Bibliography - History: {1939-1945} - WWII
Bibliography Home

Sussex at War and Poems of Peace, by Arthur Beckett, published 1916 (36 pp., Eastbourne: Sussex County Herald Offices) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 137] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

With the Royal Sussex Regiment at Mons and After, by Spencer Watts, published 1934 in Sussex County Magazine (vol. VIII no. 8, article, pp.484-485) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 9329] & The Keep [LIB/500178]

Sussex War Memorials: "Pro rege et patria", by William F. Sellens, published 1934 in Sussex County Magazine (vol. VIII no. 11, article, pp.694-697) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 9329] & The Keep [LIB/500178]

70th Sussex Searchlight Regiment, Royal Artillery, published 1939 accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2997]

Sea Defence Work at Bognor in War Time, by Oswald A Bridges, published c.1940 (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 8874]

Village at war [Harting], by Anthony Armstrong, published 1941 (254 pp., Collins) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Kentish Fire. A Tribute to the Men and Women of Kent and Sussex - Their Courage and Humour - Under Fire, by Hubert Stewart Banner, published 1944 (124 pp., London: Hurst & Blackett) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

The War in East Sussex. A short account of the main war events in East Sussex, September 3 1939 - May 7 1945, and the bombing of the County, published 1945 (Sussex Express and County Herald)

Front Line Eastbourne: The Story of Eastbourne in WW2, published 1945 (T. R. Beckett Ltd.) accessible at: Eastbourne Heritage Centre

War Diary, Selsey 1939-1945, by L. Harris, published 1945 (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12421]

Repairs to railway viaduct over London Road, Brighton, after damage by enemy action in May 1943, by Armand Huon Toms, published 1945 in Journal of the Institution of Civil Engineers (vol. 24, no. 8, article, pp.353-367)

Green Cinderellas of West Sussex, by W. Victor Cook, published 1945 in Sussex County Magazine (vol. xix, article, pp.240-243) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 2324] & The Keep [LIB/500191]

Brighton and Hove Under Fire: Story of the bombing years, 1940-44, by Leslie Cluett, published 1946 (Brighton & Hove Gazette)

War on the Line: The story of the Southern Railway in war time, by Bernard Darwin, published 1946 (iv + 215 pp., The Southern Railway Company) accessible at: & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Brighton and Hove in Battledress, 1939-1945, by D. L. Murray, published 1946 (Brighton and Hove Memorial Fund) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/502534] & East Sussex Libraries

War Damage to Antiquities on Ashdown Forest, by Ivan D. Margary, published February 1946 in Sussex Notes & Queries (vol. XI no. 1, article, pp.1-3) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 8229][Lib 2210] & The Keep [LIB/500213] & S.A.S. library

Henfield in Battledress: pages from a scrapbook [World War Two], by Lucie Bishop, published 1947 accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 4317]

Three Sussex ports, 1850-1950, by H.C. Brookfield, published 1955 in Journal of Transport History (vol. 2, no. 1, article, p.35)

The War Dead of the Commonwealth, 1939-1945: cemeteries and churchyards in Sussex, published 1962 (booklet, Commonwealth War Graves Commission) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 5276]

Lists alphabetically those buried in each location, and gives brief information about each person.

Eastbourne College Roll of War Service, 1939-46, published 1965 (Eastbourne College)

The Guinea Pig Club: A story of indomitable courage and surgical skill, by Edward Bishop, published 1 January 1973 (125 pp., New English Library, ISBN-10: 0450015440 & ISBN-13: 9780450015441) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

The Evacuation of English Schoolchildren during world war Two ; an examination of the educational and social aspects of its impact, with a case-study of a reception area, West Sussex. , by E. M. Jones, 1974 at Southampton University (Ph.D. thesis)

The Warnham War Museum, by Joe Lyndhurst, published c.1975 (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 9579]

Some of the Few, by Andrew R. Saunders, published September 1975 in Sussex Life (vol. 11, no. 9, article, pp.34-36)

Littlehampton Through the Wars, by H. J. F. Thompson, published 1978 (Littlehampton Story no. 1, pamphlet, 64 pp., published by the author) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 7026] & West Sussex Libraries

McIndoe's Army: the injured airmen who faced the world, by Dr. Peter Williams and Ted Harrison, published 1 September 1979 (160 pp., Pelham Books, ISBN-10: 0720711916 & ISBN-13: 9780720711912) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Story of 98th Field Regiment (Surrey and Sussex Yeomanry Q.M.R) RA (TA) and 144th Field Regiment (Surrey and Sussex Yeomanry) RA (TA) 1939-1946. With Maps drawn by John Flower., by T. B. Davis, published 1980 (Ditchling Press) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Henfield in battledress: Pages from a scrap book, by Lucie Bishop, published 1 January 1981 (pamphlet, 118 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 0950784109 & ISBN-13: 9780950784106) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 7977] & West Sussex Libraries

Tangmere: a village with two stories, by Barbara Best and George Harper, published 1983 (pamphlet, 36 pp., Chichester: Phillimore & Co. Ltd., ISBN-10: 0850335094 & ISBN-13: 9780850335095) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12435][Lib 8903] & West Sussex Libraries

Ringmer in World War II, by Albert Jenkins, published 1983 in Ringmer History (No. 2, article, pp.3-7)

War on the Line: The story of the Southern Railway in war time, by Bernard Darwin, published 1 April 1984 (reprint, 215 pp., Midhurst: Middleton Press, ISBN-13: 9780906520109) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 8992] & West Sussex Libraries

The Southern Railway achieved remarkable transport feats after Dunkirk and suffered dreadfully in the Blitz, but its greatest wartime undertaking was the movement of supplies of the Normandy landing. All this and more is recounted in detail in this reprint of the 1946 official story of the Southern in war-time.

The War In East Sussex: a short account of the main war events in East Sussex, September 3, 1939 - May 7, 1945, and the bombing of the County, compiled aand published by the Sussex Express And County Herald/Cinque Ports Press, in August 1945, published 1985 (Sussex Express and County Herald)

The Other Side of the Counter: The Life of a Shop Girl 1925-1945, by Marjorie Gardiner, published 1 January 1985 (39 pp., Brighton: QueenSpark Books, ISBN-10: 0904733130 & ISBN-13: 9780904733136) accessible at: The Keep archive of QueenSpark Books & East Sussex Libraries

This autobiography looks at the working life of milliner, Marjorie Gardiner, from 1925 to 1945, including an account of her working life during the Second World War. Marjorie's story is told in a lively and evocative manner, and describes her experiences as a shop assistant working in a Brighton hat shop, where she met all manner of elite customers.
Those were the days when women were particularly fashion-conscious and there was a huge variety of different types of hat styles available. This first-hand account provides a fascinating insight into shop life during the first part of the twentieth century.

Fighter Station Supreme: R.A.F. Tangmere, by Wing commander H. R. Allen, D.F.C., published 9 May 1985 (192 pp., Harper Collins Publishers Ltd., ISBN-10: 0586062661 & ISBN-13: 9780586062661) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 9359] & West Sussex Libraries

Hailsham at War, 1939-41, edited by George Farebrother, published 1986 (95 pp., Centre for Continuing Education, University of Sussex, ISBN-10: 0904242293 & ISBN-13: 9780904242294) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Forgotten Heroes, (The 11th, 12th and 13th Battalions of the Royal Sussex Regiment) , by Paul Reed, published 1986 (published by the author) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

War Graves of the British Empire, by C. Rogers, published September 1986 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 7 no. 2, article, pp.64-65) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 10461] & The Keep [LIB/501259] & CD SFH40 from S.F.H.G.

Names of Sussex men who died 1916-1918 at war have ben extracted from Colone Southern Cemetery in Germany; Estaires Communal Cemetery and extension, France and St Sever Cemetery Extension, Rowen, France. Listed are name, rank and unit, relationship, residence, address in cemetery.

City at War: A Pictorial Memento of Portsmouth, Gosport, Fareham, Havant and Chichester During World War Two, by Nigel Peake, published 26 October 1986 (160 pp., Horndean: Milestone Publications, ISBN-10: 0903852934 & ISBN-13: 9780903852937) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries

Wartime Voices: Memories of the Home Front in Worthing, by Keith Andreeti, published 1989 (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 10528] & West Sussex Libraries

Wartime Eastbourne: The Story of the most Raided Town in the South-East, by George Humphrey, published 1989 (Beckett Features) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Wartime Littlehampton, 1939-1945, by Iris Jones, published 1989 (Arun District Council) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 10535][Lib 14423] & West Sussex Libraries

Despatches From The Homefront: the war diaries of Joan Strange 1939-1945, by Joan Strange and edited by Chris McCooey, published 1989 (178 pp., Monarch Publications, ISBN-10: 1854240498 & ISBN-13: 9781854240491) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Worthing At War: the story of how a seaside town faced up to the horror of Hitler's bombers, by Colin Clark and Rupert Taylor, published 1 September 1989 (96 pp., Beckett Features, ISBN-10: 187198601X & ISBN-13: 9781871986013) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

War Memorial on the B2135 opposite Mill Lane, Littleworth, West Sussex, published December 1989 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 8 no. 8, article, p.340) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 10736] & The Keep [LIB/501260] & CD SFH40 from S.F.H.G.

