20th+: chemical

Showing posts with label chemical. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 13, 2020

Progress, Reversal - Women in WW1

.Did the First World War transform women's lives? - IWM > .

Monday, January 27, 2020

Bones as Resource

.Bones..Bones..Bones - Save Bones (1944) - MoI > .

Bones were processed at rendering plants into cordite for ammunition, aircraft glue and fertilizer.

Bones..Bones..Bones - Save Bones - British Pathé video

Cordite is a family of smokeless propellants developed and produced in the United Kingdom since 1889 to replace gunpowder as a military propellant. Like gunpowder, cordite is classified as a low explosive because of its slow burning rates and consequently low brisance. These produce a subsonic deflagration wave rather than the supersonic detonation wave produced by brisants, or high explosives. The hot gases produced by burning gunpowder or cordite generate sufficient pressure to propel a bullet or shell to its target, but not so quickly as to routinely destroy the barrel of the gun.

Cordite was used initially in the .303 British, Mark I and II, standard rifle cartridge between 1891 and 1915; shortages of cordite in WW1 led to United States–developed smokeless powders being imported into the UK for use in rifle cartridges. Cordite was also used for large weapons, such as tank guns, artillery, and naval guns. It has been used mainly for this purpose since the late 19th century by the UK and British Commonwealth countries. Its use was further developed before WW2, and as 2-and-3-inch-diameter (51 and 76 mm) Unrotated Projectiles for launching anti-aircraft weapons. Small cordite rocket charges were also developed for ejector seats made by the Martin-Baker Company. Cordite was also used in the detonation system of the Little Boy atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima in August 1945.

The term "cordite" generally disappeared from official publications between the wars. During WW2, double based propellants were very widely used, and there was some use of triple based propellants by artillery. Triple based propellants were used in post-war ammunition designs and remain in production for UK weapons; most double based propellants left service as World War II stocks were expended after the war. For small arms it has been replaced by other propellants, such as the Improved Military Rifle (IMR) line of extruded powder or the WC844 ball propellant currently in use in the 5.56×45mm NATO.[2] Production ceased in the United Kingdom around the end of the 20th century, with the closure of the last of the World War II cordite factories, ROF Bishopton. Triple base propellant for UK service (for example, the 105 mm L118 Light Gun) is now manufactured in Germany.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cordite .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Explosive .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_explosives_used_during_World_War_II .

Friday, January 24, 2020

Egypt's Water Crisis

Why This Egyptian Airport Is Surrounded By Circles - OBF > .

24-6-6 Egypt is a Ticking Time Bomb - gtbt > . skip > .

22-9-8 Real reason Egypt is moving its capital - Vox > .

22-6-18 Geography made Egypt powerful. Can it again? > .

22-2-28 Egypt plans to green its desert - CaspianReport > .

When will we run out of fresh water? — SeSc > .

Egypt's Water Problems & Solutions - Geek > .

Why Egypt’s Geography Might Be Too Good For its Own Good - KhAnubis > .

2021 GERD a Threat to Egypt and Sudan? - gtbt > .

2020 Geopolitics of Egypt | US Egypt Relations in 2021 - geopop > .

Water - Dynamics, Politics - CoRo >> .

Karez - Qanat ↬

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

MAP - Minister of Aircraft Production

The Minister of Aircraft Production was from 1940 to 1945 the British government position in charge of the Ministry of Aircraft Production, one of the specialised supply ministries set up by the British Government, during WW2. It was responsible for aircraft production for the British forces, primarily the Royal Air Force, but also the Fleet Air Arm.

The department was formed in May 1940 by Prime Minister Winston Churchill in response to the need to produce large numbers of aircraft to fight the Battle of Britain. The first minister was Lord Beaverbrook; under his control the Ministry presided over an enormous increase in British aircraft production. Initially under the personal direction of the Minister, even for a time operating from his private home, the Ministry eventually established permanent offices, with a Director-General of Aircraft Production in charge. The Director-General for much of the war was Eric Fraser (1896-1960), who remained the most senior non-elected figure in the department. Fraser, whose pre-war career had been with Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI).

In 1919 Fraser had joined the chemical company Brunner Mond & Co as a manager, remaining when it merged with three other British chemical manufacturers to become Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) in 1926. With 33,000 employees, ICI was one of the largest manufacturers in Britain, able to compete with the rest of the world's chemical producers. Fraser was first appointed director-general of equipment production, before moving to the aircraft production post which he held throughout the rest of the war.

On the outbreak of WW2 a significant number of businessmen were seconded to the civil service, particularly in field of army supply. Fraser was part of this group, joining the War Office in 1939 as Assistant Director General of Progress and Statistics, then Director of Investigation and Statistics in 1940. Moving to the Ministry of Aircraft Production (MAP) in 1942, he became Director General of Equipment Production and, in April 1943, Director General of Aircraft Production, a post he held until the end of the war.

In MAP Fraser worked closely with the Minister of Aircraft Production who, from November 1942, was Sir Stafford Cripps, who worked well with Ministry staff. By 1942 aircraft production had rapidly expanded from a number of small innovative companies to be the largest industry in the country. MAP's role was to monitor and co-ordinate the activity of the industry to maximise output, particularly of bombers, and intervene to remove inefficiency and bad practice where necessary. MAP officials with previous experience in large industries, and who knew more about factories and production lines than ministers and permanent civil servants, played a key role in this work. While Fraser was Director General, Cripps developed Joint Production Consultation Committees, set up in each aircraft factory to allow an exchange of views between managers and workers. These mirrored ICI labour relations policies, which had already recognised works councils for a number of years.

In 1945, Ben, later Sir Ben, Lockspeiser was appointed director-general.

Stories of the Battle of Britain 1940 – Lord Beaverbrook, a Week at the Office .

The first minister, Lord Beaverbrook, pushed for aircraft production to have priority over virtually all other types of munitions production for raw materials. This was needed in the summer and autumn of 1940, but it distorted the supply system of the war economy. It eventually came to be replaced by a quota system, with each supply ministry being allocated a certain amount of raw materials imports to be distributed amongst various projects within the ministries' purviews. Beaverbrook still continued to push hard for increases in aircraft production until he left the ministry to become Minister of Supply.

Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (14 May 1940 – 1 May 1941)
John Moore-Brabazon (1 May 1941 – 22 February 1942)
John Llewellin (22 February 1942 – 22 November 1942)
Sir Stafford Cripps (22 November 1942 – 25 May 1945)
Ernest Brown (25 May 1945 – 26 July 1945)

Controversially, under Beaverbrook's tenure the aircraft programs set bore little relation to actually expected aircraft production. Beaverbrook deliberately inserted an extra margin of 15% over and above the very best that British industry could be expected to produce. The extra margin was added to provide an out-of-reach target to British industry so that it would push as hard as possible to increase production. Only with the 'realistic' programme of 1943 was planned aircraft production brought back into line with volumes that could realistically be expected from British factories.

The Ministry was characterised by, for its time, highly unorthodox methods of management, including its initial location at Beaverbrook's home, Stornoway House. The personnel was personally recruited from outside the Air Ministry, interaction was informal, characterised by personal intervention, crisis management and application of willpower to improve output. "Few records were kept, the functions of most individuals were left undefined and business was conducted mainly over the telephone."

One important change made within days of the creation of the ministry was it taking over the RAF's storage units and Maintenance Units which were found to have accepted 1,000 aircraft from the industry, but issued only 650 to squadrons. These management and organisational changes bore results almost immediately: in the first four months of 1940, 2,729 aircraft were produced of which 638 were fighters, while in the following four months crucial to the Battle of Britain combat during May to August 1940, production rose to 4,578 aircraft, of which 1,875 were fighters. This production rate was two and a half times Germany's fighter production at the time. The ministry was additionally able to repair and return to service nearly 1,900 aircraft.

The result of this effort and management style was that while the number of German fighters available for operations over England fell from 725 to 275, the RAF's complement rose from 644 at the beginning of July 1940 to 732 at the beginning of October 1940.

MoS - Ministry of Supply

Shell Mex House, The Strand

The Ministry of Supply (MoS) was a department of the UK Government formed in 1939 to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Minister of Supply. There was, however, a separate ministry responsible for aircraft production, and the Admiralty retained responsibilities for supplying the Royal Navy. During the war years the MoS was based at Shell Mex House in The Strand, London. During WW2, the building was home both to the MoS, which co-ordinated the supply of equipment to the national armed forces, and the Petroleum Board, which handled the distribution of petroleum products during the war. It was badly damaged by a bomb in 1940.

The Ministry of Supply also took over all army research establishments in 1939. The Ministry of Aircraft Production was abolished in 1946, and the MoS took over its responsibilities for aircraft, including the associated research establishments. In the same year it also took on increased responsibilities for atomic weapons, including the H-bomb development programme.

The Ministry of Supply was abolished in late 1959 and its responsibilities passed to the Ministry of Aviation, the War Office and the Air Ministry. The latter two ministries were subsequently merged with the Admiralty to form the Ministry of Defence.

The Ministry of Supply instigated the Rainbow Codes designation system. This assigned projects a two-word codename, the first word being a colour and the second a noun. As a result, secret weapon projects—including numerous nuclear weapons—were given lighthearted names such as Green Cheese, Blue Slug or Red Duster.

The Ministry of Supply was responsible for building and running the Royal Ordnance Factories which produced explosives and propellants; filled ammunition; and constructed guns and rifles. However, the Ministry of Works and/or private building contractors acted as agents during their construction. The Ministry was also responsible for the supply of tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, and had a Department of Tank Design where Edward Brisch worked from 1942. Tanks were, however, also designed and built by private arms companies, such as William Beardmore and Company and Vickers, as well as other engineering companies.

The Ministry of Supply also arranged for the construction of a large number of agency factories which were run on its behalf by private companies, such as Nobel Industries. These were similar to the Royal Ordnance Factories but were not part of the Royal Ordnance Factory organisation.

Supply issues - CCS, WW2 > .

Shell Mex House & London's largest clock-face - from Thames, 1959 > .

The M.S. (Ministry of Supply) Factory, Valley was a WW2 site in Rhydymwyn, Flintshire, Wales, that was used for the storage and production of mustard gas. It was later also used in the development of the UK's atomic bomb project. More recently, it became a bulk storage depot for emergency supplies.

The Ministry of Supply was also responsible for the labour force of these factories, although the Ministry of Labour did the recruitment. From the middle of the war onwards the Ministry of Supply was in direct competition with the Ministry of Aircraft Production for labour and the two organisations had to reach agreement. Towards the end of the war the Ministry of Supply released labour so that they could transfer to the Ministry of Aircraft Production.

The Dutch Defence Chemical Laboratory escaped the German occupation of the Netherlands. On 14 May 1940 archives and key personnel were moved to London. The 'Centraal Laboratorium, afdeling Londen' (Central Laboratory, London department) was established and fell under the supervision of the Dutch authorities on the one hand, and on the other hand under the Ministry of Supply which provided housing and materials.

From the beginning of WW2 the army research establishments were put under the control of the Ministry of Supply. It was through the MoS that the essential connections were made between military requirements and the scientists and engineers of the civil service, industry, and academia (many academics were recruited into the civil service on a temporary basis).

The Experimental Bridging Establishment, Christchurch (later to become part of MEXE)
The Experimental Demolition Establishment, Christchurch from 1942 (later to become part of MEXE)
The Experimental Tunnelling Establishment, Christchurch from 1942
The Fighting Vehicles Proving Establishment (FVPE), Chertsey, Surrey
The Projectile Development Establishment at Fort Halstead (moved to Aberporth, Cardiganshire, in 1940 where it remained until 1945)
The Telecommunications Research Establishment in Malvern, critical in the development of radar
The Wheeled Vehicle Experimental Establishment (WVEE), Farnborough 1942, then Chertsey from 1943

The Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) was a British research establishment, known by several different names during its history, that eventually came under the aegis of the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), before finally losing its identity in mergers with other institutions.

The first site was at Farnborough Airfield ("RAE Farnborough") in Hampshire to which was added a second site RAE Bedford (Bedfordshire) in 1946.

