We Remember the Home Guard

"I remember standing on top of our local glen with a block of wood, expecting thousands of Germans coming down from the sky. What was I going to do with the block of wood? I never knew." —Leonard Jackson 
On June 22, 1940, France surrendered to Germany and the invasion of Britain seemed a very real possibility. The Home Guard was formed to defend our villages and towns. Members came from reserved occupations, those who had failed their medicals, the elderly and the young, with miners and farmers training alongside former majors. Their weapons and ammunition were negligible at first, but slowly these amateur soldiers began to produce professional results. In this unique book of reminiscences, we see these men as they practise with pitchforks and fall into ditches after a pint or two of ale on the job. But we also see them learning how to fire grenades after a day studying engineering and undertaking night watches after exhausting factory shifts—knowing they could be the last stop between the enemy and their families and homes.

Biographies & Memoirs

Shaw, Frank

Shaw, Joan

Historical

Ebury Press

We Remember Dunkirk

"Yes we were scared. It could be seen on the faces of the men. No food didn’t help. We stopped to suck pebbles during the day as our tongues began to swell through lack of water. . . . We had an order come through to us one day. Every man for himself. And then the soldiers—Belgian, French and British—were side by side in silent soddy ranks in columns, zig-zagged across the beaches. I still believe this was done to minimise casualties. We had to wade out up to our necks in water to get onto a boat, ducking under the water when the Germans tried to mow us down. Eventually I managed to grab a chain hanging off a Naval motorboat, and it was fully loaded but I hung on." Arthur Thomas Gunn, WalsallBetween May 27 and 4 June 4, 1940 over 900 vessels rescued 338,226 people trapped at Dunkirk. Cut off by the advancing German Army hundreds of thousands of Allied troops gathered on the beaches—exhausted, hungry, and scarred by war. Operation Dynamo saw British destroyers and the hundreds of "little ships" bring these men safely back to England, where they were welcomed back by the locals with tea and sandwiches, and hailed as heroes. Here we hear stories from the soldiers who made the perilous journey to Dunkirk and came under constant attack from Nazi aircraft as they boarded British ships and attempted to cross the Channel. But we also hear from the nurses who tended the many returning wounded; the young women who, along with the rest of their communities, rallied to make food and gather whatever they could to give the soldiers; and we learn what it was like witnessing all this through a child’s eyes. Above all, we see how the solidarity of the British people gave rise to the unfailing "Dunkirk Spirit."

History

Europe

Ordinary Britons' powerful memories of the Battle of Britain.

We Remember the Battle of Britain

"I went to the public baths and after I undressed I could hear someone whistling. I looked round to see if I could see anybody about, but I couldn't, so I got into the bath and lay back to relax. As soon as I did, of course, I looked up and saw a man putting in the glass windows that had been blown out the night before." —Joan Adams, Lichfield
On the night of September 7, 1940, bombs rained down on the defenseless and unprepared population of London for nine long hours. In November, raids spread to the rest of the country—starting in Coventry and taking in everywhere from Portsmouth, Cardiff, Belfast, and Hull. During the nine months of the Blitz, thousands of people were killed and injured, and thousands of buildings and homes destroyed. But, with stoicism and humor, life went on. We Remember the Blitz is packed with vivid recollections from this important time in British history. Waking up in a damp shelter to the sound of bombing; coming out of a cinema to discover that fires made night as bright as day; and, worst of all, the shock of seeing individuals and whole families killed in an instant. We hear from many who were there to pick up the pieces: ARP wardens, firemen—even the bakers, who would return to work under tarpaulin to ensure their neighbors had their daily loaf. Filled with moving but often funny memories, We Remember the Blitz is a celebration of the British spirit, and clearly shows that the battle for Britain was won by "the many."

We Remember the Blitz

Humor & Entertainment

Humor

We Remember D-Day

Birds of America: Americas Nat

Science & Math

Biological Sciences

Gramercy

You know me Anty Nelly?: Liverpool children's rhymes;

Wolfe

"I went to the public baths and after I undressed I could hear someone whistling. I looked round to see if I could see anybody about, but I couldn't, so I got into the bath and lay back to relax. As soon as I did, of course, I looked up and saw a man putting in the glass windows that had been blown out the night before."  —Joan Adams, LichfieldOn the night of September 7, 1940, bombs rained down on the defenseless and unprepared population of London for nine long hours. In November, raids spread to the rest of the country—starting in Coventry and taking in everywhere from Portsmouth, Cardiff, Belfast, and Hull. During the nine months of the Blitz, thousands of people were killed and injured, and thousands of buildings and homes destroyed. But, with stoicism and humor, life went on. We Remember the Blitz is packed with vivid recollections from this important time in British history. Waking up in a damp shelter to the sound of bombing; coming out of a cinema to discover that fires made night as bright as day; and, worst of all, the shock of seeing individuals and whole families killed in an instant. We hear from many who were there to pick up the pieces: ARP wardens, firemen—even the bakers, who would return to work under tarpaulin to ensure their neighbors had their daily loaf. Filled with moving but often funny memories, We Remember the Blitz is a celebration of the British spirit, and clearly shows that the battle for Britain was won by "the many."

Military

Isis Audio

'I remember standing on top of our local glen with a block of wood, expecting thousands of Germans coming down from the sky. What was I going to do with the block of wood? I never knew.' Leonard Jackson  On 22 June 1940 France surrendered to Germany and the invasion of Britain seemed a very real possibility.  The Home Guard was formed to defend our villages and towns. Members came from reserved occupations, those who had failed their medicals, the elderly and the young, with miners and farmers training alongside former majors. Their weapons and ammunition were negligible at first, but slowly these amateur soldiers began to produce professional results.  In this unique book of reminiscenses about life on the home front, we see these men as they practise with pitchforks and fall into ditches after a pint or two of ale on the job. But we also see them learning how to fire grenades after a day studying engineering and undertaking night watches after exhausting factory shifts - knowing they could be the last stop between the enemy and their families and homes.

We Remember the Home Guard (Reminiscence)

Birds of America

Wh Smith Pub

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