When Joining Regt The First Time.

Hello Everyone.
We left London at a train station i can not remember then down to Harwich for the night crossing to the Hook of Holland.There was three boats in use first was the Empire Pakistan the second was the Empire Wansbeck third was the Vienna. The worst boat to be on if the sea crossing was rough was "the vienna" and you knew it ??,everybody used to say the boats had flat bottoms. We all had to stay down below where there was three Hammocks High (nobody slept that night). We got to the Hook of Holland early in the morning,first when we got off it was to go through Customs, then it was Breakfast next it was to the waiting Trains,there was Four and they had coloured boards at the front to tell you the Destination of each train.I can remember it was Red for Berlin and Blue for Dortmund,the other two i can't remember. "Also i can't remember where we had Dinner" I do remember the Train stopped on the Dutch/German border to change from Dutch Electric to German Steam Engines.The German Border Police use to Walk the Train when Stopped. When we reached Dortmund i remember it was a very large Station we had to walk up two flights of stairs (not now) to get to the road outside and waiting transport "There were Red Caps Everywhere) to take us to our Barracks "West Riding" and our Regt and that was 45Field Regiment RA. and THATS ALL FOLKS " That was National Service and we need it back again, who agree's with that"
Thank you Alan.

Hi Alan,
Much of what you say above, was about the norm `for most of us `at that time. I sailed on the Wansbeck once, and remember only to well, the amount of ash-bins dotted about the decks. They would quickly fill up, should it be a bad night.

It was always said, when in the Hook of Holland, eat the biggest meal you could afford, for it made life a little easier when it had to come back up, and it usually did. I would always grab a top cot, you then had control of the air-blower, while the poor sods beneath, caught the aftermath of that last meal, if you take my drift:.

On my first crossing, we sailed from Southampton, for we formed the advance party, and we had all manner of equipment to pick up, before we could sail. I remember well, what our meal comprised off, for it was a standard packed lunch.

Something else i remember about the Wansbeck, `was its crew members coming down to the lower decks to sell their `postcards of that ship, and they cost a shilling, i know i bought one.

Stitch

I went over on the Vienna,I believe there are postcards of the old LNER posters still availabe advertising a romantic cruise from Harwich to the Hook.
Anyway ,we left at night and I first saw the Stour/Orwell Estuary coming back on my first leave,looking out on that dreary scene I thought it was a real craphole.Thirty years later I looked across the same scene from the other side,it still looked crappy but I was getting overtime for working on Felixstowe Dock on an overnight shift,so the scenery didn't matter. It does look better when the sun is shining.

General consensus, during my time (1958/9) was that the Empire Parkstone was the best of the three ships, I sailed on both that and the Vienna and considered them just as bad. The meals on the military trains was served by staff of the German Bundesbahn in dining cars. Full scale silver service was provided to all ranks in an ambience never encountered before. I never had any involvement with Dutch or German customs/frontier officials when travelling the military route. The bastards I remember were H.M. Customs at Harwich on arrival back. Everything was thoroughly searched, with contents of kitbags & suitcases spead all over the counter. And the Redcaps were standing behind watching and waiting for anybody to step out of line.

Just out of curiosity, how long was the boat trip from England to the Hook of Holland? I mean, I'm visualizing "just" a channel crossing.

Now our bunch when families were first going over to Germany back in the late 50's and early 60's, we all sailed on the Cunard Lines (we sailed via The Saxonia)....8 days at sea and whole families stashed in cramped little 'staterooms'.

the ships were nice enough....huge dining area (quite posh), a theatre/cinema, day care centre (mom parked me there once...I hated it!!!), lounge (adults only), smoking lounge, bar, and a few other public social areas.

I forget which ship we returned to Canada on, however.

So, yeah....8 days chugging across the North Atlantic and I'm reading how you lot got sea sick going from the south of England to the continent!!

My parents and I made the trip from Ostend to Dover numerous times (dad had family (cousins and such) in London and in around Bex Hill, near Hastings), but it was little more than a ferry trip.

Crossing time Harwich/Hook of Holland was about 6hours. More
if the sea was rough, then, sometimes the ship seemed to go backwards!

Stephen, try 6 weeks on a trooper (MV Devonshire) to Korea 1954 .. F5 deck 5 tier bunks .. WHAT a delightful holiday cruise that was

Len (Ciphers)

brian beckett wrote:

Crossing time Harwich/Hook of Holland was about 6hours. More
if the sea was rough, then, sometimes the ship seemed to go backwards!

I remember going over with mum in 1953, the boat/ship took 14 hours from Harwich to the 'Hook' not a lot of fun.......Ian.

www.kemglen.talktalk.net/winterberg/gettingthere.html

Have a look at this website they are all there with their histories.

Hello Tony E
Many thanks for your information on the Boats taking National Service personal across to the Hook of Holland,also back to England. And have been on the site you put on and its just brilliant,didn't know of information like that.
Again many thanks Alan.

Hello Tony E,
& Hello to you also `Alan Breakspear.

