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| George and army pals - George is on the far right of the photo. |
Easy day: gun drill and wheels action. Major pays us a visit. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 2nd 1943
I am the cook for the site today, Gil is my helpmate, we make some colossal food. I make my first jam tart. Good if I say so myself. Plenty of eats. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 3rd 1943
Getting ready for Brig's inspection. Working like hell all morning, gun billet, cookhouse etc. Looked great. Cancelled his visit. The sods. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 4th 1943
Gwen's birthday today. Gun drill first thing in morning and wheels action. Hot work. Plenty of mail in the afternoon. Hope Gwen gets her telegram today. 1 1/2 guard at night.
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| George's Gwen - He never forgot her birthday. |
Padre visits our site and gives us a service. Nice bloke. Send parcel to Gwen. Routine the rest of the day. 1 1/2 guard at night.
March 6th 1943
(Germans re-occupied the Rhineland, 1936 - New Moon, 10.34am.)
Gun drill. Weather gets a bit better these days. 3 of our guns up Tobruk. 1 1/2 hrs guard at night.
March 7th 1943
(Quinquagesima-Sunrise, 6.34am : Sunset, 5.49 p.m.)
Easy day. Arthur gives me a ring up from base. Try and make a date to see him tomorrow night. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 8th 1943
Cook today - plenty of eats as usual. Go on leave for afternoon to Haifa. Met Arthur at night. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 9th 1943 (Shrove Tuesday - Battle of Vimy Ridge, 1917 - Rangoon and Java lost, 1942.)
Wheel action all morning with gun time 27 seconds. Getting ready for two weeks at firing camp. 1 1/2 hr guard.
March 10th 1943
(Ash Wednesday - Neuve Chapelle began, 1915.)
Getting plenty of mail from home. Food and billet here very good. 1 1/2 hr guard.
March 11th 1943
Just another day nearer...
March 12th 1943
Take over gun on hill position for a few hours, paid by officer. Arthur rings me up to meet him at Haifa. Meet Russell a chap from home. Good jaw. Pictures.
March 13th 1943
Cook today. Visited by the colonel. He gives us one of his commie speeches. 1 1/2 hrs guard at night.
March 14th 1943
(1st in Lent - Germany invaded Czecho-Slovakia, 1939 - Sunrise, 6.19. am : Sunset 6.1 p.m.)
Guarding man in morning. Rest of day easy. Reading papers and mags from Gwen. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 15th 1943
Laying practice morning, also in afternoon. Weather still pretty wet. 3 years in the army today. What a dog's life. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 16th 1943
Rest
March 17th 1943
Day off. Go and see three pictures. How Green was my Valley,
Honky Tonk and Road to Frisco Pretty good. Have a photo taken with Atteni by Andy.
March 18th 1943
Cleaning out the breech and mechanism of gun. Sergeant Johnson goes today on mountain course. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 19th 1943
Easy time here with Bob Hart. Get out at night as often as we like. Meet Arthur at Armon, get a lift back by some Jews to gun post.
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| In and Around Haifa - Forces Handbook 1943 |
March 20th 1943
Have a football come today from the Padre. Have some good sport as we have some good fields to play in around the gun post. Still getting plenty of mail from Gwen and home.
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| In and Around Haifa - Forces Handbook 1943 |
March 21st 1943
(2nd in Lent - German offensive on Western Front began. 1918 - Spring Equinox, Noon - Full Moon, 10.8 p.m - Sunrise, 6.3 a.m ; Sunset, 6.13 p.m)
Day of Rest. Just a bit of work in morning, cleaning up etc etc. Rest of the day off duty for A.S gun.
March 22nd 1943
Pouring with rain all day long. Caught a good cold last night on guard. Bud leaves us today on his transfer. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 23rd 1943
New bloke comes today. Funny little fella, very low grade. Just for working in cookhouse. Meet Arthur at night. The Bride Came C.O.D
March 24th 1943
Machine gun training, gun drill etc. Have some laughs with Tom the new chap. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
March 25th 1943
(Lady Day - Quarter Day)
Padre gives a service on our gunsite this afternoon. Tackles me about getting confirmed. 1 1/2 hrs guard at night.
