大象传媒

Mr Donald Board interviewed by Margaret le Cras.
Edited transcript of tape recording of the interview

Things got very bad towards the end, and they got very depressed, they didn鈥檛 want the war, they鈥檇 tell me we want to be home with our families. They got very depressed, in fact there were quite a few suicides, and there were two from the battery I was with. There was one who was billeted in the floor above the kitchen, he committed suicide, he鈥�
I鈥︹�︹��. Sad, isn鈥檛 it.
Mr Board. He put his rifle, laid on his bed, put his rifle, tied a piece of cord from the trigger to his big toe, and put the end of the barrel in his mouth.
I鈥︹�︹��. Oh, dear, dear, dear.
Mr Board. Now there鈥檚 something about that I would like to tell you. His name was Untofficier [?Einmal] that was his name. Now on one of the occasions when Theo was over here, and Paula his wife, I said, Untofficier Einmal, his relatives, would like a photograph of his grave, he said he鈥檇 like to see it, I said I wouldn鈥檛 know where it is, we鈥檇 just have to go around to all the cemeteries where there鈥檚 Germans buried. So I took them around, and we went to
I鈥︹�︹��. St John鈥檚 would have been the closest church, eh?
Mr Board. We never went to St John鈥檚, we went first of all to the military cemetery at Fort George. He wasn鈥檛 there, and I took them to the one along Jerbourg road, on the left, there were foreign workers buried there as well, the Germans had built a lovely 鈥�
I鈥︹�︹��. Sort of memorial, eh?
Mr Board. 鈥est, with a big wooden carved laurel wreath on the wall, they made a lovely job of that. But he wasn鈥檛 there. I took them to St Saviours,
I鈥︹�︹��. Because they had some just inside the new cemetery, eh, little white crosses?, as you walked in, on the right, I remember them well..
Mr Board. He wasn鈥檛 there.
I鈥︹�︹��. You didn鈥檛 go and approach the officials?
Mr Board. No, if I couldn鈥檛 have found him, I would have. But anyhow, I thought, there鈥檚 the Foulon. So we went to the Foulon, and on the right, on the opposite side to the Cherubis sailors, there were some there, but he wasn鈥檛 there. So we thought, that鈥檚 it. So we came out, and then on the right, which is now the extension of the cemetery, it was just a field, then. But against the wall I saw some graves. So I said, There鈥檚 some more up there, so we went up, and he was there. So I took photographs, several, and I got them processed, and I sent the photos and the negatives to Theo, and he passed them on to his people. I was pleased with that.
I鈥︹�︹��. You did well. Because like those at St Saviour鈥檚, after a few years they dug them up, didn鈥檛 they, and sent them back home. Because nowadays they bury local people, and I go quite a lot there. It always seems strange to see proper graves there, because when I was a child it was always white crosses. To us, it was always the Germans, that was the German bit.
Mr Board. The other thing, it reminds me, the Cherubis funeral. I said to Theo, I鈥檇 like to go to the funeral. He said, 鈥淭hats ok, you go鈥�. To cycle from the Longstore to the Foulon is a long way, but we went. I鈥檝e got the original programme, so that was that. Oh yes, getting back to the depression of the soldiers, and that,
. But anyhow, going back to the last few months, they were really getting very depressed, and one morning, when we went over to the officer鈥檚 canteen, on the wall there was a big portrait of Hitler, and it was smashed, someone had thrown a tumbler and just smashed it up.

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