Evacuation, by P. B. Evershed, published December 1989 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 8 no. 8, article, pp.356-357) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 10736] & The Keep [LIB/501260] & CD SFH40 from S.F.H.G.

Stories of evacuation to Sussex during WWII

Battle Over Sussex, 1940, by Pat Burgess and Andy Saunders, published 15 June 1990 (96 pp., Midhurst: Middleton Press, ISBN-10: 0906520797 & ISBN-13: 9780906520796) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Brighton Behind the Front: Photographs and Memories of the Second World War, edited by Michael Corum and George Heffaran, published 7 December 1990 (65 pp., Brighton: QueenSpark Books, ISBN-10: 0904733408 & ISBN-13: 9780904733402) accessible at: The Keep archive of QueenSpark Books & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Produced in collaboration with the Lewis Cohen Urban Studies Centre. It brings together a collection of Brighton wartime reminiscences and documents how ordinary people were affected by the war.
This was a challenging time in British history, giving rise to moving accounts of individual lives set against a society undergoing profound changes. Using personal recollections, contemporary photographs, letters, a logbook and diaries, Brighton behind the Front vividly portrays what it was like to live in this south coast town during the Second World War.

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some East Sussex villages - vol. 1, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1991 (Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501232] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some East Sussex villages - vol. 2, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1991 (Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501229] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Men Who Marched Away: a remembrance of the men whose names are recorded on the Rusper War Memorial, by Paul Reed, published 1991 (Averys Press)

Horsham 1939-1945: the air war, the story of the men & women, their machines and the incidents in and around the town of Horsham, Sussex, by Cliff White, published 1991 (Cliff White Publications) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

"No soldier": the 1942 diary of Miss Editha Blaikley of Wren Cottage, Tidebrook, Sussex., by Editha Blaikley, published 1992 (222 pp., Mayfield: Cinderhill Books) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503534] & British Library & East Sussex Libraries

The story of the Guinea Pig Club, by T. Kean, published 1992 (Lisek Publications, ISBN-10: 095180992X & ISBN-13: 9780951809921) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some East Sussex villages - vol. 3, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1992 (Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501230] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some East Sussex villages - vol. 4, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1992 (Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501237] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

War memorials in Hastings, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1992 (48 pp., Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501233] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some East Sussex villages - vol. 5, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1992 (42 pp., Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501235] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Merlin and the Sabre: The Story of RAF Apuldram, 1943-1945, by Ken Rimell, published 1992 (booklet, published by the author) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 11836] & West Sussex Libraries

You Must Remember This, by Rex Williams, published January 1992 (70 pp., Rural Rides Publications, ISBN-10: 1874349002 & ISBN-13: 9781874349006) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

A story of people living in the small country town of Crawley over fifty years ago. The glamour, excitement and harsh reality of war is here exemplified through the stories of the people of different nationalities during this time.

Steyning At War, published 1993 (Steyning Museum Trust)

Second World War graves in Sussex, by Peter J. Bilborough, published 1993 (pamphlet, 39 pp., Sussex Family History Group, ISBN-10: 0951358081 & ISBN-13: 9780951358085) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12115] & The Keep [LIB/501290] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Valiant Hearts of Ringmer: Ringmer village war memorial, by Geoffrey Bridger, published 1993 (103 pp., Ammonite Press, ISBN-10: 1898626006 & ISBN-13: 9781898626008) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503477] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

This book is an excellent example of what patient and painstaking research can do to the benefit of the life and social history of an English village. The author has taken the fifty-three names on the War Memorial (forty-two of them are of the Great War) and traced their background, their military service, the circumstances of their deaths and their place of burial or commemoration thus providing a short biography of each man. By this Mr Bridger has ensured, in the words on the altar of sacrifice in every Commonwealth War Grave cemetery and repeated in Lord Callaghan's Foreword, that "their name liveth for evermore". The front of the book is a lovely colour photo of the War Memorial on the village green. A fine tribute to fifty-three men who might otherwise have been forgotten with the passing of time.

Sussex Airfields in the Second World War, by Robin J. Brooks, published 1993 (192 pp., Berkshire: Countryside Books, ISBN-10: 1853062596 & ISBN-13: 9781853062599) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12927][Lib 12175] & The Keep [LIB/502156] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

This title describes the airfields of Sussex during the last war, the planes and the pilots who flew them, and the local civilians who worked alongside them. It is fully illustrated.

Rolls of honour and war memorials in Lewes, Peacehaven and Piddinghoe, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1993 (21 pp., Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501236] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some villages and towns in East & West Sussex, also some border villages of Kent and Surrey - volume 6, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1993 (35 pp., Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501238] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some villages and towns in East & West Sussex, also some border villages of Kent and Surrey - volume 7, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1993 (35 pp., Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501239] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in Eastbourne, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1993 (Eastbourne Local History Society)

That Peace in Our Time: Artefacts of World War Two in Sussex, by Peter Longstaff-Tyrell, published July 1993 (86 pp., Polegate: Gote House Publishing, ISBN-10: 0952129701 & ISBN-13: 9780952129707) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12053] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Fine Harvest: Sussex (Women at War), by Daphne Byrne, published 1 August 1993 (Stylus Press Publications, ISBN-10: 1856204960 & ISBN-13: 9781856204965)

Lewes Remembers the Second World War, 1939-1945: The Words of the People of Lewes as Recorded and Edited by the Lewes U3A Oral History Group, published 1 September 1993 (140 pp., Lewes U3A Publications, ISBN-10: 0952201402 & ISBN-13: 9780952201403) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

An Ever-Rolling Stream, by Norman Wyatt, published 1 November 1993 (72 pp., S.M.H. Books, ISBN-10: 0951261932 & ISBN-13: 9780951261934) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

This memoir of a Sussex farmer, always a devout Christian but only late in life becoming a priest, was described by Michael Adie, the then Bishop of Guildford, as the outline of a lovely and lively man, who seems to have grown younger with the passing of the years. This is not, however, just a Sussex book; not just that of a committed Christian. Its appeal it to all those interested in local and family history, and rural life before World War II, and during it covered in clear, first-hand descriptions. It also paints a true picture of the ever-changing farming scene: now a tragically changing one.
An Ever-Rolling Stream came to be written after a nostalgic visit by the author to the village of Walberton and scenes of his childhood, wartime youth and manhood until 1958, at Pigeon House Farm. strong desire to record something of the familiar faces and places came over him.

Selsey and the D-Day Story, published 1994 (Selsey Society) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12193]

D-Day: Brighton remembers, published 1994 (Brighton: Lewis Cohen Urban Studies & Southgate Publishers, ISBN-10: 0948992069 & ISBN-13: 9780948992063) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

D-Day West Sussex: Springboard for the Normandy Landings, by Ian Greig, Kim C. Leslie and Alan Readman, published 1994 (115 pp., Chichester: West Sussex County Council, ISBN-10: 0862602912 & ISBN-13: 9780862602918) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12187] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of honour and war memorials in some villages and towns in East & West Sussex, also some border villages of Kent and Surrey - volume 8, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1994 (48 pp., Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/501231] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Rolls of Honor and War Memorials in Eastbourne, compiled by L. Medhurst and E. Pitcher, published 1994 (Family Roots Family History Society Eastbourne & District) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Tangmere Village Day and D-Day Commemoration 1944-1994, by John Stedman, published 1994 (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12213]

Westbourne and D-Day, published 1994 (pamphlet, Westbourne Local History Group) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12204]

The Guinea Pig Club, by D. R. Andrew, published May 1994 in Aviation Space Environmental Medicine (vol. 65, no. 5, article, pp.428-433)

The "Guinea Pig Club" was formed in 1941 by a group of airmen who had sustained grievous injuries - mostly serious burns of the hands and face - and been treated by a team of plastic surgeons led by a remarkable New Zealander, Archibald McIndoe, at the Queen Victoria Hospital at East Grinstead in England. The most senior "Guinea Pig" was Tom Gleave, a fighter pilot who had been shot down during the Battle of Britain, and who carried out his duties as "Chief Guinea Pig" until his death in June 1993. This paper describes Tom Gleave's arrival at the Queen Victoria Hospital, and the formation and development of The Guinea Pig Club

Blitz Over Sussex, 1941-42, by Pat Burgess and Andy Saunders, published October 1994 (96 pp., Midhurst: Middleton Press, ISBN-10: 1873793359 & ISBN-13: 9781873793350) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12646] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Sheltered Lives: Ditchling Road School: The War Years, by Downs Junior School project organised by Diana Knapp, published 1995 (28 pp., Downs Junior School, Brighton, ISBN-10: 0952578204 & ISBN-13: 9780952578208)

Memories of the Second World War, published 1995 (Ringmer: Ringmer Community College) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

French Resistance in Sussex, by Barbara Bertram, published 1995 (96 pp., Barnworks Publishing, ISBN-10: 189917401X & ISBN-13: 9781899174010) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13028] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The tiny village of Bignor, near Petworth, Sussex, may appear a sleepy place, but during World War II it provided the ideal camouflage for a "secret house", hiding men and women from the French Resistance. The owner of the house recalls her memories and experiences of the times

Selsey Remembers 1939-1945, by Tom Creedy, published 1995 (pamphlet, The Selsey Society) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12988][Lib 13512] & West Sussex Libraries

