Henry 'Harry' James Chart
Recollections of six years in the Army.
Joining the Army
In the early months of 1940, Harry was called up to join the 66th Chemical Warfare Company. After a few months training, Harry was transferred to the 65th Chemical Warfare Company and posted for overseas service. Given seven days embarkation leave, Harry took the opportunity to marry his sweetheart, Vicki. On the long journey to North Africa, stopovers were made in Durban and Aden, before the company disembarked in Port Suez. Harry recalls, ‘We then moved onto a train, all spruced up in or new desert khaki, big hats, white faces and knees to match’. The company was posted to Giza, near the pyramids of Egypt, and eventually became an engineering unit.
'Hell could never have been worse than this'
In October 1942 heavy fighting began, ‘[the] war really started when hundreds of artillery pieces on the whole 10 mile front opened up on the German lines. Hell could never have been worse than this’. Moving behind the main army, it was the company’s duty to clear the many minefields left behind, ‘although the fighting had moved on, the terrible realities of war lived on’.
The invasion of Italy
The invasion of Italy shortly followed. Arriving in Sicily, Harry recalls how ‘we were all expecting dive bombers but, save for the crump of shells from our cruiser and a belated reply by an Italian Coastal Battery, the whole scene had an eerie stillness. Spasmodic machine gun fire and one or two small fires and the invasion was on’. However, soon the German attacks began, ’the sky was like a mass of bursting stars’. Whilst in Italy the unit repaired drainage systems, water supplies and runways at Catania Airport.
The invasion of Normandy
In 1944 the unit returned to England to take part in the invasion of Normandy. On arrival in England, Harry received disembarkation leave and was able to see his wife for the first time since their honeymoon. After months of training and preparation, Harry arrived on the coast of France on the sixth day of invasion. He recalls, ‘It seemed the whole coast was engaged in working. Tanks going ashore, supply lorries trundling along their metal harbours, thousands of troops disembarking onto hastily constructed bridgeheads, noise everywhere, battleships shelling German forward positions’.
Harry served in Europe until he was demobbed a few months after the end of the war. Contemplating the war and its consequences, Harry feels that ‘my greatest regret about the war was the loss of the first 6 years of married life when this period should have been the happiest and most memorable of both our lives’.
Harry has written extensively about his wartime experiences. His memoir can be found below (please note that the copyright rests with the author