Interview with Michael Botwell Adams

1208445381
Use this audio under Non-Commercial licence

Embed this sound recording for online use under the IWM Non-Commercial Licence
By embedding this audio file you agree to the terms and conditions of the IWM Non-Commercial Licence, including your use of the attribution statement specified by IWM. For this item, that is:

© IWM

Accepted Non-commercial Use

Permitted use for these purposes:
Personal use for non-commercial research and private study and other uses under the UK’s exceptions to copyright and those exceptions to copyright in place where the user is located.
Use on websites that are primarily information-led, research-oriented and not behind a paywall.
Use on personal social media accounts, provided the individuals are not promoting themselves commercially.
Non-Commercial educational use for the purpose of teaching and instruction, including internal training.
Downloading audio-visual for non-commercial offline listening or viewing.
Free exhibitions held in venues, which do not charge an entry fee.

If you would like to use IWM collections materials in a way that is not covered above, require a commercial licence, high-resolution copies, or have manipulation requests, please contact the Image and Film Licensing Team. Digital files of films and sound recordings are available at cost depending on intended use.

Embed

<iframe src="https://www.iwm.org.uk/embed/?id=80018343&media_id=96054" height="430" width="480" frameborder="no" scrolling="no"></iframe>
1944891099
Use this audio under Non-Commercial licence

Embed this sound recording for online use under the IWM Non-Commercial Licence
By embedding this audio file you agree to the terms and conditions of the IWM Non-Commercial Licence, including your use of the attribution statement specified by IWM. For this item, that is:

© IWM

Accepted Non-commercial Use

Permitted use for these purposes:
Personal use for non-commercial research and private study and other uses under the UK’s exceptions to copyright and those exceptions to copyright in place where the user is located.
Use on websites that are primarily information-led, research-oriented and not behind a paywall.
Use on personal social media accounts, provided the individuals are not promoting themselves commercially.
Non-Commercial educational use for the purpose of teaching and instruction, including internal training.
Downloading audio-visual for non-commercial offline listening or viewing.
Free exhibitions held in venues, which do not charge an entry fee.

If you would like to use IWM collections materials in a way that is not covered above, require a commercial licence, high-resolution copies, or have manipulation requests, please contact the Image and Film Licensing Team. Digital files of films and sound recordings are available at cost depending on intended use.

Embed

<iframe src="https://www.iwm.org.uk/embed/?id=80018343&media_id=96055" height="430" width="480" frameborder="no" scrolling="no"></iframe>
1125630582
Use this audio under Non-Commercial licence

Embed this sound recording for online use under the IWM Non-Commercial Licence
By embedding this audio file you agree to the terms and conditions of the IWM Non-Commercial Licence, including your use of the attribution statement specified by IWM. For this item, that is:

© IWM

Accepted Non-commercial Use

Permitted use for these purposes:
Personal use for non-commercial research and private study and other uses under the UK’s exceptions to copyright and those exceptions to copyright in place where the user is located.
Use on websites that are primarily information-led, research-oriented and not behind a paywall.
Use on personal social media accounts, provided the individuals are not promoting themselves commercially.
Non-Commercial educational use for the purpose of teaching and instruction, including internal training.
Downloading audio-visual for non-commercial offline listening or viewing.
Free exhibitions held in venues, which do not charge an entry fee.

If you would like to use IWM collections materials in a way that is not covered above, require a commercial licence, high-resolution copies, or have manipulation requests, please contact the Image and Film Licensing Team. Digital files of films and sound recordings are available at cost depending on intended use.

Embed

<iframe src="https://www.iwm.org.uk/embed/?id=80018343&media_id=96056" height="430" width="480" frameborder="no" scrolling="no"></iframe>
244021521
Use this audio under Non-Commercial licence

Embed this sound recording for online use under the IWM Non-Commercial Licence
By embedding this audio file you agree to the terms and conditions of the IWM Non-Commercial Licence, including your use of the attribution statement specified by IWM. For this item, that is:

© IWM

Accepted Non-commercial Use

Permitted use for these purposes:
Personal use for non-commercial research and private study and other uses under the UK’s exceptions to copyright and those exceptions to copyright in place where the user is located.
Use on websites that are primarily information-led, research-oriented and not behind a paywall.
Use on personal social media accounts, provided the individuals are not promoting themselves commercially.
Non-Commercial educational use for the purpose of teaching and instruction, including internal training.
Downloading audio-visual for non-commercial offline listening or viewing.
Free exhibitions held in venues, which do not charge an entry fee.

