Courage And Valour

Episode Eleven:

In this episode we hear stories from Engineers of the  New Zealand Army who served in Italy. The Engineers performed a myriad of important tasks that kept the Army moving forward, from building bridges over rivers and canals were previous bridges had been blown by the retreating Germans; to mine laying and mine clearing; to building construction, road repair and vehicle maintenance. In this bumper sized episode you’ll hear the memories of several Engineers who were there.

Featuring:

Duration:  2 hours 21 minutes  53 seconds

Left: Kay de Lautour with her father Eric de Lautour, who served in 25 Battalion in North Africa before transferring to 18th Armoured Regiment as a Signals Driver in Italy.

Here are her websites:

The Legato Exhibition

Kay’s Art Page

In this episode of Courage And Valour, the veterans of the New Zealand Infantry Battalions talk frankly about the life of an infantry soldier in the front lines, and behind the lines, in WWII, both in Egypt and in Italy. This is a collection of memories, reminiscences and anecdotes from those men who were there at the sharp end. The detailed accounts after all these years are astounding, and the openness about life back then very refreshing.

In this episode, in order of appearance, we hear:

Listeners will note I chose not to add any bridging narration for this episode, because I felt it didn’t need it and it simply flows like one long conversation. Plus all the participants are known voices from previous episodes. For those wondering who is telling which story, here’s a handy guide

00:01:31 – Pat – Getting into a Battalion

00:01.56 – Bluey – A day in the life of infantrymen at Maadi

00:05.03 – Don – Route marches and showers at Maadi, and leave into Cairo

00:06.19 – Bluey – Army teaching him self respect and more

00:07.00 – Colin – The Division being self sustaining

00:08.02 – Norm – Cook trucks

00:08.18 – Colin – Food

00:08.49 – Charlie – Don’t eat German food

00:09.08 – Pat – Rations, cooking, stealing spuds

00:15.44 – Te Puhi – Food and wine

00:16.59 – Bluey – Old gear and bad tanks

00:20.07 – Norm – Trucks valued more highly then men

00:20.23 – Bob – One bloke letting him down

00:21.27 – Colin – Let down by a guy too

00:23.39 – Pat – Shorty’s fear, and joking in the front line

00:27.35 – Colin and Bob – Fear, and moving forward against the enemy, short rounds

00:29.53 – Colin – Friendly fire

00:32.16 – Colin & Harry – Daytime attacks

00:32.38 – Pat – Getting chased across a big field by mortars

00:34.13 – Nolan – 12 Reinforcements baptism of fire

00:35.08 – Norm – Dealing with death and losses

00:35.51 – Aubrey – He and his brother Clarence wounded, and Mac killed

00:47.50 – Colin – Firepower of an infantry platoon

00:49.24 – Pat – Make up of Company structure

00:53.53 – Charlie – Seven man section

00:54.56 – Bluey – The big bed

00:55.49 – Norm – Sleep and pickets

00:56.30 – Pat – Left Out of Battle (LOB)

00:58.23 – Nolan – LOB through Purple Death

01:01.05 – Te Puhi – Freyberg and the “Wave out and they’ll wave back” story

01:02.19 – Charlie – German flame throwers at Orsogna

01:02.44 – Colin – Coming out of the lines for a rest

01:06.59 – Pat – Coming out to rest, washing, hitting the Sgt with a tomato

01:08.51 – Pat – Coming out of the line, MP argument

01:11.53 – Pat – Christmas Dinner at Forli

01:14.13 – Te Puhi – Rests and leave

01:15.20 – Don – Leave at NZ Club

01:16.47 – Colin & Harry – Kiwi Club, and Colin’s haircut

01:19.09 – Don – Kiwi Concert Party

01:19.57 – Colin & Harry – Leave and rest

01:20.50 – Don – Italian opera

01:21.16 – Pat – Getting into Venice

01:26.42 – Ted – Leave in Venice

01:28.01 – Don – Dome on St Peter’s Cathedral

01:29.06 – Colin & Harry – Religion and Padres

01:31.47 – Colin – Village sewerage, and the currency

01:32.37 – Colin – Italian civilians and their primitive lifestyle

01:35.52 – Don – Italian people

01:36.17 – Norm – Italian people

01:37.00 – Colin – Italian women

01:37.40 – Aubrey – Italians

01:38.53 – Norm and Pat – Coming in as a replacement

01:40.21 – Norm, Pat & Colin – Fred Haar

01:44.55 – Pat – Tracker Jones and his stint in a British Glasshouse

01:51.53 – Colin & Harry – Singing and music, and bond between comrades

01:54.00 – Pat – Singing

01:54.59 – Colin & Norm – Looting

01:56.24 – Don – Looting and rackets

01:57.01 – Te Puhi – Racket

01:58.42 – Ted – Stolen car racket

02:00.08 – Colin & Harry – Looting and rackets

02:08.09 – Pat – 2nd Lt Sammy Reidpath taking the surrender of German Regt, and collecting Lugers

02:10.49 – Pat – Rimini hall with starry ceiling, bomb on Freyberg’s HQ,  and mortar shelling the cemetery

02:18.09 – Pat – Visiting cemeteries

02:21.59 – Bluey – We got all the shit, but we loved it

END

This episode covers the New Zealand Infantrymen of the 2nd NZ Division who had been sitting for months at the Senio River. We follow their story as they break out north in the spring offensive, rolling north up through the top of Italy all the way to Trieste, where the war ended. But the kiwis found themselves facing another very potential enemy in that city, the Communist forces of Yugoslavia.