Lewes at War 1939-1945, by R. A. Elliston, published 1995 (232 pp., Seaford: S. B. Publications, ISBN-10: 1857701852 & ISBN-13: 9781857701852) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12863] & The Keep [LIB/503455] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

West Sussex at War 1939-1945, by Kim C. Leslie and Alan Readman, published 1995 (pamphlet, Chichester: West Sussex County Council) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13095] & West Sussex Libraries

Memorials of Wars 2: The Tuxlith Tracts, In Two World Wars, These Men from Rake, Milland, Lynch, Iping and Chithurst Died, Securing and Defending Freedom for others , by Leslie Lloyd, published 1995 (Friends of Tuxlith Chapel) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Pulborough in War Time, 1939-1945, by David W Morris, published 1995 (pamphlet, published by the author) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13123][Lib 12859] & West Sussex Libraries

War Memorials from Chichester, by Katherine Slay, published 1995 (pamphlet, Sussex Family History Group) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12239][Lib 13124] & West Sussex Libraries

Bombers Over Sussex, 1943-45, by Pat Burgess and Andy Saunders, published 13 April 1995 (96 pp., Midhurst: Middleton Press, ISBN-10: 1873793510 & ISBN-13: 9781873793510) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Horsham Town and Country "When the Siren Sounded", by Cliff White, published 1 May 1995 (279 pp., Cliff White Publications, ISBN-10: 0952554518 & ISBN-13: 9780952554516) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12861] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries

West Sussex at War, 1939-45 , by Caroline Adams, Martin Hayes, Timothy J. McCann and Alan Readman, published May 1995 (Local History Mini-Guide to Sources, No. 2, pamphlet, 8 pp., Chichester: West Sussex County Council, ISBN-10: 0862603234 & ISBN-13: 9780862603236) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12855][Lib 13188] & West Sussex Libraries

1939-45 War Dead of the British Commonwealth and Empire, by Mr. A. V. C. Roberts, published June 1995 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 11 no. 6, article, pp.227-228) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 14878] & The Keep [LIB/501263] & CD SFH40 from S.F.H.G.

List of Sussex men buried at the town cemetery of Antwerp.

Bognor at War. Bognor Regis from 1939 to 1945, by Andy Saunders, published 18 November 1995 (96 pp., Midhurst: Middleton Press, ISBN-10: 1873793596 & ISBN-13: 9781873793596) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Coolham Airfield remembered: Memories and anecdotes of a Sussex D-Day Fighter Station and village, by Paul Hamlin and Ann Davies, published 1996 (150 pp., published by the author, ISBN-13: 9780952796800) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Frontline Sussex: the defence lines of West Sussex, 1939-1945, by Martin Mace, published 1996 (booklet, Historic Military Press) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13320] & West Sussex Libraries

Secret Sussex Resistance, 1940-44, by Stewart Angell, published 24 August 1996 (84 pp., Midhurst: Middleton Press, ISBN-10: 1873793820 & ISBN-13: 9781873793824) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13250] & The Keep [LIB/506109] & British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Bader's Tangmere Spitfires, Untold Story, 1941, by Dilip Sarkar, published 1 November 1996 (207 pp., Patrick Stephens Ltd., ISBN-10: 1852605634 & ISBN-13: 9781852605636) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Last Enemy, by Richard Hillary, published 1997 (192 pp., Pimlico) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [RSR/Library/5/560] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

This is the true story of Second World War fighter pilot, Richard Hillary.
After being shot down in September 1940, Hillary spent several months in hospital, undergoing numerous operations; a member of Archibald McIndoe's 'Guinea Pig Club'. Originally published in 1942, just months before he died in a second crash, The Last Enemy recounts the struggles and successes of a young man in the Royal Air Force.
Told through Hillary's eyes, this incredible story shows that even in our darkest moments there is a glimmer of enduring hope.

Southwick at War 1939-1945, by Nigel Divers, published 1997 (Southwick Society) accessible at: Southwick Society

Extraordinary Spring: a wartime childhood in West Sussex, by Roy Gardner with a foreword by Dame Vera lynn, published 17 February 1997 (53 pp., Lewes: Book Guild Publishing Ltd., ISBN-10: 1857761669 & ISBN-13: 9781857761665) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Brighton Blitz, by David Rowland, published July 1997 (88 pp., Seaford: S. B. Publications, ISBN-10: 1857701240 & ISBN-13: 9781857701241) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503771] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Operation Cuckmere Haven: Investigation into Military Aspects of the Cuckmere Valley, East Sussex, by Peter Longstaff-Tyrell, published December 1997 (80 pp., Polegate: Gote House Publishing, ISBN-10: 095212971X & ISBN-13: 9780952129714) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Sussex Wartime Relics and Memorials, Wrecks, Relics & Memorials From Sussex at War 1939-1945, by Martin F. Mace, published 1 December 1997 (198 pp., Historic Military Press, ISBN-10: 1901313018 & ISBN-13: 9781901313017) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13730] & The Keep [LIB/502113] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Men of Southover: The stories of those lost in two World Wars, and the families they left behind in Southover, Lewes, by Alison M. Benton, published 1998 (240 pp., Uckfield: Moira Publications, ISBN-10: 0953283305 & ISBN-13: 9780953283309) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503473] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Sussex Home Guard, by Paul Crook, published 1998 (96 pp., Midhurst: Middleton Press, ISBN-10: 1901706249 & ISBN-13: 9781901706246) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13852][Lib 13859] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Tyrrell's List: The Artefacts of Two Great Wars in Sussex, by Peter Longstaff-Tyrell, published 1998 (80 pp., Polegate: Gote House Publishing, ISBN-13: 9780952129738) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Memoirs of My War Years, 1939-1945, by Mary Shaw, published 1998 (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13919]

Horsham: the War Years in Pictures, by Cliff White, published 1998 (72 pp., Cliff White Publications, ISBN-10: 0952554550 & ISBN-13: 9780952554554) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13911] & West Sussex Libraries

Three men in a war: an account of the Surrey Yeomanry in the Second World War, by John Gascoigne-Pees, published 1 January 1998 (287 pp., Bramber: Old Museum Press, ISBN-10: 1840420529 & ISBN-13: 9781840420524) accessible at: British Library

Eastbourne at War: Portrait of a Front Line Town, by George Humphrey, published 20 June 1998 (96 pp., Seaford: S. B. Publications, ISBN-10: 1857701585 & ISBN-13: 9781857701586) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Chanctonbury Crashes, the Story of Five German Aircraft That Never Returned from the Battle of Britain,, by Martin F. Mace, published June 1998 (32 pp., Historic Military Press, ISBN-10: 1901313026 & ISBN-13: 9781901313024) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Westbourne's War, 1939-1945, by Thomas Edwards, published July 1998 (Bygone Westbourne, no. 10, 47 pp., Westbourne Local History Group, ISBN-10: 0950749699 & ISBN-13: 9780950749693) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 13791] & Westbourne Local History Group & West Sussex Libraries

The Tree Climbers: A Childhood in Wartime Brighton, by David J. Knowles, published 30 November 1998 (189 pp., Knowles Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953435806 & ISBN-13: 9780953435807) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 14073] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Bluebirds Fly Past, by The WAAF West Sussex Group and compiled by Daphne Bingham, published 1999 (98 pp., Woodfield Publishing, ISBN-10: 1873203306 & ISBN-13: 9781873203309) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Bittersweet seasons: 1947 in Sussex with wartime and other excerpts , by David J. Knowles, published 1999 (192 pp., Knowles Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953435814 & ISBN-13: 9780953435814) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 14074] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Ardingly, Sussex at War 1939-45 and the Evacuee Experience, by Alex Maclean, published 1999 (76 pp., Ardingly Evacuee Experience Committee) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Sussex Defenses in the Second World War, by Kim Leslie and Martin Mace, published 1 January 1999 in An Historical Atlas of Sussex (pp.118-119, Chichester: Phillimore & Co. Ltd, ISBN-10: 1860771122 & ISBN-13: 9781860771125) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 14026][Lib 18777] & The Keep [LIB/501686][LIB/508903] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Lewes at War, 1939-1945, by R. A. Elliston, published 1 June 1999 (232 pp., Seaford: S. B. Publications, ISBN-10: 1857701852 & ISBN-13: 9781857701852) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Bexhill in World War II, by David Burton, published 1 September 1999 (2nd revised edition, 30 pp., Bexhill Museum Association, ISBN-10: 0953709108 & ISBN-13: 9780953709106) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

Letters from a War Child: Ernest Dieter Ball's Correspondence 1939-1941, by Sandra Ball, published 1 November 1999 (45 pp., Horsham Museum Society, ISBN-10: 190248410X & ISBN-13: 9781902484105) accessible at: British Library & Horsham Museum Society & West Sussex Libraries

They Also Served: A Collection of World War Two Memories of Men and Women of the Midhurst Area, by 33 Men and Women, published 2000 (Royal British Legion)

When the war is over: the war memories of William Holmes, by John Holmes, William Holmes, published 2000 (149 pp., Windsor: Short Run Book Company) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Born in 1918 in Newick, William Holmes was a Private in the Royal Sussex Regiment who was captured at Dunkirk, and spent years as a prisoner of war.]

