A Sapper’s War - 12 Fld Coy RCE History, Part 10 July 1944
(Rest and Reorganization after the Battle for Rome and Sports Day at the Roman
Forum)
A Note on Blog and Book
This
series of blogs, entitled "A Sapper's War" follows some units of the
Royal Canadian Engineers in World War 2, primarily the 12th Field Company,
which was my father's unit. The main sources are the unit War Diary, Daily
Orders, official military histories, and The History of the Corps of Royal
Canadian Engineers Volume 2. I will also include some personal accounts
of his, when this is appropriate to the history.
The
blogs will mostly relate to their time in Italy, from Oct 1943 to Jan 1945,
though it will ultimately be extended to the later events in Northwestern
Europe and the earlier events in the U.K.. They will be put together in
book form eventually, but until that time the blogs will be available for
interested readers on this "Dodecahedron Books" blog site. I
encourage anyone who in interested to read the blogs, and buy the book when it
comes available.
Naturally,
I am claiming copyright, though you can make "fair use" of content,
of course, if you are writing about similar times and events.
Though
the overall history of the war will be noted, as context, the text mainly
relates to the experiences of the 12th Field Company, as indicated in their War
Diary and related orders, and other documents. If you want a more general
history of the war, there are many other sources to more completely fill in
those details.
There
will be a fair bit of focus on what might be called "social history",
in addition to the sometimes routine, sometimes harrowing military activities
of a group of Allied sappers in the Italian Theatre of WW2. The daily
orders and company War Diary often provide an interesting window into this
day-to-day world that the strictly military lacks.
Though
this account is based is a Canadian engineer company, it is likely that
British, other Commonwealth and American sappers would have lived through
similar experiences at this time, so families and interested parties from those
nations might also find it interesting.
I
will fill in links to the blog series below, as they are posted.
Jul
1944: TBA
Aug
1944: TBA
Sep
1944: TBA
Oct
1944: TBA
Nov
1944: TBA
Dec
1944: TBA
Jan
1945: TBA
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Rest and Reorganization after the Battle for Rome and
Sports Day at the Roman Forum
Though the Allies had eventually prevailed
in the battle for Rome, for various reasons the encirclement and
destruction/capture of the bulk of the German army had not taken place. They lived to fight another day.
Over the next couple of months, the German
army engaged in a series of strategic retreats (which they were extremely good
at), moving ever northward, followed by the Allied armies. Eventually they reached a well-fortified
position known as the Gothic Line. That line stretched across the width of
Italy, from Pisa on the west coast to Rimini on the eastern Adriatic
coast. It would prove to be a formidable
obstacle, though the bloody battle for the Gothic Line still lay in the future.
An important aspect of this time period was
the fighting that the allies were now embroiled in, as they attempted to drive
the Germans out of Normandy, France.
This took resources and attention away from the Italian campaign, which
would henceforth be considered as a secondary theatre. It’s main purpose would be seen as diverting
German troops from France and Eastern Europe, though there was still a vague
hope for a breakthrough into Austria and Germany via the "Ljubljana
Gap". Thus, the Italian campaign
would grind on relentlessly, not entirely forgotten but far from top of mind to
the upper leadership and to the folks back home. That didn’t help the morale of the troops.
For the most part, July 1944 continued with
the rest and reorganization theme for Canadian troops in Italy that had begun
in the latter weeks of June. Training
also continued, to prepare the troops for the particular challenge of the
battles further north. Key among those
challenges would be difficult terrain and constant water crossings, as the area
was crosscut by numerous rivers and canals.
Therefore, training on bridging and assault boats would be a constant
theme during July. There would also be the need to improve transportation and
communication links, within the areas that the allies now controlled.
12 Fld Coy took on a number of these tasks,
with the Ferentino By-pass (sount of Rome) being the major activity. Were it not for demolitions and the
possibility of setting off mines, the work details for the month sounded very
much like a road crew in civilian life.
Though not many civilian road crews can say that they were invited to a
Sports Day at the Roman Forum.
Following is a condensation of the 12 Fld
Coy War Diary notes for July 1944.
July 1 to 5 – Colona, Italy
Work continued
on the Ferentino by-pass, as well as Highway 6 road work. Demolitions in Frosinone were completed. There was also work on rehabilitating and
developing some local quarries.
July 6 to 10 – Colona, Italy
There was
continuing road work on Highway 6 and the Ferentino by-pass. Quarry work also carried on. Mine sweeping turned up locations with active
mines to be eliminated.
