British Auxiliary Units

Chats1 · 19-11-2009, 05:18 PM

I was wondering whether anyone had any snippets of information on the British Auxiliary Units, set up to resist behind lines in the face of a German invasion.

I have read a couple of books (Last Ditch by Kempe, and Invasion!), but it is such a fascinating subject, as it has remained relatively under the radar for 70 years, but also it's interesting to consider how effective they might have been if the worst had happened (and the potential reaction of the German's on the British public) - let me know your opinions on that as well!

Any information you have on the units I would be really interested in hearing more!

Drew5233 · 19-11-2009, 05:34 PM

Hi and welcome to the forum.

I have some info on resistance units set up in Kent on the Romney Marsh area. I haven't read the book yet but it shows one of their underground bunkers in a field with a list of all equipment, rations and weapons that were stored in the bunker.

I'll try and dig it out later for you (I'm going out tonight). If I've not posted anything by Sunday drop me a PM to remind me

Try the forums search engine too....I believe this subject may have been discussed before on here.

Regards
Andy

Chats1 · 19-11-2009, 05:41 PM

Cheers! I'll take a look round the site too, but would be great if you could round up anything!

phylo_roadking · 19-11-2009, 05:58 PM

I'll have to find it again, but there's an Aux Units website somewhere!

I've come across a lot of stuff over the years, but there's no truly comprehensive history....partly because of the whole air of secrecy that surrounded it - AND which was maintained by old Aux Unit members until their dying day! I remember at least two underground hides remaining equiped until the end of the war, and being gradually forgotten about, STILL with their explosives and arms, and being guarded by the veterans. One only came to light when the last survivng Patrol member asked police to come out to his house and take some weapons off him during one of the firearms anmesties a few years back - and there was the FULL armoury for his Patrol! Their hide had gradually flooded over the years - and he as the last survivor had gradually transferred evenything into his semi!

What is it you want to know, specifically?

Smudger Jnr · 19-11-2009, 06:37 PM

There is quite a bit on the web if you search under "British Resistance Auxiliary units"

This link is from Wiki to start you off, but I never take for gospel what is written in Wiki, but it certainly helps in research.

Auxiliary Units - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The British Resistance Organisation Home Page

THE BRITISH RESISTANCE ORGANISATION

The British Resistance Organisation « Secret Scotland

Regards
Tom

Bala · 19-11-2009, 07:12 PM

The GHQ of Aux Units was Coleshill House, near Highworth, Wilts. Take a look Coleshill House - Churchill's Underground Auxiliary Unit A fairly new site but up and coming. Plenty to interest and inform you.

PostScript: I just tried clicking on the link but it failed to open. If you have a problem - try typing COLESHILLHOUSE dot ORG all lower case and no spaces, in the address bar.

cptpies · 19-11-2009, 07:13 PM

Checkout the Defence of Britain Database. All the Hide locations are on there. You can download a Google Earth KML from my sig too.

phylo_roadking · 19-11-2009, 07:25 PM

Coleshill House was a training base as well as a GHQ. The Aux Unit Patrols had a noticable degree of autonomy in regulating their own affairs...very much like the SOE later networked resistance groups in Europe, the Balkans and the Far East, by means of travelling "Intelligence Officers". Here's an early party of them at Coleshill House...

Notice any familiar faces???

phylo_roadking · 19-11-2009, 07:39 PM

The Auxiliary Units came about after the famous weekend of dinners at Chequers in late June 1940 where on hearing the FULL detail on the parlous state of Britain's defences from Gen. Ironside and others, Churchill ALSO gave the orders for the production of Mustard Gas and the preparation of Operation Banquet.

As with a lot of wartime schemes, Churchill had an element of detailed involvement in the early days of the Aux Units. It was he who roughly specified their arming - "Each man must have a revolver" - and made sure an early shipment of Thompsons was diverted to them, and also provided for the first arming of a British Army unit with silenced weapons! Each Aux Unit Patrol was to have at least one Winchester .22 silenced rifle.

Churchill apparently interviewed Colin Gubbins personally on his return from Norway and put him in charge of the project as well as the embryonic SOE. Prior to this - there had been a number of small-scale stay-behind organisations a-building....including one VERY professional outfit in Kent under one PETER Fleming, brother of Ian!!!