The Fisher Aviation Company began to provide flights from fields at the eastern end of Somerford Road in Christchurch (Dorset) in 1930, and by 1933 the company had flown over 19,000 passengers. In 1934, they obtained permission to establish an aerodrome on the site which became known as Christchurch Airfield. During WW2 an Airspeed factory was built on the airfield, and began manufacturing aircraft for the RAF; the USAAF Ninth Air Force established a base there in 1944. A second aerodrome opened at Hurn in 1944 which became Bournemouth Airport. In 1940, with the German 6th Army at Cherbourg, Christchurch was fortified against an expected invasion: the construction of pillboxes, gun emplacements and tank traps in and around the town, made Christchurch an "anti-tank island". Between 1941 and 1942 Donald Bailey developed the Bailey bridge at the Military Engineering Experimental Establishment at Christchurch Barracks.

Christchurch is the most easterly coastal town of the administrative county of Dorset, and it lies within the historic county of Hampshire. The town abuts Bournemouth to the west and is approximately 9 miles (14 km) east of Poole, 20 miles (32 km) west of Southampton, 23 miles (37 km) south of Salisbury. The town centre lies between the rivers Avon and Stour which flow directly into Christchurch Harbour. The borough boundaries stretched to Hurn Forest in the north encompassing Bournemouth Airport and eastwards along the coast as far as Walkford. The River Stour forms a natural boundary to the west; the estuary and harbour form the southern boundary.

? https://www.google.com/search?q=Uk+ministry+of+supply+ww2&oq=Uk+ministry+of+supply+ww2 ?

The Military Engineering Experimental Establishment (MEXE) was a British defence research unit. It was formed from the Experimental Bridging Establishment in 1946 and was amalgamated with the Fighting Vehicles Research and Development Establishment to form the Military Vehicles and Engineering Establishment in 1970. MEXE developed the MEXE method (a means of assessing the carrying capacity of arch bridges), the MEXE probe (a field tool to estimate the California bearing ratio of a soil) and the MEXE system (a means of estimating properties of a piece of unknown land by comparing it with known similar terrain).

The Military Engineering Experimental Establishment had its roots in the Experimental Bridging Company of the Royal Engineers (RE), formed from the last un-disbanded battalion of WW1 assault engineers, and under the command of a British Army major. This unit developed into the Experimental Bridging Establishment of 1925 under an RE superintendent (from 1933 a chief superintendent). This was reformed into the Military Engineering Experimental Establishment (MEXE) on 22 March 1946 under a chief superintendent (brigadier) after 5 April 1956 the commander was referred to as director and was sometimes a civilian.

MEXE was amalgamated with the Fighting Vehicles Research and Development Establishment on 1 April 1970 to form the Military Vehicles and Engineering Establishment based out of Chertsey, Surrey and Christchurch, Dorset and commanded by Brigadier RA Lindseell MC ADC. This was amalgamated further into the Royal Armament Research and Development Establishment in the 1980s and then the Defence Research Agency on 1 April 1991. A further reorganization into the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency followed on 1 April 1995 before a split into the publicly owned Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and the privatised QinetiQ in 2001.

The organisation worked to develop and test new techniques and equipment for use in the British Army. The latter including bridges, rafts, cranes, earthmoving equipment and road pavers. On 6 May 1969 MEXE was awarded the freedom of the borough of Christchurch. Whilst many regiments and corps of the army had been so honoured MEXE was the first experimental establishment to have received such.

Thursday, June 27, 2019

Balfour, Lady Eve - organic farming pioneer

Lady Evelyn Barbara Balfour, OBE (16 July 1898 – 16 January 1990) was a British farmer, educator, organic farming pioneer, and a founding figure in the organic movement. She was one of the first women to study agriculture at an English university, graduating from the institution now known as the University of Reading.

Quoted by Charles Dowding - ChDo > .

Lady Eve Balfour (1898 – 1990) is best known as the founder of The Soil Association, Britain's leading organic food and farming organisation. The Soil Association was born in 1946, following publication of Lady Eve Balfour's bestselling book about organic agriculture, The Living Soil (Faber & Faber 1943).

Balfour, one of the six children of Gerald, 2nd Earl of Balfour, and the niece of former prime minister Arthur J. Balfour. The Balfours of Whittingehame, East Lothian were one of Britain's most important political families.

By the age of 12, Eve Balfour had decided that she wanted to be a farmer. At age 17, she enrolled, as one of the first women students to do so, at Reading University College for the Diploma of Agriculture. After obtaining her Diploma in 1917,s he completed a year's practical farming. In 1918, claiming to be twenty-five, she secured her first job working for the Women's War Agricultural Committee, running a small farm in Monmouthshire. She managed a team of land girls, ploughing the land with horses and milking the cows by hand.

She was subsequently appointed Bailiff to a farm near Newport, Wales under the direction of various war committees, notably the Monmouthshire Women's War Agricultural Committee whose Chairwoman was Lady Mather Jackson of Llantilio Court, Abergavenny.

After briefly managing a hill farm in Wales, Eve and her elder sister Mary Edith Balfour bought a farm in Suffolk. In 1919, at the age of 21 at the suggestion of family friend William E G Palmer of Haughley, she and her sister Mary used inheritance monies put into a trust by their father, to purchase New Bells Farm in Haughley Green, near Stowmarket, Suffolk.

Eve farmed throughout the economically difficult inter-war period. New Bells Farm was a mixed farm, boasting arable crops, a dairy herd, sheep and, at times, pigs. In addition to farming, she pursued a wide variety of activities, including playing the saxophone in a dance band formed initially for her and her sister's own amusement. The band provided an extra source of income when it played at Saturday night dances in a nearby Ipswich hotel. She gained a pilot's licence in 1931 and crewed for her brother on his annual sailing trips to Scandinavia. She wrote three detective novels with Beryl Hearnden (under the pseudonym Hearnden Balfour), the most successful of which, The Paper Chase (1928), was translated into several languages.

In the early 1930s Eve Balfour became a high-profile campaigner in the tithe protest movement, which saw financially-strapped farmers attack the Church of England for its continued reliance on tithe payments to supplement the income of rural clergy.

During the 1930s Lady Eve, became critical of orthodox farming methods, being particularly influenced by Viscount Lymington's text Famine in England (1938), which raised doubts about the sustainability of traditional farming techniques [and inspired sarcastic critiques]. Portsmouth's book inspired her to contact Sir Robert McCarrison, whose research had shown a positive relationship between health and methods of soil cultivation. Her interest in organic farming can also be traced to her contacts with Sir Albert Howard, a British scientist who developed the Indore process of composting based on eastern methods.

