Chotie Darling
Part 1 The Blue Cockade
Chapter 1 A Soldier on Salisbury Plain
Joining up age 18, first weeks in the army, training as a PT Instructor, promotion to Lance Corporal, the Battle of Britain and the beginning of the Blitz.
Richard Kelner Williams enrolled in the Territorial Army at Weymouth on 21st June 1940.
Nationality – British. Parents English (?*). Father - Dudley Williams
Resident at Fairhaven, Orchard Avenue, Parkstone, Dorset.
Born in Orpington, Kent
Height 5ft 6½ inches. Weight 132 lbs (ie 9stone 6lbs). Chest when expanded 39 inches (2 inch range of expansion). Complexion fresh. Eyes blue. Hair blond.
Religious denomination – Church of England.
Occupation - Student
* the Williams were a Welsh family living in England.
Reported to 6th (HP) Dorset Infantry Regiment in the Drill Hall, Wilton Rd, Salisbury, Wiltshire.
6th Bath & Dorset Regiment, June to July 1940
Salisbury, Quidhampton and Dinton (all in Wiltshire) - June to July
6th Dorset, July to August 1940
Salisbury & Bemerton, Wiltshire - ‘D’ company (appointed Lance Corporal 29th July)
Tidworth in Hampshire for PT instruction course in August 1940
6th Bath & Dorset Regiment, August to October 1940, PT Instructor
Bemerton, near Salisbury, Wiltshire – August to October/November
'K' Company (appointed a full Corporal 3rd October)
on Twitter
21st June - Joining up
On 21st June 1940 Richard Kelner Williams, age 18, occupation ‘student’, was enrolled in the British Territorial Army at Weymouth.
22nd June - First Letter
Had a rather stiff medical, with eight doctors. I could have kidded one, but eight was too much. Unfortunately I passed A.1.
23rd June - The Guildhall, Salisbury
There are hundreds of commissions in Salisbury. I’ve thrown about 200 salutes so far without knocking my hat off.
28th June - Dinton first letter
The food is rotten. We get nothing after 4.30pm every day. 15 blokes deserted a couple of days ago owing to the conditions.
8th July - Dinton, third week as a soldier
Conditions have got better since Sunday. We get up later and get a little more food. I’ve got blisters on my hands through trench digging.
11th July - Dinton, a PT Instructor
The P.T. instructor is quite a decent sort of bloke. He’s getting married in a few weeks time, poor chap. I hope she can cook …
15th July - Dinton, sad news
I haven’t been too good lately; haven’t eaten anything for a couple of days, but stuck to my usual ration of beer.
19th July - Cross Country Running
I managed to win another cross-country. There is a chap here who is junior cross-country champ of the Channel Isles who gave me the helluva run.
24th July - Salisbury again
Owing to the large number of deserters, all leave has been cancelled.
29th July - Lance Corporal Williams at Bemerton
We must get really moving on our next meeting. We seem to waste so much time…
3rd August - Tom's death
The sentry with fixed bayonet said “Halt, who goes there!” etc. and Ben, quite tight, shouted “Deutschland über Allez”!,
6th August - Tidworth P.T. course
I’m told that life on Devil’s Island is luxury compared with this course. They say it is three weeks of living Hell! I want my mummy…
12th August - Returning to Tidworth
which I accomplished successfully by removing my boots and gumshoeing past the guards in the shadows. Quite fun.
20th August - Ready for a scrap
I rather think it’s going to end in a scrap. I hope so. I’ve been doing my best to get a scrap all day.
24th August - Sleepy Sunday at Tidworth
I was very surprised to hear about the bombing at Poole. It just goes to prove that anything may happen- and at any time.
29th August - Friendless at Bemerton
everyone who went was caught, and put on a charge. I think they were all reduced to the ranks. Rather a close shave.
2nd September - A Show of some sort at Bemerton
I’ve just had an enormous meal of tea & supper combined. I had two pints of tea and one of soup. I’m not feeling so good now.
5th September - Chotie's 17th birthday
mental equilibrium, which I may say I nearly lost last night, when I was woken up by a veritable rain of bombs descending around.
8th September - Enter du Rose
There is only one respectable bloke here now. Actually he’s French, and one of the few Lanerjacks left. His name’s Du Rose
10th September - CSM Gurd
Du Rose immediately fell for a girl in pink, and Gammage and I had our work cut out to protect her honour etc. He got quite mad
18th September - "Birmingham urchins"
six Birmingham urchins .. their language is amazing. They all appear to live for “tabs” (cigarettes) and kypher (skirt)
21st September - The Rising Sun, Salisbury
I’m endeavoring to write this in ‘The Rising Sun ' a notorious pub in Salisbury. There's a hell of a row on here.
24th September - Bemerton Hut
Eric was on another charge - this time he was acting as Company Orderly Corporal and was found in bed at 6.30 am - a crime in the army.
27th September - Action around Parkstone
I’m on Fire Piquet tonight, which means I have 11 privates under me on the watch for fires.
14th October - The other stripe
I've been given another stripe, all the time I was home, I was a full Corporal! I shall get about five shillings and threepence a day
18th October - Choosing Friends
all the members of the tent I'm in charge of come from Borstal - one has to be careful, to say the least, in choosing friends!
21st October - Dinton, b....y awful, but not Basingstoke
I was choked off the other day, pretty severely for associating with private soldiers vis. Eric & Pete. I’m no longer able to go out with them
29th October - "uxoriousness"
I know it seems hard, Darling, but most army blokes only get a 48 hrs every three months or so, we are really very lucky.
People mentioned in Chapter 1 A Soldier on Salisbury Plain :
Barbara Chalkley ("Chotie"), Beryl (Chalkley), Betty (Chalkley/Hall), Ben, Bert, Brinner (Williams), Cohen, Cole, Collingwood, Diller (Williams), Du Rose, Eric (Kesler?), Clive Gammage, George, Gurd (Sgt/ CSM), Hughes, Lawson (2/Lt), Leslie (Hall), Mater/Ma/Mother (Mrs Williams), Margaret Chalkley, Pete, Pete’s Barbara, Tom (Margaret’s), Tom, Toni.
Books mentioned in Chapter 1:
‘Carl and Anna’ by Leonhard Frank - “Translation from German. Cheered me up not a little.” ‘The Silence of Colonel Bramble’ by Andre Maurois
‘Corduroy’ by Adrian Bell – “enjoyed immensely”
‘Jurgen, a Comedy of Justice’ by James Cabell – “fought I think rather unsuccessfully with”
‘Murder at the ‘Varsity’’ by Q Patrick
Films mentioned in Chapter 1:
‘Proud Valley’ – “rather dated now, but quite good”.
‘Golden Boy’ – “wasn’t too bad, but could have been better, as I imagine the play was."
‘Safari’ with Doug Fairbanks Jr. / Madelaine Canoll
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