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World War II Postcard
'Dad's Army' was one of
the most popular of all British TV and radio programmes. It was
often far-fetched. Yet it achieved a measure of credibility because
it was a recognisable caricature of the real thing, the Home
Guard during the second World War.
What follows is
an attempt to record some of my experiences as a member of the
Home Guard in Windsor during the last war. It is not a history,
merely a few vivid recollections of what went on in a particular
platoon ('E' Platoon) of a particular unit based on part of Clewer
and Dedworth.
The Home Guard
was called into being during the critical days of May 1940 when
the German overran Holland and Belgium and invaded France. We
enrolled at the old Police Station in St Leonard's Road and were
assigned to our appropriate local company. Some were veterans
of the 1914-1918 War; a few, it was rumoured, had fought in the
Boer War but kept their secret because there was an upper age
limit of 65; some were in reserved occupations or were medically
unfit for full military service; some were younger men awaiting
their call-up. In the early days in particular, when enlistment
remained largely voluntary, a camaraderie developed which outlasted
the war. To begin with, arms and equipment were in short supply.
By the time the Home Guard was no longer needed both were of
a high standard. Officers too became more proficient as time
went on. The first Windsor commanding officer was Sir George
Crichton, who probably did go back to the Boer War. Sir George
was later succeeded by Col. Reid, who was, unlike Sir George,
both efficient and articulate. In the course of time the Home
Guard became a trained professional force, but in the nature
of things it was 'in the course of time'.
The early weeks
were dominated by the imminence of invasion. We had, in the short
space of a few months, seen Poland, Denmark, Norway, Holland,
Belgium and now France overcome by the Nazi blitzkriegs. Fifth
columnists, parachutists, saboteurs - no one knew in what guise
the enemy would first appear.
One of our first
operations was to construct a defensive barricade at the western
end of the borough. Most of the present Windsor beyond The Wolf
was then open country and our line of defence was based on Smith's
Lane. We filled thousands of bags with earth - sand was not readily
available - and built barricades and road-blocks whose mouldering
remains could be seen for many years. While we worked feverishly
to prepare to resist a German advance on Windsor from the direction
of Bray, the Bray Home Guard, only a few hundred yards up the
road, was similarly preparing to resist a German advance on Bray
from the direction of Windsor. Much of the activity of the Home
Guard in the early days seemed naively parochial - the first
name of the Home Guard was in fact the Local Defence Volunteers.
Our contacts with other units seemed minimal and even our relations
with other local bodies such as the A.R.P. were distinctly distant.
"I want you men to imagine that the enemy are approaching in large numbers
supported by tanks, flamethrowers, paratroops, etc. etc."
Night Patrols were another
important form of activity. We normally went in pairs. My own
favoured route was over St. Leonard's Hill. I can still remember
the beauty of the pseudo-classical 'Ruins', ghostly in the moonlight.
One of my companions was Jack Fairbrother, who later became a
Professor of Physics. We had long political and philosophical
discussions and would sometimes call in at home at 3 o'clock
in the morning to consult books and check references. On the
whole these patrols were uneventful, but there were low-down
characters who sought fun by inspecting the identity cards of
the amorous occupants of cars parked in out-of-the-way places.
Some members of
the platoon worked out a patrol based on a circuit of the pubs
in our sector of Clewer and Dedworth. After all, where were spies
more likely to be than in public houses where to eavesdrop on
local gossip was obviously easy? These (the pubs) included the
the Bricklayers Arms in Hatch Lane, the Prince Albert, the Sebastopol
and the Wolf in Clewer Hill Road and the Black Horse and the
Queen in Dedworth Road, with the Three Elms as the final port
of call. Two of those on patrol on one occasion became a trifle
too merry and let off their rifles (the ammunition fortunately
was blank). This gave rise to an enquiry and discipline was accordingly
tightened.
Although our platoon
had its training headquarters at St Katherine's Hall (now demolished)
near Brickwall in Clarence Road, night patrols were based on
the stables at Vale House (now also demolished). I remember one
hot summer night, when the men had shed their uniforms and were
immersed in a game of cards, Sir George and Col. Reid paid a
surprise visit. Sir George was even less articulate than usual
- to express it in more polite phraseology he was 'lost for words'.
