The Critchley family narrates the peace process which begins on 8th May 1945

In exactly four weeks time it will be 8th May, V.E. Day which commemorates the surrender of German forces.

Some countries celebrate VE Day on the 9th May.

All the family in north London shared the relief. There were street parties and dancing. Food rationing continued in Britain until the early1950s.

   V.E. day was the beginning of the end of WW2. Hitler had committed suicide on 30th April 1945. He was succeeded by Admiral Karl Dornitz who negotiated the end of the war with the allies. The surrender of German forces in the Netherlands, West Germany and Denmark was delivered to Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery at Luenberg, East of Hamburg.

The previous day, 7th May, Allied Commander General Eisenhower accepted the surrender of German forces in Rheims, France. Joseph Stalin of the Soviet Union signed a document in Berlin on the 8th May with Field Marshall William Keitel, which accepted the surrender of German forces. In Britain, the BBC broadcast the news late in the day on 7th May. Programmes were interrupted. People took to the streets and celebrated. The pubs stayed open late.

The peace process had begun. It wasn’t until August, British Deputy Prime Minister Clement Atlee signed the Potsdam Agreement with President Truman and Soviet leader, Joseph Stalin.

The younger Tom Critchley was away on officer training at that time. He wrote:

"The Drill Sergeant is  fierce man. He doubled us round, rifles above heads, until men dropped, collapsed, fainted, on the square and then yelled at us to go on. It was funny, & also, coinciding with the revelations of the German horror camps, rather revolting. I heard last week about Len Oak’s death. It is doubly sad at this stage of the war and Brook's lines have been running through my head. “They shall not grow old as we that are left grow old…. We shall remember them."

"Have fired the rifle at last on the 30 yard range yesterday. It was easy enough."

"I had  V E day. leave. I moved from Wrotham to Repton. Wrotham finished in a blaze of Victory. Margaret came down and stayed at the Pilgrim’s Rest on the weekend (May 5th) & then on Monday evening I went home from Wrotham … V. E. day leave. We went to central London on Tuesday evening and mingled with the crowds again and again… a lump came to my throat, the waving, the cheering and ecstasy. Dancing in Whitehall and Leicester Square, funny hats and red white and blue everywhere. A few drunks, but mostly the crowd was staid, sober. There were fireworks and the floodlighting was very, very moving. “Lighten our darkness we beseech oh Lord!” Five years and eight months. It was grand, grand & ones memory drifted back and away."

  " Caught the 11.18 to Gravesend, prepared to walk 9 miles to Wrotham, but was lucky in getting a lift. Flags were everywhere and bonfires in the little south London back streets. It was ike the Blitz, and strangely reminiscent.”

    "My training continued in Milton, near Derby. I have been given pages of notes on etiquette in the officers mess, much of which, is immensely amusing.

  " I am heartily sick of this course, as, indeed, is everybody else here. Thank you for the tuck box which arrived today. You’ve no idea how good it is to receive a parcel like that, because the food here is really bad and there is nowhere at all to go in the evenings for anything nice."

   "Tomorrow the senior platoon is passing out, so the band and brigadier and so on are all coming. Of more importance to us, though, tomorrow we complete the second week here! By the way, I believe my army pay will include my civilian pay when I am commissioned. I’ll have it worked out by Saturday.”

  Tom Critchley was drafted to Cairo to wind up British Forces wartime operations in Egypt in the autumn of 1945.

  Perhaps one of the most important post war treaties to be signed was the Treaty of Brussels 1948. It was signed by Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg and France. In tandem with that, was the setting up of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.

   Two years later, in 1950, Tom Critchley was in France to meet up with delegates from the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxemburg and France, to discuss the future of political and trade alliances. In 1951, France and Germany set up the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). and the Benelux countries soon joined. In 1957, the Treaty of Rome was signed to inaugurate the European Economic Community. 

   

 

“ 

From Tom Critchley to Mary and Harry Platt 1/11/1940... the London Blitz continues unabated

The Platt family walking in Glasgow about nine years before the Blitz. Something has attracted Mollie's attention.

 37 Lonsdale Drive,

My dear Mary & Harry,

So Jerry is paying Scotland a few visits too, we aren't envious. I reckon the bombing of London is a bigger mistake than any they have made, in fact I think it's almost a deciding factor. To think what would have happened if all those bombs had fallen on industrial plant instead of houses etc... why he could have well nigh crippled our munitions output. I guess he thought he could treat London as he did Rotterdam, but overestimated his own air force & forgot how big is London. There is no doubt a lot of his pilots will not face the barrage, so a goodly proportion of his bombs are sheer waste. In Trent Park alone he has dropped over 50 HE's (heavy explosives) & goodness knows how many incendiaries and, except to trees and cattle, has done nowt. (I'd forgotten he sure put the wind up our district now and then).

   Perhaps now he is beginning to realise what a vindictive ass he is since the raids have decreased in intensity.

   If your raids were as frequent & as long as ours I doubt if you would patronise your shelter. With us it is one of two things, either you sleep every night in the shelter, or you take a chance & sleep in bed. Most of the men at work have not slept in a bed for 2 months. They arrive home at night after the warning has sounded & oftener than not, leave again while it is still on. How they stick it I don't know, but they do and don't grouse about it either; it has become part and parcel of their normal life. I think one can get a shelter complex. After all, how much safer is a shelter than a house? Simply the relative area. A direct hit will do in either.

We have had very few incidents this week; a weird noise woke us up last night , also our neighbours, but we haven't found out yet what it could be... perhaps a nose cap.

On Monday evening, shortly after the sirens sounded, an old gent from next door but one called to see me. He hadn't been in more than a few minutes, when the guns got really busy, so thought he had better go home as his wife was alone. I went to the door with him and the whole place was lit up nearly like day. Jerry had dropped the usual basket of incendiaries at the end of the road, but most were in the Trent Park fields. A plane was flying around very low & the guns giving it to him, hot and strong. Our poor old visitor made several attemps to get away, but each time he got on the door stop the sky opposite lit up with gun flashes & crashes overhead drove him back.