July 11 to 16 – Colona, Italy
The company
continued with road work, as well as mine sweeping and clearances. Needed demolitions were done on some
routes. They also continued with work at
the quarries to supply the Ferentino by-pass.
On the 15th
a member of the 2nd Canadian Field Education Section visited, and
gave a lecture on post-war rehabilitation.
This was a subject that greatly interested the men, based on recent
analyses of the soldiers’ correspondence of the time. They were intensely concerned about how the
post-war world would be arranged. They
did not want a repeat of the dog-eat-dog realities of the depression. Of note were some announcements of increases
in pension and education benefits that the troops could expect once the war was
won.
On the 16th,
all platoons had a rest day, and many attended the AA1 (AA1 was the signifier
for the Mediterranean theatre) Sports Day in the Roman Forum. It is interesting to contemplate that some
two millennia after the peak of the Roman Empire, troops from another world-spanning empire
and alliance would observe a sports day at the Forum, and before long they
would head out of the city to do battle.
July 17 to 21 – Colona, Italy
There was more
work on the Ferentino By-pass and related quarry work, with one of the quarries
developed now open.
There was
obvious concern about saboteurs in the area. One officer noted that someone had
been laying mines on area that had just been swept, but there was no resolution
to the mystery. There was also fear that
the Roman water supply had been mined, but an officer from 2 Platoon could find
no mines there.
There were more
leaves granted for Rome. The company was
also instructed to check company equipment and stores, especially transport
which would indicate a move in the near future.
July 22 to 27 – Colona, Italy
There was some
trouble with Italian labourers that had been hired, due to late pay, but it was
soon straightened out. Work on
outstanding projects continued, but word came to prepare for a move, so
preparations were made to hand those projects over to other units.
July 28 to 31 – Colona, Italy
All works projects
were turned over, in preparation for the move.
There was some general mine training as well as mine detector training. Also, the sappers beat officers in a baseball
game, and the company went swimming at a local lake (a "swimming
parade").
Other Notes and Observations from July 1944
Following are some selected quotes from the
report on Operations during July 1944 in Italy, written by the military (Report
Number 143, Canadian Operations in Italy, June 1944 to Feb 1945):
1 - Re: The End of the Rest Period at Month’s End and the
King’s Visit
“The period of rest ended late in July when
1 Cdn Inf Div moved forward to the area Foligno, where they came under command
13 Corps and received orders to relieve South African and New Zealand units in
the line before Florence. The remainder of 1 Cdn Corps followed as far as the
area Foligno with H.Q. at A9778k (Operation "GRAMPIAN", 1 Cdn Corps
Op Inst No. 20 of 19 Jul 44). The last even in the Volturno Valley was the
ceremonial parade held on the airstrip at Castel San Angelo on 31 Aug, when
Royal 22e Regiment, Irish Regiment of Canada and Westminster Regiment (Motor),
with detachments from supporting arms, took part in the investiture of Maj
Mahony, Westmr R., who had been awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry in the
Liri Valley. Travelling as "General Collingwood", His Majesty the
King made the presentation and reviewed the troops.”
And here are some of the events noted
above, from the Engineers’ perspective, as found in “The History of the Corps
of Royal Canadian Engineers”:
1 - Re: Preparation for Upcoming Battles:
“On 2nd
July, Corps issued a ‘top secret directive’ for infantry, armour, artillery and
engineers, to cover approximately the four weeks likely to be available for
training before a new operational role.
For the R.C.E. it read in part:
Special study
and training will be carried out in co-operation with infantry and armour in the matter of overcoming
obstacles, demolitions and minefields.
In addition attention will be given to the problems arising out of an
action by the Corps in hilly or mountainous country, where roads are scarce and
demolitions an road repairs require special techniques.” (Page 222)
2 - Re: 12 Field Company:
“On 5th July the Chief
Engineer dispatched the 1st and 4th Field Companies to Orvieto and
Ficulle, north of Rome, to assist the 1212 Railway Construction and Maintenance
Group, R.E., repair the line from Rome to Arezzo, an urgently needed army
supply route. The work included the opening of tunnels, clearing of
cuttings and reconstruction of bridges. …
On 2nd August, the 12th and 14th Field
Companies relieved the 1st Division companies on the railway and saw
the assigned tasks through to completion by the 11th of the month.
