A Remarkable World War 2 Major – John Howard

Major John Howard (December 8, 1912 - May 5, 1999) served as an Officer in the British Airbourne Division during the Second World War. His military career and his reputation were made famous during the early hours of D-Day at the Orne River and Cean Canal Bridge, more famously referred to as Pegasus Bridge. The operation to seize these Bridges from the Germans was of vital importance to the whole of the D-Day invasion. His wartime exploits featured in the iconic war film the Longest Day. In that film Howard was played by actor Richard Todd who in fact served under Howard himself and was present in real life at Pegasus Bridge. Who was this real life hero and what was his story?

Stephen Prout explains.

Major John Howard.

John Howard’s early years

Within Howards own written account he describes his early very ordinary upbringing which was not unusual for families in Britain at the time. He was born in West London in 1912. At school Howard performed well academically, but he would be denied the chance of a place in a secondary school due to the poor state of his family’s finances. He found his outlet as a member of the scouts where he could exercise his passion avidly in outdoor pursuits, boxing, and various other sports he enjoyed. This focus on his physical fitness would serve him well in the following years with his time in the army.

He then began working life starting in a clerical position at a stockbroker. This position was then abruptly cut short by the economic recession of the 1930s. The outlook for most families in Britain at this time was bleak and Howard’s family was no exception and so with few other options Howard joined the British Army where he went on to serve two separate terms.

First enlistment in the army

Howard enlisted in the British Army in 1932, serving in Shrewsbury first as a private soldier and then as a non-commissioned officer until 1938. His first term in the army was not particularly eventful. There were few opportunities for advancement in a peacetime army and his attempts to build a career were limited. Howard also found army life difficult in so much as he did not find settling in easy. His skill at physical fitness soon attracted the attention of his superiors and he performed consistently well on army exams to become became a company clerk and later a physical training instructor.

However when his application for a commission as an officer was rejected, the highest rank he would reach at this stage was to corporal. He therefore left in 1938 to serve as police constable in Oxford. With the outbreak of World War Two John Howard was recalled for duty. This time his army career would be quite different and earn him a small place in the history books.

The Second World War and second enlistment

By September 1939 Britain was once again at war with Germany and Howard began serving a second term in the Army. This would present him with a completely distinct experience from his first spell in the army. This time he would progress multiple times up through the officer ranks. He began his second term as Regimental Sergeant Major in the King's Shropshire Light Infantry and by the time he was in action on June 6, 1944 he advanced to the rank of Major. He was one of the first of many of the allied soldiers in combat within the opening hours of D-DAY at Pegasus Bridge. It would be an event that would make him remembered.

The war changed the culture in the Army but only very gradually. Howard’s first challenge was a familiar one and it was to do with ascension into the higher chain of command in the army. Howard was one of the first officers in the British Army whose rise in rank was not assisted or influenced by the incredibly old and exclusive social class network that was prevalent at the time. It was a network where only select individuals from certain backgrounds were permitted into the officer ranks and these individuals were usually drawn from the wealthy classes.

His progression was a rarity amongst the officer classes, and he would feel this discomfort so much so that this rise in the ranks was not always met with ease. Due to the elitist nature of the British Army Officer class, Howard initially had difficulty establishing himself with the ranks of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, second battalion, initially as Second Lieutenant. The idea of an officer being recruited, progressing, and breaking traditional norms was not common and in many quarters frowned upon by existing officer classes. All this would gradually change as the war progressed. Acceptance eventually came by the time he was promoted to Captain in 1941. His reputation would establish him as a respected leader and by the time his mission on D-Day was over his abilities were never in doubt. He was then swiftly promoted to Major.

The Road to D-Day

Howard soon proved to his peers to be an outstanding, committed, professionally driven officer and he quickly earned their respect. In the months preceding D-Day he trained his men relentlessly, and at the same time also expected no less if not more from his officers. He constantly tested the men and officers’ physical fitness with a combination of continuous training such as day and nighttime maneuvers with regular sporting activities. The results paid off in the way the men performed and quickly executed their mission on D-Day at the Orne River bridges. As his assault began the defending Germans on the bridge were caught by surprise. They were convinced that they were facing a superior if not larger force on that eventful night of June 6.. Howard’s men quickly overcame the defenders. The training had paid off.

Howard prepared his men exceptionally well and he was determined that he and his men would be ready for the tasks that lay ahead. For one exercise he requested that a training ground be found which could resemble the terrain and conditions he and his men expected to face in Normandy to carry out simulations. Such a site was identified and that was near the River Exe in Exeter, Devon.

In that simulation he deployed his men to execute numerous demanding drills and practice assaults. Once the exercises had finished he then had his men march back from Exeter to their base in Oxford. It was a long haul, and they were all met with a mixture of heavy rain and scorching summer weather, but the men and Howard continued to persevere. There were no exceptions with no “officer privilege” as all ranks including Howard were to complete the march together. It earned him the respect of his men.

Howard also expected discipline from his officers when they had finally returned to base and his men were showered, fed, and bedded down. When he was not conducting day or night military training he insisted the men of his D Company were kept active with various sports or cross country runs. By the time Operation Overlord was ready to be launched they were a cohesive professional elite force.

During the training, Howard reported that he suffered constant airsickness and the only occasion he avoided this was on the actual assault on Pegasus Bridge where of course he had other matters on his mind.

Between 1941 and 1942 he moved between ranks as he joined the airborne division and took on D Company. He took a temporary demotion from Captain to take on the command of the glider division, but his rank to Captain was restored in 1942 and he would progress further on to become a Major.

On June 5 there was a lot of anticipation and fraught nerves which were made worse by the waiting as an adverse weather front was not going to settle. Later that day the signs were beginning to show that the weather was turning and so the mission was ready to launch. "D" Company began to mobilize and prepared to board their gliders. The gravity of the moment was not lost. In Major Howard’s words, "It was an amazing sight. The smaller chaps were visibly sagging at the knees under the amount of kit they had to carry.” Prior to boarding Howard attempted to give them a pep talk, "I am a sentimental man at heart, for which reason I don't think I am a good soldier. I found offering my thanks to these chaps a devil of a job. My voice just wasn't my own." Just before eleven o’clock, Howard's glider took off, followed at one-minute intervals by the remainder of his attacking force. One hundred and eighty-one airborne troops were heading into German occupied France in the dead of night.

Operation Overlord and Pegasus Bridge – the strategic importance

There were two Bridges that needed to be taken quickly to assist and progress the planned British landing at Sword beach. It was of vital importance that the Allies denied access to any potential German counterattacking force. Once those bridges were secured the Allies could press further inland to push back the German forces and proceed with their post invasion plans.

Howard had one hundred and eighty men in those initial early hours at his disposal together with the element of surprise. This was a small force but highly professional; however they were only lightly armed therefore in some respects vulnerable at that early stage in the invasion. They landed close to the bridges in their gliders and quickly departed from the fuselage and assaulted the German occupiers while the sentries were either stunned or sleeping.

After quickly overwhelming the defenders, which took less that fifteen minutes, Howard and his men had a long uncertain night ahead. They were alone for the next few hours in German occupied France in the dead of night. They were only lightly armed with every possibility of a strong counterattack until support arrived from the larger invasion force. That support arrived a few hours later with further support coming from Lord Lovatt’s Special Service at midday. The mission was a success, and it became an essential and often referenced story of Operation Overlord’s history.

His citation on his conduct on D-Day reads as follows:

Major Howard was in command of the airborne force which landed by glider and secured the bridges over the River Orne and Caen Canal near Benouville by Coup de main on 6-6-44. Throughout the planning and execution of the operation Major Howard displayed the greatest leadership, judgment, courage, and coolness. His personal example and the enthusiasm which he put behind his task carried all his subordinates with him, and the operation proved a complete success.

In those three months following D-Day Howard distinguished himself, earning the DSO medal.

Re-Posting home, Injury, and the Wars End

Howard returned to England on September 4, 1944. For three months after the taking of the two bridges he and his troops were involved in heavy fighting around Caen as part the continuing Allied advance into Nazi occupied Europe. Howard began originally with one hundred and eighty-one men - by the time of he was returned home only forty remained and he was the only officer left alive. His objectives were met but the cost was high. On his return he was immediately tasked with rebuilding his company and conduct further training in readiness for further operations. However, events took a different turn. He was involved in a car accident in November 1944 where whilst driving at speed he crashed his car inflicting him with life changing injuries.

He remained in this hospital until March 1945, and so played no further part in the war in Europe, missing momentous events such the Battle of the Bulge, Market Garden, the crossing of the Rhine, and the invasion of Germany. After being discharged from hospital he was assigned another task. This time the focus was on Asia as the war with Japan continued after Germany surrendered. His job was again to train and condition his 6th Airborne Division for a proposed assault on the Japanese mainland.

