大象传媒

It seems strange to me now, looking back after such an expanse of time to realise how one's recollection of shattering historical events can be faint compared with odd experiences encountered during the same period.

In the beautiful summer days of 1940 the news of the fall of France came as a thunderclap, yet strangely with the shock came an inexplicable feeling of relief.
But then there came a period of tension and confusion as with great haste the government ordered the evacuation of school children from London, for fear of imminent German invasion.

As a young teacher at that time I was involved in this mass movement, when hordes of children were assembled on the platforms of the great London stations, together with hastily summoned teachers from all over the capital. The trains were hastily packed from the waiting crowds in no discernible order; no one knew where we were going, or what would happen when we got there - only that this time it would be a very long journey.

We tried to check the places we passed through, but of course, the names of most stations had been removed.
But at long last the train stopped. Everyone tumbled out, and we found we were at Okehampton - in Devon we tried to explain to the bewildered children.
Harassed officials began splitting the children up into smaller sections, which were then despatched in various directions. Eventually I found myself in charge of about 30 children (all unknown to me) of various ages; we were taken off to "places unknown", which turned out to be a hamlet called Drewsteignton.

Here the children, dropping with fatigue and confusion as they were, at last were accommodated. When this was accomplished I was conducted to a huge rectory, built no doubt in an era when it would have been filled with the rector's children and servants. But now it looked desolate with one disused wing completely shut up.

The vicar's wife received me (I fancy apprehensively) and took me to a room in this abandoned wing. This was a vast empty chamber with a bare wooden floor, a small iron bed in one corner, flanked by a washstand and on one wall a picture. This I discovered a little later showed "The Last Judgement" vividly enough to strike fear into the most hardened sinner's heart.

The whole scene rises up before me now, and I recall my sensation of desolation that chilled my very heart, and quite eclipsed all fears for the fate of France in the grip of the Nazis and subjected to the dreaded conquering Hitler.

This story was added to the website by Julie Kendall, volunteer, on behalf of Miss Hazard, who accepts the site's terms and conditions.

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