Club News
May meeting was an Open Meeting with partners and guests. Chairman, Roger Gourd, welcomed 15 members and 17 guests including Andrew Carver who was joining as a member. Also our speaker Barrie Friend. A minute silence was held for Alan Green who passed away on 19th April. He had a fall then, while in hospital, his ‘parkinsons’ deteriorated with other complications. Heartfelt condolences were given to Janice and his family. See page 4 for Alan’s eulogy.
It was reported that Andrew Kellard was unwell and had been taken into hospital with very low blood pressure although he was in good spirits. A ‘get better’ card was signed by all.
Chris Moniz was praised for his handling of his first lunch as Luncheon Secretary. Not only was it an open meeting but he had to deal with bench tables instead of requested round ones throwing out the seating plan.
Please notify lunch changes by 10.30am the prior Tuesday for Thursday 7th July meeting to chris@moniz.co.uk T: 020 8660 6063. Please notify Member News to Almoner, Andrew Kellard T: 01737 554055. Please email editor@coulsdonprobus.co.uk with articles/news for the Newsletter
A good time was had by all, with guests helping to contribute £33 to the raffle fund. Andrew Banfield reported at least 39 bookings for the Chatham Historic Dockyard outing on 26th July.
Speaker today: Ian Payne: ‘Language is a-changing’.
7th July: John Birkett of Croydon RSPB: ‘Garden Birds’.
Speaker: Barrie Friend — The Defence of Britain 1940
Military Historians have often analysed the likelihood of a successful invasion by the Germans following the Battle of Britain which was an air attack designed to gain air supremacy and facilitate the amphibious landing designed to conquer Britain. Our speaker delivered a comprehensive review of our resources and strategy as they developed throughout the war. With our defeat in France along with the loss of equipment we were by any measure in a desperate state if a landing had been achieved.
Initially General Kirke was tasked with the planning of our defence in which a major consideration was the likelihood of airborne troops who might attack any poorly defended areas at short notice as they had in Europe. His decision was to go for a static defence line. Remnants of which were established by latter commanders but it never got under way and Kirke resigned to be replaced by Ironside for four months and then Alanbrooke for the long term. Due to the desperate shortage of trained men and equipment the idea of a static defence was perhaps modified rather than abandoned and became known as the Ironside Line incorporating 20,000 Pill boxes, and anti-tank defences and such mobile units as we had. Montgomery said this was wrong, the need was to stop them on the beaches with complex multiple layers of defence in depth, trenches, walls, mines, anti-tank barriers and fire traps. It seems that Alanbrooke favoured both landing ground defences and locally strengthened zones such as Tonbridge with disguised pill box type structures forming a lose line supported by such mobile units as were available. Some considerable hopes must have been placed on the Navy controlling the Channel!
To this day evidence remains in the form of Pill boxes (said to be facing the wrong way by Montgomery) erected on the Reigate to Rochester line and the Dorking Hills. Whichever strategy was employed we were desperately short of manpower and this brings up the issue of what became known as the Home Guard.
Our speaker was at pains to point out that we should not only consider the “Dad’s Army” version of this organisation and perhaps feel that it would have been brushed aside in the event of a landing. Alanbrooke initially planned for three groups of 30,000 men to provide flexible and often mobile support units. By the end of the war, it was a well-equipped force which did have a background of regular training and specialisms. Indeed 2 million by 1943. However, in the time of Operation Sealion (which was cancelled), that level of efficiency would surely have been unlikely and basically they only had small arms or were still awaiting any form of weapons at all.
Clearly this was conceived as a last-ditch force which did not reach its best until any realistic threat of invasion was long past so we will never know how it would have performed in reality.
Alanbrooke was apparently cagey about how effective it would have been whereas Churchill was characteristically very Bullish. Sadly our time was a little limited but many more questions could well have been put to our excellent speaker.
