Heppell, James Robert Marland (Oral history)

British civilian served as private with 8th (Preston City) Bn Lancashire Home Guard in Preston, GB, 1940-1941; officer served with 3rd Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles in India, 1942-1945; served with 1/3rd Bn Queen Alexandra's Own Gurkha Rifles, 63rd Indian Infantry Bde, 17th Indian Infantry Div in Burma, 1945; served with British Army of the Rhine investigating war crimes at Bad Oeynhausen, Germany, 1946

REEL 1 Background in Preston, GB, 1922-1939: family; education; reaction to declaration of Second World War, 3/9/1939; school visit to Germany, Easter 4/1938. Aspects of period as member of 8th (Preston City) Bn Lancashire Home Guard in Preston, GB, 1940-1941: initial lack of equipment; personnel; attitude to prospect of German invasion. Aspects of period as officer with Royal Signal Corps in GB, 1941-1942: call-up for military service to Prestatyn, 11/1941; training as wireless operator, 1942; . Recollections of period as officer with 3rd Gurkhas Rifles Queen Alexandra's Own in India, 1942-1945: voyage aboard HMT Orion from GB to India via Durban, South Africa, 1942; limited signs of Quit India Movement; training in support of civil power; procedure laid down for dealing with riotous mobs at Bangalore; second hand story of killing of two British officers on train by mob; relations with civilians and British Indian Army officers; attitude towards Japanese after talking to prisoner of war who had escaped from Japanese captivity; posting to unit, Dehra Dun, 12/1942; keenness of Gurkha soldiers to learn skills; attachment to Indian Army Ordnance Corps; sight of Magh Mela at Allahabad, 1943; return to unit and jungle warfare training, 1944-1945. REEL 2 Continues: opinion of soldierly qualities of Gurkhas; story of isolated instance of trouble between Gurkha soldiers themselves. Recollections of operations as officer with 1/3rd Gurkha Rifles in Burma, 1945: role and duties; action against Japanese in Pegu area; flight in Douglas Dakota with Rajputana Rifles to Pegu, 5/1945; role of unit in blocking eastward retreat of Japanese forces; capture of Imperial Japanese Army engineer officer; period in Shan States and clearing out of Japanese Army brothel; clearing out of Japanese positions in Taunggyi area, Shan States, summer 1945; push into Northern Thailand; duties in charge of Japanese prisoners of war in Burma after VJ Day, 8/1945; handling Japanese prisoners of war. REEL 3 Continues: Far East lecture tour of army commands in GB, 1946. Recollections of period investigating and prosecuting alleged German war criminals with British Army of the Rhine, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany, 1946: allegations of ill-treatment at Neuengamme Concentration Camp; reaction to prosecuting German civilians who had beaten up Royal Air Force prisoner of war; case of Royal Air Force prisoner of war shot dead by German trade union leader; case of prisoner of war shot dead in punishment camp; case of false accusation by neighbours; attitude to question of fairness of prosecuting war crimes; court procedure; reaction to what was uncovered in job.