Interview with Douglas Waller

British rifleman and NCO served with 9th Bn Rifle Brigade (Tower Hamlets Rifles), 22nd (Guards) Bde in North Africa, 3/1941-1/1942; NCO served with 9th Bn Rifle Brigade (Tower Hamlets Rifles), 200th Guards Bde in North Africa, 1/1942-5/1942; served with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own), 22nd Armoured Bde, 7th Armoured Div in North Africa, Italy, GB and North West Europe, 6/1942-5/1945; served with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) in Germany, 5/1945-7/1946

REEL 1 Background in Tottenham, GB, 1920-1940: social circumstances; education; sporting activities; employment as office clerk; effects of approaching war whilst on holiday in Switzerland, 8/1939; reaction to declaration of Second World War, 3/9/1939; death of father, 5/1940; move of office to Rickmansworth and switch to part-time hours; service with Air Raid Precautions rescue team; call up, 8/1940. Recollections of training as rifleman with Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) Regimental Depot, Peninsula Barracks, Winchester, GB, 8/1940-10/1940: call-up for military service; kitting out; barrack accommodation; cleaning and kit inspections; rations; physical training; drill; regimental history lectures; rifle cleaning; rifle training and shooting on ranges. REEL 2 Continues: bayonet, hand grenade and Bren Gun training; relations with instructors and question of swearing; bugle calls; question of carrying out light infantry drill pace; route marches; pay; relations with fellow recruits; visits into Winchester; relations with civilians; canteen; passing out parade. Recollections of period as rifleman with 2nd Motor Training Bn, Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) at Tidworth Camp, GB, 10/1940-12/1940: size of base; map reading and field craft training. REEL 3 Continues: tactical exercises; SMBL 2 Inch Mortar training; driving and maintenance training on lorry and Universal Carrier; training on Boys Anti-Tank Rifle; move to coastal defence positions and lack of weapons; initial issue of Canadian Ross Rifle; map reading; divisional exercises; question of signal training; gas training; specialist platoons; minimal contact with officers; visits to Andover; vaccinations; embarkation leave and decision to get engaged; mother's war work in Witney; issue of tropical kit; question of posting as reinforcement draft. Aspects of voyage aboard HMT Andes and HMT Neuw Amsterdam from GB to Port Tewfik, Egypt via Durban, South Africa, 12/1940-1/1941 route; mess deck. REEL 4 Continues: ashore in Freetown, Sierra Leone; recreational activities ashore at Durban, South Africa; continuing voyage aboard HMT Neuw Amsterdam from Durban, South Africa to Port Tewfik, Egypt, 1/1941. Aspects of period on draft at Genefa Camp, Egypt, 1/1941: acclimatisation to climate; training in driving in desert conditions; role guarding ammunition dumps; hospitalisation with malaria; police patrols in Ismailia. Recollections of operations as rifleman and NCO with B Coy, 9th Bn Rifle Brigade (Tower Hamlets Rifles), 22nd Guards Bde in North Africa, 3/1941-1/1942: joining battalion at El Adem, Libya; role guarding petrol dump; problem with leaking petrol cans; relations with section; slit trenches; training on Ordnance QF 2 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun including background to selection, gun drill and opinion of gun; subsequent change to Ordnance QF 2 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun and cases of eye injuries from gun sights. REEL 5 Continues: minimal training on Ordnance QF 2 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun; conversion of B Coy platoons to anti-tank role and subsequent attachment to A Coy; situation following Axis advance and temporary attachment to Tobruk Garrison; German Air Force Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive-bomber attacks during evacuation by Royal Navy destroyer from Tobruk, Libya, 4/1941; acclimatisation of reinforcements at Cairo, Egypt, 4/1941-5/1941; training; daily routine; bingo sessions; move to Western Desert, 5/1941; Ordnance QF 2 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun positions question of firing off portee; routine duties; issue of rations; food, cigarette, water and emergency rations; method of brewing tea; scorpion and chameleons; fly problem; desert sores and state of health; rations. REEL 6 Continues: nature of 'Jock Columns' attempting to cut German supply lines; nature of fighting patrols; opinion of Thompson Machine Gun and preference for German MP 40 Submachine Gun; situation during Operation Crusader during attempt to relieve Tobruk Garrison, Libya, 11/1941; personal morale; advance towards Benghazi, Libya; relations with Libyan civilians. Recollections of operations as NCO with 9th Bn Rifle Brigade (Tower Hamlets Rifles), 200th Guards Bde in North Africa, 1/1942-5/1942: role during German reconnaissance probes of Gazala Line, Libya; relations with gun team including Corporal Alfred Reeves, Rifleman William Ash and Driver Magridge; relations with officers and NCOs; Deutsches Afrika Korps breakthrough of Gazala Line; issue of Ordnance QF 