Contents Listing - Articles & Features in this issue
Features:
The Last Airman VC - In a rare interview to mark the 100th birthday of John Cruickshank VC, Graham Pitchfork speaks to the sole surviving air VC about his remarkable valour.
Battle of Elands River - Gerry van Tonder explains how 500 Dominion troops endured snipers, extreme thirst, and a heavy bombardment when their remote staging post was surrounded by Boer forces.
The Triangle Girls - Dr Melanie Bassett of the University of Portsmouth outlines new research highlighting the vital role of female workers at Portsmouth Royal Dockyard during the Great War.
“General" Ike Eisenhower, even made a bet with his unruly British subordinate Bernard "Monty Montgomery that the European war would end before Christmas - and lost”
Unwilling Spectators - When thousands of Rwandans were massacred at Kibeho, a group of Australian peacekeepers did all in their power to save lives, as Dr David Sutton details.
Cover Story:
Our cover story commemorates the 75th anniversary of VE Day, plus we pay tribute to pilot John Cruickshank VC, on the eve of his 100th birthday.
VE DAY 75 - Turn to page 43 for our VE Day 75 commemorative content.
Last 100 Days of War in Europe - Dr Peter Caddick- Adams describes the pivotal final weeks of the war in Europe as the Allies closed in on Germany from both east and west.
Winning Words - With Germany defeated, Britain’s prime minister, Winston Churchill, gave three victory speeches on VE Day. You can read them here, word for word.
Celebrations and Street Parties - We present a portfolio of photographs showing the joyous scenes that filled the streets 75 years ago.
Briefings:
Navy’s Last Wartime Destroyer Captain Dies - Britain’s final link to its wartime destroyer commanders, Lieutenant-Commander John Manners, DSC, has passed away aged 105.
‘Resistance’ Weapons Found in Dutch Town - A cache of weapons and ammunition thought to have belonged to the Dutch Resistance has been unearthed near Nijmegen.
Successful UXO Hunt for Navy Minehunter - HMS Grimsby finds an incredible 19 unexploded wartime mines and bombs during March and April 2020.
HERO of the MONTH:
Brevet Major John Knox VC - This month, Lord Ashcroft profiles the circumstances behind one of the earliest VCs awarded and one which, remarkably, was sold along with the cannonball that wounded the gallant recipient.
Regulars:
Image of War
Militaria
Field Post
Recon Report
Weapons of War
Collections
Article Snippets
It can’t have escaped anyone’s notice that the world is gripped by an alarming pandemic that’s changing life for everyone on the planet. Worrying for the welfare of loved ones, travel restrictions, difficulty in buying food, a greater military presence on the streets/ skies, shops and services closing, livelihoods being lost - the list goes on. While we were working on bringing you this VE-Day 75th anniversary issue of Britain at War, it struck me that the current situation would, in many ways, be very familiar to the wartime generation. They too suffered the dread of
losing friends and relatives, fearing for their own lives. But they, of course, endured far greater and prolonged hardship.
There are other similarities; community spirit has generally become much stronger in recent weeks and the notion that ‘we’re all in this together’ has taken hold across much of the UK and the wider world. We also have a new generation of heroes on the front line; health workers and those performing vital services. While they are not at war, they are putting their lives at risk for the nation. Even some major manufacturing companies are switching from making their usual products to producing items, such as ventilators, to help safeguard lives. This also seems reminiscent of both World Wars for instance when joinery firms moved from making furniture to producing aircraft in the 1914-1918 conflict.
Of course our forebears suffered years of war and all that came with it; the worst of the current crisis is expected to be over in a much shorter period of time. I think it will give current generations a greater understanding of what it was like on the Home Front all those years ago.
Let’s do all we can to prevent the tragic loss of life from growing, keep ourselves and loved ones safe, and preserve the community spirit long after this awful virus has been defeated. And let’s look forward to the happier days that surely lie ahead.
Nigel Price, Editor
losing friends and relatives, fearing for their own lives. But they, of course, endured far greater and prolonged hardship.
There are other similarities; community spirit has generally become much stronger in recent weeks and the notion that ‘we’re all in this together’ has taken hold across much of the UK and the wider world. We also have a new generation of heroes on the front line; health workers and those performing vital services. While they are not at war, they are putting their lives at risk for the nation. Even some major manufacturing companies are switching from making their usual products to producing items, such as ventilators, to help safeguard lives. This also seems reminiscent of both World Wars for instance when joinery firms moved from making furniture to producing aircraft in the 1914-1918 conflict.
Of course our forebears suffered years of war and all that came with it; the worst of the current crisis is expected to be over in a much shorter period of time. I think it will give current generations a greater understanding of what it was like on the Home Front all those years ago.
Let’s do all we can to prevent the tragic loss of life from growing, keep ourselves and loved ones safe, and preserve the community spirit long after this awful virus has been defeated. And let’s look forward to the happier days that surely lie ahead.
Nigel Price, Editor
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