Description
Object description
British seaman served aboard HMS Patroclus in Atlantic, 1939-1940, including sinking, 4/Nov/1940; HMS Wishart in North Atlantic and Mediterranean, 1941-1943; and HMS Bickerton in North Atlantic and Mediterranean, 1941-1944, including sinking, 22/Aug/1944.
Content description
REEL 1: Aspects of period in GB, 1919-1939: family background in London; left school age 14; employment in local government in Ilford; served with Militia for six months; family moved to Surrey; called up for service with Royal Navy on outbreak of war, 9/1939; posted to HMS Royal Arthur, Skegness for basic training; drafted to first ship HMS Patroclus, 11/1939. Aspects of operations aboard HMS Patroclus in Atlantic, 11/1939-11/1940: description of ship; role of ship stopping and boarding neutral ships; story about German passenger aboard Norwegian ship; collected troops from France and returned to Liverpool, GB, 6/1940; description of ship being torpedoed and sunk while rescuing survivors from HMS Laurentic, 4/Nov/1940; problem with lifebelt; story of spending night in sea and rescue by HMS Achates following morning; returned to Greenock, Scotland; sent telegrams to family; posted to depot ship at Scapa Flow; qualified as torpedoedman in Portsmouth and drafted to HMS Wishart, 1941. Aspects of operations aboard HMS Wishart in North Atlantic and Mediterranean, 1941-1943: opinion of ship; duties with Malta convoys as part of H Force; amusing story about unlucky padre; description of aerial attack on ship; role in assisting Allied landings at Algiers, North Africa; story of crew receiving prize money for towing American ship to Algiers; story about death of cousin on aircraft carrier; returned to GB and qualified as leading torpedoeman; drafted to frigate HMS Bickerton in Boston, US, 1943. Aspects of operations aboard HMS Bickerton in Atlantic, English Channel and Arctic, 1943-1944: duties in US; opinion of Commander MacIntyre; description of sinking U-boats and opinion of German sailors; role of ship protecting Atlantic convoys between US and GB and with Russian convoys.
REEL 2 Continues: story of life being saved following request from captain to take photographs of U-boats; description of HMS Bickerton being torpedoed in Barents Sea, 22/Aug/1944; reaction to loss of friends; rescued by launch and returned to Scapa Flow; granted two weeks survivors' leave; drafted to Colombo; returned to Portsmouth, GB following end of war, 8/1945. Post-war life and employment in GB.