   Eventually he ran for it & it just seemed as if the gun flashes and crashes had been waiting, the way they sped him on his way. There's one thing to remember about gun fire, shrapnel doesn't fall until an interval of, may be, two minutes after the shell burst. Anyhow, it doesn't fall as quickly as one might expect & I am sure there is less danger while the shells are bursting than for some time after they stop. Another thing, if Jerry is overhead there is no danger. If he drops a bomb, he arrives over the place where it drops as it hits the ground, or near enough, a consoling thought.

Sunday

Last night was our best night for two months... all clear at 11.20 & nothing until 6.00 am. We were surprised he came at all as it was blowing a gale & raining cats and dogs & I am mighty sure he couldn't see anything. I suppose they make the poor blighters come just to show there is a war on. Anyhow things would seem odd without visitors these days.

   I've got to go to Sutton, Surrey tomorrow & am not looking forward to the journey, if it's fine I guess I'll go by car as transport across London is pretty foul. Tom used to take half an hour to get home, but yesterday he took one and a half hours & had to change from bus to tube to bus several times to avoid the sections that had been bombed. I have to go & see some folks about citric acid supplies, the firm who used to supply us has been wiped out, one of the miliary obejctives Jerry did hit with a vengeance .

   Don't get the shelter complex, stay in bed and keep sane.

Love to all from us,

Tom

Tom Critchley to Mary Platt 29/9/40

Mary Platt, Tom Critchley's sister. This First World War photograph accompanied her future husband, sergeant  Harry Platt when he  left home for France. It had been creased, It has been restored by J.E. Connor

 37, Lonsdale Drive,

Enfield.

My dear Mary,

   Here we are again, still full of beans and with no great excitements to report, that is, none compared with many less fortunate people. The chief thing that worries me is the incendiaries. We had another lot dropped near here on Tuesday night or rather 2.30 on Wednesday morning. We were in bed and wakened by the gun fire when I heard them dropped. I was out of bed &; at the door in record time to see them burst out about 200 yards away.
   We seem to be in the gun barrage zone & when a plane is anywhere near there is no sleep possible. More and more guns seem to be coming into action. The battery of 4.5's when let off in solo shakes the place, then a big naval gun came along, and that seems as if the house was ready to come down. Last night they brought in a new lot which makes one afraid for the windows. The mobile ones are a minor evil. We go to bed with the intention of sleeping, but every time a plane gets near, we wake up with a row and cannot tell guns from bombs except when a big one shakes the ground, & fortunately that is rarely.
   There was a bit of excitement on Monday to Saturday night. Jerry dropped two land mines. One in the Enfield Town Park & one just outside Enfield on Bush Hill Park golf course. The former didn't explode, but the latter did & bust up nearly all the shop windows in Enfield. The one in the park they decided to dismantle on Monday and shut up all the shops & cleared folks out of Enfield town while they did it. Even the telephone exchange was evacuated. The best was nearly 9 feet long and weighed almost a ton. It's a blessing it didn't go off.
   On Wednesday night a couple made a mess of Golders Green & wiped out a family of six, among others. The man frequently came to the works at Brimsdown, we knew him well.
   Tuesday night we had a good display. One of these landmines was caught in the searchlights as it was coming down by parachute. I heard every gun in the district blazing away, so went to look what it was all about and saw umpteen searchlights on this queer object with shells bursting all around it. But the weirdest was the way the tracer shells seemed to be climbing up the searchlights only to drop off before they reached the top. Hundreds of red and yellow tracer shells went at it. We watched it drift from our neighbourhood out of our gunfire & later heard it explode in the air over Cheshunt district. Except for a few roofs, doors and windows, it did little damage.
   The nearest they have been to us is to drop two on successive nights near the tube station.
   There has been a lot of activity today with a number of warnings. Once this morning, there was an air battle in the near distance with no warning. This afternoon 49 fighters passed over the works in one huge formation, may they have been lucky!
   The most remarkable thing is that the works has escaped so far (touch wood) although they had one last night between us and Ediswan which fell on waste land... we aren't grumbling.
   Tom (his son) is still getting a nightly dose, they have had one in the parade ground this week. He doesn't come home at night now, as there is no going out with any safety once the guns start which is now at nights about 8 O'clock.
   We used to think Londoners were a soft lot (Tom is from St Helens, Lancashire, Annie from Millon, Cumbria) but if Lancashire stands up to it half as well as London has done, I'll be pleased. I haven't heard a grouse from any one of our 250 men, although, as my foreman said, he might well let his house furnished for what use it is to him. They work 7 to 7 & spend their home time in shelters & are making it their normal life.
The latest story going around is that one night a man who had gone to bed, heard bombs, jumped out of bed in the dark & in his haste didn't notice he put his trousers on back to front. He rushed out of the room and fell downstairs. His wife heared the row and called out " Are you hurt John". John felt himself and then in fear called back "Oh Mary, I've twisted myself something awful."
   Yesterday we had a cable from Ronald (his oldest son in Palestine) to say he his "Happy and well", letters are rare and long on the way. The cable took two days to reach us after it was received in London.
Telephones and all means of communication are a mess these days. Our old man (boss) wanted someone the other day during a raid. The telephone girl informed him the person concerned was "spitting on the roof".     

