256921 Chief Stokr. Ernest Edward Weaving Royal Navy HMS Europa from:Stroud, Glos. Ernest Weaving served with the Royal Navy aboard HMS Drake, HMS Europa and HMS Prince of Wales in WW2. I remember snippets of conversations when I spent summer holidays at the top of the village with him. He was my father figure after my father was taken ill in the early sixties and died when I was under 14.
Ernest's record shows him as a boy sailor in WW1 then re-enlisting on 2nd of September 1940. He served in three other Navy's, presumably between the wars, Australian, New Zealand and Canadian!
His first posting was HMS Drake 2, moving on to HMS Europa 19th of September 1940, back to Drake 2 6th of November 1940 then on to the HMS Prince of Wales between 10th of January 1941 and 7th of July 1941, returning to Drake 2 on 17th of July 1941, before being rated PUNS on 24th of September 1941.
I now realise why the film of the sinking of the HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse upset him so much. He would never explain, but, whatever his injury was probably saved his life!
He led a long, happy and eventful life, eventually dying from heart failure in January 1983, having refused to spoil the family Christmas, on the day my wife was confirmed pregnant with Lisa, our older daughter.
A chip off the old block having worked with Harpoon missiles for the Navy, the RAF's cruise missile Stormshadow and the Trident Successor programme, at the age of 35, she now has responsibility for the maintenance of all trains.
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