6 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun and cases of eye injuries from gun sights. REEL 7 Continues: role as loader in gun team; confused nature of fighting; effect of 2pdr and 6pd A/T shells and aiming points on German Panzer Mk III and IV Tanks; retreat in stages; slight facial wound and makeshift medical treatment; sight of British tanks 'brewing up'; question of stopping retreat at Mersa Matruh, Egypt; destuction of of supply dumps; digging in on El Alamein Line. Aspects of period as NCO with 9th Bn Rifle Brigade (Tower Hamlets Rifles) at Mena Camp, Cairo, Egypt, 6/1942: story of accidentally firing shell at Pyramids, Giza; shortage of reinforcements and reaction to disbandment of battalion. Recollections of operations as NCO with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own), 22nd Armoured Bde, 7th Armoured Div in North Africa, 7/1942-5/1943: nature of battalion deployment and isolation of Anti-Tank Platoon at Alam el Halfa, Egypt, 7/1942; taking up positions prior to action; reaction to Deutsches Afrika Korps artillery fire; prior treatment of facial wound; nature of positions in front of hull down British tanks, 31/8/1942; restriction on range of opening fire; ruse to lure German into trap; opening fire and German machine gun fire. REEL 8 Continues: knocked out German tanks; limited traverse of Ordnance QF 6 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun in gunpit; over-run by German tanks; taking cover during Royal Artillery Ordnance QF 25 Pounder Field Gun artillery barrage; tank battle; situation; lying in gunpit; question of being sighted by German tank; arrival of officer and retirement to platoon headquarters; re-occupying gunpits; destruction of knocked out German tanks by Royal Engineer sappers; discovery of corpses inside knocked out German tank while hunting for souvenirs; dispute with officer over opening fire at long-range on Deutsches Afrika Korps recovery team and consequent temporary reduction in rank to rifleman and loss of Military Medal nomination; situation; leave in Cairo; advance into gap in minefield in southern part of El Alamein Line, during Battle of El Alamein, 10/1942; hit on portee truck; joining infantry in attacking Italian Army strong points; Italian Army mortar fire; tactics in attacking machine gun posts; artillery barrage; capture of Italian Army positions; collecting souvenirs and question of booby-traps; move to reserve positions in northern part of El Alamein Line; situation at start of advance from El Alamein Line, 11/1942; desert driving conditions. REEL 9 Continues: German rearguard actions and opinion of German 88mm Gun; supply system; emergency rations; hold up caused by dummy minefield; effects of wet weather, 11/1942; advance into cultivated area; story of inexperienced officer not recognising German tank; story of 'unpaid' soldier; flank advance round Mareth Line, Tunisia, 3/1943; reception on meeting First Army; damage to portee truck; story of running over German mines; United States Army troops purchase of souvenirs; advance into Tunis, Tunisia; story of spending Tunisian money found on German prisoners of war; firing at Axis positions at Cape Bon, Tunisia, 5/1943; conversation with German prisoners of war. Recollections of period as NCO with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own), 22nd Armoured Bde, 7th Armoured Div at Homs, Tunisia, 5/1943-9/1943: bivouacs; crabs; reaction to not being sent to Egypt or GB; recreational activities and reaction to seeing film 'Desert Victory' (1943); visit from mobile brothel. REEL 10 Continues: story of being confused with Royal Engineer unit and sent to fill in crater in supply road; visit to Roman ruins; concert party and story of reception given to actress Vivien Leigh; investigation into looted weapons and vehicles; local leave in Tunis; prior recollection of smoking during Victory Parade in Tripoli, Libya, 1/1943; promotion to sergeant responsible for two Ordnance 6 Pounder Anti-Tank Guns. Aspects of operations as NCO with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own), 22nd Armoured Bde, 7th Armoured Div in Italy, 9/1943-11/1943: embarkation on landing craft at Tripoli, Libya, 9/1943; reinforcement role of battalion; state of unit morale; German artillery fire during approach to beach at Salerno, 9/1943; move inland; reaction to fighting in area populated by civilians in contrast to desert; advance to Naples; relations with Italian civilians; advance towards River Garigliano and minimal role for anti-tank guns; move back to Sorrento and reaction to news of return to GB. Aspects of voyage aboard HMT Cameronia from Italy to Glasgow, GB, 12/1943: disputes with officer in command of troops aboard ship; fire in cinema; conditions on board troopship; reaction of troops to sight of women on arrival. Recollections of period as NCO with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own), 22nd Armoured Bde, 7th Armoured Div at Brandon, GB, 1/1944-5/1944: arrival at Brandon, 1/1944. REEL 11 Continues: hutted accommodation; story of theft of beds and desertion by soldier in advance party; story of prior demotion to rifleman for going Absent