"Ruth-Less" and far from home, by Kevin Watson, published 2000 (127 pp., ISBN-13: 9780953839001) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Story of the crew of an American B24 Liberator bomber which crashed into The Combe, a hill near Eastbourne, on the 2 February 1944.

Civilian war dead in the Hastings, Battle, Bexhill, Rye & Rother regions (1939-1945), published 1 January 2000 (31 pp., R. A. Longley, ISBN-10: 0953089150 & ISBN-13: 9780953089154) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

Selsey at War 1939-1945: A Village Faces the Nazis, by Clifford John Michael Fidler, published 18 August 2000 (294 pp., Fidelity Processes Limited, ISBN-10: 095390010X & ISBN-13: 9780953900107) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 14303] & West Sussex Libraries

We Will Remember Them: Dedicated to the Memory of the Men of Peacehaven and Telscombe Who Died in the Two World Wars, by Malcolm Troak, published 29 September 2000 (118 pp., New Anzac Publications, ISBN-10: 0953911500 & ISBN-13: 9780953911509) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/502985] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Sussex Network, by Patricia Peck, published September 2000 in History today (vol. 50, issue 9, article)   View Online

Patricia Cleveland-Peck on the part played by a French cafe in the Sussex Network operations during the Second World War.
It was the casual remark made in the 1980s by a friend in Paris that led to my discovery of a little-known piece of Second World War history ? the Sussex Network. ?Did I know,' my friend asked, ?about the café in rue Tournefort where la patronne sheltered allied airmen during the war?'
I did not, but thinking it worth investigation I set off ? only to find that the café had just closed down. Disappointed and fearing that the owner had died (my friend said she had run the café since 1928) I pushed a note through the door and thought no more about it until a few weeks later when I received a letter informing me that the owner, Andrée Goubillon, was alive and well and would be happy to meet me and tell me her story.

Spitfires Over Sussex: The Exploits of 602 Squadron, by David Rowland, published 30 October 2000 (150 pp., Peacehaven: Finsbury Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953939200 & ISBN-13: 9780953939206) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Paraffin Lights - Water from the Well: A rural ride of growing up in Sussex - before, during and after World War II, by Michael Butcher assisted by David J. Knowles, published 27 November 2000 (160 pp., Knowles Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953435830 & ISBN-13: 9780953435838) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503925] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

An Army in the Fields, by Mary Squires, published 1 November 2000 (129 pp., Minerva Press, ISBN-10: 0754113701 & ISBN-13: 9780754113706) accessible at: British Library

A Far Cry from a White Apron, by Michael & Leslie Wilson, published 14 December 2000 (76 pp., Brighton: QueenSpark Books, ISBN-10: 0904733807 & ISBN-13: 9780904733808) accessible at: The Keep archive of QueenSpark Books & East Sussex Libraries

This book is about a young boy's experiences during the Second World War. The content is frank and occasionally disturbing and harrowing, even more so because Leslie Wilson was only eighteen years' old when he made the harsh transition from working as a shop assistant to working in a Welsh coal mine. This is a fascinating biography, co-authored by the protagonist, and describes with poignancy, stories of lost youth and a harsh life spent during a turbulent historical period.

War in a Seaside Town, by Ron Ham, published Spring 2000 in West Sussex History, the Journal of West Sussex Archives Society (no. 65, article, p.34) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 16404/65] & The Keep [LIB/500489]

We Will Remember Them: Men from Our Parish Who Lost Their Lives in the Great World War 1914 -1918 & the Second World War 1939 - 1945, by Phil Lucas, published 2001 (64 pp., Danehill Parish Historical Society) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503201] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

They Also Served: The Story of Sussex Lifeboats at War 1939-1945, by Martin F. Mace, published 2001 (72 pp., Historic Military Press, ISBN-10: 1901313034 & ISBN-13: 9781901313031) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Still smiling through: World War 2 memories collected from among the congregation and Friends of St Mary's Church, Horsham, West Sussex, by Wendy Dodds, published 2001 (70 pp., Horsham Museum Society) accessible at: British Library & Horsham Museum Society

And Hitler Stopped Play, Cricket and War at Lyminster House, West Sussex (1931-1946), by George Cooper, published 22 June 2001 (296 pp., Vanguard Press, ISBN-10: 1903489083 & ISBN-13: 9781903489086) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

A Glimse of West Sussex at War, 1914-1918, by Neville Oswald, published Autumn 2001 in West Sussex History, the Journal of West Sussex Archives Society (no. 68, article, p.3) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 16404/68] & The Keep [LIB/500492]

Tyrrell's List: The Artefacts of Two Great Wars in Sussex, by Peter Longstaff-Tyrell, published 2002 (80 pp., Polegate: Gote House Publishing, ISBN-10: 0952129736 & ISBN-13: 9780952129738) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Ravilious at War: The Complete Works of Eric Ravilious, September 1939-September 1942, edited by Anne Ullman, published 2002 (286 pp., Upper Denby: The Fleece Press, ISBN-10: 0948375701 & ISBN-13: 9780948375705) accessible at: The Keep [RAV/9/3/1]

Letters from Lavender Cottage: Hastings in WWII and Austerity - A Biography, by Victoria Seymour, published 19 October 2002 (180 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 0954390105 & ISBN-13: 9780954390105) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

If you enjoy WWII history on the home front and the secret pleasure of reading someone's private letters, then Letters From Lavender Cottage- Hastings in WWII and Austerity is for you.
The book tells of the domestic hardships inflicted on the Hastings, England populace as a result of war, along with personal comment, biographical detail and pictures.
Canadian relatives come to the rescue of Lavender Cottage occupants, sending food and comforts to the household during harsh and austere times. The story of the three elderly ladies, who live in the cottage and cope with post war shortages is heart-warming, funny and touching.

Hastings in peace and war, 1930-1945, by Mary Haskell Porter, published 1 December 2002 (150 pp., Hastings: Ferndale Press, ISBN-10: 1870096061 & ISBN-13: 9781870096065) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

War in the City: Volume 1, by David Rowland, published 4 December 2002 (128 pp., Peacehaven: Finsbury Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953939219 & ISBN-13: 9780953939213) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Out of the Blue: The Story of Brighton's Worst Air Raid, by David Rowland, published 2003 (112 pp., Peacehaven: Finsbury Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953939227 & ISBN-13: 9780953939220) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Men of Burgess Hill 1939 to 1946, Remembering the Ninety Who Gave their Lives for Peace and Freedom During the Second World War, by Guy Voice, published 2003 (published by the author) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries   Download PDF

Flight Sergeant Stuart Spencer Newcomb, by Phil Stanbridge, published September 2003 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 15 no. 7, article, pp.304-305) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15249] & The Keep [LIB/508827] & CD SFH40 from S.F.H.G.

The story of Stuart Spencer Newcomb (1911-1942) and his military service in No 3 Group Bomber Command during WWII

Letters to Hannah: WW II Recollections of Hastings and South East England, by Victoria Seymour, published 14 October 2003 (iv + 169 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 0954390113 & ISBN-13: 9780954390112) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

Letters to Hannah looks at WWII on the Home Front through the eyes of those who lived in Hastings and South East England, from September 1939 to December 1945. It also enlarges on the historical background covered in its companion book, Letters from Lavender Cottage.

Glimpse of West Sussex at War, 1939-1945, by Neville Oswald, published Spring 2003 in West Sussex History, the Journal of West Sussex Archives Society (no. 71, article, p.39) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 16404/71] & The Keep [LIB/500495]

A Private Viewing, by W. R. Garrett, published 2004 (123 pp., Lewes: Book Guild, ISBN-10: 1857768760 & ISBN-13: 9781857768763) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries

This is an atmospheric memoir of W.R. Garrett of thr Royal Sussex Regiment and his experience of war, with vivid descriptions of battles, of eccentric colleagues, and the beautiful lands they marched through.

The Reconstruction of Warriors: Archibald Mcindoe, the Royal Air Force and the Guinea Pig Club, by E. R. Mayhew, published 2004 (239 pp. + 16 pp. of plates, London: Greenhill Books, ISBN-10: 1853676101 & ISBN-13: 9781853676109) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

The history of the Guinea Pig Club, the band of airmen who were seriously burned in aeroplane fires, is a truly inspiring, spine-tingling tale. Plastic surgery was in its infancy before the Second World War. The most rudimentary techniques were only known to a few surgeons worldwide. The Allies were tremendously fortunate in having the maverick surgeon Archibald McIndoe nicknamed the Boss or the Maestro operating at a small hospital in East Grinstead in the south of England. McIndoe constructed a medical infrastructure from scratch. After arguing with his superiors, he set up a revolutionary new treatment regime. Uniquely concerned with the social environment, or holistic care , McIndoe also enlisted the help of the local civilian population. He rightly secured his group of patients dubbed the Guinea Pig Club an honoured place in society as heroes of Britain s war. For the first time official records have been used to explain fully how and why this remarkable relationship developed between the Guinea Pig Club, the RAF and the Home Front. First-person recollections bring to life the heroism of the airmen with incredible clarity.

