The Avro Type 694,
Was a four-engine
British heavy bomber
That never saw active service
In the Second World War
It was originally designated
As the Lancaster Mk IV
But were renamed
As the Avro Lincoln,
Though it became operational
Too late for World War Two
It saw plenty of action
In subsequent conflicts
Until the Jet age retired them
It was called Blue Danube, which
Doesn’t sound menacing at all
So innocuous for the first operational
Weapon in Britain’s nuclear arsenal
Stand silent
And bow your head
Remember with pride
All the fallen dead
Who paid the price
And for their nation bled
Remember them
And wear the poppy red
With the RFC he flew
Over where the ill wind blew
Defending the skies from the Hun
Flying where battle was done
Hazardous sorties over the front
Avoiding enemies on the hunt
Air Commodore Ferdinand Maurice Felix West VC CBE MC (19 JANUARY 1896 – 8 JULY
1988)
Being from an army family I dreaded
Being invited to the officer’s mess
Because I’d have one too many margarita’s
It was called Red Beard, which
Doesn’t sound menacing at all
So innocuous for the first tactical
Weapon in Britain’s nuclear arsenal
The Vickers Wellington
Was a British twin-engine
Long range medium bomber
Known as “the Wimpy”
Designed originally
For daylight operations
It was widely used
As a night bomber
In the early years
Of World War 2.
Before being displaced
As the bomber of choice
By the large four-engined
Heavy bombers like the Lancaster
But the Wellington
Took on a new roll
As an anti-submarine aircraft
It was the only British bomber
To remain in production
For the duration of the war
And was first-line equipment
From beginning to end
Where Eagles Dare is a WW2 drama film, screenplay written by Alistair MacLean based on his book of the same name and, directed by Brian G. Hutton.
After a British Mosquito aircraft is shot down
over Nazi held territory, the Germans capture American Brigadier General George
Carnaby (Robert Beatty), and take him to the nearby S.S. headquarters at the
Schloss Adler, the Castle of Eagles, because the Germans believe the General is
privy to details of the D-Day operation.
So Admiral Rolland (Michael Hordern) and
Colonel Turner (Patrick Wymark) of British Intelligence assemble a crack
commando team led by Major Jonathan Smith (Richard Burton) to rescue him before
he can divulge any details of the plans for the Normandy landings.
Amongst the team of Brits is an American Ranger,
Lieutenant Morris Schaffer (Clint Eastwood), who is puzzled by his inclusion in
an all-British operation, and when two of the team are killed soon after
arriving in Germany, Schaffer suspects that Smith's mission has more than one
objective.
1915 in the RNAS he flew
When Ferrijik Junction came into view
He and Gilbert Smylie were sent
And Into action they both went
Under heavy fire Smylie went down
In marsh land outside of town
He set fire to his stricken machine
And quickly set to flee the Scene
Then davies with skill and Gallantry
Landed in sight of the enemy
Rescued his comrade Smylie
And returned him to safety
Vice Admiral Richard Bell Davies VC CB DSO AFC (19 May 1886 – 26 February 1966)
St Crispin’s day has been
A bloody day in history
Famous for being a day
When battles were fought
High in the cost of life
Among these, in 1864
The Battle of Trading Post
In the American Civil War
Fought between Union
And Confederate forces
In Linn County, Kansas
During the Missouri Raid
By the Confederate Army
Of Missouri, led by
Major General Sterling Price
The buddy system is essential
To
surviving in combat
Because
it gives the enemy
Somebody
else to shoot at
In the First World War
We
fought Germany and won
In
the Second World War
We
fought Germany and won
So
why are we messing about
In
places like Iraq and Afghanistan
When
we could fight Germany again
And
continue the way we began
1942 with the Fleet Air Arm he flew
Leaving behind the land he knew
To fly against the superior Hun
When he and his squadron were undone
Against the German Krieg’s Marine
The pride of the German Navy
And against that determined enemy
His squadron fell into the sea
The Sea Hurricanes
Were carrier based
Catapult-launched
Convoy escorts,
Known as "Hurricats"
Valiantly he fought
In an outdated kite
Against Battleships
And modern planes alike
A young man,
In the prime of life
Fighting Superior forces
He led his squadron
From the front
Attacking the Scharnhorst,
The Gneisenau
And Prinz Eugen
But were all shot
From the skies
Lieutenant Commander Eugene Kingsmill Esmonde VC DSO (1 March 1909 – 12 February 1942)
What would happen in the unhappy event?
