Hartley: In a tribute to the late Harold Frederick Hartley (PJ, September
9, p359), Mr VICTOR HAMMOND
writes: Harold Hartley volunteered to join the army at the outbreak of war in
1939 and enlisted in the Royal Army Medical Corps on October 15 of that year.
His army service was remarkable in its variety of work done.
After a year with 146 Field Ambulance in Malton, East Yorkshire, he sailed with
them on the troopship Andes to Akureyri in Iceland. After six months he was
posted to the 30th General Hospital in Reykjavik. After just over a year and
a half, his work changed in November, 1943, when he became part of a group of
many pharmacists who served with medical trooping parties. His first ship was
HMT Takliwa, known as the “Lucky Duck”, operating as both a troopship
and a hospital carrier in the Adriatic.
This work included transporting home from Piraeus to Taranto the remnant of
the Italian Army in Ethiopia that had been interned in Greece at the beginning
of the war. Suspected ELAS (Greek National Popular Liberation Army) prisoners
were taken from Piraeus to Alexandria. There were also Brindisi to Ancona runs
at night, taking troops up and returning as a hospital carrier with German prisoners
of war. The ship was then part of the third line attacking Marseilles and softening
up the south coast of France as a false prelude to D-Day. Finally, after a stay
at anchor at Bizerta, the ship collected the French government in exile from
Algiers and took them to Cherbourg, to take control of Paris. As the end of
the war approached, he was given some leave before returning with No 3 Company
RAMC to the Takliwa, taking troops to Gibraltar — and some on to Italy.
In March, 1945, he was posted to 47 Indian Sub Depot Medical Stores, Madras,
and was promoted to the rank of Warrant Officer 1. In a letter to me in 1992,
he wrote that the unit’s office and stores were at the time situated in
“Snob’s Alley”, Fort St George. The unit remained in Madras after
the Japanese gave in, but there were still many dangers there. The average temperature
was 96F in the day and 98F at night. Underwear rotted and new issues were made
every six weeks. In the summer the city stank because the river was blocked
by sandbanks. The Royal Engineers used explosives to try to clear the filth.
On the beach between the port and Fort St George were danger signs warning against
sitting or walking on the sand or swimming in the sea — sand scorpions,
sand snakes and sea snakes frequently took their toll.
Harold finished his letter in a way that showed his concern for humanity: “There
is no doubt that our colleagues of those days gave more than they were aware
of. Many men, women and children must have been very thankful that there was
someone there, who could and did give aid.”
Back home, in April, 1946, he joined Allen & Hanburys Ltd as a medical representative.
Colleagues there included his friend John Marlow, who had been mentioned in
dispatches, and Arthur Merkin, who had walked out of Assam into India.