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Second World War 5: If Hitler Should Come..........

 



                              Image Reproduced with permission: BTPHG                                      


If there is one thing that makes the UK different from other European countries is the blessed absence in recent centuries of the experience of being invaded and occupied.  It is easy for us to forget that for those who were living through the Second World War the prospect of an invasion was painfully real.  We came very close to sharing the fate of our closest continental neighbours.

The risk of invasion created the need for a considerable amount of planning most of which is now public.  Even today emergency planners must consider the prospect of war as a potential civil, as well as military, disaster.  During the early part of the war there was a lot of debate around the role of the police should an invasion take place.  The role of the civil police in occupied Europe has a mixed history and the photographs of officers in traditional uniforms saluting German officers in the Channel Islands can still send a chill down the professional spine.  Even after occupation there would still be a need for civilian law enforcement and, one argument ran, that this would be better done by trained and trusted police officers.  For the frontline officer there would have been a host of personal and ethical issues to face.

In the first instance was the question of what to do when the invasion started.  For the railway police forces this was made difficult as there were many police posts far removed from supervision.  Moreover, in any invasion scenario the railways and docks were key objectives for the invaders.  We have very little in the paper record but there may be more to be discovered.

On 15th October 1942 the Chief of the Southern Railway Police, Colonel H C Prescott issued the secret order reproduced here.  It doesn’t say much but its brevity hides the huge weight of responsibility carried by senior police officers in the years 1939-1945.  It is tempting for each generation of police officers to think that they face the greatest challenges in the history of the profession.  In fact no other generation of police officers has had to face the demands that were commonplace in years 1939-1945.  We have a lot to thank them for.

 

Phil Trendall

June 2023

 

Note

As always I am indebted to the British Transport Police History Group (BTPHG) for saving and preserving the history of Railway, Dock and Canal Policing.  I am also grateful to have access to their collections.   

Source:   BTPHG Collections Ref Q05 (SR Police Instructions)


#BTP #BTPHG #Policehistory 

 

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