大象传媒

TUNISIA

We soon passed through the frontier into French Tunisia, and on through the Mareth Line fortifications where the road was littered with shellholes and the ride was very rough. During the late afternoon we drove past a real French Foreign Legion fort of the 鈥淏eau Geste鈥� type about half a mile south of the highway. That evening we did not stop until quite late and an order was passed along the column that all ranks would sleep in rotation while on the move, and which was more easily said than done although the idea was a good one.

During the next two days we continued westwards and to the north through Sfax but passing other major towns and finally harboured seven kilometres south of Enfidaville, in view of the enemy but out of range, and settled down for the night.

I was unaware at the time but during our drive through Cairo an Arab, pushing a barrow, stepped out through our convoy causing H subsection鈥檚 vehicle to collide with the gun in front which jammed into its radiator and it had to be towed to Abusir for replacement. With time on their hands the gun crew decided to have a night out on the town, and on their return, late at night, they found their Troop captain waiting for them with the replacement vehicle, and not in a very good temper! The 鈥渘ew鈥� gun tower was almost a wreck. All the windows were missing, there were shrapnel holes in the bodywork and the engine sounded like a box of nuts and bolts being shaken up. However the driver and six gun crew piled in and off they went in pursuit of the regiment.

Before they reached Hellfire Pass one of the guntowers big ends went. They then managed to get a tow from a Leyland lorry belonging to a 鈥淟ight Aid鈥� detachment. It was a fixed tow consisting of a metal rod and they were swung about from one side of the road to the other all the way down the 鈥淧ass鈥�. A terrifying journey which lasted until they reached Benghazi where they were issued with a new three ton Dodge in which they drove for the remaining eight hundred miles or so to Enfidaville in much greater comfort and also where they joined up with our battery.

The next day was spent on maintenance. There was a lot of air activity but nothing came our way. Sadly our Commander Royal Artillery, who was in charge of all the Divisions artillery was killed in a road accident and so far as I am aware, became the Division鈥檚 first casualty since joining 8th Army. We stitched our Divisional signs on our shirts and buried a tin trunk full of equipment for which we had no use and ensured that everything was in good working order.

The next day, Saturday May 1st at 0715 hours we moved into our gun positions in the line as part of 8th Army. We were a few miles north of Enfidaville and to the east or sea side of the road that runs north to Tunis. This meant that we were on the extreme right of the British Army. In fact of the whole Allied army which stretched in a large semi-circle to the east, south and west of Tunis. We were in the open but alongside a plantation of alternate olive and fig trees and all of that first day was occupied with digging-in. My particular group worked on the command post which meant digging a hole for some five feet deep and about six feet by nine feet. The dimensions are not critical they really depended on the ease or otherwise of getting out the earth. At the same time sandbags had to be filled and be placed around above earth level to give protection for up to a height of six feet for those of us working in the command post. The roof was simply a tarpaulin and we had no protection against a direct hit. Nor for that matter did anyone else. The gunners had to dig pits two or three feet deep for their guns and of course all other personnel had to dig personal holes to sleep or shelter in when necessary.

By nightfall everybody was tired out and ready to take turns at sleeping. During the next day or so we were employed with the routine work of plotting enemy positions, working out the ranges and other details of targets as they were discovered and many other items. While this was going on we received a message that our journey from Kirkuk to Enfidaville, a distance of three thousand five hundred miles and going straight into the line was the longest approach march to a battlefield in the known history of warfare. Whether that was so I have no proof one way or the other.

Several small salvos of shells fell near us and there was one exciting moment when a German aircraft came over and we all took potshots at it with our rifles and TSMG鈥檚. Shortly afterwards it dawned upon us that our command post was in full view of the enemy who had control of all the high ground including a hill, probably a mile or less away and with what looked like a small temple upon it. It was from that peak that we could be seen and which no doubt accounted for some accurate firing on our battery position. Being on the extreme right of the regiment we were probably just in view of the enemy observation post. Indeed we had no sooner commenced digging a new command post than several salvos fell across the battery area wounding some men and damaging items of equipment. We were also shelled several times before the new command post was completed and on these occasions it was a case of dropping our spades and pickaxes and leaping into the hole we were digging for a few moments until we were sure there were no more shells on the way for the time being. I must say that there were some very near misses.