If you would like to use IWM collections materials in a way that is not covered above, require a commercial licence, high-resolution copies, or have manipulation requests, please contact the Image and Film Licensing Team. Digital files of films and sound recordings are available at cost depending on intended use.

Embed

<iframe src="https://www.iwm.org.uk/embed/?id=80018343&media_id=96057" height="430" width="480" frameborder="no" scrolling="no"></iframe>

Description

Object description

British officer served with King George V's Bengal Sappers and Miners Group, Indian Engineers in India, 1939-1944; commanded 75th Indian Field Coy, King George V's Bengal Sappers and Miners Group, Indian Engineers, IV Indian Corps, Fourteenth Army in Burma, 1944-1945

Content description

REEL 1 Recollections of background in GB, 1916-1934: family circumstances; education at St Bede's School, Eastbourne; visits to Germany including sight of Adolf Hitler speaking at Hesse and opinion of Nazis organisation. Aspects of period as officer cadet with Royal Engineers in GB, 1934-1939: opinion of course at Royal Military Academy, Woolwich; continuing education at School of Military Engineering, Chatham and Trinity Hall, University of Cambridge; joining scientific expedition to Spitzbergen Island, Norway, 1938. Recollections of period as officer with King George V's Bengal Sappers and Miners Group, Indian Engineers in India, 1939-1944: reaction to posting to Headquarters, 43rd Infantry Infantry Bde at Roorkee, 1/1939; quality of soldiers in unit; memories of Major Archie Jack. REEL 2 Continues: transfer to Military Engineering Services at Nowshera, 11/1939; character of Mahsood hill people; brief experience of frontier column; return to unit at Roorkee, 7/1940; role as instructor at Officer Cadet Training Unit; training role at Jhansi, 1941-1943; memories of Michael Calvert, Orde Wingate and Bernard Fergusson at Jhansi, 1943; civil disorder in Bihar; period at Indian Staff College, Quetta, 1943. REEL 3 role as instructor at Tactical School, Poona and Dehra Dun; developing methods for destroying Imperial Japanese Army bunkers; plans for invasion of northern Burma, 1944; memories of Ian Jacob; opinion of Field Marshal Claude Auchinleck; efforts to get into active service. Recollections of operations commanding 75th Indian Field Coy, King George V's Bengal Sappers and Miners Group, Indian Engineers, IV Indian Corps, Fourteenth Army in Burma, 1944-1945: role of unit on River Chindwin; story of looted Buddha statue; work of elephant company in bridging work; handling outboard motors; question of casualties caused to 2nd Bn East Lancashire Regt due to failure of outboard motors; crossing River Irrawaddy. REEL 4 Continues: memories of Major Ken Sink; bridging problems experienced especially with unfamiliar American manufactured equipment; jeep accident at Pegu, 1945; hazards of flying from Burma to India. Recollections of period as officer with King George V's Bengal Sappers and Miners Group in India, 1945: medical treatment for wrist injury; role organising demobilisation of regiment, Roorkee; grading of ex-Indian National Army men; question of mythology surrounding Indian National Army and Indian Independence; demobilisation procedure of regiment.

Object Details

Category: Sound
Related period: 1990 to the present day (production), Second World War (content), Second World War (association)
Creator: IWM (Production company)
Wood, Conrad (Recorder)
Adams, Michael Botwell (Interviewee/Speaker)
Production date: 1999-11-11
Dimensions: whole: Duration 120, Number Of Items 4
Catalogue number: 19891

Object associations

Our collections information

We have over a million object records online, and we are adding to this all the time. Our records are never finished. Sometimes we discover new information that changes what we know about an object, such as who made it or used it. Sometimes we change how an object is interpreted. We sometimes make mistakes in our spelling, transcription or categorisation, or miss information out of our records.

Read more about our collections and the information we hold. Developing our collections information

If you have concerns about the language in this record, or you have information to improve it, please share your feedback.

Interview with Michael Botwell Adams

Description

Object description

Content description

Object Details

Object associations

Associated people and organisations

Associated places

Associated themes

Our collections information

Related content

How Britain Celebrated Christmas During The Second World War