大象传媒

WILFRED JORDAN
3 ROYAL TANK REGIMENT
Bill was born in 1918; in Faversham area, Kent. His mother died in the great 鈥榝lu epidemic. His father approached his maternal grandparents, asking them to care for him and offering fmancial support for his care. Then father disappeared, so did the fmancial support. Now he is believed to have risen in the Australian Diplomatic service.
Bill was brought up by his grandparents at Preston, a village on the road between Canterbury and Sandwich. This was in the Kent Coalfield. Worked on farm, bird scaring, potato lifting. Sometimes he was sent to the witch for white oil when they all got soaked.
1936 he joined Royal Tank Corps; enlisting at Canterbury. He was put in a wooden shed which contained two fire buckets and two sand buckets, as well as several beds. Settling down to sleep, he was a little astonished when an N.C.O. entered the hut, took one of the fire buckets, threw the water across the parade ground, and replaced the bucket on its hook. This seemed a strange procedure to a country boy. He understood the reason after the pubs threw out!. After one night in barracks given a travel warrant and a packed meal, sent to Wool by train, then walked to Bovington Training Depot. lIc Recruits鈥� Hut was L/c Fyfe.
One year鈥檚 training 鈥� square bashing and drill ad nauseum 鈥� no crew training, no trade training. Army Pay 鈥� 2/- per day, 14/- per week; BUT 4/ compulsory savings, so at pay parade, with multiple saluting, each private received 10/- less Barrack Damages.
Opted for Third Battalion at Lydd. Met Cpl Bill Close and Lie Jim Cornwell. On Sundays (in bed or out of barracks), these two sold afternoon tea from a bucket, and single cigarettes, which could just be afforded after necessary items such as metal polish, boot polish and blanco.
More marching and drill. On winter gunnery course at Lulworth; 2pdr and Vickers, firing and stripping. Good food, but bitterly cold.
Back at Lydd he had the chance to drive Mark 6b Light and Mark 5 Medium tanks. He found that the cooks had insufficient plates to serve the battalion; and depended on ability to wash dinner plates to reuse for sweet! To Tilshead on manoeuvre, then straight to Warminster in new barracks being built. (Hore Belisha Barracks.) Minimal crew training, but much drill.
1939 December married Betty Thorne of Westbury.
1940 During Dunkirk evacuation, Third R.T.R. sent on 鈥淔orlorn Hope鈥� to Calais ( See Airey Neave, 鈥淭he Flames of Calais鈥�). Machine gun loading tools