March 26th 1943
(1st Battle of Gaza, 1917 - Battle of Rosieres, 1918)
Payday by Lieutenant Gennings. Pretty good officer. Kittens start crawling about. Photos of the group and kittens come out good.
March 27th 1943
Arthur pays us a visit on his motorbike. Meet him and go to see pictures Thief of Bagdad Pretty good. On our way back we push a few Yanks off the bus. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
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| In and Around Haifa - Forces Handbook 1943 - Typical Bus Timetable |
March 28th 1943
(3rd in Lent - Crimean War began, 1854 - Naval Battle of Cape Matapan, 191 - Sunrise, 5.47 a.m ; Sunset, 6.25p.m)
Cleaning up site, rest of the day free. Tom gives me a good haircut as he was a barber in civvy street. Guard.
March 29th 1943
(Last Qtr., 1.52 a.m)
Weather getting pretty warm these days. Plenty of stuff going up to Turkey on road and rail. Guard.
March 30th 1943
(Crimean War ended 1856)
Start growing a tache with Jack for a bit of sport. Have a good game of football at night with the chaps off site.
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| Growing moustaches for a bit of sport! George on left. |
March 31st 1943
(HRH The Duke of Gloucester born, 1900)Andy goes up to Beirut today to start on his Q.T.U. Sorry to see him go as we had some good laughs. Guard.
April 1st 1943
(Fall of Asmara, 1941)
Cook today. Easy and the pick of the grub. 1 1/2 hr guard.
April 2nd 1943
My leave today but I do not go out as it is the Jews Sunday and there are no pictures open. 1 1/2 hr guard.
April 3rd 1943
Arthur rings me up to go to the pictures in Haifa tonight. Regimental Sergeant-Major gives us a lecture on England after the war which was very interesting. (The precise contents of this lecture are unknown, although it probably didn't mention that when the soldiers returned from war, they would be given no support to rebuild their lives). Major gives us a turn out laying with F.A.S and Predictor (guns). 1 1/2 hrs guard.
April 4th 1943
(4th in Lent - New Moon, 9.53 p.m - Sunrise, 5.32 a.m : Sunset, 6.36 p.m)
Just the same old game. Cleaning ammo etc. Afternoon off. Padre pays us a visit. Tries to get me confirmed. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
April 5th 1943
(South African troops entered Addis Ababa 1941)
Paratroops dropped by the oil wells. Practice mobile drills and sniper. Full clean in afternoon. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
April 6th 1943
(USA declared War on Germany, 1917 - Germany invaded Yugo-Slavia and Greece 1941)
Still getting my mail from home and Gwen regularly. Routine. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
April 7th 1943
Arthur rings me up on the phone. Leaving this battery to go A.H.Q. Sorry to see him go. 1 1/2 hours guard.
April 8th 1943
Receive photos from Gwen. They were all great, especially those with her on. Cheered me up fine. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
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| Gwendoline and friends in England - Gwen in the middle with a big grin. |
(Battle of The Lys began, 1918; Arras, 1917; Vimy Ridge, 1917 - Germany invaded Denmark and Norway, 1940 - Fall of Masawa, 1941)
Paid by new officer Dobson. Fat guy. Going away on course for two weeks. Receive two parcels of stuff from Gwen.
April 10th 1943
(Battle of Messines, 1918)
Fixing ammo rigs in gun pit. Officer gives us gun drill. Jack and I go to Haifa on afternoon pass. Go into one or two cafes and then to the pictures at the Armon. Arrive back on site about eleven. 1 1/2 hrs guard. Issued with K.D. Khaki drill - term for a type of fabric and the British military uniforms made from them.
April 11th 1943
(Passion - 5th in Lent - Sunrise, 5.16 a.m ; Sunset 6.48 p.m)
Rest. Bar for guards.
April 12th 1943
(Battle of Shaiba, 1915; Hazebrouck, 1918 - First Qtr., 3.4 p.m)
One or two warnings in morning. Tom and I go down Haifa. Picture - Dive Bomber. Cafe to listen to band. Bus back. 1 1/2 hrs guard.