   The bloke of course was spotting to give an internal warning if danger was near. Spotters have and unpleasant job. Our lot blew whistles on Saturday and the men had only just got under cover when the all clear went up. There were a lot of rude remarks, but the spotters were right. They heard a plane & a bomb explode. The weather was dull and as it happened the bomb was a delayed action from some previous raid, but they, of course, weren't to know that. These delayed action things go off at all sorts of odd times & if there is no warning out, no one knows what the bang is.
Saturday
    There was a good bag yesterday wasn't there? We saw little of it except gunfire and the noise. Tom phoned to say both the Houses of Parliament & Westminster Abbey had very near misses, the latter having one or two windows damaged.
   It was a pitch dark cloudy night last night and we could see some fires south and south west of us, but nothing like the huge ones when they lit up the docks and that district.
   I am having the morning off and I have just been to Potters Bar to have some adjustments on the car. They dropped a number the other night and made a bit of a mess. Just as I was getting back again the now familiar noise went forth... the 103rd time this month.
   Now, just over half an hour later the all clear is going & Annie has gone to look if any of the returning fighters are doing the victory roll.
   Before the warning goes we usually get several squadrons pass over us and see them coming back, sad to say sometimes with some missing.
   That's all this time, except to say its time some one invested concentrated extract of sleep: they have done it for beef, milk etc, so why not for sleep?!

Love to you all,
From us both,

Tom

Letter from Tom Critchley to Mary Platt 20th September 1940

       A Glasgow Street photograph of Molly, Harry and Mary Platt, taken about nine years earlier

 37 Lonsdale Drive,

Enfield

My dear Mary & Co,

   As the nightly wail has just gone forth (7.50 pm) I will get your letter off my chest. This week has been quite an eventful one in some ways.  To begin with, Tom's hospital got a knock-out blow at 2.30 am on Monday morning, but fortunately he was sleeping here & got a nasty shock when he saw it next morning. A half-ton bomb caught the building in a glancing blow, demolishing two wards in its fall &, exploding in the road, made a nasty mess of the rest of the structure. The Tate Gallery next door suffered somewhat from the same bomb. Most fortunately nobody except one M.O. was injured. The patients had been evacuated to the basement and were safe, though some had to be dug out the next day.

    Tuesday night, Tom's girlfriend's family (Margaret, her sisters, Joyce and Nancy and their parents, Gertrude and Harold. They lived at Buckingham Avenue, London N 20) had a nasty few minutes with a bomb about 50 yards away.

    Wednesday night we had a thrill. A number of bombs were dropped in Enfield, not that we heard them, the gunfire was too loud, but it seemed to me unpleasantly lively in our district, so we patronised the shelter. Despite the noise we were both half asleep about 10.15 pm when both heard a noise like a rushing mighty wind & then slight poppings all over the place. I said to Annie "Incendiaries" & dashed out. Fires seemed all over the place, but fortunately in our gardens mainly. After making sure that we & our neighbours had none & connecting the hose to the tap etc, I had time to look round.

   There was one next door but two, & one about five gardens away in our row, & at the back, the next door but one gardens on each side of us had one, & at one of these houses a small boy yelled for "Help!". One, the furthest from us, was left to burn & my word it did give a light, the others were soon put under, one byone with the help of the A.R.P. who came along in a surprisingly short time. Near the back of us a couple of more serious fires got going & the fire brigade was some time getting rid of those. Three houses got messed up. At the same time a whole packet dropped in East Barnet, they had some H. E as well. After we had quietened down a bit, we went to bed. Small incendiaries are not too bad if one can dose them liberally with sand as soon as they fall.

    It was estimated that about 400 dropped on that occasion, it sounded like it when they fell.

    Perhaps you wonder how folks are sticking it & what they really say... not newspaper talk. We have a typist , a widow with two children, living at Edmonton where there has been an undue number of bombs dropped. I gave her a lift in the car tonight and this is what she told me.

    She said she was in her shelter last night with her mother, her young daughter & a neighbour & her neighbour's daughter. They heard a bomb dropping & sat holding tight to each other as they felt sure it would hit them. It dropped in the next garden but one & threw earth and mud (it was raining hard at the time) all over them. Then they heard folks talking, so she went out & saw a "funny" sight & called her neighbour to see it... they both laughed it looked so funny. the house next to hers & the next to that had got no backs & a bit further along the road the shop was on fire from an oil bomb. The A.R.P. came along & told them to clear out to a public shelter as the garden adjoining had a bomb in it. She said the people in the shelter were expecting them & lent them blankets & gave them tea. Later they were allowed to go home as the hole where the bomb was supposed to be was found to be a lump of concrete which had been blown into the air & buried itself in the soil. Altogether they had 11 bombs fairly near that night & it's by no means their only experience & yet that woman talks about it quite calmly & even jokes too. Her road is roped off now for a real time bomb.

    Earlier in the week in that same district the folks on a quarter mile radius were evacuated because a land mine had been dropped there. These are Jerry's latest & apparently are huge things dropped by parachute so as not to go deep into the ground. The parachute of this one caught on a house gable most fortunately & was later rendered harmless. Tottenham was not so fortunate, one there caused great havoc laying flat rows of houses, but I hear, with no great loss of life.

    Our typist has gone home quite cheerful, she says her house is not so bad, but the stairs are a bit of a mess & one ceiling is down, but there must have been a week spot there! She was in to time this morning too. The only grumbling I hear is that we ought to give back what we are getting instead of bombing only military objectives. There is not the shadow of doubt bombs are being tossed about with one aim & one aim only to terrify the civilians & at present they aren't terrified. (the writing here may be jumpy. When you have a mobile gun at the end of the road & it suddenly starts banging it makes one jump).

