Korea - Mr Harry Knowles

·1 hr 41 min·5 clips

On arrival in Korea, Harry says an American cookhouse gave him his first southern fried chicken, fries, ice cream, and orange juice.

Military Histories presents an oral history interview from the Royal Dragoon Guards audio archive. Harry Knowles speaks from memory, and the interview keeps that memory in its own shape. He begins with the letter that called him up for service in early May 1950. The story then turns to the practical business of being sent away. He talks through the ship journey in fragments and stops, with the voyage carrying him past Aden, Colombo, Singapore, Hong Kong, and on to Japan. There is shore leave at some ports. There is also routine work on the ship. Soldiers exercised, drilled, and even tested Bren guns over the wake. He recalls guard duty on the bridge wing as a lookout. That detail stays with him, and it gives the interview a strong sense of lived time. Once he reaches Kure, he notices the Japanese dockers and the atmosphere around them. He also explains the British JRBD there. From Kure, he goes up the road to Hiro. The camp sits on an old Japanese Army site and still carries traces of that past. There are good buildings, parade grounds, and memorials. The place is busy enough that many reinforcements cannot fit in the barrack rooms. They go into tents instead. He describes that first stretch at Akanthus Camp as his introduction to Japan. A parade follows. Men are posted out to different units. Some go directly to regiment. He remembers the names and the administrative details as they came to him in the room. The interview is not rushed. It lets him circle back when he needs to. At one point he corrects himself mid-thought. At another he pauses to find the next place in the sequence. That rhythm is part of the value. Later, the memory opens onto Korea itself and the wider brigade setting. He recalls Brigadier Tom Brodie and the expansion under Brigadier General Coad. The 29 Brigade song about hurrying down to the front line gives the episode a soldier’s own voice at the end. The interview closes with Harry sounding almost surprised by how much came back to him.

As heard by us

A steady oral history that lets Korean War memory unfold in plain, lived detail.

Military Histories follows Harry Knowles through service, travel, and memory without trying to tidy it up too much. The account moves from his early army years to Korea by way of ships, depots, and camp life, and the details do the work: Aden, Colombo, Singapore, Hong Kong,…

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Follow Harry Knowles from his call-up in 1950 to Korea, with the trip there unfolding stop by stop.

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