On May 7th we occupied our new command post and learning very quickly from experience, it was much better in design and more comfortable to operate. We were busy all day and were heavily shelled but luckily there were no direct hits and no casualties. We received the news that Tunis and Bizerta had been captured so the end was near for the 鈥淎frika Corps.鈥� I was on duty most of the night and felt tired the following day but we were all kept busy most of the time and I cat napped during periods of quiet. More shells fell near us probably some five or ten yards away and in the circumstances a miss was as good as a mile.

In the evening the pace hotted up and we were called upon to undertake counter-battery fire which meant shooting at enemy artillery in an attempt to disrupt or better still, destroy their guns. This was followed by a period of 鈥渄efensive fire鈥� which required us to put down a curtain of shells in front of our own infantry to break up some kind of enemy activity, probably fighting patrols. During all the firing which was very noisy a fair number of enemy shells fell on or around the regimental area and a sergeant was killed when one exploded on the parapet surrounding his gun.

Sunday May 9th was chosen for our Division to put in an attack and all the afternoon was occupied with working out details of a supporting barrage for the engagement which would begin in the early evening in full daylight. Our infantry the 9th Royal Fusiliers in this instance, had to advance in the open in full view and uphill towards the enemy lines. The enemy was well dug in and very experienced. Our infantry were taking part in their first battle and in somewhat adverse conditions and I did not think they stood much of a chance even though they were preceded by a fairly hefty barrage. Our battery provided the accompanying observation post party and its captain was wounded and two signallers killed. The attack failed although no doubt a lot of experience was gained by all who took part. Nevertheless it did seem rather a pity that a set piece attack was organised when probably a series of fighting patriots would have kept the enemy just as much on their toes and possibly at the cost of far less loss of life among our infantry. I believe it was during this fighting that the 9th Royal Fusiliers found themselves being counter attacked by Germans in Sherman tanks recently captured from the Americans in the 1st Army sector.

The day following this our first battle was very quiet with everyone pausing for breath and making up for lost sleep. I took the opportunity to dig a much deeper spit trench under my 鈥渂ivvy鈥� and was in bed by 2200 hours. In the morning I was up at 0330 hours, had a hasty breakfast and together with one of my command post officers and the always necessary signaller, went up to the observation post in the relative security of a brengun carrier and took over from its present incumbents. The soldiers we relieved were some 鈥渒iwis鈥� from the 2nd New Zealand Division which had fought, on and off, through the desert campaign and were really a fine bunch of soldiers. The last few yards of our journey was on hands and knees up a spit trench to the top of a hillock and we could observe the enemy lines through stereoscopic telescope which was so made as to make the landscape stand out in relief. Our signaller took over a small dugout on our side of the hill. From 0630 to 0920 our guns fired a barrage in support of the French troops on our left and out of our range of vision. We could see very few enemy. They were very well concealed and not disposed to show themselves except for the call of nature and even then only on very rare occasions. Nevertheless they were very active with their mortar fire and particularly with their Nebelwerfers which fired salvoes of six large, about six inch mortars at a time. They came over with a loud undulating screaming noise and exploded in a series of almighty bags. During one of these periods of activity two signallers were killed not far away from our position. After a fairly uncomfortable and sleepless night we were relieved the next morning and I returned to duty in our command post.

During the morning of May 12th there was a great deal of activity coming from the German lines. This culminated in the German 90th Light Division opposite us laying down its arms and surrendering at 1630 hours. On our side we received the order 鈥淐ease firing鈥�. An order given only in circumstances such as these. The 90th Light was the last to surrender and many prisoners came in during the evening. While this was going on elements of our Division 鈥� 56th (London) 鈥� who had passed through the German lines following their surrender, became the first troops to link up with soldiers from the 1st Army who had advanced along the coast road from the west.

