Figure 1.--This photograph was not dated, but we have no doubt that it was taken during the first evacuation (September 1939). We can tell that by the fact that all of the children have their gas mask boxes, many of them clutching on to the boxes. You can also see the identity tags and destination, a sack lunch, and back packs.

The British believed that the Gernmans were going to use poison gas as part of their air attacks. The Germans had introduced poison gas in World War I and chemical weapons were one of the horrors of Trench warfare. An given Hitler's character there was no reason to believe that he would show any restraint in a new war. As a result, way before the outbreak of the War, the British began preparing for both an air attack and the use of poison gas. The British were not prepared for the Wat when it came. The one area in which they were prepared to some extent was in air defenses and poison gas. Every person in Britain including infants and children was issued a gas mask. School children were drilled on how to quickly put on and use the masks. When the War broke out people were rquired to take the masks with them at all times. People were fined for not having their gas masks with them. And we note that in the first evcuation, the children all had their masks (september 1939). There was only so much the children could carry and with gas mask boxes there was not much in the way of clothes that they could bring with them. Notably many were wearing their caps and hats. We still the masks during the second evacuation, but with somewhat less proprity (June-July 1940). And then with the third evacuations resulting from the German V-weapon onslaught, little attention was given to the masks.

Created: 10:41 PM 3/4/2019
Last updated: 10:41 PM 3/4/2019