Gunner Flann

Thoughts on War Service and Return to Korea

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Unlike recent campaigns and peace keeping duties, little was made of men returning from one of the most ferocious wars of recent times. 1,139 British military personnel were killed, of which, 79 were members of the Royal Regiment of Artillery. It has been estimated that total enemy casualties exceeded 1,500,000 of which 900,000 were Chinese. Further that around 3,500.00 and 4 million Korean civilians perished.

With the Chinese and North Korean Governments not recognising the terms of the Geneva Convention, it meant that many atrocities were committed, especially in the early days when captured UN combatants were marched north to primitive camps near the Chinese border. World War II had only relatively recently ceased, and that, plus Korea being an “incident” at the other end of the world, left the Allied populations sapped of energy with which to take more than a glancing interest.

General Notes on Korea

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Korean War Service Medal (aka – Republic of Korea War Service Medal)

On 15th September 1951, President Syngman Rhee authorised the commander-chief of the United Nations to confer the award of the Korean War Service Medal and Ribbon “to the brave and valiant members of the United Nations Command who have been, and are now, combating the communist aggressor in Korea.” [Read more…]

Conclusion

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Being called up for two years of National Service, 1951-53, was not exactly what I was looking for, at my then tender age.

I prefer, now at my advanced age, to consider the many plusses it brought to my life. It made me fully appreciate the quality and love associated with my life at home with my family and friends.

Being strictly disciplined at an early age and learning to live and mix with other youngsters has its value. The ability to learn a trade (Survey in my case) and meet up with others who seem also to appreciate the things you do, thus forming good friendships.

I cannot admit volunteering for Korea, but now with hindsight and coming through unscathed (unlike so many other young conscripts) I can look back on experiences I would never have thought possible.

Parnell – Addendum A – 61st Light Regiment Royal Artillery

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61ST Light Regiment, RA, the youngest regiment serving with the First Commonwealth Division, was formed in action in Korea, largely owing to the instigation of the present CRA, Brigadier W.G.H. Pike, DSO. The Regiment, as a regiment, assumed operational control on February 12th of this year. Being the only Regular Light Regiment of its kind, its initial establishment was experimental, and has since then been modified to suit the requirements of this particular theatre, in conformity with the overall manpower ceiling. The nucleus of the Regiment came from the two independent mortar batteries, 42 LAA and the 120 Light Batteries. The Regimental Headquarters formed at Woolwich under the Commanding Officer, Lt.-Col. H.S.Calvert MC, RA, and sailed with its attached LAD from Southampton on 14 Dec. 51. In Korea, the C.O. formed the third light battery. Thus the GOO’s (GOC?) wish that each infantry brigade should have its own mortar battery in support was made possible. The Sound Ranging troops of the Divisional Locating Battery, already in Korea, were put under command of the Regiment. As this battery had left its Radar troop behind, it was decided to add to it the LAA guns from 42 Bty. This resulted in the formation of 15 Loc/LAA Bty RA.

In August 1940 the 47 (Durham Light Infantry) AA Bn RE (TA) was redesignated 61 Light Regiment RA. In 1942 it became the 112 LAA Regt. RA (TA), and served in France and the Middle East. In May 1948 the regiment went into “suspended animation” – whatever that means! It remained in this dormant state until October 1951, when it was decided to reform it as 61 Light Regiment RA, and to equip it with the present mortar.

Parnell – Addendum B – The Korean War 1950 – 1953

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Seoul, Tuesday. – The 2nd Division today announced that it received a plaque from the British Commonwealth Forces to commemorate the only time in history that the Royal Artillery served as part of an US Division.
Early this year, British artillerymen supported troops of the 2nd Division on the western front.
The plaque reads “A memento of the first occasion in history on which the Royal Artillery has had the honour to serve as part of a US infantry division”.
Source – “The Japan News”

British 1st Commonwealth Division

British 1st Commonwealth Division

I spent over the Christmas period on R&R in Tokyo. On my return the British infantry units were in reserve with the US troops taking their place at the front.

Entry and Training

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Entry and training – How does one end up in the National Service? Soon after my eighteenth birthday in December 1950, I received a brown envelope marked OHMS ordering me to report to a Drill Hall in Blackheath for a medical examination. Without question I attended and after an interview, a sight and hearing test, finally dropping my trousers to be poked with a swagger stick and told to cough (I did not ask where the stick had been before my turn), the result was Passed A1. Then it was back to work as a Trainee Surveyor on a building site. [Read more…]

Everyday Life at Larkhill

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Everyday life at Larkhill had a pattern to it. What else would you expect in the Army. Wednesday afternoon was reserved for sports, and if it was not a visit to an open air pool outside Salisbury we chose to go cross country running. This always was along a track past numerous tumuli to Stonehenge which then was a few large stones in a field next to a coffee stall which provided tea and cake. We took advantage of going to Stonehenge on the summer solstice to mingle with the Druids at sunrise. [Read more…]

Woolwich Barracks and on to Germany

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From the wide open spaces of Salisbury Plain, our next stop to becoming a Surveyor in the Royal Artillery was the barracks at the top of Wellington Street, Woolwich that first opened in 1809. These consisted of squares surrounded on three sides with two storey brick blocks with accommodation on the first floor above stables.  There were a number of stone horse troughs around the cobbled square. The rooms had a dozen beds with an open fireplace and a huge cast iron coal box. [Read more…]

Luneburg

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Luneburg was home to three different army barracks. We were located in Wyvern, home to 24 Medium Regiment of the Royal Artillery. Our three storey blocks were comfortable and we soon established a routine class and practical work with the theodolite doing sun shots, which require six left face and six right face readings within two minutes and then calculations on a mechanical hand-powered Brunsviga calculating machine – all to establish our position. [Read more…]

Munster or Munsterlager

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The barracks at Munster1 had been purpose-built for the pre-war German Army: two storey brick structures with secondary glazing, 210 Battery were housed in an accommodation block, cookhouse and battery stores and offices around a swimming pool. The fourth side was open to a small parade ground and covered garages. [Read more…]

  1. Often called “Munsterlager” in various accounts of Army bases. This link confirms that Munster and Munsterlager are one and the same place for Army National Service purposes. ↩

Hohne Ranges

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A number of exercises were carried out on the Hohne Ranges, which proved to be extremely cold, a couple of high points Hamm B and Hitler Hof spring to mind. After a day in the field your face became red as if sunburned, but not as cold as some of the troop who with more than one year’s service left, were sent to Korea to fight. They had no winter clothing and had to rely on the Americans.

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