Description
Object description
British boy seaman trained at HMS Impregnable, Devonport, GB, 6/1911-8/1912; boy telegraphist served aboard HMS Essex and HMS Royal Arthur in GB coastal waters, 8/1912-2/1913; seaman trained as telegraphist HMS Defiance, Devonport, GB, 3/1913-4/1913; trained with Submarine Service in GB, 4/1913-10/1913; served aboard submarines HMS C18 and HMS D4 in GB coastal waters and North Sea, 10/1913-8/1915; served aboard submarine HMS E17 in GB coastal waters and North Sea, 8/1915-1/1916 including sinking off Texel Island, Netherlands, 1/6/1916; internee in Groningen Internment Camp, Netherlands, 1/1916-11/1918; seaman served with British Legation, The Hague, Netherlands, 11/1918-5/1919; served with Royal Navy Wireless Station Singapore, Malaya, 1920-1923; petty officer served with HMS Vivid, Royal Navy Signals School, Devonport, GB, 5/1923-3/1924; escorted naval draft aboard SS Hobsons Bay from GB to Australia, 1924-1925; served as instructor at HMS Ganges, Shotley, GB, 1926-1928; served aboard HMS Vallhalla in GB coastal waters, 1928-1931; chief petty officer served with HMNB Singapore, Malaya, 1931-1933
Content description
REEL 1 Background in Loughborough and Woking, GB, 1894-1911: family and social circumstances; education and lack of job prospects; work as domestic servant in Woking and London; choir outing aboard HMS Mars at Portsmouth; interest in joining Royal Navy and parents' reaction to prospect of enlistment.
REEL 2 Continues: background to enlistment in Royal Navy at Whitehall Place, London, 6/1911. Recollections of training as boy seaman at HMS Impregnable, Devonport, GB, 6/1911-8/1912: reception on arrival; organisation of training establishment; initial training aboard HMS Circe; issue of uniform and learning how to wash it; later story of meeting future wife whilst taking naval draft out aboard SS Hobsons Bay to join Royal Australian Navy, 1924. [Mrs K Halter] Aspects of life as naval wife in Ipswich, GB: loneliness when husband was at sea; childrens' relationship with their father.
REEL 3 Continues: adequacy of husband's pay. Recollections of training as boy seaman aboard HMS Impregnable at Devonport, GB, 6/1911-8/1912: daily routine; climbing rigging over masthead; adequate rations; rest period ashore; cleaning ladders and free time; weekend visits to Cawsand; kit inspections; public punishment canings for smoking.
REEL 4 Continues: punishments; nature of messdeck accommodation including furniture, hammocks, recreational activities and contact with home; opinion of uniforms and question of personal styling; swimming tests; bathing.
REEL 5 Continues: educational classes and qualification for wireless training; question of educational classes and requirement to pass tests prior to promotion; absence of welfare instruction and provision; question of absence of washing and laundry facilities aboard ships; method of ironing; mess games; Crown and Anchor and question of gambling.
REEL 6 Continues: Recollections of period as boy telegraphist aboard HMS Essex in GB coastal waters, 8/1912-10/1912: duties as second hand of watch; Morse Code tests; status within Wireless Telegraphy Branch; watch system and implications of maintaining permanent wireless watch; qualifying as ordinary telegraphist; later story of dispute over manning wireless office and captain's influence on morale aboard HMS Valhalla, 1928-1931.
REEL 7 Continues: influence of captain and senior officers on crew morale; opinion of naval police. Recollections of periods as boy seaman, seaman and petty officer ashore in Royal Naval Barracks, Devonport, GB, 1911-1934: question of involvement of naval police in bribery and stealing; nature of barrack lifestyle; incident of saluting mistake whilst taking parade drill; routine duties.
REEL 8 Continues: recreational activities on shore leave in Devonport including pubs, reasons for women wanting marry sailors and prostitutes; question of sailors' hobbies; opinion of sailors rest homes including Aggie Weston's Royal Rest Homes; question of Aggie Weston's temperance campaign. Aspects of period as boy telegraphist aboard HMS Royal Arthur in GB coastal waters, 10/1912-2/1913: character of ship; movements; opinion of overseas service.
REEL 9 Continues: conditions; question of homosexuality; system of canteen messing including role of mess caterer in dividing mess canteen bills and choosing menu; later story of uncovering fraud whilst serving aboard HMS Valhalla on checking canteen mess bill at Devonport; ship's canteen and role of canteen committee.
REEL 10 Continues: rations and typical meals; relative roles of mess caterer and cooks of mess; comparison of canteen and general messing; organisation of canteen committees; reiteration of story of uncovering fraud whilst serving aboard HMS Valhalla on checking canteen mess bill at Devonport.
REEL 11 Continues: opinion of Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI) canteens; story illustrating right of appeal to higher authorities after being reprimanded over disciplining stoker petty officer talking to wireless operators whilst serving as chief petty officer at HMNB Singapore, Malaya, 1931-1933; question of right of access to captain being available to all ranks; occasion of being reprimanded for punishing same boy seaman twice for same offence whilst instructing at HMS Ganges, Shotley, 1926-1928.
