Author: Paul Flint

Retired RAF Squadron Leader Chris Perkins MVO, is a member of the Probus Club of Basingstoke and with an old RAF colleague, Dave Stewart, earlier this year they researched some activity of their old RAF 33 Squadron’s actions supporting the Allied Forces in their campaign to free Belgium and Holland from German occupation during WW2.

Based for many years at RAF Odiham, in Hampshire, only a few miles away, 33 Squadron is today more familiar to the residents of Basingstoke for flying the Puma troop carrying helicopter and Chinooks from other squadrons based at this station.  However, during the Second World War it operated the Supermarine Spitfire in the ground attack role in support of the army.

In the course of following the fortunes of both air and ground crews in their journey from the Normandy landings, Chris and Dave uncovered an incredible story regarding a battle, almost completely overshadowed by the tragic events occurring at that time at Arnhem.

The Battle of the Scheldt estuary was a military operation in northern Belgium and the south western Netherlands to secure the port of Antwerp, essential for allied re-supply use. The First Canadian Army was given the task of clearing the Scheldt area of German occupiers.   Believing the retreating troops to be demoralised and lacking in fight, the initial attacks in September 1944 proved otherwise. Hitler had told every member of his forces dug in around the Scheldt estuary that they had to defend their positions to the last man and bullet. Their families would be held as retribution if they failed to do so.

The First Canadian Army was international in character.  In addition to Canadian infantry and armoured troops, it included the 1^st British Corps, and the 1^st Polish Armoured Division.  At various times it also included American, Belgian, and Dutch units.  The First Canadian Army in north western Europe during the final phases of the war was a powerful force. The strength of this army ranged from approximately 105,000 to 175,000 Canadian soldiers to anywhere from 200,000 to over 450,000 when including the soldiers from other nations.

The enemy opened the sea locks and flooded the whole countryside making what some historians considered to have been the most difficult battlefield of the Second World War. With flooded and muddy terrain and the tenacity of the well-fortified German defences made the Battle of the Scheldt especially gruelling and bloody. At the end of the five week offensive, the victorious First Canadian Army had taken 41,043 prisoners, but suffered 12,873 casualties (killed, wounded, or missing), 6,367 of whom were Canadians.

And what of 33 Squadron from RAF Odiham?  At that time it was also an international unit and consisted of many volunteer pilots from around the world. The Spitfires were used to support the ground troops by attacking enemy positions.  Unfortunately many pilots lost their lives.  Chris and Dave located a number of these brave young airmen now resting in remote cemeteries. One grave was for New Zealander Warrant Officer George James Roney. He was just twenty two years old.

WO George Roney took off at 15.00 on 6^th October 1944 as part of a three Spitfire armed reconnaissance sortie. Good weather favoured the German air defence batteries and all three aircraft were shot down after encountering heavy flak. George went down with his Spitfire near the hamlet of Schoondjke, the plane burying itself metres deep into a muddy field. On 9^th October 1944 his family received a “Missing on air operations” telegram. The aircraft was not found until 9^th June 1948 and George was buried on 12 June in Schoondijke cemetery. His is the only Commonwealth War Grave and has been adopted by children from the local school.

Wing Commander Dave Stewart is chairman of the 33 Squadron Association and contacted the New Zealand Genealogy Society for information on any potential family members. A number of relatives came forward and provided photographs, a log book and a number of official letters about George going missing and then about his death.

As a result of all this exchange of information about one of their own pilots from 33 Squadron who had been killed in action a moving commemorative service took place in June in the small Schoondijke cemetery in Zeeland. Ten members of the 33 Squadron Association, along with a group of serving 33 Squadron personnel, finally were able to pay tribute to Warrant Officer George James Roney RNZAF. They were joined by George Roney’s nephew, Rob, who had flown in from New Zealand with his wife, Trish, to attend this special event.

Rob Roney is the son of Stanley Roney, George’s brother, who had served in the New Zealand Army in North Africa and Italy while George had joined the RNZAF and then travelled to England to join the RAF. Rob and his wife Trish did not hesitate when it became clear that the puzzle about the life and death of his uncle could finally be completed.

“We heard that the 33 Squadron Association, the one George had served with, were going to visit Zeeland , among other sites, the place where Uncle George crashed, and that they were also going to see the grave. We had to be there. We are very grateful that we are here now”, said nephew Rob.

Before the commemorative service at the church, the group were able to visit the actual crash site in  a maize field near to Schoondijke.

The farm is still owned by the same family, the Dekkers, and Rob Roney met the three Dekker sisters who, then aged 7, 10 and 14, had witnessed George’s crash that day. After watching a flypast by three vintage aircraft to salute his uncle. Rob Roney said,

“Yes, it means a lot to me. I did not expect this. It’s really very special. My father never talked about the war and his brother who came over here. This feels like a recognition of my family. That today we are in Zeeland makes it extra special. In some way, it feels like the old country”.