Sir Albert Howard CIE (8 December 1873 – 20 October 1947) was an English botanist, and the first westerner to document and publish the Vedic Indian techniques of sustainable agriculture, now better known as organic farming. After spending considerable time learning from Indian peasants and the pests present in their soil, he called these two his professors. He was a principal figure in the early organic movement. He is considered by many in the English-speaking world to have been, along with Rudolf Steiner and Eve Balfour, one of the key evangelists of ancient Indian techniques of organic agriculture.

Having encountered ideas about compost-based farming, she lost no time developing plans to put organic agricultural concepts to the test by conducting a farm-based experiment on her own land in Suffolk. In 1939, she launched the Haughley Experiment, the first long-term, side-by-side scientific comparison of organic and chemical-based farming. She later became Chairman of Haughley Parish Council for many years and organised ARP precautions within the village. She campaigned vigorously against the payment of tithes to the church and was in opposition to the Vicar of Haughley the Rev W G White.

In 1943, leading London publishing house Faber & Faber published Balfour's book, The Living Soil (1943). Reprinted numerous times, it became a founding text of the emerging organic food and farming movement. The book synthesised existing arguments in favour of organics with a description of her plans for the Haughley Experiment. Reprinted nine times it became a classic text for the organic movement providing an influential synthesis of existing knowledge. It gave a persuasive account based on experiments in agriculture, botany, nutrition, and preventative medicine, and had far-reaching conclusions for agriculture and social policy. Following publication of The Living Soil and establishment of The Soil Association, Eve Balfour became one of organic farming's most important and determined campaigners. She had hoped that the government would provide support and funding for organic production, but the 1948 Agriculture Act committed Britain to a system of highly mechanized, intensive methods.

During the 1950s, she travelled to North America, Australia, New Zealand and many European countries, spreading the organic message and creating networks of supporters. She was also involved in the early days of the International Federation of Organic Agricultural Movements (IFOAM). In 1958, she embarked on a year-long tour of Australia and New Zealand, during which she met Australian organic farming pioneers, including Henry Shoobridge, president of the Living Soil Association of Tasmania, the first organisation to affiliate with the Soil Association.

Balfour continued to farm, write and lecture for the rest of her life. She is attributed with stating that, "Health can be as infectious as disease, growing and spreading under the right conditions".

Eve Balfour lived with Kathleen Carnley (1889-1976) for 50 years. Carnley joined Balfour at Haughley during the 1930s and was a skilful dairy worker. After the large farmhouse was rented out, they lived in a cottage at Haughley. Before Carnley, historians speculated about her relationship with Beryl Hearnden (1897–1978).

She moved to Theberton, near the Suffolk coast in 1963 and made regular visits back to the farm at Haughley. The farm was sold in 1970, owing to mounting debts incurred by the centre. In 1984, she retired from the Soil Association aged 85. She continued to cultivate her large garden. On 14 January 1990, she was appointed OBE in the 1990 New Year Honours list. In 1989, she suffered a stroke from which she died in Scotland, aged 90, on 16 January 1990. On 17 January 1990, the day after her death, the Conservative Government, under Margaret Thatcher, offered grants to encourage British farmers to change to organic methods.

Towards a Sustainable Agriculture: The Living Soil by Lady Eve Balfour
This classic text on the organic movement is an address given by the late Lady Eve Balfour, author of the organics classic "The Living Soil and the Haughley Experiment", to an IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements) conference in Switzerland in 1977.

http://www.ladyevebalfour.org/ .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Eve_Balfour .

http://thebertonandeastbridge.onesuffolk.net/history/history/lady-eve-balfour/ .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associated_Country_Women_of_the_World .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louise_Howard .

http://soilandhealth.org/copyrighted-book/the-living-soil/ .

https://www.soilandhealth.org/wp-content/uploads/01aglibrary/010116Balfourspeech.html .

2007 Lady Eve Balfour Memorial Lecture " What Will We Eat When the Oil Runs Out?" > .

Sunday, January 27, 2019

BRE - British Royal Engineers

History of the Corps of Royal Engineers > .

Royal Engineers - Battle of Messines - June 7-14, 1917 > .

23-7-22 Trench Warfare; History, Tactics - U24 > .

History of the Royal Engineers - Unraveling > .

Road to Victory - Royal Engineers in WW1 > .

Tunnelers of WW1 > .

WW1 Underground Tunnels - Worst Place To Fight? - HiHi > .

Tunnel Warfare During World War 1 | tgw > .

Messines Ridge - 1917-6-7 - Blast that Obliterated 10,000 Germans - Dark > .

Lochnager Crater - 1916-7-1, Battle of the Somme - Destinations > .

Royal Engineers Bridge Building (1915-1916) - Pathé > .

Royal Engineers (1915) - Pathé > .

Man Behind The Bailey Bridge (1945) - Pathé > .

Bailey Bridge - bridge design that helped win WW2 - Vox > .

Combat Engineers of D-Day - WW2 > .

Royal Engineers WW1 - BeGe >> .

Royal Engineers WW2 - BeGe >> .

Royal Flying Corps - Royal Engineers WW1 - BeGe >> .

US Combat Engineers

Army Then and Now | Combat Engineers - US Army > .

Combat Engineers of D-Day - WW2 > .

British Royal Engineers
Explosives WW1 ..

http://www.wartimememoriesproject.com/ww2/allied/royalengineers.php

The war of 1914-1918 relied on engineering. Without engineers there would have been no supply to the armies, because the RE's maintained the railways, roads, water supply, bridges and transport. RE's also operated the railways and inland waterways. There would have been no communications, because the RE's maintained the telephones, wireless and other signalling equipment. There would have been little cover for the infantry and no positions for the artillery, because the RE's designed and built the front-line fortifications. It fell to the technically skilled RE's to develop responses to chemical and underground warfare. And finally, without the RE's the infantry and artillery would have soon been powerless, as they maintained the guns and other weapons. Little wonder that the Royal Engineers grew into a large and complex organisation.

The Battle of Messines (7–14 June 1917) was an attack by the British Second Army (General Sir Herbert Plumer), on the Western Front, near the village of Messines (now Mesen) in West Flanders, Belgium, during the First World War.

