大象传媒

It was early August 1945, the temperature 90F. The sweat trickling down my back, as with a number of shipmates on the 2am - 8am watch we were dealing with the many assorted signals that were coming through to us from all over the globe. The setting of this scene was the Naval Headquarters at Trincomalee, a small and primitive town situated in the hottest part of Sri Lanka just 5F from the equator. It was the home base for the combined East Asian Fleets of the Allied Powers to whom it was vital due to its enormous and magnificent natural harbour. Surrounded by hills on three sides and protected by islands within the bay, the harbour seems like a vast inland lake. Admiral Lord Nelson once described it as 'The Finest harbour in the world'. Our headquarters overlooked the harbour, and from our building we could see many scores of warships peacefully anchored under the night sky. We knew however that on board there were sailors working in watches as we were, but in even hotter and more cramped conditions.

During this watch which we all disliked so much, we became aware of a rising murmur of voices from next door - the Cipher Office. The hatch between the offices opened and we were informed by a Wren Officer in a far from steady voice, that Germany had surrendered (such controlled excitement reminded me of days gone by at Derby House, Liverpool, H.Q. of Western Approaches, when we knew from the Plotting Room that a U-boat had been sunk). The watch during those early hours became particularly busy, for apart from all the usual signals, the radio operators were able to pick up all about the celebrations taking place in the U.K.
The last lap of the war had really begun!
The reaction of the servicemen both ashore and afloat was far more muted however for 'their war' was far from over. The war against the Japanese was yet to be finalised probably by invasion.
The next weeks saw the most frenetic activity. We would see immaculate vessels leave the harbour to return days later with their guns blackened with gunfire from their activity around the Andaman Islands (I learnt quite recently that the aircraft carrier Illustrious with her exceptionally thick steel decks was chosen to support the Americans, and had been attacked by two Kamikasi pilots. Both were shot down after minor damage to the carrier; one of them crashed on the deck).
At this time many more ships were sent out to support the East Asian Fleet. The previous Christmastide some of the wrens had boarded the duty dispatch boat and weaving in between the ships had sung carols to great applause and invitations on board. Now this would be almost impossible as the ships were crammed closer together.
August6th dawned, and completely and literally out the blue came the news that an atom had exploed at Hiroshimo. Three days later a second bomb devastated Nagasaki. On 15th August the Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced the surrender of Japan. World War 2 had really ended after six long years!! Orders came through that a day's leave be given to all (except the watchkeepers!) and that 'Spice the Mainbrace' was to be celebrated. This happened rarely and meant that an extra tot of rum should mark a special occasion. It could only be granted by the reigning monarch.
My duty finished at 12.30 on V.J. Day which enabled me to join the enormous crowd of servicemen and women (many of whom were flinging their caps into the air over and over again), and hundreds of the local community of Tamils and Singhalese lining the shores of the harbour. All were watching and cheering as the ships were dressed overall. Dusk fell: the harbour was now resplendent with coloured lights and the night sky erupted in a blaze of fireworks. The battleship Nelson was especially memorable being wreather in pearly white lights. We were seeing a sight never to be seen again, and one I shall never forget. Within a few days many of the ships left Trincomalee for service further afield and never returned, but not before receiving a signal from the King - still in my possession. In this he sent his 'heartfelt congratulations to the servicement and women of my Navies Armies and Airforces'. He remembered the fallen, and closed by saying 'I thank you, and bless you all'.

Postscript 2005

I have recently been fortunate enough to visit Sri Lanka again by taking advantage of the so-called Heroes Return Scheme. This made it possible to return to one's field of wartime duty and was financed by the Lottery Fund. With two ex-marines who had served on the carrier Illustrious we revisited Colombo the Capital city and stayed at the Galle Face Hotel once used by royalty and military brass; at Kandy with its beautiful gardens of cardoman cacao and cinnamon, and after a long and rather arduous journey, Trincomalee the most familiar to the three of us.
Despite the time gap Trincomalee hasn't changed a lot. It is larger but still very jungly though it is no longer a malaria area, so nets were no longer in use. Shopping is still a question of bartering at stalls as we did in our teens; traffic has increased, but the bullock bandies which took up so much 'road' space are rarely seen. There are a few good European type hotels along the deserted and beautiful palm fringed beaches. Devastation from the Tsumani disaster had been mostly cleared away. Trincomalee was less affected than many other parts, but we saw some still homeless families living in squalor under canvas. Talking to them and to others we found them as friendly and polite as could be.
There has always been great bitterness between the Hindu Tamils who live prinicpally in the north and east of the island and the Buddhist Singalese who form the greater number of the population. The Tsumani has sadly increased the political problem with disputes which concern the sharing of the three billion dollars Tsumani Aid FUnd. A governmental pact was made in June 2005 to 'work together in good faith' in order to 'facilitate and expedite' the process of rebuilding the affected areas. Despite this there was a 'controllable' uprising in Trinco, the day before our arrival. One can only hope that the good intentions of the pact are fulfilled, and that the tourism on which this beautiful country depends, increases.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.