During training he was again put out of action by injury. The commander of the 2nd Oxford & Bucks Light Infantry asked Howard if he could be fit in time to resume command to undertake this proposed mission and so Howard immediately began an arduous physical training regime at a running track near his home with only after a few months of recuperation, but he was not fully healed. On his second day of training his hip jammed under the strain of his physical training and his nerves in his right leg deadened. He returned to hospital for a further operation and by the time he was discharged a second time the war in Asia was over.

Celebrating Major John Howard - After the War

There have been accounts that he was discharged quietly without any ceremony that recognized this bravery and contribution, but this is not strictly true. In 1946 he received an audience with King George. Also, in that same year he received the coveted Croix de Guerre avec Palme in France for his wartime heroics at the two famed bridges. As a tribute, Pegasus Bridge aka the Bénouville Bridge was renamed "Esplanade Major John Howard" in his honour. His legacy endured in many ways. Afterwards he went on to lead a quieter life as a public servant in the National Savings Committee and the Ministry of Food.

Later, his part was depicted in the classic film, The Longest Day that brought Operation Overlord to the cinema. However, his career, his rise through the ranks and his final year in the army would be a bittersweet one and not one fitting or expected for such a hero as he was forced to sit the war out from a hospital bed.

His contribution and that of his men at D-Day captured vital strategic objectives against impossible odds. That brief time in the whole of the war was a vital contribution that ensured Operation Overlord’s success. Whatever the duration of time Major John Howard had spent in the war, it is without doubt that those three months he served in active duty has earned him his place in history.

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The 1941 Battle of Cape Matapan Between Britain and Italy

The Battle of Cape Matapan, fought between March 27 and  March 29, 1941, was a pivotal naval engagement during the Second World War. Taking place off the southern coast of Greece, it marked a significant victory for the British Royal Navy against the Italian Regia Marina.

Terry Bailey explains.

The Italian Battleship Vittorio Veneto firing her guns in March 1941.

As the Second World War intensified, the Mediterranean became a critical theatre of operations for both the Axis and Allied powers. Control of the sea lanes in this region was vital for the supply lines of the British Empire and the Axis powers, particularly for Italy, which sought to dominate the eastern Mediterranean and secure its holdings in North Africa.

By early 1941, the Italian Navy had suffered several setbacks, including the British raid on Taranto in November 1940, where the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm crippled the Italian battleships Littorio, Conte di Cavour, and Caio Duilio. Despite this, the Regia Marina remained a formidable force, with superior numbers of surface ships compared to the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet.

The immediate catalyst for the Battle of Cape Matapan was the Italian desire to assert control over the eastern Mediterranean and support their forces in North Africa. Admiral Angelo Iachino, commander of the Regia Marina, was tasked with leading a significant operation to intercept British convoys bound for Greece and Crete. Unknown to the Italians, however, the British had a critical advantage: the ability to decode Italian naval communications, thanks to the work of the Bletchley Park codebreakers.

The breaking of codes by British cryptanalysts at Bletchley Park was one of the war's greatest intelligence coups. By early 1941, the British had made significant progress in deciphering German and Italian military communications. This capability allowed them to anticipate Axis movements and prepare accordingly.

In the case of Cape Matapan, Bletchley Park had intercepted and decrypted Italian naval signals, revealing the details of Admiral Iachino's planned operation. This intelligence was swiftly passed on to Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham, the commander of the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet.

With this foreknowledge, Cunningham was able to plan a decisive counteraction. Cunningham, a seasoned and aggressive naval commander, quickly assembled a task force to intercept the Italians. His fleet included the battleships HMS Warspite, HMS Valiant, and HMS Barham, the aircraft carrier HMS Formidable, 7 light cruisers, and 17 destroyers. The stage was set for a confrontation that would decisively alter the naval balance in the Mediterranean.

On the 27th of March, 1941, Admiral Iachino set sail with a force that included the battleship Vittorio Veneto, 6 heavy and 2 light cruisers, in addition to, 13 destroyers. His objective was to intercept a supposed British convoy; however, the real target was an opportunity presented by the British Fleet, which had left its base in Alexandria, Egypt.

As the two fleets approached, the British launched air strikes from HMS Formidable. These attacks, though initially unsuccessful inflicted significant damage, forcing the Italians to alter their course and delay their advance. A subsequent air strike on the 28th of March scored a crucial hit on Vittorio Veneto, damaging her propellers and reducing her speed. This allowed Cunningham to close the distance.

The critical phase of the battle occurred on the night of March 28th - 29th. The Royal Navy had honed its night-fighting skills, a domain in which the Italian Navy was significantly less experienced. Using radar technology, which the Italians lacked, Cunningham's forces were able to locate and engage the Italian ships with deadly precision.

The Italian cruisers Zara, Fiume, and Pola, along with several destroyers, found themselves caught in a deadly rain of fire from the British battleships. In a matter of minutes, the British guns tore the Italian ships apart. The Pola, which had been immobilized by an earlier air strike, became an easy target and was finished off at close range. The Zara and Fiume were similarly destroyed, along with two destroyers, Alfieri and Carducci.

Admiral Iachino, realizing the hopelessness of the situation, ordered his remaining ships to retreat. The battle was a devastating defeat for the Regia Marina, with 3 heavy cruisers, and 2 destroyers sunk, in addition to, 1 Battleship and 1 destroyer damaged with over 2,300 Italian sailors killed and 1015 captured. The British, by contrast, suffered minimal losses, 3 killed, 1 aircraft lost and slight damage to 4 light cruisers.

Key Figures

Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham

On the British side, Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham was the mastermind behind the victory. His aggressive tactics and willingness to engage the enemy directly, combined with the advantage of intelligence from Bletchley Park, proved decisive. Cunningham's leadership during the battle further solidified his reputation as one of the Royal Navy's most effective commanders.

Admiral Angelo Iachino

Admiral Angelo Iachino, the Italian commander, found himself outmatched despite his competent leadership and the strength of his fleet. The lack of radar and the element of surprise lost due to the deciphering of codes left him in an untenable position. His decision to withdraw the surviving ships likely prevented an even greater disaster, but the loss of so many vessels and men was a severe blow to the Regia Marina.

The Battle of Cape Matapan was a turning point in the naval war in the Mediterranean. The defeat severely weakened the Italian Navy's ability to challenge British control of the Mediterranean sea lanes. The loss of three heavy cruisers and two destroyers, combined with the psychological impact of the defeat, meant that the Regia Marina would be hesitant to engage the Royal Navy in large-scale fleet actions for the remainder of the war.

For the British, the victory at Cape Matapan bolstered morale and reaffirmed the effectiveness of their naval tactics, particularly night-fighting and the use of radar. It also demonstrated the value of intelligence in modern warfare, with the success of the codebreakers playing a crucial role in the outcome.

In the broader context of the war, the battle helped to secure the eastern Mediterranean for the Allies, ensuring the continued flow of supplies to Malta and North Africa. It also contributed to the eventual defeat of Axis forces in the region, as control of the sea allowed the Allies to launch and support offensives in North Africa, later the landing in Sicily and mainland Italy which led to the eventual expulsion of Axis forces from continental occupation.

Legacy of the Battle

The Battle of Cape Matapan is remembered as one of the numerous important Royal Navy victories of the Second World War. It showcased the importance of technological superiority, intelligence, and leadership in naval warfare. For the Italians, it was a bitter lesson in the dangers of underestimating the enemy and the necessity of modernizing naval capabilities.

In the years following the battle, the lessons learned at Cape Matapan would influence naval tactics and strategy. The importance of radar, training ships' companies in the techniques of night-fighting, and the integration of air power into naval operations became increasingly evident, shaping the future of naval warfare.

The defeat also had political ramifications in Italy, contributing to growing dissatisfaction with the war effort and the leadership of Benito Mussolini. The loss at Cape Matapan, combined with other military failures, eroded the confidence of the Italian people and military in their leadership, setting the stage for Italy's eventual capitulation in 1943.

In conclusion, the Battle of Cape Matapan was more than just a clash of fleets; it was a confrontation between two different approaches to naval warfare. The British, with their emphasis on intelligence, technology, and aggressive tactics, emerged victorious against the Italian fleet. The battle's outcome had far-reaching consequences, shaping the course of the war in the Mediterranean and reinforcing the importance of naval power in modern warfare, in particular the use of aircraft.

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Points of interest:

Italian Admiral Iachino wrote that:-

"The battle had the consequence of limiting for some time our operational activities, not for the serious moral effect of the losses, as the British believed, but because the operation revealed our inferiority in effective aero-naval cooperation and the backwardness of our night battle technology".

Admiral Cunningham

Admiral Cunningham retired as Admiral of the Fleet Andrew Browne Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope, KT, GCB, OM, DSO & Two Bars.

Admiral, (at the time of the battle), Cunningham was so grateful for the code breaker's work in respect to his naval victory that a few weeks after the battle he dropped into Bletchley Park to congratulate the team of ladies responsible for providing him with the insightful intelligence that enabled him to execute such a one-sided victory.

