What Did You Do In The War Grandad?

How's this for an inauspicious start to understanding and further researching a family member's military career. I mentioned in the introduction to this blog that in terms of first hand source information this is pretty much presented here in its entirety.... written on the reverse of a tea stained envelope.

And here it is......

A check of the addressed side shows that the letter was delivered to my Grandfather's house in Burgess Hill, West Sussex and it is postmarked with the date 27.11.92. This means that my Grandfather was 78 years old when he recalled these locations and committed them to paper.

The list reads as follows (spelling uncorrected):

• D Day
• Aromanches
• Rouen
• Caen
• Bolbek (ENSA)
• Le Harve
• Falaise Gap
• Clark's Forces
• Corridor
• Ardennes
• Corridor
• Nymegan
• Arnhem
• Bruxels
• Belgium Engine
• Home
• Schwarine
• Baltic Coast
• Belsen
• Home way of 1st Canadian Hospital
• 108
• (obscured) British

Now I know that this was put together in roughly chronological order and looking at it, it follows a logical route from the Normandy beaches, through France, into Belgium and Holland with the Allied Forces throughout 1944. Jim ended his period of service in an administrative role within the infamous Belsen (Bergen-Belsen) concentration camp within Germany itself.

Many of the names on this list speak for themselves, known from a combination my own interest in the history of the Second World War, a reasonable knowledge of the Geography of Europe and too many dreary Sunday afternoons spent watching war films under duress (Dad dominated the TV in the late '70's!). Other names are more challenging, but where possible I want to investigate the significance of each name on this list.