Bills' War

I joined the territorials in March 1938, aged 17, and was called up the week before war broke and sent to France in January 1940 with The Lincolnshire Regiment. We were sent as a working party but were soon involved in the fighting. We were ordered to march to Dunkirk but orders soon changed, so we ended up guarding a bridge to hold up the advancing German army so that the main body of the our army could get on the boats waiting off the beaches. Eventually after about two days on the beach being dive bombed by Stukas we waded out to sea up to our shoulders and then were sent back as the boat that intended to pick us up was full. After spending another night on the beach in wet clothes we were able to board a Corvette the next day for England. In January 1943 we were sent to North Africa and after being involved fighting the German Africa Corps through to Tunisia. I was wounded in fighting at Mejez-el-bab. After two operations in three days i was sent 300 miles by army lorry across North Africa arriving home in August 1943 and I was demobbed in December as unfit for further active service. For me World War 2 was over.

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