Griffin, Alfred (Oral history)

British NCO served with 9th Bn King's Royal Rifle Corps on Western Front, 1917-1918; served as despatch rider with RAF in India, 1919-1923

REEL 1: Background in Shrewsbury, GB, 1898-1915: Boy Scout activities; background to failed attempts to enlist underage, 1914-1915; attitude to conscientious objectors. Recollections of period as civilian plumber's mate at Brockton Camp, Cannock Chase, 1915-1916: unofficial military training including rifle training and hand grenade catapult projector; relationship with troops; work fitting out huts accommodation; billets; question of effects of war and ignorance of conditions on Western Front. Recruitment into King's Royal Rifle Corps at Shrewsbury 27/6/1916. Recollections of period at Winchester Barracks, ca 6/1916-10/1916: promotion to lance corporal due to Boy Scouts experience; kitting out; nature of training with NCOs cadre including drill, PT and route marches. Recollections of conditions of service and lifestyle during training with 6th Bn King's Royal Rifle Corps at Sheerness,10/1916-6/1917: initial period with underage company; background to decision to revert to ranks; bayonet training. REEL 2 Continues: qualification as marksman in rifle range shooting exercise; hand grenade training; local naval units and fatigue duties clearing out ships' boiler ash; gas mask and tactical training; hut accommodation; kit inspections; barrack damages; food rations; relationship with older soldiers; recreations; relationship with civilians, NCO instructors and officers; letters home; spelling test to select possible signallers; training as signaller including flags, lamps, D3 telephone and repairing telephone lines, heliograph, theory and success in passing tests, 1/6/1917; embarkation leave and reactions of family; personal morale; vaccinations; attitude to Western Front. Voyage aboard Lydia to Le Havre, France, 12/6/1917. Initial period in camp in Le Havre area, 6/1917-7/1917: signal training. REEL 3 Continues: training in trench warfare conditions and tactics; food rations. Reception on joining Signal Section, Headquarters Coy detached to C Coy, 9th Bn King's Royal Rifle Corps at Pouche Villiers, 6/7/1917. Recollections of conditions of service, lifestyle and daily routine during period in Ypres area, 8/1917-12/1917: stories illustrating value of experience under German shell and machine gun fire during first period in front line; terrain; nature of trench and company HQ dugout; rat and corpse problem; checking telephone line back to battalion HQ; working parties carrying sawn logs for road construction; salvage parties; reserve billets in ruined convent; frequency of working parties in reserve, food rations, route marches; military role in reserve; concert party during rest period at Abeele; failed exercises to communicate with aircraft using shutter lamp; lice problem and baths; question of recreations in rest periods; question of contacts with French and Belgian civilians; lifestyle during rest periods; organisation of tours of duty. REEL 4 Continues: working parties and ground conditions in Messines sector; story of night rifle practise; German concrete pillboxes; nature of trenches and dugouts; personal kit; barbed wire and role as signaller accompanying wiring parties in No Man's Land; latrines; problems with flies, corpses and rats; effects of wet weather including digging drainage holes in trench and muddy ground conditions. REEL 5 Continues: effects of cold weather; trench feet; polluted water in shell holes; lice problem; state of health; attitude to cases of shell shock; ration parties; landmark corpse; rum ration and punishment for stealing rum, cooking arrangements; water supply; food rations; stand to and crescendos of fire; SOS signal for artillery support; routine daytime duties including cleaning signal lamps and rifle. REEL 6 Continues: routine daytime duties including fusing hand grenades; letter contact with GB and question of censorship; signallers' duty rota operating signal lamps as backup to telephone; role as signaller accompanying wiring parties in No Mans Land; relationship with other ranks and special friend; relationship with NCOs and officers; comparison of 'gentlemen' and 'ranker' officers; reaction to criticism from Haig whilst marching out of line, 12/1917; opinion of high command. REEL 7 Continues: types of German shellfire; crescendos of fire in front line; view of successful German counter-battery fire on British battery; question of British guns firing short; minenwerfers; British trench mortars and German retaliation; German sniping activities and story of attempt to retaliate as sniper; German gas shells and cloud attacks; gas masks; hand grenades and catapult projector; signaller's role during trench raids to capture German prisoner and German retaliatory fire into No Mans Land; question of German trench raids; question of regularly firing rifle. REEL 8 Continues: account of dawn attack in Langemarcke sector, 9/1917, including briefing, personal morale, crossing No Man's Land, isolation on capturing German front line, retreat to start line, problems with uncut barbed wire and subsequent state of morale; story of close escape from German shell and subsequent