September the 3rd 1939.

Today we commemorate the beginning of the Second World War. Actually it had begun on the First of the month when the Nazi party dressed prisoners in Polish uniforms and set them to attack, with no bullets, German border post. They were machine gunned into silence, and from this excuse the German invasion on the First began. The United Kingdom, under Chamberlain, one of the few men to interrupt Hitler when he was ranting, took Britain to war to free Poland, an objective never lost and unachieved only because of exhaustion and the red army.

For today's generation this is an event so far in the past as not worth talking about. This is of course understandable, as my generation, born a few years after the war, thought little about late Victorian Britain, or indeed anything outside of our ken. However the war meant a great deal to us. We ran about the school playground singing "We won the war, in 1944!" and this was twelve years after this event, revealing how close the memory was to the nation. The cinema was in the fifties filled with actors portraying a wide range of hero's on land, sea and air. 'The Dambuster's' was a highly emotive film, showing the bombers courage and reminding folk of the morale boost this gave at a time of many losses. 'The sea shall not have them,' was another reminder of the endurance of the men in both Royal and Merchant Navies, films, plays and books were used to release many inward tensions and emotions hidden during the actual conflict. This continued when TV became standard in the house. Sure attention was indeed more on the 'brave new world' built after the war, and television reflected this constantly, however the war would not go away. The first programme we saw when the TV arrived in our humble abode was a comedy called, 'The Army Game.' This somewhat unfunny programme did speak to millions who had endured, or understood, the 'joys' of military life! Field Marshall Montgomery appeared showing diagrams of how he had won the war single handedly, and would have done so quicker had the Yanks not kept interfering. "The enemy was Heeeyiah, Heeeyiah and Heeeyiah!' his plumy voice announced, "And my troops Heeeyiah, Heeeyiah and Heeeyiah! and I won!" He was of course right, and few would disagree that he was the best general of his time in the field, he certainly wouldn't!

The war that affected us so much had cost around fifty million lives, give or take a million. It had led to a rebuilt Europe that would see decades of peace for the fist time, possibly ever. It brought the US and the USSR to the fore and while we saw a peaceable 'Cold War,' ignoring the Cuban Missile crisis which brought us within minutes of mutual destruction, around fifty million died in proxy east v west wars in Central and South America, Asia and Africa. However they were far away so we let it happen! In some place the war did not end until 1974! Vietnam had been dominated by the French for many years and suffered invasion by the Japanese who came to deliver them from the western powers. Their domination was even more heartless and after they had been removed the French returned and fighting continued. The American suffered ignominious defeat there and at last the nation has peace, after almost forty years of conflict! We had it tough did you say?

War at least encourages invention, and aircraft as well as bombs, ships as well as radar developed in a handful of years. By 1945 the German Messerschmitt 262 jet fighter was bringing down allied bombers and piston engined flight was about to recede. Men had fought in the desert, in an almost 'chivalrous' way, in the jungle and on island against the Japanese in a far from chivalrous 'kill or be killed' manner. The Soviet forces, brutally handled by Stalin, had fought tooth an nail to remove the Nazi threat with at least twenty million dead in an action that was surely the worst known, so far, to man? Shipping in the Atlantic was devastated, men endured days and weeks in small lifeboats, many never recovered, while back home in spite of government warnings many still wasted what food was available, or made money on the 'black market.

Those who fought, losing friends and comrades never forget what they have seen. Rarely do they talk about it in depth, their emotions hidden in that 'manly' fashion. A fashion that often kills them when they allow the thoughts to surface many years later. Those who lose loved ones during the bombing often never remarry, other lost homes and never recovered their social position. Many of course found excitement and adventure, as long as they survived, and could say they enjoyed the war. Women found a freedom, usually sexual, that was missing during peacetime, and employment in ways they never dreamt of before the war. In short for those who served and those at home, whatever side they were on, the war was the biggest event they could ever face. The rest of their lives were governed by this event, and often the changes, especially during the sixties, were never comprehended by such as they.

One thing is sure, had Britain not 'stood alone,' had American not, eventually, entered the war, had Russia been ruled by a lesser man, we would not have a freedom nor a wealth that we possess today. Indeed without their sacrifice, often ignored by today's generation, we would not be here!




Can you imagine any politician daring to erect a poster like the one above in today's world?