What evocative memories he has brought back to me!
As young teenagers, my sister and I, together with mum and dad were living in a badly bomb damaged pub in Manchester at the height of the war.
Mum and dad (he a veteran of the carnage of the So
mme 1916) played host to the men and women of our Armed Forces whenever they could snatch a few days leave.
Of all the various uniforms and nationalities who crowded out our little establishment – none were made more welcome or paid more respect than the dauntless men who sailed beneath the peerless Red Ensign.
I would listen, eyes wide, mouth agape, as they related their unbelievable exploits in the same matter of fact in which they would order another pint!
Four in particular, two Manchester lads and two Norwegians were my favourites, Nils and Gunnar by the way.
They were already veterans of the murderous Murmansk Run.
They told us of the persistent air attacks mounted by the Luftwaffe's Condors – massive flying boats who would descent upon a hapless, frequently unescorted, slow moving convoy – with the all too inevitable outcome.
Sailors finding themselves plunged into the unimaginable cold of the Barents Sea could measure their survival in only minutes.
The fact is – and, after all, a fact is an irrefutable statement; that without the dauntless courage of the merchant mariners, we could never have won the war.
This overdue recognition of their efforts and wholesale sacrifices is just another inexcusable aspect of various post war, ungrateful, uncaring indifferent Governments, made even worse now due to our growing thrall to the EU.
Let me finally assure you, Frank, that though I am more than proud of the Irish and Scottish blood in me (would that there could have been a drop of Welsh also!) I am inordinately proud to be an Englishman - as the fly that flies constantly in our little garden testifies.
To the very devil with the EU and all those self-interested Eurocrats
who bleat themselves at the Brussels trough.
I am English, I live in England and nothing or no one can change that by as much as an iota...!
John B Steele MBE
High Street
Swanwick
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