Story of the Home Front in West Sussex 1939-1945, Wartime West Sussex 1939-1945 Project , by Alan Readman, published 2004 (Chichester: West Sussex County Council) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Kent and Sussex 1940: Britain's Frontline, by Stuart Hylton, published 20 September 2004 (160 pp., Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military, ISBN-10: 1844150844 & ISBN-13: 9781844150847) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

In June 1940, Britain's front line against the German armies was the coast of Kent and Sussex. Across the Channel, Hitler's forces gathered, preparing for invasion, as the Home Forces struggled desperately to recover from the disaster and miracle of Dunkirk. Occupation of these islands was nearer than for almost nine hundred years. Kent and Sussex 1940, tells the story of the communities that found themselves in the front line, placing their experience within the context of huge historic events.

Survivors: True Stories of Airmen Who Crashed - And Lived to Tell the Tale, by David Rowland, published 12 October 2004 (164 pp., Peacehaven: Finsbury Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953939235 & ISBN-13: 9780953939237) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Court in the Act: Crime and Policing in WWII Hastings, by Victoria Seymour, published 8 October 2004 (vi + 152 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 0954390121 & ISBN-13: 9780954390129) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

We Just Got On With It! Recollections from the Goodwood Villages World War 2 1939-1945, by Goodwood Villages Together, published 2005 (152 pp., Selsey Press) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15389]

Mrs. Barrow's War Diary, edited by Joe Barrow, published 2005 (Lancing & Sompting Pastfinders History Group) accessible at: Lancing & Sompting Pastfinders Local History Group & West Sussex Libraries

Here Joe recorded extracts from his mother's diary of life in Lancing during the early years of World War 2

Brighton's war: as recorded in the diaries of Helen Roust, a local schoolteacher, compiled by Teresa Dennis, published 2005 (204 pp., Seaford SB Publications, ISBN-10: 1857703057 & ISBN-13: 9781857703054) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries

It Started With A Map: The story of a forgotten World War Two advanced landing ground in Bognor Regis, long since returned to agriculture., by Sylvia Endacott, published 2005 (published by the author, ISBN-10: 1933570997 & ISBN-13: 9781933570990) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15471] & West Sussex Libraries

Hastings at war, 1939-1945, by Nathan Dylan Goodwin, published 2005 (130 pp., Chichester: Phillimore & Co. Ltd., ISBN-10: 1860773281 & ISBN-13: 9781860773280) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Evaporated children, by Sheila Rowe, published 2005 (181 pp., Plynlimmon, ISBN-13: 9780955222207) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

The experiences of the children of Hastings in World War II, who were all evacuated on the same day, 21 July 1940.

Remember Them Well: East Hoathly and Halland: Hostilities from Thomas Turner to the Second World War, by Jane Seabrook, published 11 November 2005 (162 pp., CTR Publishing, ISBN-10: 0952451654 & ISBN-13: 9780952451655) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/503559] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Pevensey Castle, East Sussex, by William Foot, published 2006 in The battlefields that nearly were: defended England 1940 (pp.62-70, Stroud: Tempus, ISBN-10: 0752438492 & ISBN-13: 9780752438498) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Cripps Corner, East Sussex [Robertsbridge], by William Foot, published 2006 in The battlefields that nearly were: defended England 1940 (pp.71-81, Stroud: Tempus, ISBN-10: 0752438492 & ISBN-13: 9780752438498) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Cuckmere Haven, East Sussex, by William Foot, published 2006 in The battlefields that nearly were: defended England 1940 (pp.82-88, Stroud: Tempus, ISBN-10: 0752438492 & ISBN-13: 9780752438498) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Barcombe Mills to Old Lodge Warren, East Sussex, by William Foot, published 2006 in The battlefields that nearly were: defended England 1940 (pp.89-98, Stroud: Tempus, ISBN-10: 0752438492 & ISBN-13: 9780752438498) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

A German Bomber on Worthing Soil, by Graham Lelliott, published 1 September 2006 (82 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 0955389305 & ISBN-13: 9780955389306) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Heroes of Fighter Command Sussex, by Rupert Matthews, published 2007 (192 pp., Berkshire: Countryside Books, ISBN-10: 1846740363 & ISBN-13: 9781846740367) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

A Richer Dust: the Lurgashall War Memorial, by Michael Oakland, published 2007 (218 pp., Studio Gallery Publications, ISBN-10: 095423572X & ISBN-13: 9780954235727) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15814] & West Sussex Libraries

War in the City: The Bombing of Brighton and Hove, Volume 2, by David Rowland, published 2007 (124 pp., Peacehaven: Finsbury Publishing, ISBN-10: 0953939251 & ISBN-13: 9780953939251) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

The Grellier twins, Norman (1886-1949) and Bernard (1886-1957), radiologists of East Sussex., by Ian J. Kenedy, published February 2007 in The Journal of Medical Biography (vol. 15, no. 1, article, pp.53-58)   View Online

Identical twins Bernard and Norman Grellier (born Epsom, 1886) attended Epsom College before entering Dental School at the Royal Dental Hospital of London in 1904, graduating in 1910. Then they trained in medicine at Charing Cross Hospital. Bernard graduated in 1913 and Norman in 1915. In 1915 they joined the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC), serving to the end of World War I (WWI), each being awarded the Military Cross for gallantry. After WWI, they trained as radiologists and moved to St Leonards-on-Sea in West Sussex, taking up Consultant posts at the Royal East Sussex Hospital and the Municipal Hospital in Hastings, and the Eversfield Chest Hospital in St Leonards. In 1940 they rejoined the RAMC as radiologists, serving throughout World War II. They remained unmarried, devoted to each other, to their practice and to their loves of model engineering and flying, the latter nearly causing their deaths in an air crash in 1936.

The Field Place Mystery - Secret WW2 tunnels & bunker believed to exist at this site, Worthing., by Graham Lelliott, published 22 October 2007 (31 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 0955389313 & ISBN-13: 9780955389313) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

West Sussex at War: the role of the military airfields during World War Two, by Robin Brokes, published Autumn 2007 in West Sussex History, the Journal of West Sussex Archives Society (no. 76, article, p.27) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 16404/76] & The Keep [LIB/500500]

Community reminiscences project on World War Two, by Judith Kinnison-Bourke and others, published 2008 (Herstmonceux Luncheon Club)

When the Whistle Blew: The Story of Dial Post, Littleworth, Partridge Green and West Grinstead in World War 2 , by West Grinstead Local History Group, published 2008 (159 pp., West Grinstead Local History Group, ISBN-10: 0956114202 & ISBN-13: 9780956114204) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Target Brighton, by David Rowland, published 15 April 2008 (182 pp., Peacehaven: Finsbury Publishing, ISBN-10: 095393926X & ISBN-13: 9780953939268) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

Beachy Head! Angels 20: The Battle of Britain Over Eastbourne During the Summer of 1940, by Paul Nash, published 1 June 2008 (2nd edition, 130 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 0955944406 & ISBN-13: 9780955944406) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

20th Century War Memorials in Felpham and Middleton; Studies in the history of Felpham and Middleton no. 1, by Sheila Gould, published 16 September 2008 (40 pp., Felpham and Middleton Local History Workshop, ISBN-10: 0951648233 & ISBN-13: 9780951648230) accessible at: Felpham and Middleton Local History Workshop & West Sussex Libraries

Community Reminiscence Project on World War Two: Memories of the People of Herstmonceux, edited by Judith Kinnison Bourke, Julia Tolley, Sarah Wright and Trevor Cornford, published October 2008 (288 pp., Judith Kinnison Bourke, ISBN-10: 095605000X & ISBN-13: 9780956050007) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

This book is very much a community project with just over one hundred contributors but it has an appeal well beyond its locality. The project began when Herstmonceaux Free Church made World War Two the subject of one of their monthly Sunday Supplement events and invited local groups to take part. The members of the Herstmonceaux Luncheon Club then went on to take part in a series of creative writing classes and one of these sessions was open to the reminiscences of the wider community.
The book is organised in broad themes of: Home Front, Evacuation, the Women's Land Army, The Frontline Memories from Abroad and VE Day and the Aftermath of War and the writing is interspersed with photographs, drawings, postcards and personal documents. Some of the contributions are only two short lines, such as 'I Never Knew My Dad' but no less affecting for their brevity.
The material included is wide ranging and full of personal detail.
. . .
I think this book will have a wide appeal. Anyone who lived through World War Two will find much to stimulate their own reminiscences and younger readers will learn a wealth of detail about the period. I think children studying WW2 will particularly relate to the child's perspective and this book could be a valuable classroom resource.

Hastings: Wartime Memories and Photographs, by Nathan Dylan Goodwin, published 20 October 2008 (146 pp., Chichester: Phillimore & Co. Ltd., ISBN-10: 1860775829 & ISBN-13: 9781860775826) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Hastings Wartime Memories and Photographs weaves the personal stories of 75 people who endured life in Hastings during the Home Front war years with more than 130 photographs, the majority of which have never been published before. The book delves into the lives of ordinary men, women and children, as well as the soldiers and evacuees who made Hastings their home at the time and so lived with the constant fear of invasion, and provides a detailed and colourful account of life on the front line.