Of
a nuclear attack that we cannot prevent
Just
put you head in between knee and thigh
Pucker
up and then kiss your arse goodbye
She was French born
But died as an agent for the SOE
In July 1944 “Nadine”
She was captured by the Germans
And transported to Fresnes Prison in Paris,
Where she was interrogated repeatedly
And brutally tortured until August
She was then transferred to Germany
To be imprisoned at Ravensbrück
Along with two other agents
And in the early morning hours
In February 1945,
They were shot in the back of the head
Their bodies then immediately
Burned in the crematorium.
She was posthumously awarded
A French Croix de Guerre with palm, an MBE
And was mentioned in despatches
With the RFC he flew
Over
where the ill wind blew
Defending
the skies from the Hun
Flying
where battle was done
One
of Britain’s flying aces
Shooting
them down in braces
Flying
so close to heaven
His
tally numbered 57
Flt
Commander James Thomas Byford McCudden VC, DSO & Bar, MC & Bar, MM
(28
March 1895–9 July 1918)
Valiantly he fought
Again
Zeppelins
And
the Red Baron alike
A
young man,
In
the prime of life
Died
an ironic death
Not
taken by the bullet
Or
by the bomb
But
in a flying accident
When
the engine failed
While
flying a new plane
To
his new command
The Avro Lancaster
Was a four-engine British
Second World War heavy bomber
An iconic plane of the RAF
It first saw active service
With Bomber Command in 1942
Where it soon overshadowed
Its close contemporaries
The Handley Page Halifax
And the Short Stirling
It was affectionately known
As The "Lanc"
Perhaps best remembered
For Operation Chastise
Or the dam busters raid
Where it delivered
Barnes Wallis’s "Bouncing bomb"
With devastating effect
It was on to carry
The earthquake boms
Tallboy and Grand
Slam
Used on V2 installations
1917 with the RFC he flew
Leaving behind the land he knew
To fly against the superior Hun
When his squadron was undone
By Jasta 11, The Red Barons flight
Leaving the British four planes light
Wounded and captured on the floor
That was the end of Robinson’s war
Flt Lt William Leefe Robinson VC
(14 July 1895 – 31 December 1918)
She was Russian born
But died as an agent for the SOE
In October 1943 “Madelaine”
Was betrayed to the Germans
And the SD Interrogated her at
84 Avenue Foch
Their HQ in Paris
Though she had the face of an angel
She fought her captors so fiercely
They were scared of her,
And treated her as extremely dangerous
After many escape attempts
She was transferred to Germany
After almost a year in captivity
She was taken to
Dachau
Along with three
other agents
And in the early
morning hours
Of 13th
September 1944,
They were shot in
the back of the head
Their bodies
then immediately
Burned in the
crematorium.
As far as the British were concerned
She was only missing
And she was mentioned in despatches
It wasn’t until 1949
When she was posthumously awarded
A British George Cross and
A French Croix de Guerre with Silver Star.