effects on personal morale whilst acting as signaller attached to 42nd Bde at Gheluveldt,12/1917. Period in rest camps, 12/1917-3/1918: opinion of and relationship with drafts of older conscripts; recovery in unit morale; new signalling equipment; preparations for German offensive. Recollections of retreat following German offensive in St Quentin sector, Somme area, 21/3/1918-4/4/1918: German preliminary barrage; situation; recapture of B Echelon troops taken prisoner by German attack; nature of fighting in retreat to canal in Jussy; renewal of German attack and further retreat to Ruby Wood; view of Royal Horse Artillery battery in action; retreat to Guisguard; absence of rations and scavenging for food. REEL 9 Continues: scavenging for food in defensive positions; French refugees and retreating soldiers; inability to hold defensive positions; crossing canal on boats in Peronne sector; problems in assisting Army Service Corps riding back with mules and horse; rejoining remnants of unit; situation; absence of looting; determination not to be made POW; French civilian refugees; illustrations of fatigue; reactions to reading of Haig's 'back to the wall' message; failed attempt to fire abandoned 18pdrs at advancing German troops; story of reactions to being wounded in hand by German shell, 4/4/1918; evacuation as walking wounded via casualty clearing stations to Amiens; situation at Amiens railway station; evacuation by ambulance to hospital at Rouen; infected wound; return by hospital ship to GB. Period in hospital at Manchester, 4/1918: state of uniform; question of adequacy of medical treatment and cause of infection; home leave. Further problems with infected wound during posting 5th Bn King's Royal Rifle Corps at Sheerness, 5/1919. Period training as signaller with Machine Gun Corps at Belton Park, Grantham, 5/1918-1/1919: reasons for volunteering; training; cancellation of posting to Mesopotamia and celebrations on Armistice, 11/11/918; assisting as medical orderly during influenza epidemic; demobilisation and subsequent transfer to reserve as regular, 1/1919; nature of motorcycle training. REEL 10 Continues: Background to recruitment as motorcyclist with RAF at Grantham, 9/1919: question of status on army reserve; question of civilian employment; minimal test; movements; question of superior conditions of service in RAF in comparison to army. Recollections of voyage out to Bombay, India, 9/1919-10/1919: route; conditions; first impressions in camp at Bombay; lectures on lifestyle in India including precautions against disease, treatment of VD cases and question of respecting Indian caste system. Recollections of conditions of service and lifestyle during period at Headquarters, 52nd Wing at Dera Ismail Khan, North West Frontier, 10/1919-12/1919: journey by train; unit personnel; distribution of squadrons; co-ordinating role of Wing HQ; role as despatch rider; crossing Indus on pontoon bridge; relieving war service personnel; tent accommodation; food rations; out of bounds area; morning routine; visits to Indus and crocodiles; evening routine; water coolers; duties; recreations including cinema and sporting activities; letter and parcel contact with GB. REEL 11 Continues: relationship with officers; canteens; relationship with other ranks and NCOs; role of Indian servants. Period on detachment to serve with Liaison Officer Major Evans at Manzai, 12/1919: difficult journey; question of sniping activities of Mahsuds; activities of mobile column; hunting game; story of acting as escort whilst delivering ransom to secure release of crash landed RAF crew from Mahsuds; firing of obsolete gun in hill fort; appearance of Mahsuds; ceremonial cannon fired by Wazirs; mud hut accommodation in defended perimeter; relationship with Indian troops; duties as despatch rider; problem with engine piston; mirage; camel trains. Story of being wrongly charged with private use of motorcycle and consequent posting on return to Dera Ismail Khan, 1920. Period with 5 Sqdn, RAF at Quetta, 1920-1922: duties as motorcyclist; story of contacting dead pilot's family; conditions of service; meeting friends from Regt serving in India. Period at Aircraft Park at Lahore, 1922-1923: duties driving lorries for Indian Police on internal security duty dispersing riots in Lahore and Amritsar. REEL 12 Continues: duties driving lorries for Indian Police on internal security duty dispersing riots in Lahore and Amritsar; attitude to Ghandi and Indian rioters; question of British troops unprovoked attacks on Indian civilians; contacts with Anglo-Indian community and question of soldiers marrying Anglo-Indian women; brothels; layout of barracks; visits to pig farm; drinking habits; escorting bombs by lorry; story of revolver shooting accident; health problems including prickly heat and threat of cholera; question of mental problems; officer's motorised raft; story of pilot dropping rose petals on marriage party; story of drunken officers killed during flypast by aircraft of 31 Sqdn on visit of Prince of Wales; story of roasting pigeons; relationship with Indians; return to GB, 2/1923. Period in GB prior to demobilisation, 1924: question of blue uniform; question of staying in RAF; civilian career as chauffer.