A Dover Eye Witness

24th May 1940
It was my 14th birthday. We had an 'Anderson Shelter' in the garden which we went in when there was high air activity. We were living just below Dover Castle. I was also attending the near by school. My brother was a Terrorial Army Royal Engineer and was manning the search light on the cliffs. The town was full of soliders and service people coming and going. Everything was very noisy. There was a lot of activity in the sky at night, search lights and planes and guns and bombs. Across the channel the sky was black with smoke and you could hear the guns pounding away 24 hours a day. The sea was calm and the little boats were coming across with service men. We had no idea at the time what was going on, i remeber the trains and soliders not properly dressed and wondered what on earth they were doing. They were handed cigarettes and food and drink as the trains pulled out. Then I went home for tea unaware of the situation. A few days later on the 2nd of June all the school children were evacuateed and all women and children had to leave the town. And although we didn't know at the time, it was to be serveral years before we went back. Most of us grown up by then.

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