A nuclear war, can they say
Ruin
your whole bloody day
For
in any atomic hostility
With the RFC he flew
Over where the ill wind blew
Defending the skies from the Hun
Flying where battle was done
One of Britain’s flying aces
Shooting them down in braces
Flying in the sky so free
His tally numbered 73
Major Edward Corringham
"Mick" Mannock VC, DSO & Two Bars, MC & Bar (May 24,
1887 – July 26, 1918)
She was French born
But died as an agent for the SOE
In July 1944 “Nadine”
She was captured by the Germans
And transported to Fresnes Prison in Paris,
Where she was interrogated repeatedly
And brutally tortured until August
She was then transferred to Germany
To be imprisoned at Ravensbrück
Along with two other agents
And in the early morning hours
In February 1945,
They were shot in the back of the head
Their bodies then immediately
Burned in the crematorium.
She was posthumously awarded
A French Croix de Guerre with palm, an MBE
And was mentioned in despatches
The Hawker Typhoon
Single-seat fighter-bomber
Known affectionately as the Tiffy
Began life as a medium
And high-altitude interceptor
But with its Typhoon speed
It found its niche as
A low-altitude interceptor
But when ground attack rockets
Were added to its armoury.
The Typhoon earned a reputation
As the RAF’s
Most successful ground-attack aircraft.
“Cottage to Let” is a wartime comedy thriller, based on the play by Geoffrey Kerr, adapted by Anatole de Grunwald and J.O.C. Orton and Directed by Anthony Asquith.
The story is centred around a Scottish Estate
during World War II with a cottage to let where the landowner is also a key
British military inventor John Barrington (Leslie Banks), who is working to
perfect a bomb sight with his assistant Alan Trently (Michael Wilding).
So, it is no surprise that the cottage becomes
a focus of attention when, not only the new tenant Charles Dimble (Alastair
Sim), but a London evacuee Ronald (George Cole) and a downed RAF fighter pilot
Flt·Lieut. Perry (John Mills), all arrive at the same time, no thanks to the very
scatterbrained Mrs. Barrington (Jeanne De Casalis).
The Germans are desperate to get their hands
on the new bomb site or its creator and someone either in the main house or the
cottage is a Nazi agent and the only security is a Scotland Yard flatfoot
posing as the Butler Evans (Wally Patch).
Other characters crucial to the tale are Mrs.
Trimm (Muriel George), Dr. Truscott (Hay Petrie), Mrs. Stokes (Catherine Lacey)
and the romantic interest comes from Helen Barrington (Carla Lehmann).
Cottage to Let is a very enjoyable film and
should not be missed.
It was August 1914 when Commander-in-Chief, Sir John French ordered the newly arrived British Expeditionary Force under his command to launch an offensive against the German imperial army at Mons and so began the BEF’s first major action of World War I and its resulting carnage.
We were heavily outnumbered and despite the
fact we killed or wounded three of theirs to every one of ours that fell we
were forced to retreat to our second line of defence.
Mercifully, the Germans chose not to pursue
us immediately but elected instead to lick their wounds.
It was during the respite from the days
exertions that the stories started to spread through the ranks of weary and
bloodied soldiers about the 'angels of Mons'.
It seemed that every man had either witnessed
the event or personally knew a man who had.
It was told that at the height of the battle
visions appeared in the sky of St. George surrounded by angels, horsemen and
cavalry urging the soldiers on.
Well, I didn’t see them and furthermore I
didn’t believe anyone else had I figured it was a combination of fear and
fatigue.
But as we sat drinking a mug of badly brewed
black tea, I turned to my mate George and asked him.
“Did you see it Georgie? It was your namesake
after all”
“Did I see what”?
“The angels and St George of course”
“No mate, I was too busy trying not to get
shot”
George took a mouthful of tea and pulled a
face, swallowed and reluctantly took another mouthful, and then he said.
“Anyway, what use were they poncing about in the
sky? They should have come down and got stuck in and give us a bit of a hand”
“Too right” I agreed but I wasn’t altogether
clear if he had seen them or not.
Then we were called to muster and prepare for
the battle to recommence it seemed our all too brief respite to regroup was all
but over.
