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Archie Greenshields was born in 1920 and brought up in Chichester, West Sussex.
My grandmother gave birth to six children, the fifth dying at birth. First, my mother Emma, born on the 3 January 898, followed by Tom, then Fred and her last son George. Florrie was then born on 8 April 1914.
I was never too fond of Uncle Tom who in my earliest years was not on the scene. There was talk that he too had served as a soldier and during a time in Ireland he had been court martialled for striking an officer which doesn't surprise me.
He always seemed to me to be an individual who was not fond of children and in fact had none of his own. If at any time I was visiting my grand parents and he appeared on the scene, my greeting to an Uncle as we had been taught to do was met with a surly grunt.
Even when I reached adulthood I rarely could hold more than the briefest of conversation with him. He married May Gentle who had been married before and had a son Alfred a few months older than me. Tom brought his wife and step-son back from Luton and moved in with his parents in Hall's Court, 16 Tower Street, leaving little room for poor Florrie. Due to this about the beginning of the 1930's she came to live in our home.
Tom Hall was called to service during the war too and became a Military Policeman. In my opinion quite a suitable position to match his temperament. His step son Alfie Gentle, was considered unfit for any other service other than Home Duties and he told me that he had been graded as being C3 at his army medical and therefore unfit for normal duties.
He too was a Military Policeman, the lowest of the low in most 'squadies' eyes. His health deteriorated soon after the war ended and he died. His mother May, died in the 1960's or early 70's and Tom died in the 1980's.
They had been re-housed and lived in a flat on the Parklands Estate after the Tower Street house was demolished to make room for the Chichester Library. Florrie and I were asked to visit the flat he occupied and were hopeful to find many items of the Hall family belongings still in existence having been retained by Tom.
I would dearly have loved to see Grandma's old American wallclock again. But all we found was a completely empty flat, the neighbourly friend's of Tom had cleared it all, explaining he had left absolutely nothing of value. As none of Tom's immediate relatives had ever visited or even had been invited to do so in later years, the neighbour's claims could not be disputed, but neither Florrie or I believed their claims.
By this time too, Uncle Fred has enlisted into the Royal Sussex Regiment. Another favourite of mine and one who had my wellbeing in mind as did his sister, Florrie. He was not on the scene during my earliest childhood and must have been abroad serving with The Royal Sussex Regiment.
He was a bandsman and because of his stature and build, played either the bass drum or a tuba. He looked so resplendent with all the accoutrements that went with the instruments he played. He too was married and his wife Auntie Dot lived in her parents house at 14 Tower Street during my earlier years, in a house adjoining Hall's Court.
His Battalion returned to England and we then saw a lot of him, for he was very fond of his sister, our Mother. He was a happy, exuberant man with a forthright personality and was a great leg-puller. In my opinion he saw a chance to direct my thoughts towards a military career and later when he and Auntie Dot were living in Married Quarters in Chichester Barracks.
By that time he was a sergeant and I was invited on more than one occasion to pay them a visit. Actually at that time I treated the army as something to be avoided at all costs, receiving many a threat from my father on the lines, 'Just wait until you're older, my boy, I'll get the King's Shilling for you, you see if I don't!'
I expect I was at times insufferable and with so many of us crowded together at home, someone had to feel the brunt of his impatience. Strange as it may seem, it was the Military Life that provided my escape from a life that was getting more and more oppressive.
Fred too, survived the War but his wife Auntie Dot died during it. Prior to the commencement of the War, when Fred and I met briefly during leaves, we had a great time saucing each other regarding each other's Regiments, our cap badges, or anything to put one over each other. All done in the greatest of good humour, and I knowing in my heart that Fred was pleased with my decision in enlisting and that he had taken more than a small part in it.
We met each other in France over christmas 1939 when Fred was by then a Sergeant Major. He had pulled a few strings to learn where I was stationed and discovered I was billeted just a few miles from his unit. He arranged for me to spend Christmas day with him. A clear case of nepotism and even more indelibly remembered by me because the next five Christmas Days were to be spent in captivity.
I learned after my release in May 1945 that he had managed to leave France during the fall of Dunkirk but the ship that carried him towards home was torpedoed and sank but Fred was one of the lucky survivors. He was commissioned later in the War and served the rest of it with a Pioneer Battalion rather than the Infantry. He re-married and had a son.
Uncle George had a similar personality to Fred Hall and was a jolly man, always good for a laugh. He was married to Edie and lived in a rented house in Grove Road, Chichester. He too was very fond of his sister and called to see her regularly but always calling un-announced and always made welcome.
He never came empty handed, bringing sweets for us children, or books for Father, and when he became employed as a gardener he used to bring Mother huge bunches of Chrysanthemums. In the 1930's he was a lorry driver/coal-man.
He was for ever being scolded by Auntie Edie during his visits, for we children discovered that he could make excellent pencil drawings and could produce pictures of wonderful old ladies showing their drawers or bloomers as we liked to call them.
That was not so bad, but if we egged him on to do something rude, he willingly obliged and his saucy ladies were soon drawn breaking wind to our high amusement and cries of 'do another one, Uncle George! Go on!'
He was soon stopped by Auntie Edie to our disgust and we instinctively knew there would be no other drawings made until his next visit. His drawings of tom cats were hilarious each having its tail waveringly erect and the little puckered addition made us giggle no end.
Some of us older children were occasionally invited to their house for tea and to our delight were given the opportunity to listen to the first broadcasts that we ever heard of Children's Hour, and Toy Town with Larry the Lamb and other favourites that we had only heard about from others lucky enough to have parents who could afford a wireless set.
They had one son, younger than me by a few years whose name was Tony. I have no idea what George did during the War. He eventually became a gardener employed by Graylingwell Hospital Group and worked there until he finally retired.
I met Tony again shortly before I retired when we were both working for the same Authority. He was working in the Printing Department at the County Hall in Chichester and was surprised to learn that George put in a few hours a week in the same department to earn a little extra cash.
During 1960's or early 70's, George and Edie were allocated a small old people's bungalow on the Parklands Estate. My daughter, Jane, then discovered that Edie's part time job was sitting in with children being taken to and from St. Anthony's school by coach.
Edie was used to having outside interests and always had a job until the birth of Tony. When I was quite young, Edie worked as an assistant in a cake shop in Southgate, Chichester, and was instrumental in giving us good measure when we shopped for stale cakes.
Archie Greenshield, West Sussex, 2001
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