Voices from Civil Defence Region 1: Northern (Newcastle HQ)

Peter Ciuffetti

23 May 2022

7 items

Aftermath of Bombing: Open criticism of the conduct of the War is heard, although it is felt that the troops are not to blame, the responsibility being that of the higher ranks. Regional Commissioner, Northern Civil Defence Region, 1942 [...] Evacuation: While the carrying out of evacuation has been, in general, a great success, there were several matters which have caused offence and the authorities were not slow to express them. Senior Regional Officer, Northern Civil Defence Region, 1939 [...] Home Guard: April 1940 found a world shaken to its foundations by the hordes of goose-stepping Prussions, and Britain threatened, as perhaps she had never been in her long history. A Short History of the 2nd. Durham Home Guard, 1945 [...] Rationing: Lost Ration Books – the Ministry of Food has recently announced that a fee of 1/. will now be payable in respect of the replacement of a lost or replaced Ration Book and a fee of 10/6. Durham Food Control Committee Minutes, 1940 [...] Shelter Life: The realisation that in moments of pandemonium, the human mind well nigh ceases to act, or in any case, the transmission of directions from one to the other, is made difficult, and at its weakest link, would break down. Chief Constable and A.R.P.O, City & County of Newcastle upon Tyne, 1939 [...] Women's Land Army: The Secretary continued by saying it still seemed far too easy for girls to obtain doctor’s certificates. Several volunteers had been bombed out of their homes and that a crate of bundles had been received from America. Women's Land Army Durham County Committee Minutes, 1943