Again, we battled against overwhelming odds until
well into the next day until finally we had to retreat again fighting a fierce rear-guard
action for the best part of two days until their main body finally caught up
with us at Le Cateau where yet another fearsome battle commenced.
George and I had taken up a position with
what remained of our battalion on a wooded ridge firing rapidly at the
advancing Germans round after round after round, my arm ached with the constant
reloading and my shoulder was bruised and sore from the repeated recoil.
We fired so many shots I thought my barrel
would melt.
Then the Germans turned tail and ran, how we
cheered at the sight of the Germans running away from us for a change.
However, our celebrations were to be proved
premature as everything around us, the entire wood, the hill, the world for all
I knew erupted in a series of massive explosions, so many it was impossible to
tell when one ended and the next began.
Amidst the din of hells fire that had fallen
upon us, were cries and screams and prayers.
Then after what seemed to be hours but was
probably only minutes the barrage was over.
I lifted my head and could see nothing all
around was dust and smoke, I could smell the acrid stench of cordite and my
mouth was full of dirt.
I spat out the dirt and dust from my mouth
and tried to speak but couldn’t I grappled for my canteen and took a mouthful
rinsed my mouth and spat it out.
“Bloody hell George I didn’t like that, not
one bit”
But George didn’t answer and when I looked at
him, he didn’t move, he was lying face down behind the ridge exactly where he
had been before the shelling.
I put my hand on his webbing to turn him over
but as I pulled on his strap my shoulder screamed at me to stop. I stopped
pulling and glanced at my right shoulder and saw a-foot-long splinter of tree
had pierced through my shoulder from front to back. I gritted my teeth as I
gripped the splinter and yanked hard on it.
It came out but the pain was excruciating, and
I screamed loudly.
I turned my attention back to George and
fearing the worst I managed to turn him overusing my left arm and found him to
be alive but unconscious and bleeding from the head and he had a leg full of bloody
splinters.
I washed the worst of the French countryside
off his face using water from the canteen and quickly put a field dressing on
his head wound then I removed the splinters from his leg and dressed that as
best I could then I did the same to my shoulder.
Then I quickly checked five men in each
direction of my firing position and found them all dead.
I took a moment to survey my surroundings and
couldn’t believe my eyes, what less than 10 minutes ago had been a beautiful,
wooded hill was now utter carnage not a tree worthy of the name remained.
I shook my head in despair at the destruction
and mayhem but tempered it by counting my blessings.
In the distance I could make out signs of
life further along the line and they appeared to be withdrawing which on
balance seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to do and decided George and I
would join them.
Across the battlefield a mist was falling and
through it would soon come the German army to finish us off.
“Best we’re not here when they do” I muttered
to myself
“Come on Georgie boy let’s get you to an aid
station” I said as I struggled to get him on my shoulder.
“Don’t worry he’ll be ok” A female voice said.
Startled I turned around to see an angel
stood before me, a most beautiful thing, complete with flowing robes of
pristine white and magnificent wings.
I stumbled and she reached out a hand to
steady me.
“Am I dead”? I asked though quickly answered
my own question.
“No, I can’t be dead coz my shoulder hurts
like bloody hell”
“No, you’re not dead” She assured me
“Then I’m hallucinating my wound must be
infected or poisoned”
She shook her head.
“Ok then I must be mad that’s got to be the
answer” and punctuated my statement with a nod.
“You may well be mad, I couldn’t possibly
comment that’s not my department, but mad or not I am still here none the less”
Just then there were sounds coming from the
mist, it was the sound of fighting men on the move and further along the line
sporadic gun fire could be heard.
“We had better walk and talk, don’t you
think” She said and gestured with an open hand in the opposite direction.
I nodded my agreement and moved off with George
on my back, who was surprisingly light for a big man.
“So, if for the sake of argument, I suspend
my scepticism and agree that I am neither dead, hallucinating nor mad that
would mean that I actually believe you are here”
“Yes” She replied
“So why are you”?
“Why am I what”?
