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Posted By: bert1 Evacuation of Children - 26th Apr 2009 6:55am
World War Two was the first war when Britain itself was the target of frequent attacks by the enemy. With the success of the Battle of Britain and the suspension of Operation Sealion, the only way Germany could get at mainland Britain was to bomb it. This occurred during the Blitz and seemed to reinforce the governments decision to introduce evacuation (what the government of the time described as the biggest exodus since Moses) at the start of the war. On August 31st, 1939, the government issued the order Evacuate Forthwith and Operation Pied Piper was started the very next day.

The impact of evacuation on children depended to an extent on which social strata you were in at the time. Parents who had access to money invariably made their own arrangements. Children at private schools based in the cities tended to move out to manor houses in the countryside where children at that school could be, in the main, kept together. But 1.9 million children gathered at rail stations in early September not knowing where they were going nor if they would be split from brothers and sisters who had gathered with them.

Operation Pied Piper was a huge undertaking. Six cities had been deemed vulnerable to German bombing memories of Guernica were still fresh and in London alone there were 1,589 assembly points for children to gather at before they were moved on. Those children who were evacuated were given a stamped postcard to send from their billet address to inform their parents where they were.

Operation Pied Piper planned to move 3.5 million children in three days. In the event, the 1.9 million who were evacuated was a remarkable achievement though some children stayed with their parents as evacuation was not compulsory.

Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 26th Apr 2009 7:02am
Operation Pied Piper (The Plan)

The plan had been developed in the summer of 1938 by the Anderson Committee. The country was divided into zones, classified as either "evacuation", "neutral", or "reception", with priority evacuees being moved from the major urban centres and billeted on the available private housing in more rural areas. Each area covered roughly a third of the population, although several urban areas later bombed were not classified for evacuation. In early 1939, the reception areas compiled lists of available housing. Space for 4.8 million people was found, and the government also constructed camps for a few thousand additional spaces.

In the summer of 1939, the government began publicizing its plan through the local authorities. They had an underestimated demand; only half of all school-aged children were moved from the urban areas instead of the expected 80%. There was enormous regional variation of more than 15% of their children, while over 60% of children were evacuated in Manchester and Liverpool. The refusal of the central government to spend large sums on preparation also reduced the effectiveness of the plan.
Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 26th Apr 2009 7:08am
What was Guernica.

The bombing of Guernica (April 26, 1937) was an aerial attack on the Basque town of Guernica, causing widespread destruction and civilian deaths during the Spanish Civil War. The raid by planes of the German Luftwaffe "Condor Legion" and the Italian Fascist Aviazione Legionaria was called Operation Rügen. More than 1,000 people were reported killed, but modern research suggests between 200 to 250 civilians died.[1] Western countries viewed Guernica as an example of ‘terror bombing,' and it gave them the impression that the Luftwaffe was equipped and committed to such a policy.
Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 26th Apr 2009 7:18am
Children sent overseas.


Some children were sent overseas. The Children's Overseas Reception Board evacuated 2, 664 children, 1, 532 to Canada, 576 to Australia, 353 to South Africa and 203 to New Zealand and it is believed that another 11,000 children went by private arrangement, over 6 000 to Canada and the remainder to the United States. Some lives were lost when ships were sunk in the atlantic
Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 26th Apr 2009 7:24am
Reported at the time.

A German U-boat has torpedoed and sunk a British ship, killing 256 people including 83 children.

The ship, called City Of Benares, was transporting evacuees from Liverpool to the safety of Canada.

The Germans targeted the ship when it was 600 miles out into the Atlantic during stormy weather, giving little chance of survival for those on board.

Some passengers were killed outright when the torpedo hit last week (September 17, 1940), while others drowned or died in the lifeboats from exposure to the water and cold.

Despite the conditions 150 people managed to survive, including some children.

The children on board had been evacuated from cities in Britain being bombed by the Germans.

One father from Liverpool lost five of his children in the tragedy and has now vowed to sign-up to fight in the war.

The Prime Mnister has announced that he is scrapping the Government-funded scheme to evacuate children abroad because travel overseas has become too dangerous.
Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 26th Apr 2009 7:38am
A friend of mine who is a bit older than me was evacuated to Wales. During the war his family lived in the oliver st area, near Grange Rd. His memories are not good ones, apart from being seperated from his family and his mother he was placed on a farm were he was made to work when finishing school. When his work was completed, he was fed and then packed off to bed.He was so unhappy his mother brought him home after a few months.

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Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 26th Apr 2009 7:57pm
Children at a pick up point awaiting foster parents

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Posted By: bigpete Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 12:35pm
Originally Posted by bert1
A friend of mine who is a bit older than me was evacuated to Wales. During the war his family lived in the oliver st area, near Grange Rd. His memories are not good ones, apart from being seperated from his family and his mother he was placed on a farm were he was made to work when finishing school. When his work was completed, he was fed and then packed off to bed.He was so unhappy his mother brought him home after a few months.

Smashing photies and poster!

My Mum was from Station Road (North End)and was evacuated to a farm Aberglynolwyn in North Wales and absolutely loved it - mind you she was a big strong tomboy.
Unfortunately, her Dad was not the best and she was actually glad to get away at the ripe old age of 8 !. When the bombing ended and children were taken back to the urban areas - she did not want to go back !!.

Posted By: RUDEBOX Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 12:46pm
My nan in law went to heswall and was scared she'd never see her mum again.
Posted By: bri445 Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 12:58pm
Was there a minimum age limit? I don't remember any of my friends in Bebington going away so perhaps it was not regarded as a danger area. We had a bomb about a hundred yards away in Bromborough Road and a land mine in Port Sunlight!!

