Cal Remembers

To Whom it might concern.

25/9/2011

On July 1st. 1940 when I was nearly 24 years old I joined the A.I.F.

I was allowed to stay at home for a few days, but then I was sent to 7 Div. HQ’s where I was placed in looking after guns. I did not see any guns, but I was expected to gather from some books handed to me to make something out of the drawings. This was at St. Kilda Rd. at Victoria Barracks where I was handed a card entitled me to get entry to the Barracks. After I settled down a bit and found my way about, from memory I was in Hut “H”.

After some months training I was advised that 7 Div HQs was going to embark on the 20th. Oct. 1940 on the Marantania, a ship with four funnels and large enough to take the whole Division and berthed at Port Melb. The troops shared a cabin about six each cabin.

A General Lauarail was head of the Division and Uncle Lowen was a friend of his, but this was unknown to me until after the end of the war. Nancy and I had a drive in my Willys and I proposed to her and she said yes to my amazement. She told her mother, but her mother did not give permission and only after was call at St. Pats and saw a Father Fox (later Bishop of Sale) who rang Mrs. Hardy to say there was no reason she with held her permission. Eventually we wed in the morning at St. Pats and we had a receptions at the Australia Hotel in Collins Street, in the Gold Room.

The ship averaged thirty knots and after about two or three weeks we landed in Bombay and were camped there for about two weeks. We were then picked up by a French ship called the President Dommer. It was quite a change and we had to put toilets on the decks and manage as the Toilets were down in the bowels of the ship and were so badly awash we could not use them. Finally, after about two weeks, we got to our destination and travelled up the Suez Canal. It was a great stretch of water and we finally arrived. We were about to disembark and a couple of enemy planes came across and attempted to bomb us as we disembarked. We had to make our way across the water on which must have been 40 gal. drums that were used for petrol, anyway we got our balance and arrived on land, where we felt a bit safer. I think the place we landed at was De Es an Eade. (The spelling is incorrect.)

We settled down in camps for some 2 weeks. I had licenses for Motor Bikes, cars and trucks and I was requested to go and pick up a Motor Cycle (a Norton ) for our Sgt. Major which I did and rode it back for some miles I wondered later if I had a mishap on the road how I would have fared.

The S/Major - Bert Coleman got the bike, but did not use it much. Over time he became a good friend of mine. He was a first War man and eventually got commissioned to the rank of Captain.

I was transferred to Ordinance at Tel A Keber after a time and promoted to Corporal. I was lucky I was not sent to Crete where a lot of my friends were sent and they were P.O.Ws of the Germans for about four years. I was sent to The Citadel in Cairo to more or less arm them which I did with a small group headed by General Beavis, another first War man. The Citadal was occuped by Napoleon’s Army years ago. It was said while he was there his gunners fired on the Sphinx and took its nose off. I climbed on to the Sphinx whilst I was in Cairo and also climbed the pyramid where I inscribed my and my wife’s initials on top of the pyramid I was on leave.

I was then attached to the British Army for some time, when the battle tookplace at El Alameim I was close by and Rommels defeated troops were paraded all along the road. We came home on a small ship with about fifty troops on board. How we managed the trip without being torpeded, I do not know. Some months later our ship was sunk as it left Australia.

I was married ten days before I left for the Middle East, I was away for over two years and we had our family when I returned. I was with the AIF for approx. five and a half years. My brother in law, Nancy’s brother was a Surgeon in the Navy all during the War and died at 42 in London. He gave his sister away to me at St.Pat’s in Melbourne and we had a reception at the Australia in Collins St. Nancy’s father had died at a young age too

at about 40 yrs. Another brother was a Squadron Leader with the RAAF and we used to have coffee together in Cairo when he had leave. My brother Theo was also in the Army for approxx. two years. He died three months ago at the age of 93. I was promoted to Staff Sgt. in due course and did the officer’s course, but the war came to an end and I wanted out after nearly 6 years.

When I was stationed in Melbourne, I was promoted to Staff Sgt or Sgt. Major. I did officers training when I was stationed in Sydney and then was transferred to Melbourne as a result. It was obvious I missed my wife and stayed there till the war was over and I got my discharge. I would have got a certain promotion to Luiet?. Had I known, I would have been probably sent to Japan.

I had applied to the RAAF in St. Kilda Rd. Melbourne to be a pilot, in an off handed way the chap I saw there did not give me any encouragement to join. A few days later I joined the AIF at the Melbourne Town Hall in Swanston Street. I was given the rank of Private and only recently realised that I should have mentioned to the army that I was an old boy of Christ Grammar in Sth. Yarra has a stay at the Catholic school in Darnency Rd. Windsor and we moved from 25 Clarement Avenue, Sth. Yarra to Coppin St. E. Malvern where due to my mothers stay in Hospital I was sent to E. Tooronga State School by an Aunt Ann and then when my mother was well again, went to Caulfield Grammar in Glen Iris Rd. Elsternwick.

I might have got a commission and all is for the best as I might not have come back from the Middle East to now attain the age of 97.