256170 Sgt. Stanley John "Tanker" Barker British Army 2nd Btn. Royal Norfolk Regiment from:Northampton From memory, my father, Stanley Barker served with the 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk's in India from 1933 through to 1938.
He took his discharge at this time and was placed into the reserves, was called up at the out break of WW2 and went to France with the BEF. Here things become blurred, he was court marshalled for refusing to drive a Bren gun Carrier saying "the bloody Jerries are hiding up the trees and dropping grenades into them". As written elsewhere, the Norfolk's were at Paradise sur Mare. where he was at this time there is record, luckily for me he was there or I wouldn't be writing this.
Then the next bit of family history starts around Hull after the evacuation. He had several worthwhile adventures there. I clearly remember him telling us that after an air raid he and his company were given the job of cleaning out the basements of the shops. He said as they made their way down into one of the basements it appeared as if there were lots of burned and distorted bodies standing around, only find out that they were all store mannequins.
His next experience was as light. Apparently the Norfolk's had got the nickname of "the babes in the woods" after the place where they were camped.
Dad was a real larrikin. He apparently said "they will be bombing the babes in the woods next". He was court marshalled again.
There is nothing in the family history until he is posted to India on the 13th of April 1942.
Again not much happened, or much he would speak about. We know he was at Kohimaand and that he was wounded. It turned out that my mother was an army nurse already in India and she nursed him.
He took his discharge in India, as did my mother and they married there then my brother was born there.
After his discharge, Dad was in the Indian Police until the Pakistan India separation they then went home to the UK.
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