Les' poignant wartime memories (From Stroud News and Journal)

Les' poignant wartime memories

Occasional columnist Les Pugh delved into his treasure chest of personal belongings from the past this week and found some poignant memories of the Second World War and VE Day

TO Start this latest trip down memory lane I feel that the exhibition of documents and artefacts relating to those horrendous wartime years would serve to illustrate some of the differences between those years of deprivation and the peace and affluence most of us enjoy today.

The first exhibit is a card which the majority of R A Lister employees received, it shows that before the war had started, they had volunteered to become blood donors.

The second exhibit is Works Pass No 57 issued to me on March 21, 1942. It features a photograph of a very young Les Pugh, I was 26 and my national identity number ODRA Y6/1.

Uniformed security guards were on duty 24 hours a day seven days a week and no-one was admitted to the works until the guards had checked the pass.

The third exhibit is a photograph taken by Mr R G Peckham of Stroud. It features the Stonehouse Platoon E Company, 8th Gloucestershire Battalion of the Home Guard Regiment.

The Home Guard Regiment was originally the Local Defence Volunteers force which was hurriedly formed after the evacuation of he BEF from Dunkirk in the mid 1940s to assist what was left of the British Army when German invasion of Britain was considered to be imminent.

As members of the LDV all we had was a khaki armband with the letters LDV printed on it in black. We had no weapons other than shot guns except that officers from the first 1914-18 World War still had their revolvers.

After a relatively short period it was announced that the LDV would in future be known as the Home Guard Regiment and that full regulation battle dress and kit would be issued.

This included a Forage Cap with the Gloucesters Regimental badge and back badge which is unique in the Gloucestershire Regiment and of which we were immensely proud.

The fourth exhibit is my Certificate of Proficiency Home Guard dated March 7, 1944 when I was promoted to the rank of Lance Corporal.

The fifth exhibit is the citation given to all Home Guard personnel giving their name and length of service which in my case was June 23, 1940 to December 31, 1944.

The standing down of the Home Guard on December 31, 1944 was the first indication that the Allies were winning the War in Europe.

The events leading to victory in Europe started in January 1944 when the 1,000 day siege of Leningrad ended. In March the retreating Germans entered Hungary at the same time that the allies bombed Nuremberg In May allied forces gathered in Britain for the invasion of Europe.

In June allied forces invaded German occupied France. In the same month VI rockets were launched against Britain. In September allied troops liberated Saris and the first German V2 rockets hit Britain.

In December Germany made the last counter-attack in the Ardennes Forest.

In January 1945 the Red Army liberated Warsaw and entered German territory. In February the allies bombed Dresden.

In March the allies crossed the Rhine into Germany. In April American and Soviet troops met on the River Elbe. Mussolini was captured by Italian partisans and shot.

Hitler committed suicide in his underground bunker. On May 8 Germany surrendered and VE Day was declared.

Spontaneous celebrations took place on the streets of Stroud which were photographed by EC Peckham of Stroud. Similar celebrations were held in Stonehouse with a bonfire on Doverow Hill.