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Home Guard
początkowo "Local Defence Volunteers" (LVD)
Ilustracja
Historia
Państwo

 Wielka Brytania

Sformowanie

14 maj 1940

Rozformowanie

31 grudzień 1945

Nazwa wyróżniająca

Dad's Army

Dowódcy
Pierwszy

William Ironside

Organizacja
Rodzaj sił zbrojnych

wojska obrony cywilnej

Rodzaj wojsk

piechota

Home Guard (początkowo "Local Defence Volunteers", w skrócie LDV; potocznie nazywana Look-Duck-Vanish - stąd zmiana nazwy) była to obronna organizacja brytyjskiej Armii, działająca podczas II wojny światowej. Operowała od roku 1940 do 1944. W jej skład wchodziło około 1.5 miliona lokalnych wolontariuszy, zazwyczaj nie kwalifikujących się do regularnej służby wojskowej, głównie ze względu na wiek, stąd przydomek 'Dad's Army'. Zadaniem oddziału było wspomaganie regularnych jednostek w obronie kraju i utrzymywaniu porządku, w przypadku inwazji nazistowskich Niemiec oraz ich sojuszników na Wielką Brytanię.[1][2] Jednostki Home Guard zostaly rozlokowane głównie w rejonach wybrzeży oraz w okolicach ważnych strategicznie punktów - lotnisk, fabryk, składów amunicji etc.

Historia

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Początki

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Genezy powstania Home Guard można dopatrywać się w publikacji kapitana Toma Wintringhama, który powróciwszy z hiszpańskiej wojny domowej napisał książkę zatytułowaną How to Reform the Army (Jak zreformować armię). W tejże książce oprócz dużej liczby pomysłów na tytułową reformację wojska, Wintringham szczególnie dużo uwagi poświęcił pomysłowi sformowania dwunastu dywizji, podobnych do Brygad Międzynarodowych (które to zostały sformowane w Hiszpanii na okres trwania wojny domowej). Dywizje te, miały być tworzone na zasadzie dobrowolnego wstępowania do tychże ochotników - młodzieży oraz kombatantów, czyli osób, które były za młode lub za stare by zaciągnąć się do regularnej służby.[3] Pomimo wielkiego zainteresowania książką, ze strony War Office (Ministerstwa ds. Wojny), polecenie Wintringham by wytrenowano 100000 ochotników nie zostało zrealizowane.

Kiedy to 1 września 1939 roku Wielka Brytania wypowiedziała wojnę hitlerowskim Niemcom, w oficjalnych kręgach rozpoczęły się dyskusje na temat potencjalnych sposobów, jakimi mogła się posłużyć niemiecka armia przeprowadzając inwazję na Wyspy Brytyjskie. W pierwszym tygodniu trwania konfliktu, liczne raporty dyplomatyczne i wywiadowcze wskazywały na to, jakoby istniało realne zagrożenie inwazją z morza.[4] Wielu z ówczesnych rządowych ministrów oraz weteranów brytyjskiej armii (także dowódca Home Forces, gen. Walter Kirke) było sceptycznie nastawionych do tych raportów - uważali, że groźba bezpośredniego zagrożenia ze strony Niemiec jest znacznie przesadzona i wprost niemożliwa. Jednak znalazły się także osoby, które nie podzielały ich sceptycyzmu - w tym także Winston Churchill, nowo-mianowany Pierwszy Lord Admiralicji. Churchill uważał, że pierwsze jednostki Home Guard powinny zostać sformowane z osób, które nie kwalifikowały się do regularnej służby wojskowej, jednak mimo to chciały służyć obronności kraju. W liście napisanym 8 października 1939 roku, do Samuela Hoare'a, Lorda Tajnej Pieczęci, w którym to Churchill wyszedł z propozycją stworzenia Home Guard, w którego skład początkowo miałoby wchodzić 500 000 mężczyzn powyżej 40. roku życia.[5] W tym samym czasie urzędnicy podjęli próbę debaty nad utworzeniem sił obronnych wzorowanych na tych, które właśnie tworzono na terenie hrabstwa Essex - grupy nie kwalifikujących się do regularnej służby ochotników, wchodzących w skład tzw. Legion of Frontiersmen (Legionu Pionierów), jak się sami nazwali.[5] Urzędnicy byli informowanie na bieżąco o powstawaniu Legionu przez adiutanta generalnego Roberta Gordon-Finlaysona, który uważał, ze rząd w szczególny sposób powinien wspierać formowanie tego typu nieoficjalnych organizacji, wspierających obronność Wielkiej Brytanii. Pomimo przygotowań i początkowych obaw dotyczących inwazji, zaniepokojenie atakiem Niemiec szybko zanikło, kiedy uświadomiono sobie, że w tym czasie niemiecka machina wojenna, po prostu nie jest w stanie w bezpośredni sposób zagrozić granicom Wielkiej Brytanii. Osłabł również ogólny entuzjazm panujący wśród ludności cywilnej oraz wśród urzędników by zajmować się jednostkami obrony cywilnej, toteż Legion został wkrótce rozwiązany.[6]