The impetus for this book came during a number of book-signing events undertaken by the author when he was approached by people who wanted to share their wartime stories with him. The result is a fascinating book devoted to 130 photographs alongside the stories of 75 people, and through them a host of others who lived and died in the town during the war years. The book is divided into 7 chapters beginning with 'The Path to War' and ending with 'Peace Returns to Hastings.'
I found this book very difficult to put down as the voices come through very clearly telling about a variety of subjects such as ARP duties, the testing of gas masks, the blackout, life as an evacuee, the fun of apple scrumping and the horrors of the air raids.
The initiative of civilians in war time is well illustrated - 'If you saw a queue, you joined it. . .' - as is their heroism. Several story tellers remember being thrown to the ground as children, and heroic mums lying on top of them protecting them as bullets ricocheted around them.
The longest chapter is entirely devoted to recollections of air attacks. Houses looked like dolls' houses as their fronts were blown off though several bombs penetrated buildings in such a way that they passed straight through detonating elsewhere. Eleven Canadians were killed in the Albany Hotel by a 250kg bomb which had already gone through the Queen's Hotel without exploding.
In this the 70th anniversary year of the outbreak of the 2nd World War, it is a pleasure to recommend Nathan Dylan Goodwin's collection. It would sit well alongside the book about Wadhurst which was reviewed in the August edition of Sussex Past & Present.

Wadhurst in the Second World War: Life in a Wealden Market Town 1939-1945, by Members of the Society, published November 2008 (viii + 317 pp., Wadhurst History Society, ISBN-10: 0954580281 & ISBN-13: 9780954580285) accessible at: British Library & Wadhurst History Society & East Sussex Libraries

Takes a look at life in Wadhurst before the war began, how it changed during the war and the effects of the immediate aftermath. A vivid and sometimes dramatic portrait is painted which relies heavily on the recollections of those who lived through it all in Wadhurst.

The members of Wadhurst History Society marked the 60th anniversary of the end of WW2 by recording and collecting the memories of people who had experienced village life during that time. This book is an engaging series of studies using this research along with a range of other documentary sources. I was particularly struck by their imaginative use of this rich source material throughout to draw out the details of life in Wadhurst during wartime. As well as conducting interviews they also made use of diaries and the on-line archive created by the BBC, 'WW2 People's War'. They intersperse these personal accounts with details from Parish magazines, Newspaper Reports, Air raid Log Books, government information leaflets, battalion diaries and more.
The studies cover an interesting range of subjects, from a close examination of the wartime Parish magazines to a chapter on Canadian Forces in the Wadhurst area. Each one illuminates the specific experiences of the residents of the Wadhurst area; for example the experience of living within 'Doodlebug Alley', whilst maintaining the broader focus of a country at war.
This dual focus will make it of interest to anyone interested in local history or the Second World War more generally. I think the use of source material will also be of great interest and value to local history groups who might be planning a project. The details of 'ordinary' everyday life during wartime is excellent throughout the book. I was moved by the real sense of community spirit which emerges across all the chapters. One can easily imagine rural communities all over Britain going through similar experiences. It is sometimes the subtle details that are so telling; such as the strain on the vicar from his attempts to maintain optimism and comfort his parishioners through such difficult times. The book is well illustrated with photographs, advertisements and maps and is a considerable collective achievement for the History Society.

Bexhill in World War II, by David Burton and Alan Beecher, published 2009 (3rd revised edition, 96 pp., Bexhill Museum Association) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Growing Up in Sussex: From Schoolboy to Soldier, by Gerry Wells, published 1 March 2009 (128 pp., The History Press, ISBN-10: 0752449672 & ISBN-13: 9780752449678) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

This compelling memoir starts with a boy's journey through the early years of the 1930s: days of the rag and bone man, street lamplighters, Hercule Poirot, and in the background, Hitler. Then life gets real: at school where cane and cricket bat rule and where the mustard sandwich fills a hungry corner, and even more real with army call-up and training. Then, in 1944/45, comes the crunch of combat in Operation Overlord - a boy's growing-up time. And after all that, with his ears still ringing a bit, comes the blessed call of demob and a taste of new delights: days of farming and finding a woman daft enough to marry him before settling on a farm to start his life as a man. In this nostalgic book evoking recollections of childhood and wartime in Sussex, the memories are the author's, however the sights and events are those that will be remembered by many others, and readers will warm to the narrator, who has found the perfect balance of humour and sensitivity.

Nudes at Breakfast: Steyning Grammar School During the Second World War, by George Barker, published 1 October 2009 (174 pp., published by the author, ISBN-10: 095403421X & ISBN-13: 9780954034214) accessible at: British Library & West Sussex Libraries

Canucks by the Sea: Lick Them over there! Come on Canada! The Canadian Army in Eastbourne during the Second World War, by Michael Ockenden, published November 2009 (193 pp., Eastbourne Local History Society, ISBN-10: 0954764749 & ISBN-13: 9780954764746) accessible at: Eastbourne Local History Society

The story of the Canadian Army in Eastbourne during the Second World War.

Horsham's Heroes of the Great War 1914-1919: "That His Name be Not Forgotten", by Gary T. Cooper, published 10 November 2009 (862 pp., Horsham Museum Society, ISBN-10: 1902484398 & ISBN-13: 9781902484396) accessible at: Horsham Museum Society & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

This book will unfold year by year from 1914 to 1919 the lives and conditions of Horsham families as they were forced to accept and adjust to the hardships and sacrifices of the Great War. In its 862 pages and many photographs it is a fascinating and informative reference book and research tool for anyone with ancestors from Horsham who fought in the Great War, as it is indexed so that the reader can look up specific names with ease and read personal profiles of the military careers of those who were called upon to make the supreme sacrifice, the battles they fought, as well as the family history.
Also listed are the many major battles with vivid detailed descriptions and photographs of individuals, regiments, battle scenes where Horsham servicemen fought and died, many personal letters from the Front, some war-related poetry and extracts from numerous unit daily war diaries, as well as a variety of maps giving the location of battles.
Alongside this there is a section on decorations, campaign medals and memorial entitlements to Horsham casualties with a photograph of each medal, for example The Military Cross, Distinguished Conduct Medal, Allied Victory Medal, etc together with a detailed description of why they would be awarded.
The selected index covers the various Regiments on both sides, as well as casualties named on Horsham's War Memorial. The author has also researched those casualties who are not included on the War Memorial. I found it easy to find two of my ancestors and read all about their families, the hardships they endured and details of the battles they fought.

Westhampnett at War, by Mark Hillier, Dieter Sinanan and Gregory Percival, published 2010 (150 pp., Royal Air Forces Association & printed at Yellowman Lt.) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 17410] & West Sussex Libraries

The story of RAF Westhampnett through the eyes of pilots based here during 1940 to 1946. Westhampnett began as an emergency landing ground, growing to satellite status and ultimately an important wartime airfield in its own right. Home to 41 Squadrons and temporary home to many more during its heyday, it took part in the majority of the major air engagements in the European theatre of war, from the Battle of Britain through to D-Day and Arnhem.

The Reconstruction of Warriors: Archibald Mcindoe, the Royal Air Force and the Guinea Pig Club, by E. R. Mayhew, published 2010 (256 pp, Barnsley: Frontline, ISBN-10: 1848325843 & ISBN-13: 9781848325845) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

The 'Guinea Pig Club' were a small band of Allied air heroes who had survived mid-air fires but had been left with horrific burns and injuries. This book chronicles the efforts of plastic surgeon Archibald McIndoe to treat these men and rehabilitate them into society as recognized war heroes.

The Day The Liberator Crashed on Chichester, by Ken Green, published 2010 (New Chichester papers, no. 1, 24 pp., Chichester Local History Society & printed at University of Chichester, ISBN-10: 0948765976 & ISBN-13: 9780948765971) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 17490] & Chichester Local History Society & West Sussex Libraries

Worthing at War: The Diary of C. F. Harriss, edited by Paul Holden, published 21 April 2010 (224 pp., Chichester: Phillimore & Co. Ltd., ISBN-10: 1860776183 & ISBN-13: 9781860776182) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Of all the historical documents charting Worthing's past, few are more important than a wartime diary called 'Hotchpot', compiled with religious dedication by Broadwater resident C.F. Harriss. Mr Harriss was a retired lawyer who lived with his wife in Rectory Gardens throughout the Second World War, and his diary, now in the hands of West Sussex Library Service, charts in intimate detail the daily lives of people during this turbulent time. Mr Harriss hoped the giant tome, split into two volumes, would assist future historians attempting to probe through the mists of oblivion. He wrote, 'It was written at the time and so supplied an exact and vivid record of wartime life, a true and intimate example, in the colour of the moment, of what ordinary citizens felt, thought and said.' The diary is remarkable chiefly on account of Mr Harriss's literate and informed manner. As well as describing events in wartime Worthing, it provides what is almost certainly an accurate commentary on civilian morale as news of the progress of the war reaches a seaside town. The diarist is a 'character' and his personality inflects his account, but he is above all knowledgeable and articulate and his daily entries are a pleasure and an education to read. 'May 28, 1940. The Anglo-French army is retreating to the coast. It is fighting with extreme gallantry but the impression remains that its situation is almost desperate. England's turn is expected to come next by means of parachutists and bombing aircraft, then perhaps invasion. Last evening we watched Corporation employees erecting the barricades across Montague Place and South Street and other thoroughfares giving access to the sea. These consisted of bathing machines placed side by side and partially filled with shingle.'

