The North East of England in Wartime

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Eston War Memorial near Middlesbrough

Royal Air Force

In September 2003 we are pleased to include the personal experiences of Sgt Ernie Reynolds of Bomber Command, who was interviewed by Colin Bailey, one of our volunteers, in October 2002.

We have also kindly been given the following details by our volunteer, John Larder, who has a special interest in the RAF, of a few of the men from the North East of England who served with the RAF during the war and who sadly lost their lives.

F/O Henry Elderfield (known to his wife as Harry) was the pilot of Lancaster ED784 from 50 Sqn which attacked the Skoda Works at Pilsen. The aircraft force-landed in the sea, six miles off the coast of France. Out of the crew of eight, two were drowned. The remainder reached the dinghy which was damaged and unable to take all the crew. Harry swam towards the shore to find help but was lost. The dinghy was found and the crew rescued by a MTB after 22 hours adrift. Harry is commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial and the Eston War Memorial near Middlesbrough.

F/O Arthur Peter Pease served during the Battle of Britain. He was the son of Sir Richard and Lady Pease of Middleton Tyas. Arthur joined Cambridge University Air Squadron and after training, was posted to No 1 School of Army Co-operation at Old Sarum. He was then posted to 5 OTU at Aston Down to convert to Spitfires and from there to 603 Sqn at Dyce. Arthur shot down a He111 on 30 July 1940 and destroyed a Bf109 on 3 September 1940. Just four days later he was forced to belly-land due to damage inflicted on his aircraft and on 15 September he was shot down. Arthur Pease is buried in the family grave at Middleton Tyas Churchyard.

Sgt Henry Albert Bolton also served during the Battle of Britain. He joined the RAF in July 1939, completed his training by July 1940 and just one month later, Henry was killed while trying to force land at the age of 21. He is buried at Hartlepool Cemetery.

F/O Oswald St John Pigg served in the Battle of France and the Battle of Britain. He was educated at Newcastle Grammar School and was the son of Reverend J J Pigg, the Vicar of Chatton, Northumberland. Oswald joined the RAF in March 1937 and was posted to 72 Sqn at Church Fenton on 27 November 1937. On June 2, 1940 he shot down a Ju87 over Dunkirk, then crash-landed, slightly wounding himself, at Gravesend. On 15 August 1940 Oswald shot down a Bf109 but was killed in action 1 September 1940. He is buried in St Oswald's Burial Ground in Durham and has a memorial in St Oswald's Church.

P/O Douglas Cyril Winter also served in the Battle of France and the Battle of Britain. He was born in South Shields and joined the RAF in September 1929 as an apprentice. Douglas passed out as an engine fitter in 1932 but applied, and was accepted for, pilot training. He joined 72 Sqn at Church Fenton and was commissioned in April 1940. In June Douglas destroyed a Ju87 and shared a Do17 near Holy Island. In August he shot down two Bf110s and the following month a Bf109. Douglas was shot down 5 September 1940 and is buried at South Shields Cemetery.

F/Sgt Robert Hall served in the Battle of Britain. Little is known about Robert apart from the fact that he came from Felling. He served as an air gunner with 29 Sqn, then retrained as an Observer and was killed in an accident in a Beaufighter in October 1941. Robert is buried at Heworth Cemetery, Felling.

P/O Edward Vallely served in the Battle of Normandy. He was the pilot of Typhoon JR527 and his aircraft was damaged in an attack on a radar site at Jerbourg. A native of Billingham, Edward is buried at Bayeux Cemetery in Normandy. He is one of two possible pilots who deliberately crashed his damaged aircraft into the radar station to prevent its use, on 24 May 1944.

S/L John Sample was born in Morpeth in 1913 and was a Flight Commander in 1939, having joined 607 Sqn Auxiliary Airforce. In France, in May 1940, he shot down a He111 but was then forced to bail out. For his action in France, he was awarded the DFC in June. Between May 1940 and March 1941 John claimed a Do17 and shared a He111. In September 1941 he was posted to form 137 Sqn flying Whirlwinds but was killed the following month after a collision with another Whirlwind. John is buried in St Andrews Church, Bothal, Ashington in Northumberland.

