INDIA … AND THE WAR IS OVER
IT was from Osnabruck that I was posted back to the Woolwich barracks in the UK. I was given four weeks leave and then sent out to India to take part in the war against Japan that was still going on.
The troopship to India was the P & O Edinburgh Castle, and the route was from Southampton past Gibraltar, through the Mediterranean to Port Said, then on through the Suez Canal, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean to Bombay.
Sleeping arrangements on board was in hammocks hooked to the ceiling and packed like sardines head to toe; beneath the hammocks were the mess tables. The hammocks were rolled up in the morning and stacked away and the area then became the mess deck during the day,
The weather improved daily as we moved further east. It was fascinating to see the coat of North Africa so close, and the many islands of the Mediterranean – also the many flying fish that kept up with the speed of the ship, just in front of the ship’s bow; a really lovely sight.
The further east we travelled the warmer it got, very much so at night time below deck. To aid the airflow there were some scuttle-like ventilators that were pushed into the portholes to scoop fresh air; there were also some small swivel-type air vents in the ceiling. It was quite funny to see hands and arms constantly reaching out to turn the ventilator in their direction!
We finally reached Port Said at the head of the Suez Canal to restock the ship with stores and water. It was here I first saw and tasted water melon; very refreshing in the heat.
The journey through the canal was very interesting. It is quite narrow. The Egyptian side was cultivated and the other bank just desert. To regulate shipping there are wide lagoons to allow ships to pass. I remember one at Port Suez, there were others with beautiful blue sea and lovely scenery. On leaving the Canal and entering the Red Sea the heat became sticky and oppressive, but it cooled off once we entered the Indian Ocean.
As our troopship reached it’s destination of Bombay we heard news that an atomic bomb had been dropped on Hiroshima in Japan by the Americans on the 6th August, and this was followed by another on Nagasaki on the 9th. We didn’t know the full implications of this new warfare but were hopeful that it would end the war.
As we approached Bombay harbour there was a huge amount of shipping that we presumed was part of the preparations for an invasion of Japan, of which we would be a part.
Our ship docked in Bombay Harbour and the troops were disembarked. We marched through the city to the railway station to be transported 150 miles to a large military transit camp at Deolali.
Soon after arriving at Deolali the news came through that Japan had surrendered. Japan also concluded a separate surrender cermony with China in Nanking on 9th September 1945. With this last formal surrender World War II came to an end.
More THINGS REMEMBERED next weekend