‘It is him!’ exclaimed Hawke. ‘It has to be!’
They were all laughing and cheering now, Hawke frantically waving the scarf as Jackson hurtled past once more, then rolled the Spitfire and after righting himself waggled his wings and sped on his way.
‘Look at that,’ sighed Hebden. ‘A victory roll. Good old Jackson.’ He sighed, then said, ‘After all that excitement, I’m going to sit down again, I think.’
‘Me too,’ said Drummond.
Hawke turned to Spears, but the sergeant was gazing out to sea, and so he waited a moment.
‘Sid told me what you did,’ said Spears at length. ‘Last night, I mean.’
Hawke looked down. ‘Oh, well, I just suddenly felt a bit angry.’
Spears smiled. ‘I’m glad you did. Thank you.’
‘If it weren’t for you, Sarge …’
‘Tom,’ he said. ‘You can call me Tom. It’s all right.’
Hawke swallowed, a flood of emotion welling up deep within him.
‘I’m sorry,’ Spears added. ‘I’ve been hard on you. Too hard, perhaps. But, you see, Johnny, Maddie asked me to look after you, to keep you safe. I was angry because I didn’t think I would be able to. It’s the youngsters who always get killed first – they don’t have the experience, the sixth sense.’
‘And you thought she would blame you if anything happened to me?’
Spears nodded.
‘She wouldn’t. I know she wouldn’t.’
‘She would have done, Johnny. She might not have admitted it, but deep down she would have done.’ He turned to face him. ‘I love your sister very much, Johnny, and I couldn’t bear the thought of anything coming between us.’
‘You mean me.’
‘Yes.’
They were silent a moment, and then Spears said, ‘But you’ve done well, Johnny. I’m proud of you. And so would your father be, if he could see you now. But promise me one thing?’
‘What?’
‘Don’t feel you’ve got anything left to prove. God only knows how long this war will last. Just try your best to get through it.’
Hawke nodded. ‘All right, Tom.’
Spears smiled again, and then patted Hawke on the back. ‘Look,’ he said, pointing towards the coast. The cliffs could be clearly seen, while, above, another squadron of fighter aircraft flew over. ‘Nearly home,’ he added.
Hawke nodded and grinned. ‘Nearly home at last.’
HISTORICAL NOTE
This book is a novel and entirely fiction, but it is based on very real events that took place in May and early June 1940. The BEF was forced back by the collapse of the French and Belgian forces either side of their part of the front, but because the Germans had simultaneously attacked in the north through Holland and Belgium, and across the River Meuse to the south-east in France, the BEF, plus a large number of French and Belgians, soon found themselves almost completely encircled. The problem for the British was that they had never planned on having to defend themselves at the same time to the north and south, which was why General Gort decided to establish ‘strongpoints’ such as Cassel, in the process sacrificing the troops holding them, but gaining crucial time for the rest of his men to fall back behind them to the coast at Dunkirk. Thanks to men such as those of Somer Force, the plan largely worked.
Brigadier Somerset was a real person and so were all the units named in this book – with the exception of the Yorks Rangers, who are, I’m afraid, made up. Dead Horse Corner is still there, part of Rue du Maréchal Foch, and is the first turning into town after the cemetery (where some of the defenders of 1940 are buried). Despite the battering Cassel received, it has since been rebuilt and is a very pretty and charming place to visit, with cobbled streets, beautiful buildings, and, of course, commanding views. It is still possible to stand by the windmill on Mount Cassel and on a clear day see a hundred villages dotted around the Flanders plain below. The Battalion HQ of the Yorks Rangers is also a real building, as is the Châtellerie de Schoebeque and most of the other buildings mentioned in the novel. It is also possible to walk down narrow alleyways from Grand Place and on to the ramparts. From there, Bavinchove, Zuytpeene and Oxelaëre can all be clearly seen.
The fighting took place much as described, including several German panzers getting very close to the town and even down one of the streets. The defenders never surrendered and it is one of the great tragedies that the order commanding Somerset to pull out on 28 May did not reach him until the following morning.
As it was, most of those who had defended so gallantly were caught out in the open or surrounded in the many woods that cover the Flanders countryside around Cassel. Brigadier Somerset spent the rest of the war in a German prison camp, as did most of those who had defended the town. Just a handful managed to make their way back to Dunkirk and survive to fight another day.
The meeting between British and French commanders to discuss the defence of Dunkirk described in the book also really did take place in Cassel on that morning of 27 May, and it says much about the muddled thinking between both Allies that such a discussion could have taken place in a town that was right at the front line. The truth is that while the French were all at sea with their strategy and tactics, it was lack of communication that contributed more than any other factor to their defeat. No one had anticipated the roads becoming quite so clogged with traffic and refugees, but there was also a terrible shortage of radios among the British and French, which meant that orders were constantly being lost or delayed, or completely out of date by the time they reached their recipient. It was not a problem faced by the Germans, whose communications were superb.
When the evacuation of Dunkirk began, Operation DYNAMO – as the evacuation was code-named – was expected to bring back around 40,000 troops at best. In the end, all fit and able British troops were lifted and, with a number of French soldiers too, accounted for some 338,226 that were safely ferried across the Channel. Although those on the beaches could rarely see the air fighting going on overhead, the RAF played a crucial role in ensuring the success of the evacuation. Squadrons such as those of Archie Jackson were part of RAF Fighter Command, who would later in the summer defend the country in the Battle of Britain, and they flew many missions over the French coast and the Channel. Although their losses were significant, they were not as high as those of the Luftwaffe.
The kit used was also much as written about in the book, and if anyone is interested they can see pictures and descriptions of it if they go to: www.dutycallsbooks.com
James Holland
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I have a couple of thanks I’d like to make. First, to the boys of Forest Hill School, who told Puffin they would like a book about ordinary soldiers caught up in the Second World War, and second, Shannon Park, Samantha Mackintosh and all the gang at Puffin for all their help, input and enthusiasm. Thank you.
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