Without Official Leave (AWOL) and looting in Italy; story of marriage to girlfriend on disembarkation leave; ruses employed while assisting in B Coy office; hospitalisation with malaria relapse; story of missing exercise and going Absent Without Official Leave (AWOL) to visit wife serving in Women's Royal Naval Service at Lowestoft; Ordnance QF 6 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun firing range practice; use of half-tracks to tow Ordnance QF 6 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun; relations with young reinforcements; story of seeing stage performance of 'The Desert Rats'; landing craft training; recreation period; security measure; opinion of General Bernard Montgomery. REEL 12 Continues: checking waterproofing and equipment; issue of French currency. Recollections of crossing English Channel from Tilbury, GB to Gold Beach, Arromanches-les Bains, Normandy, France, 5/6/1944-6/6/1944: embarkation at Tilbury Dock; issue of self-heating tins; personal morale; loss of half-track in deep water; situation on landing on Gold Beach. Recollections of operations as NCO with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own), 22nd Armoured Bde, 7th Armoured Div in Normandy, France, 6/1944-8/1944: move inland; question of NCO shot by French female sniper; 6/1944: advance in column to Villiers-Bocage; meeting German Tiger Tank and lack of penetration of Ordnance QF 6 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun anti-tank shells; taking cover in ditch; comparison of British and German tanks; retreat to take up defensive positions; gas alarm caused by smoke shell; withdrawal from Villers-Bocage; artillery fire on rest area; re-equipping; use of Compo rations and cooking arrangements; move to Tilly-sur-Seulles; minimal role of anti-tank guns in bocage country. REEL 13 Continues: opinion of Sabot ammunition; move to Caen area; sight of Allied bombing raid on Caen; use of Universal Carriers in attacking German V1 Flying Bomb sites; German multi-barrelled mortar fire; continuing minimal role of anti-tank guns; story of Rifleman Bill Ash being wounded; advance into Falaise Gap, 8/1944. Recollections of operations as as NCO with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own), 22nd Armoured Bde, 7th Armoured Div in North West Europe, 8/1944-5/1945: reception from French and Belgian civilians; question of treatment of collaborators in Ghent, Belgium; local leave in Brussels, Belgium; advance into Netherlands, 24/9/1944; relations with Dutch civilians; accommodation; nature of fighting at Overloon, Netherlands, 10/1944; accommodation at Born, Netherlands; relations with Dutch civilians; use of pithead showers; German propaganda leaflets; guard duty; move to establish defensive positions on River Meuse during German Ardennes Offensive in Belgium, 1/1945; sight of German Air Force jet fighter. REEL 14 Continues: question of movements, 1/1945-3/1945; story of capturing German Army troops asleep in pillbox; concentration area prior to crossing River Rhine, Germany, 3/1945; state of towns during advance into Germany; policy of non-fraternisation with German civilians; nature of fighting; transfer as driver to Wasp Flame-Throwing Carrier and it's use to clear pockets of German Army troops in forest; personal morale; prior recollection of situation during advance to Nijmegen, Netherlands, 10/1944; reaction to visit to liberated Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp and enforced visits by German civilians; collapse of German resistance on entry to Hamburg, Germany; move to liberate Denmark; evacuation of surrendered German forces from Denmark; VE Day, 8/5/1945; question of existence of German resistance movement. Recollections of period as NCO with 1st Bn Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort's Own) at Glückstadt, Germany, 5/1945-7/1946: removal of German Navy female personnel; modern nature of barracks. REEL 15 Continues: use of German Navy personnel to clear mines in River Elbe; separation from 7th Armoured Div; minimal duties; recreational activities; exception of desert veteran NCOs from training programme; duties as orderly room sergeant; visits to Hamburg; return of regular prisoners of war to battalion; preparing briefing on demobilisation; question of quick promotion back to sergeant; pantomime; end of non-fraternisation policy and relations with German civilians; dances organised in local bar; question of role of battalion; story of acquisition of German currency from Nazi Party headquarters and subsequent visits to spend it in France due to anomaly in currency regulations; sergeants' mess; question of black market activities; interview prior to demobilisation and question of remaining in British Army. REEL 16 Continues: demobilisation documentation; battalion magazine 'Shuftie'; searches for war souvenirs during journey back to GB, 7/1946; demobilisation, 7/1946. Post-war life and employment: return to work as clerk; acclimatisation to civilian lifestyle; effects of war service; housing; membership of Rifle Brigade Association; career in hospital administration; background to trips with Lady Randall to Egypt and Libya.