Description
Object description
British officer commanded RAF Greenham Common in GB, 1980-1983
Content description
REEL 1 Background in GB, 1938-1957: family; education. Aspects of period as officer with Royal Air Force in GB and West Germany 1957-1979: pattern of career; overseas service; duties with Joint Warfare Establishment (JWE); duties at Ministry of Defence, London; duties with North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) in West Germany. Recollections of period commanding RAF Greenham Common in GB, 1980-1983: state of base on arrival; role of RAF Greenham Common during Second World War; duties and responsibilities; planning to prepare base to receive Cruise Missiles; public meeting regarding Cruise Missiles held by Secretary of State for Defence Francis Pym at Newbury.
REEL 2 Continues: Secretary of State for Defence Francis Pym's arguments in support of Cruise Missiles; arrival of first group of demonstrators under Pat Arrowsmith; relations with first protestors; arrival of more protestors, 1981; relations with Newbury District Council; attempts to accommodate environmental concerns regarding Ministry of Defence land; increase in demonstrations against base, 1981; difficulties with actions of some protestors; relations between base and local population; attitude towards Ratepayers Against Greenham Encampment (RAGE) group; story of demonstration on Hiroshima Day and reaction of Burma Star veterans, 6/8/1981.
REEL 3 Continues: relations between American military personnel and local population; growth of Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp; farmer's method of removing protestors from fields; question of treatment of female protesters by authorities; attitude towards Newbury District Council's handling of Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp; dealing with women who chained themselves to gate/fence; opinion of organisation of protest; media coverage of protest; funding of protest; interest in protest from Eastern European media; reasons for cutting off protesters' water supply; attempts by protesters to blockade all the gates of RAF Greenham Common; question of protesters success in disrupting work at base; sacking of Tarmac Company due to fraternisation with protesters; beginning of cutting down of perimeter fence by protesters.
REEL 4 Continues: construction of missile storage buildings; importance of safety standards; American methods of assessing personnel; increase of demonstrations and police presence, 1982-1983; attitude of local people towards protesters; attitude towards beliefs and arguments of protesters; difficulties transporting convoys of base workers into RAF Greenham Common, 10/1982-11/1982; nature of demonstrations; attitude towards occasion when protesters danced on missile storage buildings; arrests and charges against protesters; protest against plans to build American school at RAF Greenham Common.
REEL 5 Continues: description of RAF Greenham Common; attempts to forge good relations between base and community; relations with American commander; question of how incursions into missile area of base would have dealt with once nuclear warheads had arrived; question of degree to which protesters were able to disrupt work at RAF Greenham Common; difficulties in being isolated from RAF support and responsibility of work at RAF Greenham Common; attitude towards work at RAF Greenham Common; last air show at RAF Greenham Common, 1983; attitude towards role at RAF Greenham Common.
REEL 6 Continues: role of Cruise Missile; question of whether demonstrators posed a security threat; impact of Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp protest; attitude towards claims that electromagnetic rays used against female protesters; attitude towards 'Cruisewatch' activity after he had left base; attitude towards continued presence of protestors at base; reflections on future at RAF Greenham Common.