The battle began with the detonation of 19 mines beneath the German front position, which devastated it and left 19 large craters. A creeping barrage, 700 yd (640 m) deep began and protected the British troops as they secured the ridge with support from tanks, cavalry patrols and aircraft. The effect of the British mines, barrages and bombardments was improved by advances in artillery survey, flash spotting and centralised control of artillery from the Second Army headquarters. British attacks from 8 to 14 June advanced the front line beyond the former German Sehnenstellung (Chord Position, the Oosttaverne Line to the British). The battle was a prelude to the much larger Third Battle of Ypres, the preliminary bombardment for which began on 11 July 1917.

Manpower: how big was the RE?

On 1 August 1914, the RE consisted of 1056 officers and 10394 men of the regular army and Special Reserve, plus another 513 and 13127 respectively serving with the RE of the Territorial Force. By the same date in 1917, it had grown to a total manpower of 295668. In other words, it was twelve times bigger than the peacetime establishment.

The Royal Engineers in 1914

The officers and men mentioned above in 1914 manned 26 coastal defence Fortress Companies (of which 15 were overseas); 15 Field Companies (2); 7 Signal Companies (1); 3 Survey Companies, 2 Railway Companies; 2 Cable and Airline (signalling) Companies and miscellaneous other units. There were also 9 Depot Companies carrying out training and administrative duties, as well as various Schools. The detailed sections below describe how these numbers and types of unit expanded during the war.
http://www.1914-1918.net/cre.htm

The Fortress Companies
http://www.1914-1918.net/re_fortress.htm
The Field and Signals Companies
http://www.1914-1918.net/re.htm
The Field Survey Companies
http://www.1914-1918.net/re_survey.htm
The Special Companies (poison gas)
http://www.1914-1918.net/specialcoyre.htm
The Tunnelling Companies
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunnelling_companies_of_the_Royal_Engineers .
http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/zggykqt .
The Railway Construction Companies

http://www.1914-1918.net/re_rlwy_cos.htm
The Light Railway Companies
http://www.1914-1918.net/lightrail.htm
The Trench Tramway Companies
http://www.1914-1918.net/what_tramway_RE.html
The Inland Waterways and Docks Companies
http://www.1914-1918.net/iwd.htm
Other RE units
http://www.1914-1918.net/otherre.htm
The RE depots and training units at home
http://www.1914-1918.net/RE_ukbasedepots.html

The extraordinary sophistication of military railways in the Great War. At Richborough in Kent, a whole new port was built to expand Cross-Channel supply shipping capacity. Among its features was what we we today call a "roll-on, roll-off" ferry - for railway trains. Among the many tons moved from Richborough were complete trains carrying tanks, direct from the factories to the British army in France.

The contribution to the war effort, especially on the Western Front, of the designated Railway Construction Companies of the Royal Engineers is largely overlooked and/or not researched in most accounts of the conflict. Given the fact that the earliest troop movements gave rise to the phrase "war by timetable" and that the railway was the primary means of movement of men, munitions and supplies, the important if unglamorous role of this military function cannot be underestimated.

The RE railway construction and maintenance troops RE in 1914

In August 1914, there were only two Regular and three Special Reserve RE Railway Companies. Their establishments were as follows
.......

After the realisation that the war would not be over by Christmas, the British Army set in motion plans to expand upon the remaining rail network still in Allied hands in France and Flanders. The 8th Railway Companyy landed in France in August 1914 and the 10th and two Special Reserve Companies in November of that year. The third Special Reserve Company landed in February 1915. It was soon seen that these units would not suffice for probable requirements and the Director of Railway Transport was instructed to organise additional Railway Construction units. In October 1914, the Railway Executive Committee in England formed a Sub-Committee for Recruiting. Very large numbers of the employees of British railway companies were then volunteering for military service and the men for RE Railway units were selected from them. By the end of 1917, out of 180,000 enlistments from English railway companies, about 40,000 were serving in RE Railway units.

Training the RE troops

The HQ of the regular railway troops before the war was at Longmoor in Hampshire and the Special Reserve Companies came there annually for training using the specialised Woolmer Instructional Military Railway. During the war, Longmoor, and subsequently part of Bordon, became the centre for all RE railway and road personnel and at one time also for Inland Water Transport personnel. From the outbreak of the war until the armistice, nearly 1,700 officers and 66,000 other ranks were sent overseas from this centre.

The source of railway troops

Approximately half the officers for the new units were provided by the British railway companies on the recommendation of the Railway Executive Committee and the other half were mainly men from overseas who had been employed on colonial and foreign railways. Some of the Companies formed in 1915 drew upon a large contingent of local men, forming the kind of unit seen in the infantry as "Pal’s Battalions". However, as time wore on and with the major transport logistical re-structuring of 1917, the local flavour would become diluted as men were swapped around and experienced men from other army units were combed out to swell the ranks of the Railway Companies.

Railway construction

Once in France, the sappers would be assigned to a Construction Train, of which there were eight in operation in mid-1915. Each Construction Train would have a complement of up to two complete Railway Companies, with a Captain as officer commanding the train. This enabled the sappers to carry both themselves and all their necessary tools and equipment to and from wherever the next work was required. The Companies would pitch tents for accommodation, as required. Large-scale work would include the construction of the major stores and ammunition dump at Audruicq, ten miles from Calais. Here, and at numerous other locations such as the nearby major ammunition dump at Zeneghem Yard, there was great use of Chinese Labour and R.E. Labour Companies to prepare the ground, ready for the platelaying sappers.

Immense undertaking

As the various campaigns and battles unfolded, RE Railway Companies were engaged all over the British sector, joined by Dominion RE Railway Companies. Close examination of the period maps bear testimony to miles of what was to be temporary track that criss-crossed the area. Howitzer Spurs, Ambulance Train Sidings, Tank Enablements and bridges were all constructed, in addition to the constant maintenance and line doubling. Work in progress was always a potential target for enemy artillery and also there were the attentions of the German Air Force to contend with. Zeneghem Yard, for instance, was a natural target and sappers from RE Railway Companies are recorded as having to help extinguish serious fires resulting from air raids.

A primary objective was always to take standard gauge railways as close to the front as possible, to lessen the demands on light railway systems, horsed transport and manpower. For the sappers, work could mean toiling around the clock, especially where lines had been cut by shellfire. Inevitably there were casualties; analysis of the records shows that 173 men from Railway Companies lost their lives. From just the two Regular Companies in 1914, there would be a total of forty-five Companies engaged in Standard Gauge Railway Construction, including other theatres such as Egypt and Salonica, by the end of hostilities. Most of the men in the RE Railway Companies had enlisted for the duration of the war and were naturally keen to return home as soon as possible. However, there was still much line repair work to be done in order to restore the lines of communication now extending deeper into the areas formerly held by the Germans. The Railway Companies gradually began to be demobilised and by August 1919 the last Company had laid its last sleeper.

