World War Ii

[naomi24]

I watched a documentary tonight about Malta during World War II. Every time I see something like this I wonder how people coped. The bombs, the shortages, the fear .... it must have been horrendous!!

Do any ABers have experience of World War II, and if so would you care to share them? No arguments please - I'm just interested in hearing personal experiences.

[Kassee]

My mum - youngest of six children was evacuated twice during the war. First time she was very unhappy - but cant remember much about it. Second time to a family who she still remembers clearly today, the songs they sang together, and she is in her 80s. Her three older brothers all went off to fight (in their teens), sister joined the wrens. One brother, I am told saw his best mate (who had joined up with him) blown up in front of him. He later met a Dutch girl as the British troops liberated Holland, during the dancing and celebrations, and kept in touch, later brought her back to England and married her. They are still together today, both in their 80s. All her brothers returned after the war. I was born just after the war, and my parents never talked about it, I think they wanted to forget it.

[stewey]

I guess that we can see from this question by naomi24, that a stone cast into the water creates many ripples, and some events create enormous shadows. Amazing

[wildwood]

My father never wanted to talk about the war, all I know is that he was captured three times and spend a fair bit of the war in concentration camps. I didn't know any family that hadn't lost at least one family member in the war, it must have been terrible. I lived much of my youth in holland.

[Playbill]

I remember when I was a child, hearing an uncle describing his experiences when he was one of the first British troops to enter Belsen extermination camp. He did not say too much because, even though it was many years afterwards, he broke down and began crying.

[whiskeryron]

I served in the RAF between 1943 & 1947 & I remember one particular amusing event when I was stationed at West Malling in Kent. It was when the Buzz Bombs were being directed towards London & we had the RAF Regiment guarding the camp & one of their duties was to try & hit them with twin Bofur Guns ( hope the spelling is correct), they were aiming the guns at the Buzz Bombs & of course because of the trajectory the guns were getting lower & lower & eventually were almost horizontal. They blew a large hole in the main stores & before the dust had cleared there were Airmen running out with all sorts of gear under their arms. It was at the time hilarious.

WR.

[RATTER15]

My Mother was in the WRAF and often told me of the planes returning to base on a "wing and prayer" and exploding or crashing on the runway after flying all the way home after being hit by enemy fire, how they would stand praying for them and watching the planes exploding and knowing the crew, they would sob uncontrollably.

We often don't realise just how lucky we are.

[LyndaB]

My mum's eldest brother was lost at sea. He was on board HMS Repulse which was on its way to relieve the troops in Singapore (I think). No such thing as informing the family back then, my nanna heard the news on the radio, along with everyone else. She never got over it, and went to her grave believing that he would return one day. She received a water stained letter from Uncle Joe a few weeks after the ship went down. His name is engraved on the memorial at Plymouth (?) which is dedicated to all those lost at sea. The names stretch almost as far as the eye can see, and reading his name on that monument is one of the most moving things I have ever done, even though he died long before I was born.

[bookbinder]

I was born, in Yorkshire, nine days after war was declared. My father, very soon afterwards, went to volunteer for the forces, saying, 'Those Jerries aren't going to get my lad!' He failed his medical, and was so disappointed that he got drunk, for the first and only time in his life. We lived on the outskirts of Bradford, so we never saw any enemy action at all, even though the centre of Bradford was bombed. I remember, as a toddler, walking with my mother through the centre of Bradford (it must have been just after the war) and passing Rawson Meat and Fish Market, which had been bombed and burnt out. I noticed the scorch marks above the window openings, but thought nothing of it. It was just - well, part of the scenery - so that was something that people lived with. We had shortages of some things, of course, and ration books had to be taken when we went shopping, but it was the way things were. My wife's father was in a reserved occupation, so he never went to war. I'm sorry if this is a bit disappointing, but that was my experience of the war. I knew that there was a war on, but I didn't know what a war actually was. Some soldiers were billeted at a school not far from our house, and I climbed on a fence to have a look. In 1961, I was stationed in Colchester, doing my National Service, when by pure chance, I met one of the soldiers. Small world, isn't it?

[Zacs-Master]

Very good thread. WWII fascinates me as a period of extraordinary bravery and showed the true metal of our great nation, as it was at the time.

[naomi24]

I agree. Some great stories. Thank you. Do please continue.

[Zacs-Master]

Alas, save for my Grandad's flattened thumb 'story' I have no others. Bookbinders story of life just outside Bradford is interesting as my mothers family (Grandad on this side was a farmer) were all from near Cleckheaton.

[tenrec]

My dad didn't talk about his time onboard ship as a signalman. I think he was probably one of the luckier people. However, he was slightly obsessed with watching all the old war films when they were on tv in the 50s and 60s.

[emmie]

the bombs dropping, that was my mum and the o/h experiences, seeing their homes or neighbours go up in flames, the sound of the sirens, that had my partner running for cover even as a grown man, he never got over the sound. V1 and V2 rockets, London being blitzed to near destruction.
But one thing that everyone i knew would say, you had no choice but to carry on, work, seeing friends, and keeping your fingers crossed that you wouldn't be the one to cop it from a doodlebug.

[emmie]

this is a fascinating new website, it shows you where all the bombs, incendiaries, parachute bombs dropped in London during the Blitz, click on any part, and expand it, our area came in for a real pasting.

http://bombsight.org/#15/51.5050/-0.0900

[Zacs-Master]

Wow, that is interesting. It's a miracle that the HofP, St Pauls, Tower of London and tower Bridge etc remained standing.

[emmie]

zac, it is, i had been looking at this a week or so ago, and was going to post a thread about it. I has lots of info, not just where bombs dropped, but photo's people have donated and all sorts.
for anyone who wants to know what it was like here in the capital, then you have only have to look at the site i posted.

[emmie]

During the Battle of Britain, the German Luftwaffe launched a heavy night time air raid on London. The dome of St. Paul's Cathedral was pierced by a Nazi bomb, leaving the high altar in ruin. It was one of the few occasions that the 17th-century cathedral suffered significant damage during Germany's nearly ceaseless bombing raids on London in the fall of 1940.

[chrissa1]

My FIL was an officer in the 45th Tank Regiment in North Africa and fought Rommel. He told us about how his gunner was decapitated on one tank and another, about a "round" going straight through his tank, missing everyone inside but taking out his bottle of VAT 69!!

[ChillDoubt]

I used to love listening to my stepdad talking about his experiences as a boy during WW2.
How his elder brother was torpedoed and sunk on two separate occassions and survived. About the two children from Liverpool who stayed with them during the war, one being ok, the other always doing a runner!
How he took a banana skin to school (a souvenir form his older brother) and was the envy of the class.
Showing me where the local anti-aircraft gun emplacement was and where a Me109 crashed nearby, the pilot paraded through the village as a curiosity for all to see.
But my one abiding memory is of when he used to go down to a local country estate where several hundred US servicemen were based and how they'd walk along the riverbank and shout "Any gum, chum"?
Then one summers evening at the beginning of June 1944, he went down with his pals to the usual place, only to find it completely deserted, with no trace of the Yanks.