What Happened at World War 2’s Operation Roast at Lake Comacchio, Italy in 1945?

On April 1, 1945, in the final stages of the Second World War, the British Army launched Operation Roast at Lake Comacchio in Italy. This operation was part of the Italian Campaign, a critical offensive aimed at breaking the German defensive lines and paving the way for the Allies to advance towards the Po Valley. The operation is notable not only for its strategic significance but also for the exceptional bravery displayed by the troops, including actions that led to the awarding of two Victoria Crosses.

Terry Bailey explains.

German prisoners being transported through a flooded area besides Lake Comacchio. April 11, 1945.

Strategic Importance and Objectives

Lake Comacchio, a large lagoon in northern Italy, presented a formidable natural barrier. The area was heavily fortified by the Germans, who used the wetlands to their advantage, creating a series of defensive positions that were difficult to assault. The primary objective of Operation Roast was to outflank these defenses, secure the eastern bank of the lake, and facilitate the advance of the main Army towards Argenta, a crucial point in the German defensive line known as the Gothic Line.

Forces Involved

The operation was spearheaded by the British 56th (London) Infantry Division, supported by elements of the 2nd Commando Brigade and other supporting units.

Key units included:

·   56th (London) Infantry Division: Comprised of several infantry brigades, this division was tasked with the main assault across the terrain around Lake Comacchio.

·   2nd Commando Brigade: A specialist brigade trained in amphibious operations and close-quarters combat. Which was made up of No. 2 and 9 Army commandos and 40 and 43 Royal Marines commandos. The commando brigade played a crucial role in the initial assaults and in securing key objectives.

·   North Irish Horse: An armored regiment that provided crucial support with their tanks, aiding in breaking through German defensive positions.

·   Royal Artillery: Providing artillery support for different aspects of the assault.

·   Royal Engineers: Aiding in securing vital bridges by disabling and removal of demolition charges, in addition to, making blown-up bridges serviceable.

The Assault Begins

The operation commenced in the early hours of the 1st of April, 1945. Under the cover of darkness and with the support of heavy artillery bombardment, the 2nd Commando Brigade launched their assault across the lake's eastern shore. The commandos, using small boats and amphibious vehicles struggle for hours in mud and slime, however, once in the final assault position these units moved quickly to engage German positions.

Nos. 2, 40 and 43 Commandos all made their objectives relatively quickly, although the Germans succeeded in blowing up one bridge before it was captured by No.2 Commando. No. 9 Commando initially made good progress until No. 5 and No. 6 Troops (especially 5 Troop), became seriously pinned down across a killing ground while attempting to capture the enemy position.

1 and 2 Troops made good progress down the center of the Spit, on receiving information regarding the situation of 5 and 6 Troops, 1 and 2 troop bypassed their objective in order to turn about. Laying smoke, and carrying out a bayonet charge that overran the German positions with the German defenders fleeing into the waiting Bren guns of 6 Troop.

Despite facing fierce resistance, the commando established a solid foothold, allowing the infantry divisions to begin their advance. One of the key challenges of the operation was the terrain. The area around Lake Comacchio was a mix of wetlands, canals, and embankments, making movement and coordination difficult. The commandos, however, were well-prepared for such conditions, and their training and tenacity proved invaluable.

Decisive Actions

As the commandos secured the initial objectives, the 56th (London) Infantry Division moved in to consolidate and expand the gains. The infantry faced intense combat as they pushed through the German defenses. The North Irish Horse provided critical armored support, using their tanks to destroy fortified positions and clear the way for the advancing troops.

A notable action of Operation Roast occurred on the 8th / 9th of April, when Major Anders Lassen of the Special Boat Section, (SBS), a sub-unit of Special Air Service (SAS), attached to the 2nd Commando Brigade, led a daring assault on a series of German strongpoints. Despite being heavily outnumbered and facing intense fire, Lassen and his men managed to neutralize several enemy positions before he succumbed to a burst of German machine gun fire. For his extraordinary bravery and leadership, Major Lassen was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross.

The Role of the 2nd Commando Brigade

The 2nd Commando Brigade's role in Operation Roast was crucial. Their ability to execute swift and precise strikes against enemy positions disrupted German defenses allowing the infantry to advance was key to a successful operation. Commandos are trained to operate in challenging environments and their expertise in amphibious warfare was a significant advantage in the wetlands of Lake Comacchio.

Progress and Outcome

Operation Roast was a resounding success, achieving its objectives and significantly weakening the German defensive line around Lake Comacchio. The combined efforts of the British infantry, commandos, armored units and other supporting units forced the Germans to retreat, allowing the main Army to continue its advance towards the Po Valley.

The operation also demonstrated the effectiveness of combined arms tactics and the importance of specialized units like commandos in overcoming challenging terrain and well-fortified positions. The bravery and professionalism of the troops involved, particularly those who were awarded the Victoria Cross, played a vital role in the operation's success.

Aftermath and Legacy

The success of Operation Roast had a profound impact on the broader Italian Campaign. It paved the way for the final Allied push into northern Italy, leading to the eventual surrender of German forces in the region. The operation also highlighted the importance of coordination and adaptability in modern warfare, lessons that would be carried forward into post-war military doctrine.

The actions of Major Anders Lassen and Corporal Thomas Peck Hunter remain a testament to the extraordinary bravery and selflessness of those who served. Their stories continue to inspire future generations of soldiers and Marines and are a significant part of the legacy of the Second World War.

In conclusion, Operation Roast at Lake Comacchio stands as a pivotal moment in the final days of the Second World War, the strategic importance of the operation, the formidable challenges faced by the troops, and the exceptional acts of bravery that were recognized including the award of the two Victoria Cross all contribute to its lasting historical significance. The success of the operation not only facilitated the Allied advance into northern Italy but also exemplified the courage and determination of the soldiers and Royal Marines who fought in one of the most challenging theatres of the war.

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The Award of Victoria Crosses

The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest military decoration awarded for valor "in the face of the enemy" to members of the British armed forces and various Commonwealth countries including previous British Empire territories.

During Operation Roast, one soldier and one Royal Marine commando were awarded the VC for their acts of gallantry and valor.

Major Anders Lassen: On the night of the 8th of April 1945, Major Lassen a Danish soldier of the SBS, a sub-unit of the SAS, led a patrol to conduct reconnaissance, cause confusion within the enemy lines and eliminate forward enemy positions. Coming under enemy fire he moved his men forward personally silencing 3 enemy positions housing 6 German MG 42 machine guns. Despite being wounded multiple times, he continued to lead and inspire his men, before succumbing to a burst of machine gun fire that mortally wounded Lassen. His actions exemplified the highest standards of bravery and leadership.

Lance Corporal, (Temporary Corporal), Thomas Peck Hunter 43 Commando Royal Marines: On the 2nd of April, 1945, Corporal Thomas Peak Hunter of the Royal Marines commando attached to the 2nd Commando Brigade, showed extraordinary courage during an assault on enemy positions.

Under heavy fire, he advanced alone across open ground, drawing enemy fire away from his comrades and allowing them to capture the objective. Hunter single-handedly cleared a farmstead housing three German MG 42s, after charging across 200 meters of open ground firing his Bren gun from the hip. He continued to provide encouragement to his men and asked for more Bren gun magazines before receiving a burst of enemy fire to his head.

His self-sacrifice and determination were crucial in overcoming the German defenses, and he was posthumously awarded the VC for his gallantry and valor.

Point of interest

The Special Boat Service (SBS) is a special forces unit of the United Kingdom under the control of the Royal Navy Admiralty and is part of the Royal Marine Commando.

The SBS traces its origins back to the Second World War when the Army Special Boat Section was formed in 1940 as a sub-unit of the Special Air Service, (SAS). However, after the Second World War, the Royal Navy through the Royal Marines commando formed the SBS special forces, initially as the Special Boat Company in 1951 then re-designated as the Special Boat Squadron in 1974—until on the 28th of July, 1987 the unit was formally renamed as the Special Boat Service, bringing it inline in respect to a designated name similar to the army special forces unit the Special Air Service, (SAS), warranting the SBS its own budget.

To this day the SAS still maintain a small boat section that works closely with the Royal Marines Commando SBS.

Propaganda and Censorship in Britain During World War 2

Propaganda and censorship have long been a tool used during war - and particularly with the advent of the printing press and electronic means of communication. Here, Amy Chandler looks at their role during World War Two in Britain.

A British World War II propaganda poster related to the 1940 Battle of Britain.

