Lionel Atkinson, MBE, MM (Part 3)

 

Heroes and Rebels in the Family Tree—Lionel Atkinson, MBE, MM (Part 3)

 

World War II and British Operations in Mauritius

Early 1940’s, Mauritius was characterized by its simple life. The population amounted to around 400,000 inhabitants. The island was vastly covered with green thick forest and the main agricultural backbone was sugar cane followed by tea plants. During these days one could barely see a motor vehicle on the road. Majority of the roads were not asphalted. People used to walk long distances from one place to another. Some could be seen on bicycles and others in oxcarts. Trains were the main public transport. A majority of houses were small and made up of straws, some were made up of wood and shingles and few were in concrete. The illiteracy rate was at its highest though there was a minority of the population — in particular the Franco-Mauritians being of Catholic faith— who were educated. An even smaller proportion of those belonging to other religions had access to education.  Men were mostly labourers working in sugar cane plantations or in sugar cane factories and others were fishermen. Young boys helped their dads in sugar cane fields, in rearing animals or in gathering dry woods for cooking from nearby forest while girls stayed at home to help their mothers in daily house activities.

At the outbreak of World War II, many Mauritians volunteered to serve under the British flag in Africa and the Near East, fighting against the German and Italian armies.

Mauritius During World War II--Recruitment

Mauritius was one among the British colonies and subsequently recruitment exercise started. Banners were placed on buildings mentioning that the army was recruiting. The press also actively participated in this recruitment exercise. Joining and serving the British army was a symbol of pride for many Mauritians. For others it was a source of employment and adventure.

Major Lionel Atkinson on military parade,
front and center

The recruitment exercise was a full success and around 35,000 Mauritian enlisted themselves at Vacoas and Bell Village centres. The new recruits were paid 89 cents per day, and in case of promotion to the rank of Sergeant they would be paid Rs 2.67. Food, lodging and uniforms were free of charge. Their families also benefited between 50 cents to Rs1.33 depending on their number of children.

Major Lionel Atkinson tells the story of his service in Mauritius:

“I was sent out to this colony in Sept 41 having been employed in training young soldiers of RNF [Royal Norfolk] up to that time.  My new job was to recruit and train men for the Pioneer Corps, and in the following March I transferred to the Pioneers myself.

“I soon discovered that there would be no shortage of recruits.  A certain amount of recruiting had already been done and these troops were actually taking part in the desert campaign.  News of their exploits had reached home and this may have had something to do with the fact that as soon as recruiting again commenced the camp was absolutely swamped with volunteers.  Two Medical Boards were kept busy every day for weeks on end and only stopped work when accommodation difficulties arose as shipping could not be found to move the troops quickly enough.

“Men who had been rejected by the board would persuade others who had already been accepted by one board to go before the other board under the rejected man’s identity.  This was countered by the President using a rubber stamp with indelible ink on each man’s chest. Others passed the preliminary testing but couldn’t pass the required minimum weight.  Some of these would try to pass the weight test by carrying pieces of lead underneath their clothes.  This however was an “easy one” compared with other ingenious attempts to get through.”

The Royal Pioneer Corps

At the outbreak of World War II, Lionel Atkinson again joined the army and was Mauritius to assist in the training of the Mauritius soldiers in the newly formed Pioneer Corps.

The Royal Pioneer Corps was a British Army combatant corps used for light engineering tasks. The Auxilitary Military Pioneer Corps was raised on 17 October 1939. It was renamed the Pioneer Corps on 22 November 1940. Training centres were quickly formed to receive, clothe and equip recruits and personnel posted from other Arms Companies were formed and dispatched as required, this being the normal unit allotted to meet labour requirements.

The Corps gained many awards for gallantry and in addition received American, French, Dutch, Greek, Belgian and Italian awards. Some 2,800 men of the Corps laid down their lives overseas. On 28 November 1946, his majesty George VI decreed that in recognition of its services the Corps should have the distinction "Royal" added to the title.

In February 1950 the Royal Pioneer Corps became part of the Regular Army. Since the end of World War II, Royal Pioneer Corps officers and soldiers have played their part in all operations overseas. In the long history of the British Army no other Corps or Regiment has earned this single honour in so short a time. It was renamed the Royal Pioneer Corps on 28 November 1946. Some 27,000 Mauritians were enrolled and served in the Royal Pioneer Corps during the WWII and the Post-War period.

Major Atkinson in Mauritius

Major Lionel Atkinson described the brave men of Mauritius who joined the Royal Pioneer Corps.

“The height of a Mauritians ambition at this time appeared to be o join the Pioneer Corps, and a large number of those who eventually enlisted in East African units were either “rejects” from Pioneers or had returned from Middle East on Medical grounds and were discharged and re-enlisted.

“Up to the end of hostilities, 7 Pioneer Companies had been sent to Middle East, also reinforcements totaling 1,600—sufficient for 5 further Companies.  Another 2 Companies also embarked in 1945 but were broken up and used as reinforcements on arriving at Qassassin.  In addition to these an Artisan Works Coy RE and a GT Coy RASC were formed and went into action in 1941.

