Manchester Eighth Army Veterans Association

Harold

HAROLD was 16 when war started and became involved in Civil Defence right away, as a steward at the Rest Centre in the old Zion Institute, Stretford Road. Bombed-out civilians were accommodated at the Institute until their return was possible or other accommodation provided. He also became a member of his firm's firewatch team and happened to be on duty on the roof of a building in Long Mileage, in December 1940 when the old Exchange Railway Station was bombed and suffered severe fire damage. Later, he joined the Duke of Lancaster's Yeomanry, a Home Guard unit based in Whalley Range, and learned how to handle a rifle and Bren gun and how to throw HE 36 grenades. All these activities meant that Harold had to be away from home several nights a week. With typical humour, he says he had so many tin hats it was a job deciding which one to put on for the particular duty in hand.

In December 1941 Harold was called up to join the Manchester Regiment and had to report to No.5 Infantry Training Centre, Richmond, Yorks. This was not the official Manchester Regiment depot but recruits for the Manchester, the Green Howards, and the East Yorks, all trained together and became members of common platoons until posted to their battalions. Training involved the usual route marches and assault courses but a particular aspect of his stay there was the digging out of snow-bound roads that winter and heating out fires on the moors in summer.

Around June 1942 Harold was posted to 'A' Company of the 1st Battalion stationed on the East Cost and later to Kent to join 53rd (Welsh) division. In June 1943 his regimental duties were terminated and he was posted to the 11th Armoured Division (insignia: the Black Bull) to prepare for the invasion of North-West Europe under the command of Major-General 'Pip' Roberts, an old 8th Army man.

In June 1944, climbing down the rope ladder of a Liberty ship to get on a Landing Craft off the Normandy coast Harold noticed a cruiser to his left belching shells into the French hinterland. It was HMS Belfast, today anchored in the Thames. He often recalls this incident when visiting HMS Belfast as a Friend of the Imperial War Museum.

Enemy intelligence soon found that armour had been landed and the unit was heavily bombed in harbour. Along with others, Harold was blown into the air but, fortunately came down unharmed. His tunic was used to cover a Capt. Wood who, with other wounded, was flown to England that night. Harold's wallet was still in his tunic and came to be returned to him only months later in Germany. Cynics have said that the loss of his wallet was the only time Harold ever cried in his life.

The Division's thrust through France, Belgium, Holland, Germany continued, terminating at Rostock on the Baltic.

Being a war-time formation the Division was scheduled for early disbandment and, as Harold was in a late release group, he was transferred to a Military Police Company and, although not himself a Military Policemen, became the Assistant Provost Marshal's driver. In the aftermath of war, crime - both civilian and military - was rampant and the A.P.M as very busy. Courts had to be visited, there were discussions with local police, liason with Special Investigation Branch, and even executions to attend.

In time, Harold was given his own jeep with the large red 'Military Police' sign on it. Naturally, this struck the fear of God into his old mates until they found out who was driving it. Contrary to misinformed popular opinion, however, he found M.Ps great to work with. Issuing 252's [1] for such offences as being dressed in a slovenly manner, or being off limits, were only a very small part of their duties; in any case, more squaddies were let off than 252s issued.

On disbandment of the Provost Company Harold's next job was perhaps the one that gave him the most satisfaction of his service. Harold had done his bit by the time the war ended and we point out that he could have marked his time. Instead, he volunteered to serve in the Graves Concentration Unit. Their duties were to exhume dead servicemen at whatever site they may have fallen, and to identify them by all available means, searching for discs, going though uniforms, noting rank and brevet, nature of wounds and other relevant features. The sites where these investigations were carried out were varied - streets, fields, forests, churchyards, quarries, civilian cemeteries, etc. It can scarcely be described as glamorous work but to the bereaved families, it can scarcely have been more important.

Although Harold's was in an army unit, the expertise of the Graves Concentration Unit was such that they came to deal almost exclusively with R.A.F flying personnel lost in action. They went to many places where planes had been shot down during the mass raids on Germany; perhaps to some small village where just one crew had crashed and been buried in the local churchyard, usually well tended by the villagers, perhaps to an isolated place where one fighter plane had been shot down when it would be necessary for Harold and his team to locate the plane and attempt to identify its pilot. A knowledge of the German language at this time was to prove an advantage.

Harold has a collection of pre-war and war-time memorabilia collected at the relevant times consisting mainly of old newspapers, leaflets dropped on the enemy in war-time, leave passes, foreign war-time paper money, war posters, together with two volumes of photostat copies of the minutes of actual Cabinet meetings held in 1938 and 1939, together with notes on diplomatic negotiations that took place prior to the start of hostilities.

On return to civilian life Harold resumed his career in the insurance industry, from which he eventually retired in 1978. He has, however, been a member of the Oddfellows for over 50 years and has held every office in his Order. At present he is a trustee of the Nottingham Oddfellows Assurance Friendly Society and the Chairman of its Finance and Investment Committee.

His story has been told with extreme modesty. It appears, thus far, in his own words. We do feel that a short editorial addition is necessary.

Harold now lives on the Fylde, but (aged 83) continues to attend Association meetings. It's a 100 miles round trip, undertaken on public transport, with multiple changes required. He travels alone but is never late. On arrival, he is always smart. In conversation, he is invariably cheerful but never superficial. You might think that age will at least have dulled his mind, but that would be a careless and mistaken assumption. The eye for detail is still acute for a non-military policeman and the fluent German is still impressive. War and the aftermath of war hold profound memories for Harold - he has kept them resolutely intact.