Those of a more tender age from the UK might remember his DAUGHTER, Lucy Fleming...a "stay behind" of a whole different sort! One of the cast of the ORIGINAL "Survivors"!!!

Fleming was drafted to Coleshill House where he served as an Intelligence Officer for a short time - along with someone who was very soon to follow Gubbins into SOE full-time...

A young Captain ANTHONY QUAYLE!!!

Quayle later had some bad experiences when acting as a British Liaison Officer with Tito's partisans in Yugoslavia, which he refused ever to talk about in detail....

Strangely enough, one of his most famous war movie roles was as an SOE British Liaison Officer in the Eastern Med in "The Guns Of Navarone"!!!

phylo_roadking · 19-11-2009, 07:46 PM

The organisation was formed by local authorities - lord Lieutenants, senior policemen, people like that - recommending individuals who fitted the criteria as "patrol leaders" in an unspecified organisation. They were vetted, then visited by an Intelligence Officer, and if they volunteered were told to report to Highworth Post Office, in the village beside Coleshill House...

...where the LAST line of security was provided by Margaret the village Postmistress who was in on the secret! If SHE didn't like the look of you - you didn't get in!

SHE then called Coleshill House and an unmarked Army lorry picked up each party of trainees and took them to the big house!

After their training - which would be over a series of weekends - the Patrol Leaders were to find their own patrol members and cascade the training.

19-11-2009, 05:18 PM	#1 (permalink)
Chats1 Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 10	British Auxiliary Units I was wondering whether anyone had any snippets of information on the British Auxiliary Units, set up to resist behind lines in the face of a German invasion. I have read a couple of books (Last Ditch by Kempe, and Invasion!), but it is such a fascinating subject, as it has remained relatively under the radar for 70 years, but also it's interesting to consider how effective they might have been if the worst had happened (and the potential reaction of the German's on the British public) - let me know your opinions on that as well! Any information you have on the units I would be really interested in hearing more!

19-11-2009, 05:34 PM	#2 (permalink)
Drew5233 Very Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Leeds Posts: 13,417	Hi and welcome to the forum. I have some info on resistance units set up in Kent on the Romney Marsh area. I haven't read the book yet but it shows one of their underground bunkers in a field with a list of all equipment, rations and weapons that were stored in the bunker. I'll try and dig it out later for you (I'm going out tonight). If I've not posted anything by Sunday drop me a PM to remind me Try the forums search engine too....I believe this subject may have been discussed before on here. Regards Andy __________________ Combat Communicators of the British Army

19-11-2009, 05:58 PM	#4 (permalink)
phylo_roadking Very Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: feels like Brigadoon! Posts: 1,264	I'll have to find it again, but there's an Aux Units website somewhere! I've come across a lot of stuff over the years, but there's no truly comprehensive history....partly because of the whole air of secrecy that surrounded it - AND which was maintained by old Aux Unit members until their dying day! I remember at least two underground hides remaining equiped until the end of the war, and being gradually forgotten about, STILL with their explosives and arms, and being guarded by the veterans. One only came to light when the last survivng Patrol member asked police to come out to his house and take some weapons off him during one of the firearms anmesties a few years back - and there was the FULL armoury for his Patrol! Their hide had gradually flooded over the years - and he as the last survivor had gradually transferred evenything into his semi! What is it you want to know, specifically? __________________ The smell of frying bacon - proof that aromatherapy isn't all bullshit... Last edited by phylo_roadking; 19-11-2009 at 06:04 PM.

19-11-2009, 06:37 PM	#5 (permalink)
Smudger Jnr Our Man in Berlin Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Spandau, Berlin, Germany Posts: 5,687	There is quite a bit on the web if you search under "British Resistance Auxiliary units" This link is from Wiki to start you off, but I never take for gospel what is written in Wiki, but it certainly helps in research. Auxiliary Units - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The British Resistance Organisation Home Page THE BRITISH RESISTANCE ORGANISATION The British Resistance Organisation « Secret Scotland Regards Tom __________________ Reconnaissance Corps - Only the enemy in front.