The way that society today consumes news and information is ever changing with the influx of social media and less direct channels of information through podcasts and a plethora of broadcasters all vying for attention in a saturated market. Many of these information sources have different validation processes or have multiple eyes on ensuring that information is correct and up-to-date. Recently, there have been cases of advanced technology like artificial intelligence (AI) manipulating images, videos and voices that spreads false information. The war against misinformation is rife, but during the Second World War (WW2) Britain was fighting not just Germany and its allies, but the war on keeping secrets from enemy hands. The rules of censorship were strict and the process to approve news reports was lengthy under the principle of ‘self enforcement’. This policy issued newspapers with topic guidelines that adhered to censorship and reporters submitted stories for review. (1) These stories went under rigorous review and redacted under the official policy, for example redacting weather reports, location of military manoeuvres and any other information that could be used to infiltrate British operations. Only approved reports would be stamped with an official stamp with changes marked in blue pencil and stories that were deemed unacceptable and not ‘Passed for censorship’ were liable for prosecution. In some instances the Ministry of Information (MOI) applied retrospective censorship to news outlets, for example the arrival of British Expeditionary Force in France, 1939, which caused crisis in Government and disgruntlement with the Press. (1) This article will explore how the British Government used wartime propaganda to boost morale and how important censorship was in ensuring military victory.

Ministry of Information

In the face of war across Europe, the British Government passed the Emergency Powers (Defence) Act (1939) that granted the Government power to take any necessary actions in wartime, which extended to controlling many areas of society, such as rationing and blackouts. (2) These defence regulations superseded the usual channels and processes that controlled law making and existing rules. The outbreak of war changed the way society ran and in turn created a higher level of extended control to achieve order. Britain is generally presented as a liberal country with freedom of speech a necessity in society. However when in the throws of war the need to control what information was broadcasted was not easy. During wartime the MOI was a “servant of all Government Departments” where the majority of all departments needed to “use publicity campaigns to tell the public what they would like them to do and why.” (3) During wartime, these campaigns were integral to Britain’s survival and operations. In a Parliamentary debate in 1944, raised the issue of what to do when too many departments wanted to publicise a message or campaign and how to ensure the public were not overwhelmed by mixed messages. The MOI was dedicated to co-ordinating important messages to the public and prioritise the most urgent campaigns. Many members of Parliament were concerned about a “free-for-all competition” within Government vying for the “attention of the public, and for the very limited advertising space available in the Press.” (3) This concern suggested the complex workings that carried out behind the scene of wartime Government through ensuring that all of society was receiving the publicity campaigns. Publicity campaigns worked closely with the Public Relations Officers and experts in advertising with many messages relying greatly on regional offices to ensure that every region was receiving the appropriate information.

Aside from radio, film, posters and other forms of propaganda the MOI also published a large number of books and pamphlets that one Member of Parliament (MP) described as “a new technique in publishing.” (3) This new invention referred to official war books that were like no other publication that sought to present in print and in picture a “conspectus of the many sides of Britain’s war achievements.” (3) These books had great success nationally with homes sales of 23,000,000 copies and similar success in USA with the book, Combined Operations selling 350,000 copies in one year and translated in 12 languages. (3) Despite the success of these publications, the process to producing such material was lengthy, vast and complex with multiple departments working in collaboration to write, proofread, check and re-examine. The MOI also self-published many books but decided to publish twice as many books with private publishers to keep up with the amount of information being produced. Not all attempts were successful and early attempts at distributing propaganda and information were forced with pamphlets tucked inside books and on one occasion the MOI underwent a copyright dispute.

The MOI also employed other forms of media outlets such as film to circulate their public notices and propaganda. In 1943, the Ministry’s film division produced 160 films in English. However many members of the public titled these films “dreary” documentaries. Even in the midst of war, the MOI were already planning and preparing films to circulate across liberated Europe. These films were ready to be sent and shown to each country as they were liberated that displayed the role Britain played in the war since “Goebbels’ blanket of darkness spread over their heads.” (3) In conjunction with films displaying Britain’s pivotal role, the MOI also intended to circulate a number of British made entertainment and feature films. For example in 1944, France received a batch of French films from Britain, as well as several films translated into 15 languages that by 1944 were awaiting distribution. The British Government’s relationship with the film industry was in a mutual beneficial partnership where the MOI commissioned several feature length films in return to help the production of 38 commercial films. (3) It appears in many of these cases that Britain was more occupied with how they looked and their reputation to Europe to ensure its efforts were not forgotten after 1945. In many ways, this was also a way for Britain to assert dominance and reclaim a political standing in Europe after a period of political and economic crisis, fragmented and re-drawn borders and alliances on an international stage.

Keeping up the war effort

While Europe was at war, the bleak reality of life was unavoidable therefore propaganda was designed to maintain morale and influence opinions abroad. At home propaganda was aimed to encourage public responsibility and a feeling of directly contributing to Britain’s fight, focusing on rationing, blackouts, secrecy and recruiting women into the workforce. One poster in particular commissioned by the National Savings Committee in 1943 titled Squander Bug aimed at discouraging wasteful or personal spending. (4) The poster depicted a series of scenes where a woman went shopping and the squander bug encouraged her to buy products that were too expensive or unnecessary, all while the bug took pleasure in the detriment the overspending had on the war effort. The poster was aimed at women and encouraged the public to either save or invest money into the war effort. The artist of the poster, Phillip Boydell, created a bug covered with swatstikas, the Nazi German symbol, to associate wasteful spending and ‘squandering’ money to helping the enemy rather than Britain. The poster’s slogan reads ‘Don’t take the squander bug when you go shopping.’ (4) This is another way that Britain found a way to visualise Nazi Germany to the British public instead of fighting an invisible enemy. The squander bug symbolised the enemy on a smaller scale, potentially suggesting that the enemy was inside the walls waiting to take advantage.

Another poster issued titled, Dig for Victory (1939 - 1945) emphasised the importance of home grown fruit and vegetables to aid production of food all year round, while rationing was introduced in January 1940. This poster was brightly coloured and depicted a trug abundant with a range of fresh vegetables and fruits, such as carrots, cabbage, courgettes, onions, peas and tomatoes. By the outbreak of war, 70% of food was imported from abroad that relied on key shipping routes that could easily become attacked or blocked. (4) Interestingly, fruit and vegetables were never rationed despite the short supply network, while sugar, meat, fats and diary products were under rationing. By 1943, over a million of fruit and vegetables were grown across Britain. The poster was successful in encouraging the public to take control of food production, however it may have also been partly to the scarcity of products and long ration queues that worked as a deciding factor in why many grew their own vegetables.

Women were not the only ones targeted by propaganda, men were also targeted by an anti-gossip notice designed by Harold Foster called ‘Keep mum she’s not so dumb’ (1941). (4) This particular campaign by the MOI alerted the public to the threat of enemy spies and the danger of gossiping within social settings. In this poster, a woman in an evening dress surrounded by men in military uniform gossiping and drinking suggested that anyone could be listening even if they appeared inconsequential. Many of these posters worked on stereotypes and gender roles to promote their propaganda. It was a form of control that did not necessarily stifle freedom of speech, but was a constant reminder that relied on feelings of accountability. Other posters included salvaging and mending clothes, recruiting women to munitions factories and emphasising Britain’s allies with political undertones.

Despite the MOI’s intention to use propaganda to boost morale and ensure the public adhered to playing their part within the war effort, there were several cases of increase in crime such as breeches in the blackouts and bending the rules. During the Blitz (1940-1941) where Nazi Germany’s Luftwaffe bombed the East End of London and other major cities across Britain provided new opportunities for looting. Historians acknowledged that the Blitz created a determination to maintain the war effort through ‘Blitz Spirit’. But in a period of upheaval and turmoil, it is difficult to ascertain whether many carried on because they had no choice. On one occasion looters used a bombing raid as an opportunity to raid a house in Dover and when the resident returned they discovered their home had been stripped even down to the carpets and pipes. While this case suggested uncontained thievery, it also paints a picture of desperation when items were heavily sought after and rationed. By 1940, 4,584 looting cases were prosecuted in the Central Criminal Court (Old Bailey) in London, while others used bombings as cover-up for murder. The rational thought seemed not to exist for some looters and on one occasion a women stole a pair of shoes from a shop window because “if those shoes were just left there, somebody will steal them”. (5)

Another report questioned the motive as to why someone would steal a sink in the Yorkshire Evening Post. Wartime propaganda may have depicted a community that worked together to keep up the war effort, but it hid the darker aspects of society that flourished under such chaos. (5)

Radio Hamburg & German Propaganda

British broadcasters and reporters weren’t the only ones that the MOI had to worry about, one in particular was William Joyce also known as Lord Haw Haw, who rose to popularity as a personality broadcasting German propaganda to British audiences. His radio broadcasts recorded 50% of the British public through Radio Hamburg. Joyce was a firm supporter of the Nazis and travelled to Germany in August 1939 with a British passport, which he lied to obtain claiming he was a British citizen when he was in fact Irish. When in Germany he collaborated with the German Propaganda Ministry with regular radio broadcasts in September 1939. He commonly issued threats and misinformation towards Britain in a bid to undermine morale. It is interesting that while the MOI tried their best to censor and streamline exactly the information and propaganda that the British public consumed, many still listened to Joyce’s broadcasts. (6)

Some historians have suggested that this deliberate decision by Britain ensured that they didn’t ruin their reputation as a trusted news source by lashing out at enemy stations. The BBC was advised to continue to report truthfully and accurately but to withhold any information that would cause distress, for example omitting the number of casualties while still reporting incidents. However, the question should be asked was the BBC lulling the British public into a false sense of security instead of reporting the stark realities abroad? If Britain banned such a broadcast, many would have found other ways to listen. The only solution was for the BBC to direct attention back to its broadcasts in the form of entertaining content rather than dreary reports. But the question has to be asked, why did so many members of the British public tune into listen in the early years of the war? Joyce didn’t just spread propaganda but also attempted to undermine key political figures such as Prime Minister, Winston Churchill. The British public craved in many ways entertainment as an escape from the dreary news and uncertainty. When asked about why they listened, some British listeners found the broadcasts entertaining and wondered if what Joyce was reporting had a slither of truth. Eventually, Joyce was captured and trialled when Germany surrendered in 1945.

