Graham stevenson trooper
Sherwood rangers Yeomanry
“A SHOT HIT THE DRIVING SPROCKET, AND IF I HAD BEEN A BIT CLOSER IT WOULD HAVE TAKEN MY LEGS OFF”
Graham Stevenson lied about his age to join the British Army. A native of Walsall, he joined the Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry in Egypt and first served in M3 Grant tanks, before primarily fighting in M4 Sherman tanks between the ages of 17-19. As a member of the British Eighth Army, Stevenson fought at the Second Battle of El Alamein in late 1942 and pushed westwards across North Africa against Axis forces.
At the Battle of the Mareth Line, the Sherwood Rangers took part in a successful outflanking manoeuvre at the Tebega Gap against German positions. Stevenson would go on to participate in the liberation of Tunis and was later severely wounded while fighting in Normandy in July 1944.
AN UNDERAGE SOLDIER HOW DID YOU JOIN THE BRITISH ARMY?
My brother had been called up and I was working in an office, but I went into town where there was a recruitment centre. I was told to go to Birmingham, so I got the bus and found the place.
In Birmingham, the recruiter said, “What do you want? You’re no good, how old are you?” I said 19, but he said, “You don’t look 19 to me. Come back with your birth certificate.” That got to me because I was two days away from my 17th birthday. I said, “I’m 18 now but 19 at the weekend, I don’t want to get called up.” He replied, “Good chap,” and that was it, I was in. I wanted to join a fighting regiment like the infantry, but the armoured corps was suggested to me. I said, “That will do.”
WHEN DID YOU ARRIVE IN EGYPT?
It was probably about July 1942. We arrived at Port Tewfik by the Red Sea and took a train to Abbassia Barracks, near Cairo. I had a week or two to get acclimatised and then went to a place called Wadi El Natrun, which was a marshalling place for troops. That was where I became a Sherwood Ranger in late September. The regiment had fought in action to stop Rommel virtually at the gates of Cairo, and I presume we were replacements for casualties.
WHAT WERE YOUR FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF NORTH AFRICA?
It was very different of course. The old stone barracks were from when Egypt was almost part of the British Empire. There used to be ‘Debugging Hour’ every Friday because the bugs used to come out of the stonework. I saw fellas with their backs completely covered in bug bites and we used to have old fruit cans with paraffin on the legs of the bed to keep them away.
Around the parapet of the barracks there were also kite hawks (we used to call them ‘shite hawks’) that were quite capable of taking a meal out of your hands. It was a bit unpleasant, but they were all part of the scenery.
GRANTS, SHERMANS AND EL ALAMEIN WHICH TANKS DID YOU FIGHT IN?
At El Alamein I first went in on an American [built] Grant. This was a six-man tank, you had to have a separate loader for the 75mm gun, which was my job. For loading, you’re supposed to have heavy gloves for punching the round into the breach, but the drivers who delivered the Grant had pinched everything, including the gloves. My tank commander then gave me some kid gloves out of his kitbag and said, “Here, that’s the best I can do.” I thought that was a very good gesture on his part.
The Grant was knocked out and we then got onto Shermans, which had a five-man crew. I was the co-driver lap gunner, which meant that you had a machine gun and took it in turns with the driver when he got tired. It was pretty demanding.
I couldn’t really compare the Grant and Sherman, but they were a darn sight better than the laughable things I trained on. The Germans had much bigger tanks of course, with an 88mm gun that was an adapted anti-aircraft gun. They were real killers.
WHAT ARE YOUR MEMORIES OF THE SECOND BATTLE OF EL ALAMEIN?
On the second day at Alamein a friend of mine from Catterick called Alec came to see me when he got to the squadron lines. He said,
“I’m with a crew that I’ve got no faith in.” The first day we went back in he was killed, which was pretty awful.
I myself had a Sherman knocked out from under me just before my 18th birthday. A shot hit the driving sprocket, and if I had been a bit closer it would have taken my legs off. The Shermans had an engine that ran on highoctane petrol so they went up like a torch! Luckily it didn’t blow up or burst into flames, so I was very fortunate.
During the battle I was the loader and was the only crewmember that hadn’t got a periscope, so I couldn’t see what was going on. I picked up what was happening from the crew’s conversations. It was a strange thing really: I can honestly say I never felt scared, but that was only because I was 17 and stupid.
WHAT WERE FIGHTING CONDITIONS LIKE INSIDE A TANK?
Hot. When you fire your gun you get a lot of exhaust fumes from the shot, and the atmosphere gets pretty awful. Our driver would get scared, and he was a regular soldier. When you weren’t in action you’d have your flaps and lid open, but they incorporated the periscope and you’d have to be careful not to break them. The driver would say, “Help me Steve,” and I’d jump out, put my arm around the big gun, lean over and put it right.
TEBEGA GAP AND TUNIS WHAT WAS YOUR ROLE DURING THE BATTLE OF THE MARETH LINE AT THE TEBEGA GAP?
The Mareth Line was a heavily prepared position and was going to take a lot of casualties. As we were approaching it Montgomery came to the regiment and said we had to go on this left hook. We covered everything with camouflage netting and were stationary. As soon as it got dark we removed the netting and moved off into the mountains. It was hairy because we were in darkness so that aircraft wouldn’t spot us. It was a surprise attack, and we managed to keep it a surprise
We went south, came back and then went up the back of the Mareth Line and shot them up the backside at the Tebega Gap, which was a feature in the hills. All of their equipment and everything was facing the wrong way. At one point there were half a dozen German tanks swanning about and we were knocking them off from where we were. It was a highly successful manoeuvre that made an awful lot of difference and saved a hell of a lot of casualties.
WHERE WAS KARL IN RELATION TO YOU DURING THE BATTLE AT TEBEGA GAP?