“I have no first-hand experience of the work of these men in Middle East but I kept in touch with Officers and men, first by means of correspondence, and later when we sent out a really first-class monthly journal which was produced by Welfare and printed by the Government Printer.  In this I gave all the local gossip—births, marriages etc., affecting services or ex-services personnel, whilst it also contained the most appropriate items of local news culled from the daily newspaper.

“Letters came from Brigade and other formation commanders, whilst several of the Company commanders kept me regularly informed of the fine work which Mauritians were doing—the lifting of mines at El Alamein where many casualties were experience (I later heard from Lt. Col. W.W. Jeffs M.S.M., that they constructed and controlled a “shadow” Tank formation here); the determination with which they carried on unshipping much needed supplies at Tobruk whilst undergoing heavy bombing; and the splendid performance at Casino Ridge in keeping the forward troops supplied with food and ammunition, evacuating the wounded etc., which caused the Brigadier to write ‘It was grand to see their smiling faces as they panted up the hill with their heavy loads, and their cheerful courage under heavy and accurate shellfire was an inspiration to all who saw them’.  Due to their high standard of intelligence, Mauritians were selected for duty in 2^nd Echelon, Pay and other departments, and held many senior administrative posts.  Some 100 were also attached to British REME units as craftsmen.

“Mauritius Pioneers went right through the African campaign and were amongst the first troops to land at Sicily and in Italy.  One Company also served in Malta.

“ 3 ‘Military Medals’ and more than 20 ‘Mentions’ were awarded to Mauritians.  Whenever any mention was made in the local paper of troops in Middle East, whatever their corps, they were referred to as ‘Nos Pioneer’, so proud were the local people of the Pioneers.  Occasionally we saw such things as ‘RE Pioneers’ and ‘REME Pioneers’ in the local press.

“Three Companies of Pioneers were recruited for service in Mauritius and it’s dependencies on account of the heavy fortifications which had to be erected.  These were responsible for man-handling and installing heavy artillery pieces, erecting wire obstacles, building concrete pill-boxes and ammunition stores, camouflage work, and also the construction of a complete network of telephone overhead wires to all military installations.  Pioneers also were called on to discharge a whole shipload of cable for ‘RADAR’ when efforts had failed to find anyone capable of supervising and carrying out the ticklish job.

“At one period Mauritius was under siege.  One ship left Port Louis harbour with 300 troops aboard, mostly British.  Shortly after leaving Mauritius it was sunk with only one survivor.  Another ship was actually turning to enter the harbour when it was torpedoed and we saw all our nice new transport and hospital equipment together with food supplies go to the bottom.  Aircraft arrived during the same evening and Pioneers lit bonfires on the mountain tops to guide them into the bay.  We also re-fueled them from small boats, using nothing but 2-gallon tins—a tedious job.  I was unofficially informed later that the RAF bagged the submarine, and also read in the London Newspapers that one of our Cruisers (HMS Rochester I believe) caught and sank the submarine Depot Ship within a few miles of the coast.  I received a letter of thanks from the RAF commander.

“Malaria was a terrible scourge in Mauritius for years, and practically everyone who lived on the island was a victim to the disease.  Pioneers tackled this at it’s source—the draining of land and filling up holes were stagnant water collected—as well as using oil, spray, and other temporary measures.  This campaign was so successful that it later became almost a crime to contract the disease.  Cyclones however were something that no precautions could do anything much about.  These were fairly frequent visitors during about 6 months of each year, and the one in Jan 45 completely swept all temporary military installations out of existence so that troops were allowed to sleep out until tentage could be brought from East Africa.  This particular cyclone was followed by one of the most acute epidemics of Infantile Paralysis ever experience anywhere, no less than 1000 cases being reported in 5 weeks.  On of the first fatalities was the Medical Officer of KAR Garrison Bn.  The Garrison Hygiene Officer also became a casualty and was completely paralysed down one side of his body.  Pioneers, although by far the largest unit on the island, suffered no loss.  Actually, there were only 4 military casualties and this may be due to the fact that every man was taking his daily tablet of ‘Ascorbic’ on account of the complete absence of fruit and green vegetables, which had been totally destroyed by the cyclone.  An equally important factor was that all troops were on European Diet whereas similar food was not available for the general public who are normally ‘rice eaters’—and no rice was available.  The army however did allocate a considerable amount of it’s reserve rations for relief purposes until supplies could be rushed over from Africa.  The British Government sent a shipload of flour as immediate relief and public subscriptions were commenced in U.K., and certain other countries.

“In the very early days of the war, a number of local men . . . volunteered and were accepted for enlistment in U.K.  Several of these were so enthusiastic that they paid their own passage money in order to get to England.  They were mostly anxious to join the RAF and several did so, one of these being a pilot of a fighter in the Battle of Britain and took part in the ‘fly past’ on the occasion of Victory Parade.  Pioneers however formed at least 75% of the forces raised in Mauritius.

