What stories do you know about your (Great?) grandparents experience of WW2?

[HappyPeach]

Inspired by my other thread, I realise I know nothing about my grandparents war experience. Other than one Nan was in the WRVS, though I don't know what she did. All my grandparents died years ago so I can't ask now. I wish I knew their stories. What do you know about your relatives experiences?

My grandfather, who I never met, was in WW1 in Egypt and Syria. In WW2 he was told old to fight but was in the civil service and was in charge of the major evacuation of a northern city, which for which he got a gong. I know some of the stories handed down from his time in the Syrian desert.

Paternal grandfather was in Egypt. He died when I was 5 or so but I've seen pictures of him in Uniform in front of the pyramids etc that he sent home.
Paternal grandmother was in the WAAF.

Maternal Grandmother was a nurse and worked with Italian prisoners of War. She apparently had a very "good" war. She had this box of military cap badges and once she told me to pull one out and said "you never know, you might get your grandfather's". Not sure if she was joking or not given my grandfather didn't serve.

The man I presume is my Maternal Grandfather was teaching Russian via correspondence course from his hospital bed (dying of TB).

Maternal "step" grandfather was at Monte Cassino. Never talked about his experiences but he loathed ice cream, said something happened in Italy which put him off it. Only found out he was at Monte Cassino after he died because he left me his annoted photos from the war and I recognised it. Taught us a few songs though!

Dh's Maternal grandfather was in the military when the war broke out, evacuated from Dunkirk and became a Paratrooper. One of his younger brother's died in a plane crash in the Himalayas

His Paternal grandfather was also in Egypt and he sent or brought home the exact same "tourist" pics as my grandfather.

My mum's dad was a regimental sergeant major. Liberated Changi jail and was apparently one of the forgotten army in Burma. My mum has a huge photo of him with his Indian regiment. He was a really lovely man and I'm sad I was so young when he died that I didn't get to know him properly.
My grandma did sod all through the war as far as I'm aware. Probably feigned illness like she did for the rest of her life.

My dad's dad was a desert rat. Spoke very little of the war but it's suspected he was a POW.
Dad's mum was in the women's land army. She always said it was the happiest time in her life.

GF1 was in KOYLI. Spent the first few years of the war in Iceland where he learned to ski.
Was in the Normandy landings on Gold beach. He was terrified because he couldn’t swim. Seemed less worried about being shot!
Helped liberate Bergen- Belsen.
When demobbed got very drunk and met my grandma on a bridge in his home Yorkshire village. He never drank again!
GM1 Land girl in a small Yorkshire village.

GF2 Navy signaller. Stationed in Trinidad throughout, the most peril was food poisoning! His brother was RAF and was shot down in April 1945. His son, my Dad’s cousin was born posthumously.
GM2 Worked in a munitions factory. Married in 1944, my Dad born 1945.

Mother's family - her mum and dad (my GPS) were in reserved occupation because they were working in a children's home for bombed out kids. My gran had 2 brothers, 1 in the army in the Pacific, 1 in the navy (FAA) during WW2 & recalled for Korean War. My grandad had 3 brothers and a sister. I know nothing about 1 brother but he was the youngest so might have been too young. The oldest was a pre war regular soldier in the Royal Signals, he served in India before the war then Africa, Italy and Europe. After the war he worked in GCHQ.
The middle one was in the RAF, he was shot down and killed over Berlin in August 1943. The Germans gave his bomber's crew a good funeral.
The sister married a German man who'd been in a concentration camp. I wasn't allowed to play with toy soldiers when they visited.
My gran's father was in the Black Watch in ww1 - he was very badly injured and died in the 1930s.
My father's family - my grandad (dad's dad) was married three times. Grandad was a reserved occupation because he worked in a dockyard repairing ships damaged in convoys. He was the platoon sergeant in the home guard.
My Grandad's dad was killed on the Somme, he was a tunneller with the Royal Engineers. I have his medals.
My dad's older sister married an American sailor in the construction battalion (SeaBee). He took part in D Day after they were married, then he went to the Pacific & after the war my aunt went to the US. They're both buried in Arlington Cemetery.
My dad's older brother was in Royal Engineers 1946-48, he did bomb disposal in Germany. His daughter married a soldier who was in the Falklands.
I was in the TA in the 90s.
The 6 medals belong to my great uncle in the Royal Signals, the 3 to my great grandfather, killed on the Somme, 18th July 1916. He was 43 & left a widow & 6 children.