I`ve had a look-see, regarding the Website which `Tony E, had directed you too Alan, and yes it is worthy of the visit, while being well presented also.

There is of-course a similar site right here on the baor-locations Web-site, i can`t recall the Link Address which would take you into it, but it should be easy to find from the links bar at the top of the page. It deals with the section relating to the Military Transports of the time.

I was pleased to read there, that the ash-bins also got a mention, for a `while now, i had not heard: any mention of this being the case, and just for the record, it was every (soldier) to the deck, he or she was on, `who would have the task of cleaning up the mess, they had created!!!

Alan, are you aware of your pictures being on display on photobucket, i`ve been putting quite a few up myself, because it`s hopeless trying to get them up on this site.

Stitch,

Hello Stitch "Alan"
Yes i did try to remove photo bucket from this site but coudn't. "Will have to ask Paul if he could do it",without removing the photo.
I have had an e mail from you and says Alan Robson(spot-2010) is following your albums. To view spot 2010's albums it needs a password to view them,so without this password i can't see them.
I did send a Reply E mail back to you, and had an E mail sent back saying "delivery to the following recipient failed permanently".
How can i view your photo's.
Many Thanks Alan.

Hello `Alan Breakspear,

Hi Alan, it was not `i, who had sent the e-mails to you, but Photobucket. My albums are incomplete as yet, and i have the padlock in place, to prevent access to others.

I feel there`s little point in taking the lock off at this stage, for i have only just begun to write-up the general knowledge behind the images, when this is done, those who come to view them, will at least, have some idea, as to what they are looking at. The images as you will appreciate, are now some fifty odd years of age.

Alan Robson, is my name and (spot-2010) is part of my security number, which allows me entry to the site.

my understanding is, when i`ve completed the write-up, the lock will be taken away, and all who would be interested, will be free to enter.

Do you know who "Historic Steve" is, for his images are also on display.

Stitch,

Hi Stitch
'Historic Steve' is I using a Photobucket account to access this forum with images as the instructions from Paul do not seem to work out...hoping you have your Iserlohn Church House images...the weather has improved and promise to get to the place on the road to Kesbern off the 1945 map where Rhine Area Church House was to take 'today' photos...please send your link here or as a private message and trust you will allow me to include on my Iserlohn Blog and here under Iserlohn General
Best regards
Steve
PS Have a quote from Lt Gen GI Thomas GOC 1st Corps District 45-47
"When I find myself in odd parts of the World - and one does very often as a soldier - I aways like to know something about its history. I'm sure this healthy curiosity is share by all of us"
http://britisharmyiniserlohn.blogspot.com/

steve wrote:

Hi Stitch
'Historic Steve' is I using a Photobucket account to access this forum with images as the instructions from Paul do not seem to work out...hoping you have your Iserlohn Church House images...the weather has improved and promise to get to the place on the road to Kesbern off the 1945 map where Rhine Area Church House was to take 'today' photos...please send your link here or as a private message and trust you will allow me to include on my Iserlohn Blog and here under Iserlohn General
Best regards
Steve
PS Have a quote from Lt Gen GI Thomas GOC 1st Corps District 45-47
"When I find myself in odd parts of the World - and one does very often as a soldier - I aways like to know something about its history. I'm sure this healthy curiosity is share by all of us"
http://britisharmyiniserlohn.blogspot.com/

I found the accompanying map re locations of Argonne/BMH, Seydlitz/Beausejour/Corruna, Mons/Qu'Appelle/Winkelman and Aldershot Bks quite useful as it confirms my recollection of locations.

In my mind's eye, what I knew as Beausejour was just up the road from BMH which, in turn, was beside the Seilersee and this map shows it just like that.

As for the location of Aldershot....as I mentioned earlier, when I was living in 'Canadian Hemer' (well, not directly in Hemer but for simplifcation I will say 'in Hemer' (actually lived out along the Hoennetal)) and also when my family and I were living in Iserlohn under the British, I did not really have an awareness of Aldershot, although I was aware of the British MQs (Reuben strasse etc) in Iserlohn as my school bus stopped there to pick up kids enroute to our school in Dortmund.

The map confirmed what I pretty much figured now was it's location on the west end of Iserlohn and -- go figure!! -- not far from the British MQ lines, which, of course, explains the location of the MQs. Most of the dads of these families, I now realize, were probably stationed out of Aldershot.

My Harwich/Hook voyages were on the "Wansbeck and "Parkstone".

I too remember the excellent meal we were served on the train.

Like Brian Beckett, I developed a deep dislike of the customs at Harwich, we were paid peanuts in those days and those scrotes took great pleasure in rifling through our luggage, just to mess us blokes about, they knew we had nothing to declare but did it anyway. That dislike carried on right through the seventies, in fact they've only just been knocked of the top of my hate list by a bunch of robotic traffic wardens I've recently had the misfortune to meet!

brum.

Yes I would certainly agree with the return of National Service, trouble is most of the youngsters today have not the courage or stomach for it, the ones that have are already in the MOB

Les