Alan Richard Green 1945 – 2022
Fond memories by the Family
Alan was born 13 Jan 1945 in a magnificent mansion, Shardeloes House, in Amersham. It had been requisitioned as a maternity home during the 2nd WW. So Alan used to say “he started his life in high places”. After the war they returned to Longhurst Road, Addiscombe where he spent the rest of his childhood living with his mum, dad, his younger brother Brian and Alan’s grandmother ‘Nanny’.
As a youngster Alan enjoyed scouting with the 56th Croydon Scout Group and at 14 years old met his longstanding friends David Bourne and Bob Bigg. David recalls a trip to scout camp when the Scouts walked their trek cart from Addiscombe, down Gravel Hill, all the way to Bears Wood in Addington.
Alan met his future wife, Janice at the youth club at St Alban’s church in South Norwood and also made lifelong friends with many others there. Much fun was had during those years. The gang would sometimes travel on the train with the radio and record player and sit on the beach at Littlehampton.
When they got married, Alan and Janice settled down in Selsdon/Forestdale. Alan worked incredibly hard as a structural engineer, working most evenings to provide family ‘summer holidays’ and to pay for extras for the children. They had their 3 children – Ashley, Lloyd and Nicole and of course they have now been joined by their partners and 7 lovely grandchildren between them, all of whom were such a huge part of Alan’s life. He was so proud of them.
Alan was close to his brother Brian and made a long-awaited trip to Tasmania to visit him and his family in 2007/2008.
One of his greatest pleasures were holidays managing to visit many places including Russia, Canada, Alaska, America, the Caribbean and Tunisia to mention but a few. He also loved his camping holidays in France. Many of Alan’s travels happened post retirement when unfortunately, his battle with Parkinson’s started but he never complained and was determined to live life to the full. Alan was sociable, he loved life, had many friends, and belonged to many clubs – The Mason’s, Probus, and the local support group of the Parkinson’s Disease Society.
Alan also enjoyed camping with the scouts and was camp cook for some years for Ashley and Lloyd. He also enjoyed fishing with Kieran and Nathan when they were younger. He took up painting when he retired and went every week to a painting lesson, producing many lovely paintings. He also enjoyed card games – Quiddler being his favourite in later years. Alan played it with Carole and Roy and also all the grandchildren – even during lockdown these games were also played through ‘Zoom’.
Alan was always willing to join in and get involved, helping on various committees, including: Scout Group Chairman; he was Grand Master for a year; he sat on the School PTA committee.
He had a good memory for dates and had a knack of remembering registration numbers of all his previous cars! He knew so many people. We would often meet someone he knew, no matter where we went.
He loved socializing, enjoying meals and his beer or a glass of red. His favourite meal of late was fish and chips at the Fox.
Alan supported Crystal Palace his whole life and stood on the terraces with his Dad when he was a young boy. He last
went to see them with his brother Brian and nephew Nic in 2012, when they visited from Tasmania.
He loved watching TV and opening the post. Janice was never allowed to open it first! Alan was organized and filed everything meticulously. He loved maps and even when he could use a sat nav he still got his maps out to plan his journey. Holiday planning was like a military operation!
As a young boy he spent his summers with his close cousins Royston and John Hardy and brother Brian.Royston considered Alan his best friend. They had many adventures together. This was mainly on the beaches of the Gower near Swansea but Royston recalls coming to Croydon and visiting the Kensington museums and Hampton Court during the summer holidays.
He loved nothing more than having a coffee – especially a Costa coffee! His 70th birthday cake was even a “Costa Coffee Cup”.
Alan never gave up fighting all his health issues but managed to enjoy cruising up until a few years ago. None of this would have been possible without the love, support and care which Janice gave. From the tributes Janice has received are the comments: of Alan being kind and dependable; of him liking to get involved. And he was a true gentleman with huge dignity, who never complained and always tried to make light of his health issues whilst managing to maintain a sense of humour. His “New Year Friends” said ‘It won’t be the same without dear Alan’, but they still have precious memories. He has indeed left a legacy of treasured memories for so many.