France

Part of Tim Hardy's Memoirs

There were stories in the newspaper we could now afford to buy about black-clad Romans bombing the...

Retreat to Dunkirk

While the whole B.E.F., with the French 1st Army on their right and the Belgian Army on their left, were...

To Arms!

So, on this fateful Friday, we ‘Three Musketeers’ said a fond farewell to the Council Offices...

Lucky Me: Part Two - Defence of the South Coast, D-Day, Post D-Day Fighting

Lt Hutchinson had to take out a fighting patrol, to try and get a German prisoner, and he picked his trusty...

Royal Engineers Bomb Disposal in WWII

The fishing port of Port-en Bessin was set as the dividing line between the Anglo-American armies and was...

Before and in the Army

A short while after the incendiary bombs episode my friend Johnny Simpson and I were walking home very late...

The Experiences of an R.A.F. Pilot

Perhaps the first thing we noticed after gazing with awe at the Stearman aircraft on the “Line”...

Rommel Meets a Jersey Man

This was the day I learnt from my section officer, Lieutenant Bogis-Rolfe, that a Sergeant Issac had been...

My D-Day: With the Royal Engineers

Return to the Beach This wasn't as easy as it sounds, after crouching and crawling back down the road...

my Life in France, 1939 - 1945

The German Officer immediately pointed his finger at her and said ' Vous, Madame, ENGLISCH!'and my mother replied 'Mon mari, francaise, moi francaise.' He went and made enquiries at the Marie...

In the WRNS with Laura Ashley

While we waited, we Wrens had various jobs to do, and Laura and I were 'Messengers', taking these...

RASC Service, Juno Beach (D-Day) and Life in Wartime Birmingham

My other four serving brothers were George, Royal Artillery, Jack, Royal Artillery, Joe, Army Fire Service...

John Shaw's Reminiscences: Dunkirk and D-Day

The first vehicles to arrive were civil defence vans like Lance Corporal Jones’ butcher's van...

D-Day: The Very First to Arrive

HDML1383 and her crew, 1944 Here is a true-life story, written by my father-in-law, 'Engineman'...

A Tale of Six Scaffolding Poles: Juno Beach on D-Day

Unfortunately the sea was dead calm and we didn't land them onto a beach, they just stepped off at Rye...

Extract of war diary ~ W V B Hiscock Part 2

At the orchard we were told many tales of women snipers, and Banville church spire had sheltered Hun...

Falling Back to Dunkirk, 7th MAC British Expeditionary Force (Part 3)

Nightmare We drove through a town that was already showing signs of a severe bombing, and straight onto the...

From Holiday to Horror: Dunkirk, 1940

The French were confident that the Maginot line would hold, and the papers told us that the British army...

Sidney Climpson's Story

When I was about 16 (1937) I went with my mate Charlie Winterbourne from Rosedale Avenue, Hayes End, where...

Falling Back to Dunkirk, 7th MAC British Expeditionary Force (Part 2)

I did so, via Aimentieres, and Bailleuil, but found that Hazelrule had received a terrific bombing the...

D-Day to VE Day: A Driver's Tale (Part 1)

I was a driver with 1589 Artillery Platoon, 319 Coy RASC, supporting the 53rd Medium Regt, RA - attached at...

Into the Night: The 6th Airborne Division in Normandy

At 22:30 Monday June 5th 1944, Danny and his mates struggled aboard their Stirling aircraft and waited for...

The Diary, Normandy 1944

The Canadians attacked the remainder of the aerodrome held by the enemy, finally capturing it by 1130 hrs....

My Training and Operational Duties in the RAF

Five personnel would already have formed a crew and would have completed flying training on two engined...

Five Days at Dunkirk

Further orders were rapped out - we were to make for Dunkirk Beach with further instructions to be given on...

Saved by a Cow!

First to land would be Major Howard and his Section to capture the Benouville canal bridge,now known as...