Arthur's Service in the Royal Marines
The contributor's father, Arthur Walters, was born in 1917. Arthur joined the Royal Marines in Chatham in 1936 and saw active service in the Spanish Civil War. In the Spanish War, the marines took civilians away to safe places. Arthur said that it was a very cruel war.
Training to be a gunnery expert, Arthur came to Edinburgh in 1939. He was on the HMS Southampton ship in the Forth when the Germans flew over and bombed on 16th October 1939 - the first bombing of the war on British soil. The bombing damaged the HMS Southampton and the ship's boy was killed, having had the top of his head taken off. The ship was repaired at Rosyth and the ship was back into the North Sea on the way to Norway just a week later.
The contributor's mother, Margaret Walters, joined the Women's Royal Naval Service (Wrens).
A wedding photograph of Arthur and Margaret with Irene Walters, Arthur's sister, and an unknown man. They married in Tynecastle Parish Church in Edinburgh on 1st November 1941.
The Royal Marines came to celebrate Arthur's 100th birthday.
History
Item list and details
Photo of wedding - Arthur and Margaret Walters, and Irene Walters (Arthur's sister), and unknown. At Tynecastle Parish Church. 1 November 1941. Picture shows him in his Royal Marines uniformPerson the story/items relate to
Arthur WaltersPerson who shared the story/items
Maureen SellersRelationship between the subject of the story and its contributor
Father of contributorType of submission
Shared at University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh on 25 November 2023.Record ID
109533 | EDI039Usage metrics