One example of detrimental censorship was the Hallsville School bombing in Canning Town, East End, where it was reported only 77 civilians were killed despite eye witnesses claiming it was closer to the 600 mark. (7) The British Government denied the claim due to not having sufficient evidence to report such high numbers. It was seen as detrimental for the Government to report such a devastating incident in case it deteriorated mass morale. Furthermore, a media blackout was issued to the Press to avoid publishing specific details on the location, photographs and casualties. This case emphasised a fine line between honesty and censorship that could have easily forced the public to lose trust in the British Government for denying something so blatantly obvious with eyewitnesses. (7)

Conclusion

In conclusion, the British Government’s desire to censor reports and withhold vital information and use propaganda was successful on the surface but allowed darker and more sinister events to transpire at home, like crime. The British Government also took the opportunity of continuing their legacy and reputation throughout liberated Europe through films to secure they place in politics. It is also worth noting that this is no different to how other countries employed political propaganda to ensure their success. While censorship and propaganda have many benefits to boosting morale, it also had negative consequences that alienated the public when lived events were reported incorrectly or denied outright. The war changed the way media and radio operated and pushed boundaries between dreary information and entertainment as well as democratic principles. It is also significant that the BBC still censor what they broadcast, for example the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022 saw the BBC boycott the opening ceremony on main shown programming without explanation although it was widely reported and implied that it didn’t align with their editorial values. Censorship still occurs but through subtle ways that are not often recognised.

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References

(1)   H. Irving, ‘Chaos and Censorship in the Second World War’, 2014, Gov.UK < https://history.blog.gov.uk/2014/09/12/chaos-and-censorship/ >[accessed 23 May 2024].

(2)   UK Parliament, ‘Emergency Powers (Defence) Act 1939’, 2024, UK Parliament < https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/private-lives/yourcountry/collections/collections-second-world-war/second-world-war-legislation/emergency-powers-defence-act-c20-1940-/   >[accessed 22 May 2024].

(3)   HC Deb, 29 June 1944, vol 401, cols 822 – 825.

(4)   The National Archives, ‘Second World War Propaganda Posters’, 2024, BETA The National Archives < https://beta.nationalarchives.gov.uk/explore-the-collection/explore-by-time-period/second-world-war/second-world-war-propaganda-posters/#:~:text=During%20the%20Second%20World%20War,production%2C%20salvage%20and%20military%20recruitment>[accessed 24 May 2024].

(5)   BNA, ‘Crime and the Blitz’, 2015, The British Newspaper Archives < https://blog.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/2015/07/17/crime-and-the-blitz/ >[accessed 24 May 2024].

(6)   IMW, ‘The Rise and Fall of Lord Haw Haw During the Second World War’,  2024, IWM <

https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/the-rise-and-fall-of-lord-haw-haw-during-the-second-world-war >[accessed 28 May 2024].

(7)   M. Oakley, ‘Second World War Bombing Raid South Hallsville School’, 2023, East London History < https://www.eastlondonhistory.co.uk/second-world-war-bombing-raid-south-hallsville-school/ >[accessed 29 May 2024].

The Sinking of the British Ship Lancastria in June 1940: A Personal Tale

Here, Michael Sheldrick explains his personal story about the Lancastria tragedy that took place 82 years ago today on June 17, 1940…

June 1940 was a month that changed the course of the Second World War. It was both Britain’s darkest hour, and witness to a tragedy that remains little known to this day; a tragedy that changed my family, forever.

The sinking of the Lancastria in 1940.

As a child growing up in Britain in the 1990s, my sister and I would every so often be left with my grandmother, Claire. A tiny, frail woman, Claire lived in a terrace house in the oldest part of Swindon (an area locals these days refer to colloquially as “Old Town”).

Owing to Claire’s serial chain smoking ways, a stale cigarette odor lingered in every nook and cranny. To avoid the unpleasant smell, I would usually eat meals in the back garden. I can picture it clearly: me eating tinned meatballs, Claire sipping re-heated coffee while lighting herself yet another cigarette. By that point in her life, Claire rarely had much of an appetite except on the rare occasion she would pour a cup of leftover lukewarm coffee over a bowl of Kellogg's corn flakes, garnished of course with raisins.

With the best of Vera Lynn audible from inside, I would ask Claire all about “The War.” She always referred to the Second World War as “The War”, such was the overbearing impact the conflict had on her, and by extension, our life. Claire would recount to me her experiences as a young woman working with what was then known as the Auxiliary Territorial Service, which tasked women with a range of vital roles during the Second World War. In my Grandmother’s case, she was charged with assisting Anti-Aircraft operations. It was one conversation in particular, long buried in my subconsciousness, that would suddenly return to me decades later.

Claire had told me that she had decided to sign up to the ‘war effort’ following news that her older brother Colin, serving as a soldier in France, was missing in action. I distinctly remember asking Claire what happened to him. Looking in the distance, as if talking more to herself than me, she described how Colin had been aboard a ship that had been bombed by the luftwaffe and his body had never been discovered. She said there was a grave somewhere in France but “of course, there is nothing beneath it.” As far as I recall her saying, no one had visited it.

Decades later

Claire passed away shortly after sharing that story. Decades went by and Colin’s story retreated to the far recesses of my mind. That is until a hot summer's day in August, 2019. I was on the New York subway, traveling to where I now work, listening to an audible book about a journalist trying to recover the remains of an American soldier who had died in Japan during WWII. The journalist was explaining that official US policy holds that the US Government is committed to recovering the remains of any and all American soldiers who died during the course of duty.

Suddenly, my mind lit up. I could hear Claire’s words re-telling Colin’s fate, along with many unanswered questions. How exactly did Colin die? What ship was he on that was bombed? Where is his grave, and the ship, now? And why didn’t anyone in my family seem to know the answers?

I spoke with both my dad and his older brother, my uncle, as a starting point. Unfortunately, they knew little more than what Claire had told me decades ago. My uncle told me that he remembered someone once telling him that Colin had died during the British evacuation at Dunkirk apparently due to the betrayal of a shipmaster who had given the ship’s departure time and location to the Germans. But he admitted, he could not remember correctly if that is exactly what he heard. It's simply the case, they both told me, and in a departure from today’s tendency to overshare, that those who served in The War, such as both their parents, did not discuss these things in too much detail.

My own research quickly hit a dead end. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), generally pretty comprehensive and accessible online, had no trace of a ‘Colin Thomas’ born in 1918 and with recognizable parents. It was like he never existed.

Then finally, one Saturday evening, late into the night, I realized my error. An error based on a very simple oversight, and yet one that remarkably no one else had picked up on either. My mum had sent over scans of a very old black and white photo of a four month old Colin, dated June, 1918, that she found amongst Claire’s old possessions. Only it had “Baby John Colin Lee Thomas' ' written on the back. Aha! Although it seems he went by Colin all his life, his full name had been lost to history. Armed with this new information, I went back to the CWGC archives and just minutes later I was staring at a picture of what appeared to be my Grand Uncle’s name on a memorial plaque at the Commonwealth War Graves section of Dunkirk Town Cemetery.

Uncovering the mystery

“I’ve found him…” I remember murmuring out loud to my housemate as I scrolled down. There he was: Private John Colin Thomas, died 17 June 1940, aged 22, Son of John Weldon Thomas and Amy Thomas, of Hall Green, Birmingham; my great grandparents.

On the surface at least it seemed like my uncle might have been right. Judging by the location of his memorial plaque, had Colin died in the Dunkirk evacuation? Not quite. Some quick googling revealed that the final evacuation from Dunkirk had taken place on June 4th, 13 days prior to when Colin had officially died. Something wasn’t right.

