Batman

I'm obviously not privy to any of the subtleties, but noted these comments written by Major (later Lt/Col) Horsfall (at the time with 2 LIR) about Fusilier Clanachan...that being said John Horsfall didn't ever refer to Clanachan (later promoted to L/Cpl) as a "batman" but guess this is the role that Joe describes..

"...later than evening, I was able to put it to the test on recovering Clanachan from D Company.

I had not seen Clanachan since we were both removed with the debris off Kel el Tior on 23 April last. He then had several machine gun bullets in him but now appeared to be none the worse and had been back with the company since the outset in Italy.

There was the faintest flicker of a smile from my late bodyguard as we greeted each other and this was the nearest that we ever got to indicating pleasure. ‘Clanachan.’ I said, ‘I am posted second in command of the Rifles. Are you prepared to suffer the indignity of coming too?’

Hastily removing any further sign of emotion from his face, Clanachan said that if that was where I was going, he thought he had better keep an eye on me ‘among that lot,’ and ‘anyway, sorr, it’s not the brigade we’ll be leaving.’...."

And after the battle at Sinagoga on 16th May 1944:

"...As we came back in to the cover of our shattered village, I found Clanachan waiting for me in the darkness. He was sitting solemnly in my jeep and prominent in the back of it was a jorum of run, sent up by Rodney or our devoted quartermaster.

Both of them had quick intuition for the essentials – and very necessary too as the black aftermath of battle descended on those who had survived it...."

best

 

Joe

Thanks for that, we are fortunate in having someone of your rank to make a case for batmen in general although I would query the definition of "servant".

I may have been a bit harsh in my description of how batmen were considered by their fellow rankers but this remains my abiding memory.

Having said that, I have a strong memory of the time I spent at RHQ with my Ack Ack Regt and the diminutive CO's batman named Foxley who delighted us with his waspish sense of humour and undisputed loyalty to the CO.

Best regards

Ron

 

Known in my time as 'orderly'any officer and the sergeant major could employ one and indeed employ it was - any duties performed out of the battalion daily routine or as extra duties had too be paid for out of the officers pocket - When you see the sergeant majors room - with tunics, No 1 dress, no 2 dress x 2 - buff equipment sword and plenty more,officers also had blue jumper and more. Two gun Rex became the
orderly of Lt DRH, one day Rex got a message about illness in the family - gave him the keys to his car and off he went returning a couple of days later. The working day over - an amusing incident which had an audience - Mr DRH doing his Basil Fawlty impression with liberal use of language barrack room - on his way to RHQ his car dead on the square Chelsea Barracks - he was after Rex's blood he had left the car running on fumes! They must have got on well he did not sack Rex.

 

My father mentioned his batman and others in glowing terms in the Burma theatre...they helped him find his feet when he first joined the Lancashire fusiliers in Op Thursday.

 

My (very old) dictionary defines batman as;

One in charge of a bathorse; an officer's attendant (French, bat, pack-saddle)

And a bathorse as;

A pack horse carrying an officer's baggage

Gary

 

We all had Indian batmen when I was in the middle east in 1966.They cleaned the room,made and changed the bed,
supplied fresh drinking water,and cleaned our footwear, and took our dirty washing to the local dhobi for
washing and pressing.

 

Gary, even your 'very old' dictionary confuses the issue. A gentleman's kit was broken down into two types - immediate and relatively easily transported- 'bat', and not so urgent, heavier, stuff - 'baggage'. Hence a mule load close to hand and a needing wagon space in the baggage train.

Does anyone else remember the phrase "with all his bat and baggage"?

Keith

 

In few days ago ,while researching some unrelated material,I came across a report that the Duke of Kent, while serving in the army had been allocated a valet...not sure if this was a batman but probably not as there was objections recorded against the appointment.

It may have been that the Duke had both a batman and a valet.

Cannot remember where I found the report but as regards his army service,it must have been about 55 years ago

 

I was once assigned as a Batman (50's) to cover for guy on leave.
When I cut up rough saying it was a volunteer's job,The CSM quoted Queens Regs to me in no uncertain terms.

A soldier could be ordered to be a batman for 14 days after which he could asked to be taken off.

Ref #13
Military Aides to Royalty .are admitted to the VO.(Victorian Order) at the end of their tour.
but that's not the usual.

 

Done it myself when an officers batman was on leave Redtop!

 

Hi Bob
I am sure he was glad to see the back of me after 2 weeks.
I managed to scorch his best BD and ruined his brogues by using the wrong polish (Ox blood I Think)
I was not the cheery chappy depicted in the films when I took him his morning cup of tea in bed.
And he never knew what I did to his flannel and toothbrush.

 

I always understood the ploy was to put salt in the officer's early morning cuppa. The first morning you get a ticking off; the second time you do it you get the sack!

P.S. : It never happened to me, thanks Andy. However, my first Batman when I was a one 'pipper' and just posted to a Holding Battalion, presumably en route to the Far East, who looked after a number of Second-Lieutenants, I was amazed the first time he folded my socks ready for the morning so that all I had to do was to stick my toes in and pull them up! When I was first married and told my wife, who had been a Nursing Sister in 1950, about this admirable practice, you can imagine the unrepeatable reply . . .

Joe Brown

 

After an O group on the prairie in Alberta arrived back at the vehicles where the KKs orderly had lined up mess tins with chicken supreme and rice - now the KKs orderly was not impressed with a lieutenant later to become for a time a political party leader - as I reached for a mess tin - the orderly said not that one that is for XXX - best not ask why! They had a bit of a spat some days before when the said officer asked the orderly to 'make me some scoff' - whose rations sir? He was not on the HQ vehicle rations at the time - oh just get on with it, the orderly opened a tin of peas possessed and offered them with a lecture on 'other mens rations, sir'. The irony of it all the lieutenant ended up as a generals bag carrier.

