大象传媒

Hollins Family at War: Reflections for D-Day 6th June 1944 for the Hartfield Chronicle June 2004
When celebrating the 60th anniversary of D Day it is difficult for us to imagine that this was a time of total war.

Many families were involved in the War Effort and many totally committed; so it is cathartic for me to reflect on such times, just from my family鈥檚 perspective.

My father-in-law, Captain Bill Rowe, of Brockworth Lodge, was a British Army Dental Surgeon, attached to the Belgian Army, which is why my wife, Jackie, has a Belgian godfather, Belgian Army Captain Robert Baugniet; he is living in Canada, now aged 92.

Jackie鈥檚 Uncle, Cecil Edwards, of Upper Hartfield was a Royal Navy Officer on a Minesweeper in the Channel during D-Day and her Uncle Leonard was a Mechanical Instructor in the Tank Corps.

My grandmother, Elizabeth Smart, was Mayor of Brackley Northamptonshire in 1939 and was involved in local government throughout the war.

My mother, Anne Smart later Hollins, and 3 of her sisters, Jo, Liz and Margaret all served in different ways. Unlike today, ladies (and men) of their generation who did not usually drive but my grandparents taught all their 7 children to drive. Mother came to London in 1939 and joined the London Auxiliary Ambulance Service, with Aunt Jo as drivers. They were stationed at the Savoy Hotel throughout the Blitz.

My father, John Hollins, a WW1 veteran of the Canadian Army (18th Battalion, 2nd Division Canadian Expeditionary Force, 1914-1918) twice wounded by shell-fire in France; he was in the Heavy Rescue Section of the Auxiliary London Fire Brigade throughout the Blitz with Aunt Jo鈥檚 husband, Uncle Johnny Sterba.

Uncle Jack Smart was a Fire Officer in Oxfordshire and Uncle Son (Graham)Smart was a Sergeant in the RAF and served in North Africa for 3 years. My Aunt Liz Smart later Ferguson was a Supervisor in the Westminster GPO Telephone Exchange - very top secret! Her husband, Uncle Robert Ferguson was an RAMC Medic and Ambulance Driver.

My Aunt Margaret was a Sergeant in the ATS and her husband, Uncle Major Clarke, was an Infantry Officer, wounded by a mortar shell in Palestine in the Great War, then a Major in the Royal Artillery in France 1939. He was evacuated at Dunkirk. Uncle gave Aunt a .25 Browning pistol for her 鈥榩rotection鈥�. On D-Day he was in charge of co-ordinating the landing of the Artillery鈥檚 Land Radar Ranging Units. After the war, their daughter, Gillian, married Gerard Schwartz, a German born Jew, now a naturalised Frenchman, who had escaped to France in 1938 and spent the war with the Maquis (the French Resistance).

Many of Mother鈥檚 friends were similarly involved; Anne Clayton, my godmother and Amy North, were both Ambulance Drivers. 鈥楻obbie鈥� Robinson was in the Land Army, Tom Phillips was a Bevan boy. Gwen Hutt was in the WAAF, Joanne Romaine was a WRNS Lieutenant and Frank Creasey was a Royal Navy Signaller on a Landing Craft on Gold Beach; his LCT was sunk on the 2nd trip, he spent 3 days with other survivors, dodging shell and mortar fire before getting back to 鈥楤lighty鈥�.

Then in May 1945, the war ended; they had 鈥榙one their bit鈥� and survived; but they rarely talked about their efforts. This is now recognised as traumatic stress, complicated by 鈥榮urvivor guilt鈥� but, as they said, they didn鈥檛 have counselling, they just had to get on with life.

60 years on, many are gone but we must not forget them nor the many others who laid down their lives for our liberty.

On 9th November 2004, my wife Jackie and I visited Ieper (Ypres) with the Drill Section of the Surrey Fire Brigade for Remembrance Day at Menin Gate. One of our neighbours, Tim and the other members of the Drill Section have marched in the Remembrance Parade for the past 22 years in full uniform complete with their impressive Dress Brass Helmets.

We left Reigate for Flanders at 7 a.m. on Tuesday 9th November and in Ieper at midday. After visiting St Martin鈥檚 Cathedral we went to Tyne-Cot Cemetery. Flanders Fields are very flat, vast water meadows and Tyne-Cot was a German position, holding the high ground with 2/3mile views over the Allies position. We saw Hellfire Corner and some of the remaining Marker Stones that indicate the extent of the German advance. At the Hooge Museum & Crater, where we had our first view of Sanctuary Wood, where a Canadian relative, serving with the Princess Patricia鈥檚, was killed and Hill 62. (62 metres above sea level).
In the evening our hosts, the Surrey Fire Brigade, entertained to dinner Lt. Rik Vanderckhove, one of the twin brother Buglers of the Ieper Fire Brigade, and Noel Vallaeys-Dezeure, our Battlefields Guide.

On Wednesday we visited Essex Farm, where Lt. Col. McRae composed 鈥業n Fanders Fields鈥�, en-route for Vladso Cemetery with the and memorial statues of two grieving and bereft parents by Kathe Kollwitz. Then we went on to Langemark Cemetary for a very moving funeral service of 16 unknown German soldiers. Here there are four memorial statues of unarmed soldiers, also by Kathe Kollwitz. One is not sure what the men are feeling, shock or shame, but all are breathtakingly poignant. The sheer numbers killed in Trench warfare and still missing, without any known grave are staggering. Today such casualties would be unacceptable.

In the afternoon we visited Ploegsteert, where the 1915 Christmas Truce and Football Match took place. Then to Messines Ridge and Messines Church, where Hitler was treated for wounds. Attacking is always harder than defending but here Allied losses were 17,000 killed but the German losses were 25,000. We then visited the Pool of Peace or Lone Street Mine Crater at Spangbroekmolen, the Island of Ireland Peace Park, and Voormezeele.

Voormezeele was where my father鈥檚 unit of the 18th Canadian Battalion CEFwas stationed and wounded on 23.11.1915. My father鈥檚 record states, 鈥溾�lown into trench by shell whilst carrying barbed wire.鈥�
He rejoined his unit on 15.1.16 only to be wounded again 26.4.16 at St Eloi 鈥溾�hell blast, blown off horse. Found hanging by left foot, unconscious, from his loose horse鈥檚 stirrup with Shrapnel wounds.鈥� Ironically, his unit was relieved on the 27th.
In the evening we then went to the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate, and found the panel of names of the Princess Patricia鈥檚 and the 18th Battalion.

Being in Ieper on Thursday the 11th, 90 years on from 1914 and 60 years from D Day, was moving. In the morning we went to the St George鈥檚 Chapel 9.30 service and then had the incredible privilege of being in a section inside the Gate, with a direct view of the entire 11 o/clock Ceremony of wreath laying and March Past.

This was a very special journey with so many emotional and humbling experiences that has given full meaning and understanding to my father鈥檚 silence on his experiences and Wilfred Owen鈥檚 鈥楢nthem for Doomed Youth鈥�. As if to underline the futility and obscenity of war, Owen was killed on 4 November 1918.

So we who are left must read the names on the War Memorial afresh, remember they were young, with an average age 21, and WE WILL REMEMBER THEM all on the 6th June 2004 and on Armistice Day 11th November.

Jim Hollins, Brockworth, Hartfield Sussex TN 7 4JR November 2004

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