Saturday,
   We had a fairly good night until about 4 am when things began to liven up. Something shook the house from top to bottom, whether guns or bombs I don't know. About that time they hit the Enfield small arms & blew up the gasometer as they are getting nearer to the works (Johnson Matthey)
    You cannot speak to anyone, who has not had something near to them...
    One of our directors has had to evacuate for a time bomb & has had several houses down near to him.
    A clerk is also evacuated for a time bomb, but it doesn't matter in his case as his house has no windows & only a part of a roof.
    The typist I told you of.
    Anning, who takes over from me when I am away had a shell explode outside his house blowing the windows in at the front.
    A chemist has a bomb dropped on a garage nearly opposite, he has part of the garage and car in his house of which one room only is inhabitable.
    This morning a foreman rolled up late, the house next to his was gutted by an oil bomb last night, or rather early this morning.
    It's a beggar isn't it?
    Every day one hears that so & so's place has gone; still, I suppose it isn't so bad as was expected it would be; it will be alright some day.
    I expect you to write to me each week, if I write to you, so see that you do.
    I have given Tom (his youngest son) your and Phoebe's address in case the very unlikely should happen to us. As I told you ours is a fairly safe district as things go & it's tremendous odds on us getting hurt, besides, I expect ere long they will find a counter to the night bombers as they have the day ones. The only time they dare come in daylight is in clouds or rain & then only an odd one who drops his bombs and bolts for home.            If folks stick to it, & they look like doing that, I believe Jerry is wacked.

   London has got knocked about a bit, some places worse than others, but there is a lot of it & it's going to take years to flatten out everything & when that's done there is still Glasgow eh!
Later
    We have just got your letters & are sorry to hear you are getting some attention now. Adolf certainly doesn't seem to understand that his attentions are not received with favour... I never knew such a chap for pushing where he is not wanted.
   It's a lovely day here today so he is leaving us alone, he prefers weather like himself... foul, & that is a mild term.
   Our record day is 8 warnings & a 15- hour out of 24 warning period.
   By the way, take my tip & buy an electric ring for heating. Some folks  I know have been two weeks without gas & it's no joke to light a fire in the morning before you can have hot water. I think a ring is better than a kettle as it can serve more than one purpose. Gas is more vulnerable than current.
   It's about 3 weeks since we had a peaceful night & very rarely do we get an all clear before 5 am. As a rule when the warning goes (about 8 these nights) one can reckon on an all night do.
   I won't attempt to give you a list of damaged places, but transport is bad as they have made a dead set at railways, which after all is permissible, & they have certainly upset the timetables.
   Keep smiling, it won't last for ever,
   Love to you all from Annie & Tom
PS a friend of Tom's (his son) a midshipman in the navy is home on leave & says he'll be glad to get back to sea for a bit of peace.

  

Tom Critchley to Mary Platt 14.9.1940

 37 Lonsdale Drive

Enfield

    Letters, like many other things, are not delivered in the normal manner these days. We have just received yours of the 11th. I replied to your last letter at once, but it seems to be a long time in reaching you. Anyhow you'll have got it by now.

    I think Harry is right, it would be a job to get a phone call through these evenings.

    While these excitements are on I had better write you each weekend, but don't get wind up if a letter is a day or two late in arriving.

    We are in a fairly safe area, the only danger is from some ass dropping his load too soon and that is a very remote one. Being of a mathematical turn of mind, I have worked out the odds as being about a million to one of our getting a packet and that is negligible, so we can carry on and forget it.

    As for the raids themselves, familiarity is beginning to breed contempt; take last night, we lay on the beds partly dressed 10pm to 12.00pm, slept part of the time, then got undressed properly. At various times there was a terrific roar going on through which we couldn't sleep, but in the lulls we dozed off again and from 3.30 to 5.30 the all clear came and we slept soundly.

    I thought in the last war I knew what an anti-aircraft barrage was , but it was playing at it compared with what they are putting up now. There is a battery of 4.5's near which nearly deafens one, but there is a monster somewhere in the vicinity (the tale goes it's a naval gun) that shakes the house and the burst reverberates in the sky for nearly half a minute after the discharge... just like a heavy peal of thunder. We don't mind the noise so long as they are giving Jerry a hell of a time. Just before bed last night we sat chatting with Tom and this uproar going on ... with each extra loud uproar one or other said, "give it to 'em!"

Yesterday's day raid... the long four hour one... was in rain & heavy cloud. All we heard was occasional burst of gunfire and a plane or two now and then. As I was at home I took Annie in the car to do her shopping. One cannot let this type of raid interfere with the normal course of life too much. A really heavy do, like some we have seen, is a different matter. I wouldn't like to go out while they are putting up a barrage at night, lots of houses have got missing tiles and there must be heaps of lumps of shell falling all over the place.

We are on the edge of the buildings in this part of London, so I suppose get a heavy barrage here. Anyhow it drops to a large extent after planes pass over us. It's surprising what you can get used to!

   Annie is just getting dinner ready (or should I say lunch) She's just interrupted to say the sirens are sure to go, they usually seem to at meal times. We had four meals yesterday and the warning was out for every one. Is it just cussedness?

   The other night (Thursday). Tom was on duty at the hospital (fire picket) when a bomb dropped alongside smashing up an ambulance and blowing over two men who were with him. They asked for volunteers to shift the wreck and clear up the petrol. While he was helping, a chunk of shell fell close to him. He has 24 hours on fire duty and 24 off. When off he leaves the hospital at 4.30pm and comes home. As there is usually a raid by 9pm of course he cannot get back, so stays here until 6am and returns then. What a wangle! It's a good bit safer here than at Westminster.

   We put a mattress down for him in the dining room with the head under the table. The other downstairs room is our bedroom, the windows are stuck up with tape... not paper, then there are lace curtains, the pre-war casement curtains and, over the bay, a heavy curtain, so we feel fairly safe there, or as safe as in our shelter, where you hear too much that is happening.

    Don't worry about us, we'll be all right.

   Love Tom

P S We've just got a letter from Ronald dated June 17. He asks his mother to go out to him by air... some hopes eh!

    What are you going to do with Molly? Has she decided what she wants to do yet?

    What do you think of these for air raid warnings?

    Thursday Sept 12 9.10 to 5.45 am Friday

    Friday September 13 7.30 am to 8.30 am, 9.45 am to 2.00 pm, 3.55 pm to 4.10 pm. 9.00 pm to 5.30 am on Saturday 14th, 11.05 am to 11.20 am... to be continued....

