80 years ago today - Britain Declares War on Germany
Discussion
CambsBill said:
31st May 1940, the day my grandfather landed safely back in England on the Lord Howe, together with most of his unit. Also, therefore, the last pages of his report on the campaign - hope it was of interest to some.
And this is the Lord Howe, the Lowestoft drifter that brought them back
Thank youAnd this is the Lord Howe, the Lowestoft drifter that brought them back
If your grandfather ended up in Perham Down he will of got of the train in Ludgershall where my dad and also myself were born and still live, I've just asked him and he can remember all the British French and Belgium soldiers arriving on the trains looking done in. Apparently there was piles and piles of rifles and equipment just lying about unguarded! His dad was in the home guard and keep him and his brothers well away from them! Dad said he spent ages with his brothers watching them all arrive so its possible he even saw your grandfather.
Just spoke to dad again and apparently there were soldiers everywhere in the village asleep in doorways and on the pavement all the locals gave them food and drinks and the local shop keeper gave them his entire stock of fags.
Just spoke to dad again and apparently there were soldiers everywhere in the village asleep in doorways and on the pavement all the locals gave them food and drinks and the local shop keeper gave them his entire stock of fags.
Edited by louiechevy on Sunday 31st May 20:14
amongst the French forces still holding out against the German onslaught on the 3rd June were the 32nd Division. At 4am on the 3rd two of their battalions were ordered into what their commander considered to be a “suicidal” counter-attack. Before the attack French Officer Arnaud De La Portaliere, a former monk, wrote this letter to his mother:
My dear Mother,
Tomorrow is the big day. We must receive the ‘Fritz’. I am with my section in a dangerous place that I have demanded. Everything is going well.
I am currently in a Belgian farm not far from the Germans. It is 10 p.m. It is not very nice. If tomorrow I manage to survive, and I doubt I will, I will write to you. If not, I would like to tell you that I am happy to die for France, and I willingly give my life for you all.
I will not send this letter, but I will keep it in my wallet. The ideals I have always espoused are sustaining me, and I hope that the little I have sacri?ced in this life will not be forgotten in the other.
I am sending you 100,000 kisses.
Arnaud
De La Portaliere was killed by a grenade splinter to the head. The letter was found by a colleague in his wallet, along with instructions to give a 100 Francs to each man in his section.
My dear Mother,
Tomorrow is the big day. We must receive the ‘Fritz’. I am with my section in a dangerous place that I have demanded. Everything is going well.
I am currently in a Belgian farm not far from the Germans. It is 10 p.m. It is not very nice. If tomorrow I manage to survive, and I doubt I will, I will write to you. If not, I would like to tell you that I am happy to die for France, and I willingly give my life for you all.
I will not send this letter, but I will keep it in my wallet. The ideals I have always espoused are sustaining me, and I hope that the little I have sacri?ced in this life will not be forgotten in the other.
I am sending you 100,000 kisses.
Arnaud
De La Portaliere was killed by a grenade splinter to the head. The letter was found by a colleague in his wallet, along with instructions to give a 100 Francs to each man in his section.
HMS Glorious was sank today along with Ardent and Acasta by Scharnhorst and Gneisenau.
Intelligence was there but there was a big disconnect at Bletchley, it was a fledging system, this seemed to galvanise the issue and pull the players together at Bletchy. (listening to the excellent Bletchley Park cast this has a mention for the system looking for a way before this event).
edit
I think it is this episode.
https://audioboom.com/posts/7552929-e106-invasion-...
Intelligence was there but there was a big disconnect at Bletchley, it was a fledging system, this seemed to galvanise the issue and pull the players together at Bletchy. (listening to the excellent Bletchley Park cast this has a mention for the system looking for a way before this event).
edit
I think it is this episode.
https://audioboom.com/posts/7552929-e106-invasion-...
On the 15th/16th June eight Wellingtons were despatched from aerodromes in Southern France to bomb Genoa. Heavy local thunderstorms were encountered and only one aircraft bombed the target; several hits were registered. On the following night six aircraft operated with greater success; fires were started at a factory near Milan, and the Ansaldo and Caproni works at Genoa were also hit. The aircraft and servicing units in Southern France have now returned to this country. Reports indicate that our attacks on Italy have been very successful and have created a deep impression
Late on the 16th June Petain was appointed the new French leader and steps were taken to begin communicating with the Germans
Late on the 16th June Petain was appointed the new French leader and steps were taken to begin communicating with the Germans
The RMS Lancastria was sunk 80 years ago today off St Nazaire. The ship was grossly overloaded; apparently the crew stopped counting when those embarking reached 3000; thousands more crammed on board, including my late father-in-law. Fortunately he was amongst the last to board, so was on deck when the ship was atttacked. He and his best mate survived, but no-one knows how many thousands of lives were lost.
Churchill ordered a news embargo because he feared the effect on national morale; my f-i-l respected the secrecy surrounding the event and didn't mention it at all until the 1980's, after which he would occasionally go on the annual pilgrimages to St Nazaire. He was one of the very last survivors, though the Lancastria Association still exists - of course this year there can be no gathering to remember the event.
Churchill ordered a news embargo because he feared the effect on national morale; my f-i-l respected the secrecy surrounding the event and didn't mention it at all until the 1980's, after which he would occasionally go on the annual pilgrimages to St Nazaire. He was one of the very last survivors, though the Lancastria Association still exists - of course this year there can be no gathering to remember the event.
Eric Mc said:
I'm surprised they were able to find Italy, let alone individual factories. Were these daylight raids or night time raids?
Night. In 1940 there were no electronic navigation aids for bombers. They relied on the same technology that Nelson’s navy used to steer HMS Victory. Estimated position was calculated by dead reckoning (compass, watch, speed). It was verified by Astro Navigation - using a sextant to measure the angles of heavenly bodies, applying corrections and looking up the results in an almanac.
During the day they could use geographical features - railway lines were very popular, rivers, towns, known coastal features. But the Italy raids took place at night.
The first bit of technology was the RAF Pattern Course and Speed Calculator. It made dead reckoning a bit more reliable.
Some of the bombers managed to unload over Switzerland, so clearly accuracy was not brilliant.
Churchill's speech 18 June 1940
Its a long speech, but this is the famous ending of it
Parts of it seen in the movie "The Darkest Hour" available on Netflix
Its a long speech, but this is the famous ending of it
Churchill said:
What General Weygand called the Battle of France is over. I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilization. Upon it depends our own British life, and the long continuity of our institutions and our Empire. The whole fury and might of the enemy must very soon be turned on us. Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this Island or lose the war. If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world may move forward into broad, sunlit uplands. But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including all that we have known and cared for, will sink into the abyss of a new Dark Age made more sinister, and perhaps more protracted, by the lights of perverted science. Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, “This was their finest hour.”
https://winstonchurchill.org/resources/speeches/1940-the-finest-hour/their-finest-hour/Parts of it seen in the movie "The Darkest Hour" available on Netflix
I think many Brits were secretly thankful that France surrendered. There was a very famous cartoon published in "The Evening Standard" showing a defiant Tommy waving his fist in the air shouting "Very well, alone".
Which more or less sums up the attitude of June 1940 - if not being altogether accurate.
Which more or less sums up the attitude of June 1940 - if not being altogether accurate.
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