61st Recce Regt
Whittlesford
Cambs.
Wednesday 23rd
Chotie Darling,
Many thanks for your two letters which I’ve just picked up on rejoining the unit, which is still here at Whittlesford.
My leave is still OK for March 8th so don’t forget to get things teed-up, will you?
Had a very nice time at Brum doing practically nothing ‘cept eat & sleep.
Went over to Leicester on Sat & again on Sun. last and met Diller & Mary. Had quite a good time despite all Leicester’s efforts to stop us – cinemas closed, nowhere to eat, etc.
It was a particularly good concert I went to on Friday night last. Leff Pouishnoff was in brilliant form – playing and conducting Tchaikovsky’s No 1 Concerto in devastating fashion. He’s very theatrical, of course, quite unlike Schnabel, for instance. I get so few chances to see these boys, nowadays, that perhaps tend to eulogise rather than criticize. However, it’s not such a bad fault.
I’m afraid I can’t write much as it is the usual practice for adjutants to put people coming back from courses straight on to Duty Officer and my adj. cannot see his way clear to make any alteration in this unwritten law.
Must close here, Darling to see the boys’ meals.
All my love, Darling,
Dicker
Will try to write you again tomorrow.
© Chotie Darling
24th February 1944 – General Frank Merrill and 2,750 volunteers from the US Army (known as Merrill’s Marauders) begin their mission of long range jungle warfare with the Japanese, penetrating deep into enemy territory in northern Burma (Myanmar).
26th February 1944 – last of three ‘Great Raids’ by the Soviet Air Force bombing Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Finland had resisted Soviet occupation in the Winter War of 1939/40. Hostilities resumed in June 1941 and Finland turned to Germany for defence against the Soviet Union, although it retained its state of an independent democracy. British and Commonwealth Allied forces declared war on Finland in December 1941 (but not the US).
29th February 1944 – US forces under General MacArthur attack the Admiralty Islands, north of Papua New Guinea. After a month of fighting the Japanese abandon their base to the south at Madong on the New Guinea coast.
Germany launches another major attack at Anzio but the tide is turning at the beach-head because of the Allies ‘inexhaustible’ supplies of artillery and ammunition.
The Russian General Vatutin, commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, is ambushed by Ukrainian nationalists and left mortally wounded. (From ‘The Second World War’ by Antony Beevor, published by Weidenfield and Nicolson 2012)
Eric Postles remembers March 1944:
"We moved to Whittlesford and were allowed to use the American entertainment facilities at Duxford airfield where we saw James Cagney and other stars. The regiment was re-equipped with new vehicles and weapons. We took the old vehicles to Feltham Ordnance Depot in London. We collected the new vehicles from Castle Donnington grounds and ran them in via Gloucester area (a number of the squadron lived locally).
When in Cambridge I was put on a charge by the Military Police for allegedly having my hand in my greatcoat pocket. When I was brought before our Commanding officer, Colonel Sir William Mount, a military policeman said the Provost Martial had ordered a tightening of discipline in the Division. The CO said “It does not apply to my regiment” and dismissed the case." (Extracts from ‘My War Years’ by John Eric Postles ISO used by kind permission of the author.)
Sir William had more important things to worry about. Training was now "the full Monty treatment" as his regiment began to prepare for Overlord. Montgomery had “carefully meshed experienced veterans from the Eighth Army with the keen, green formations that had been training and languishing for so long in England”.
50th Northumbrian Division had been brought home from the Mediterranean with 7th Armoured and 51st Highland Divisions and there were already rumours among the 50th that “they would be used on the battlefield for tasks in which the rate of attrition would be high. Curiously enough this did not seem greatly to dismay them.” However, training with British 7th Armoured Division on the flatlands of East Anglia may not have been the best preparation for Normandy’s bocage - the heavy hedgerows and rolling small fields which were to provide deadly cover for German defence and ambush.” (From ‘Overlord’ by Max Hastings, Macmillan 2016 edition)
2nd March 1944 – Bombing raids begin on targets in Yugoslavia from the Foggia airfields near Ortona in Italy. The Allies were now supporting Tito’s communist resistance forces, flying in supplies from Bari in southern Italy.
4th March 1944 – the US Air Force’s first attack on Berlin with 730 bombers and 644 fighter aircraft flying by night.
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