Getting Permission to Marry

Heroes Remember

Getting Permission to Marry

Transcript

When I got back to England after VE Day, my wife and I decided to get married. I was in Bournemouth, and I had to get permission to get married. I think I had mentioned it, that if you didn’t get permission, it was against military law. And it was also that you didn’t get any marriage allowance, so ... So, I went to the orderly room and saw the adjutant. And I said, “I want permission to get married.” And he said, “I don’t know you from Adam. I’m running a transit camp here.” He said, “Go up to London, at Harrods store, and that’s where the records are.” So I said, “How long have I got?” He said, “Oh, three days.” I thought, great, you know, Sheila’s in London, I got three days. So I went up there, and went down to Harrods the next day, and it was a cacophony of sound. All these people in those records, this big long, must have been about 40 feet counter. And all the records were in behind, and various corporals and sergeants were in there. And it was, “George, I haven’t seen you since so-and-so. You were a POW.” Boom, everything, just talk, talk, talk, talk. So, I got in line. Then got to the front of the line and, incidentally, since I was a Wing Radar Officer, I wasn’t used to standing in line, so that was the first thing that I wasn’t happy about. So, I got to the front of the line and a WD, that’s the women’s service of the RCAF, so I said, “Permission to get married.” And she reached down, she said, “Go see the padre. He has to sign off on that.” Well, I went up and saw the padre. We’d never met before. He spent about ten minutes, probably less than that, trying to talk me out of it. I convinced him I was, you know, quite serious. And he signed off, and that’s the last I saw of him. Went downstairs, back in the line again, and I got to the front of the line. “Yes,” and she went into ... I was standing there, and about 14 feet, just over there, a WD officer came up. And she "Me?” “You.” So I walked over and said, “I don’t know how long you’ve been in the air force, but I call my dog that way. You see my rank, you call me by my rank.” Incidentally, I outranked her. She said, “You’re trying to commit bigamy. You’re trying to commit bigamy.” Well, at the third time (inaudible). She was up at that level. Complete hush, and everybody was looking at me. “What?” “Your wife, Mabel Linden, 2187 ...” I said, “That’s my mother.” “Our records say it’s your ...” I said, “We better go see the commanding officer here.” “Well, come on.” So, we went up and saw the commanding officer. Says, “Well, we’ll go back to Canada and get it straightened out.” I said, “How long?” you know. By now, the war in Europe is over, you see, so they’re not in a hurry. He said, “Oh a week, maybe two.” I said, “Well, we’re getting married in the Anglican Church and the bands have to be read this Sunday.” And, true to his word, he did have it back in about 24 hours. And what had happened was, and I have my records of this, I was in Fadhiya, which is below the spur in Italy. And my mother moved, so you put in change of address, next-of-kin. So, from Fadhiya, to Cairo, to London, mother became wife. How did that happen? Well, we finally figured it out. And in my records it says wife, question mark, marriage date, question mark, and we finally figured it out. In those days a woman could be addressed as Mrs. Mabel Linden or by her husband’s initials, Mrs. H. F. Linden. And I think, probably, I’d said one, and then on change of address said the other, and that’s the only logical reason I can find. But it was quite something.

Description

Mr. Linden explains the complications he encountered with service documentation when obtaining permission to marry

Robert Linden

Mr. Linden was born on March 14, 1921, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. As a young boy, he always had a great fascination for air planes, which led him to seek employment in that field. When the Second World War broke out, Mr. Linden decided to join the Air Force. In 1941, he enlisted in Winnipeg as a radar mechanic, and trained in radio physics at the University of Toronto. He was later posted overseas for service with the Royal Air Force under the 537 (Night-fighter) Squadron. In 1943, he received a commission and held RCAF Officer rank, later reaching the rank of Flight Lieutenant at 236 Wing RAF. In August, 1945, Mr. Linden married in England, and returned to Vancouver to study engineering at the University of British Columbia and later his M.Sc. at MIT. In 1956, he resigned his commission and began a long career working with the federal government in Ottawa. He retired in 1978, but continued to studied history for MA at Carleton University. Mr. Linden’s keen desire to recognize the importance of radar during the Second World War led him and many other radar personnel to form the Canadian Radar History Project in 1987. This project was exhibited at Canada's War Museum in Ottawa.

Meta Data

Medium:: Video
Owner:: Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:: 4:29
Person Interviewed:: Robert Linden
War, Conflict or Mission:: Second World War
Location/Theatre:: England
Branch:: Air Force
Units/Ship:: 537 Squadron
Rank:: Officer
Occupation:: Radar Mechanic

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Getting Permission to Marry

Heroes Remember