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Private J. D. Caves: The Long Journey Home

Combat in Egypt

page 11

Combat in Egypt

"This is a strange land."

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Timeline of Events

26 June - July 1941

Sailing from Wellington to Egypt on board the Aquitania.

August 10 - October 1941

Maadi, Egypt, near Cairo, Infantry Training Depot.

18 October 1941

Denis assigned to B Company, 24 Battalion, 6 Brigade, 2 New Zealand Division in Baggush, Egypt.

9 November 1941

6 Brigade moves out of Baggush to the front line.

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26 June 1941 Wellington D Coy Infantry, 6th Reinforcements

My Darling Jean,

Well we are now alongside the wharf at Wellington on board the Aquitania. There are about 60 of us in the advance party and so far have had very little to do. We came down on the 3 o'clock leaving Papakura at 3:30pm and arriving here at 7am so you can imagine we have had very little sleep. However it will probably have been a fast better trip down than the main party will have on the troop train. This boat is a whopper, the biggest I have ever seen. 43,000 tonnes. The Rangitira which is lying a few chains away looks just like a dingy beside us.

Well Darling Girl, we did not have much to say to each other on the phone did we - but we never do. Anyway Jean Dear I hope you realise just what you mean to me. I love you Darling and always will and only hope that I can always be worthy of you and never cause you pain or sorrow.

PS. I'm afraid we will have no shore leave in Australia as this boat is too big they reckon to berth and has to anchor out in the harbour.

14 July 1941 On board Aquitania D Coy Infantry, 6th Reinforcements

My Dear Jean,

We have seen little but endless water. The heat is now intense. The sweat is pouring off me as I write. We crossed the equator yesterday. Yesterday the swimming bath on deck was filled with sea water for us. Unfortunately it is only about 12ft by 24ft and we have set hours for each company. Nevertheless we are very glad to have it there and we mess orderlies will have ample opportunity to use the bath while others are on fatigues or parades.

18 July 1941 At Sea D Coy Infantry, 6th Reinforcements

My Darling Jean,

We have now been at sea three weeks. Three whole weeks without a foot of solid earth and probably another 10 days or so to go. Out at sea the smoke of our escorts (we have more now) is just visible while the other transports steam majestically in line with us. They tell me we are now in the danger zone and that there will be no more practice alarms. The next one will be fair dinkum.

Since we left I have been sleeping on deck. It is pretty hard to find room to put down one's blankets and if it was not for old Freddie Bowers I would stand very little show as nearly all the space is taken by the time I finish mess. Freddie places his blankets in two piles. So far we have been very lucky but Sunday night we got wet through with spray. Last night we did not attempt to find a dry space on deck and slept in the mess room.

9 August 1941 Maadi, Egypt B Coy Nth Inf Training Depot 2nd N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

My Dear Jean,

Yesterday I went into Cairo for the first time. It is hard to give you my idea of the city as really I hardly seemed to get anywhere and all the streets were to be bewilderingly alike. The outskirts and poor quarters of the town look as though they had sustained an air raid but are only old. How old I don't know but their crumbling mud and brick walls could tell tales of ancient Pharaohs by their look. The better part of the city is remarkably modern with large 6-10 storey buildings far superior to anything in NZ. The NZ Club was a hotel and the floors are solely for the use of all ranks. The Club is a credit to NZ Patriotic Funds. One can go in there from the hot dusty streets and have a hot or cold shower after getting a clean towel and piece of soap for 1½ P.T. Then have tea, fruit salad, ice creams, softdrinks, grills or chicken, almost anything in fact. From 6:30PM the bar is open. Beer being 6½ P.T. a bottle. We took advantage of all this after looking around the streets. From the station after a 20 minute ride costing 2P.T. return we took a gharri. Gharris are great and give one a feeling of a millionaire. They are two wheel vehicles with a hood like a sports model and drawn by two horses, ponies I should say. One sits back in page 14luxury and surveys strange sights. Some of the shops hold marvellous goods in ivory, brass, silks and jewellery. I'd love to be able to shower you with gifts Dear. There is a vast difference between streets, around a corner one may change from an environment of wealth and prosperity to one of filth and poverty. Truly a city of contrast which will take a lot of getting to know.

The evenings here are beautiful Darling. The air becomes cooler and the sun goes down in a red ball through haze of dust and heat directly behind the pyramids. Much to my surprise there is an almost continuous breeze which although hot and often dusty makes the heat less oppressive.

