On the morning of 3rd September 1. Great Britain were informed that they were now at war with Germany.
My memories of Elgin were pleasant, the people were friendly, and on a Sunday after church parade some families would invite two or three of us into their homes for afternoon tea. I thus found myself in Dorset alongside men who had already experienced the hazards of the battlefield and the withdrawal from Dunkerque.
As the seasoned infantry and tank units of the German 11th Panzer 'Ghost' division move silently into position on the snow covered hills around Nennig. Terrance Zdunich / z . He is most known for his role as.
During the months ahead we embarked on further training, always on the alert to help repel the invasion of the south coast which never took place. Ireland for the ceremony. It took me thirty- three hours of travel to get there as the train was held up repeatedly due to the continuous air raids between Southampton and London. When I arrived at Stranraer harbour the steamer for Larne had already cast off and was about three feet from the quay. Ireland to spend the time with me and also meet my family for the first time. During the week I was desirous of letting my wife see as much of Glasgow and surrounding district as possible.
We could see a large convoy of ships waiting to transport us, the flagship being the S. S. Georgie, a Union Castle liner. Orduna, an old CP liner of around 1. It gave us all a queer feeling to think how unprotected we had been for the past few days. Continuing south on our way to Durban we experienced a fire in a forward hold where the motor transport was stored, but it was quickly got under control and so averted another crisis. At last we reached the safe haven of Durban where we spent five memorable days.
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On arrival at Port Tufich our convoy was under attack from the air and the liner Georgie was severely damaged. During my stay there I contracted sand- fly fever twice.
Iraq where we remained until mid February 1. The washing facilities left much to be desired while the latrines would even have had a herd of pigs turning away in disgust.
It wasn’t long before I contracted dysentery and had a very sore time of it for several days. He was quite a friendly person and showed me pictures of his young wife. It was a comforting thought to know that they were quite distressed to see us in our present state. The camp Commandant who was a colonel and his staff of Italian officers then came out to take a roll call to make sure that there were no absentees. Breakfast consisted of a cup of coffee unsweetened, lunch was a bowl of soup and the evening meal consisted of a small portion of dark brown bread plus either a piece of cheese or meat about two inches square. Inside these were two long benches about twenty feet long on which were a number of galvanised water channels into which a trickle of cold water would drop from taps spaced at intervals above them. It was only a matter of weeks before everyone became infected with lice.
Some were disappointed, but what a joy it was to receive a letter from a loved one at home - it would be read over and over again. The inmates of the huts would often have a spelling bee to keep their minds active. I think they cost ten lire each which was about half of what we received for pay at the camp each week. Through the camp interpreter it was made known to us that the war in North Africa was over and that the Allies had since made landings in Sicily and on the mainland of Italy. The idea being to prevent any intended escapee being able to hoard and build up a stock that would provide sustenance for a few days to anyone that might attempt to escape. The extra rations proved to be a great incentive and around fifty of us were taken to Bologna railway station and we occupied a normal coach in a passenger train, and were soon on our way.
After alighting we then had a short bus journey to a single line railway station where we boarded a two coach electric train and travelled through very lengthy tunnels sometimes which went right through the mountains. The ground was very rocky and hard and we did not make much impression on it. It was rumoured that German forces were taking over all POW camps and that a strong force was on its way to our camp. To do that he would have to climb Il Cardinal first to get into the province of Belluno and then find his way from there. Within ten minutes we had slipped out of camp and made our way across the river to the workings of the old mine. Here we rested and contemplated the step we had just taken. It was difficult to sleep as the cold was intense despite us wearing our new issue of battledress plus the blankets.
One could see a distance of fifty miles on a clear day. He told us he had worked in the coalmines in the U. S. A. It was very palatable and was our first decent meal in two days. This he did and after providing us with a piece of bread and salami sausage each, we said cheerio the following morning early before the villagers were up and about. This downward trail was narrow and winding and halfway down we were accosted by a man who immediately said to us 'Tu sei inglese', to which we responded 'Si'. Her younger brother Don Gelindo was a priest in the village of L’Arena two or three miles away while her sister was a nun in the town of Feltre, all these places being in the province or region of Belluno. He was in fact a farmer come dealer in timber and had a good sized area of hillside behind his property with a good cover of trees.
These apparently belonged to wealthy Italians who used them occasionally during the summer to perhaps spend a long weekend in. It had two windows, one commanding a view of the road going towards the hotel which was out of sight around a bend in the road, the other window looking down a valley in which lay the village Aune, about 6. The ground in front of the hut sloping gently downwards while to the rear wooded slopes rose to several hundred feet and likewise on the right hand side of the valley leading beyond Aune and on to Zorzoi. We had a visit from the local priest Don Piero who was slightly built and of a very nervous disposition. He was constantly impressing upon us the danger to the people of the vilage should the Germans (Tedeschi) become aware that they were harbouring us. He was a sort of civil servant and he was employed in council buildings under the control of the Germans.
We could go down to the village of Aune during the day and could be sure to get a meal of some sort at the various houses. It had a kitchen table and four chairs and a short flight of stairs which led to a bedroom upstairs. It was approached by a path some quarter of a mile long. It had a massive trunk and branches and on many an occasion we would climb up and eat the ripe cherries. There at a height of 1.
The rest of the mountain slopes were well swept and the leaves stored in the various huts and chalets scattered around. We knew what these eagles were capable of as from a vantage point on several occasions we had watched them swooping down and lift up a young lamb or chicken and carry them up aloft to their eyrie. A good meal of hot stew was served up to us followed by bread and cheese and a glass of milk. It consisted of thick soup with a good portion of meat thrown in. I thought if they can do it so can I.
When we had stamped our feet and swung our arms a bit to restore circulation we started the ascent. I remember shouting out in alarm “Help, help, please God help me”. He replied, “You must if you want to save your life, you are only about four or five feet from the edge of the drop”.
It had to be eased off gently because of dried blood. It was bathed with clean cloths in warm water and re- dressed with a bandage provided by the Major this time who also stated that I needed the service of a doctor as soon as possible. The partisans then paid him and enquired about a place for us to stay.
The doctor mentioned a family and gave directions and eventually we ended up bedding down in beside some cattle that night. The partisans said they would bed down not too far away. I was beginning to get a headache. We were finally able to look down on Croce D’Aune, Aune and further on at the end of the valley the village of Zorzoi. It was a good feeling to know that help would be available in the way of food and shelter again. Once we reached the town I would have to follow behind him just keeping him in sight until we came to his own village where he would wait for me and conduct me to his house which had a main door just on the village square.
This apparently led into a schoolroom where young children were taught each day. I told Don Gelindo and he instructed his housekeeper to put a fire in my room to warm it up. The commotion was caused by partisans entering the village and entering the Germans’ billets had forced them to take off their boots and uniforms at gunpoint and then taken this clothing away with them and left the soldiers in their underwear. He had since had treatment and was ok and I was told all my comrades were in the village of Zorzoi waiting for me to return. POWs all signed our names, rank and numbers and told the local priest to make sure someone in authority received it so that the community could be rewarded in some way. We were placed in accommodation, confined to billets and told to be ready to move off to Rome in the morning. We were given an aerogramme on which to write home to our next of kin.
It was a lovely clear evening as we paused outside a big cinema to look at what was being shown on screen. By this time the person whom we presumed to be the manager appeared in a dinner suit and said to us . We were left in our seats undisturbed throughout the showing of the films. We relaxed there for an hour before going back to the beach where some of the lads were watching our clothes. Forces until February 1. By continuing to use this site you agree to accept cookies.
Royal Engineers