April 13th 1943
(Ten German Destroyers sunk off Norway, 1940)
Gun drill in morning and afternoon, get fed up with it. Cut the cards for night guard on B.H.Q, lucky me as usual. But it turned out an easy guard. Plenty of tea and eats.
April 14th 1943
Rest of the day off duty, bar for a bit of gun drill in the morning. Arthur comes off course, rings me up.
April 15th 1943
(British Troops landed in Norway, 1940.)
I go on the generator in the morning as Ben is sick in hospital. Visited by Major Dobbie. Gun drill. Football after tea.
April 16th 1943
Messing around with generator all morning. Arthur rings me up from B. Troop. Go with him down Haifa at night. Good time. Band and pictures. He leaves tomorrow morning for his new mob.
April 17th 1943
(2nd Battle of Gaza, 1917 ; 1st Battle of Kemmel Ridge, 1918.)
Tom starts learning gun number 4, we all nearly die of laughing. Dobbie gives us drill. This guy is nuts. Crazy ideas. Weather starting to get warm. We go KD on the 20th of this month. Padre gives us a service on site. Doing guards day and night.
April 18th 1943
(Palm Sunday - British Summer Time normally begins - Sunrise, 5am ; Sunset 7p.m.)
Visited by Major Usher. Gun drill etc. Our Officer Gennings comes back off course. Young chap, age 20. Football.
April 19th 1943
(Primrose Day)
Mail coming in great from Gwen and Mother. Still keep hearing different dates about our next move on manoevures.
April 20th 1943
(Full Moon, 11.11 a.m)
Great to get back into K.D again. Feel a lot cleaner and freer than wearing battledress.
April 21st 1943
(HRH Princess Elizabeth born, 1926 - Hilary Law Sittings end.)
Hear that we are moving tomorrow to go by B.H.Q in settlement.
April 22nd 1943
(2nd Battle of Ypres began, 1915.)
109 battalion takes over our site at dinner time. We move up to settlement to meet the other half of our guns there which come from Tripoli in Syria. Nice to meet my old pals again.
April 23rd 1943
(Good Friday - Naval Raid on Zeebrugge and Ostend, 1918 - St George's Day.)
Nice place, our camp tents pitched in grass. Also plenty of trees about. Reminds me of England. Paid in open by Lt Gennings. Tom, Gil and I have a good night in cafe.
April 24th 1943
(Battle of Doiran began, 1917 ; St. Julien, 1915.)
Snap action all morning. Get ready for manouveres and firing camp. Weather very hot and we sweat plenty. After morning free from parades. I am on camp guard tonight so I get myself ready, clean rifle etc. Easy guard. Two hours on, four hours off. Charlie and I are together, time goes pretty quickly. Moving from here tomorrow.
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| Not sure why soap and a towel weren't considered necessary . |
(Easter Day - Allied landing in Gallipoli, 1915 - Anzac Day - HRH The Princess Royal born, 1897 - Sunrise, 4.46 a.m. ; Sunset, 7.12 p.m.)
Cleaning gun and loading up tractors for journey to firing camp. Arrive at N.2.AA Div Practice hut, guns in gun park. Unload tractor. Eight to a tent. No guards.
April 26th 1943
(Easter Monday - Wedding Day of Their Majesties.)
Hell of a day. Firing in afternoon. We fire F.A.S I am ammo no. 5. Food here is not up to much. Gun drill. In all our share time. No guards.
April 27th 1943
(Last Qtr., 7.51 a.m.)
Heavy 3.7 firing at sleeve. Gunners. Snap action. Halt action. Wheels action for us. We sweat blood.
April 28th 1943
(Battle of Arleux, 1917.)
Firing again with Predictor. I am master layer. Our team best in troop. Hard luck we didn't get the sleeve.
April 29th 1943
(Fall of Kut, 1916.)
Silent practice for an hour. Fed up with laying target, hard to see in this glare from sun. We get snap action down to 25 seconds. Did we move! Sweating.
April 30th 1943
24 hrs guard mount 5 last night. Very easy guard. I spend my time writing to Gwen and Mother. Night, a good bath in sea and write up my diary. Read my mail from Gwen.
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| In and Around Haifa - Forces Handbook 1943 - Bathing Rules |
