大象传媒

This story,submitted by Neil Garside, is about his fathers war experiances.ONE MAN'S WAR
Lieutenant-Commander E.T. Garside DSC VRD RNVR of Abbots Well, Wendover Road, Well End
With war clouds gathering in Europe, Eric Garside was one of the enthusiastic weekend sailors who answered the Admiralty's call for such to enrol in the Royal Naval Volunteer Supplementary Reserve which he joined in January 1937 and was attached to the London Division RNVR. He was born in Bristol on 26 October 1907 and educated at Kings' College, Taunton. His work in London enabled him to join the Thames Division of the Metropolitan Special Constabulary under Commander A.E.P. Weiman RN and also to attend evening classes in seamanship arranged by the Little Ship Club.
Called up early in 1940, he received initial training at HMS "King Alfred" at Hove. His fIrst taste of active service was as participant in Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of Dunkirk, as captain of "Elizabeth Green" and "Andorra II", two of the so-called Little Ships. He assisted in the embarkation of many British troops from the beaches of La Panne and on the final night of the evacuation entered Dunkirk to embark French soldiers and return to Ramsgate.
After brief service in minesweepers based at Lowestoft and Grimsby, he was appointed to command H.M. Motor Minesweeper 41 on commissioning at Richards Ironworks, Lowestoft. The vital task of keeping open the convoy route leading to the Thames Estuary and thence to London was entrusted to wooden-built minesweepers, of which MMS 41 was one, which were required to clear aircraft-laid magnetic and acoustic mines. Based at Sheerness, MMS 41 over a 2-year period, accounted for over 100 such mines whilst sweeping in formation. During that period he was mentioned in a Despatch for distinguished service.
In August 1943 Garside was despatched to the USA, there to commission and command BYMS 2061, a wooden-built magnetic/acoustic minesweeper being built at Biloxi, Miss. and destined for service in European waters. He had the unique experience of commissioning the ship under the American flag, as a White Ensign was not available at the time. Having delivered the ship to the Clyde, Garside joined the 5th Minesweeping Flotilla in the newly-commissioned Admiralty trawler HMS "Hascosay" and proceeded to the Mediterranean where he was Senior Officer of danlayers for 18 months to December 1945.
He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for gallantry and devotion to duty in operations which led to the clearance of the Aegean and the relief of Greece. He also qualified for the Naval General Service Medal with Minesweeping Clasp for clearance duties after the war ended. Demobilised in 1946 with the rank of Lieutenant-Commander RNVR, he remained on the Reserve and returned to his pre卢war employment with Chase National Bank in London.
Eric Garside passed away peacefully at home in Henley on Thames aged 93 years, Easter 2001.

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