My dads fad was an engineers patttern maker, so a reserved occupation. Don't know what my grandma did.

My mums mum worked for the GPO as a telephanist. We think she helped transmit enigma codes to Bletchley. But she wouldn't say much. Her husband was in Burma with the Army. I think my maternal grandma resented my paternal grandma slightly has her husband came back unwell from Burma while the other one had stayed at home. (As she saw it£

Grandad in Burma was asked to be a sniper but refused. So he was a medical orderly with the Army medical corps instead.

My gran worked in a factory making parachutes and my grandad was an aircraft engineer - he did essential work so wasn't called up but he was in the home guard. Before they met, my gran's childhood sweetheart was killed in action and she was completely broken hearted. She once told me when he died she knew she would never love anyone that much ever again and, although she had a good life with my grandad, never did.

My other grandad was in the merchant navy and my other gran was still at school.

My Great Grandmother delivered six babies during the blitz while her children (including my three month old grandmother) fled to the hills to hide.

Someone painted a poem on the wall at the end of the terrace she lived in about how brave she was to stay to behind while the local doctor legged it to the safety of the bomb shelter. I must ask my great aunt how the poem went it was only a few lines.

Both my grandads were in the Navy during WW2. I don't know too much about their experiences though and they're no longer around to ask, though my parents, aunts and uncles might know some details.

My great grandads on my dad's side were in the army during WW1, one was RAMC, though I think he was in the army anyway before WW1 started. He definitely stayed in the army for some time afterwards too judging by his wedding photo, though he may have left around the time my grandad was born in 1922 (great grandmother died in childbirth). He was raised by his own grandparents though so I'm not 100%, obviously things were different 100 years ago.

I should have probably added my great grandmother wasn't medically trained. Just a country woman with a bit of knowledge, who when the time came was brave enough to step up to the mark

My DGF was in the RAF. He left my grandmother, sailed to India around Africa. Was stationed on the border of Bhurma. He hardly spoke about it, the only tales I heard were when I had an ex raf boyfriend who he spoke to. Stories of escaping riots in the market place and being rescued by Vinegar Joe.

Meanwhile my Grandma was left behind living with her FiL in his pub. Her MiL had recently passed away. She had my Dad all alone and Dgf didn't get home to meet his son until he was over one. Grandma coped on her own with her new baby. She was my hero.

My maternal GF was in bomber command but he died while I was very young so I know much less.

I have a letter my paternal Grandmother wrote to my Mother on the day the German army retreated from Antwerp, she says she was watching the Hun scuttle away like rats.

Later, she told us that my Grandfather had been away, helping to secure the docks on the River Scheldt from the departing Germans, so that they could be used by the advancing allied troops, (a critical part of the invasion plan).

My maternal Grandmother was too old to be actively involved in the war, but in later years she had lots of tales of rationing, how they all overcame hardships, small things they did to keep their hope alive.

DGF was an air raid warden.
DF was a Bevin Boy and in "Dads'Army".
DM was in school.
DUncle and DAunt were drivers in the army.
Other DAunt was a land girl.
Both DGMs were housewives. Other DGF had already died by the time the war started.

One of my grandmothers was an army driver, the other in the WAAFs. Both my grandfathers were infantry; one in Italy, the other in North Africa. They all had fascinating tales to tell...

One grandad was in a reserved occupation, the other I have no idea about, he died long before I was born and I know extremely little about him. Both grandmothers were raising children.

Grandad was a POW in burma, I have his burma star medal, he was RAF I think
My gran.. not sure. She did some driving or some sort!

My Grandad drove tanks in the war. He shot one of his friends rather than watch them burn alive.

My Grandma's house took a direct hit by a bomb but it didn't explode. It crashed through the roof and landed on the kitchen floor, they were all in the room next door hiding under the table. She worked in an ammunition factory and several of her friends (all young women) were injured quite badly in the factory.

My other Grandma lived on a farm and escaped quite a lot of the things that were going on. She seemed to actually have quite a nice time and they had evacuee children come to stay with them which she liked.

