I am sure that I speak for the whole battalion when I say how keen we are to leave behind our garrison duties on Gibraltar and finally be assigned to active service. Your battle school training on the Morocco mainland will have provided you with the final part of your training. I have no doubt that we are perfectly capable of pushing the Germans all the way back to Berlin. Our disappointment at not being party to the D-day landings will now be tempered by the knowledge that we are giving the enemy an even greater headache than our comrades in 2nd Battalion.
We will shortly be leaving our camp in Naples and will travel by train to Florence where we will relieve an Indian regiment before moving north up into the Appenine mountains.
Cpt. C.F.P. Featherstonehaugh
1 Herts
It seems that the Wehrmacht's reputation as a formidable fighting machine has been somewhat overrated. So far the only action has been controlling the relentless attempts by the civilian population to steal everything from spoons to telegraph poles. Our axis of advance has taken us north from Florence towards Fiesole. Early patrols have indicated that the enemy is nether close nor very strong. Higher command has instructed us to bypass Castel Vincigliato, which has been heavily fortified by the Germans but appears to have no strategic value.
Colonel Peters has decided to publish a periodic newsletter to inform the men of the activities affecting the Battalion. This will improve morale amongst the men and will scotch any false rumours before they start.
Heh, my grandfather drove supply trucks through Italy during the war and, I am told, was ordered not to stop at junctions because if he did then they'd be in the back nicking stuff straight away.
Heh, my grandfather drove supply trucks through Italy during the war and, I am told, was ordered not to stop at junctions because if he did then they'd be in the back nicking stuff straight away.
My granddad was ordered to shake down civilians in Naples to crack down on those in possession of contraband. The worst culprits were Roman Catholic priests. It's all funny until you realise that, thanks to the actions of Il Duce, the Germans and the Allies, the civilian population were literally starving.
