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    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2

    Entries in this blog

    My Early Police Days - Part 8

    INTRODUCTION When you live , or, work in an old town or city, it is easy to overlook historical buildings and landmarks. This happened when I was first posted to Bethnal Green Police Station. The area was a mixture - tall, ugly concrete blocks of flats - typical for the the late 1960's. Rows of old terraced houses and and tenement blocks - built-in the 1880's to try and improve the area and cover the shame and bad publicity that Jack the Ripper's murders had caused. There were also many
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    6

    My Early Police Days ... Part 7 b

    I have split this post into two parts of 7 pictures each. The last time I tried to post I reached 13 - pressed the wrong button and wiped everything - my language was quite 'bad'...... The Thames River Police were one of the earliest Forces set-up in London - in the 1790's. Their main purpose was to protect the West India Docks - which were constantly having attacks on the different ships valuable cargoes. Today they patrol all of the Thames area.
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    3

    My Early Police Days Part 7a

    Sorry for the short delay - I have decided to retire and closing South Africa's top Collectors' Shop (Militaria, silver, porcelain, prints etc) has been a major undertaking after 24 years in the shop. Nearly finished and then things will - hopefully - get back into a routine. We have talked in these past few blogs about my time in the Metropolitan Police - a period in my life that I greatly enjoyed. I am often asked by people about what would be a good career for their children - depe
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    3

    My Early Police Days .... Part 7

    INTRODUCTION A Member kindly told me recently, that this Blog is a part of Social History. I hadn't thought of it in this way - however, I suppose it will prove of interest to some Police researchers and perhaps, younger Policeman. The simple fact is that this happened to me personally, 47 years ago ! Since I was to spend the next 7 years there - here is a little history on the area. The East End of London is to the left of the Tower of London - if you were facing the River Thames. Origin
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    2

    My Early Police Days ....... Part 6

    INTRODUCTION I saw on TV that London has been subjected - yet again - to public disorder. I suppose a capital City will always be a target. Probably the worst riots that London ever saw were the Gordon Riots of 1780. Lord George Gordon stirred-up a great deal of sentiment about the Catholic Relief Act of 1778. This allowed Catholics to join the Army without taking the religious Oath. The British Army was short of men, being actively engaged in the United States War of Independence , pl
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    2

    My Early Police Days ............. Part 5

    INTRODUCTION We seem to be progressing quite well with the story - and to my surprise seem to have a small following. Episode 3 produced some debate and comment on the Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police - this is good and helps to clarify points that might have caused confusion. You have to remember that I just sit down and type as memories return to me - I am bound to have a few lapses. Twenty eight years ago I wrote a book on the History of Policing
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    1

    My Early Police Days................. Part 4

    INTRODUCTION One of our Members kindly commented that the Tower Blocks at Hendon Police College - a photo was shown in Part 3 - have been empty for a number of years. With that being the case, why were they built in the first place ? The first home for the Metropolitan Police was Great Scotland Yard. This was on the Embankment of the River Thames - across the road from the Houses of Parliament. Before Scotland and England were joined in 1603 , when James the 6th of Scotland also, became
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    6

    My Early Police Days - Part 3

    I said in Part 1 that Peel House may have been the first Metropolitan Police Training School. I was right and a little research showed that it was first opened in 1907. Strange that I was there for it's final two weeks in 1967. I think it may have been kept for Police offices and was only sold a few years ago for a large new flat development. One has to compare all of these sales of Police property as 'selling off the family silver'. Over the years I have seen so many 'bright' new offic
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    13

    My Early Police Days................ Part 2

    INTRODUCTION Several people have asked me why I decided to do a Blog on this subject. There is no particular reason - I have mainly started it to support this Forum section - we haven't had any longer ones for a while. I also thought that members who have not served in the Police might find it of some interest ? Police are the most visible of our support Services - in fact we take them as part of everyday life - however, few people know the training and experience that goes in
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    4

    My early Police days ..............

    INTRODUCTION This being a quiet Sunday afternoon - overcast and cold (19o C this morning) - it seems a good time to start this new Blog entry. My earlier ones have had good readership - the one on Wartime years is now over 8000 views. I appreciate that many of these are from Google - virtually everything we write is picked-up and published under different headings. I have had this idea for a while - and perhaps our Members will find it of some interest ? I joined the Metropolita
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    1

    A Survivor of Isandlawana - Zulu War 1879

    INTRODUCTION The Battle of Isandlawana in 1879 was the worst defeat inflicted on Britain in a Colonial War. For that reason alone, this old newspaper report is a valuable document. However, it is far more then that - the details given make it a valuable historical document, and it for this reason that I am posting it on the BLOG section. This will allow it to be read by nonMembers who can access it from Google. Basically it is the story of Mr. W.M. Adams - who died in December 19
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    5

    WHAT IF ...............

