大象传媒

This story was added to the People's War website by a volunteer from CSV on behalf of Mr Fred Mason. Mr Mason fully understands the site's terms and conditions and the story has been added to the site with his permission.

1939 - Spring: two weeks camp at Welbeck Abbey, "B" squadron. Commanded by Lord Ridley, mainly horse training.

1939 - September 1st received calling up papers, reported to Gosforth Park. 3 weeks arms drill and PT (no horses). Regiment moved to Yorkshire, "B" squadron billeted at Wydale, horses arrived.

1939 - Moved to Louth, Lincolnshire. Dec. Horses handed over to another regiment. Northumberland Hussars now became 102nd Northumberland Hussards Light Anti-Tank and anti-aircraft regiment.

1940 - May and June. M.T. instruction, Bofor Gun and anti-tank training. Moved to Alford, Northamptonshire. "B" squadron based at Moulton, extra reinforcements drafted into regt. in September in preparations for overseas. November embarked from Liverpool on SS Strathallon, called at Freetown, South Africa, then Durban where shoreleave was granted. Arrived at Port Said, Egypt, December 1940. Train to El Tahag, 70 miles from Cairo near sweet water canal. Billeted in tents. Regt. equipment ready for Greece as part of the first armoured brigade. Further training.

1941 - 1st April "B" Battery boarded SS Cameronia for Piraevs, Athens. Left for Northn Greece-Kozani, complete change of weather now, wet, slush and snow. Tried to hold the Metamorphos pass with allies including Greek horse artillery but to no avail. April 22nd-23rd dive bombing and heavy tank attacks continued, it was now a rearguard action. For the Northumberland Hussards and the New Zealand Allies. Athens was reached on the 25th April after a twelve hour battle and 160 mile march through the night.
26th April on Rafina beach near Athens waiting to be evacuated, all our guns and equipment was destroyed by us.
27th April taken off beach by HMS Havoc (destroyer) and landed at Suda on the island of Crete, 2nd May regiment was equipped with rifles to fight as infantry on the Akrotiri peninsula between Canea and Suda. From 15th May air attacks were heavy and more frequent, eleven gliders landed in our area but by the 26th May the peninsula was under our control and all gliders were destroyed. Unfortunately we were gradually losing ground on other parts of the island, May 27th evacuation of Crete was decided. We had to withdraw across the mountains from the town of Suda to Sphakia, a distance of 50 miles, it was there that we hoped to embark to Egypt. A lot of troops did get away but owing to heavy shipping losses, embarkation was stopped and we who were left had orders to capitulate to advancing German forces on 31st May. We were now prisoners of war and we were taken from Crete on italian ships to Salonika, after a few days we were transported by rail on cattle wagons to Germany, it took seven days and we weren't in a very good state on arrival.
I spent four years as a prisoner - two years in Stalag IIID Berlin and two years in Stalag IVB Muhlberg.

1945 - On April 23rd our camp stalag IVB was liberated by the Russian Horse Soldiers (Cossacks) - they had little food as they lived on the land as they advanced, we were hungry so we left the camp and found our own food. We were invited to have food with Russian troops later, a lot of them were women, well dressed and well armed. Two to three weeks later we were exchanged with Russian prisoners by the Americans, we were taken to an airforce base from where we were flown to worthing in Southern England and home. Six week leave granted and then had to report back to the army - demob was still a long way off.

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