TNA ADM 334 83

Collection details

TNA ADM 334 83

Little Ships Club correspondence and personal accounts relating to the Dunkirk evacuation, covering 1940–1941.

Holding archive: TNA
Collection reference: ADM 334 83

View the archive catalogue entry ↗

Source: The National Archives, Kew, ADM 334/83. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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Page	Image	OCR text	OCR tags
53	Log in to enlarge	pass DOBIG 2003 4 importance to get rid of him early the following morning. Doubt- Less his colleagues have heard more about Dunkirk than the First Lord himself. FOLLOW Ramsgate Harbour was packed many vessels deep with tugs, DITE motor yachts, old converted oyster smacks, R.A.F. and W.D. lauches (aristocrats in that somewhat motley gathering) and former yachts STO taken over by the Admiralty, and now painted a war-time grey. COURT We moored against the outside of these, and it took us nearly five minutes in the dark clambering from vessel to vessel before we reached the quay-side. We reported to the Naval Control Officer, snd were told that there was nothing for us for the time being. When we explained that we had no bedding, we were told to go to "Merrie Englande". This sounded most comforting, but in fact at this point the war really began to show itself. "Merrie Englande", formerly a fun-fair, contained on the ground floor a number of bad stretcher cases lying about and breathing heavily, with nurses sitting in deck chairs beside them. All round were mounds of dirty clothes and mattresses. Upstairs, in the ballroom, was the sleeping accommodation. All the places where hammocks could be slung were already occupied, and the whole ball-room floor was vovered with men lying,some on chairs and some on the bare boards, and packed so tightly that we could not five find room for the funx of us to sleep. We returned downstairs and found some palliasses, which we laid on the floor blood-stained side downwards, and spent a somewhat uneasy three or four hours. Monday, 3rd June. We rose early the following morning and got some food from a canteen run by volunteers, and then cleaned oura machine gun and ammunition Van masts and putting on quay and fixing machine ooutside harbour at 4 p.m. to the Tug "SUN XV" to be towed all ready to sail at 2.30 p.m. Orders came to proceed across in company with other yachts. Three other yachts make fast astern of us, under way 6.35 p.m. Engines running at half-speed to ease the strain of the tow ropes. Slight were told to proceed on under own power. Arrived off Dunkir Dunkin swell. The tow ropes of two of the yachts broke and they at 11.30 p.m. and cast off from Tug. Proceeded into past the Mole, and up the Canal for about 2 miles. Moored Could find no Englishmen so took on board 40 Frenchmen. alongside the quay and proceeded to take troops on board.	Broke Rose Sun Sun XV Ball Miles Rose

Raw OCR

Unformatted machine-generated OCR for document page 53.

pass
DOBIG
2003
4
importance to get rid of him early the following morning. Doubt-
Less his colleagues have heard more about Dunkirk than the First
Lord himself.
FOLLOW
Ramsgate Harbour was packed many vessels deep with tugs,
DITE
motor yachts, old converted oyster smacks, R.A.F. and W.D. lauches
(aristocrats in that somewhat motley gathering) and former yachts
STO
taken over by the Admiralty, and now painted a war-time grey.
COURT
We moored against the outside of these, and it took us nearly
five minutes in the dark clambering from vessel to vessel before
we reached the quay-side. We reported to the Naval Control
Officer, snd were told that there was nothing for us for the time
being. When we explained that we had no bedding, we were told
to go to "Merrie Englande". This sounded most comforting, but
in fact at this point the war really began to show itself.
"Merrie Englande", formerly a fun-fair, contained on the ground floor
a number of bad stretcher cases lying about and breathing heavily,
with nurses sitting in deck chairs beside them. All round were
mounds of dirty clothes and mattresses. Upstairs, in the ball-
room, was the sleeping accommodation. All the places where
hammocks could be slung were already occupied, and the whole
ball-room floor was vovered with men lying ,some on chairs and
some on the bare boards, and packed so tightly that we could not
five
find room for the funx of us to sleep. We returned downstairs
and found some palliasses, which we laid on the floor blood-stained
side downwards, and spent a somewhat uneasy three or four hours.
Monday, 3rd June. We rose early the following morning and got
some food from a canteen run by volunteers, and then cleaned our-
a machine gun and ammunition Van
masts and putting on quay and fixing machine o-
outside harbour at 4 p.m. to the Tug "SUN XV" to be towed
all ready to sail at 2.30 p.m. Orders came to proceed
across in company with other yachts. Three other yachts
make fast astern of us, under way 6.35 p.m. Engines running
at half-speed to ease the strain of the tow ropes. Slight
were told to proceed on under own power. Arrived off Dunkir Dunkin
swell. The tow ropes of two of the yachts broke and they
at 11.30 p.m. and cast off from Tug. Proceeded into
past the Mole, and up the Canal for about 2 miles. Moored
Could find no Englishmen so took on board 40 Frenchmen.
alongside the quay and proceeded to take troops on board.