M.B.E. awarded to Maj. Lionel Atkinson

“I left the colony in August 46, having served almost 5 years with some of the finest and most loyal troops ever to have served in His Majesty’s Forces.  Up to the time of my departure, a further 10 Companies of Pioneers had been recruited for a new term of 3 years service in Middle East, and at least a further 6 were to follow.  Thousands were still clamouring for enlistment.  In comparison to it’s population, Mauritius must still have the largest volunteer army in the British Empire.  Col. R.E.S. Yeldham, CBE who was OC Troops, Mauritius during dangerous and difficult days often said to me ‘I have chosen Pioneers for this job as I know they are to be relied upon’.  They never let him down and I am proud to have been the OC Pioneer Training Centre during the whole of it’s existence and of the Mauritius Pioneer Group.”

As described by Major Atkinson, the Pioneer units performed a wide variety of tasks in all theatres of war during the WWII, including stretcher-bearing, handling of all types of stores, laying prefabricated track on beaches, and effecting various logistical operations. Recruitment of Mauritians to serve as pioneers continued during the post-war period up until 1955.  It was primarily for his role in training the Mauritius Pioneer Corps soldiers that Major Lionel Atkinson was awarded the prestigious Member of the Order of the British Empire.  One of the few perks allowed to those awarded the MBE is that they and their children were allowed to be married inside St. Paul’s cathedral in London.

Post War and Operations in Germany

At the end of World War II and with the surrender of Germany, was assigned to return home to England.  But, in June 1947, while he was at home on indefinite leave awaiting his release from the army, Major Atkinson received a telegram ordering him to report to Worcester Depot for reposting.  On arriving there, he was informed that he was to report the British base in Bielefeld, Germany.  Due to the presence of a number of barracks built during the 1930s and its location next to the main East-West Autobahn in northern Germany, after World War II, Bielefeld became a headquarters town for the fighting command of the British Army of the Rhine.  So what was the assignment given to Major Atkinson?  Here is how he personally described his mission.

Lionel Atkinson with Helen
"Nellie" Walsh in London 1937.

“After lounging about the depot for a week or so-possibly under observation- I was
given instructions to report to the ‘Central Postal Informatin Bureau’ at Hamburg.

“Knowing nothing whatever about postal services I was mystified by the posting but in due course arrived at the Town Hall in Altona where I received enlightenment.

“It appeared that a Capt. Jackson who was in charge of the Bureau was long overdue for extended leave, and that an officer with administrative ability was required to take charge in his absence.

“At the ‘take-over’ I found numerous large rooms in the building stacked with packages large and small, each neatly labelled with the number, rank, name, and regiment or ship of the owner who had passed through the allied hands as a prisoner of war.

“In other rooms were thousands of files containing the personal particulars, last known address etc., of the men from whom these effects had been taken.  The parcels contained an extraordinary variety of things ranging from solid gold cigarette cases and watches to faded snapshots.  Anything bearing the imprint of the swastika was confiscated as were medals and decorations awarded by the Nazi regime.

“The whole building was staffed by German women and girls apart from one British officer and one Sergeant.

“Ex-prisoners had been informed that their effects could be claimed on application to the local ‘Mayor’ and he in turn passed on the application to the Bureau.  As each application was received the corresponding file was brought up to date with changes of address etc., and daily list of ‘Wanted for War Crimes’ was received, this was consulted before the effects were posted.

“Each day the ‘Wanted’ list arrived from Army HQ there was a frantic search by the German girls who seemed to be delighted when they were able to locate these war criminals.

“Who’s brain child was ‘The Bureau’?

 

A Final Note:  The Hand of Friendship

Crouched in a mud-filled trench in war-torn France, a Lincolnshire soldier of the First World War opened a parcel to find a pair of mittens sent by a schoolgirl from Middle Rasen, near Market Rasen.  The soldier was Sgt. Lionel Atkinson, of the Grimsby “Chums” and he received the mittens as his share of a parcel sent to the front line from schoolchildren in Middle Rasen.  As a survivor of the Battle of the Somme, he never forgot the mittens and the little note attached to them--"knitted by Hilda Cummings, aged 13.”

Sixty-nine years later, Mr. Atkinson managed to trace his little mitten girl to find she is married herself, a grandmother, now living in Goole.  “I never forgot the little girl’s name and often through the years I said I would try to find her as I had never really had a chance to thank her for the present she made me.” Said Mr. Atkinson.

“Now I have tracked her down although she married and changed her name to Hilda Massey.  She is a pensioner herself now, but I have written to her thanking her and telling her what happened to the soldier who was given her mittens all those years ago.”  

Astonished as he was to come across Hilda once again after so long.  Mr. Atkinson was pleased to hear that she, too, had managed to survive those dark days of the Great War. 

“I never had much time to spare in the trenches and all I could do was to scribble and send a quick ‘thank you’ note to the little girl. 

 “After the war I lost touch and never managed to thank her properly, but now, finally, I am able to do that,” he said.