I don’t know for sure, but we were on the right flank and he was on the left. I didn’t know who or what I was fighting against, but it was in that area. About ten years ago we met each other and looked at an artist’s impression of the Battle of Tebega Gap. Karl asked if I was on the right flank and I said yes, then he said, “Oh, I was on the left flank.” I replied, “It’s a bloody good job we missed then!”
HOW DID IT FEEL TO FINALLY ENTER TUNIS AT THE END OF THE CAMPAIGN?
Good, but we were knocked about a bit. There was an unused cinema and we tried to drink wine like beer, which was pretty fatal. We were as drunk as could be at this cinema because the fighting had finished by that time. We did a mock court martial with one of our fellas, which was just fooling around, but when the drinks are in, everything else goes out.
WHAT WAS YOUR OPINION OF ROMMEL AND THE GERMAN FIGHTING ABILITY?
Rommel was quite a general and you wouldn’t take any liberties with him. The Germans’ fighting ability was very respectable, they knew what they were doing. It was a ‘soldier’s war’ [in North Africa], with no civilians involved, damage to buildings or anything like that.
WOUNDED IN NORMANDY WHEN DID YOU ARRIVE IN NORMANDY?
I went over on D-day+14 after the regiment had landed at Gold Beach. They landed on 6 June and were at Bayeux, which they liberated on the
7th. They were on the outskirts on the 6th but they never went in because they had no infantry with them. It would have been suicide to go in, but as soon as Jerry [the Germans] realised they were there they evacuated. The beautiful cathedral and the tapestry were spared, so it went down very nicely.
The Sherwood Rangers were genuinely a hell of a regiment, we were the only ones that ever did what was expected of us, and that’s not just my opinion. General Horrocks boasted we were the most reliable regiment he had.
HOW WERE YOU WOUNDED?
The Sherwood Rangers had had heavy casualties and we were taking some time to get up to strength. On 11 July we started off to head in the direction of Caen on the main road from Bayeux. Just before we got to Tilly-surseulles my troop of three tanks were sent off to the left in the bocage. We supported a light infantry regiment, but when we got to them they were doing a runner to get the hell out.
Suddenly, the troop leader’s tank was blazing away and being hit. My tank was against a high hedge and I was with a ‘scratch’ crew. I don’t think they’d seen a shot fired in anger. The commander went over with an extinguisher to put the fire out and I said to him, “You might as well pee against it for all the good you’re going to do.”
I was a gunner by this time and in the turret of the Sherman. I then couldn’t believe my eyes: a German infantry patrol was coming up the middle of a field as if they were out for a stroll. I thought, “Dear me” and went to load about 30 yards (27 metres) away from them. I opened up with my coax [machine gun] and wiped them out. My wireless operator, who was also the loader, was absolutely terrified. He jumped out the top, ran away and I never saw him again.
There was also a German tank that had knocked out the troop officer’s tank. I don’t know how many of his crew had been hit, but he shouted from outside, “Throw me a Tommy gun down would you?” I asked what he was going to do and he said, “I’ve got to find out what’s going on.” I said, “Would you like me to go with you?” and he said, “Yes please.”
I got a Sten gun and he took a Tommy gun. We took about two paces and there was a burst of machine gun fire. I was shot in the right arm and that was it, my soldiering was over.
WAS YOUR INJURY SERIOUS ENOUGH FOR YOU TO BE SENT HOME?
Oh yes, because it completely severed the brachial artery, which is a main artery, and nicked the medium nerve. If it had happened today I daresay they would have been able to get the nerve back with microsurgery, but they couldn’t do it in those days. My arm was useless and I lost a hell of a lot of blood. They flew me to England, landed near Swindon and I ended up at the Royal Hospital in Wolverhampton. I was six miles (9.6 kilometres) from home!
HOW LONG WERE YOU FIGHTING IN NORMANDY BEFORE YOU WERE WOUNDED?
About a couple of hours, but in that time I shot up a patrol of about eight men. It’s nothing to boast about because it’s a bloody awful thing. You had to take somebody’s life or injure them – that’s what it amounted to.
WAS IT A RELIEF TO BE INVALIDED OUT OF THE WAR?
I can’t honestly say that. I would have much preferred to have seen the war out, because in a way I almost felt that I let my pals down. I suppose it’s a silly attitude to take, but that was me.
POST-WAR FRIENDSHIP HOW DID YOU MEET KARL?
I met him in near Nottingham about ten years ago at the Sherwood Rangers reunion, and we hit it off. It was interesting to meet your old enemy but it’s nothing strange. Why shouldn’t we be friends? They were doing what they were told, like I was doing. There were some really vile Nazis but they were in the minority. I never came across the SS or anything like that.
WHAT CAN YOUR FRIENDSHIP WITH KARL TEACH PEOPLE ABOUT RECONCILIATION?
He was doing his job and I was doing my job. At the end of the day that’s it really. There can never be any excuse for war. At the time I suppose it was a grand adventure. When you’re 17 you don’t give a damn for anybody, but in my more mature years I see things a bit more clearly. If you don’t get some smidgen of wisdom with your 90-odd years then there’s no hope.
“THE SHERWOOD RANGERS WERE GENUINELY A HELL OF A REGIMENT, WE WERE THE ONLY ONES THAT EVER DID WHAT WAS EXPECTED OF US, AND THAT’S NOT JUST MY OPINION. GENERAL HORROCKS BOASTED WE WERE THE MOST RELIABLE REGIMENT HE HAD”
“AXIS CASUALTIES WERE AROUND 7,000 (INCLUDING 2,500 GERMAN PRISONERS) COMPARED TO 4,000 IN THE EIGHTH ARMY”