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The Army Life |
It was famously said by Napoleon that ‘an army marches on its stomach’ and the importance of decent food and regular pay emerges very strongly in these interview extracts. The somewhat primitive nature of accommodation and bedding in some of the barracks, generally grim 19th century edifices, is also recalled. Life, particularly in peacetime, was structured around regular drills and routines, often initiated by distinctive bugle calls. Punishments for those falling foul of the myriad regulations were harsh and absences from home could be long, measured in years rather than months.
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Inspection at Stoughton Barracks. |
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| Video Duration 1:34 |
Private Roy Harding
Roy Harding of 1st Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment, remembers a desperate search for firewood while stationed in Maidstone.
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| Video Duration 0:59 |
Company Sergeant Major Charles Sharp
Charles Sharp of 1st Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment, recalls some rather basic bedding.
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| Video Duration 1:41 |
Captain Henry Barker
Henry Barker of 1st Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment, recalls his princely wages in the 1930s.
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| Video Duration 4:01 |
Regimental Sergeant Major H 'Tommy' Atkins
'Tommy' Atkins of 2nd Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment, recalls erratic pay arrangements in North Africa and the Far East in World War II.
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| Video Duration 4:37 |
Regimental Sergeant Major H 'Tommy' Atkins
'Tommy' Atkins of 2nd Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment recalls the an impressive Catholic chaplain and the role of religion during his service.
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| Video Duration 2:47 |
Regimental Sergeant Major H 'Tommy' Atkins
How do you remember the bugle calls?
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| Video Duration 2:34 |
Captain Henry Barker
Henry Barker of 1st Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment, recalls the salutary effect of army discipline.
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| Video Duration 3:26 |
Private Cyril Dwight
Cyril Dwight of 1st Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment, recollects laundry arrangements while serving in the East after World War II.
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| Video Duration 4:01 |
Warrant Officer II Denis Harding MVD
Denis Harding, 1/6th Battalion, the Queen's Royal Regiment, 2nd and 1st Battalions, the East Surrey Regiment and 1st Battalion, the Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment, remembers the difficulties caused by long absences overseas.
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| Video Duration 2:52 |
Private George Crook
George Crook, 1st Battalion, The East Surrey Regiment, remembers the fun of annual training camps and inadvertently demolishing a bus shelter.
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| Video Duration 1:25 |
Private George Crook
George Crook, 1st Battalion, The East Surrey Regiment, remembers the somewhat extreme hair care in the Egyptian desert during national service.
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| Video Duration 2:17 |
Private George Crook
George Crook, 1st Battalion, The East Surrey Regiment, remembers the challenge of getting souvenirs of national service back through customs.
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| Video Duration 2:50 |
Band Sergeant Major Brian Matlock
Brian Matlock, 1st Battalion, The Queen's, remembers Christmas when stationed in Germany.
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