REEL 12 Continues: watch keeping routine; question of effect of ship's age on mess conditions; recreational activities; friendships; question of homosexuality; competitive approach to 'spit and polish'; cleaning ship and polishing brasswork; preparations for captains' and admirals' inspections; routine polishing of all interior of submarines; later signals exercises aboard HMS Valhalla.
REEL 13 Continues: regular exercises; competitive approach to coaling ship; later relations with 'chummy' ship whilst aboard HMS Valhalla, 1928-1931; naval regattas; question of rivalry between different branches of lower deck. Aspects of training with Submarine Service in GB, 4/1913-10/1913: status of Submarine Service; reason for volunteering for submarines after qualifying as telegraphist aboard HMS Defiance, 3/1913-4/1913.
REEL 14 Continues: failed attempt to retract act on volunteering for submarines; training at HMS Dolphin, Gosport, 4/1913-10/1913 including relaxed nature of discipline and lectures; practical experience diving aboard submarine HMS A13 in Solent. Recollections of period as seaman aboard submarines HMS C18 and HMS D4 in GB coastal waters and North Sea, 10/1913-8/1915: drafting as able seaman to HMS C18, 10/1913; accommodation aboard parent ship; exercises based at Torquay; sleeping on deck during exercises aboard HMS D4 off Scotland; method of replenishing air supply from compressed air bottles and effects of shortage of oxygen; latrine arrangements; water supply; restrictions on cooking to save battery power; rations; recharging battery on surface; move from submarine HMS D4 to HMS E17, 27/8/1915.
REEL 15 Continues: delay in HMS D4 joining flotilla at Harwich, 8/1914; story of raising alarm on sighting torpedo during sweep off Heligoland Bight; routine sweeps in North Sea; bringing in SS Ophelia suspected of spying although marked with Red Cross, 17/10/1914; sinking German netlayer SMS Bielefeld with torpedoes and evading German destroyers in Heligoland Bight, 15/6/1915; story of German torpedoes fired at HMS D4 and escorting destroyers acting as screen across North Sea during large troop convoy across English Channel. Recollections of operations as seaman aboard submarine HMS E17 in GB coastal waters and North Sea, 8/1915-1/1916 including sinking off Texel Island, Netherlands, 6/1/1916: background to transfer to HMS E17 with Lieutenant Commander John Moncrieffe, 27/8/1915; initial problems in relations with crew; role supplying cover to fishing fleet; problems acting as helmsmen due to inaccurately adjusted gyro compass; running aground on uncharted sandbank off Texel Island, Netherlands, 6/1/1916; efforts to get off sandback; precaution of destroying books and charts.
REEL 16 Continues: blowing ballast and success in getting off sandbank, 6/1/1916; sighing cruiser and fire in engines on diving; resurfacing; identifying Dutch protected cruiser as HNLMS Noordbrabant and rescue of half of crew, 6/1/1916; sinking of HMS E17 whilst waiting for second boat; reception aboard HNLMS Noordbrabant. Recollections of period as internee in Groningen Internment Camp, Netherlands, 1/1916-11/1918: journey; reception; camp layout; accepting advice from Commodore Wilfred Henderson to sign parole; breakfast; roll call; route marches; dinner; beds; boredom and voluntary drill sessions.
REEL 17 Continues: suspension of voluntary drill sessions; leave periods and pay; relations with Dutch civilians and question of attacks by pro-German elements; aspects of Dutch house keeping; effects of Dutch food rationing; Armistice celebrations, 11/11/1918; reaction to being drafted to stay on at British Legation in The Hague, Netherlands, 11/1918-5/1919.
REEL 18 Continues: Aspects of service as seaman, petty officer and chief petty officer with Royal Navy, 1920-1934: period at Wireless Station, Singapore, Malaya 1920-1923, including absence of other naval personnel, shore leave and problem with bugs staying in sailors' rest home; period in Regulating Office at HMS Vivid, Royal Navy Signal School, Devonport, GB, 5/1923-3/1924; effects of promotion to petty officer including question of relations with ratings and story illustrating differing roles of petty officer and ratings; opinion of promotion system and necessity of passing educational test to become petty officer; torpedoman ranks.
REEL 19 Continues: gunnery ranks; recognition of marriage and introduction of separation allowances; pay rises; role of new Welfare Committees including Admiralty's unwillingness to accept proposals, dispute over crews of small ships having compulsory allotment from pay to finance cinema provision on larger ships, improvements to messes and election of representatives from lower deck; question of Admiralty's attitude to insurance payments and pension; comparison of pay with civilians; chances of being commissioned from lower deck; treatment of lower deck personnel and opinion of officers.
REEL 20 Continues: illustrations of officers with bad reputations; effects of marriage and question of adequacy of pay; initial difficulty of finding employment on leaving Royal Navy obtaining work as maintenance electrician in factory, 1934; pay; employers' attitude to ex-Royal Navy personnel; difficulty in adjusting to civilian lifestyle.
