EDMUND FORTE.

IMAGINATIONS AND MEMORIES

(Above) Early Spitfire type

(Above) A Hurricane, not as famous as the spitfire but in greater numbers.

P51 MUSTANG

This aeroplane was a better gun platform and with the P51 MUSTANG did more for the war in aerial victories than the Spitfire ever did As children we were besotted by the tales of derring do of the Spitfire Pilots. When the spitfire XV was introduced towards the latter part of the war things looked up, as they had the advantage over the ME190 for a while. We heard little of other servicemen until the Yanks arrived, we found them to resemble the heroic images that we had held in our little minds of true soldiers.

Evacuees 1940

this letter is reproduced from an article that I found on the internet.

A letter to Delia from her Mum Delia was an Evacuee

London SW11

June 26th 1944

My dearest Delia

Thank you so much dear, for your very welcome letter. I was so relieved to hear that you are all ok. A warden told me that you were getting the planes very bad at Petersfield from Portsmouth, so you can guess how worried we were. You must forgive my writing to you like that Delia, but my nerves for the past week have been all on edge.

We had a pretty quiet day yesterday and only 3 came over during the night, but they have made up for it during the morning and afternoon today. One fell very near the Granada again today. It was an awful crack. Bunty's ceiling started to come down with the vibration, so it might as well all come down now, then they can make a new room of it. Poor Mr Tickle, he thought our street was in a mess with windows and ceilings last week, but yesterday morning early one dropped at Brixton, and wiped out 24 of his houses - not one fit to live in. I feel so sorry for him, but still this is enough of the Bugs at the moment....

.... I've started you a pair of socks with the new wool you left here. They will do to wear in the fields. How are....

Cities were the main targets for bombs,so the goverment decided to move city children to safer areas in the countryside. About one and a half million children were evacuated (sent away). The first children were evacuated in 1939 when whole schools were moved to the countryside together. Children wore identity labels,and carried their gasmasks and small suitcase and perhaps a cuddly toy.' Some children were sent to Canada, some never to return to this country

Here a child is trying on her fathers Tin helmet and gasmask. Children made fun of whatever came to hand, there were always plenty of grownups to reprimand them if any enjoyment got out of hand.

First days at school or the start of a new term were emotional affairs. We left home early in the morning with our gasmasks hanging round our necks. It was very dark, and when we got to the school we looked forward to the safety of the classroom. all the mothers were trying not to cry. People walked around carrying gas masks in little cardboard boxes hanging from their necks feeling that they were doing their duty and believing that they were setting a good example to us kids.

Teresa and I were Evacuated from Exeter to relatives in Swindon at the Height of the Blitz. I remember very distinctly a very frightening occurance. I cannot remember if the people that we were staying with were relatives or friends of the family. The house was an old end terrace in poor condition. This house adjoined an area which was fenced off and which was patrolled by sentries who were armed with rifles with bayonets fixed.

We were not told what was in the fenced off area , other than it was secret. At that time, despite being sent to this place as a safety precaution we were subjected to air raid warnings. We often heard the sound of enemy aircraft but we only suffered one air raid, and this is the subject of my story.

The people who cared for Teresa and I were not particularly nice, rather poor and not very clean. The house interior was gaudy and the furniture had all seen better days. The food was awful and the smell was nauseating. However there we were, and there we stayed. One night the air raid sirens went off with their howling wail. We soon heard the sound of approaching aircraft and then the `CRUMP CRUMP` of falling bombs. The sound of the bombs got closer and closer and (My Aunty "I think" ) got very alarmed and we all went to the little kitchen and crowded under the the table there. Eventually the bombs dropped and exploded very close to us and we were very frightened, I think I wet myself, Which was what I usually did when I got frightened.

From outside there grew a noise that was not the bombs, but of people shouting and there was whistles blowing and the sound of men in boots with hobnails creating a loud clacking as they ran about on the road. Then we heard a challenge "HALT WHO GES THERE?" and the sound of shots being fired. Then there followed a silence as the sound of the bombers droned away into the distant night. The shouting and whistling had also stopped as had the shouting men.

The next day men came to the house and asked if we had seen anything? We said that we had been too frightened to look out of the windows, but that we had heard everything. One of the men told us that people had been showing lights during the raid and it was possible that they had been signalling the bombers. He said that the area behind the barbed wire fence was a high security area.

Soon after this we were returned to the war in Exeter, Thank God!

We Children were given `MICKEY MOUSE` gas masks, as an encouragement for them to be used. Everywhere there were posters warning us not to waste food, or be careful about what you said, and to whom, because the enemy might be listening.

Many women and young girls were recruited to work in the Land Army.

Others posters said, "Coughs and sneezes spread diseases, catch your germs in a handkerchief." or "Grow your own food". "Save aluminium for the Spitfire fund", "Buy War Bonds", Have Your Children Been Immunised against Diphtheria? Etc. etc.
We never went out without being dressed up to the nines in vests under shirts under jumpers under a jacket, topped off with a scarf and overcoat and hat.
All the women kept themselves busy knitting balaclava's, or tremendously long woolly scarves, made from wool unwound from something else. The colour schemes were something to behold. Mrs Annis, who was Ross Martin Pontins Grandmother, taught us how to knit. We became good at it, and I remembered how to knit for some time.

Rationing was in force, which meant you could only have so many ounces of butter, margarine, sugar, fat, meat, bread, flour, sweets, etc., this also applied to clothes, "make do and mend" was the order of the day. There was much letting down of hems, taking in of waists, putting a tuck in here, patching a thin bit there. And of course the shame of hand-me-downs, which, when detected by other boys and girls, could lead to name calling and ridicule.
Second hand shops did a good trade, and people went to the pawnbroker or "Uncle", and pawned or sold unneeded household items to make ends meet, maybe just for that one week. Anything could be sold or Bartered, swapped, lent, stolen, or borrowed without permission, especially if the rightful owner was away.

TYPICAL WARTIME POSTERS.

JOHN BULL. John Bull Charecterised everything about the resolute British attitude to that Bully Hitler. He represented Roast Beef, Respectability, Boiled cabbage and a tolerance to the cane and DAD.

John Bull and Winstone Churchill were synonymous with each other, they stood for that indomnitable British spirit in which we all felt we had a share in.

Digging for Victory was the thing to do. People were measured in the way in which they were seen to pull their weight in the war effort, and we all wanted to be good citizens..

Although we had nothing really important to know, we were all on our guard unless we betrayed secrets to the Enemy.