Sandy Handley continues his account of army life in the trenches of Briquessard Wood:
“There was no question of shaving, although some tried a little cold water shave in the mess tins, which didn’t taste very nice after.
Each evening late a cauldron of tea was brought around by the troopers from the field kitchen behind the woods. It wasn’t bad, lukewarm but better than nothing. We kept busy opening tins of corned beef and tins of rice pudding (not heated of course) and biscuits; we never starved.
It was always better when morning came. We were equipped with a small Boyscout’s burner which was fuelled with a tablet. I’d got a cold mug of tea so I lit this small stove and placed my cold tea on it. This was a precarious job, however. I must have got a bit impatient and blew the flames up but I blew too strong and I got the flame in my face, burning and singeing my week old beard. Our Officer* came along and detailed me to walk back up the wood to our squadron medical post and get some attention. Typical of me and tired with no sleep, I forgot my Army drill and instead of going along the line of the bushes and trees, which would have given me some cover, I clambered up the bank, which exposed me to any sniper. I wasn’t thinking until all of a sudden I heard the whine of a bullet then another. I soon went back to the line of trees and bushes edging this wood. Of all the shells, bullets and mortar bombs which had passed, that one small bullet from a German sniper might have put me out of the war.
By the time I got to the medical aid post one of the orderlies dabbed some ointment on my face and said “We will be moving out soon so go back to your lines and don’t worry about shaving for the time being.” (From Ex Trooper S Handley’s ‘61 Recce - Memories of Normandy 1944 – 1945’, unpublished)
*Lt. Dick Williams
Eric Brewer wrote home on 27th July that "At the present moment we are on field rations and it's a vast difference from those 14 day pack rations...it seemed strange to see some potatoes on a plate for once and cooked meat and peas instead of tinned stuff. We are also receiving bread each day, the pre-war stuff and real tea instead of comp tea (which is the tea, milk and sugar combined - more like dishwater than the usual tea but we even got used to that in the past 8 weeks)." His diary for 27th July reports that “Still same place. Gerry shot one our chaps through the hand.” (Extracts from Eric Brewer’s diary and letters included by kind permission of Derek Brewer and his family.)
Wilf Dawson of ‘A’ Squadron, who became the pillar of 61st Recce’s Old Comrades Association, was also severely wounded at Briquessard, ending his active service with the regiment (from ‘Beaten Paths are Safest’ by Roy Howard, Brewin Books 2004)
27th July 1944 – the Allies first jet engine, the Gloster Meteor, goes into operation. The RAF and US Air Force jointly announced the development of jet aircraft in January 1944, based on the discoveries of Englishman Frank Whittle in the 1920s. Germany independently invented and developed jet aircraft and the Messerschmidt Me 262 also became operational in the middle of 1944.
The German front line in the Cotentin begins to retreat faced with the rapid advance of Operation Cobra, now including VIII Corps on the right flank heading for Coutances.
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