Letter to Mary Platt, Giffnock Glasgow from Tom Critchley 11.9.1940

 37 Lonsdale Drive, Enfield
Dear Mary,
    As you see we are all fit and well and still able to write, but like many other people we yawn now and then. We have had an inordinate number of raid warnings, as many as 6 in a day, but it's not so bad as it sounds. We have reached the stage where the sirens wail means very little, 'cause oftener than not we hear and see nothing. Last week the works (Johnson Matthey) only went in shelter for 14 or 15 daytime warnings. I can't count the number of warnings here at meal times have not interrupted the feeding. Three times in one day I was either going to or coming from the works when the wailings started.
    The night ones are worse. Sometimes one lies in bed listening to bangs more or less distant, sleeping & waking & the beastly drone of Jerry overhead keep up an intermittent row.
   Last Saturday was a nasty do. I'd just got into the bath when the wail went up to the sky. I decided to carry on but noises started which were too near for my liking so I hopped out quick & partly dried & partly dressed, hastened down. There was terrific gun fire & the noise of crashing bombs which soon died down, so, as tea was ready, we went to have tea.
   Hardly had we sat down when the uproar started again, so out into the garden to see the show... & what a show. The planes were just visible & so were the fires of the East End, We saw one formation of 6 bombers come away from the attack when out of nowhere dropped a Spitfire - then there were 5 & a trail of smoke falling to earth & the white flash of the Spitfire diving clear. We saw a balloon being lowered with a parachutist on top of it & then, when it was all over a Hurricane came & did some marvelous aerobics just by us. I think the pilot was drunk with victory, he did impossible things with that plane.
   Of course we are daft to stand outside and watch!
All that night banging went on & the glow of the fires lit up the sky. We are fairly high up & look over London not altogether an advantage when one sees these fires. They make me feel sad & depressed – a horrible sight & we have had a goodish number now. There's no doubt the effect is exaggerated, but it's not a nice sight.
 (8.45 pm  there go the sirens for tonight's do!)
Sunday night was my worst night. I couldn't sleep & Annie slept practically all night. (We lie partly dressed on beds downstairs) she woke once and said. "That was loud,  the biggest we have had so far, shall we go into the shelter?" "Too late," said I, "he's passed over us", I'll go and see where he is." I went out to look at the search lights & when I got back she was fast asleep with her head under the clothes. As for me, I lay listening to planes and bombs & guns all night & now & then went to the door to see more & brighter fires.
   I've not slept so badly except for Sunday night. It's only the louder bangs woke me up, but one gets so sleepy only sleep matters. We have slept through 'all clears' & wake in a morning not knowing if the raid was still on. I'll bet Mrs Wilson has had an awful time of it. She little knew what she was in for or she wouldn't have come. London is no place for visitors these days unless they want a thrill.
   I am having a week's holiday, if you had been nearer I guess we would have paid you a visit. Today we went out to Berkhamstead Common & got 8 lbs of blackberries & missed two raids on London, but got one directly we got back. While picking we saw a big plane near & then came 3 sickening thuds. Yes, you've guessed, it was Jerry & he started a fire in the district.
8.45 pm
    Guns blazing away and bigger bangs of bombs... we can see the shells bursting over the East End district... poor East End! Supper ready & it will be news then bed... we go early these days 'cause it's about midnight & 2 am the heaviest attacks seem to take place.
8.55 pm
   More and more guns going in to action we can see the flashes & shell bursts both at the front & the back now. May they shoot the blighters down.
Thursday
   Tom (Tom and Annie Critchley's youngest son) arrived home at 10 pm last night to sleep here as he has had a very bad time for several nights... their hospital has had a number of very near misses & they have a rotten shelter to go to... he says they hear bombs & falling masonry all night long. He was a bit upset when he got here thinking bombs were falling all round us: I reassured him & explained it was only our local battery of 4 4.5's opening up. Do they make a row? They shake the house when a salvo goes off as  they are only about half a mile away.
At about 11 last night we had a thrill... our battery sent up a salvo & an explosion was heard to follow high in the sky, then a loud shriek & a cheer. One shot down. I was outdoors like a shot but saw nothing. The grocer's boy this morning confirms it was one shot down.
   Those guns, until last night had done very little shooting, as had many of London's defenses, but last night every gun fired on every possible occasion, so we had far more row than usual. We tried our shelter, but, as you could hear far more from there than in the house, we went indoors. What a funny gurgling noise incendiary bombs make?
    I'm afraid this is full of air raids, but then so is life at present, we seem to have the warning out for about 11 hours out of the 24.
   We now and then get a letter from Ronald (Tom and Annie's oldest son was in Palestine), but they are very irregular, although he writes every week by air mail, lots seem to go astray, when he does write it seems to come from a world that knows no war, but is filled by the daily round, the common task. Life for him at the moment seems to run very smoothly & comfortably.
   From all accounts we missed a good show yesterday afternoon & weren't exactly sorry. If you haven't heard a mass air battle you cannot imagine the noise in the sky specially the shrieking of fast diving planes.
    Well bye bye our love to you all, 
Tom
P S It's now confirmed one shot down near us last night, a piece of wing found in Southgate. About mid-day today came a terrific bang, all the old dames came to their doors & I had to go and tell them that during the night I heard a whistler come down which didn't explode at first. I suppose it went off then. Folks are more cheerful today. The excessive gun fire seems to have acted like a tonic.

Letter from Margaret Robinson to her fiance Tom Critchley 3.1.1942

Tom Critchley's son, also Tom, has been posted to Swansea to study radiolocation and radar. He arrived at the Swansea railway station in the fog, over-loaded with kit and slipped on to the track, arriving at his destination with cuts and bruises. Here is a letter from his fiance.