The RE also raised Railway Operating Companies and Railway Workshop Companies.

The Royal Engineers Labour Battalions

The RE raised 11 Labour Battalions consisting of navvies, tradesmen and semi-skilled men who could be released from munitions production work, for use in construction of rear lines of defence and other works. The first of these units began to arrive in France in August 1915. 30th Labour Battalion RE was allotted permanently to transport work; it was eventually converted into three of the railway construction companies and one wagon erecting company.
http://www.1914-1918.net/re_rlwy_cos.htm

Royal Engineers Museum > .

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=ww1+royal+engineers

WW1 - British Royal Engineers & tunnelers

Tunnel Warfare - WW1 > .

Peter Barton: Was the tunnellers' secret war the most barbaric of WW1? > .

http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/zggykqt

The Tunnelling Companies
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunnelling_companies_of_the_Royal_Engineers
http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/zggykqt

Explosives - WW1 Uncut - BBC > .

The Somme Secret Tunnel Wars BBC full documentary 2013 > .

WWI - Mining Activity On the British Front 220737-02
WWI - Mining Activity On the British Front]
Intertitle: “A party of tunnellers with stores & explosives are taken to an advanced post near the firing line in motor lorries.” Soldiers loading two trucks w/ cases / boxes & planks & wood for cribbing. Troops board trucks & leave. Men out of trucks at destination & wave to camera as they march past. Unload & carry crates.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=4s
1 “Entering the communication trenches.” Soldiers carrying crates singly & two w/ a pole down into trench.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=1m34s
2 “At the shaft head. A man equipped w/ oxygen
apparatus reports...no danger from gas...” He climbs out of shaft wearing breathing equipment.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=1m54s
3 “Looking up the incline shaft from. Men descending w/ material.” Men come down; others entering w/ equipment & w/ timbers. Inside shaft, men fill sacks; passing them up. Moving timbers in for cribbing.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=2m14s
3b Picking and timbering at the gallery face.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=3m5s
4 “An officer listening underground to the sound of German countermining. An order is given to commence charging the mine.” Cases of explosives are handed down; lowered on winch & carried along tunnel. Sacks put down to prevent back blast. Men leave mine, CU connecting detonator in open trench.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=3m24s
4b Preparing the changer and laying the charge of explosives
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=3m53s
4c Tamping or stemming the charge with earth-filled sacks to prevent back blast
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=4m5s
4d Work finished, the officer orders all the men out of the mines
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=4m16s
4e Testing the circuit and connecting the electric leads
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=4m37s
4f Connecting the exploder
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=4m43s
5 “Before the explosion the infantry take cover in a neighbouring crater on the Hohenzollern Redoubt.” Soldiers w/ rifles hurry down hillside.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=5m12s
5b Officer checks watch; pushes plunger.
https://youtu.be/w-1XBaEcRtg?t=5m20s
5c huge explosion under German trenches w/ barbed wire in FG. Secondary explosions.
6 Infantry, some Scottish in kilts run across open ground. Troops in trenches setting up machine gun, pan around barren landscape.
7 CU as bullets fed thru machine gun. GOOD. Pan round barren deeply cratered landscape w/ soldiers inspecting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-1XBaEcRtg

Meet the man with a WW1 trench in his back garden
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IitKjI4NA_g

World War 1 in Color
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgeJ6bGP6EDlgg1EB1_CDrvvUdcI2mjsr

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=ww1+royal+engineers

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB2vhKMBjSxMU2-UiexaQ_pwpxxgQUdat

Evolution of the British Infantry during World War 1 I THE GREAT WAR Special > .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVs1F3x3eOs

WWI videos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVs1F3x3eOs

Technology and Warfare in World War 1 - tgw >> .

BRE - Western Front, WW1 > .

Royal Canadian Engineers - mining ore in Britain - Newsreel - 1943 > .
Newsreels (Canadian Army) WW2 >> .

The Corps of Royal Canadian Engineers expanded dramatically in size to support Canada's war effort. On August 31, 1939, the Permanent Force engineers included 50 officers (with 14 seconded to other branches of the Canadian Army) and 323 other ranks; the maximum size of the Corps was reached in 1944, when it included 210 officers and 6283 other ranks.

In keeping with British Army practice, company-sized units in the two armoured divisions were called "squadrons" following cavalry terminology. Units were deployed in Canada and Europe.

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Industrial Targets - Britain

Germany: Map of The Occupation Areas. Carte der Besatzungs - Zonen, 1945 ➣

German documents prepared for Operation Sea Lion, the planned Nazi invasion of England and Wales

In preparing to invade Britain, the German military preparations included the production of a series of military/geographica l assessments, showing what might be found by those arriving. This material was also used in a military evaluation of the regions of the British Isles, and considered each from the viewpoint of invasion. The full assessment for England and Wales consists of eleven A4 sized folders (numbered 1 to 12, folder 5 was never issued as there was no Sheet 5 in this Ordnance Survey quarter-inch series, hence no German folder). Each contains large scale town plans marked with strategic locations, a book of photographs and a quarter-inch map of the area, each folder titled “Militärgeographisch e Einzelangaben über England” (Maps of England showing features of military significance) and “Militärgeographisch e Objektkarten mit Objektbildern” (Maps of military installations with photographs.” Also there are three thick A5 sized folders containing books and maps: Folder A : England and Wales, on a regional basis with numerous photographs and maps; Folder B : London, photographs and maps; and Folder C : Books of coastal photographs to help with selecting invasion beaches. In addition, there is material on the planned invasion of Ireland - Operation Green (Unternehmen Grün). There are 144 six-inch town maps marked with strategic locations, and almost 1500 black and white photographs. The maps are copies of Ordnance Survey maps, with overprints highlighting sites which the Germans would have considered targets in any invasion. Most maps and books are headed: “Nur für den Dienstgebrauch!” (For Official use only.) The maps were arranged in groups, based on the Ordnance Survey Quarter-inch Fourth Edition sheet lines. Thus, each numbered folder has a quarter-inch map of the area, a book of photographs and large scale plans of significant towns. The quarter-inch (1:250,000) maps use an extensive list of purple symbols for industrial sites (e.g. chemicals, waterworks, textiles, electricity) and red symbols for strategic sites (e.g. hospitals, airfields, radio stations, barracks). The large scale plans are usually 1:10,000 scale (metric six-inch), and again are an Ordnance Survey base map with coloured symbols showing sites of military significance such as airports, railway workshops, docks, bridges. Such sites are often illustrated in the book of photographs, the captions of which give a map location for each site, and each mapped site gives the book illustration number. The town maps are printed in brown (rather than black), with blue water. The various coloured symbols stand out clearly, are easily seen and are quite striking. The delicate black bridge symbols are especially noticeable and numerous, as are the red boundaries of railway stations and goods yards. Basically, for each town these maps show all locations that the Germans thought to be strategically important. All folders were issued in 1940, 1941 or 1942. (Text from David Archer's excellent description of the collection, modified).