A Schoolboy's War in Sussex, by James Roffey, published 9 July 2010 (128 pp., The History Press, ISBN-10: 0752455184 & ISBN-13: 9780752455181) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Although only children at the time, the Second World War had a permanent effect on the schoolboys who lived through the conflict. Watching a country preparing for war and then being immersed in the horrors of the Blitz brought encounters and events that some will never forget. Now in their seventies and eighties, many are revisiting their memories of this period of upheaval and strife for the first time.
As he fully immersed himself in rural life in the little village of Pulborough, the author witnessed some extraordinary events, from finding an injured German airman in the woods, to watching Bailey bridges being erected in the fortified village and observing the Battle of Britain raging overhead. After four years of highs and lows, evacuation had a lasting effect, and although he could not wait to return to London, the author moved back to Sussex as soon as he was old enough.
Due to it proximity to the south coast, West Sussex was a dangerous place in the wartime years, and this poignant book documents events indelibly inscribed on a generation's minds.

Hastings at war, 1939-1945, by Nathan Dylan Goodwin, published 1 September 2010 (paperback version, 160 pp., Chichester: Phillimore & Co. Ltd., ISBN-10: 1860776477 & ISBN-13: 9781860776472)

Ravilious in Pictures, 2: The War Paintings, by James Russell and edited by Tim Mainstone, published 11 November 2010 (48 pp., The Mainstone Press, ISBN-10: 0955277744 & ISBN-13: 9780955277740) accessible at: East Sussex Libraries

Ravilious in Pictures: The War Paintings' celebrates and commemorates the wartime career of Eric Ravilious (1939-42), who died on active service in Iceland at the age of thirty-nine.
As an Official War Artist, Ravilious visited ports, naval bases and airfields around Britain, witnessed the Allied invasion and retreat from Norway and produced watercolours and lithographs of subjects ranging from the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal in action to the interior of a mobile pigeon loft. This remarkable body of work blends defiance with exhilaration and insists that there is a place for beauty in the darkest times.
Ravilious in Pictures: The War Paintings, features twenty-two of these fascinating images, each accompanied by a short essay in which author James Russell explores the historical context of the work. Drawing on the artist's correspondence and other contemporary sources, these essays offer an unusual, intriguing vision of life during the early years of the war.

A village and a world at war: Sister Joachim (1869-1956), by Luc Francois, published Autumn 2010 in West Sussex History, the Journal of West Sussex Archives Society (no. 78, article, p.32, ISSN: 0264-5831) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 16404/78] & The Keep [LIB/500502]

Freedom, We died for you, by David Miller, published 2011 (168 pp., Christ's Hospital Museum) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

A hardback book of 168 pages, profusely illustrated in full colour, which tells the story of each of the 213 Old Blues whose names are on the Dining Hall WW2 Memorial, tracing their lives and placing each death in context.

Doctor in War and Peace: The Memoir of Tom Henry Wilson, by Tom Henry Wilson, published 6 May 2011 (ix + 319 pp., Adlibbed Ltd, ISBN-10: 1926635477 & ISBN-13: 9781926635477) accessible at: British Library & East Sussex Libraries

This book is the publication of the life of Tom Henry Wilson, basically in words he dictated in 1990. It describes his life from his earliest days as the son of a London doctor, through his own medical training towards qualifying and starting practice in Eastbourne.
His career was interrupted by the beginning of the Second World War, at which time he went to France in February 1940 with the Royal Army Medical Corp, and became a prisoner of war when the field hospital where he was operating was overrun by German forces.
He only returned to England in May of 1945 (actually crossing the coast on what became VE Day, May 8)
The story of his 5 years as a POW is depicted in the typescript of an interview with staff of the Imperial War Museum.
The book's editor, Tom's son Crichton, has added a few notes and corrections, and in particular has added some sections on Tom's life as a surgical consultant after the war in Eastbourne, and about some personal aspects of his life, including his love of tennis.

"The Maestro": a pioneering plastic surgeon - Sir Archibald McIndoe and his innovating work on patients with burn injury during World War II., by Menedimos Geomelas, Mojtaba Ghods, Andrej Ring and Christian Ottoman, published May 2011 in Journal of Burn Care & Research (vol. 32, issue. 3, article, pp.363-368)   View Online

This article describes McIndoe's revolutionary methods of burn treatment and rehabilitation of patients with burn injury and outlines his personality traits that made him one of the most important plastic surgeons of the twentieth century. As a consultant plastic surgeon to the Royal Air Force, he set up a plastic surgery unit in the Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead. By using biographical data and photography, McIndoe's work on burns treatment and the challenges he faced are presented. Before World War II, little was known about the treatment of severe burns and their complications, and even less was done about the rehabilitation and social reintegration of patients with burn injury. McIndoe changed all that by developing new techniques for the management and reconstruction of burn injuries. He helped his patients become and get accepted as a normal part of society again. The patients with burn injury treated by him formed the Guinea Pig Club. Sir Archibald Hector McIndoe, a charismatic plastic surgeon with an uncanny instinctive knowledge of psychology, recognized early that the rehabilitation of a burned patient was as important as the reconstruction of his physical body. His therapeutic approach to patients with burn injury was mental and physical.

The heroes of Hailsham: "lest we forget the men of Hailsham, in Sussex, who died fighting for King and Country" : --88 men in World War I : --35 men in World War II, by David M. Dyer, published November 2011 (iv + 172 pp., DMD Publishing, ISBN-10: 0956915507 & ISBN-13: 9780956915504) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/508908] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Kicking the Hornets' Nest, by Gerry Wells, published 1 June 2012 (224 pp., Matador, ISBN-10: 1780881568 & ISBN-13: 9781780881560) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

Kicking the Hornets' Nest is one of only few available factional accounts of an English tank crew dealing with battle conditions in WW2. Written by a veteran who himself served in a Sherman Tank, it deals with this specific aspect of hostilities and will be enjoyed by anyone with an interest in this period. Using his personal experience as a tank crew member during the Overlord battles of 1944/5, Gerry Wells takes us into the terrifying and exhilarating world of tank battles - and the relationships and camaraderie of the crews themselves. Kicking the Hornets' Nest follows a tank crew as they face the dangers of war together. Matt, the commander, carries a heavy responsibility as the eyes of the crew from his place in the turret. An ability to read a situation, to have a sense of the rightness or wrongness emanating from a stretch of cover are invaluable assets, and Matt has to learn fast. Sometimes however the tank man's war can become something quite different, and when crew member Obie Walker searches for enemy positions missed by the reconnaissance units on foot - he must swap the bulk of the tank for stealth, and his knife and garrotte become his weapons …

Second World War Bombing of Chichester, by Ken Green, published 31 October 2012 (New Chichester papers, no. 4, 32 pp., Chichester Local History Society & printed at University of Chichester, ISBN-10: 1907852166 & ISBN-13: 9781907852169) accessible at: Chichester Local History Society & West Sussex Libraries

Not Forgetting the Ninth: The War Diary of Sgt Cyril Grimes 1944-45, edited by Sylvia Fox, published 2013 (164 pp., Timebox Press, ISBN-10: 095502191X & ISBN-13: 9780955021916)

With the wealth of commemorations marking the 100th anniversary of the start of WW1 it is easy to overlook that this year is the 70th anniversary of the end of WW2. This book chronicles the last year of the war through the daily experiences of a soldier of the Royal Sussex Regiment as they travel to India, Burma and Malaya to take part in the campaign against the Japanese.
As he writes he tells us where he went, transport used, his duties and, of course, the weather. His concerns about his health, enjoyment of sport, visits to the cinema, dances, together with an overriding concern to keep himself and his clothes clean paint a picture of the man and what the realities of life were like in that theatre of war.
There are clear maps which detail their manoeuvres and photographs which convey the euphoria felt after the Japanese surrender. A very poignant account of a less well known aspect of the war.

War Graves of Seaford Cemetery, by Kevin Gordon, published 2013 (Local History Booklet no. 11, 24 pp., Seaford Museum and Heritage Society, ISBN-13: 9781902170190) accessible at: Seaford Monumental Inscriptions Group & East Sussex Libraries   Download PDF

RAF Friston, by Mike Keller, published 2013 (booklet no. 36, East Dean & Friston Local History Group) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/509213] & East Dean & Friston Local History Group

Diary of a wartime airfield with some personal memories.

The Blue Boys of WW1, by Lloyd Brunt and Mary Brunt, published 2013 (booklet no. 40, East Dean & Friston Local History Group) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/509217] & East Dean & Friston Local History Group

Treating the 'Blues' at Summerdown Convalescent Camp.

An Interesting War [World War Two], by Camilla Crump, published 2013 (booklet no. 41, East Dean & Friston Local History Group) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/509218] & East Dean & Friston Local History Group

A Friston resident remembers a childhood adventure.

The Carpenters Arms (Rustington Convalescent Home), the Story of the Special Wireless Service in World War II, by Mary Taylor, published 2014 (Rustington Heritage Association) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

The East Dean & Friston War Memorial, by David M. Dyer, published 2014 (booklet no. 42, East Dean & Friston Local History Group) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/509219] & East Dean & Friston Local History Group

The history of the War Memorial and the lives of the people listed there.