One of the North East of England RAF servicemen who survived the war is:

Group Captain Denys Edgar Gillam DSO**, DFC*, AFC who was born in Tyneside in 1915. He obtained his flying licence in 1934 and joined the RAF the following year. In June 1938, Denys received the AFC for flying food to Rathlin Island in very hazardous conditions. During the Battle of Britain he served with 616 Sqn very successfully, was awarded the DFC in November 1940 and then the Bar to the DFC in October 1941. The following month Denys was shot down by flak and picked up by Air Sea Rescue Launch off Dunkirk and in December was awarded the DSO. March 1942 saw him forming the first Typhoon Wing at Duxford and subsequently taking command of 20 Sector 2^nd TAF in April 1944. In August 1944 Denys was awarded the Bar to his DSO and in October of that year he led an attack on the German Staff Conference at Dordrecht which killed many of the senior staff of the 15^th Army. Denys was awarded the second bar to his DSO in January 1945 and left the RAF later that year. Post-war he was Director and Chairman of Homfray Carpets in Halifax and Deputy Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire, before his death in 1991. Denys was widely held to be one of the greatest exponents of the potential of the Typhoon.

In the North East during the Battle of Britain there were two attacks by Luftflotte 5. The first attack involved 65 He111 and 34 Me110 which were intercepted over the Farne Islands by 72 Sqn from Acklington. The German forces were split; some were attacked close to Acklington by 79 Sqn and a flight from 605 Sqn and the others were caught near Sunderland by 607 Sqn and 41 Sqn. 8 He111 and 7 Me110 were shot for no loss to the RAF.

In the second attack 50 Ju88s were discovered off Flamborough Head by 616 Sqn and 73 Sqn. In the ensuing battle 6 Ju88s were shot down for no loss, although some German aircraft damaged houses and an ammunition dump at Scarborough, and others continued to Driffield aerodrome, where 4 hangars were hit and 10 Whitleys destroyed on the ground.

Middleton St George airfield, now Teeside Airport, was the most northerly airfield used by any Bomber Group. It was used by 78 Sqn flying Halifaxes from April to October 1941 and June to September 1942. Between June 1941 and September 1942 it was also home to 76 Sqn. From October 1942, 420 Sqn was based at Middleton St George with 419 Sqn and later 428 Sqn.

Usworth Airfield was home to 64 Sqn from May 1940, flying Spitfires, then 43 Sqn on Hurricanes as well as 607 Sqn flying Gladiators.

The Army

The Website displays good examples of personal experiences from infantrymen in the North East of England Regiments, including the Green Howards and the Durham Light Infantry. James Bostock and Joe Kelley both served with the DLI in North Africa and Joe's memoir is particularly vivid regarding the invasion of Sicily. The site also features the experiences of Stanley Palmer of the Green Howards who served in North Africa. Denis Swinney of the Royal Engineers was born in Morpeth, served as part of the BEF and was taken prisoner in North Africa.

We plan to incorporate further North East experiences when we feature the Italian Campaign and D Day in 2004. One man who came to Northumberland and developed a real love of the area and the people was Erwin Grubba, of the German Army, taken prisoner on Guernsey. His experiences provide a fascinating insight into conditions within the German Army as the war progressed.

The Royal Navy

As part of the Centre's feature on the North East of England we are pleased to include the memories of Lt Derric Breen who served on board HMS Egret during the Battle of the Atlantic, then on Harbour Defence Motor Launches as Air Sea Rescue before joining HMS Pict as part of Freetown Escort Force.

Useful Links

There are a number of useful sites which give information on the role of the North East of England during the Second World War. If you have a site which you feel could be included here, please contact cath.pugh@war-experience.org

www.acia.co.uk Aviation archaeology in Northern England - NEEACR
www.northallertonmemorials.org.uk/ Northallerton Memorials Project
www.bbc.co.uk/englandonfilm information on the Home Front in the North East of England and film clips
www.neam.co.uk the North East Aircraft Museum in Sunderland
www.durham.gov.uk Durham County Council Information Service
www.westallswar.org.uk an Air Raid disaster in North Shields.

Information regarding Regimental Museums in the North East of England can be found at
www.armymuseums.org.uk

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