    Comment : I am sorry for the delay with the Police novel. I am actually 2 chapters in hand - and will re-commence soon. I will also add a couple of entries for my WW2 memories - surprisingly I have had several requests - including from Google readers. What if : This will only be a short post and really stems from a conversation I had with someone in the shop. We were talking of developments in the communication field and started to think of where the present day World would be
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    3

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR TWO - PART 11

    There have been some delays in finishing this Blog. The extension to our Photographic Competition took longer then we had expected. However - here are the final two parts to this section of my life - the younger part ! THE END BEGINS............... I covered in earlier chapters the damage to life and property created by the German V1 and V2 rockets - looking at the map which shows detonations I am amazed that any of us survived. However, after the D-Day landings in 1944 the Ger
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    0

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2 - 10 - PART 2

    There has been some problems with the software - I have deleted photos that wouldn't show and will post them all in this section. Re-reading the last section I may have given the impression that we all walked around like shaking jellyfish - this would not be correct. The whole business of the War - from my point of view as a small boy growing-up, was quite surreal. I had no memories of times before these - so, strange as it may seem - these were part of my life. I think it would be
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    0

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2 - PART 10

    .COMMENTS How the World has changed from these early days of WW2. Blitzkreig in 1940 - V1 Rockets in 1944 and V2 Rockets in late 1944 . Today we are so used to modern remote controlled weaponry - Tomahawk Cruise Missiles can fly hundreds of miles and land within a few metres of their targets The point I am making is that we had suffered 4 1/2 years of intensive bombing - damage that was quite unbelievable - and deaths by the tens of thousands. This was followed from June 1944 by th
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    0

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2 - PART 9

    COMMENTS. I haven't really thought what I'm going to write about today. I think we have started to get towards the last two years of the War - and that was not the quiet time that we might have expected. I will probably cover it in two parts. I have enjoyed writing this - even if it is a little time consuming. I intend continuing until I was 12 and we left to live in Australia. I will cover the trip and stop when we arrive in Melbourne. I have said before - and will probably cont
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    4

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2 - Part 8

    COMMENT I was pleased to see a couple of friends have made comments - I was getting rather discouraged. There is no way of knowing if anyone is actually reading any of this - or, if any visitors are getting through. I intend at the end of today's post to show a number of wartime pictures. I was lucky enough to buy a bound volume of Picture Post - the main weekly magazine which showed the public pictures of what was happening. This covers part of 1940 - but, I have been promised the
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    3

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2 - PART 7

    A NEW START We must have moved to Blackheath towards the end of 1942 - a big thing to happen to a small boy. I had left all of my old friends behind and would be years before I saw some of them again. I think, initially, I was sent to a local prep school which was a short distance away in another part of the Heath. The English school system is quite different to most others. You start off at kindergarden - progress to your prep school and then enter your main school. There are n
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    3

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2 - Part 6

    One of the strange things that keeps coming to the surface with this article on my early War years - is the comparitive normalacy that existed with ordinary - day-to day life. Yes, we lived in fear of the bombings and everywhere you went were bombed out or, damaged buildings. Yes, we also had severe rationing and shortages. But ordinary life went on - schools opened, business' were run, shops opened and we found ways to get around. Just before we moved I developed a serious ear proble
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    3

    Memories of World War 2 - Part 5

    GENERAL COMMENTS. I would like to make a personal observation - this blog on my very early life , necessarily deals with the Blitz and the dreadful and casual bombings of defenceless civilian areas. I am old enough - and well versed enough in history to realise that the blame was not to all German citizens. There was a totalitarian regime in place and ordinary people really had very little control of what was happening. I have many German friends and have visited the Country on numer
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    0

    Memories of World War 2 - Part 4

    OK - I've dallied enough - time to get on with part 4 ! I expect most of you are familiar with Blogs - I'm not, and I find it very strange typing these old memories into space - and having no real idea if anyone is reading them - or, more importantly - finding them of the slightest interest ? I don't expect comments, but , it would be nice if there was a counter. I would like to just say, that I have found a few Google pictures of things I am referring to - I will post where appropr
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    2

    Memories of World War 2 - Part 3

    My apologies to Irishgunner and to Frank, who I left off the list of regular bloggers , posted on the Lounge. I was hoping to persuade a few more of our Members to join-in and make regular posts. Everyone has something happening in their lives - let us be part of it ............... --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, at the end of part 2 we had reached Dec. 1936. Ne
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    0

    Memories of World War 2 - Part 2.

    Well - that was a surprise - I got my two readers - so, I have no excuse not to continue ! SOME PERSONAL HISTORY I was born in early December of 1936 - I didn't know it, but I was to be an only child. Like many married couples my parent's feared the war and held off adding to the family. A pity, I would always have liked a brother or, sister. From both sides of the family there were military people. My Grandfather had been a senior NCO with the Leicestershire Regt. and was commiss
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

    1

    MEMORIES OF WORLD WAR 2

    When Nick first told us a few weeks ago that he was setting up a special Blog for GMIC members - I must be honest and say my first thoughts were - ' whatever for - we have the Forum' for that purpose' Well, I've thought it over, I've read the blogs from other members and have enjoyed them - and now I agree with him, that this gives us a freedom of expression that is not available on the open Forums. Thinking of a subject has been difficult - but, I do wish to support Nick - he runs
    Mervyn Mitton

    Mervyn Mitton

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