(p 222-23)”
Orders and Documents Archived
with the 12 Fld Coy War Diary, July 1944
Following are some selected quotes from the
documents associated with the 12 Fld Coy War Diaries during July 1944:
1 - Re: Cigarettes and Alcohol:
It seems as if the army had a very conflicted attitude
towards these two products. Though they
both caused plenty of problems for the army, in terms of discipline and black
market activities, they were also seen as necessities for the troops, given the
incredible stress that they had to live with.
To deny these two products to men who were risking their lives would
have been seen as ridiculously prudish, especially since these were adults of
voting age, for the most part.
Cigarettes also became a sort of “international
currency” in Europe during the war and for some time thereafter. So, the cigarette ration allotted to each
soldier had value far above its use as a stimulant. For those like my father, who didn’t smoke,
it must have provided a bit of extra bargaining power, among the troops and
with civilians.
July 1, 1944
CIGARETTES AND TOBACCO
1 Cigarettes and tobacco which are being transported to this theatre
in ships which are urgently required for other uses are being used for improper
purposes by certain personnel of the Cdn Army Overseas.
2 The sale, exchange, disposal or attempted sale or disposal, directly
or indirectly or cigarettes or tobacco by any member, of the Cdn Army Overseas
to any member of other Allied forces or civilians is prohibited.
3 Par 2 above must not, however, be construed as meaning the
practice of free sharing or free distribution by the C.O.s of tobacco or
cigarettes to any personnel of the Cdn Army Overseas is illegal or in fact is
to be in any way discouraged.
And the order about beer bottles shows that recycling is hardly a
new development. In fact, during WW2
this was huge, both in the forces and on the home front.
July 1, 1944
BEER BOTTLES – EFI
1 All beer bottles to be
preserved by platoons for return to EFI.
Bottles are very scarce and it is being considered whether it will be
necessary to make future issues dependent upon number of empties received. Platoons will arrange for storage until
notified re: disposal.
Perhaps trading cigarettes with civilians
provided the currency to procure the vino that caused so much discipline
trouble, as outlined in the order given below. Family lore has it that my father pointed his
rifle at a superior during a wine and stress inspired bender. He was let off with a warning and an
unofficial reprimand, as he was too valuable soldier and sapper to lose. But, the condition was that he no longer
touch vino (beer was ok), a condition that he agreed to. As far as I know he maintained that vow for
the rest of his life (just vino, beer was still ok by him).
July 13, 1944
DISCIPLINE – DRUNKENNESS
1 Much drunkenness, with its attendant crime,
is caused by failure to realize the strength of the local wine.
2 Examination of sample bottles of ITALIAN
wine shows that their alcoholic content compared with that of other drinks is
as follows:
(a) 1 litre of red wine – ½ bottle of
whiskey or ½ bottle of gin or 4 ½ bottles of Canadian beer or 8 pints of
English draught bitter (wartime strength).
(a) 1 litre of white wine – 2/5 bottle of
whiskey or 2/5 bottle of gin or 3 ¾ bottles of Canadian beer or 7 1/4 pints of
English draught bitter (wartime strength).
2 - Re: Continuing Problems with Civilians:
The order below speaks for itself. Clearly the relationship between the Canadian
army and Italian civilians was a fraught one, at times. My dad told stories about Italian men sending
their wives ahead, to test for minefields.
I don’t know if this really happened; it seems like the kind of military
urban legend that might develop during war-time. No doubt there were equivalent stories told
by some Italians about the evils of Canadian soldiers.
July 8, 1944
SHOOTING OF CIVILIANS
1 Cases have occurred of the shooting of
civilians detected in the theft of WD property. Such shooting is NOT justified.
2
Civilians detected in the commission of any ordinary offence against
military personnel or property, will be if possible apprehended and handed over
to AMG or civil authorities. Shooting
will NOT be resorted to, unless the offence endangers the lives of military
personnel or is sabotage of a serious nature.
3
This order in no way countermands the duty of picquets, patrols and
sentries to fire, after due warning is laid down, on persons failing to respond
to their challenge.
3 - Re: Swimming Safety:
It seems like there was an amazing number
of ways that one could lose his life during the Second World War. Perhaps one of the stranger ways, was to
drown during a swimming meet. I suspect
that a lot of soldiers didn’t know how to swim well, at the time. Country lads were probably adept, but soldiers
who grew up in the city might not have been.
