Ford, Arthur William (Oral history)

British boy seaman trained at HMS Ganges and aboard HMS Caesar in GB coastal waters, 1911; seaman served aboard HMS Albemarle in Mediterranean and Red Sea, 1913-1916; served aboard HMS Black Prince with Grand Fleet in GB coastal waters and during Battle of Jutland, 1916

REEL 1 Background in Ringmer and Newhaven areas, 1894-1911: education; farm work; background to decision to join Royal Navy; rat and mole catching for fur trade; relationship with stepmother and father; question of father subsequently buying Ford out of navy; keeping pigs; question of empathy with rural lifestyle. REEL 2 Continues: Aspects of recruitment into Royal Navy at Recruitment Office, Newhaven, 1911: reasons and question of joining army; pride in navy; medical; signing papers; reporting to Old Admiralty Buildings, Whitehall, London. Recollections of period of training as boy seaman at HMS Ganges, Shotley, 8/1911-11/1911: reception and kitting out; talk with chaplain and assignment of religious denomination as Church of England. REEL 3 Continues: subsequent change of religious denomination to Wesleyan Methodist; reception and question of homesickness; pay; bundle hankerchiefs; boxing compass; morning routine; breakfast and messing arrangements; story illustrating importance of not volunteering; climbing over rigging and question of getting used to heights; prayers; method of washing clothes; instructional and PT classes; dinner; divisions and evening quarters. REEL 4 Continues: evening quarters; tea and supper; recreations; nature of discipline and punishments employed; routine of holystoning and scrubbing decks; Sunday routine and church service; idiosyncratic farmer's style of walking and consequent nickname of 'Jacker'. REEL 5 Continues: losing farmer's style of walking in training; learning to swim on HMS Caroline; relationship with instructors; comparison of relative status of naval and civilian lifestyle as illustrated by personal reactions and review of working life subsequent to leaving navy despite prior vocational training. REEL 6 Continues: comparison of relative status of naval and civilian lifestyle as illustrated by personal reactions and review of working life subsequent to leaving Royal Navy despite prior vocational training; inculcation of personal neatness habits illustrated during home leave; hospitalisation with severe cold and question of father buying Ford out of navy. Recollections of training as boy seaman aboard HMS Caesar, 11/1911: joining ship at Plymouth; accident with clothes line and method of drying clothes; reactions to first experience of rough weather at sea; training and routine as ordinary seaman; importance of training as boy seaman. REEL 7 Continues: relationship with instructors; stories of visits to brothels; anti-VD treatments and films; question of homosexuality. REEL 8 Continues: Recollections of period as able seaman aboard HMS Black Prince with Grand Fleet based at Scapa Flow, 4/1916-5/1916: prior period aboar HMS Albemarle in Mediterranean and capture of German merchantmen in Red Sea, 1914; continuous patrols; selection for seaman gunner course at Whale Island, 26/5/1916; reactions to subsequent sinking of HMS Black Prince at Battle of Jutland, 31/5/1916. Period attending course at Gunnery School, Whale Island, 6/1916: bagpipe march; drill; stripping guns; firing 3pdrs from aboard HMS Albemarle at wireless controlled target ship; daily routine; 6" gun drill and introduction of director fire; nature of discipline. REEL 9 Continues: Recollections of period as able seaman aboard HMS Black Prince, 4/1916-5/1916: constant exercises and monitoring of records as sight setter; role as seaman gunner; organisation of crew into port and starboard watches; stories illustrating severe discipline imposed by Vice Admiral Robert Arbuthnot; unnecessary cleaning jobs and regular inspections designed to keep crew occupied; method of coaling ship. REEL 10 Continues: organisation of coaling ship involving whole crew; necessity for constant readiness to sail as cruiser; question of relationships with women, sailors' accommodation, drinking habits and naval dialect during visits ashore at Edinburgh, Inverkeithing and Portsmouth. REEL 11 Continues: visits to Aggie Weston's Sailors Rest Homes and chip shop, Portsmouth; illustrations of differing attitude to officers promoted from lower deck; aspects of different uniforms worn and washing arrangements. REEL 12 Continues: aspects of different uniforms worn including possible personal styling to improve appearance and work of lower deck tailors; hobbies; kit inspections and pay deductions; mess deck accommodation and story of found leading seaman sleeping in kit coffer-dam by officer; method of folding uniform into kitbag; value of boys training; crowded mess deck accommodation. REEL 13 Continues: mess deck accommodation, furnishings, cooking utensils and eating utensils; question of thieving; relationship with messmates; question of lack of privacy; washing arrangements; toilets; heads; importance of sexual relationships with women. REEL 14 Continues: question of homosexuality; rat, cockroach and bug problems; recreations and gambling; food rations and question of messes voting to purchase extra supplies from ship's canteen; role as cook of mess in preparing food for galley cooking. REEL 15 Continues: role as cook of mess in preparing food for galley cooking and washing up; preparations of mess accounts by leading seamen; issue of rum ration; question of stealing from ship stores. Recollections of various periods in shore postings, 1912-1923: extra leave; question of petty officers extended shore postings. REEL 16 Continues: duties; use of bribes to extend leave; emergency meals supervision; loss of leave for being caught smoking; canteen; relaxed nature of discipline; extra leave; question of petty officers extended shore postings; supernumerary nature of shore personnel; exchanging duties to allow regular night visits to wife; barrack accommodation; food rations and meals. REEL 17 Continues: inspections on leaving barracks; case of stealing from stores. Recollections of period as able seaman aboard HMS Albemarle and HMS Black Prince, 1913-1916: story of surgeon smuggling bully beef ashore; attitude to former civilian policeman in Naval Police; question of common disciplinary offences and tolerant attitude to drunkenness and high spirits; role of captain and commander; disciplinary punishments. REEL 18 Continues: disciplinary punishments; attitude to saluting officers; pride in appearance; opinion of Naval Police; story illustrating reaction to leading seaman using methods other than seamanship skills to gain promotion ahead of Ford to petty officer; opinion of Naval Police; right of appeal to divisional officer; use of bribes to extend leave during barrack postings. REEL 19 Continues: Recollections of period as able seaman aboard HMS Albemarle and HMS Black Prince, 1913-1916: relationship with and role of Royal Marines; story of drunken able seaman; attitude to church service; story of initial assignment of religious denomination as Church of England and subsequent change to Wesleyan Methodist; attitude to minority religions; question of influence of freemasonry; compulsory religious confirmation; ceremony on crossing line of Equator; naval regattas; playing violin including band, playing captain's selection of hymns at church services. REEL 20 Continues: story of playing violin jigs whilst weighing anchor; Maltese band; singing parodies; personal value of playing violin; question of role of PT as petty officer instructor; desire for overseas service; aspects of overseas service including effects of heat, story of British soldier joining local community in Ceylon, shore leave uniform and snake problem. REEL 21 Continues: overseas service including afternoon break, shore barracks, local civilian tradesmen, nature of relationship with local civilians, internal security duties, exchange rate dealings, recreations and Indian violin teacher; reactions to outbreak of war, 4/8/1914; capture of German merchantmen in Red Sea; minimal effects of war on daily routine; story of participation in prize crew aboard German merchantman. REEL 22 Continues: effects of cold on move to Scapa Flow; crew morale; deteriorating quality of food rations; reactions to infrequent shore leave; recreations; opinion of results of Battle of Jutland, 31/5/1916; opinion of reservists and short term personnel. Aspects of post-war service, 1919-1923: changes in uniform of petty officers. REEL 23 Continues: pay; ignorance of civilian lifestyle on leaving navy; training as PT instructor in use of Swedish exercises; attitude to religion.