Davenport, Leo Charles (Oral history)

British boy signaller and signaller served aboard HMS Ceres, 5th Cruiser Sqdn in Indian Ocean, 10/1940-8/1942; served on shore duties in HMNB Simonstown, South Africa, 9/1942-12/1942; served aboard submarine HMLMS O19 in South Africa and GB, 12/1942-6/1944; served aboard submarine HMLMS O19, 8th Submarine Flotilla in Far East, 7/1944-7/1945 including grounding and sinking on Ladd Reef, Spatley Islands, South China Sea, 8/7/1944-10/7/1944

REEL 1 Background in Burwardsley and Knutsford, GB, 1923-1937: family; education. Aspects of period of training as boy seaman in GB, 1937-1940: character of instruction with emphasis on sport at National Nautical School, Portishead; training at HMS St Vincent, Gosport; move to HMS St George, Douglas, Isle of Man; reaction to declaration of Second World War, 3/9/1939; signal training at HMS St George, Douglas, Isle of Man; drafting to HMS Drake, Devonport; meaning of term 'barrack room stanchion'. Recollections of operations as signal boy and signaller aboard HMS Ceres, 5th Cruiser Sqdn in Indian Ocean, 10/1940-8/1942: voyage aboard HMT Strathmore from GB to Kenya via India; background to joining cruiser at Mombasa, Kenya. REEL 2 Continues: arrival on boy's mess deck, 10/1940; difference between canteen and general messing; duties on board; convoy duties; challenging ships; efficiency of ship; sight of Italian spotter aircraft off Italian Somaliland; activities along Italian Somaliland coast; effect of outbreak of war with Japan, 12/1941; leaving ship in Simonstown, South Africa, 8/1942. Aspects of period as signaller on shore duties at HMNB Simonstown, South Africa, 9/1942-11/1942: duties; relations with South African civilians; attitude to serving in South Africa. Recollections of operations as signaller aboard submarine HMLMS O19 in South Africa and GB coastal waters, 12/1942-6/1944: reasons for volunteering for duties as liaison rating on Dutch submarine; welcome from Lieutenant Henry Robjohns and Bill Corver; condition of submarine; voyage from Simonstown, South Africa to Falmouth, GB, 12/1942-1/1943. REEL 3 Continues: danger of submarine looking like a German submarine; practical joke played on him; stays at HMS Ambrose, Dundee whilst HMLMS O19 in dock, 2/1943-5/1944. Recollections of operations as signaller aboard submarine HMLMS O19, 8th Submarine Flotilla in Far East, 7/1944-7/1945 including grounding and sinking on Ladd Reef, Spatley Island, South China Sea, 8/7/1945-10/7/1945: move to Ceylon, 6/1944-7/1944; negotiating Lombok Strait; mine laying procedures; attacks on Japanese coasters, 9/1944; problems of operating from Fremantle, Australia; picking up Indonesian and Japanese survivors from sunken coaster SS Kaishin Maru No 2, 16/11/1944; Indonesian crewman's knife attack on Japanese prisoner of war after sinking of coaster Kaishin Maru No 2, 11/1944; crew's declining Japanese prisoner of war's offer to shave them, 11/1944. REEL 4 Continues: effect of depth charging by Imperial Japanese Navy submarine chaser CH-5 after torpedoing of auxiliary gunboat SS Shinko Maru No 1 Go, 9/1/1945; damage to submarine from depth charging; method of disposing of code books and cyphering machines; repairs to submarine; state of submarine on return to Fremantle, Australia; effects of depth charging on crew; reaction to prospect of becoming prisoner of war of Japanese; attacks on Imperial Japanese Navy heavy cruiser Ashigara in Lombok Strait, 18/4/1945-22/4/1945; effects of mine laying; start of 5th patrol in Far East, 25/6/1945; running around on Ladd Reef, Spatley Islands, South China Sea, 8/7/1945. REEL 5 Continues: abortive attempts to tow submarine off Ladd Reef by American submarine USS Cod (SS-224), 9/7/1944-10/7/1944; rescue of crew by submarine USS Cod (SS-224), 10/7/1945; destruction of HMLMS O19, 10/7/1945; removal of crew to Manus Island, 7/1945; gratitude of submarine's crew to USS Cod (SS-224) for preventing them falling into Japanese hands; joint celebration with crews of both submarines in Fremantle, Australia, 8/1945.