大象传媒

My late grandfather joined the army in september 1939 at the age of 18. After basic training he was sent to France as part of the BOEF. As a young child I can remember him telling me that he was in a regiment with many of his friends from home, one in particular he had known since a very young age. They were in full retreat from the German advance and, as happened to many other units, they becamce seperated and were left to fend for themselves. Eventually the two of them made it to Dunkirk and found a surreal scene of complete dveatation and carnage being opposed in a very British way. I can't remember how long he had to wait on the beach but I do remember him telling me about the conditions there. He told me of the long lines of men stretching across the sand and down into the sea, of the wounded men being cared for and of the dead left lying where they fell. Most of all I can remember him telling me of the German planes that were dive bombing the beaches. One plane came in low flying right up the beach firing its guns. My Grandfather and his friend dived for cover and as the plane flew over he shouted to his friend "Come on lets go" His friend who he had known as a young child was dead, having been shot through the head whilst lying right beside him. He made it back to England and went on to fight in the far east against the Japanese. I wanted to tell his story as I feel it is important that we remember not only the horror of what happened but the courage and discpline of those who faced it.

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