Bitwo o Francję, rozpoczęta w maju 1940 roku przez wojska Wehrmachtu inwazją na Belgię, Holandię a następnie Francję doprowadziły do momentu, kiedy wojska niemieckie 20 maja dotarły do Kanału La Manche, a belgijska armia kapitulowała 28 maja. Połączenie dużych operacji przez wojska niemieckie podczas inwazji na Norwegię w kwietniu, a także perspektywa zajęcia znacznej części wybrzeża kanału przez Niemców sprawiły, że obawa przed inwazją sił III Rzeszy na Wyspy Brytyjskie była bardziej prawdopodobna niż kiedykolwiek.[7]. Obawy przed inwazją zaczęły szybko wzrastać wskutek raportów ukazujących się zarówno w prasie jak i wydawanych przez oficjalne organy państwowe, dotyczących działań piątej kolumny, która miałaby pomóc niemieckim spadochroniarzom w przypadku ewentualnej inwazji.[8] Rząd brytyjski szybko znalazł się pod rosnącą presją cudzoziemców, podejrzanych o działalność sabotażową, co sprawiło, że rozpoczęto starania o stworzenie jednostki, która miałaby umożliwić osobom na co dzień nie związanych z regularną armią, na aktywną walkę z bronią w ręku przeciw działającym na terenie wysp wrogim jednostkom[9].


Calls for some form of home defence force soon began to be heard from the press and from private individuals as the government began to intern German and Austrian citizens in the country. The press baron Lord Kemsley privately proposed to the War Office that rifle clubs be formed to form the nucleus of a home defence force, and Josiah Wedgwood, a Labour MP, wrote to the Prime Minister asking that the entire adult population be trained in the use of arms and given weapons to defend themselves.


Similar calls appeared in newspaper columns; in the 12 May issue of the Sunday Express a Brigadier called on the government to issue free arms licenses and permits to buy ammunition to men possessing small arms, and on the same day the Sunday Pictorial asked if the government had considered training golfers in rifle shooting to eliminate stray parachutists.[10]

These calls alarmed government and senior military officials, who worried about the prospect of the population forming private defence forces that the Army would not be able to control, and in mid-May the Home Office issued a press release on the matter; it was the task of the army to deal with enemy parachutists, as any civilians who carried weapons and fired on German troops were likely to be executed if captured.[11] Private defence forces soon began to be formed throughout the country, placing the government in an awkward position; these private forces, which the army might not be able to control, could well inhibit the attempts by the army during an invasion, yet to ignore the calls for a home defence force to be set up would be politically problematic.[12] An officially sponsored home defence force would allow the government greater control and also allow for greater security around vulnerable areas such as munitions factories and airfields, but there was some confusion over who would form and control the force, with separate plans drawn up by the War Office and General Headquarters Home Forces under General Kirke.[13] The government and senior military officials rapidly compared plans and by 13 May had worked out an improvised plan for a home defence force, to be called the Local Defence Volunteers, but the rush to complete a plan and announce it to the public had led to a number of administrative and logistical problems, such as how the volunteers in the new force would be armed, which would cause problems as the force evolved. However, on the evening of 14 May 1940 the Secretary of State for War, Anthony Eden, gave a radio broadcast announcing the formation of the Local Defence Volunteers and called for volunteers to join the force.[14]