On the 13th thousands of the enemy passed through our lines all day long simply because we were alongside the only road of any importance in the area and I was greatly impressed by their bearing and discipline. They were gathered into their various units, fed when necessary, given cigarettes and then marched off down the road to captivity. The Afrika Corps had been a courageous and honourable foe and I saw not the slightest sign of dislike or rancour on either side. During the day news came through that 150,000 had surrendered so far. The afternoon and evening were very quiet, a photograph was taken in front of our command post and everyone was very relaxed. The next morning I managed to arrange a motorbike ride through the enemy lines just to have a good look round. Our battery position was on flat countryside, a few feet above sea level, but as I have already mentioned, the enemy was situated at the beginning of a range of hills which stretched westwards across that part of north Africa as far as the Atlantic Ocean and in their position could see very movement the 8th Army made. In the afternoon we all went for a swim and upon our return commenced packing up all our equipment into the appropriate vehicles.

Over the next four days we moved back a short distance to a 鈥渞est camp鈥� and after making ourselves comfortable, spent most of the time taking out our guns on calibration exercises which really meant checking their actual against their theoretical performances. Each gun had fired hundreds of shells and any change in behaviour had to be measured. Each day we were up at 0430 hours and cooked our own breakfast but otherwise it was a very relaxed procedure and I certainly enjoyed the change and the experience because gun calibration did not happen all that often.

On our return we were told that General Montgomery had ordered a general tightening up of discipline and appearance of all ranks in 8th Army now that the 鈥淒esert War鈥� had finally ended and so we spent hours on marching drill and PT. Our present camp was on sandy ground which does not provide a good base for marching, in fact it was hard going but the PT and rifle drill was easy enough to manage. Unfortunately, all this coincided with a showery period which made the ground very soggy and interrupted parades on several occasions. Nevertheless we were by the sea and thoroughly enjoyed the swimming. Also the countryside behind us was generally green and the weather pleasantly warm. In between times we saw an open air film 鈥淵ou鈥檒l never get rich鈥� with Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth.

There was a Victory parade through Tunis and Eddie was among those present representing the contingent from 56th (London) Division. General Montgomery was on the saluting base with Generals Eisenhower, Girand and Alexander. It was a grand occasion and I鈥檓 sure that all those present were proud to take part.

All ranks in the regiment were allowed a day in Tunis and I went with two members of our command post, Alan and Stan, on May 23rd. In those days it was a small town, but very pleasant with date palms and shady arcades. As the group I was with arrived fairly early and had time to spare, we went to the cinema and saw the British film 鈥淭arget for tonight鈥�. Unfortunately the French audience, almost to the last man, woman and child, must have had garlic with their breakfast followed more recently by chewing gum. The atmosphere was awful, but needless to say, we all enjoyed the film. There was no food to be bought, which was a great pity, for soldiers are always hungry and tend to make for the nearest caf茅 and so on this occasion we had to make do with the 鈥渉aversack rations鈥� issued before we left camp. All things considered it was an enjoyable day and one to remember.

Two days later we repacked our vehicles and moved off at 0830 hours on the road back to Tripoli. I had a motorbike to ride, one of the Matchless 350cc brought out from England and a very good machine indeed. We went through Sousse where I was able to stop and buy some apricots off a barrow. The weather was now very hot and blowing in straight from the Sahara. One member of our battery had a touch of heatstroke, but recovered later. After Sousse the road became very rough, however and it was a relief to pull into a laager in the cool of the evening, have a good wash, a meal, a cigarette and a good old chinwag. We were undoubtedly a very friendly crowd all things considered and having been together, some of us, since 1939, there was never a shortage of topics for discussion. The next day we passed through Sfax, which was very much knocked about and also Gabes and then on through a very barren stretch of countryside. I took a turn on guard duty that night and discovered that the temperature had dropped very rapidly at that time of the year and the air became quite nippy.

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