Great Britain
World War II
Industry
Full Title: Ubersicht uber die Industriegebiete von England. Ausgabe 1940. Gen. St. d. H. Abt. fur Kriegskarten u. Vermessungswesen.

Publication Author:
Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) (Nazi German Supreme Command of the Armed Forces)
Pub Date: 1940
Pub Title: Unternehmen Seelöwe (Operation Sea Lion - the Original Nazi German Plan for the Invasion of Great Britain).
Pub Reference:
Operation Sea Lion (Unternehmen Seelöwe) Terms from Map Legends German – English Translation: Abwasserwerk – Sewage Plant; Akkumulatoren – Storage Batteries or Boilers; Alkali-Werk – Alkali Plant; Alte Befestigungsanlage – Old Fortification; Apparate – Appliances; Asbest – Asbestos; Backerei – Bakery; Bahnhofsanlagen – Railway Station Facilities; Batterienfabrik – Battery Factory; Baumwollweberei – Cotton Weaving; Befestigungsanlage – Fortification; Bekleidung – Clothing; Benzinwerk – Oil Refinery; Bereifung – Tires Station; Beschlaege – Fittings; Betriebsstoff – Fuel; Bier – Beer; Blech – Sheet Metal; Braunkohlenbergbau – Lignite Coal Mining; Brikett – Briquettes; Brikettfabrik – Briquette Factory; Chemie – Chemistry; Chemische Fabik – Chemical Factory; Chemische Farben – Chemical Dyes; Chemisches Werk – Chemical Plant; Dampfelektrizitaetsw erk – Steam Power Plant; Draeht – Wire; Draehte – Wires; Eisenbahnbruecke – Railway Bridge; Eisenbahnwerkstaette n – Railway Workshops; Eisengiesserei – Iron Foundry; Eisenhuette – Iron Foundry; Eisenindustrie – Metallurgy; Eisenwalzwerk – Metal Rolling Mill; Elektromaschinen – Electrical Machinery; Elektrotechnik – Electrical Engineering; Elemente – Elements; Erdbehalter – Water Reservoir; Erden – Earth; Erden – Earth; Erzbergbau – Ore Mining; Fahrraeder – Bicycles; Fahrzeuge – Vehicles; Farben – Colors; Farbenfabrik – Paint Factory; Feinchemikalien – Fine Chemicals; Feinmechanik – Precision Engineering; Feldflugplatz – Air Field; Fisch – Fish; Fleischwaren – Meat Products; Fliegerhorst – Military Airport; Flugenplatz – Air Field; Flugplatz – Airport; Flugzeuge – Aircraft; Friedensflugplatz – Airfield of Peace; Funkstelle – Radio Station; Fussgaengerbruecke – Foot Bridge, Pedestrian Bridge; Futterspeicher – Feed Storage; Gas – Gas; Gaswerk, Gasanstalt – Gas Works; Gebrauchsfette – Cooking Oils; Gemischtes Electrizitaetswerk – Power Plant ; Gestuet – Horse Farm; Getreidesilo – Grain Elevator; Gewehrfabrik – Gun Factory; Glas – Glass; Glasfabrik – Glass Factory; Gluehlampen – Light Bulbs; Gummi – Rubber; Gummiwaren – Rubber Products; Hafenanlagen – Port Facilities; Heeresfunkstelle – Army Radio Station; Heilmittel – Medical Supplies; Hochbehalter – Water Settling Tank; Holzbearbeitung – Wood Working; Holzindustrie – Timber Industry; Holzwaren –Wood Products; Kabel – Cables; Kabelwerk – Cable Factory; Kalk – Lime; Kalkwerk – Lime Factory; Kampfgasfabrik – Poison Gas Factory; Kartoffeln – Potatoes; Kaserne – Barracks; Keramik – Ceramics; Kessel – Boilers; Kesselbauanstalt – Boiler Manufacturer; Klaeranlage – Sewage Treatment Plant; Klaeranlagen – Sewage Treatment Plants; Kleineisen – Small Iron Pieces; Kohlenlager – Coal Depot; Kohleverarbeitung – Coal Processing; Kokerei – Coke Factory; Koks – Coke; Konserven – Cannery; Kraftfahrzeuge – Motor Vehicles; Krankenhaus – Hospital; Kuehlhaus – Cold Storage Facility; Kulturdenkmaeler – Cultural Monument; Kulturdenkmal – Cultural Monument; Kunstleder – Leatherette; Kunstlederfabrik – Synthetic Leather Factory; Kunstsammlung – Art Collection; Lagerhaus – Warehouse; Lazarett – Field Hospital; Leder – Leather; Lederhandschuhe – Leather Gloves; Lederindustrie – Leather Industry; Linoleumfabrik – Linoleum Factory; Machinen – Machinery; Maschinenfabrik – Machinery Factory; Metallhuette – Metal Plant; Mineralien – Minerals; Moertelwerk – Cement Factory; Molkerei – Dairy; Molkereiwaren – Dairy Products; Muehle – Mill; Muna – Ammunition Depot; Munitionsanstalt – Ammunition Depot; Munitionslager – Ammunition Depot; Musikinstrumente – Musical Instruments; Nahrungsmittel – Food; Naturdenkmal – Natural Monument; NE-Metalle – Non-ferrous Metals; Nebenmuna – Satellite Ammunition Depot; Oeldestillation – Oil Distillation; Optik – Optical Products; Papier – Paper; Papierfabrik – Paper Mill; Papierindustrie – Paper Industry; Papierwaren – Stationary; Pferdestallung – Horse Stables; Postamt – Post Office; Pulverfabrik – Gun Powder Factory; Rohrenfabrik – Pipe Factory; Rundfunksender – Radio Transmitter; Saegegemuhle – Sawmill; Saegewerk – Sawmill; Schiffe – Ships; Schlachthof – Slaughterhouse; Schloesser – Locks; Schmelzerei – Smelter; Schuhwaren – Footware; Schusswaffen – Firearms; Schwerchemikalien – Heavy Chemicals; Sonstige Wirtschaftsanlage – Food Facilities; Speisefette – Edible Fats; Spielzeuge – Toys; Spinnerei – Spinning Mill; Spirituosen – Spirits; Sprengstoff – Explosives; Stahlgiesserei – Steel Foundry; Steine – Stones; Steinkohlenbergbau – Coal Mining; Steinkohlengrube – Coal Mine; Strassenbruecke – Street Bridge; Talsperre (Mauer) – Dam (Wall); Tanklager – Fuel Storage, Tank Farm; Teerfabrik – Tar; Textdruck – Printing Factory; Textilindustrie – Textile Industry; Textilwaren – Textiles; Textilwarenfabrik – Textile Factory; Tongrube – Clay Pit; Trinkwasser – Drinking Water; Truppenlager – Troop Camp; Umspannwerk – Electric Power Substation; Waggonfabrik – Rail Car Factory; Waggons – Rail Cars; Walzwerk – Sheet Metal Factory; Wasserelektrizitaets werk – Hydroelectric Plant; Wassererdbehaelter – Water Reservoir; Wasserwerk – Water Plant; Weberei – Weaving; Werkzeug – Tools; Werkzeugfabrik – Tool Factory; Zement – Cement; Ziegelei – Brick Factory; Zivile Funkstelle – Civilian Radio Station; Zucker – Sugar;

