Sniping and shelling continued all day. Our veteran Quarter Master was badly wounded trying to bring up rations and supplies. Towards evening, units of the 1st. Gordons moved through our positions but brought us little respite. Another sleepless night and another hellish day dawned. Now we heard that 鈥淎鈥� Company of the 1st. Gordons had been ambushed and over-run at a place called Thomashof.

Our own 14 Pln. now fought its way back to 鈥淐鈥� Company and, re-united and with Canadian Tank support, we again moved forward over the rubble, flushing the Germans out in laborious house-to-house clearance. Eventually, we pushed through the centre of the town to occupy a large factory area beyond. Gratefully, we had our first, relatively quiet night, hot food and a wash.
Counter attack by the 1st. Gordons had now re-taken Thomashof. Our mission on 22nd. February was to relieve 鈥淏鈥� Coy. and the remains of 鈥淎鈥� Coy. of the 1st. Gordons, at the farming complex of Thomashof, just south of Goch. This was done without incident, and we had call only for suitable volunteers to help one of the surviving cows give birth to a calf! That night one of our Platoon Corporals, on a Contact Patrol from 鈥淐鈥� Coy. to 鈥淒鈥� Coy, was killed by enemy fire.

Next day we moved back into Goch while trucks, tanks and guns moved through us. We billeted in some houses which had escaped major damage and, for the first time in several days, enjoyed a full night鈥檚 sleep. It seemed that the Battle of Goch was over 鈥� but not quite yet!

On 26th. February we again moved forward several miles in Battle Order, passing through the 5th. Black Watch, to seize a battered grey Monastery on the border of Holland. Jerry had pulled back from this position but reminded us of his presence with a final artillery barrage that afternoon. On 27th., we were relieved by a Lowland Battalion, and marched happily back into Goch and, from there, to a village in the rear for several days of rest, fresh rations and sleep. The battle for Goch was a bad memory. The 1st. Gordons had taken the brunt of casualties, losing 11 Officers and 128 other ranks killed, wounded and missing in the town. The 5/7th. Gordons came off more lightly but, overall, had lost 133 men throughout the Rhineland campaign. We were glad to have survived, and be out of it.

Perhaps the last word on the Goch and Rhineland battles can be left with Field Marshal Montgomery. In his personal report he said that 鈥淓nemy parachute troops fought with a fanaticism unexcelled at any time in the war; and鈥�..the volume of fire from enemy weapons was the heaviest that had been met so far by British troops in the campaign.鈥�
I had survived a fierce baptism of fire.

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