The Wellington Trust has launched Robin’s Campaign to trace all surviving Battle of the Atlantic Veterans.
The campaign is named after Robin Boodle (100) who served onboard HMS Suffolk from 1940 to 1945. During Robin’s time in the Ships Company, Suffolk formed part of three Battle of the Atlantic convoys: two Arctic Convoys, and Convoy number WS30/KMF15 from the Clyde to Freetown, Sierra Leone. HMS Wellington was also part of convoy WS 30.
In May 1943 when Robin was 18, HMS Suffolk was sent to Scotland to join joint military convoy WS30/KMF15 in the Clyde.
A very common convoy route, Wellington was often tasked with convoy duties to and from the UK to Freetown, or Gibraltar.
Although his memory of convoy WS30 is very vague, Robin does remember entering Freetown harbour and seeing the palm trees and some wildlife. At Freetown, the convoy split, and Suffolk went on to South Africa and Western Australia.
His memories of his two Arctic convoys are more vivid. He remembers they had to keep moving all the time to keep warm. These convoys were in September 1941 and August 1942:
“I remember it was very cold. We had to keep going all the time. We couldn’t stop. We wanted to rest, but we had to keep going to keep warm.”
Robin is a great inspiration for this campaign as we enter the 80th anniversary year since the end of the Battle of the Atlantic on Victory Europe Day on May 8th 1945.
As part of these commemorations, the Trust are keen to find and honour all remaining Battle of the Atlantic veterans from both the Royal Navy and the Merchant Navy, and appeal to anyone who is, or has knowledge of any surviving Battle of the Atlantic veterans, to get in touch with the Wellington Trust.
Chairman of the Wellington Trust, Dominic Tweddle commented on the launch of Robin’s campaign:
“It was remarkable that we learned of Robin and his decorated Second World War service, and even more remarkable that he was on one convoy with Wellington when he served onboard HMS Suffolk. To have this living connection to the ship is special.
We appreciate there cannot be many surviving Battle of the Atlantic veterans, yet we are keen to find them and document anything they may remember, as well as learn of their individual service histories.
We not only want to commemorate their contribution to the Battle of the Atlantic but also to ensure visitors to the ship can learn of their contribution to the Battle of the Atlantic as part of the Wellington Story.”
If you are, or know a surviving Battle of the Atlantic veteran, Royal or Merchant Navy, please contact the Wellington Trust via email research@wellingtontrust.org
Zone South East