大象传媒

From an early age my ambition was to become a railway man, following my father's footsteps, not as a guard but possibly as a signalman. At the age of 16, when I tried to do this, I found that the minimum age limit had been raised to 18 years where a night shift was involved, thus precluding me from employment as a telephonist in a signal box, which would have been my starting point.

So, what to do next? Well, I had always been keen on things military and with the aid of a booklet or two from Magor Post Office I read about joining the army and, in particular, the Royal Engineers as an apprentice tradesman.

Ignoring the warning signs of the world situation, as youngsters of that age do(!), I sat the Entrance Examination held at the barracks in Newport and on 8th July 1939, at the age of 16, I enlisted for 8 years regular service, followed by 4 years in the reserve, the whole term to commence from when I became 18 years of age. On 10th July 1939 I was sent to Fort Darland, Chatham, to the newly-formed Army Technical School, Royal Engineers, training as a carpenter. Some 6 weeks later, having completed basic military training, we - some 600 boys - were sent on leave.

Before that leave expired I received a telegram which stated starkly "Leave cancelled. Return immediately." I returned to Chatham the next day, where we were issued with steel helmets and gas masks.

A week or so later, on Sunday, 3rd September, 1939, we were in the camp church for morning service - compulsory in those days! - when the service was stopped and the announcement made that war had been declared. We immediately left, and were directed to air raid shelters, but the air raid alarm turned out to be false on that occasion.

Well, after this, routine continued more or less normally, with trade training and, of course, military drills, PT, etc., until in June 1940 we were sent home, as the camp was required urgently for troops returning from Dunkirk.

A letter soon followed which stated that we would be home for some months, and could get a civilian job meanwhile, but we would be recalled when accommodation became available. I immediately contacted the Great Western Railway and was taken on right away as a telephonist in Severn Tunnel Junction, East Signal Box, working under the supervision of the signalman, Mr. Walter Jones, who lived in Portskewett - the minimum age limit of 18 having been suspended because of the war. So here I was doing the job I initially wanted, but of course now committed to rejoining the army.

In December 1940 the call came, which meant I had to leave the railway and return to the army, this time to Beachly Camp, Chepstow, where I completed my trade training and was then posted to No. 1 Training Battalion Royal Engineers at Clitheroe in Lancashire, where we were instructed in the building of bridges on land and pontoon bridges over rivers, lifting mines, laying minefields, etc., - all part of the sappers' job. Following this, I was sent to 14 Field Squadron RE in the recently formed Guards Armoured Division. The morale in this division was very high and were were all, that is to say, gunners, sappers, etc., just as keen as the guardsmen themselves to be part of this division.

Well, we trained and trained, exercise followed exercise, lasting anything from 3 to 14 days at a time in various parts of the country, ranging from Somerset, Wiltshire, Norfolk and finally, north Yorkshire, and then, in April 1944, we moved to Ovingdean, near Brighton.

June 1944 saw the Normandy landings in which the Guards Armoured Division was involved, not in the initial landings but in the breakout from the bridgehead which had to follow. A journey which ended for us on the banks of the River Elbe in North Germany - but that's another story!

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