Ruby's Memoirs

Part 8 - Outbreak of War

This country by now was slowly pulling round from the depression, the abdication had come and gone and England was once more united under George VI, Queen Elizabeth and their family. All rallied round and welcomed the truly Royal Family with their quiet way of living after the Ruritanian antics of Edward VIII as he would have been named but for his abdication. There was still the coal miners to deal with and the closing of many shipyards only made more men out of work with their starving families. I remember the Marchers from Jarrow who marched to London to tell Parliament of their hardships. At each big town they passed through they were given food and rest at the Town Hall before they left. St Albans was one of these, I believe it was their last before London, and I have never seen such a line of men worn out, with clothes in rags, boots tied onto their feet with string and so thin it was pathetic. How they had come all that way I don't know. I don't think the actual visit to London did them any good but certainly the charitable organisations got very busy and there always seemed to be somebody raising money for the Jarrow Marchers. As well as this it did do a lot to make people think of these unfortunate souls who were victims of the political system. I have often wondered what would have happened had there been no war. As it was the storm clouds of war did not disperse, Mussolini of Italy had joined with Hitler, Russia had fallen out with Hitler over Poland. Everyone seemed to be watching each other but no one moved.

The United Kingdom had by now formed a National Government with Ramsey MacDonald and Baldwin. Churchill was now the elected member for Epping, so had a say, but there was so much wheeling and dealing over our currency as of course we were broke, war was not on the agenda. Roosevelt had become President of America and promised them a ‘New Deal’ in which he succeeded, to America's everlasting thanks. In 1935 Mussolini attacked Abyssinia, an unprovoked attack if ever there was one, and as it was tanks against rifles the outcome was obvious. This reminded us of our position, we had no defences except the narrow stretch of water between us and the continent, so factories started up again and the wheels of manufacture began to turn more quickly, a more normal life resumed.

In 1939 Chamberlain who had taken Baldwin's place as Prime Minister went to negotiate a peace pact with Hitler, returned with the famous piece of paper Peace in our Time, not long after that Hitler marched into Poland.

My own life at this time was in tatters. I had separated from my husband and gone to live in a little village in the more rural part of Hertfordshire. Here all was calm and I lived a very quiet life working at the farm and helping with riding stables. Many farm workers had found different jobs in the factories or joined the army or navy into which they were welcomed as recruiting had started. The United Kingdom, her Allies France and Belgium, at last realised war was imminent. The Governments could no longer trust Hitler as his treatment of Poland was similar to that of the Jews and as they were under our protection by treaty we had to declare war on Germany on September 3rd. 1939. France and Belgium followed quickly, and so the Second World War began.

Ruby Bullock

• to be continued.