The group then drove to Schoondijke Cemetery to attend the commemorative service at the grave of Warrant Officer George James Roney RNZAF. A small gathering of approx 50 people heard short speeches and dedications from Rob Roney, Dave Stewart, Peter Cammaerts (Burgemeester of Sluis, which now includes the municipality of Schoondijke). Pastor Derk Blom conducted a short service before wreathes were laid by the Roneys, 33 Squadron, 33 Squadron Assocation and serving 33 Squadron personnel and the Municipality of Sluis; Probus member Chris Perkins then recited ‘For the Fallen’.

The fact that civic dignitaries were involved shows the continuing grateful attitude of the Dutch people towards the fighting forces of Great Britain and their allies in freeing their country from Nazi tyranny. National interest was secured for the occasion by Dutch TV filming the whole occasion.

Photo Credits:
All colour photos courtesy of Danielle Roubroeks, except Rob and Trish laying a wreath at Dekkar Farm, which is (c) Camile Schelstraete (Provinciale Zeeuwse Courant). B&W photos courtesy of the Roney family

Michael Haxeltine, a member of the British Society of Dowsers, gave an abridged presentation to the Probus Club of Basingstoke, which was a snap shot of the extensive breadth of this subject. His normal presentation can be an all day affair but he had to make do with one hour.

Most of us have heard about water divining. The speaker gave other instances of its practical use and told of an instance where he had been able to identify 15 out of 17 known problems found by CCTV in a 200 m drain. However not many attendees knew about the extensive use made by dowsers in all manner of circumstances and the speaker gave practical demonstrations to help his cause.

And members of this social club for retired professional and business managers were encouraged to take part. One member sat with an open design pyramid over his head for half an hour which when removed was shown to have created an aura of about 75 cms around him. The weighted end of a flexible metal rod was seen to rise when placed in the middle of the pyramid. Similar open pyramids have been proven to help seeds germinate by raising local temperature. A torch beam made a dowsing rod move down the light beam which was explained because light is a mix of waves and particles.

All present had a dowsing rod made of a wire coat hanger with a right angle handle which we had to use to search for articles previously hidden in the room. Some had success but others had to count backwards to stabilise their mental position. One volunteer had the left side of his body checked by a dowsing rod to identify any old injuries. Some foods were checked if still suitable to eat by suspending a pendulum over it, similar in style to a plumb line, and if it rotated clockwise the food was edible.

Everyone had a corrugated plastic pipe with a weighted end called a bobber which if rotated clockwise had been used to find oil fields. All down to our mental process, apparently. Medical work had also been successfully penetrated with the pendulum – plumb line – used in vascular dementia and distance healing. The pendulum is currently under experimentation at the Savill Garden near Windsor where it is being used to establish if when plants are set in a magnetic orientation grow differently to others of the same species. Whilst at these famous gardens he was able to find an ongoing underground water leak to within 6 inches of the fault.

Another occasion Michael had used the pendulum to identify 15 out 16 known faults with a ship’s radar system.

Michael Haxeltine is an enthusiastic amateur member of his society and so is not listed on their web site but see www.britishdowsers.org for more information about this fascinating subject.

Once again, it was time for the Probus Club Christmas Dinner which took place at the Test Valley Golf Club on Wednesday 14 December. Organised with their usual high skill and aplomb by Alan and Liliane May and hosted by President Fred Locke and his wife Sue, the event was well supported as can be seen from the following photographs. It was heartening to see some widows and equally welcome was seeing our newer members. And for those members who failed to guess the correct answers to the mystery photo quiz on the inside of the menu card, the answers are as follows:

A) Sellotape dispenser
B) Ring pull can
C) Metal tape measure
D) Plastic Zip
E) Microsoft Windows emblem
F) Xmas tree light bulb
G) USB stick
H) Top of Pozidrive screw.

On the 24th of November, fourteen of us ventured to Cowley to see how MINIs are made. The plant was originally set up by William Morris in 1913 with one of the earliest models being the Morris Oxford, more commonly known as the Bullnose Morris. After WW2 a popular model was the Morris Minor and the original Mini was launched in May 1959 in both Morris Mini and Austin Seven versions.

In later years while under the ownership of the Rover Group the site manufactured the Honda Civic (being similar to one of the smaller Rover designs) and even Rolls Royces before being bought by BMW who invested some £150 million to develop the MINI plant.