Pub Note:
A set of German documents prepared for Operation Sea Lion, the planned Nazi invasion of England and Wales. (See Pub List No 7807.000 through 7811.000). Materials are 11 A4 sized folders, each containing maps and a book of photographs including 144 town maps and 1500 photographs. Set also has three thick A5 sized folders containing books with photographs, drawings and maps: Folder A: England and Wales; Folder B: London; Folder C: Coasts. Convinced the British would capitulate without a fight, Hitler waffled on invading Great Britain. As a result, he did not order adequate preparation for an invasion in 1940. Regardless, the British were not about to surrender and immense problems faced the Germans including: failed strategies in the Battle of Britain which left the Royal Air Force as a major force, a lack of seaworthy transports, limited intelligence about Great Britain, an inferior navy compared to the British, and a lengthy Channel passage of 200 miles (verses 40 miles for the Allies in 1944). As time passed after Dunkirk, the British took significant measures to counter invasion including: organizing and arming the Home Guard including countrywide round-the-clock surveillance, rearming and re-equipping the regular troops evacuated from Dunkirk, and developing of a resolute population. After the Germans were unable to meet invasion target dates in Fall, 1940, their preparation improved; however, so did the British capabilities to resist. No invasion was ever launched as the Nazis became preoccupied with fighting Russia and around the Mediterranean. Author Peter Fleming, in Operation Sea Lion, concludes that the best possibility for a successful invasion would have been shortly after Dunkirk, something the Germans had no plan to do. Fleming’s entertaining 1957 book lays out a myriad of misconceptions, hare-brained schemes, problems, and rumors which bedeviled both the Germans and the British. See also materials on the plan to invade Ireland, Operation Green.

'Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) (Nazi German Supreme Command of the Armed Forces)'

Search Results: All Fields equal to 'Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) (Nazi German Supreme Command of the Armed Forces)' - David Rumsey Historical Map Collection

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Survey of the Industrial Areas of England, 1940. - David Rumsey Historical Map Collection

Thursday, October 25, 2018

DfV - Dig for Victory

Making a Compost Heap > .

07:40 Fertilizer & Insecticides

Why Moderns Should Care About Victory Gardens - occ > .

Compost heap > .

50s House & Garden - Spark > .

>> Homefront WW2 >>>

Compost, soil, vermiculture - tb >> .
Dig for Victory, England WW2 - Γαῖα >> .

Farming & Food - tb >> .

Home Front - Elice >> .

The 1940s House - Elice >> .

The 40s House - IWM >> .

The Dig for Victory Show - ShoplandCollection >> .

The Growing Revolution (Dig for Victory) - LOVE IT >> .

Victory Garden - USA, WW3 - Γαῖα >> .

Wartime, Subsistence Cooking - Elice >> .

Wartime Farm - Absolute History >> .

Wartime Farm, Kitchen & Garden (full) - archanth >> .

Wartime Kitchen, Garden, Farm - Elice >> .

MAF - Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries ..
MoF - Ministry of Food ..

Dig for Victory leaflets (image, large) .

Dig for Victory Monthly Guides .

Dig for Victory

In Britain, "digging for victory" used much land such as waste ground, railway edges, ornamental gardens and lawns, while sports fields and golf courses were requisitioned for farming or vegetable growing.

Sometimes a sports field was left as it was but used for sheep-grazing instead of being mown (for example see Lawrence Sheriff School § Effects of the Second World War).

By 1943, the number of allotments had roughly doubled to 1,400,000, including rural, urban and suburban plots.

C. H. Middleton's radio programme In Your Garden reached millions of listeners keen for advice on growing potatoes, leeks and the like, and helped ensure a communal sense of contributing to the war effort (as well as a practical response to food rationing).

County Herb Committees were established to collect medicinal herbs when German blockades created shortages, for instance in Digitalis purpurea (Foxglove) which was used to regulate heartbeat.

Victory gardens were planted in backyards and on apartment-building rooftops, with the occasional vacant lot "commandeered for the war effort!" and put to use as a cornfield or a squash patch.

During World War II, sections of lawn were publicly plowed for plots in Hyde Park, London to promote the movement, while allotments growing onions in the shadow of the Albert Memorial also pointed to everybody, high and low, chipping in to the national struggle.

Both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle had vegetable gardens planted at the instigation of King George VI to assist with food production.

Victory garden - Wikipedia