The Heroes of Hellingly: World War 1 51 people & World War 2 19 people, by David M. Dyer, published 1 February 2014 (120 pp., DMD Publishing, ISBN-10: 0956915515 & ISBN-13: 9780956915511) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/508909] & British Library & East Sussex Libraries

An illustrated history of Hellingly Cemetery, the memorial tablet in Hellingley Church and other memorials in the area, together with details of the lives and mitary actions of the men and 1 woman, who died for 'King and Country' in either the First or the Second World Wars and whose names are recorded on the Memorials in Hellingly, Sussex.

Growing Up in Eastbourne during WW2, by John Ranger, published March 2014 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 21 no. 1, article, pp.36-39) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/508980]

We lived in Palmers Green, Middlesex prior to the last war and on the outbreak of hostilities my father, who was a carpenter, lost his job so he decided to look for work elsewhere. Thinking he would get a better chance of work on the south coast, we moved to Eastbourne and rented part of a house with a man - Mr WOODS at 36 Junction Road. He was a real misery, probably because he had a family from London foisted on him. I cannot remember much about him, just that the house was dark, unfriendly and he was always moaning.
During the early part of the war, the Observer Corps were set up to report on enemy aircraft approaching. Initially they were not allowed to sound the air raid sirens but had to get permission from somewhere, I believe in London, before doing so. This resulted in a lot of unnecessary deaths from bombs because the public were not aware enemy aircraft were on their way. This rule was soon changed.

Sussex at War Through Time, by Henry Buckton, published 28 August 2014 (96 pp., Stroud: Amberley Publishing, ISBN-10: 1445638398 & ISBN-13: 9781445638393) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

This book examines the areas of Sussex that played an important part in the Second World War. Chichester became the nerve centre for the county's civil defence organisation and Tangmere and other airfields were involved in the Battle of Britain and provided a springboard for the Allied aerial onslaught on German occupied territories. Towns like Bognor Regis, Brighton and Hastings were repeatedly bombed by the Luftwaffe, while Eastbourne was the most targeted place in the South East outside London. The potential invasion of Britain during the Second World War had become a very real threat when Germany occupied the seaboard of northern France in 1940. The beaches of Sussex became ideal invasion hotspots, which drew the county into the very centre of Britain's war effort. Although today Sussex is split into two counties, East and West, this book looks at both, with particular focus on the coastline which was most affected by the war.

A Woman Living in the Shadow of the Second World War: Helena Hall's Journal from the Home Front, by Helena Hall and edited by Linda Grace and Margaret Nicolle, published 10 November 2014 (256 pp., Yorkshire: Pen and Sword Books, ISBN-10: 1473823250 & ISBN-13: 9781473823259) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 18610] & The Keep [LIB/508058] & West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

The Battle of the Fields: rural community and authority in Britain during the Second World War, by Brian Short, published 20 November 2014 (480 pp., Boydell & Brewer, ISBN-10: 1843839377 & ISBN-13: 9781843839378) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

The Battle of the Fields tells the story of rural community and authority in Britain during the Second World War by looking at the County War Agricultural Executive Committees. From 1939 they were imbued with powers to transform British farming to combat the loss of food imports caused by German naval activity and initial European mainland successes. Their powers were sweeping and draconian. When fully exercised against recalcitrant farmers, dispossession in part or whole could and did result. This book includes the most detailed analysis of these dispossessions including the tragic case of Ray Walden, the Hampshire farmer who was killed by police after refusing to leave his farmhouse in 1940. The committees were deemed successful by Whitehall as harbingers of modernity: mechanization, draining, artificial fertilizers, reclamation of heaths, marshes and woodlands. We now deplore some of these changes but Britain did not starve, in large part thanks to their efforts. This book will appeal not only to historians and geographers, but to many who maintain a deep interest in the British countryside and its past, and tothose who continue to share a fascination for the Second World War, in particular the "home front". It will also demonstrate to all who are anxious about food security in the modern age how this question was dealt with 70 years ago.

Sir Archibald Hector McIndoe (1900-1960) and the Guinea Pig Club: The development of reconstructive surgery and rehabilitation in the Second World War (1939-1945) , by Alexandra F. Macnamara and Neil H. Metcalfe, published November 2014 in The Journal of Medical Biography (vol. 22, no. 4, article, pp.224-228)   View Online

This article discusses the work of pioneering surgeon Sir Archibald McIndoe and particularly his reconstructive surgery and patient-centred approach during the Second World War. It also covers how this affected the lives of his patients and the subsequent formation of the Guinea Pig Club.

Training for war: Plans of the three Great War Divisional Camps in Sussex, by Luke Barber and Justin Russell, published 2015 in Sussex Archæological Collections (vol. 153, article, pp.191-201) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 18934] & The Keep [LIB/509033] & S.A.S. library   View Online

During research on the Great War camps at Seaford, the authors located a set of 1916 plans in the Canadian national archives. Not only was Seaford covered but also the camps at Crowborough and Shoreham. These extensive sites have all but disappeared and the plans therefore provide an invaluable insight into the three divisional camps in the county. The plans have been redrawn and colour coded for reproduction here along with a brief explanatory narrative.

Grandad's Army in Sussex, the Home Guard in the Second World War, by Eileen Richards, published 2016 (published by the author) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Bognor Regis Defended: The Anti Invasion Defences at Bognor Regis in World War Two, Pagnam -Bognor - Felpham - Middleton , by John F. Wells, published 1 January 2016 (92 pp., J.F.W. Publications, ISBN-10: 0993504108 & ISBN-13: 9780993504105) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Sussex War Heroes: The Untold Story of our Second World War Survivors, by Ben James, published 3 February 2016 (160 pp., The History Press, ISBN-10: 0750965916 & ISBN-13: 9780750965910) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries & East Sussex Libraries

A generation of ordinary young men and women were thrust into the most extraordinary of situations when the Second World War was declared. Sussex is full of war heroes, but soon they will be gone - along with their stories. This is not a book about Victoria Cross winners or the celebrities of days gone by, but the untold accounts of everyday heroes who 'did their bit'. It is about former train engineer Bob Morrell, who was beaten, starved and tortured in the brutal Japanese prisoner camps. It is about ex-pub landlord John Akehurst, who gave the Germans the run-around Northern Europe after being shot down. And it is about Shindy Perez and her remarkable escape from the gas chambers of Auschwitz. As this important period passes from living memory into history, this is likely to be the last time that these personal tales are told, tales which should never be forgotten.

From Itchingfield to Ismailia: Leslie Sprackling's Memories of Peace and War, edited by Merve Goddard, published 1 June 2016 (Honeybee Books, ISBN-10: 1910616591 & ISBN-13: 9781910616598) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

Original text by Leslie Sprackling and additional text by Doris Eames (nee Sprackling)

Crowborough, Jarvis Brook and Rotherfield War Memorials, by Nigel Allison, published 1 July 2016 (163 pp., Nigel Allison Publishing, ISBN-10: 1526204134 & ISBN-13: 9781526204134) accessible at: The Keep [LIB/509248]

Bader's Last Fight: An in-Depth Investigation of a Great WWII Mystery, by Andy Saunders, published 30 January 2017 (256 pp., Frontline Books, ISBN-10: 1473895405 & ISBN-13: 9781473895409) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

On 9 August 1941, one of the greatest icons of the Second World War, Douglas Bader, was shot down, captured and later incarcerated. But by whom, and how? Was it by one of his deadly German opponents, as Douglas Bader himself maintained, or was it by one of his own side? There has been much debate and controversy among historians and in 2003 the author of this book revealed for the first time that Bader may have been victim to friendly fire. That revelation was followed by interest in the national press and later by a TV documentary screened on Channel 4 in August 2006. In the book aviation historian Andy Saunders develops his hypothesis, backed up by strong evidence and a wealth of statistics, and separates fact from fiction. He expertly dissects all the material relating to the day itself, and subsequent events. In this new, updated edition, Andy Saunders tells of his quest to find the legendary fighter pilot's aircraft, which led to the remarkable discovery of a lost Spitfire which is being restored to flying condition. This book will fascinate all who read it and will be seen by most observers to be the final word on one of the great mysteries of the entire war.

Soldier George Slater [of Ditchling], by Barbara Maynard, published March 2017 in Sussex Family Historian (vol. 22 no. 5, article, pp.217-218) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 15860]

Military Voices Past & Present: West Sussex veterans in the 20^th century, by Emma Worall (née White), Amy Perry and Martin Hayes, published June 2017 (Chichester: West Sussex County Council, ISBN-13: 9780862605933) accessible at: West Sussex Libraries

The current centenaries of First World War events, and 75th anniversaries of Second World War events, have given us an opportunity to remember, research, re-evaluate and appreciate military veterans. Military Voices Past and Present was an oral history project, organised by West Sussex County Council Library Service, to compare some recently discovered Great War veteran recordings with new interviews, of current military veterans, recorded for the project. This book is a record of over 90 detailed interviews covering the period 1914 to the 1990s.

Wartime in Bognor Regis, 1939-1945, A Personal View, by Eric Huntingdon, published (no date) (pamphlet) accessible at: W.S.R.O. [Lib 12453]

Warnham in World War 2: Formation of the Home Guard, 1940, by Douglas Fox, published (no date) (contribution no. 10, 2 pp., Warnham Historical Society) accessible at: Warnham Historical Society   Download PDF