Further digging eventually revealed that Colin had actually ‘died’ some 335 miles south of Dunkirk, off the coast of the small port town of Saint-Nazaire, aboard the SS Lancastria, the sinking of which, as I would soon discover, remains the largest single loss of life in British maritime history. Indeed, more people died in this tragedy than that of the death toll from the sinking of the Titanic and Lusitania combined. Now I had found my uncle, I dove into the Lancastria’s story; a story I ashamedly hadn’t even known the existence of.

Colin at the age of 22, as he would have been in 1940. Courtesy: Michael Sheldrick, shown with full permission.

Lancastria

The SS Lancastria was a 16,243-ton, five decked ship that up until the outbreak of war in 1939 had been a lavish luxury cruise liner. It toured the Norwegian fjords, and across the Mediterranean and West Indies before being hastily requisitioned by the British Government and outfitted as a troop ship. It spent the early months of the war ferrying soldiers back and forth from Canada to the UK, assisted in the evacuation of Norway, before finally being called upon to play a pivotal role in ‘Operation Ariel’; the name of the lesser known campaign that followed the aftermath of the evacuation of Dunkirk. The scenes leading up to it were no less dramatic.

Overwhelmed by the might of the Nazi blitzkrieg, French defenses had quickly collapsed in the days following the last departure from Dunkirk. Countless civilian refugees, French soldiers and the vast remainder of British forces in France - some 150,000 men - hurriedly escaped south. On June 14th, an urgent call went out to the crew of Lancastria, then docked in Liverpool, to make haste for the French port of Saint Nazaire. That very same day, the Nazis occupied Paris. Things were dire.

Colin, I discovered, was by this point based at a weapons and equipment storage base at Nantes, the old historical capital of Brittany located about 40 miles from the sea. Having been an articled clerk prior to the war, Colin was one of many support troops, engineers, repair men, transport and communications staff, wireless operators, air force ground crew, store minders, cooks, bakers, and clerks that supplied the main British Expeditionary Force. Known collectively as “the Grocers,” the vast majority of these personnel were located, at least initially, far behind the main defense lines and most would never have expected to see conflict. Of course, few expected either that France would fall so quickly to the German onslaught.

In the wake of Paris’ capture, General Alan Brooke, the commander of all remaining British forces in France, pleaded with Churchill to issue a general order for evacuation. During an intense thirty minutes call in the early hours of June 15th, a desperate Brooke informed Churchill of the irreversible collapse in French morale saying it “was impossible to make a corpse feel.” Churchill relented and at 10am that same morning, a general evacuation order was given. Later that day, word reached my uncle’s base in Nantes.

As those at the base rushed to depart, numerous reports document a rushed frenzy ensuing to burn and destroy any equipment, vehicles and armaments that could not be carried out to prevent them from falling into German hands. Meanwhile, others helped themselves to remaining food and drink stockpiles. As 19-year-old Henry Harding from Wales would later recount: “Everything was thrown open… you could help yourself to whatever it was you wanted, so we took chocolate.”Then, with German planes already in control of the skies above, they headed out to converge on what author Johanthan Fenby describes as “the last escape hatch left.”

Within the next 24 hours, Saint Nazaire was overcrowded with British soldiers and refugees. Local French citizens cried as the British began clambering aboard requisitioned ocean liners. It was into this scene of chaos that the Lancastria would arrive the next day, June 17th. It was to prove a fateful day.

More than six thousand reportedly boarded the Lancastria with Colin’s corps amongst the very last to board. Those who had boarded first were greeted by men in fancy white uniforms with gold buttons who assigned them all rooms. While they waited for others to board, a lucky few tucked into sausages, bacon and eggs with hot buttered toast for breakfast. It must have been quite the comfort after days after a hurried dash to the coast.

Eventually though, the vessel was so cramped that officers pleaded with Lancastria’s Captain to take no more. He pushed back, saying he had been ordered to take as many as possible without respect to international law. They were all anxious to leave. They had good reason to be. There had been reports of other ships being attacked by the Luftwaffe although fortunately no major disasters had yet struck.

As thousands crammed onto the assembled ships, news was already spreading in the port that France’s newly appointed leader, Marshall Pétain, had that morning agreed to open armistice talks with Germany. Across the English Channel, Churchill was soon meeting France’s soon to be leader in exile, Charles de Gaulle, in the gardens of Number 10 Downing Street. While that same day, up in Belgium, Hitler was said to have hit his thigh in glee upon hearing the news of France’s capitulation. As Churchill would declare later that day, “the Battle for France was over.”

Sinking

After waiting painstakingly for its escort, the Lancastria finally began to pull out of the dock. Yet, any relief those aboard felt was quickly dashed as shortly thereafter six Luftwaffe planes came down from the skies. A minute later siren on the ship sounded. Heard “a chilling banshee scream… howling from the sky.” Initial bombs missed but a series of successive bombs hit their mark, with one payload going straight down the ship’s fennel. It was fatal. The ship went down in 20 minutes. Thousands onboard perished.

To read the survivor accounts is harrowing. Collectively, they portray a scene straight from Dante’s inferno. One 15 year old who helped with the rescue described the scene he saw as “hell… abominable, the height of horror.”

We will never know for sure exactly how Colin died, and perhaps that is for the best. Most of those packed in the ships hold died instantly from the initial bomb explosion. Many others drowned, either because they couldn’t swim or were trapped. Only 2,000 life belts were on board for at least 3 times that many men. Splinters of wood from walls and floors impaled people standing nearby. Oil flowed out of a ripped oil tank. Those who survived the initial sinking choked on the oil that flooded the surrounding waters. But most ghastly and cruelly, the Luftwaffe planes returned to gun down those swimming to shore.

One account stands out from the rest however. A handful of soldiers standing on the Lancastria’s rapidly sinking hull as it descended into the water, proudly and defiantly singing the war time classics of Roll Out The Barrel and There Will Always Be An England.

I have discovered the initial telegram that was issued in the immediate aftermath of the Lancastria’s demise. Colin is listed as ‘Missing In Action.’ It is hard to say exactly when my great grandparents and his two sisters would have been notified. I do know that when they did it left a deep scar on my grandmother, claire, and a burning desire, in her words, “to kill Germans.” A self-described “Tom Boy”, Colin was her hero and in joining the defense forces she was determined to ensure his life was not in vain.

Only in more recent decades has the story of the Lancastria become more known. Despite it, or perhaps because of it, accounting for more than a third of all losses in the war up to that point, and wanting to maintain British morale, Churchill felt justified in putting a censorship notice on the media and even survivors from talking about it. After all, it must not have been hard to imagine England falling next to the Nazi war machine. It was so kept so tightly under wraps that those who survived did not talk to wives and relatives about it until decades later.

75th anniversary

It wasn’t until the 75th anniversary of the Lancastria’s sinking, in 2015, that the British Parliament formally acknowledged it. Standing in for the Prime Minister, George Obsborne said: "It was kept secret at the time for reasons of wartime secrecy, but I think it is appropriate today in this House of Commons to remember all those who died, those who survived, and those who mourn them."

Unfortunately, it is the brutal reality that for most those who died onboard Lancastria is just one of many tragedies during the war. What should make this one stand out from all the rest? Added to this is the fact that unlike Dunkirk’s “victory in defeat”, which continues to provide the source material for so many TV shows and films, a tragedy of Lancastria’s proportions is unlikely to stir British patriotism. The stories of the 150,000 men left behind in France after Dunkirk has been largely forgotten in popular mainstream history books on the Second World War.

Even amongst members of my own extended family I encountered indifference. I remember one of my dad’s cousins, Colin’s own nephew, replying curtly to a message I sent that no one ever spoke to him about Colin and I probably know more than he does.

I could not let the story end there however. I thought about Claire all those years ago telling me about her beloved brother. And I thought of Colin's memorial plaque in Dunkirk. It occurred to me that not one member of his family had visited it in the past eight decades. My dad said it was a shame he did not find this out in Claire’s lifetime. He would have taken her to see it. She couldn’t go, but we could.

So shortly before the 80th anniversary of the Lancastria’s sinking, my sister, dad and mum, took the ferry across. At 8am on a cold, misty, winter day we visited the grave. We had taken with us a small bottle of whiskey. We poured each of us a small cup, and then a fifth one. Then, crouching to the small plaque, we raised a toast.

John Lee Colin Thomas, lost on the Lancastria on June 17, 1940. Lost but not forgotten.

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How Strong were Britain’s World War Two Alliances with France and the Soviet Union?

Britain had two major alliances in World War Two prior to the USA joining the war. These were with France and the Soviet Union. Here, Steve Prout considers their effectiveness, including how Britain fought with France and also overlooked several aggressive acts committed by the Soviets.

Vichy France leader Petain meeting Hitler in October 1940. Source: Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-H25217 / CC-BY-SA 3.0, available here.