Oficjalne sformowanie

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In the radio announcement, Eden called on men between the ages of 17 and 65 in Britain, who were not in military service but wished to defend their country against an invasion, to enroll in the LDV at their local police station.[15] The announcement was met with a great deal of enthusiasm on the part of the population, with 250,000 volunteers attempting to sign up in the first seven days; by July this number increased to 1.5 million.[16] As volunteers and social groups such as cricket clubs began forming their own units, dubbed 'the parashots' by the press, the War Office continued to lay down the administrative and logistical foundations for the organisation.[17] In telegrams to the Lord Lieutenants of each county, it was explained that LDV units would operate in pre-defined military areas already used by the regular Army, with a General Staff Officer coordinating with civilian regional commissioners to divide these areas into smaller zones; in London this was organised on the basis of police districts.[18] On 17 May the LDV achieved official legal status when the Privy Council issued the Defence (Local Defence Volunteers) Order in Council, and orders were issued from the War Office to regular Army headquarters throughout Britain explaining the status of LDV units; volunteers would be divided into sections, platoons and companies but would not be paid and leaders of units would not hold commissions or have the power to command regular forces.[18]

However, implementation of the legislation proved to be extremely difficult, particularly as the primary focus of the War Office and General Headquarters Home Forces was on Operation Dynamo and the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk between 27 May to 4 June.[18] This apparent lack of focus led to many LDV members becoming impatient, particularly when it was announced that volunteers would only receive armbands printed with 'L.D.V' on them until proper uniforms could be manufactured and there was no mention of weapons being issued to units; this impatience often led to units conducting their own patrols without official permission, often led by men who had previously served in the armed forces.[19] The presence of many veterans, and the appointment of ex-officers as commanders of LDV units, only worsened the situation, with many believing that they did not require training before being issued weapons; this led to numerous complaints being received by the War Office and the press, and many ex-senior officers attempting to use their influence to obtain weapons or permission to begin patrolling.[20] The issue of weapons to LDV units was particularly problematic for the War Office, as it was recognised that the re-arming and re-equipping of the regular forces would have to take precedence over the LDV. Instead, the War Office issued instructions on how to make Molotov cocktails and emergency orders were placed for First-World-War vintage Ross Rifles from Canada and Pattern 14 and M1917 Rifles from the United States.[21] In the absence of proper weapons, many LDV units broke into museums and appropriated whatever weapons could be found, or equipped themselves with private weapons such as shotguns.[22]

Another problem that was encountered as the LDV was organised was the definition of the role the organisation was to play. In the eyes of the War Office and the Army, the LDV was to act as 'an armed police constabulary' which in the event of an invasion was to observe German troop movements, convey information to the regular forces and guard places of strategic or tactical importance. The War Office believed that the LDV would act best in such a passive role because of its lack of training, weapons and proper equipment.[23] However such a role clashed with the expectations of LDV commanders and members, who believed that the organisation would be best suited to an active role, attacking and harassing German forces. This clash led to morale problems and even more complaints to the press and the War Office from LDV members who were opposed to, as they saw it, the government leaving them defenceless and placing them in a non-combatant role.[24] Complaints about the role of the LDV, as well as continuing problems encountered by the War Office in its attempts to clothe and arm the LDV, led the government to respond to public pressure in August, redefining the role of the LDV to include delaying and obstructing German forces through any means possible.[25] At the same time Winston Churchill, who had assumed the position of Prime Minister in May, became involved in the matter after being alerted to the problems, obtaining a summary of the current LDV position from the War Office on 22 June. After reviewing the summary, Churchill wrote to Eden stating that, in his opinion, one of the main causes of disciplinary and morale problems stemmed from the uninspiring title of the LDV and suggesting that it be renamed as the 'Home Guard'.[26] Despite resistance from Eden and other government officials, who noted that one million 'LDV' armbands had already been printed and the cost of printing another million 'Home Guard' armbands would be excessive, Churchill would not be dissuaded; on 22 July the LDV was officially renamed the Home Guard.[27]

The Home Guard also served as a cover for the Auxiliary Units, a force of more highly trained volunteer troops that would function as guerilla units if the UK was invaded.

The Home Guard did not, initially, admit women to its ranks. Some women formed their own groups like the Amazon Defence Corps.[28] Later a more organised but still unofficial Women's Home Defence (WHD) formed with many groups across the country. Limited female involvement was permitted later on the understanding that these would be in traditional female support roles and not in any way seen as combatants.

The Home Guard was stood down in late 1944 when the danger of invasion was recognised as past: male members were rewarded with a certificate. It would not be until 1945 that those women who had helped as auxiliaries were recognised with their own certificate.

