Saturday, September 9, 1944: Back to the Farm

Rural landscape in Normandy

Next morning, 9th September we were off again, but this time back the way we came. In the absense of the C.O. we were to return to the farm that we had left the day previous. When we got there the cooks cooked the dinner at the side of the road and after that we waited for a couple of soldiers to check parts of a field for mines. When it was clear we moved in and pitched our tents. We stayed here for three days. The guards here were to be particularly vigilant and it was suspected that there were small bands of SS troops [1] still at large in the woods. I did not leave camp for our stay here.

1. SS (Schutzstaffel, or Protection Squads)

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Leading aircraftman (LAC) Charles Francis (Frank) Stone (1923-2001), my father, wrote this Forbidden Diary (i.e. they'd been told NOT to keep diaries and the fact that it exists tells you all you need to know), as a 21 year old in 1944. (Entries are transcribed exactly as written, mistakes included. Attitudes are very much 'of their time'.)