Description
Object description
British officer served with 1st Bn Manchester Regt in Egypt, 1937-1938; served with 1st Bn Manchester Regt and Special Night Squads in Palestine, 1938-1939
Content description
REEL 1 Recollections of period as officer with 1st Bn Manchester Regt in Egypt, 1937-1938: background to joining army; posting to Egypt, 1937; reactions to posting and prior knowledge of Middle East; intelligence gathering whilst flying over French and Italian territories on route to Egypt; type of intelligence required; description of Ismailia Camp; opinion of training; daily routine; relationship with members of platoon; prevalent attitudes to war and regimental system.
REEL 2 Continues: necessity for soldiers' brothel at Ismailia; prevalence of venereal disease; efforts to entertain troops; relations between troops and Egyptians; limited experience of internal security role; appreciation of Italian threat; precautionary defensive measures taken by British in Egypt to meet potential Italian threat; lack of anticipation of Second World War; assessment of Italian strength and their performance in Ethiopia; officer lifestyle at Ismailia.
REEL 3 Continues: divisional exercises in desert; use of personal aircraft. Aspects of operations as officer with 1st Bn Manchester Regt in Palestine, 1938: reaction to posting to Palestine; arrival in Palestine and accommodation at Mount Canaan above Safad; convoy escort duties; responses to Arab sniping; origins of Arab unrest; attitude towards Arabs; opinion of effectiveness of Arab tactics; first meeting with Major Orde Wingate detained in error by King-Clark's troops. Recollections of operations as officer with Special Night Squads in Palestine, 1938: posting to Special Night Squads; purpose of unit and introduction to Major Orde Wingate's ideas.
REEL 4 Continues: background to Major Orde Wingate's formation of Special Night Squads; purpose and later reputation of Special Night Squads; billeting in kibbutz; description of kibbutz; origins of squad members; training Jewish recruits; Major Orde Wingate's ideas on battle formation; personal purchase of Mauser machine pistol; nature of operations; Major Orde Wingate's intelligence sources and use of secrecy and surprise; later squad operations using trained personnel; quality of Jewish recruits; description of training Jewish recruits.
REEL 5 Continues: night encounter with Arab insurgents; attacks on villages; Major Orde Wingate's wounding and his resilience; successful operation in which prominent Arab insurgent killed. Aspects of operations as officer with 1st Bn Manchester Regt in Palestine, 1938-1939: return to battalion; contrast between battalion sized operation and Special Night Squads operations; accident in which civilian killed; use of personal aircraft for reconnaissance and makeshift adaptations for combat. Recollections of operations as officer with Special Night Squads in Palestine, 1938: Major Orde Wingate's unorthodox approach and pro-Jewish sympathies.
REEL 6 Continues: lack of interest in world affairs amongst officers; attitude towards Arabs; occasion when squad was accidentally fired on by kibbutz guards; equipment and uniforms; navigation during night marches; debilitating boils; frequency of patrols; opinion of and attitude to Major Orde Wingate; efforts to protect oil pipeline; contact with Transjordan Frontier Force; opinion of and relations with Palestine Police.
REEL 7 Continues: illustrations of Major Orde Wingate's eccentricity and independence; reconnaissance trip with Major Orde Wingate when car broke down in hostile territory.
