What did our parents do in the war?

Bluetit1802 said:

Why should you feel uncomfortable? She was a young lass enjoying the privileges of high society in Germany as did many society people between the wars. She was interrogated and cleared, then spent the war in a much needed caring profession. I agree, had she kept diaries they would have made fascinating reading.

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I don't think for a moment that she was any kind of sympathiser or fifth columnist of course, just that she must have been aware of some of the politics. But then as you say maybe she was just having a good time. I never spoke to her about it, I only know because of what my wife tells me. It's easy to speculate from here though, it was a different world then.

My mother was a schoolgirl during the war, but has vivid memories of being shot at by a German fighter during a bombing raid.

My father was a gunner in the Navy and was sunk on one occasion, but beyond that never talked about it. His brother was a tank driver in the eighth army, but again never spoke of it. I actually have his kit bag in the loft. Their other brother was in a reserved occupation and despite several attempts to enlist was never allowed to. He managed to join the army for 3 days before they realised who he was and sent him back. I don't think the shame he felt ever really left him and certainly drove a wedge between him and my other uncle. When I was young, one uncle would always come for a meal on Christmas Eve, and the other on Christmas Day. It was only years later that I discovered the reason for this. Fortunately they reconciled during the final years of their lives.

What I have always found remarkable is that neither my mother's or father's families lost anyone during the war, and my father was one of seven children.

My father was still a schoolboy during WW2, and both grandfathers were in reserved occupations. However I recall my paternal grandfather telling me about the night of the big air-raid on Clydebank, and finding one of the heavy horses still in it's headcollar, but decapitated by a bomb!

My Father was an Officer with 30AU Commandos after joining the Royal Navy. He was one of the very few who wasn't killed during missions. He also worked closely with Bletchley Park Hut 4 and had a full photographic memory for sight and sound. Sadly Dad passed away aged 48 of heart disease, I only discovered what role he played during the War recently.

nosher8355 said:

Wow! Did you learn of any of his missions?

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Yes that was my reaction too nosher. Wow!

When I was at school it was well known that one of our German teachers had played a significant role in the interrogations leading up to the Nuremberg trials, in particular of Albert Kesselring because of his understanding of the Schwabisch dialect.

What we never knew until his obituary was published was that another of our German teachers was one of the team of translators at Bletchley Park.

my dad was regular army in the 1st world war was wounded and invalided out he never spoke of his experiences in the 2nd war he was a special constable in the police force we children were evacuated to Wales mum didn't work one brother was in the army my sister was a nurse .

Yes they were filthy. I remember my Grandad having an old one knocking about his shed and trying it on. Yuk I can smell it now.

vic hill said:

what a brilliant site
never looked before but just to add my dad was on his way to join the army in cupar scotland got called back to help run the FLAX INDUSTRY IN GLEMSFORD SUFFOLK this was a top industry making a webbing straps and other items to be used by all forces in all sorts of ways it is now replace by nylon think he was also ARW or ARP SOME THING to do with air raids mum was a mum but as all mums did trying to cook live and eat with rations books
and knowing at any time in the early years of war about to invaded
when i was a kid did try on the gas mask b heck that was horrible still have dad whistle and badge
move on says me, but well done to all who served and gave lives and our freedom
vic

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I was only a toddler in the war but my older brother age just 19 was killed in action in Germany and dad was a POW until 1945 I find it difficult to talk about even now but we owe those boys and men a debt that could never be repaid. Mum, bless her was always there, being a mum

My father was a draughtsman, and therefore in a reserved occupation...he was needed to make drawings for blueprints of equipment designed for the war effort. In the evenings and at weekends he was in the Home Guard. I was born in 1945, just as the war ended, and I can remember playing with the old gas masks etc. that were knocking around. My father's old home guard uniform greatcoat was used to lag (insulate) the water tank in our roof, and his old gas-proof cape and overtrousers were used as groundsheets for picnics. It was the time of "make do and mend"... nothing was ever thrown away, and everything was used in as many ways as possible. I can remember my dad mending a hole in a saucepan with a "pot mender".. a couple of cork discs sandwiched between two washers on a bolt to plug the hole... can you imagine? No stainless steel in those days...saucepans were enamelled iron, and a chip in the enamel mean the pot rusted through, and had to be mended. There was never any suggestion it be thrown away and replaced as we would do today. I've still got my Ministry of Food Ration Book, with portions crossed out in indelible pencil.. remember those? If you licked the "lead" you got a purple tongue!

Janiept said:

Yes they were filthy. I remember my Grandad having an old one knocking about his shed and trying it on. Yuk I can smell it now.

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There were special children's ones and my hubby remembered carry round his Mickey Mouse one .
I remember being put into the air raid shelter when the sirens went, not a good memory and I still don't like the dark

poohtiggy said:

There were special children's ones and my hubby remembered carry round his Mickey Mouse one .
I remember being put into the air raid shelter when the sirens went, not a good memory and I still don't like the dark

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Yes my Mum was a child in the war and remembers being down in the shelters. She said it was so frightening like you @poohtiggy . It wasn't just the men who went away to fight that were affected, it was a terrible time for all.

Janiept said:

Yes my Mum was a child in the war and remembers being down in the shelters. She said it was so frightening like you @poohtiggy . It wasn't just the men who went away to fight that were affected, it was a terrible time for all.

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Absolutely. I am ok with some darkness/semi darkness but show me a cellar and I go hysterical, can't stand the sight or smell.

My grandfather on my mother's side was in the Royal Welsh Fusealers during the 1st world war. I always thought that was strange being a minor in north wales. Thought it was a reserved occupation. He survived but was gassed and suffered ill health for the rest of his life. I have his note book with the crossed off names in it of the men in his unit that he had to write the sorry but letters home to their families.
My grandfather on my father's side worked for the gas company in north London. My father was in the Royal Artillery in north Africa, he said he got bored with that and volunteered for the Royal Marine Commandos. Ended up in 48 commando, d day, Belgium. Italy and lot's he would not talk about. He never left the UK until 1983 when mum used a crowbar to get him to France. He loved it and they used to travel all over Europe.

Interesting thread.

My father was born in 1926 and, although he joined the navy in 1944, I don't believe that he really saw true active service, as peace had more or less broken out by the time he finished training. As a teenager, he was in Bristol for a time, including several periods during the Blitz when the Docks got a pounding, which was, erm, interesting, I think. In the navy, he saw service in MTBs, as part of the Coastal Forces, and then went to the Far East and Australia in HMS Trafalgar, a destroyer, to help with the sorting out of surrendering Japanese ships and the like. He also visited Nagasaki and talks of picking up bits of rock to examine them - though luckily he didn't bring any of them back home

My maternal grandfather was a career soldier and did some interesting things that we only found out about after he died, because of the Official Secrets Act. He was in the Signals Regiment and saw service in the trenches during WW1. Later on, after spending time with the British Army of Occupation in Palestine between the Wars, he ended up peripherally involved (we think) in the development of radar in the 1930's. What we do know for sure is that he spent most of WW2 at Bletchley Park and ended up as Head of the Japan Section - I found his details on the Bletchley Park website - but he never spoke of it whilst he was alive, and died in the 1960's before the 30 year period under the OS Act had expired. After the War, he continued working in Military Intelligence until he retired with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. His brother in law, who also worked at Bletchley Park, told us a little about all this before he died in the late 1970's but I would love to have been able to ask my grandfather about some of the things that he did. Not that he'd have told me anything, of course, he was a very proper, "old school" type and I was only a child when he died.