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When war was declared in 1914, the people of South Dorset were taken by surprise. Initially, there was excitement as the garrison town of Dorchester sprang to life, and Britain's Grand Fleet steamed from Portland Harbour to its war stations in the North Sea. But when the fervour subsided, what was it like for ordinary people? This book describes how they settled down with purpose to a life at war.Traders made the most of new markets, and women learned to cope not only with food shortages and blackouts, but the constant fear that their loved ones wouldn't return. Many threw themselves into the war effort. An enormous prisoner of war camp was established on the edge of Dorchester; wounded Australian soldiers were sent to recover in Weymouth, where they became firm favourites with the ladies; and soldiers billeted in Portland homes didn't always treat their hosts with the respect they deserved. Included in the book are the stories of a German spy who slipped through the net at Wyke; a teenage soldier shot dead by his friend; a scandal at a local military hospital; the touching friendship that developed between a nurse and a wounded Belgian; and what everyday life was like at Weymouth Torpedo Works.This warm account of life in Dorchester, Weymouth and Portland during the Great War ensures that the people at home, who lived through those five dreadful years of conflict, are remembered, too.
Weymouth at War tells the story of Ron Hill and his vessel My Girl, and how they helped carry soldiers and ammunition to the Breakwaters guarding the Naval Base at Portland during World War 2.
A machine gunner chronicles his time on the frontlines of WW2 from D-Day to the Battle of the Bulge and the Wehrmacht’s last stand. American machine gunner Ernest “Andy” Andrews arrived in the UK just before deploying to fight in D-Day. Struck by a bullet in Normandy, he was evacuated to England before returning to participate in the race across France. Andy’s squad defended a bunker in the Siegfried Line and fought its way through the Hurtgen Forest to take Hill 232. When the Germans attempted to retake the hill, Andy faced his toughest battle and suffered a shoulder wound. Andy rejoined his company in time to fight in the Battle of the Bulge and the Rhine campaign, and in Germany's Harz Mountains, where the Wehrmacht was trying to organize a last stand. Andy's outfit ends the war fighting in Czechoslovakia, where Andy witnesses the German surrender. Following occupation duty, Andy returned to the States in October 1945. The war shaped Andy's postwar life in countless ways, and in 1994, Andy made the first of three return visits to the European battlefields where he had fought. This vivid firsthand account takes the reader along from Normandy to victory with Andy and his machine-gun crew.
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With Weymouth and Portland hosting the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games sailing events, the profile of the area will be raised considerably in the years leading up to the Games. Weymouth's seaside history and heritage will be a focus of attention and will contribute significantly to the regeneration of the town in the coming years. Weymouth has been a popular seaside resort for over 250 years. Likened to Montpelier and Naples for its natural beauty and healthy climate, it received the endorsement of King George III. His presence helped the town to expand rapidly in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, resulting in a stunning legacy of seafront terraces that continue to provide accommodation for thousands of holidaymakers each year. Weymouth boasts an eclectic mix of medieval town planning, harbour-side industry and former military sites that have had an impact on the town's development as a seaside resort. Many of the buildings associated with declining brewing and maritime industries have now been redeveloped and serve as amenities and accommodation for residents and visitors. An English Heritage opinion poll in 2007 found that seventy-five per cent of respondents felt that 'the historic character of seaside towns is what makes them beautiful and enjoyable'. This book describes the colourful story of Weymouth's seaside history and the buildings and open spaces that survive to tell this story. It also demonstrates how the historic environment can play an important part in the future development of the town.
Covering the legendary Lofoten and Dieppe raids, the D-Day landings and the capture of Flushing, James Dunning recounts the history of No. 4 Commando, an elite wartime special service unit, from formation in 1940 to disbandment five years later. The author, himself, a 'Fighting Fourth' veteran, describes how 500 volunteers, despite initial problems, prejudices and frustrations, developed into one of the most feared fighting formations of the Second World War. The extraordinarily tough and unorthodox training undertaken by No. 4 Commando prepared them for the raids of 1941 and 1942, their protracted involvement on D-Day and for 83 days' action in the struggle for Normandy. Their last major operation was the storming and capture of the vital port of Flushing in November 1944. This readable and authoritative history of the unit reveals their important role in the Second World War.
Due to Enemy Action tells for the first time a World War II story that spans generations and straddles two centuries, a story that begins with the dramatic Battle of the Atlantic in the 1940s and doesn't conclude until an emotional Purple Heart ceremony in 2002. Based on previously classified government documents, military records, personal interviews, and letters between crew members and their families, this is the saga of the courageous survival of ordinary sailors when their ship was torpedoed and their shipmates were killed on April 23, 1945, and the memories that haunted them after the U.S. Navy buried the truth at war's end. It is the story of a small subchaser, the Eagle 56, caught in the crosshairs of a German U-boat, the U-853, whose brazen commander doomed his own crew in a desperate, last-ditch attempt to record final kills before his country's imminent defeat. And it is the account of how one man, Paul M. Lawton, embarked on an unrelenting quest for the truth and changed naval history. Author Stephen Puleo draws from extensive personal interviews with all the major players, including the three living survivors (and a fourth who emerged as the book went to press); a senior U.S. naval archivist who worked with German historians after the war to catalog U-boat movements; and the son of the man who commanded America's sub-tracking "Secret Room" during the war. Due to Enemy Action also describes the final chapter in the Battle of the Atlantic, tracing the epic struggle that began with shocking U-boat attacks against hundreds of defenseless merchant ships off American shores in 1942 and ended with the sinking of the Eagle 56, the last American warship sunk by a German U-boat.
An extensive history of enemy fleets following both World Wars, featuring never-before-seen archival and archaeological materials. Spoils of War traces the histories of navies and ships of the defeated powers from the months leading up to the relevant armistices or surrenders to the final execution of the appropriate post-war settlements. In doing so, it discusses the way in which the victorious powers reached their final demands, how these were implemented, and to what effect. The later histories of ships that saw subsequent service, either in their original navies or in those navies which acquired them, are also described. Much use is made of archival materials, and in some cases archaeological, sources, some of which have never previously been used. Ultimately, a wide range of long-standing myths are busted, and some badly distorted modern views are set right. The fascinating narrative is accompanied by lists of all major navy-built (and certain significant ex-mercantile) enemy ships in commission at the relevant date of the armistice or surrender, or whose hulks were specifically listed for attention in post-Second World War allied agreements. These include key dates in their careers and their ultimate fates. This original book, featuring numerous photographs, is sure to become an essential reference tool for all those interested in the naval history of the two World Wars. Praise for Spoils of War “Most highly recommended.” —Firetrench “For those who need to finally know the ultimate fate of the often gallant ships that strove against the Allies in both world wars, this is the book.” —Julian Stockwin, author of the Thomas Kydd series