19-11-2009, 07:12 PM	#6 (permalink)
Bala Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 20	The GHQ of Aux Units was Coleshill House, near Highworth, Wilts. Take a look Coleshill House - Churchill's Underground Auxiliary Unit A fairly new site but up and coming. Plenty to interest and inform you. PostScript: I just tried clicking on the link but it failed to open. If you have a problem - try typing COLESHILLHOUSE dot ORG all lower case and no spaces, in the address bar. Last edited by Bala; 19-11-2009 at 07:23 PM. Reason: Link failed to open

19-11-2009, 05:41 PM	#3 (permalink)
Chats1 Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 10	Cheers! I'll take a look round the site too, but would be great if you could round up anything!

19-11-2009, 07:13 PM	#7 (permalink)
cptpies Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Handcross, West Sussex Posts: 28	Checkout the Defence of Britain Database. All the Hide locations are on there. You can download a Google Earth KML from my sig too. __________________ It was me, I ate all the pies. My Defence of Britain placemark set - http://bbs.keyhole.com/ubb/ubbthread...080#Post863080

19-11-2009, 07:25 PM	#8 (permalink)
phylo_roadking Very Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: feels like Brigadoon! Posts: 1,264	Coleshill House was a training base as well as a GHQ. The Aux Unit Patrols had a noticable degree of autonomy in regulating their own affairs...very much like the SOE later networked resistance groups in Europe, the Balkans and the Far East, by means of travelling "Intelligence Officers". Here's an early party of them at Coleshill House... *Notice any familiar faces???* __________________ The smell of frying bacon - proof that aromatherapy isn't all bullshit...

19-11-2009, 07:39 PM	#9 (permalink)
phylo_roadking Very Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: feels like Brigadoon! Posts: 1,264	The Auxiliary Units came about after the famous weekend of dinners at Chequers in late June 1940 where on hearing the FULL detail on the parlous state of Britain's defences from Gen. Ironside and others, Churchill ALSO gave the orders for the production of Mustard Gas and the preparation of Operation Banquet. As with a lot of wartime schemes, Churchill had an element of detailed involvement in the early days of the Aux Units. It was he who roughly specified their arming - "Each man must have a revolver" - and made sure an early shipment of Thompsons was diverted to them, and also provided for the first arming of a British Army unit with silenced weapons! Each Aux Unit Patrol was to have at least one Winchester .22 silenced rifle. Churchill apparently interviewed Colin Gubbins personally on his return from Norway and put him in charge of the project as well as the embryonic SOE. Prior to this - there had been a number of small-scale stay-behind organisations a-building....including one VERY professional outfit in Kent under one PETER Fleming, brother of Ian!!! Those of a more tender age from the UK might remember his DAUGHTER, Lucy Fleming...a "stay behind" of a whole different sort! One of the cast of the ORIGINAL "Survivors"!!! Fleming was drafted to Coleshill House where he served as an Intelligence Officer for a short time - along with someone who was very soon to follow Gubbins into SOE full-time... *A young Captain ANTHONY QUAYLE!!!* Quayle later had some bad experiences when acting as a British Liaison Officer with Tito's partisans in Yugoslavia, which he refused ever to talk about in detail.... Strangely enough, one of his most famous war movie roles was as an SOE British Liaison Officer in the Eastern Med in "The Guns Of Navarone"!!! __________________ The smell of frying bacon - proof that aromatherapy isn't all bullshit... Last edited by phylo_roadking; 19-11-2009 at 08:05 PM.

19-11-2009, 07:46 PM	#10 (permalink)
phylo_roadking Very Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: feels like Brigadoon! Posts: 1,264	The organisation was formed by local authorities - lord Lieutenants, senior policemen, people like that - recommending individuals who fitted the criteria as "patrol leaders" in an unspecified organisation. They were vetted, then visited by an Intelligence Officer, and if they volunteered were told to report to Highworth Post Office, in the village beside Coleshill House... ...where the LAST line of security was provided by Margaret the village Postmistress who was in on the secret! If SHE didn't like the look of you - you didn't get in! SHE then called Coleshill House and an unmarked Army lorry picked up each party of trainees and took them to the big house! After their training - which would be over a series of weekends - the Patrol Leaders were to find their own patrol members and cascade the training. __________________ The smell of frying bacon - proof that aromatherapy isn't all bullshit... Last edited by phylo_roadking; 19-11-2009 at 08:06 PM.

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