20 August 1941 Maadi, Egypt B Coy Nth Inf Training Depot 2nd N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

Dear Dear Jean,

I have still not been into Cairo again as we have been on duty for a week or so but I am hoping to see some of the places of interest this coming weekend. We have only been here three weeks yet it seems ages. Things we did in final leave seem hard to recall. Fiji seems like a dream almost. This is a strange land Dear. Standing on a ridge of ageless rock and sand, one looks out over the Nile towards Cairo with its mosques, palaces and minarets rearing up above flat-roofed houses through a shimmering haze. Distance is hard to judge and seems limitless, nothing stands out clear cut. It all seems unreal like a faded picture. Hardest of all to realize is that the three cone-shaped shadows beyond the city are the pyramids. One thing that surprises me is the way the barren desert runs right down to the Nile. I thought the banks of the Nile would be all in gardens and plantation for miles on either side but evidently there is no seepage and the only growth must be got by irrigation. The river is used for transportation on a large scale. Scows are used and in some places the tall bamboo masts of these picturesque craft are as 'thick as hairs on a cat's back' to quote one we know. They are heavy cumbersome open boats propelled by a huge triangular sail and guided by a large clumsy looking rudder. Looking away behind the camp is nothing but ridges and waadis and expanses of dusty stony sand.

20 August 1941 Maadi, Egypt B Coy Nth Inf Training Depot 2nd N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

Dear Mum & Dad,

I have now been over here three weeks. Life has fallen more or less into a routine with many fatigues and guards which fill a big part of a soldier's life. On guard here, one is not cursed with mosquitoes thank goodness - we miss the toads and mongooses and bats but have in their place little lizards - small sand-coloured and extraordinarily fast moving when disturbed. Gypsies come through the camp occasionally with their donkey drawn carts and sometimes on camels. They have these rubber air horns like the old motorbikes, and on a busy road through the camp the din is weird and wonderful. Like the honking of geese or a dog loose in a very mixed farm yard.

Photo taken by Denis of the River Nile.

Photo taken by Denis of the River Nile.

24 August 1941 Maadi, Egypt B Coy 24th Bn. N.Z.E.F Middle East Forces

My Darling Girl,

Jim Choat and I got leave together on Friday from 1:30pm to 1:30am. I was rather keen on going to the pyramids but as Jim had already seen them last week we decided to go to the zoo instead. We took a bus and train to town [Cairo] and made for the N.Z Club - being page 15pestered all the way of course by hawkers, beggars and shoe shine boys.

From the NZ Club we took a taxi to the zoo - it was a fair way from the Club out towards the pyramids and made a very interesting drive. The Nile is divided by an island, Gezira, and some of the best residences are situated on it. The Gezira is of course well watered and there are many beautiful gardens and trees on it.

On the main land again we travelled up the bank of the river for a mile or so. The water of the Nile is brown and filthy but looks nice if not too close. We reached the zoo at 3 o'clock and it is beautifully laid out with trees, gardens, rockeries and flowing water. It must hold its own with the leading zoos of the world. We saw everything I can think of from mice to elephants and from crocodiles to polar bears. Strange as it may seem Jim and I could name most of the animals and birds before we saw the names just through having seen them in pictures.

New Zealand's main overseas base, Maadi was minutes away from Cairo and the desert there was hard and suitable for training and practically free from mosquitoes and flies. The New Zealanders peaked at 76,000 constituting the largest single foreign community ever to have resided in Maadi. Tents, camouflaged to merge with the sand, were erected for accommodation. While off duty, soldiers could get a decent meal and a drink at The New Zealand Club in Cairo.

9 September 1941 Maadi, Egypt B Coy 24th Bn. N.Z.E.F Middle East Forces

My Darling Jean,

Last Saturday I went into town [Cairo] with a cobber. The population is very mixed here. The better class Egyptians and Arabs are in some ways very fine as are the French residents. However there are far more of mixed blood than pure and they grade from fair to the lowest imaginable. The female of the species is of course far more presentable than the male.

Some of the girls have beautiful hair and figures although their faces are often not made to match. You have no need to fear for any changing of affections on my part. The lowest classes are detestable, filthy in body and mind and ignorant in everything but low earning and petty thieving. A soldier has to be very careful not to have his pocket rifled and it is not safe wandering off the main streets by oneself in the dark.

We have, of course, had no rain. I have been surprised by the amount of wind we get here at times. Every evening quite a stiff breeze arises. Through the days whirlwinds are frequent and raise the dust. Sometimes a strong whirlwind raises dust and litter in a spiral to a great height, often blocking three or four huts from view.

Your transport meetings must be quite interesting. I'm really glad that you are keen on it and hope you do well because the knowledge will be very useful in the future. When we are out driving I can see myself pulling out a cigarette when the old bus breaks down and having a smoke while my dearly beloved wife carries out the necessary adjustments. Well so much for a little sentiment and a little leg-pulling! Lell wrote to me the other day. Can you keep a secret Jean dear? She is very happy and tells me that I will be an uncle in March very likely.

Jean and her Morris 8.

Jean and her Morris 8.

Jean was a land girl during the week and WWSA (Women War Service Auxiliary) at weekends. She was in the transport division of WWSA and drove officers around on home guard manoeuvres. Jean's father bought her a Morris 8 to use because he did not want her driving his Oldsmobile.

