Len Scarth served in all three forces in the Second World War
They say that every cloud has a silver lining. Len Scarth certainly found one from what could have been a terrible time: fighting in the Second World War. But for Len, after serving in all three of Her Majesty’s Forces, what he took away was not how to attack people, but how to make friends with them. He says, “Going into the Services did a lot to help me realise about other people. You’re all in it together, so you muck in and help each other out.”
Now, we know that the Nazis failed in their mission to invade Britain. But at the time, says Len, recalling his Home Guard service at Castleton in the North York Moors, “We didn’t know that we wouldn’t get invaded.”
So he spent cold, dark nights patrolling the moors, searching for possible parachuting invaders. He was near the top-secret Danby Beacon, part of the secret chain of radars that gave the RAF mysterious warning of the arrival of enemy planes.
The RAF, eager for enemies not to discover their advantage, put it about that their pilots ate lots of carrots so that they could see in the dark. In reality, crack teams of inventors had devised the radar that we now take for granted.
Meanwhile, Len and his companions were trudging in the dark with torches, binoculars, and rifles, and learning Morse code to send the signal ‘all quiet’.
While the ‘all quiet’ signal was welcome, the reality was a lot of boredom and discomfort. There were sleepless nights and cold, dark, wet patrols. To keep their spirits up, says Len, they sang songs. And they had Winston Churchill. Len says, “Some called Churchill a warmonger, but I thought he was wonderful. Without a doubt, he boosted morale, and kept people going.”
Celebrations for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in Castleton, an event we may not have enjoyed had the Nazis succeeded in invading Britain
Having served in the Home Guard, the RAF and the Fleet Air Arm during the War, Len says, “The discipline was a great thing for a young man. It’s always been my thought that we should have carried on with some form of young men doing army training.”
In later life, Len became a pub landlord, and says his military experience was great training for the pub. “It gave me a good foundation for meeting different people, and getting on with them.”
“You need to make people feel welcome, and being in the Services helped a lot in that respect.”
So, Len took what was good from his war, and put what was bad behind him.
A lesson for us all.
Read more about Len’s wartime experiences, in print only, in Dalesman Magazine