were withdrawn; petrol tanks drained and petrol stored in flimsies; guns filled & coated with heavy grease, and flimsies loaded on top of tanks. (unbelievably these were expected to go ashore into action immediately.)
On arrival crane drivers were on strike, but there were R.T.R. men who were able to drive the cranes and unload the tanks. They found wood to build fires to boil water to degrease guns; - belts for 陆鈥� machine guns of light tanks had to be loaded without tools, that is with their fmgers!
As tanks were knocked out and worn out Colonel Keller evacuated 鈥渦seless mouths鈥�, there being no replacements. They were sent in 鈥淪.S. Kandahar鈥�, a collier, and had to climb down a rope ladder to the hold.
He enjoyed a short leave with Betty, then the Regiment embarked in Liverpool and set out for the Desert. Passing West Africa, they were not allowed shore leave in Leopoidville because of prevalent disease. They went ashore in Durban, (see 鈥淏razen Chariots鈥� by Robert Crisp), then on past Suez, arriving in Port Tewfik late at night. They were taken by train to Al Amyra. The R.A.S.C.delivered tents; they had to erect the marquees first, then bell tents. It was abominably hot by day and freezing by night. Eventually tanks arrived, being put ashore in Alexandria. An empty cotton warehouse was acquired to hide the tanks from reconnoitring aircraft. They went 鈥渦p the blue鈥� in 3 tonners. They stopped at Mersa Matruh, then on to Sidi Barrani, which they left quickly, reassembling at Beni Yussuf.
The next few months are remembered as constant journeying, advancing and retreating as each side tried to reach its opponent鈥檚 base 1,400 miles away. This meant that supply dumps had to be created and protected. A notable event was the arrival of the Grant tanks from the USA. These had a real gun, but were very tall. Far too much had to be exposed to bring that 75mm into use; its mounting, low on one side of the vehicle, restricted its traverse.
On one occasion Bill was sent back to collect new tyres. Sitting beside the driver of the three-tonner, he glanced into the mirror as they drove by the Sweet Water Canal. He noticed the appearance of an arm from the canvas cover, which quickly vanished, then reappeared and vanished again. Because he has a suspicious mind he asked the driver to stop, and drawing their pistols they jumped down and went to the back of the lorry. Behold two gentlemen busy throwing out tyres, which had an excellent sale price. After some friendly persuasion these were persuaded to walk back, collecting the tyres they had thrown out, and reloading them. The rest was a matter for the Military Police.
An apocryphal story remembered by Bill: - picture a squadron stopped in the desert, cleaning guns, maintaining radios, filling up with petrol and ammunition. Front centre, a man in a black beret, shorts and desert boots brewing tea on a petrol fire.
Enter left: a Brigadier in ajeep. Brigadier 鈥� 鈥淲hat鈥檚 the situation forward?鈥�
Tea Brewer 鈥� 鈥淭he usual two thirds, I believe, Sir鈥�. Brigadier 鈥� 鈥淭he usual two thirds?鈥�
Tea Brewer 鈥淭he Third Tanks versus the Third Reich, Sir鈥�.
About this time Bill was acting as TQMS, and a real regular one was sent out from England. This worthy promptly charged Bill with negligence, for having failed to maintain an establishment of Motor Cycle stores.
The matter was dealt with on C.O鈥檚 Orders, when Bill had to explain that these parts had been withdrawn to Brigade Headquarters on the Brigadier鈥檚 orders. Bill remained with the Third as T.Q.M.S.
After Recce Troop had been withdrawn from Tripoli (鈥渢o allow a more famous regiment the honour of accepting the surrender鈥�) they returned to England.
They were allowed a week鈥檚 leave for each year spent abroad, and Bill met his daughter Jackie.
The Regiment was sent to East Anglia; he remembers waiting in the drizzle on the platform of Essendine Junction. Now they trained for D Day, joining 11 Armoured Division, who were given this regiment of experienced Desert Rats from 7 Armoured Division. They still lacked a British tank with a respectable gun.
From the beaches of Normandy they progressed through the grinding attrition of the Bocage. He remembers a situation that could have been tragic, but in retrospect was funny, once the prospect of death and mutilation had passed. B echelon was stopped for tea in a French village, when in the not great enough distance appeared a Tiger. Everyone set out to start the vehicles and take cover. After a time Bill noticed a lorry, whose engine was roaring madly, standing still, just as in a Disney film. The Tiger had disappeared; when they looked under the stationary vehicle they found that a shot from his 88 had neatly removed the differential, and that nobody had been harmed.
In taking Amsterdam they lost their Colonel, Silvertop, and the Second in Command. These two men are honoured by the Netherlands to this day.
The Third expected to be sent to the Reichswald to help retrieve the situation of the near breakthrough in the Battle of the Bulge.
However, having recovered the worn out Shermans they were exchanging for new Comets, which had a long scaled-down 17 pdr, they learned that the situation was now well in hand.
Bill remembers his horror when 11 Armoured Division discovered Belsen. To commit such atrocity seemed to be beyond the capacity of any sane man. It left a deep mark on every member of the Third.
It was a happier occasion when the advancing Regiment met a column of British Prisoners of War, and found among them one of their own who had been captured in the Calais adventure. He was very glad that they had caught up with him at last. The Third fmished the war in the environs of Hamburg, marking their entrance by sinking an escaping ship with one of their new 77mm guns. Their exploits were highlighted by the arrival of six new, well- proportioned tanks whose design had not been determined by the convenience of loading on British Railways. They had a lovely not scaled down seventeen pounder gun! With these they might take on Panther with s reasonable chance of a fair match. Then they looked at the calendar - MAY 9 1945.
Bill鈥檚 future was determined when the Third received a new Quartermaster 鈥� the man who had been sent back after the motorcycle spares fiasco. He decided that his best plan was to accept demobilisation as his seven years was long completed, and to devote his life to Betty and his daughter Jackie.

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