53 Buckingham Avenue, N 20

3.1.42

I was very pleased to receive that letter from you. I do hope the damage to you was not very serious. I gathered it could not be too serious, otherwise you would have been carried to your destination on a stretcher. Perhaps your powerful mind overcame all physical damage. Am I right? Anyhow I do wish you would not go throwing yourself about when I'm not there to look after you. Do look after yourself because I'd rather see you whole than in pieces. It was certainly a horrible experience to arrive at a strange place loaded and in thick fog, and so late.
Well, I did not firewatch after all yesterday as Miss Zuigg duly appeared on the scene yesterday morning. So as your mother and father required that Lamb book to be taken to the Library to-day, mother and I went to visit your people. I must say I hated going because you were not there and everything seemed so strange. However they gave me some elderberry wine to buck myself up. I showed them my letter as this time it was "alright', and they let me see their's. We do not quite understand whether you say you love the landlady and her daughter or your live with them.
The other soldiers at your billet are training for radiolocation too, I suppose in which case your billet will be filled again when they have left.
Today I am going shopping to buy shoes and perhaps other things. It is raining but as there is nothing to stay in for, I feel I must go. I feel perfectly alright at the office but immediately I go home, I feel I m waiting for something to turn up and that something never comes.
It feels so strange, so long, and so lonely. I sigh, sigh, sigh, sigh. But, somehow I feel, however hard that hill may be to climb, she might just manage it.
Well now, by this time, you can tell me all about your billet. How is the food? Daddy was most dismayed that you didn't mention food in your letter and wants to know if you had anything to eat between 7.15 and the time you went to bed. Your mother hopes you will be tidy, as having had the use of two houses for all your books etc, she is rather dubious.
This is just a short note as I want to catch the post this afternoon – the post is so slow and I would like you to have this on Monday. I expect the work you are going to do is very interesting and that just at present you will not get that Monday morning feeling.
Mr Sainsbury persists in calling me "Margaret". I don't know why, but Ethel is always "Miss Carmody". Anyway I think I might wangle some time off don't you?
I am thinking about the weekend I will come and visit you. As you finish as 11.30 on Saturdays, I think it would be best for me to have the Saturday morning off and beg for Friday afternoon & travel down then. That seems to me the best way of having a longish time together. What do you think?
All my love,

Margaret.

Margaret to Tom 23.2.42

23.2.42

You have been busy, thank you for all the enclosures, and we did not have to pay excess on the packet.
It was lovely to hear you again last night, as I always say it brings us nearer. Who could think you were 200 miles away. We didn't have so long as before did we? I knew it was not your usual operator, "it" was a girl.
Well, to begin with in case I forget, I have prepared the minutes, so if you will, just put all the flowery bit you can think of into it, and if you remember any points I have not included, perhaps you will put them in for me.
Our Mr Davies has now been promoted to staff officer. Her is going to remain in our branch as we have had a vacancy for some time. Of course he is very pleased about it and it dates back to Jan 9th. When I congratulated him, I said I supposed he didn't want to continue fire-watching with just C O's (clerical officers) and that he had better join Mr Sainsbury's squad. He said he'd rather leave than do that, so now they have to find some E O (executive officer) to take his place. There is some talk of D Jones coming along. I think he rather wants to. I have told you all about Donald Jones at Headquarters haven't I? He was the conscientious objector who eventually joined the Pioneers, took ill, and was kicked out of the army. Anyway i expect there are loads of people who would like to come if only they had the chance. They really do not know their fate. Fancy wanting to come here!!!!!
I am returning Bill's letter, at least I hope I have enclosed it. It's very interesting. I only hope he will always have the chance of such a quiet life while he is at Gibralta. Who is this Marjorie girl and why does she have to send her good wishes to you to Gibralta, only to be returned? You say he has not send his usual fond wishes to me, but what is that last sentence to the missus? Is that your mother or does he think that we will be married by the time you recieve his letter?
Yes, I know that Sir Stafford Cripps has been very much in the new lately. He has certainly earned his success. I often wonder where you would have been now if you had been one of his secretaries. I think, no doubt, you would have been nearer this social work than you are now. By the way, I expect you saw that Temple, Archbishop of York is now Archbishop of Canterbury (at least will be in April). He is 60 years old, but certainly a good deal younger than the other one. There is hope for England yet isn't there? The Daily Sketch mentioned that he and also the new Archbishop of York are very interested in social reform.
Whatever made you think of the "Parable of the tree"? I do hope that tree will not be yours and mine. It's good, but next time make it all new green leaves with buds just bursting forth in the clear spring sunshine. I'm collecting all these for our own "little book", so please continue.
Well now about the nursing. You are so insistent that I almost put on my hat & coat and walked out in the blackout. Well I will see what I can do, but you see, nursing in war time is so different, so many ugly sights creep into hospital life now-a days. But this you will say is merely an excuse, and I must get cracking, but I asure you I shall probably end up by being a patient myself.
Well I think I must close now so it is now 10.25 pm and I have to do some ironing before going to bed.
Tomorrow I am going to Mrs Hardings to tea. She wants to show me her lace or at least the head gear which she very much wants to lend me for our wedding. You can come under too if you want to hide from the World.
All my love & hugs and kisses.
(the last being from Shandy, very wet.)

PS My father is better thank you. Swollen knee is only rheumatism.

PPS It's very sad bout that fellow who was electrocuted. You will be careful won't you? I don't think you would do anything like that, but just in case, remember me. I am waiting for you.

PPPs If you can possibly do the minutes by next weekend, I should be pleased, I also have to prepare a secretary's report, so perhaps you can help in this please, oh, please do.

