Almost Human
Heroes Remember
Almost Human
Transcript
Tanks rolling across a field.
they put what they called a steel ring around it. Heavy artillery, light artillery and everything right around themArtillery shell exploding.
and hemmed them in. And the only thing we would let in,Artillery guns being fired.
and that was once a week, was their mail plane. We allowed it to fly in, but other than that, and I remember Christmas of 1944, we were there and they took advantage, Christmas day when we had a cease-fire, they started rebuilding a wall that we had knocked down. And of course the spotters spotted them working on it so we reminded them they shouldn't. We dropped two shells in among them and that sorted that out. That put a stop to that. But all for all, it was, it wasn't a war that had the Allies been weak and losing out, the Germans would have been a bit more ruthless, but they weren't, they got that they were almost human.Description
Mr. Knox talks about Dunkirk and how the Germans were “almost human.”
Thompson Knox
Mr. Knox was born in Northern Ireland on November 1, 1921. At the age of 6, he and his family came to Canada and resided in Heatherdale, Prince Edward Island, where his father began farming. Mr. Knox is the second oldest from a family of three brothers and two sisters. Eager to join the army, Mr. Knox went to enlist only to be advised that he was underweight by 15 lbs., therefore, was not accepted.. Determined to join the army Mr. Knox increased his weight by 10 lbs. and tried again- this time he was accepted and became a member of the 2nd Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, 8th Battery, C Troop. He held rank as a Gunner serving as a member of the gun crew After receiving his basic training in Petawawa, Mr. Knox found himself travelling overseas on the Louis Pasture, a French luxury liner that was gutted down for carrying troops. Although this liner was carrying over 6000 troops and the soldiers were packed in like sardines, Mr. Knox recalls his trip as a very enjoyable experience. He landed in Greenock, Scotland, and it was at this time that Mr. Knox now comes to the realization that he is at war. After the war, Mr. Knox received first aid training and became employed with Maritime Electric being part of the rural electrification team for the entire Island until his retirement. He and his wife raised a family of nine children and now reside in Sherwood, P.E.I.
Meta Data
- Medium:
- Video
- Owner:
- Veterans Affairs Canada
- Duration:
- 1:49
- Person Interviewed:
- Thompson Knox
- War, Conflict or Mission:
- Second World War
- Location/Theatre:
- France
- Battle/Campaign:
- Battle of Dunkirk
- Branch:
- Army
- Units/Ship:
- 2nd Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment
- Rank:
- Gunner
- Occupation:
- Gunner
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