The Effect of The Second World War on Life In Croydon
"War really came to Croydon on August 15, 1940 when Croydon Airport -
familiar to many German pilots from pre-war days - was attacked. It
was really the first major raid on the Croydon Area"[1]. This was the
entrance of the Second World War to Croydon and its civilians. From
then on many more bombs of all kind were dropped and many civilians in
Croydon were seriously injured and killed.
The Second World War began in 1939 when Britain declared war on
Germany. However there weren't any major attacks on each other for a
good part of a year. This period was known as the Phoney or Bore war[2]
with neither making the first move. During this period the government
recruited many civilians who were not already fighting in the war
directly to help with the war effort in many ways. The Home Guard now
known as Dad's Army was created. Their main job was to be the first
line of defence against a foreign invasion but thankfully they were
never needed. Women were encouraged to work in Ammunition and Weapon
factories, which contributed to the war effort. Evacuation of children
to the countryside from the cities[3] also took place. This was no
exception in Croydon. Many children from schools in Croydon were
evacuated into the countryside. Many children refused to go and those
who went were scared and missed their parents a lot. "At this I
rebelled, threw a tantrum, burst into tears and refused to go which
must have been unsettling for the rest of my class"[4]. This is from
the memoirs of J.B Gent who lived in Croydon during the war. Sources
like this should be fairly reliable as the person/s was t...
... middle of paper ...
...lled it the
bore war
[3] They government feared that the cities would be the main target
for an bombing raids
[4] From the memoirs of J.B Gent a Child in the war who lived on
Whitehorse Road from the book Croydon in the 1940's and 1950's
publisher Croydon Natural History And Scientific Study
[5] See Appendix One
[6] Surrey at war by Bob Olgey
[7] An Aircraft used during the war for the war effort
[8] Croydon Airport and the Battle For Britain by Douglas Cluett
[9] Report by a court from the inquest
[10] Report Courageous Croydon can be found in the booklet.
[11] Croydon in the 40's and 50's
[12] An exhibition on the Second World War.
[13] From The Memoirs of Bob Dowie
[14] Results can be found in the back of Surrey at War by Bob Olgely
[15] Newspaper article written at time
In An American Soldier in World War I, David Snead examines account of George Browne, a civil engineer who fought as part of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) during World War I. Snead shares Browne’s account of the war through the letters he wrote to his fiancé Martha Ingersoll Johnson. Through Browne’s letters and research conducted of the AEF, Snead gives a concise, informative, and harrowing narrative of life as a soldier serving in the camps and front lines of the Great War. Snead attempts to give the reader an understanding of Browne’s service by focusing on his division, the 42nd Division, their training and preparation, combat on the front lines, and the effects of war on George and Martha’s relationship. As Snead describes, “Brownie’s letters offer a view of the experiences of an American soldier. He described the difficulties of training, transit to and from France, the dangers and excitement of combat, and the war’s impact on relationships.” (Browne 2006, 2) Furthermore, he describes that despite the war’s effect on their relationship, “their
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007. Print.
Beah, Ishmael. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. New York: Farrar, Straus and
The dramatic realization of the fact that the war will affect a member of the Chance family is apparent in this quote. The amount of sorrow and emotions felt by the Chance family, and for that matter, all families who had children, brothers, husbands, or fathers, drafted into what many felt was a needless war. The novel brings to life what heartache many Americans had to face during the Vietnam era, a heartache that few in my generation have had the ability to realize.
A Lucky Child by Thomas Buergenthal is a memoir about his time as a Jewish child in multiple ghettos and death camps in and around Germany during World War II. The author shares about his reunions with family and acquaintances from the war in the years between then and now. Buergenthal wished to share his Holocaust story for a number of reasons: to prevent himself from just being another number, to contribute to history, to show the power and necessity of forgiveness, the will to not give up, and to question how people change in war allowing them to do unspeakable things. The memoir is not a cry for private attention, but a call to break the cycle of hatred and violence to end mass crimes.
...n amnesiac nation into “working through” its troubled past.” (Bly ,189) Story telling was the soldier’s salvation, their survival method. Being able to tell their stories let them express everything they were feeling and ultimately cope with the horrors of war and the guilt the carried.
As evidenced by his words, it was not simply a matter of going over there at the age of seventeen to fight for one’s country. Rather, it was a matter of leaving behind the safety and security of the home to which you were accustomed, with little expectation of returning. At a time when these ‘kids’ should have been enjoying, they were burdened with the the trepidation of being drafted.
Morley, Joyce Anne Deane. "War Memories: Plotting the Battle of Britain." Letter. 9 Dec. 2003. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. BBC WW2 People's War. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Field, Frank. British and French Operations of the First World War. Cambridge (England); New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
...ings by then, whose memories, fears, and enthusiasms should not be remembered." Thus, unlike the title suggests, this remarkable war memoir is not about one soldier. Instead it refers to the entire German army who were defeated by the Allies. Although the German cause was very controversial, these gentlemen bravely fought for their country. Many men died, many were mutilated, and many more had to forever live with the atrocities they encountered. At war's end, however, they were merely "forgotten" for their failure of success. And although The Forgotten Soldier is an astonishing account of the horrors of infantry warfare, it serves a much greater purpose. It allows the historian to glance into the German experience and realize they too were young men fighting because their nation called upon them, and they deserve to be remembered for such a courageous act.
Horsman, Reginald. The Causes of the War of 1812. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1962. Print.
myself since the war days never to speak of my enthusiasm.” (Davies, 164) For the majority of his life,
...it may help us arrive at an understanding of the war situation through the eyes of what were those of an innocent child. It is almost unique in the sense that this was perhaps the first time that a child soldier has been able to directly give literary voice to one of the most distressing phenomena of the late 20th century: the rise of the child-killer. While the book does give a glimpse of the war situation, the story should be taken with a grain of salt.
In the story “Home Soil” by Irene Zabytko, the reader is enlightened about a boy who was mentally and emotionally drained from the horrifying experiences of war. The father in the story knows exactly what the boy is going through, but he cannot help him, because everyone encounters his or her own recollection of war. “When their faces are contorted from sucking the cigarette, there is an unmistakable shadow of vulnerability and fear of living. That gesture and stance are more eloquent than the blood and guts war stories men spew over their beers” (Zabytko 492). The father, as a young man, was forced to reenact some of the same obligations, yet the father has learne...
"Reader Responses to Soldier's Home." Literature and Composition. 10 Feb.,2003. David Toth. 14 Feb., 2003. .