Live ChatEdwin Leadbetter served with the Royal Navy during the Second World War, taking part in many daring voyages, from defending the Convoys, transporting supplies and important Russian military leaders, to having to pull men out of the freezing ocean after their ships were torpedoed. Edwin, from the Glasgow area, stayed in the Navy until 1954, before working in a shipyard and as a lorry driver. More recently, he has been supported by SSAFA.
“I joined the Navy at 18 and after training I was deployed aboard HMS Fencer, an Attacker Class Escort Aircraft Carrier, as a quartermaster, and saw service on the Atlantic Convoys, Norwegian Campaign, North Sea and the Arctic/Russian Convoys. Our mission was to support and to provide anti-submarine air cover to the Convoys along with reconnaissance work, and defend the ships in attacks by U-Boats. I did 22 trips in total. We were also deployed to the Pacific and Burma.
“I was very fortunate, because my ship was never hit, but there were some dreadful times. We were always on the defence; protecting the convoys.
“At times I along with other crew members had to be out on the deck of the ship in freezing cold weather conditions. It was thick ice, and you could barely stand on it. We had to keep the decks clear for the planes to take off and land onboard. There were times when the aircraft would crash land onto the deck or flip over – the conditions were treacherous, and at times it could be frightening.
“We slept in all our clothes because it was too cold to take anything off. You’d literally freeze. Those were some days.”
Getting the job done
The Convoys shipped across some of the most dangerous waters in the world, between 1941 and 1945, to deliver four million tonnes of supplies including tanks, fighter planes, fuel, ammunition, raw materials and food to the Soviet Union's northern ports. They sailed through freezing Arctic waters above Nazi occupied Norway and faced storms, rough seas and enemy fire. Many ships and thousands of seamen from the Royal Navy and Merchant Navy died.
“The Navy played a very important part during the war. They sailed back and forth time and time again. We had to get the job done. We were one of many ships, and there were a lot of ships involved.
“I saw some ships hit with torpedoes and had to pick up the boys from it. We went to pick up the men that were in the water – but it was just another day for us; we were used to it.
“It was well over 100 people on one ship. We lost ships as well, not just men.
“A lot of men came back severely injured and scarred for life.
“But you were just doing your job. You couldn’t afford to get frightened on the job. If you got frightened, you were put off the ship. There was no point in keeping people that were strange. All in all, it wasn’t too bad. I can’t complain that much.
“We didn’t just transport supplies to the Russian front, we were also responsible for carrying troops.
“At one point we carried Gordey Levchenko, the Soviet naval commander and admiral, and his son on our ship. We took them and their crew to collect another ship. They were decent and courteous people.”
The Tirpitz
In March 1944 Edwin’s ship HMS Fencer joined the Home Fleet ships to provide Distant Cover and anti-submarine patrols for passage of Convoy JW58 to the Kola Inlet and for attacks on the German Battleship Tirpitz (known as and executed Operation Tungsten). The feared Tirpitz, was a giant battleship, which threatened the convoys. The offensive was extremely dangerous. In April 1944 HMS Fencer embarked with 22 Wildcat aircraft with personnel of 882 Squadron along with Force 8 to provide anti-submarine patrols and joined HMS Furious to provide additional fighter cover during strike operations.
“We carried planes on our ship. They were on top and as we were going in, they were above us. They caused damage from the dive bombing. It took a tanking.
“We were submarine chasers, so we went after the Germans. It was just another day as far as we were concerned. We’d try and get any prisoners we found out of the water, but over three minutes in the water, you were gone after that.
“We needed to do it. They were sinking our ships from all sides.
The End of War
Towards the end of 1944 Edwin was posted to the Pacific for aircraft/transport duties. Then in early 1945 Edwin was posted to Australia, Ceylon and South Africa before being recalled back to the UK after Victory in Japan.
“Home was always on my mind. I just always hoped everyone was alright.
“I remember being told the war in Europe was over. It was great news, but the war was still on and I just wanted to get back to Scotland.
“We just took it like another day at sea.
“We had to wait to get demobilised and I think it took eight or nine weeks to get back”
Life after War
After the war Edwin, like many men who saw active combat, struggled with his mental health.
“I experienced hallucinations about the war. I would wake up during the night and start shouting, and things like that, so I spent about six months in the converted convalescence hospital for the troops.
“Lots of men seemed to have been affected in that way. But I’m alright.
“I don’t think about my wartime experience too much.”
Edwin decided to stay on in the Navy until 1954, when his wife wrote to his commanding officers, requesting he return home because she had seven children with him, and could not cope with him being away.
Edwin left the Navy, but was recalled for the Suez crisis, but quickly released as his ship did not need to see action.
After leaving the Royal Navy, Edwin went on to work with Barclay Curle as a sheet metal worker in their Scotstoun dockyard and eventually became a long-distance lorry driver until his retirement. He also spent 19 years in the Royal Navy Reserve and then he joined the Territorial Army.
SSAFA
In the past few years, Edwin has needed some additional support to enable him to continue living independently. His late son Harry was a SSAFA Branch Secretary in Germany and Edwin’s daughter Elizabeth McKenna was a SSAFA caseworker, so they knew exactly where he needed to turn.
“I asked some caseworkers, Joyce and Irene, to help my dad.” Elizabeth explains. “They went through all the paperwork and managed to secure him an annuity from the Royal Navy Royal Marines Charity and funding from The Burma Star Association, which was fantastic.
“They also secured £1,100 for him to get new clothes and furniture for his flat which was brilliant. I was shocked but delighted at how much help they gave him.
“Not only that, the Royal Navy have been able to organise outings for him, which took him to the site of the D-Day landings in Normandy and to HMS Belfast. They have helped him to get out and about.
“He was a widower and quite isolated and lonely. I saw that, and I thought 'well we need to do something about this. You can’t always sit in the house.' So, although he was getting help from social services, the help we got from SSAFA turned his world around. He was integrated with World War II veterans, people he could relate to, and from this he’s been very fortunate. There’s great comradeship. He is more settled in himself because he’s had that interaction.
“The weight it has taken off me is immense. I found it quite stressful looking after my father because his Alzheimer’s is very much prevalent. Without social interaction he was getting totally confused in his mind and a lot of that has now stopped. It has helped his health tremendously. I will always be extremely grateful for what SSAFA and the RNRMC did for my father and I cannot thank them enough. Thank you.”