We were given an overview of the plant and shown some old models and some specials including one covered in cow skin and some from “The Italian Job”, before being transported in a mini bus with safety glasses and personal audio system (to enable us to hear our guide over the din), to a huge shed where the pressed steel parts were assembled. They were pre coated and silver although referred to as white and the assembly involved about 900 bright orange twisting and nodding robots making 6000 spot welds per car. The large parts seemed to arrive from holes in the ceiling from an upper floor but the smaller pieces were loaded at various stages into hoppers by hand. The pressed metal components were produced by the plant in Swindon or elsewhere and transported here for assembly.

The Probus group then went in the mini bus again to the main production line where the painted and baked body shells arrived for the fitting of the rear axle, fascia, glass etc. by more robots but also people. Of interest was the fact that each car was made to a specific order so that the production line might have a blue 4 door followed by a yellow 6 door with a sun roof followed by a red 3 door. The engines are produced at Hams Hall in Birmingham and were pushed in from below. Only then was the pre-made front of the car connected. Cowley only has a supply of all major components for two hour’s production at any time so the logistics of “just in time” supply is critical. The seats, trim and eventually wheels were fitted and exactly 11 litres of fuel before each car was thoroughly tested. A car comes off the assembly line every 68 seconds and production continues 24 hours a day. They go straight to car transporters or trains to reduce storage for eventual delivery to over 110 countries

Retired RAF Wing Commander Bryan Jenkins commented, “I am really glad that I went, it was really amazing to see the technology in action. As a Chartered Engineer, I am amazed at how complicated each part of the car is, knowing that each part must be individually designed, manufactured (somewhere) and then assembled into the car to the customer’s specification. In parallel, the car assembly line must also be designed – all 1,000 robots plus a few people and that is even more amazing. So I will look at Minis in a different light now.”

Probus Club Vice President Nick Waring said “The future is here being able to produce cars so efficiently but with even more on the road it doesn’t bode well as this was a good trip spoiled by the horrendous journey home caused by too much traffic”!

Amusing anecdotes kept coming when Susan Howe gave a talk to the Probus Club of Basingstoke, the social club for retired professional and business managers, about what she called her canter through a funny life. This had nothing to do with anything equine but was about her wide experiences of life and with the ability to recall minute details that made the talk so interesting.

She had been working as a cook on a yacht in the Mediterranean in the 60s when she met Bridget Bardot’s ex-husband, Gunter Sachs, who was one of the original playboys. She went to work for him and his celebrity guests in his chalet in St Moritz. During her time there she met several well known people including the Formula 1 World Champion, Jackie Stewart, the film director, Roman Polanski, several members of the Bismarck family and the last king of Morocco. Susan admitted “I couldn’t really cook but the good thing about very rich people is that they dine out a lot.”

In the early 70s Susan worked for Sir John Betjeman, soon to become Poet Laureate. She stood in for his long-standing PA for a year and met his famous teddy bear, Archie and Jumbo the toy elephant. A well known eccentric, John Betjeman had many visitors including Mary Wilson, wife of Prime Minister Harold Wilson, who herself was a published poet. Barrie Humphries, of characters Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson fame, was a regular caller.

Various men of the cloth came seeking financial support for their particular church. If they were from what he considered to be the lower sects of religion, Methodists or Baptists, he would not let Archie sit in on their discussions in case it affected its thinking. On another occasion Susan recalled that the great poet had made a theatre booking with pre-performance supper for himself and Archie. That night he didn’t think that Archie was feeling up to sitting through a three act play after dining so Susan had to change the bookings.

When John Betjeman got married he arrived, on his wedding night, at his bedroom door wearing a long nightshirt and carrying Archie and Jumbo under each arm. When his new bride commented about what she saw he made it very clear to her that she was very much in fourth position in his life. When Susan left his employment he bade her farewell with “Gosh we’ve had fun – what a shame you couldn’t type!”

During this time she shared a flat in London with Jan who was the daughter of a vet in Thirsk called Donald Sinclair. He was the partner of the vet who used the pen name James Herriot to write “All Creatures Great and Small” that became a successful TV series. Apparently Jan knew he was so incensed by the character Siegfried Farndon, played by Robert Hardy, that he refused to watch the programme.

After completing the notoriously demanding two years course she passed the exam set by the London Tourist Board, qualifying as a Blue Badge Guide which enabled her to guide at all the major London sites. London Blue Badge guides can also guide in other parts of UK which meant she could be away for up to three weeks. She accompanied an amazing array of specialist groups ranging from Hymnologists studying hymn writers to Mills & Boon authors specialising in the Regency period, and from Debt Collectors to the American Bar Association and the 200 strong Yale Alumni choir. Immediately prior to her visit to Probus she had accompanied the Bishop of North Dakota around London.

Not content with acting as a guide in Britain she has taken painting tours to Zanzibar, riding tours in the Rockies, wildlife tours in Africa and tiger tours in the jungles of India.

Her wide interests match the experiences of the members of the Probus Club of Basingstoke.