Lata późniejsze

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Even once the threat of invasion had passed, the Home Guard remained in existence manning guard posts and performing other duties to free up regular troops for duties overseas. In 1942 the National Service Act allowed for compulsory enrolment where units were below strength. At this time, the lowest rank within the Home Guard, 'volunteer', was renamed to 'private' to match the regular army usage.

However following the successful invasion of France and the drive towards Germany by allied armies, the Home Guard were formally stood down on 3 December 1944 and finally disbanded on 31 December 1945. The only decoration for the Guard was the Defence Medal and then only if the recipient had served three years and requested it.

A modernised version of the Home Guard was briefly re-established in December 1951. Although units in coastal areas were authorised to recruit to full strength, it fell foul of a complete reassessment of Britain's defence posture following the advent of the H-bomb and was disbanded in July 1957. In the 1980s, the Home Service Force was established, consisting of older ex-servicemen who could not meet Territorial Army (TA) training requirements; it was envisaged that this force, a company in every Territorial battalion, would be used to guard strategic points in the event of an emergency so as to free up the better-trained Territorial forces for more important roles. The Force was disbanded in 1993.

Wyposażenie i trening

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Improwizowana broń członków Home Guard

Initially the LDV were poorly armed, since the regular forces had priority for weapons and equipment. The LDV's original role had largely been to observe and report enemy movements, but it swiftly changed to a more aggressive role. Nevertheless, they would have been expected to fight well-trained and equipped troops, despite having only negligible training and only weapons such as pitchforks and shotguns (a solid ammunition for shotguns was developed for this purpose) or firearms that belonged in museums. Patrols were carried out on foot, by bicycle, even on horseback, and often without uniforms, although all volunteers wore an armband that said "LDV". There were also river patrols using the private craft of members.[29] Many officers from the First World War used their Webley Mk VI .455 revolvers. There were also numerous private attempts to produce armoured vehicles by adding steel plates to cars or lorries, often armed with machine guns.[30] Some even had access to armoured cars, though these were makes no longer in service with the regular army.[31]

Ex-Communist and Spanish Civil War veteran Tom Wintringham, a journalist and key advocate of the LDV and later Home Guard, opened a private training camp for the LDV at Osterley Park, outside London, in early July 1940. Wintringham's training methods were mainly based on his experience in the International Brigades in Spain. Those who had fought alongside him in Spain trained volunteers in anti-tank warfare and demolitions.

On 23 July 1940, the LDV was renamed the "Home Guard", a name suggested by Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Within a few months they were issued proper uniforms and equipment, as the immediate needs of the regular forces were satisfied. After September 1940 the army began to take charge of the Home Guard training in Osterley, and Wintringham and his associates were gradually sidelined. Wintringham resigned in April 1941. Ironically, despite his support of the Home Guard, Wintringham was never allowed to join the organisation himself because of a policy barring membership by communists and fascists.

An example of a Home Guard exercise is one in the small village of Dundry that defensively overlooks Bristol: the exercise involved the Home Guard units of several neighbouring villages. See Dundry for details.[32]

Lekkie samochody rozpoznawcze Standard Mk II Beaverette II obsadzone przez członków Home Guard na wyżynach Szkocji, 14 lutego 1941.

It was not until 1943 that they were a properly trained and equipped force. They were frequently equipped with improvised weapons, or non-standard ones purchased by the government from abroad. For example, large numbers of M1917 Enfield rifles were purchased for the use of the Home Guard. These used the (30-06) cartridge - an American 0.30 inch round which was a totally different type of ammunition from the 0.303 round used by the British Lee-Enfield rifle. A 2 in (Błąd w wyrażeniu: nierozpoznane słowo „wide” mm) red band was painted around the fore end of the stock as a warning since a 0.303 round would load but jam the rifle. That the similar-in-appearance P14 rifle was supplied to the Home Guard, in 0.303 calibre that took the British round, only added to the confusion.

The Home Guard inherited weapons that the regular Army no longer required, such as the Blacker Bombard anti-tank weapon, and weapons they no longer desired, such as the Sticky bomb. Their arsenal also included weapons that could be produced cheaply without consuming materials that were needed to produce armaments for the regular units such as the Northover projector, a blackpowder-powered mortar; the No. 76 Special Incendiary Grenade, a glass bottle filled with highly flammable material; and the Smith Gun, a small artillery gun that could be towed by an automobile. They also used lend-lease Tommy guns.