Bri
Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 2:12pm
There was no age limit for evacuation for wealthy individuals evacuated privately, the government categories were, School age children, Mothers with children under 5 years of age, pregnant women and some disabled people.
Posted By: bri445 Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 2:59pm
Thanks for that.
As it wasn't compulsory, I assume my parents and neighbours must have declined the invitation. Luckily, we all survived! In practice, when the siren sounded, we jumped on the back of a neighbour's Bedford open lorry (reserved occupation distributing potatoes) with his sons and shot off to Thornton Hough where his Mum's cottage, with paraffin lighting, gave us refuge. We could see the glow in the Mersey direction and wondered what we would find when we returned home to Lower Bebington.
Whenever I see green dashboard lighting on a car I'm sent back to that experience. How the mind works!
Bri
Posted By: ChrisNewcastle Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 3:56pm
I'm confused Bri doh a land mine in Port sunlight?? forgive me for being thick (maybe this time) but were the germans dropping land mines aswell??
If not how did it get there please?? oshocked
Posted By: MissGuided Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 4:01pm
does he mean a paramine?
Posted By: ChrisNewcastle Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 4:07pm
I haven't a clue MissG, I don't know what a paramine is? guessing by the name it's a mine that can be dropped from plane??
Chris
Posted By: bri445 Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 4:22pm
Yes, strictly a paramine. Here's a couple of quotes from 'Yesterday's Port Sunlight' book:

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Posted By: MissGuided Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 4:30pm
Wow - that was a lucky escape!!
Posted By: bri445 Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 4:52pm
We were saved from the worst of the mine by the high railway embankment between.
We were hiding under the stairs when the bomb in Bromborough Road apparently fell into soft ground and the blast went upwards. Even so it almost demolished the old cottages on the railway side, although the old 'Brown Cow' and the 'Gladstone Arms' survived.

Positions of the landings:

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Posted By: ChrisNewcastle Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 4:55pm
I never knew the Germans did that, we learn something new everyday cheers Bri and MissG
Chris

Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 5:30pm
During WW2 such devices were termed as mines with Landmines reserved for German Naval mines dropped on land by parachute as a improvised bomb.
Posted By: jimbob Re: Evacuation of Children - 27th May 2009 9:29pm
If you look at the houses at the bottom of Well Lane Tranmere, you will notice they are modern {1960s} on the righ hand side facing towards the police station and on the left hand side they are also more modern properties before you reach the large older semi's. This is because a land mine dropped there and blew the original area to pieces. After the rubble was cleared on the right hand side you could walk through from Farfax Road into Well Lane.
Posted By: dingle Re: Evacuation of Children - 28th May 2009 6:53am
I used to live opposite Christ Church Claughton(on Borough Rd) and I seem to remember my mum telling that the school and the houses at the bottom of Brattan Rd was destroyed by a mine.
Posted By: chris58 Re: Evacuation of Children - 28th May 2009 5:37pm
my mum lived on borough road opposite where the pyramids is now.she was evacuated to bala, she must have been lucky cos she says she was with a nice family. her brothers were in bala too, not the same family and they also had a nice family to stay with. they all have happy memories of their evacuation.
Posted By: bri445 Re: Evacuation of Children - 28th May 2009 9:17pm
I seem to remember that the North corner of Town Lane and Old Chester Road also was flattened by a mine. It was derelict for years.
Bri


Description: A bit further on the left, beyond the bus
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Posted By: bri445 Re: Evacuation of Children - 28th May 2009 9:27pm
True, Miss G. No counselling in those days, just had to get on with life!
Bri
Posted By: MissGuided Re: Evacuation of Children - 28th May 2009 10:32pm
No such thing as PTSD back then!
Posted By: ChrisNewcastle Re: Evacuation of Children - 29th May 2009 2:50am
MissyG, wise beyond her years!!
Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 29th May 2009 6:47am
Originally Posted by MissGuided
No such thing as PTSD back then!



Post traumatic Stress Disorder as we probably all know is not a disorder confined solely to war or battlefield participants, as this is a war time related thread my comments are only related to that area. Bri remarked "we just got on with it" a remark i have heard from my parents, aunties, uncles and grandparents but in reality people who suffered from PTSD didn't and couldn't. It seems that now anyone who suffers from this is frowned upon, this is what happens when problems of this nature are given fancy names. If we look back through conflicts, the first world war it was known as Shell shock, the second world war it was known as Battle fatigue and in following conflicts exhaustion in service. I feel service men and women who suffer from this condition would receive better understanding if it was still called shell shock or battle fatigue instead of a name that has no bearing on war time activities.
Posted By: bert1 Re: Evacuation of Children - 29th May 2009 2:42pm
Unexploded German parachute mine in the garden of a house in Score Lane, Childwall, Merseyside, November 1940. These mines normally exploded about 200 feet above ground. The aim of ground defence forces were to try and blow them up at a higher altitude to minimise there destructive effect.

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Posted By: Historybook Re: Evacuation of Children - 29th May 2009 4:18pm
Originally Posted by bert1
Unexploded German parachute mine in the garden of a house in Score Lane, Childwall, Merseyside, November 1940. These mines normally exploded about 200 feet above ground. The aim of ground defence forces were to try and blow them up at a higher altitude to minimise there destructive effect.


Bloomin heck, thats not what you want to find in the garden next morning !!.
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