For his part, my dad was a very strong
swimmer and loved the sport. Being
comfortable around water would have come in handy for a sapper, as so much of
the work involved river crossings (i.e. bridges and assault craft). He would often rhyme off all of the famous
seas and lakes that he had swum in over the years, many of them during
war-time. I imagine that he might well
have been tagged for life guard duty, as noted in the order below.
July 8, 1944
SWIMMING – SAFETY
PRECAUTIONS
1 In view of the number of
fatal swimming accidents that have occurred in recent weeks, the most stringent
safety precautions will be enforced by all units.
2 – All bathing will be in
organized parties in charge of a nominated officer or NCO, who will be
responsible that proper safety precautions are observed. No person may bathe except in such parties.
3 – No fresh-water bathing
will take place until the OC unit has satisfied himself of its safety.
4 While parties are bathing
one or more strong swimmers will be detailed as life guards and, if possible,
equipped with life-lines.
5 No sea-bathing will be
permitted in rough weather.
4 - Re: The Use of Snakes:
No, the Engineers weren’t using poisonous
reptiles against the enemy. Rather
snakes were devices to blow through minefields “of three-inch pipe filled with
explosive and couple to give and effective length of 300 feet. There was an extra length of pipe at each end
and the whole 400 feet could be pushed forward by a tank.” (History of the RCE,
page 205). Clearly, they were tricky and
dangerous to use (as were so many of the Engineers’ tasks and devices).
July 9, 1944
USE OF SNAKES
1 Experiment by other
formations in the use of snakes, has brought out that tank blast effect is
extremely dangerous.
2 During experiments with
snakes, personnel will NOT be closer than 400 yards to the flanks of the snake
and at least 100 yards in rear of the tank carrying out the experiment.
5 - Re: The Scourge of Malaria Continues:
Precautions against malaria were a
constant theme in the Italian theatre of war.
As noted in the order, the mosquitoes were relentless enemies. No doubt, the Germans felt the same way about
the mosquitoes.
My dad talked a lot about mosquitoes and
about biting flies. As the order below
indicates, the flies also spread dysentery, an awful disease in its own right.
I gather that the flies were more of a
problem in Sicily and North Africa, but as any Canadian knows, there are
endless varieties of mosquitoes and biting flies all over the Earth, including
in the northern Canadian bush (though they aren’t all that likely to carry
deadly diseases).
July 15, 1944
ANTI-MALARIA MEASURES
Destruction of Adult
Mosquitoes
1 This will be carried out
relentlessly by every available means.
Units must encourage every individual to accept this as a personal responsibility. All local buildings in the vicinity of unit
lines should be sprayed at least once every three days. Unit Anti-Malarial
squads will be utilized for this work. Spraying equipment is in good supply.
2 Repellent – There has
been a definite laxity in the use of mosquito repellent. Each individual must use repellent on all
exposed parts of the body from one hour before sundown. This should be reapplied ever y4 hours. Until the individual is under the protection
of his net.
3 Dress – There have been
countless cases of breaches of discipline as far as dress is concerned. The wearing of slacks and rolling down of
sleeves from one hour before sundown will be strictly enforced in all units.
Particular attention must be given convoy drivers and other personnel who may
be away from unit lines after sundown.
They will carry slacks with them and put them on at the proper
time. It will be the duty of Provost
personnel to make occasional checks of convoy drivers etc. for breaches of
dress discipline.
4 Standing orders issued re
the taking of mepacrine must be strictly enforced at all times. Personnel on duty or leave away from their
units should be provided with sufficient mepacrine tablets for their stay,
together with instructions as to their regular use. Spent .303 casings are
suggested as suitable containers for individual supplies of these tablets. In all areas native wells must be regarded
with suspicion.
The mosquitoes must have been brutal, far worse than a bad hiking
trip in Northern Ontario (I have had a few of those). Of course, even the worst hiking trip in
peacetime Canada wouldn’t malaria or people trying to kill you.
July 18, 1944
MISUSE OF MOSQUITO NETS
1 There has been considerable abuse in the use of misquito
nets. Individuals are to sleep under
mosquito nets, ways of which are known by personnel. Nets will not be used for screening the ends
of tents, doorways or caravans, etc..