For people who take the Hollywood pictures as gospel the Second World War was essentially one “set of good guys”, being the allies, versus one “set of bad guys”, being the axis.  The reality was far more interesting. Alliances were not as static as is what has been portrayed in such simplistic Hollywood war film formulae or the stories we all enjoyed in our childhood comics.

Not quite standing alone

At no point was Britain alone in facing the Axis threat from the European continent.  From the beginning the combined forces of the Dominions and Commonwealth were present but Britain also had two other principal allies that joined and left at various stages. These were France and the Soviet Union.  The former was an ally that that became for all intents an adversary and the latter started the war in collaboration with the Nazis to be later courted by the British.

France

By the middle of 1940 the allies were in full retreat.  A month after the Dunkirk evacuation France had signed an armistice with Nazi Germany that would establish a “new order” and new political climate in France and her overseas territories.  This new order saw a shift to an Anglo-phobic attitude and the establishment of pro-German authoritarian regime under Petain.

Britain and France: The pre-war alliance

There was always underlying tension in Franco-British relations. As recent as the 1890s both nations almost come to blows over the Fashoda incident due to colonial rivalry.  However, the Entente Cordiale of 1904 and the World War I alliance managed to put a plaster of sorts over such differences, but there still deep down remained the old suspicions as demonstrated in 1925 in the Treaty of Lausanne and disagreements over the treatment of Weimar Germany.  

However, these differences did not prevent these two nations from collaborating again in the face of a growing and repeat threat from Germany.  Britain and France were to form a military alliance to contain German aggression in 1939 but by June 1940 this came to an end with French defeat and subsequent armistice.

Tensions already existed and were growing even before the allied armies were awaiting evacuation from Dunkirk and considering surrender terms. During the life of the allied alliance, as France saw herself contributing most of the land forces compared to a smaller British contribution who had, by the time of Dunkirk, only contributed less than ten divisions, one tenth of the allied force.  Further reluctance to commit the RAF fighters as events turned even more impossible meant France saw Britain as only looking out for her own interests and not fully committed to the alliance. The actions and the clumsy rhetorical manner of some of the British high command, primarily Lord Gort, did little to persuade the French that the British had no other reasons than self-preservation.

French soldiers were repatriated from British shores back to their home soil less than a week after the mass evacuation, with no commitment of significant British forces. It was very much now seen as a separate battle of France and a separate battle of Britain with France being left to her fate.  Churchill, to restore faith and confidence, offered a union of the two nations but Petain likened it to being “fused with a corpse” and senior ministers considered “better a Nazi province at least we know what that means”.  To say it was a non-starter would be an understatement and so the Vichy Government was formed.

Life after the French Surrender - Vichy

Once the armistice was signed a defeated France adopted an Anglo-phobic stance and established a near fascist state seeking parity with Germany and a part in the New Order. British and French forces would soon clash in various areas of the globe.

The British were concerned that the French Navy and the French colonies would be utilized by the axis against Britain.  Churchill feared the Nazis would demand the surrender of the French Fleet.  Unbeknown to Britain, Germany at the time did not require the surrender of the fleet but German intentions offered no reassurances and so the British warned the French to surrender or face destruction of their fleet as a last resort, which the British navy high command were loathe to do.  The French refused to surrender the fleet and so hostilities commenced.

Fighting with the French – “an old and new adversary”

The first clash in July 1940 was in very limited scale and saw four casualties with three deaths (British) from small arms fire in Devonport, Plymouth as the Royal Navy boarded the destroyer Sarcouf which was docked in British waters.  A wider scale operation named Operation catapult a few weeks later saw the destruction of a large part of the French Fleet and the deaths of 1,300 French sailors at Mers-Al-Kebir, Algeria. The political damage was more severe and the propaganda value to the Nazis was invaluable. The French were in an unforgiving mood.

In September 1940 the loyalty to Vichy and unforgiving attitude to the British had reached the far reaches of the French Empire.  The British and a Free French force were repulsed at the French colony in Dakar, Senegal.  What was apparent was not only hatred for the British but also dislike for the De Gaulle’s Free French movement whom his countrymen seemed to largely view as a traitor.  In retaliation to this attack French bombers flew two sorties over Gibraltar, again causing limited damage.  This was enough to find favor with the Germans but minimal enough not to cause any British reprisals.

Dakar presented many oddities and revelations. It tested the resolve of Vichy and the real level of support of De Gaulle and his Free French movement.  It was set apart from the main theatre in Europe - French fought fellow countrymen and Vichy forces used US planes to fight French and British counterparts.  Nowhere in this were the axis forces, the principal enemies.  The British would fail in this operation.

Britain would find herself in conflict in Syria and the Middle East against significant Vichy French Forces. Admiral Darlan wanted to assist the Germans by offering the territory to oust the British from Iraq and take the Iraqi oil and resources, but the Germans had other ideas and both objectives were nevertheless unsuccessful. Meanwhile, in Europe, Petain, like Darlan would continue to win German favor to achieve equal status with Germany in the European New Order. 

France’s behavior was not helped by British actions like Dakar and Mers-El-Kebir, but on balance was understandable for the time in the face of nefarious Nazi intentions.  Admiral Darlan however alludes to a deep distrust he held to his former ally - in December 1941 he was quoted as saying “I worked with the English for fifteen years, they always lied to me. I’ve negotiated with the Germans for 3 months, and they have never misled me.”  It is said that Darlan was finding excuses retrospectively, however flimsy, to account for his collaboration tendencies. On close inspection of De Gaulle’s Free French army and the domestic resistance forces, several sources say this contribution and effectiveness has been inflated and exaggerated over time to hide the shame of collaboration by Vichy France, who had become effectively a co-operative and willing German vassal.

It is interesting also that twenty thousand servicemen chose to join the SS Charlemagne and were one of the last divisions to hold out tenaciously in 1945 in Berlin.  On top of the forty thousand personnel in Vichy Syria and West Africa, 200 Vichy airmen in Europe, a significant French force, had opposed their former ally.  The numbers even suggest that France was truly a co-operative German Vassal.

There were to be more twists and turns. In another bizarre yet tragic twist of fate, the French themselves in November 1942 scuttled their own fleet in Toulon when the Nazis attempted to take the French feet and hand it over to Italy. At the same time Darlan, conveniently forgetting his Anglophobia, also defected to the allies.

The USSR “Supping with the devil” – the unlikely alliance

In June 1941, a year after the French surrender, Britain entered an alliance with the USSR after the German invasion, Operation Barbarossa. There were pre-war efforts to bring the Soviets on the allied side, but Polish objections and allied deliberations derailed this.

It was a curious pairing when looking at the recent history of the USSR at the time, which was anything but reassuring. There are few who could argue with Churchill’s analogy about “supping with the devil” to achieve victory as the USSR was a totalitarian state equally as barbaric and ruthless as Hitler’s Germany.  The more divisions that were used on the Eastern Front, the fewer there would be on the Western Front.  The strategy for the west was simple - the human cost would be borne by the Soviets. Stalin saw through this, under no illusion and prepared to pay this. It was more an alliance of expediency and it would barely endure the end of the war itself.  Suspicion between the Allies and the USSR was present throughout.

British minds had been wary of Russia since as far back as the Crimean War, with an only a brief respite in World War One.  Despite royal family ties there was still an abhorrence of the “Russian Bear”. The communist revolution in 1917 and the subsequent events did little help this.

During Stalin’s purges in the 1930s Britain managed to ignore the fact that some her own subjects in the Soviet Union had become victims of the purge. On the economic front the USSR’s five-year plans had advanced her industrial capacity, becoming a rival for the Western industrial powers which at the same time inspired international supporters of communism.  The involvement of the USSR in the Spanish Civil War was also interpreted as a Soviet communist regime trying to impose itself on the Western sphere of influence.

Throughout the 1930s the Germans had been broadcasting venomous propaganda against the USSR. Then something very unexpected happened. Stalin in August 1939 signed the infamous Nazi-Soviet pact, which gave Hitler the open door to begin World War Two because he was no longer contained and fearing a war on two fronts.

As the Nazis invaded the West of Poland, Stalin took full advantage of the recent pact and invaded the Eastern Part and imposed a Soviet form of brutality that was not dissimilar to the Nazis’.  Soviet territorial ambition was not limited to Poland. In December 1939, Stalin began a bitter four-month Winter War with Finland where eventually the USSR took 11% of Finnish territory.  After worldwide condemnation, the USSR followed the example of other aggressor states such as Germany, Italy and Japan and left the League of Nations.

Not only had the USSR allowed the war to happen at this stage, they also violated further sovereign states by annexing Bessarabia, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania to their territorial gain, thus re-acquiring newly independent territories that she lost after the First World War.

