I was born 27 years after WWII ended. To today, that’s like imagining WWII ended in 1997.
The end result is I grew up as a kid amongst people I deemed somewhere between “old” and “ancient” who had all been through it.
I really didn’t take an interest in WWII until I was 7. Like most UK boys of that era, the AirFix planes showed up under the Christmas tree. For most, they didn’t care for these - for me, my interest was piqued.
So, by the time I was 10 I had some clue about cultural things that annoyed my elders… like the BMW logo being the propeller they shot at 40 years before.
Even though many were now dying off, I was starting to listen.
I was 10 when the Falklands conflict broke out.
For me, this was my first “I know someone”. Chris Coulls, who’d eventually go on to run RAF Waddington, was down there tearing about in a Tornado. I paid attention.
Seeing first hand how everything can turn in a matter of weeks was an eye opener.
I still regularly think about the old times phrase (don’t remember who said it) that we are only ever nine meals away from chaos.
So, back to the old folks….who were probably my age now.
For them, the “Enabling Act” of 1933 was the “legal” moment that basically everything kicked off.
WWII has many “moments” depending on the lens you looked through, including crystal night, etc, but I’m trying to stay focused here.