One side Grandad was on the family farm. He had German pows working for him. Luftwaffe used to drop bombs on the farm as they left the UK mainland. One bomb was a direct hit on a field full of POWs. Grandad used to have bad flashbacks. I suppose it would now be recognised as PTSD. They sold the farm so it changed the course of what my dad's life would have been.
My Gran was a teacher in a small village and had lots of evacuees in her school. She used to knit jumpers for some.
Other Grandad was a reservist and was called up at 18, the day war was declared. He was in Africa and Europe, Dunkirk, DDay, liberated Paris. He played in a military and and entertained troups with Dame Vera Lynn. I have lots of his army things including a list of every place that he played and important people he met because of the band. I have some wonderful photos of the band too. He enjoyed the playing in the band but also experienced some horrendous things.
An entire army division were captured by the Germans and marched off. My Granda with the engineers had been about to get caught up too but had been setting traps on bridges. Granda could see his younger brother and best friend being marched off but was powerless to do anything. Thankfully both survived although his friend came home with one leg longer than the other and a permanent limp.
Grandad knew I was interested in history so told me lots. My mum got quite jealous because he had never mentioned anything before then.
Other Gran was in WAAF. She was engaged but her fiancé never made it home. His parents treated my gran like their own. They didn't have other family. She was the main beneficiary in their wills. My mum said it was like having extra grandparents.
Gran was returning home on leave when there was the biggest air raid on our city. She got back the day after to find most of the houses on her street gone but her family were ok.
She also said that the party after VE Day was unreal. She started the day with one boyfriend and ended the party with another!
My great grandfather was a fire spotter up a massive chimney as a lookout. The factory it served is long gone but the chimney is still there. I often point it out to my kids, especially the bullet holes and tell them about him.
My great gran had been baking bread during one particular air raid. She didn't want to waste the yeast so kept baking instead of going to the shelter. The house next door was destroyed but my great gran and her bread survived.

DM and my PIL were all only babies when WW2 broke out. DF and DAunt were evacuated overseas under the Common wealth Overseas Reception Board (CORB) scheme. DU (DM older brother ) served from 1942, but I'm not sure which part of the military.

My grandfather was a doctor and the casualty officer for Bristol, dealing with all civilian casualties after bombing. He then went to North Africa and was the Dr for a regiment. My granny went to live on a Welsh beach near her parents who were vile and only shared their money and rations with their favourite daughter and her children.

My other grandfather was given a medal in WW1 but was too old to fight in WW2. He and my grandmother stayed and she drove for officers. Their 4 children, aged 6months to 7 years were evacuated to Argentina in 1940. My Dad was only 5 and they didn't see their parents for 6 years. I never understood why she didn't go but now know she wasn't allowed - it was children only. Her sister had 2 spaces, she had 2 but her sister pulled out at the last minute so my grandparents sent 4 children.

Maternal DGF - fought in Syria, badly injured, never talked about it
Paternal GF - doctor

DGMs both mothers with young families in a different country to their families.

My maternal grandad looked after the horses at the front at The Somme. It must have had an impact on him, because years later, when he worked on the railways, he brought home a retired pit pony.
My grandma nearly had a fit. They lived in a two bedroom terraced house in a tiny village. But he kept the pony, grazed it on the common land, and used to take it to the local beach to collect sea coal.
My mam told me that he'd have one bag of coal on the pony's back, and two on his own. I never knew him, he died before l was born, but l love animals and l hope some of that comes from him.
My dad told me that when my grandad was dying in hospital in the late 1950s, he relived The Somme, though. Kept telling my dad to get under the bed because 'the buggers are coming back!" Poor soul.

Great uncle in law absconded from a prisoner of war camp in Malaysia and made his way to India over several months and nearly died loads of times - just so brave. A Great uncle blown to smithereens in Italy in 1943, both grandfathers were both too old to be conscripted and were working in a pig factory which was a protected job, so even younger men were not called up.

Paternal Grandfather, Irish from a peat farming family - came over and in true Irish style laid the runways at the new RAF bases before moving to London - lots of No Black, No Irish signs on the doors of shops etc.

Maternal grandfather, his dad ran a greengrocers - he lied about his age and joined the Navy at 15, best years of his life, he got leave as his dad had died and his ship was sunk whilst he was dealing with funeral prep, he was then forced to leave the Navy to look after the rest of the family and take over the shop. I wouldn't be here if that hadn't happened and he'd be on that boat but he always regretted leaving the Navy.