Margaret to Tom 27.2.42

Margaret to Tom 27.2.42

Would you believe it! it's the 27th already. Doesn't time fly?
We have just been paid "Oh, joyous day", said she breaking forth into song. But I shall not have that for long as I have to fetch my costume either tomorrow or Monday. I think I shall probably be able to get an hour off tomorrow if I make the time up and get it then. Then as Foyles is open until 6.00 on Saturdays & also during the week until that hour. anyway I have decided to spend Saturday afternoon there.
Thank you for your letter which has just arrived and for all the enclosures. Now I shall be able to get on with the good work.
No, I'm afraid I have not been working hard and studying all the nursing books I have at home. I have been very busy though. You see, all my mending, all my knitting and Shandy (the dog) takes up a good bit of my time nowadays. I can't think whatever we did when you were at home. The evenings simply fly. I have always got something to do, except work such as reading about nursing.
Well I have just arrived back from lunch and now I can settle down to this between working. I had to rush out just now again & buy Mr Bolt some cakes for tea today, as it is his Birthday.
To revert to the nursing. If I go in for Red Cross, I shall now have to give up some of my coupons for the uniform – just the indoor apron etc, but I do now know how many. I was talking to a girl who is doing this work at the sick bay across the road and she suggested I went into the civil nursing reserve which apparently only require an overall which is provided. Civil nursing is, of course, only practiced at the civilian hospitals , which might or might not be counted as war work. What do you think?
Are you running short of chocolate now? Because I have a little I can send you, but I have not been able to buy any this week.
This afternoon I am very busy, so I'm afraid this will be a very short letter.
I shall probably call to see your mother & father this evening. We have Ron;s letter to return and Nancy will be so mad if it is not returned by the time she arrives home this evening.
I shall look forward to hearing your voice on Sunday, if it is possible for you to phone. It brings us so near doesn't it?
Well, all my love, I hope the weather is fine for you to go walking this week end, so that you can come home with rosy cheeks – blossoms of spring to greet me the week after next,

Margaret

Coronation Rehearsal... June 1953

I interrupt the flow of wartime letters to fast forward to 1953, as the 60th anniversary of our Queen Elizabeth's coronation is on Sunday. Here are two letters. One is from Tom Critchley to his sister and brother-in-law and the other is from his wife, Annie, to their niece Mollie Platt. She describes the Coronation rehearsal in 1953 at which her son Tom was officiating as a Gold Staff Officer.

25.6.1953

My dear Mary and Harry,

Thank you for the magazines, they arrived yesterday. When we get some real photos of Tom, we will let you have one, his friend Henry, who works for U.G.B. took them, but hasn't yet suppled the prints – except for single copies of each snap.
We had Biddy over this way last weekend, she didn't come up to see us, she hadn't time, but we took her back to Euston. She rang up Tom to say what time she would arrive on Friday night. Tom and Margaret were playing tennis. Mr Robinson took the message and mucked it up, so Biddy arrived on her own, with no-one to meet her.
She got up early on Saturday morning, queued up for the Abbey & St James, got back to Langton Avenue about 4, went to see Carol and Barbara in a dancing show & then went off with Tom and Margaret to see the lights, getting home about 1 on Sunday morning. She left on the 4.10 train. I guess she was tired.
Margaret says why doesn't Mollie park her luggage at Euston and stay overnight, or longer, with her on her way back instead of putting up at an hotel? We would offer too, but Annie is getting a bit beyond it, she has trouble with her legs, circulation and arthritis the doctor says.
I don't know yet when we shall be going to St Helens. I have written to Seth & asked him when it would suit them to put up with us. I had wondered if it would be possible to make it coincide with your return from Barmouth or with Biddy's next visit to Tom –  she talks of going there again later in the year. We will see what Seth says, it will probably be our last journey north & we ought to meet if it is possible. As one gets older car driving becomes more of a strain, one quite envies Ron and Tom and the way they drive about London. They each had cars in London last Saturday night. Ronald had been to Bromley, intended to come back over London Bridge, missed his road, found himself in Chelsea and got tied up in the West End traffic and sightseers. He says it took him one and a half hours to get across London. Tom took his car with Biddy, after doing the city, he intended to park at his usual place at the Home Ofice, but could not get nowhere near and had to wander about for ages following a stream of traffic.
I should have been even more white and wrinkled than I am after such a do.
Ronald had a good do at the Review, he got home about 5.30am. After the Queen had done her round a launch took them round the fleet, then after dinner they saw the illuminations and fireworks. Getting ashore at Southampton at about 2.00am.
So far we have had a very poor summer, not enough sun and rather too much rain, there never seems to have been a time when one could have said "The garden wants rain". Perhaps thats why the roses have been so wonderful, I have never seen them anything like so good and they came early.
By the way if Harry is short of room in the garage, here is a tip which I use. I have a tennis ball suspended from the roof & when the bonnet , cap, mascot, call it what you will, touches the ball, I am there.

Love from us both,

Tom

PS Annie hasn't yet found energy to write, our woman who comes has been on holiday last week and this week, she (the woman) intended going to Ascot on three days – they are the folks with money, our hard earned money. When we go away, she still comes in and gets paid for it, as well as her own holidays. Did we tell you we met Mrs Bennett in Southsea on our way back from the Isle of Wight? She is decidedly the worse for wear, not so well as when we saw her last year. we had coffee and cakes with her in a restaurant. She said she was going back there for lunch, but I strongly suspect she had sandwiches with her to eat where we left her on the green near the esplanade.

And here is Annie Critchley's letter their niece Mollie Platt.

