Description
Object description
British NCO served with 2/5th Bn Welch Regt in GB, France and Isle of Man, 1939-1945 including sinking of SS Arandora Star in North Atlantic, 2/7/1940
Content description
REEL 1: Aspects of operations with 2/5th Bn Welch Regt in GB and France, 1939-1940: pre-war training with Territorial Army; duties guarding HMS Warrior in Pembroke Dock; duties in France prior to evacuation, 5/1940; relations between Welsh and other British troops. Recollections of period as NCO with 2/5th Bn Welch Regt during sinking of SS Arandora Star by submarine U-47 in North Atlantic, 2/7/1940: embarkation aboard ship in Liverpool, 30/6/1940; duties guarding Italian internees; use of barbed wire to cover lifeboats and exits; behaviour of crew and guards towards internees; problem of ship not being marked with Red Cross symbol; sighting submarine periscope and sounding alarm; abandoning ship after being torpedoed by submarine U-47; problem of barbed wire blocking exits; rescue and landing in Greenock, GB; role in communicating with internees families; question of nearly being sent aboard HMT Dunera; attitude to survivors from SS Arandora Star being transferred to HMT Dunera; character of passengers aboard ship; accommodation for guards; relations between Welsh and Italians; further comments on barbed wire; problem of inadequate lifeboat training and shortage of lifejackets; opnion of condition of lifeboats.
REEL 2 Continues: weather conditions at time of sinking; question of ship being used as decoy; description of torpedo striking ship and exploding, and subsequent sinking; fate of passengers caught on barbed wire and trapped below decks; problem of passengers drowning due to wearing lifejackets incorrectly; opinion of discipline among troops during sinking; reunions with survivors; further comments on lack of lifeboat and lifejacket training; description of ship sinking; opinion of discipline amongst German prisoners of war; description of bodies in sea being stripped to clothe survivors; saying prayers over dead; story about Italian Government issuing commemorative medal to Italian survivors; treatment after being rescued; conditions in lifeboat; attitude to press coverage of the sinking and reaction of British Government.
REEL 3 Continues: attitude of guards aboard SS Arandora Star to internment policy; being reprimanded for writing letters of complaint about incident. Recollections of period as NCO with 2/5th Bn Welch Regt in GB and on Isle of Man, 1940-1945: role in setting up internment camp at Didcot; description of internees arriving; opinion of guards; obtaining coffee for internees; revolt in camp over living conditions and food; question of most troublesome internees being sent to Isle of Man; story about 50th Anniversary Reunion with internees at Imperial War Museum, London, 1990; description of duties escorting internees to and from the Isle of Man; bribery of guards; reason for Welsh soldiers being sympathetic towards internees; question of influence being used to gain release of some internees; comparison of behaviour of guards aboard SS Arandora Star and HMT Dunera; question of support for internees affecting promotion; opinion of organisation of internees on Isle of Man.
REEL 4 Continues: story about internees on Isle of Man and fascist 'Black Book'; attitude towards Oswald Mosley and recruitment methods; question of British Union of Fascists receiving funds from Italian community; opinion of treatment of Oswald Mosley in prison; support for fascism among upper classes; attitude towards internment policy; story about former school friends in Wales being interned; relations between Welsh people and internees; story about gun-running activities during Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939; reflections on sinking of SS Arandora Star, 2/7/1940.