The funeral of Ron Goodacre took place on Thursday 15th September 2016 at St James’s church Bramley. The Probus Club of Basingstoke was represented by President Fred Locke, Alan Porter, Geoff Twine, Dennis Freeman, Jim Wragg, Richard Wood and Alex Marianos. The service was well attended including eight ex-work colleagues from Linde (Lansing Bagnell) where Ron had worked for 35 years.

After the service the family travelled to the Crematorium for a final farewell to Ron.

Ron joined the Probus Club of Basingstoke in 1995 and enjoyed being a wine steward for several years.

The funeral of past member Edward Johnson took place at Trinity Methodist Church, Sarum Hill, Basingstoke on Friday 9th September 2016.

He resigned from the club in 2011 as his Alzheimer’s disease progressed which meant  he had to go into a care home where he resided until his passing.

The funeral was well attended and President Fred Locke and Secretary Paul Flint represented our club. After the church service the immediate family went to the Crematorium for a final farewell to Edward. We learnt that as well as his extensive sporting interests that Edward had been one of the original Street Pastors that serve the town at night time. He leaves second wife Barbara, a son and daughter from his first marriage, grand children and great grand children.

The annual Probus Club of Basingstoke Summer Pub lunch took place at the Swan Inn, Sherborne St John on Tuesday 9th August. It was attended by thirty six people, consisting of members, wives/lady friends and friends who had an enjoyable lunch time with with quality food and wide menu choice.

The choice of venue was made by Fred Locke in the spring, while still Vice President – it was his selection of this hostelry that made it the success it was on the day.

While the photographs show the attendees it is slightly bemusing that several of the “couples” don’t appear in the same photograph as their other half – there are no prizes for identifying who belongs to whom! And sincere apologies are offered to Lesley Atchison who is missing off the photograph that contains Rob Hopkins and her photo bombing husband Tony Atchison. Even deeper apologies are offered to Nick Waring and his lady, Ann, who didn’t get photographed at all. They shared a table with Tony and Lesley Atchison and it must have been the standing presence of Rob Hopkins who threw a wobbly at the man behind the camera. A pity that these days he can’t blame the last frame on the film being used before he reached their table. He does suggest that on the next occasion any one should shout out if they do not get photographed.

Richard Tanner, a retired head teacher from North Waltham, gave the Probus Club of Basingstoke an informative insight into the ancient Incense Routes that were so important to the Middle East well before and after Christ. The nativity story of the baby Jesus receiving gifts from the three Kings of gold, frankincense and myrrh is well known. To hear that incense had a value, weight for weight, greater than gold puts some perspective to the importance of this commodity. How was incense produced and where did it come from? And the Queen of Sheba comes into the story too.

Richard’s interest in the topic came whilst he was teaching geography at the ‘Royal’ school in Amman, Jordan. This teaching post gave him the opportunity to travel throughout the region.

The term incense, that includes both frankincense and myrrh, refers to a substance that emits a fragrant aroma when burned. Resins are collected from certain tree barks during winter which were found only in the arid regions of Southern Arabia and to a lesser degree in Eastern Africa. As early as the 8th century BC, incense was popular across the ancient world for sanctifying religious ceremonies and masking the pungent odours of burned flesh – from cremations and human sacrifices – and sewage.

Richard described the route taken by incense traders, at first by sea along the coast of Dhofar to the port of Qana in Yemen. The prospect of continuing by boat up the Red Sea was dismissed due to difficult wind patterns and the threat of pirates. The inland route chosen, using camel trains, had extremely difficult terrain with robbers determined to get their hands on the valuable cargo. .For some 1500 miles it followed a route parallel with the Red Sea through Medina and on to Petra, thence to Gaza on the Mediterranean coast.

The inhabitants along the route were Nabataeans. They were experts in trading and desert agriculture with skill in water management with its collection and storage in reservoirs. They played a central role in controlling the incense trade route. They built 65 fortresses and resting stations in strategic points along the route to serve and protect the convoys set at a distance of a day’s walk, while the journey could take three months.

The ‘Incense Route’ reached its peak during the 2nd Century AD. At this time the Romans had succeeded in sailing directly down the Red Sea to Southern Arabia. From the 4th century AD when Christianity became the official religion, the practice of sacrifice and cremations was avoided and there was a return to ordinary burials leading to a significant reduction in the demand for incense. Finally, following the Moslem conquest of the area in the 2nd half of the 7th century, heralding a further decline in the demand for incense, the trade route died out and the resting stations along the route gradually fell into decay and were deserted.

And the Queen of Sheba? She came from the kingdom of Saba, in present day Yemen. Legend has it that she travelled up the Incense route to Jerusalem to seek the Wisdom of Solomon. And she brought the same gifts the Magi afterwards brought to the infant Jesus.