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Denis, middle, in Egypt with "the best pair of pals a chap could wish for" Jim Choat and Ken Turner, October 1941.

Denis, middle, in Egypt with "the best pair of pals a chap could wish for" Jim Choat and Ken Turner, October 1941.

On 12 September 1941 the New Zealand Division marched to Baggush, and on 18 September they moved to the south-east corner of the Baggush Box, a fortress by the Mediterranean coastline, 30 miles southwest of Mersa Matruh, and trained for attacks with Valentine tanks.

The road into Mersa Metruh.

The road into Mersa Metruh.

18 September 1941 Camp, Egypt B Coy Nth Inf Training Depot N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

My Own Dear Jean,

We are now guarding Prisoners of War. It makes quite an interesting change and our duties are not too arduous. I'm afraid that's all which we are at liberty to write. You must realise that if my letters seem to be somewhat scanty, it is due mainly to necessary rigid censor.

The washing is done for us. I believe the contractor does the washing in return for scraps from the mess room and cookhouses. These scraps are collected daily and sold or used by low-class restaurants in Cairo. Nice people eh! The scraps are thrown into covered drums and respectively labelled veges, bread, meat, etc. Nevertheless, I make a point of not frequenting low-class restaurants. The laundry is situated on the edge of the camp facing the open desert and it is just like a small native village during the day, as whole families come to do the job. As washing goes from dozens of units, you can imagine the fun I have trying to take back to page 17camp the same amount of clothes as I leave with. Of course they always feign ignorance of English when they are in the wrong or getting the worst of an argument.

Training with tanks near Wadi Natrun.

Training with tanks near Wadi Natrun.

28 September 1941 Camp, Egypt B Coy Nth Inf Training Depot N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

My Own Dear Jean,

I'm sorry that you find it hard to write now that I am so much further away. Are you sure that you are not letting the censor cramp your style? Please don't be foolish about that as hundreds of letters pass through their hands daily and personal items in a stray letter could not possibly attract their notice. It would be a pity to withhold anything from one another that would help us towards better understanding and love as there is always the chance that we will not meet again or will be sorely tried before we do. Don't think that I am a little too morbid Dear but after all war is war you know.

18 October 1941 'Out in the Blue' B Coy 24th Bn N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

My Dear Jean,

As you will see by the address we have had another change. I have parted from many good cobbers but will soon make some more with this outfit. Life out here will be free of the dull routine of base. We had all seen enough of Cairo and won't care if we don't see it again. Our next leave I'll try to go to Alexandria but I guess that won't be till around Xmas and we may be anywhere by then. Life out here has more the atmosphere of a picnic as we make our own sleeping quarters and our food is brought to us and we eat in the open squatting around on rocks unless it is windy, cold or dusty. Yesterday there was a rotten dust storm. They are the very devil - fine dust gets everywhere and as we have no fresh water for washing one gets very uncomfortable.

Photo taken by Denis in Cairo.

Photo taken by Denis in Cairo.

4 November 1941 'Out in the Blue' B Coy 24th Bn N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

My Own Darling Girl,

Mum told me you had your hair permed and as you had not mentioned it I thought you must be trying to catch a new flame. Fooling apart though dear, if your affections were to change, for God's sake don't be self-sacrificing about it. Don't let any of the hard things I write sometimes hurt your feelings Jean darling, but one never knows when and where we'll meet again.

Things are going Ok here with a few air raids around now and again (behind us mainly). Perhaps they will put on a show tomorrow night. The old page 18moon is full now. We are quite safe here though. By the way dear my hair is not thinning out in this climate but one has to keep it very short with the dust and lack of fresh washing water.

6 November 1941 'Out in the Blue' B Coy 24th Bn N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

Dear Mum,

Some of the waadis round here are not as bare as most of the desert and we see on manoeuvres an occasional herd of goats or sheep. In places very stunted fig trees grow together with poor specimens of box thorn and little shrubs and growth like fly-catchers, camel-grass and little heather-like bushes. Around an oasis a few miles away is a few date palms and bigger trees and an area of twitch grass. By the way there's no clear bubbling spring and pond but pipes down to an underground well.

9 November 1941 'Out in the Blue' B Coy 24th Bn N.Z.E.F. Middle East Forces

My Own Darling Girl,

You certainly must have a pile of letters if you have kept them all over the last two years and more. We here, of course, cannot keep any but one or two special ones. All envelopes with our addresses on have to be destroyed and we cannot keep a diary. As I sit here writing to you I have your photo propped up looking at me, and on the other side of it I have pasted a good snap of Mum and Dad.

Wartime press clippings from New Zealand newspapers showing the sort of information Jean would have read about battles in North Africa.

Wartime press clippings from New Zealand newspapers showing the sort of information Jean would have read about battles in North Africa.

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