tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post7481995721484285707..comments2024-03-12T13:28:53.733+00:00Comments on The Escape Line: The Guides - Part SixKeithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15204149912245253542noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-42110236378404997212012-12-07T09:59:51.419+00:002012-12-07T09:59:51.419+00:00Thanks for your reply Helen. The war certainly wor...Thanks for your reply Helen. The war certainly wore out and bankrupted the railways in the UK. In Belgium and France the trains were often overcrowded with passengers and service personnel. The trains were frequently subject to change and delay due to Allied bombing and sabotage. This regularly comes out in evader's accounts. Keithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15204149912245253542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-12273519009151569952012-12-06T22:27:39.502+00:002012-12-06T22:27:39.502+00:00More examples of bravery and concentration in clos...More examples of bravery and concentration in close proximity to the enemy in this well-crafted post by Keith.<br />Although the main line railways back in the UK undertook the massive evacuation project, they were also called upon to carry thousands of troops around the country as well as millions of tons of goods and munitions, tanks, equipment and petrol. For example, in the build up to the North African campaign in 1942 the railways moved 185,000 men, 20,000 vehicles and 220,000 tonnes of stores. British Railways posters reminded the public that ‘your children’s food depends on the Lines behind the Lines’ and that ‘over half a million railwaymen are maintaining a vital national service.’ Train carriages and railways stations were also ideal sites to display propaganda posters and posters passing on important information relating to the war issued by both the railways themselves and the Government Ministries. For example the slogan ‘Is Your Journey Really Necessary?’ was introduced in 1939 but came to real prominence in 1941 when posters with this message appeared all over the railway network; together with all manner of variations along this theme e.g. ‘Travel Only When You Must’, ‘Coal & Food & Guns Come First’, ‘Tracks Are Filled With War’. Back with our evaders they are keeping vigilant with the help of their guides….<br />“It is always wise to look ahead, but difficult to look further than you can see.”<br />(Winston Churchill.)<br />Helenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13304115337328075135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-45456721078476860212012-12-02T20:34:02.008+00:002012-12-02T20:34:02.008+00:00I agree Maria. Its a different world that we live ...I agree Maria. Its a different world that we live in today.Keithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15204149912245253542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-14031373210754893242012-12-02T19:07:33.128+00:002012-12-02T19:07:33.128+00:00Gulp! How very brave...you can't imagine anyth...Gulp! How very brave...you can't imagine anything like this going on today.Mariahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05322234219197041788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-61035851115007195592012-11-30T10:37:40.080+00:002012-11-30T10:37:40.080+00:00I agree Sally. The tension for the evaders must ha...I agree Sally. The tension for the evaders must have been unbearable if German servicemen sat in the compartments, passengers tried to strike up conversations with them or Gestapo/Geheimefeldpolizei control went through the train checking papers and tickets. For most of the evaders any kind of questioning and it was all over. Keithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15204149912245253542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-82214319460867643962012-11-30T10:26:29.516+00:002012-11-30T10:26:29.516+00:00You are right Maria. I think that the guides had c...You are right Maria. I think that the guides had certain inherent qualities which made them able to behave like this. The ones I have met had a quiet modest assurance about them. This would be ideal to blend in with the crowds, watch their 'parcels' (as the evaders were often referred to) and react cooly if there were problems. I think some of them had already resigned themselves to being discovered. Nadine Dumon said that after a while they began to speak of not 'if I am arrested' but 'when I am arrested.' Keithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15204149912245253542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-75618510956838644772012-11-30T08:31:29.962+00:002012-11-30T08:31:29.962+00:00It must have been very frightening using the train...It must have been very frightening using the train and once you were on the train there would be nowhere to go if things went wrong.Sallyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14090018804016223955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2737903099642089452.post-32070474203775889782012-11-30T00:10:05.895+00:002012-11-30T00:10:05.895+00:00After reading your post Keith, I'm left thinki...After reading your post Keith, I'm left thinking that these guides must have been incredibly at ease in the train stations, and onboard the trains. It must have almost become second nature to them to operate with such ease...Mariahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05322234219197041788noreply@blogger.com