In this episode of Courage And Valour, the veterans of the New Zealand Infantry Battalions talk frankly about the life of an infantry soldier in the front lines, and behind the lines, in WWII, both in Egypt and in Italy. This is a collection of memories, reminiscences and anecdotes from those men who were there at the sharp end. The detailed accounts after all these years are astounding, and the openness about life back then very refreshing.<\/p>\n
In this episode, in order of appearance, we hear:
\n– Pat Green (24 Battalion, Mortar Platoon)
\n– Ted ‘Bluey’ Homewood (21 Battalion)
\n– Don Adams (21 Battalion)
\n– Colin Murray (24 Battalion)
\n– Norm Harris (24 Battalion)
\n– Charlie Honeycombe (21 Battalion)
\n– Te Puhi Patara (28 Maori Battalion)
\n– Bob O\u2019Brien (24 Battalion)
\n– Harry Hopping (24 Battalion)
\n– Nolan Raihania (28 Maori Battalion)
\n– Aubrey Balzer (28 Maori Battalion)
\nand
\n– Ted Waters (21 Battalion)<\/p>\n
Listeners will note I chose not to add any bridging narration for this episode, because I felt it didn’t need it and it simply flows like one long conversation. Plus all the participants are known voices from previous episodes. For those wondering who is telling which story, here’s a handy guide<\/p>\n
00:01:31 – Pat – Getting into a Battalion<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:01.56 – Bluey – A day in the life of infantrymen at Maadi<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:05.03 – Don – Route marches and showers at Maadi, and l<\/span><\/span>eave into Cairo<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:06.19 – Bluey – Army teaching him self respect and more<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:07.00 – Colin – The Division being self sustaining<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:08.02 – Norm – Cook trucks<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:08.18 – Colin – Food<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:08.49 – Charlie – Don\u2019t eat German food<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:09.08 – Pat – Rations, cooking, stealing spuds<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:15.44 – Te Puhi – Food and wine<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:16.59 – Bluey – Old gear and bad tanks<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:20.07 – Norm – Trucks valued more highly then men<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:20.23 – Bob – One bloke letting him down<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:21.27 – Colin – Let down by a guy too<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:23.39 – Pat – Shorty\u2019s fear, and joking in the front line<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:27.35 – Colin and Bob – Fear, and moving forward against the enemy, short rounds<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:29.53 – Colin – Friendly fire<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:32.16 – Colin & Harry – Daytime attacks<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:32.38 – Pat – Getting chased across a big field by mortars<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:34.13 – Nolan – 12 Reinforcements baptism of fire <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:35.08 – Norm – Dealing with death and losses<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:35.51 – Aubrey – He and his brother Clarence wounded, and Mac killed<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:47.50 – Colin – Firepower of an infantry platoon<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:49.24 – Pat – Make up of Company structure<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:53.53 – Charlie – Seven man section <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:54.56 – Bluey – The big bed<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:55.49 – Norm – Sleep and pickets<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:56.30 – Pat – Left Out of Battle (LOB)<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 00:58.23 – Nolan – LOB through Purple Death<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:01.05 – Te Puhi – Freyberg and the \u201cWave out and they\u2019ll wave back\u201d story<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:02.19 – Charlie – German flame throwers at Orsogna<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:02.44 – Colin – Coming out of the lines for a rest <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:06.59 – Pat – Coming out to rest, washing, hitting the Sgt with a tomato<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:08.51 – Pat – Coming out of the line, MP argument<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:11.53 – Pat – Christmas Dinner at Forli<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:14.13 – Te Puhi – Rests and leave<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:15.20 – Don – Leave at NZ Club<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:16.47 – Colin & Harry – Kiwi Club, and Colin\u2019s haircut<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:19.09 – Don – Kiwi Concert Party<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:19.57 – Colin & Harry – Leave and rest<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:20.50 – Don – Italian opera<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:21.16 – Pat – Getting into Venice<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:26.42 – Ted – Leave in Venice<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:28.01 – Don – Dome on St Peter\u2019s Cathedral<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:29.06 – Colin & Harry – Religion and Padres <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:31.47 – Colin – Village sewerage, and the currency<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:32.37 – Colin – Italian civilians and their primitive lifestyle<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:35.52 – Don – Italian people<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:36.17 – Norm – Italian people<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:37.00 – Colin – Italian women<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:37.40 – Aubrey – Italians<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:38.53 – Norm and Pat – Coming in as a replacement<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:40.21 – Norm, Pat & Colin – Fred Haar<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:44.55 – Pat – Tracker Jones and his stint in a British Glasshouse<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:51.53 – Colin & Harry – Singing and music, and bond between comrades<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:54.00 – Pat – Singing<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:54.59 – Colin & Norm – Looting<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:56.24 – Don – Looting and rackets<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:57.01 – Te Puhi – Racket <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 01:58.42 – Ted – Stolen car racket<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 02:00.08 – Colin & Harry – Looting and rackets<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 02:08.09 – Pat – 2<\/span><\/span>nd<\/span><\/span><\/sup> Lt Sammy Reidpath taking the surrender of German Regt, and collecting Lugers<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 02:10.49 – Pat – Rimini hall with starry ceiling, bomb on Freyberg\u2019s HQ, <\/span><\/span> and mortar shelling the cemetery<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 02:18.09 – Pat – Visiting cemeteries<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 02:21.59 – Bluey – We got all the shit, but we loved it<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n END<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n