 

We had a 'batty' whilst going through flying training in the very late 80s. It was a civvie job by then and not one each either. Woke us up with a cup of tea in the morning and cleaned up our rooms. In Cyprus, a couple of years later, a locally employed civilian did the same job; and would wash and iron your kit for a few quid a week as well.

Roxy

 

My grandfather (2/LT - Capt 254 / 81st HAA and later SOIII AML / AMG / UNRA) had a batman by the name of Peter Waring who my dad recalls visiting on occasion postwar, at what point I don't know and sadly I know nothing else about him.

 

We certainly had batmen in our infantry unit back in the fifties, mainly national servicemen. The junior officers shared a small pool of lads who looked after them and Captains and above had their own individual batmen. I believe they received an increment above their pay called "staff pay." The CO's batman I recall was an amiable and well educated lad who told us on the quiet he was in an invidious position when his lord and master, who liked a drink in the evening, started picking on his wife when in his cups. He was worried as to what would be his position if he tried to intercede between them to calm matters down. I don't think in peacetime there were the loyalties that could be engendered between officer and batman under active service conditions. Recalling the night I was detailed to wash up in the Officers Mess on a Dining In night, I was horrifed when the mess steward spat into the Colonel's dinner before replacing a handsome silver tureen over his plate. "Have that on me you old sod!" he averred; winked at me and said "For every little slight, we get our own back in a hundred different ways!" A job, duriing my service, I would have hated although a pal of mine with whom I later worked in civilian employment, had been batman to a General and dwelt in his married quarter and lived off the fat of the land with first names all around when in private.

 

This was written by Lt EJ Haywood, Worcestershire Rgmt, in 1946. http://www.worcestershireregiment.com/wr.php?main=inc/h_dunkirk_haywood

Before we left Wez Velvain, my batman, Joe Cook, turned up. He and several other men had slowly made their way to us from some Base Camp in France. Since, like most English soldiers, their knowledge of French was limited to �a few words of love and abuse,� it was a stout effort on their part.
Now, I do not care one little hoot what other English-speaking armies have to say on the subject of our system of batmen, or soldier-servants. In our regiments there is never any shortage of volunteers for the job. To call the typical rough-and-tough British Army batman a menial is a quick and certain way of asking for a thick ear. Officers and their soldier-servants have a high regard for each other. If an Officer finds difficulty in finding a good batman, then there is something wrong, not with the system, but with the Officer. While the Officer is looking after the welfare of the men he commands, the batman is taking care of the Officer. When it comes to fighting the two are always near each other. In short, they share everything�good and bad alike.
I was overjoyed to see Joe Cook, but I wished him in a safer place, all the same. I said, �Holy smoke, Cook, I thought you were miles away. How did you get here?� Joe grinned all over his face and replied, �Me and some chaps kept getting put in these here different camps, and we kept telling them we had to get back to the Brigade or we�d get into a row. We done a bit of hitch-hiking, and got to Division Headquarters. Then we got on a ration truck with no rations in it, and got a lift here. Not a lucid explanation, but I thought it perhaps better to ask no more questions. I went on, �Well, it�s good to see you, but where�s your steel helmet?� Joe�s face dropped and he said, �Well, we had to leave one place in a bit of a hurry, and I left my helmet and pack behind.� Again I thought it best to ask no questions! I said, �We�ve had men killed. If you look around, you�ll soon find another pack and a battle bowler.� Joe still looked awkward and replied, � I don�t like to do that, sir.� Then, to become master of the situation, he looked me over with a professional eye and said, �You could do with a bit of a clean up.� It was true enough. I explained, �I�ve been looking after myself while you�ve been away.� Joe snorted, �You never was much good at that, sir� �and I was completely silenced.

 

No greater love has an officer for his batman.


15 May 1940: Captain Leah’s position was relatively quiet compared with that of the Durham Light Infantry where Second Lieutenant Richard Wallace Annand won the Victoria Cross: For most conspicuous gallantry on the 15th-16th May 1940, when the platoon under his command was on the south side of the River Dyle, astride a blown bridge. During the night a strong attack was beaten off, but about 11 a.m. the enemy again launched a violent attack and pushed forward a bridging party into the sunken bottom of the river. Second Lieutenant Annand attacked this party, but when ammunition ran out he went forward himself over open ground, with total disregard for enemy mortar and machine-gun fire. Reaching the top of the bridge, he drove out the party below, inflicting over twenty casualties with hand grenades. Having been wounded he rejoined his platoon, had his wound dressed, and then carried on in command. During the evening another attack was launched and again Second Lieutenant Annand went forward with hand grenades and inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy.

When the order to withdraw was received, he withdrew his platoon, but learning on the way back that his batman was wounded and had been left behind, he returned at once to the former position and brought him back in a wheelbarrow, before losing consciousness as the result of wounds.

- See more at: http://ww2today.com/15th-may-1940-the-bef-start-to-withdraw#sthash.6QPw05W3.dpuf

 

That was the official version in reality Annand ,weak from blood loss didn't have the strength to lift the wheelbarrow over a fallen log, leaving his batman behind he set off for help but on reaching safety he collapsed through the bloodloss unable to tell his rescuers where Pte Hunter was he was then evacuated. The Batman Pte Joe Hunter was captured and died as a PoW on June 17th 1940. Lots of people thought he had won the VC for this action but it was for his exploits at the Dyle not the attempted rescue. After the VC presentation the story of the Wheelbarrow rescue was told and Annand was reputed to have offered back the VC if this had been what it was awarded for,as he knew his attempt rescue had failed he was reassured that it was not for this action but his exploits on the bridge.Pte Hunters family were unaware that Joseph had died until notified in 1941.

Kyle