The scale of issue of muslin for covering food is contained in CRO 215
dated 24 Apr 44. If this is not available
mosqutio netting may be used for covering food in Officer’s and OR’s messes as
a precaution against dysentery caused by flies. Its use may also be permitted
to screen wards in medical installations where other screening is not
available. It is pointed out that
mosquito nets are in short supply, and that every effort is to be made to
prevent their unauthorized use.
The following table represents the reported incidence of
Malaria in 1 Cdn Corps since the 1st July 44:
1 Cdn Inf Div – 70, 5 Cdn Armd Div – 8, 1 Cdn Corps Troops
26. The total being 104 cases.
2 It will be noticed that during the past tow weeks there has
been a sharp rise in the number of cases.
This may be accounted for by the following factors:
(a)
The mosquito breeding season
is now reaching its peak and increasing numbers of adult mosquitoes are being
found in all native buildings.
(b)
Owing to the greatly decreased
number of domestic animals in the area, on which it was customary for
mosquitoes to feed, mosquitoes are now feeding on humans and the percentage of
mosquitoes infected with malaria parasites has greatly increased.
6 - Re: The Things they Watched:
“Hot Spot” was
being shown. This starred the famous
Betty Grable of the million dollar legs.
Her legs were insured for a million dollars, supposedly – I suppose with
inflation that would be 50 million now.
Here’s a picture of the famous actress and her celebrated legs.
The 1941 film
noted below was actually a film noir crime drama, which was re-titled to “I
Wake up Screaming”, as patrons assumed that “Hot Spot” was a musical. It was a hit after being re-titled. It’s pretty good – I watched it on YouTube,
as research for this book.
It did have a
rather silly interlude where the two main characters went for a late night swim
at a New York City pool for no very good reason, right in the middle of the
crime drama. It was obviously a cheap
ploy to show off Betty Grable’s beautiful legs.
I can’t say I really minded, and I don’t suppose the fellows of 12th
Company RCE did either.
Jul 13, 1944
NOTICE:
There will be a show tonight at the 9 Cnd Fd Pk at the usual time. The name of
the picture is “HOT SPOT” with Betty Grable.
Some Family Stories Related to
May 1944 Events
Swimming
It seems like
swimming was a pretty good way to let the troops get some exercise and blow off
some steam. As noted above, though, some
men did drown during these “swimming parades”.
My dad would
often list off all of the places he had swum, presumably as another way of
listing countries he had visited. I still remember the
list, told to me as a youngster: “the North Sea, the Adriatic Sea, the
Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean…”. I believe that he was quite a swimmer – on
their honeymoon, he both impressed and alarmed my mom by swimming across quite
a wide body of water on the Scottish Coast (the Firth of Dundee perhaps).
Later, when I
was about five or six years old, he saved me from drowning in some sad little
lake on the Canadian prairie. I eventually discovered that my wife had also been saved from drowning when she was a little
child in Finland – life has a lot of funny coincidences.
Book
now on Amazon (Kindle and Print)
The
Sappers' War: 12th Field Company Royal Canadian Engineers
Are you a history buff, particularly interested in World War 2?
Or, did you have a family member or
other relative participate
in the conflict and are therefore curious about their experiences? If
so, you might want to read about the journey of a military
engineering company, throughout their time in action during the war.
The book focuses on one particular company of soldier/sappers in the
Canadian Army, but many of their experiences would be common to any
of the Allied units in the European theatre. Some of the major
battles in which they were involved included Ortona, Monte Casino,
the Gothic Line, the battles for Ravenna and the Po Valley, the
Liberation of Holland and final defeat of the Third Reich.
In addition, some content relates to the experiences of civilians in
Britain during that time. Appendices also look at some of the details
of military engineering (e.g. bridging, mines, storm boats, the
M-test), casualties, the Aldershot Riots and other issues of post-war
rehabilitation and return to civilian life.
Much of the material comes from company war diaries and related
materials, though a brief sketch of the wider campaigns relevant to
the experience of these men is included, as are some interesting
side-bars (e.g. the unit served alongside the celebrated irregulars
known as Popski’s Private Army during their time in Northern
Italy). To get a more “micro” feel for the on-site experiences of
the time, some of my own family’s stories are related (a
soldier/sapper, a war bride/war worker, a P.O.W., and an Atlantic
convoy merchant marine sailor, among others). The summations of the
War Diaries also include much interesting information about
day-to-day life, both military and non-military.
So, grab your Lee-Enfield rifle and your mine-detector (and don’t
forget a shovel and a hammer), and check out the life of a war-time
sapper.
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