大象传媒

My fathers two older brothers both left port glasgow in 1932 to join the army, there nerest place was Glasgow and the famous HLI (Highland Light Infanry) or HELLS LITTEL INFANTS as some of the British Army knows them as. So by 1939 they both where trained soldiers, common 58s but not for long my uncle Robert Mitchell became Captain Robert Mitchell and my uncle James Mitchell became Regimantal Sergeant Majior James Mitchell. Both went to France in the British Expredishenery Force so both were Dunkirk veterens. After this they went to the far east in the forgoten army in the fall of Singapor they were seperated James managed to escape the on coming Japanes with some of his Regiment Not alot! but Robert was not so lucky.
So one dark and cold morning the postman knocked on my Grandmothers door with the dreaded telegram the war office is sorry to inform you that your son
Cpt Robert Mitchell of the HLI was killed in action
(The exact date I am not to sure)
The devistation this caused was imence to this family and countles thousands of others.
At the end of the war in Europe and the far east my father was working in the ship yards in port Glasgow when he very nearly came to blows with fellow work mate over the front page of the daily paper The Daliy Record they carred a front page picture of the liberation of one of the now imfamus jap prisoner of war camps. What his workmate had said that had so upset my father was had he seen the picture of his brother in the paper, my father said my brother was killed in the fall of singapore to which his workmate said take a look. On inspection of the paper the men were scelitons but one was very like his brother Robert os he ran home to tell my gran the news on arriving home people from the war office were with my gran telling her that it could be possible that robert was indeed still alive and a liberated prisoner of the japs
This was indeed the case but it took more than a year for Robert to return to these shores as he and his commerades were sent to Canida to recouperate from there ordel at the hands of the Japanes also the goverment didnot want the British public to see these men in that sorry state.
He stayed in the army and married a girl from essex had three children but never came home as notlong after the birth of his third chiled he became mentaly ill and was sent to a hospital He could not stop re-living the camps.
My father died in Aug 2000 and had never seen his brother since 1946 when he came home from Canida to the day he died I know this had always hanted him as every year he watched armist sunday parade on the 大象传媒 and would always say may be this year I will see him.
From my side of the story my uncle Robert had three of a Family not one of them has ever been in touch with any of there fathers family I often wonder if they ever think were their name Mitchell came from or indeed were thier father came from.

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