Obrona przeciw wojskom powietrznodesantowym

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Użycie przez Niemców wojsk powietrznodesantowych w Rotterdamie, gdzie jednostki Fallschirmjäger wylądowały na stadionie piłkarskim, a następnie przedostały się do centrum miasta. Nieudana próba porwania holenderskiej rodziny królewskiej przez spadochroniarzy wynikała z tego, że Holendrzy od dawna brali pod uwagę możliwość ataku na rodzinę królewską, toteż posiadali specjalny plan działania w sytuacji zagrożenia bezpieczeństwa pary królewskiej. Tak wielka skuteczność spadochroniarzy niemieckich w Holandii wymusiła na krajach koalicji antyhitlerowskiej zmianę dotychczasowego postrzegania wojny, a co za tym idzie dostosowanie obrony kraju do nowego sposobu prowadzenia walk. Wydarzenia te udowodniły także, że nowoczesny system prowadzenia działań wojennych nie daje poczucia bezpieczeństwa ludności cywilnej, żołnierzom czy obiektom, które znajdują się także w znacznych odległościach od strefy walk, a wróg może zaatakować praktycznie każdy cel.
By wyeliminować atak z powietrza, oraz efekt zaskoczenia, jakim takowy atak dysponuje - jednostki Home Guard rozlokowały po ogromnym obszarze kraju posterunki obserwacyjne. W każdym z posterunków wartę pełnił jeden lub dwóch żołnierzu, uzbrojonych w karabin. Ich zadaniem było wypatrywanie przez całą noc, czy na niebie nie pojawiły się samoloty wroga. Posterunki tego typu uważano jako uzupełnienie systemu radarowego - istniały one niemal do końca II wojny światowej.
By szybko poinformować społeczność w razie faktycznego ataku z powietrza, Home Guard stworzyło stosunkowo prosty kod, by ostrzec swoich rodaków przed niebezpieczeństwem. Na przykład słowo 'Cromwell', wskazywało na to, że inwazja jest niedaleka w czasie, a słowo 'Oliver' - że inwazja właśnie się rozpoczęła. Dowódcy Home Guard stwierdzili także, że warto by zaadaptować także dzwony kościelne jako swoisty system szybkiego ostrzegania rodaków przed zagrożeniem. Skutkiem tego było powstanie skomplikowanych zasad bicia w dzwony, a użycie dzwona w wszelkich innych sytuacja zostało zakazane.

Zobacz także

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Odnośniki

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  1. ↑ Macksey, Kenneth, Beda Fomm: The Classic Victory, s. 35. Ballantine, New York, 1971.
  2. ↑ Richard DiNardo Germany and the Axis Powers: From Coalition to Collapse|publisher=University Press Of Kansas ISBN: 0700614125, s.39
  3. ↑ Wintringham, s.74
  4. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 18-19
  5. ↑ a b MacKenzie, s. 19
  6. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 19-20
  7. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 20
  8. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 21-22
  9. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 23
  10. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 24-25
  11. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 26
  12. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 27
  13. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 29
  14. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 31
  15. ↑ Summerfield & Peniston-Bird, s. 27
  16. ↑ Summerfield & Peniston-Bird, s. 26-27
  17. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 34
  18. ↑ a b c MacKenzie, s. 35
  19. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 36-37
  20. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 38
  21. ↑ Mackenzie, s. 39
  22. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 37
  23. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 41-42
  24. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 43
  25. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 45
  26. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 47
  27. ↑ MacKenzie, s. 48-49
  28. ↑ Midge Gillies: Defending their realm. [w:] The Guardian [on-line].
  29. ↑ Carrol, David “The Home Guard”, s. 35. Sutton Publishing Ltd, 1999
  30. ↑ Historic Military Press, 2001, s. 6, 7
  31. ↑ Martin Mace Vehicles of the Home guard, Historic Military Press, 2001, s. 5.
  32. ↑ Bristol Record Office accession 44394

Bibliografia

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  • David Fletcher: The Great Tank Scandal: British Armour in the Second World War Part 1. Her Majesty's Stationary Office, 1989. ISBN 0-11-290460-2.
  • S.P. MacKenzie: The Home Guard: A Military and Political History. Oxford University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-19-820577-5.
  • Penny Summerfield: Contesting Home Defence: Men, Women, and the Home Guard in the Second World War. Manchester University Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-7190-6202-5.
  • Tom Wintringham: How to Reform the Army. Fact Monographs, 1939.

Linki zewnętrzne

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