ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½

My recollections of the Second World War and how it affected me really started several months before war was actually declared. I was born in Burgess Hill in the Mid Sussex area of what is now West Sussex and, apart from several years during the 1950's have lived here ever since. I believe that it was early in 1939 that a large number of Austrian Jewish school girls came to Burgess Hill and were accommodated in one of the large houses in the area. They needed classrooms and some of those at the senior school were given over to them. My twelfth birthday was on September 12th 1939 and at the time I did not fully understand why these girls were here.

Another memory is of large numbers of children arriving from London and also Dymchurch in Kent. I remember the billeting officers coming round to check on how many children each household could take. We had three bedrooms and, as I was an only child , it was decided my parents could take in one evacuee. We are still friends.

On 3rd September I was playing in the back garden with a distant cousin while my parents and my cousin's mother were listening to the wireless and I heard the annoucement that Great Britain was at war with Germany. Shortly afterwards the air raid siren went off and we children were called in at once and sat indoors with our gasmasks ready! It proved to be a false alarm and the all clear sounded not long afterwards. Also, during the summer of 1939, part of out school playing field was dug up to make an air raid shelter. this was partly below ground and was cold and damp inside. The rounded roof was covered in turf so as not to be visible from the air. During the blitz on London German aircraft would fly over head, the air raid siren having sounded almost as soon as it got dark. It was not thought to be safe to sleep upsatirs, so our evacuee, Mollie, and I slept on the floor under our very solid square oak dining table, which had been pushed up to the recess next to the fireplace. My parents slept as best they could in armchairs. There were no real bombings as such in this area but occasionally a stray bomb would be dropped by aircraft heading back to their base.

My grandmother was living with us and, of course, had memories of the First World War, one of which was the margarine which she disliked so much she refused to eat it again so made her 2oz ration of butter last a whole week.

There is a level crossing over the road not far from where we lived and I can recall waiting there with my bike as a train went over and it was crammed with troops with arms in slings , some standing on crutches and many with bandages around heads and arms, but they were all singing, smiling and waving, if they could. This was, of course, following the evacuation from Dunkirk.

Another memory is of the Battle of Britain, which was fought above us. I recall being in the garden watching with great interest as two aircraft were swooping and diving at each other , until my mother dashed out and dragged me indoors.

Large numbers of troops were stationed in this area and large houses were requisitioned for their billets. The RASC were in a house opposite where we lived and they parked their lorries in a lane a short distance away. The lane was lined on either side with large oak trees which conveniently met in an arc over the top of it. During the weeks before D-Day we were put under martial law and a barbed wire barricade was erected at the bottom of our road, at a place called World's End, and an armed soldier there checked the identity cards of people wishing to pass. The area extended from the coast for approximately 10 miles inland all along the south coast, I believe. People living outside the 10 mile limit could not enter. From where we lived we were able to visit Brighton for shopping, but, of course, the seafront was wired off and the beaches mined. Just prior to D-Day all the soldiers, with their lorries, moved off during one night, but we didn't hear them!

None of us will for get the black-out and the shouts of the Air Raid Wardens to "Put that light out". My mother made black-out cutains for the windows. Not even a chink of light was allowed to show. If anyone came to the door at night the lights had to be turned off before we could open the door. We also had strips of sticky tape across the window panes which would help to prevent blast from the bombs breaking the glass.

After I left school, when I was 14, I went to night-school in town, some distance from where we lived. The pitch blackness of being out at night without a light showing has to be experienced to be believed. The railway station too only had very dim lights, blue if I remember correctly and everyone had to be exceedingly careful to make sure the train was actually in the station before getting out of the train.

One last, sad memory is when the war started I had two pet budgies, but it became difficult and finally impossible to get their food, as only essential suppies were imported, and my Dad had to dispose of them

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