I paused before replying as the sounds of war
behind us were getting ever louder so I picked up the pace.
“Why are you here”?
“We are here to help those we can”
“We”? I asked with surprise
“Oh yes I am not alone”
I pondered her reply for a moment before
replying
“You say you help those you can, but not
all”?
“We can’t help everyone” She said sadly
“I’m afraid you have us outnumbered”
“Unfortunately, we can only help the most
deserving and even then …”
She left the sentence unfinished as the
action behind us was becoming more intense and I glanced back to see a small
group of Tommie’s being swept aside by the advancing tide of the German army.
I again quickened the pace and asked
“So why me?”
“Why am I more deserving than those poor
men”?
“Because you put the life and safety of your
friend before that of your own”
She answered as if surprised by the question.
I looked at her doubtfully and she continued.
“You dressed his wounds before any thought of
attending to yours”
I didn’t think I had done anything remarkable
it was, what it was.
Just then bullets began zipping past us, so I
redouble my efforts and tried to squeeze a little more speed from my tired
legs.
She suddenly appeared in front of me and said
softly
“Stand still”
“Not likely” I replied sharply and walked
past her
“I don’t want to make us an easier target for
them”
She was in from of me again.
“Trust me, just stand still”
I did as she asked though still unsure of the
wisdom of such an act.
The Germans were only 100 yards behind us and
closing fast.
I stood stock still and she moved closer
until she was only inches away from us and unfurled her wings with a great
flutter and wrapped them around us like a cloak.
I could hear the Germans getting closer and
closer, I could hear them talking and some were even laughing.
“They’ll be on us any minute” I said with
fear in my voice
“Relax” she replied calmly “they can’t see
us”
I wasn’t so sure, but I did as she said as best
I could.
They were all around us now so close I could
smell the sweat on them.
They were still shooting at my retreating
comrades as they went by and after a short time they moved into the distance in
their relentless pursuit and we were still safe though it soon occurred to me
that we were now behind enemy lines.
“Have no fear” she said sensing my concern.
“Close your eyes”
I did so without question and after a moment
I felt the reassuring embrace of her winged cloak slip away in a brief flutter.
When I opened my eyes, she stood serenely
before me.
But we were no longer stood on that dangerous
scarred landscape of Le Cateau we now stood in a much greener place.
Ahead of us the British reserves were
mustered preparing to advance to try and halt the German advance.
To my left and right stood a sporadic line of
bemused and battered soldiers walking slowly towards our lines with their
angelic escorts looking on.
My angel smiled as I tried to speak but I
could only return her smile
As I made my own way towards the line, George
still on my back, she called after me
“You can tell George later from me that we Angels
don’t get stuck in, but we do what we can”
“Will do” I called back
As I got closer to our lines groups of Tommie’s
raced towards us to help the weary men.
As a couple of men started to relieve me of
my burden, I suddenly felt Georges full weight on my back and realised she had
lightened my load.
While two privates carried George off to the
aid station I turned and waved to our saviour and she fluttered her wings in
response and melted away into the landscape.
When George and I were at the hospital back
in blighty the papers were full of the story of the 'angels of Mons' and
everyone you spoke to had an opinion on the subject, the general consensus appears
to be that it was a miracle though George says he thinks it’s a load of tosh.
For myself the 'angels of Mons' appearing in
the skies above the battlefield I can’t say that they were there or not as I
never saw them with my own eyes, but I can say with hand on heart that the
'angels of Le Cateau' most certainly were there so if I can see angels then why
shouldn’t everyone else.
The other thing that filled the papers was
the patriotic surge of volunteers enlisting after the terrible defeat at Mons
the angels will be very busy in the coming years, I think.
Valiantly he fought
Against Zeppelins
And the patrols alike
A young man,
In the prime of life
Died an ironic death
Not taken by the bullet
Or by the bomb
But in a flying accident
When the wings folded
On a new kite
During a test flight
