Great Western Coffee Shop

Today is "Victory in Europe" day the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Nazi Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the end of World War II in Europe.

Much is written elsewhere on the Second World War.  On Railways, Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_rail_transport_in_Great_Britain_1923–1947) says


On the 75th anniversary of Victory in Europe day, let's remember the vital contribution of the rail industry to the war effort and its men and women, some of whom left to contribute to the war effort and never to return, others injured physically and mentally, and everyone effected in some way. Let us also, at the last multiple of 25 anniversary where some of these people who were brave young men and women at the time are still with us, shout a long and loud thank you to them for their contribution in a time of need, whatever our views of politics and wars.

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/ve75_1.jpg)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/ve75_2.jpg)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/ve75_3.jpg)

Wartime images from https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/britains-railways-in-wartime/

Don't forget the railwaymen in occupied Europe who risked their own lives and refused to work for/assist the Nazis, and helped the Resistance sabotage their supply chain.

The images are:

   1.   Tremains Halt for ROF Bridgend

   2.   Folkestone Harbour

   3.   Middlesbrough

Sure I didn't £50, but it would be interesting to see if the following actually exists:
https://www.pufferwillies-stm.co.uk/britains-railways-in-wartime-isbn-9781848024823-23751-p.asp (https://www.pufferwillies-stm.co.uk/britains-railways-in-wartime-isbn-9781848024823-23751-p.asp)

Indeed.

15 different images are in use over this weekend at the top right of the Coffee Shop pages.  Do take a look through those as you move around the site.

I've been quite impressed by the really quite large numbers of people in my neighbourhood who set up tables and chairs in their VE day decorated front drives, playing 1940s music, serving up tea, cakes and the odd bottle of fizz and chatting to their neighbours.... at a safe distance of course.

I know what Dad was doing, on - not the 8th, but the 7th when the news came out*.  He wrote to Mum, in a letter that started:

A lot of those in the 14th Army would have been more bitter about being the "forgotten army" (or one of them), as is well known.

The railways came in later, when he got to come home (Calcutta to Henley-in-Arden mostly by Dakota). That of course was his "Python"; genuinely 45 days leave, too. That journey, in itself, took 14 days ...

* The army in India celebrated VE-Day the next Monday - the 14th, I think - with a speech, a day off, and a free bottle of beer!

I  noted above that Dad wasn't too impressed by VE day, where he was in Calcutta. On today's anniversary I can add that he wasn't a lot more impressed by VJ day. On the 15th August he wrote home (not as first item, that was a much-delayed letter):

"Well, the war seems to be over now and I believe you have had today and will have tomorrow as holidays. So far we don't know when we will celebrate the victory, but presumably they will give us one day off at least. The first indication of Jap surrender came as a surprise on Friday, but the negotiations have dragged on so long that it has lost its interest now."

Well, it was only six days since the Nagasaki bomb. In fact, he'd written about that about four days earlier:

"This has been a very momentous week indeed. First of all, two Japanese cities have been virtually wiped out by atomic bombs. And then Russia has, at long last, decided to enter the war at a very opportune moment. These great events were completely overshadowed on Thursday, by an announcement that very few men could expect to go home with less than 3 yrs 8 mths before November or December."

So, back to his two main preoccupations - mail (by then letters generally took only a week to reach him) and how soon he'd get home (Python).

They did get two days holiday - but that just upset the mail deliveries, and nothing was organised, so that led to more grumbles ...  At this stage Dad was part of No. 5 British Port Supervising Company, No. 6 Indian Docks Group, India Command, working on Calcutta docks. He did in fact talk later about his time there, but not his active service, saying he was sent back to hospital before they got very far. Much later, I found out this was a bit wide of the mark.

Dad was a signaller in the artillery, and went into Burma with the 2nd division while they advanced to relieve first Kohima, and then Imphal, before returning to India for rest. It was only when re-entering Burma on a second tour that he was treated in a field hospital for a leg ulcer and sent back as unfit for service to Deolali hospital (March 1945). There he was given a routine dose of penicillin - evidence of how rapidly this had gone from the first few doses from the American process intended for mass production (June 1942) to a rate of 646 billion units per year (June 1945).