In this episode you’ll hear:

Following the victory in taking the vital city of Florence from the Germans, the New Zealand Division rested and re-equipped at Impoli for a short period. They also took on reinforcements here. Then when ready again for action the Div moved back east across the Appenines to rejoin the fight. Now they were formed into the Canadian Corps, with their first task being to support the Allied moves to take Rimini.

Between September and December 1944 the New Zealand Infantry were a spearhead in moving the Allied lines forward through Rimini, onto Forli and then taking the city of Faenza. But winter arrived and the Allies could go no further than the southern banks of the Senio river. The Germans were poised on the northern banks, and from December through till the last day of March 1945 a stalemate of sorts ensued. This did not mean the work stopped, and the kiwi infantry carried out daily and nightly patrols, manned listening posts and lobbed mortar and artillery shells across the river at the enemy.  The enemy did the same back.

In this episode we hear from men who were there, in that cold, bleak landscape risking it all.

In order of appearance we hear:

– Gordon Briggs (23 Battalion)

Thanks to the Te Awamutu Returned and Service Association, Richard Carstens, Harima Fraser, and the 28 (Maori) Battalion Association for their assistance in making this episode

In this Courage And Valour “Extra” we hear the vivid memories of 24 Battalion soldier Pat Green recalling not only his first battle but his first wound in battle too, in the first battle of El Alamein in September 1942. This story is pieced together from several memories that came out over several recordings, but show how strong they remain in Pat’s memory more than 70 years later.

WARNING: Strong Adult Themes Within This Episode, Parental Guidance Strongly Advised

The Rubicon is an important river in Italian history, and during the Italian Campaign the 2nd New Zealand Division found themselves in battle to cross the Rubicon, on their way north towards Florence. In this mini-episode we hear from two 21 Battalion mates, Ted “Bluey” Homewood and Charlie Honeycombe, remembering the battles around that area. Duration 7 minutes 19 seconds

WARNING: Adult Themes Within This Episode, Parental Guidance Advised

In this episode we hear from a reinforcement joining the fight, and we follow the New Zealand infantry as they move northwards up through Italy towards the important city of Florence. They encounter the formidable Paula Line, a series of defences around Florence that included the stronghold villages of San Michele and La Romola.

Featuring in order of their first appearance in this episode:

Norm Harris (24 Battalion)

In this episode we continue with the story of the New Zealand infantrymen after they were moved out of Cassino township, following the battle and stalemate they’d endured there.

Following a brief respite to recover, they were moved into the mountains to the Belvedere-Terelle line, where they were to push the Germans out of the area around the village of Terelle.

Following intensive fighting there, they pushed the Nazis back and moved down the slopes toward the Liri Valley fighting their way through several small villages before finally taking Sora. Here the Division rested before the next phase of battle.

This period of the campaign is interesting in that very few veterans spoken with in the making of this series had much memory of the mountain warfare and the eventual move into Sora.  Compared with the ever vivid recall of the fight in Cassino township before this period, much of the memories have faded for many of the veterans. So this episode features the stories just five infantrymen, however I am sure you’ll agree they tell some great stories about this period of the campaign.

Featuring in order of their first appearance in this episode:

Harry Hopping (24 Battalion)

In this episode pick up the story continuing on from episode four, joining the kiwi veterans again just following the massive bombing and artillery barrage that flattened the ancient town of Cassino in March 1944.

When the dust settled and night fell the infantry of the 2nd New Zealand division was ordered to move up into the rubble that had been the town, with the aim of flushing out and driving out the remaining German occupiers.

However the bombing and artillery has not killed all the Germans as expected, they have survived in caves and now occupy fortified bunkers, ready to defend the strategic position. Snipers, mortar men and gunners look down from the German positions onto the levelled town, and can see every movement.

The New Zealand infantrymen can only move by night, and not very far. A stalemate begins, with the kiwis living for weeks in cellars, ruins and crypts, hiding from view. Food and ammunition is brought up to them by hand by carrying parties at night, and the wounded removed the same way.

The kiwi tanks cannot move in the rubble and German firepower soon overwhelms most of them. Allied artillery give the Germans constant reason to keep their heads down but the enemy still manages to hold their ground.

Cassino becomes a hell on earth for men of the 2nd New Zealand Division.

Featuring in order of their first appearance in this episode:

See photos relating to this episode by clicking here

https://newzealandersatwar.com/Extra_Episode_5.html