Clearly a deal with the Nazis was more beneficial to the USSR and the excuse that these acquisitions offered a buffer against German strength was a weak one used in hindsight, as the USSR was a co-operative ally in all areas and cut from the same cloth as the axis powers.  There was little threat from the East due to a Neutrality Pact signed in 1941 between Japan and the USSR, freeing Japan to wage her own war. The USSR was in every event an Axis ally.  It is interesting to note that the two very pacts the USSR signed with Japan and Germany were highly instrumental in allowing both a European War and Pacific war to happen.  Was appeasement’s failure the only reason for the start of World War Two?

Curiously the pretext that drove Britain to declare war on Germany, namely the invasion of Poland, was not strong enough to provoke a similar action against Russia who did the same thing.  Interestingly the West at an early point in the war considered the USSR an enemy and considered military action in two arenas. Whilst the Winter War with Finland was in progress Britain and France considered bombing areas of Russia such as the oil fields of Baku. Also, during the Nazi’s Norwegian Campaign in 1940 the motive was not only to deprive Germany of Iron Ore from Scandinavia; it was also to assist the Finns by creating a supply route in their fight against the USSR. 

Katyn and Iran

This alliance, until close to the war’s end, would center only on Europe, with Britain and later America taking on Japan with minimal Soviet help. The benefit in this alliance meant the Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Act enabled Stalin to move military resource from the eastern reaches of the USSR to the western theatre of war.  

The British would deliberately overlook Soviet perfidy as displayed with the discovery of a massacre of twenty thousand Polish officers in the Katyn Forest. They would help propagate lies that placed the responsibility on the Germans rather than the Soviets for the sake of the wartime alliance. They would at the same time pressure another ally, the Polish Government in exile, to accept these falsities.

The first military act with the USSR was a joint invasion of Iran to deny the axis powers access to the Middle East and allow an alternative corridor to supply the Soviet Union. This would not be to the Iranians’ benefit. Indeed, what the Soviets and British were prepared to do in other sovereign states show what the British would conveniently overlook once again. 

Both occupying powers commandeered much of Iran’s grain supplies for their own troops, which caused hyperinflation and starvation in Iran.  After the war the Soviets reneged on the promised withdrawal after Hitler’s defeat, and continued to occupy the country until 1946 after trying to set up two short-lived separatist and destabilizing republics on Iran’s border. 

Conclusion

The period of history from the beginning of the war until the German invasion of the USSR was an ever-changing political landscape of alliances and allies becoming foes and foes becoming allies.  This period has many other interesting oddities, peculiarities, and different perspectives but that is for another time.

What do you think of Britain’s World War Two alliances with France and the Soviet Union? Let us know below.

Now, you can read Steve’s article here on “Britain and the 1920 Iraq Mandate: Signs of the British Empire’s Decline?”

The Unknown British War Hero - The Enigmatic Life of the ‘Genius Britain Betrayed’

Disastrous warfare, lethal weaponry, brave soldiers, French beaches; these are perhaps just a handful of things that come to mind when one thinks about the Second World War - and rightly so. Since the Armistice of the War on August 14, 1945, we have repeatedly paid homage to a generation of predominantly young male soldiers that rescued Europe from Hitler’s fascist clutches. The following article will attempt to uncover the tragically short but eventful life of an altogether different war-hero (but a hero nonetheless), the man that Marvin Minsky called ‘the key-figure of our century’; Alan Mathison Turing. Analysis of Turing has tended to focus on his scientific advances and the role of the code-breakers at Bletchley Park in hastening the end of the war. Yet Bletchley stands as an archetype for a more undervalued aspect of British life: eccentricity. Jon Hill explains.

Alan Turing.

Early Life

Born in London on June 23, 1912, Turing spent much of his childhood under the care of an old army couple whilst his parents spent most of their time in India due to his father’s work with the civil service. At school, he was never one to follow strict principles, spending much of his time in advanced mathematics to the neglect of his work. Turing’s school head teacher ironically claimed ‘if he is to stay here he must aim at becoming educated’. According to Turing’s biographer Andrew Hodges, his academic life changed when he met Christopher Morecambe, a future love interest who helped him become more communicative with his peers and more focused on his studies. Following Morecambe’s early death, Hodges suggests that Turing became even more determined to focus his analysis into his notorious machines. Before he left school, he had rather unintentionally won the respect of his peers for his own peculiar methods.

In 1931, he entered Kings College, Cambridge, as a mathematical scholar, where he enjoyed a more welcoming atmosphere, and was awarded a fellowship at 22.

Making of the Digital Computer

Turing made his most significant contribution to the age of computers in 1935, when he began his investigation into mathematical logic that would lead to the creation of the ‘Turing Machine’. His paper ‘An Application to the Entscheidungsproblem (decision problem)’ spawned the idea that a machine could be used to compute anything that a human mind could. In effect, Turing had created the first modern day computer, revolutionizing human activity in the process; every keyboard stroke you make owes something to Turing’s work.

The ‘Turing Machine’ was subsequently used by engineers at the University of Manchester to build the world’s first working digital computer in June 1948. For his work in Computer Science, the ‘Turing Award’ was established in 1966 - the highest accolade in the computing industry.

Wartime Work

In 1939, Turing was headhunted by the government to head the Bletchley Park cipher-breaking mission to crack Nazi encryption. Then, working day and night, Turing and his team oversaw the creation of the ‘bombes’ – the machine built to crack the ‘Enigma code’ in order to enable the government to read German naval signals. Every German U-boat carried an Enigma machine to receive operational orders. To stop them, Enigma had to be broken. This quiet mathematician’s code-breaking endeavors were quite literally a matter of life or death for millions. By 1941 the code had been cracked, thanks, in large part, to this quiet, unassuming, gay man, who wore a gas mask for his allergies, and chained his teacup to a radiator to ensure its safe-keeping.

For his wartime services he was awarded an O.B.E by King George VI in 1946. According to Churchill, Turing made ‘the single greatest contribution to the Allied forces victory in the Second World War.’

It is hard to imagine that such a peculiar group would be amassed by the British government today. Yet the undeniable eccentricity at Bletchley was key to its success. The mission brought together a distinctive cocktail of mathematicians, linguists, cryptanalysts, crossword geeks and other boffins, but left alone in a space to flourish, they experimented their way to greatness.

Betrayal and Death

Although Turing enjoyed popularity in his private life and at Walton Athletics Club (where he was very successful and almost qualified for the 1948 Olympics), the eccentric genius which made him a wartime hero was not as appreciated in peacetime. In 1952, when reporting a burglary to the police, he naively admitted to a relationship with a man. He was subsequently arrested for ‘gross indecency with males’, one of 1,600 men who had been convicted in 1952 alone. Instead of a prison sentence, Turing was ordered to undergo psychoanalysis and a year’s treatment of estrogen injections.

Turing’s homosexuality was not completely secret. Many of his friends and peers at Bletchley and Cambridge endeavored to keep his relations covert, which, according to I.J Good, was just as important to the war effort as the code-cracking mission itself; ‘if the security people had known he may well have been fired and we would have lost the war.’

On June 7, 1954, Turing was found dead at his home, with a cyanide poisoned apple confirmed to be the cause of death. The investigation stated it to be a suicide, although many Turing experts have ruled it to be an accident. With no suicide notes, no prior symptoms of depression, his regular trips abroad, and his knowledge of British intelligence, some have even suggested that he was deemed too much of a national security risk and was subsequently murdered with the knowledge of the government.

Legacy

It seems to me that Turing’s life (and death) is a reminder of much that was terrible about the twentieth century. His genius was suppressed by an embarrassing education system; he was used by the government to make one of the largest contributions to human survival in recent history, before being swiftly sidelined while lesser scientists took his work onto ‘the next level’; he was not only persecuted but tortured for his homosexuality and was allegedly condemned as a ‘risk’.

Bletchley Park now stands as not only a code-breaking museum, but also for the triumph of the outsider. Turing’s posthumous pardon in 2013 stands as a beacon of hope for a suppressed generation of gay people, made to suffer for the prejudices of others.

In his 1937 paper on computer machines, Turing stated ‘the human memory is necessarily limited.’ Turing’s legacy stands as a reminder that one should not allow their memory to become limited. The age of tolerance should remember Turing as a necessary sacrifice made by a man far ahead of his time. And for that, he deserves to be considered as one of the greatest men in human history.  

Do you agree with the author that Alan Turing was one of the greatest men in human history? Let us know below…

Sources

Ben Macintyre, ‘Bletchley Park: a fitting memorial to our enigmatic nature.’ Times (London, England), 22 August 2008.

Ben Macintyre, ‘The genius Britain betrayed.’ Times (London, England), 14 July 2006.

‘Codebreaker’, directed by Clare Beavan and Nic Stacey (2011).

M.H.A. Newman, ‘Alan Mathison Turing, 1912-1954.’ Royal Society, vol 1 (1955), pp. 253-263.

Richard Morrison, ‘The war’s forgotten hero.’ Times (London, England), 22 August 2008.