Indoor training
sessions took place at St Katherine's Hall. Our sergeant, an
ex-regular, would call us to order with a stentorian 'Get fell
in there' and then we proceeded to go through the usual exercises
such as 'naming of parts'. The correct identification of targets
was another part of the training. Once I was asked to name a
particular tree on the diagrammatic panorama displayed in front
of us. Already a keen amateur naturalist, I volunteered the information
that it was an oak tree, only to receive the crushing retort,
"No, it ain't, it's a bushy-topped tree'. In such ways one
learnt the logic of official nomenclature. Even the sergeant,
however, knew that the most important thing of all was to finish
well before closing time at the Three Elms.
Occasionally we
attended lectures. I remember one such at the old Playhouse Cinema
by the Bridge. A tough Canadian, who had served in the International
Brigade in the Spanish Civil War, demonstrated to us with the
aid of a racy dialect how to make and use 'Molotov Cocktails'
and other weapons of guerilla warfare.
"Thought I better patrol, the links for a bit."
The 'chair'
was taken by Sir Owen Morshead, Commander of the Castle Home
Guard and Royal Librarian, whose perfect diction matched his
tall and aristocratic appearance. I was much more fascinated
by the contrast between the Canadian rough-neck and the English
gentlemen than I was in the technicalities of placing an incendiary
device on the track of a German tank.
We used many of
the local open spaces f or training - sometimes the Great Park,
sometimes the Imperial Service College (Haileybury) playing field
in Imperial Road (where one of our officers, Capt. Mayhew, was
a member of the staff at the School), sometimes the Racecourse.
I can remember one horrific Sunday morning at the last when we
practised throwing live grenades, withdrawing the pins and hurling
the grenades as far as possible and as quickly as possible while
we ducked down in our trench. So far as I can recall, everyone
survived - but it was a miracle.
We had regular
firing practice at the Range in the Great Park, but also had
occasional trips on Sunday mornings by coach to Bisley where
we received professional instruction. The standard of marksmanship
of some Home Guardsmen was high, but this was not always true.
I can remember the occasion when my neighbour, with five shots,
found six holes in his target. I received a dark look. but it
was one o'clock and the more important target was the pub on
the way home which normally received our custom.
Even for the Home
Guard there were high days and holidays when with charitable
purposes in mind we paraded through the main streets of the town
amid the plaudits of the local population. Once we were inspected
by King George VI in the Upper Ward of the Castle. The King had
a wide knowledge of the commemorative ribbons worn on uniforms
and used it in his questions to individual men.
There came a time
when those in authority realised that my own abilities were administrative
rather than manual and I was promoted to the position of Quartermaster.
When the danger of invasion passed and the Home Guard was disbanded,
the duties of Quartermasters entailed recovering the many items
of equipment which had been issued. Men readily parted with such
items as gas masks and steel helmets, but haversacks and waterbottles
could have peace-time uses and were more difficult to recover.
Nationally, a million and a half pounds worth of equipment had
to be written off.
The Duke of Wellington
is traditionally reported as saying of some of his troops before
the Battle of Waterloo, "I do not know what effect they
will have on the enemy, but by God they frighten me." Perhaps
some of those in positions of high command during the War held
the same view of the Home Guard. What success the Home Guard
would have had in impeding a Nazi invasion of Britain is doubtful.
What is more certain
is that if the Nazis had occupied Britain, members of the Home
Guard would have formed the nucleus of a highly effective resistance
movement. Fortunately, this was never put to the test. The R.A.F.
saw to that.
Raymond South
Editor's Note: This article was prepared as a result of the following enquiry. Can anyone help??
I would like some information on the Home Guard in Windsor with particular
info on a William Frederick Crosson.The interest in the Home Guard is due to the fact William Crosson was a
relation of mine and I know he lived in College Crescent Windsor for a
number of years.I also know that he was in the Home Guard during the War.What I would like to try and obtain are some photo's of him during this
period and any info about his duties in the Home Guard.I am a Windsorian myself having lived in the Windsor area for 52years.
Look forward to hearing from you
Best Regards
Mick Hughes [Please click to email me!]
Home Guard Links
http://www.staffshomeguard.co.uk/
whispersfromwalmington.com
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