My dear Mollie,

I wish you were here so I could talk instead of write. You say you would like my impressions of the coronation rehearsal, but really I don't know where to begin.
Up to the night before, I was undecided about going then Margaret and Tom came up & Tom told me he had to be in the Abbey by 7.00am, so I felt I couldn't manage that and definitely said I wouldn't go. before they went home I decided I would have a taxi, if Margaret would come with me. (my doctor had told me I must not go alone). Tom said he would see me in the abbey and to my seat. The door I had to go in by was a very old, very small door by the peeresses place. Thanks to Margaret we refused the efforts of the police to disgorge us at door no. 8 and were safely delivered at door no. 9. There was a long covered way and umpteen blokes in gorgeous uniforms at the entrance & Margaret asked if she could take me right to the abbey & they were all most obliging & I was glad she was with me as there were  two or three very old worn steps down & then up. However, it was all right & as soon as I got inside I saw Tom. He had put a big "reserved" card on a seat to which he conducted me.
The peeresses were not in their robes, but several of them were there in ordinary clothes – the first two rows had been reserved for personal friends of the Queen & the Earl Marshall – the latter's four little girls were a few rows in front of me, & the countess of Harewood just behind.
It was rather bewildering at first with the colours of the admirals, generals, heralds, knights of the garter & what not, and, of course, the heavy uniforms of the Kings at Arms. The latter were standing by a pillar just exactly opposite & I was looking at them and thinking how wonderful they were to stand so still when Lyon King at Arms fell with a crash, just at the moment when the Queen was conducted from Edward's chair to the throne. One thing sticks in my mind – the unceremonious way one man took his shoulders & another took his legs and they hurried him out. Another was going to help, but the Earl Marshall put up a warning finger. However, I see poor old Lyon King at Arms was able to officiate at Edinburgh.
Some of the things that I specially enjoyed were the scholars of Westminster School who have the honour of being the first to acclaim the new sovereign – this was in latin & they wore traditional costume.
The whole ceremony was very medieval – I felt as though I was back in pre-Tudor times, when church, and nobles were everything & the "common man" nothing at all – it really was all church & state even M.P.s were nothing – all crouched together in one section of the tiers which reached right up to the top of the high windows almost. Of course Churchill was much in evidence in his "Garter" robes.
Also I was very impressed by the dignity of it all. Such Pageantry & yet everyone seemed to know just what & when to do things. I must say the archbishop of Canterbury was splendid. He is an old man too. The beginning of the service when he brought the Queen (or rather her deputy) to our side first & said "sirs I here present unto to you" etc etc – and we said "God save Queen Elizabeth". Then he asked her if she would do this & that & her well-spoken replies.
Another part that was rather touching was when the royal red robe was taken off and she was in a very simple white linen gown – somehow she looked so lovely and young.
Needless to say the placing of the crown on her head was most thrilling, as was the homage. As the crown was placed on her head all the pages were waiting beside their respective peer with his coronet & when the peers all raised their coronets & placed them on, it was a most dazzling sight. I think Uncle Tom told you about the 2 small pages who came & sat by me and chewed gum – from the sublime to the ridiculous!
I hadn't realised before that one earl, one marquise, and baron etc represented all the earls etc – when the Earl Marshall (as the senior one) put on his coronet all the earls called out together – then followed the marquises, the viscounts, all in their order – talk about feudalism!.
The train bearers were in their robes & looked lovely, I felt very amused at the Lord Chancellor, who had to put his coronet over his wig. He did look odd!
I think I had better stop now and listen to the cricket.
As England has the usual bad luck of losing the toss, I'll write a bit more.
Oh, please thank whoever is responsible for the "illustrated" which arrived safely yesterday.
Tom was not the only lucky one. Ronald, as you perhaps know is at the "Crown Agents for the Colonies" His works deals specially with the Falkland Islands. They sent a ship, the "John Briscoe" to Spithead for the review and the Governor of the Isles sent Ronald a ticket to go aboard the John Briscoe. So he went down to Southampton where a launch took him to the ship. It is a research ship, which has been to the Arctic. Needless to say, Ronald had a wonderfull time – lunch on board , saw everything, including the illuminations and firework display arriving home at 5.00am next morning, & getting a puncture at Hyde Park Corner of all places, on the way home.
Poor little Bobby is at Great Ormand Street Hospital being operated on today for those fingers – he will probably be in for a week – Ronald went to see him yesterday – he cried a bit, but the sister said he had been very good.
Betty's mother & her husband are supposed to arrive next Thursday.
Biddy paid a flying visit to Tom's last week-end – arrived about 10.30pm Friday & went back 4.00pm on Sunday. She went to Westminster abbey & St James palace by herself on Saturday. The children were taking part in a ballet display in the afternoon to which she went. Then at night they all (except Carol) went to see the illuminations.
You will be counting the days now till you go to Switzerland. I hope you have a lovely time. Have you booked at the Russell Hotel yet? Tom says if you  like to go there you will be very welcome – the children would of course be delighted – it is quite easy to get from Euston to Whetstone, & you could leave your luggage at the left luggage office at Euston. Perhaps though, you may have heard from them. I told them what you intended doing & they at once said "she could come to us". I would like to ask you to come here, but I'm not much good these days.
We haven't quite made up our minds about St Helens yet sometimes I think we're better at home, but Uncle Tom certainly wants to go to Shanklin again in October. On Sunday we are supposed to go to tea with some people from Finchley we met there.
This letter is growing as long as Mrs Lockhart's. I wrote her a fortnight back after keeping hers 5 months and have already had a reply. They hope to come and see us in August again, just for the day of course.
Now Mollie, after this great effort, please don't keep me waiting 5 months.
We re waiting to hear definitely when Uncle Seth & Co are going away, before we settle anything about going. He asked me how I liked washing dishes next day after being at the abbey but I say I would rather wash dishes every day than go to the abbey every day.
Margaret looked very nice with her evening dress, wrap and veil. She is buying the stool on which she sat. She couldn't see anything of the actual ceremony but had a good view of the various processions & and didn't find the time long.
the earl marshall did a wonderful job. He seemed to think of everything. there was even a small room where you could go for repairs to your finery – neeedlewoman in attendance.
This letter will be getting overweight if I carry on much longer. I am without Mrs Ryan, who is on holiday, but I'm afraid the work is waiting for her when she comes back on Monday.
Now for some more cricket!
Love to your mother, father and yourself & hoping to see you somehow, somewhere before too long.

Auntie Annie,

Excuse awful writing and rambling letter.
PS My dear husband has just come home & informs me that he wrote from Brimsdown this afternoon, so what a lot of energy I've wasted! Have you been able to see the show in Glasgow today? We saw the Edinburgh do on TV.