91�ȱ�

This story was submitted to the People’s War site by Elizabeth Perez of Stockport Libraries on behalf of Guy Smith and has been added to the site with his permission. He fully understands the site’s terms and conditions.

I was a driver in the Royal Signals Two Corps Signals (27 Line Section).

Monday 27 May
Detailed to take a number of “key” personnel to Dunkirk docks for return to UK — mostly sergeants from the unit’s base, near Lille, and return to unit same day. Some devastation and bombing on the way, and on return journey through the town of Cassel, which was badly damaged with dead horses etc in main street. Saw a motorised British unit under movement in the distance. When closer realised it was my own unit on the move!
Tailed on behind and followed them. After a few miles they stopped, and we all slept that night in a barn after being turned out at a crossroads with our arms, mainly rifles and one boy’s anti-tank gun, which no one knew how to use. A lot of action near us — Verey lights, bombing etc but eventually relative peace and some sleep.

Tuesday 28 May
We moved off through Armentieres, which was ablaze, to Bulscamp, where we were assembled and told to break up, damage and generally demobilize all transport. Thousands had already done this and fled, so it was more or less utter chaos.
We marched to the beach near Dunkirk on to Bray Dunes.
I had one in of “bully beef” given to me by a French soldier, which I shared with a friend.
We spent a day or two there, in the dunes with no food and no water, so I elected to get some water from an established nearby hospital. There were no cook-houses or facilities of any kind. On returning I couldn’t find most of my friends and I had left my rifle in their care — never to be seen again. From this point we were instructed “every man for himself” was to be the rule.
After hours of queuing and waiting, we were told to march on the sands up to La Panne.
There they had made a pier of lorries driven end to end, out to sea so men could get in the small boats and eventually bigger craft. We still waited and waited and were eventually told to march back on the sands the ten miles to Dunkirk, where we might get onto a ship at the mole.
This we did, boarded a destroyer (Royal Navy) and landed at Ramsgate the morning of 1 June.

So I was on the beaches from Tuesday till Friday — 3 nights and nearly 4 days — with nothing to eat not even a cup of tea.
However I was immensely lucky and saved by our wonderful Navy, I didn’t even get my feet wet! We were bombed, shelled and machine-gunned by the German Stukas and many thousands killed, captured or wounded. It was every man for himself and I was one of the lucky ones. I was eventually saved, with only one friend, but on return to the UK eventually met up with the others of my unit.

© Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.