Coastal defence - Walvis Bay. 1940

#1 · March 22, 2021, 11:45 am

7th. Heavy Battery, SAA.

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#2 · March 22, 2021, 2:26 pm

Quote from Steve on March 22, 2021, 2:26 pm
This is a lovely cover made wonderful by the purple 7th Heavy Battery cachet. A nice page display, also.

When I did my National Service in the South African Artillery in 1969 it was regarded as greatly unfortunate to be sent to Walvis Bay. It was surrounded by a sea of sand which made exercise, especially route marching, very difficult. A favourite punishment in the army was to be made to run up and down hills for no good reason. In Walvis, it was sand dunes. Fortunately I did not spend any time there but a good friend did. His accomodation was primtive, WW2 bell tents still being used in the mid-60s. You say the 6" guns are "field guns". I am not sure that they are. First, these are too "heavy" at 6" to be field guns which are typically lighter, like your 13 pdr (SAW), 18 pdr (WW1) and 25 pdr (WW2). These had wheels to allow them to be manouevered around the battlefield. Your cigarette card shows what are more likely naval 6" guns presumably mounted on a concrete raft, as on the deck of a ship. The Union Defence Force would have loved to have had such "field guns" with wheels up north had they been available to them. It wasn't until the UDF was issued with 5.5"s with an 80lb shell that it acquired a decent, moderm heavy artillery piece. Regarding sour figs, a succulant known to me and my friends since childhhod as "Hottentots Figs", these probably also helped to camouflage the gun positions which would have been obvious from out to sea when first built. The sour fig is a common feature of the southern African coast and was presumably no stranger to Walvis Bay's harsh environment. The downside of "Hottentot's Figs" is that the syrup of the fruit attracts insects which variously attract frogs, lizards and mice. These in turn attract snakes. I believe I have seen that card in the United Tobacco Company UDF Cigarette Card album. I have a nice set of 'South African Succulents' from the Westminster Tobacco Co. Ltd., Observatory.

This is a lovely cover made wonderful by the purple 7th Heavy Battery cachet. A nice page display, also.

When I did my National Service in the South African Artillery in 1969 it was regarded as greatly unfortunate to be sent to Walvis Bay. It was surrounded by a sea of sand which made exercise, especially route marching, very difficult. A favourite punishment in the army was to be made to run up and down hills for no good reason. In Walvis, it was sand dunes. Fortunately I did not spend any time there but a good friend did. His accomodation was primtive, WW2 bell tents still being used in the mid-60s. You say the 6" guns are "field guns". I am not sure that they are. First, these are too "heavy" at 6" to be field guns which are typically lighter, like your 13 pdr (SAW), 18 pdr (WW1) and 25 pdr (WW2). These had wheels to allow them to be manouevered around the battlefield. Your cigarette card shows what are more likely naval 6" guns presumably mounted on a concrete raft, as on the deck of a ship. The Union Defence Force would have loved to have had such "field guns" with wheels up north had they been available to them. It wasn't until the UDF was issued with 5.5"s with an 80lb shell that it acquired a decent, moderm heavy artillery piece. Regarding sour figs, a succulant known to me and my friends since childhhod as "Hottentots Figs", these probably also helped to camouflage the gun positions which would have been obvious from out to sea when first built. The sour fig is a common feature of the southern African coast and was presumably no stranger to Walvis Bay's harsh environment. The downside of "Hottentot's Figs" is that the syrup of the fruit attracts insects which variously attract frogs, lizards and mice. These in turn attract snakes. I believe I have seen that card in the United Tobacco Company UDF Cigarette Card album. I have a nice set of 'South African Succulents' from the Westminster Tobacco Co. Ltd., Observatory.

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#3 · March 22, 2021, 4:16 pm

Steve, The only thing I know about the S.A. Heavy guns is what I copied from this article, http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol123rt.html.

Having said that I did cater for the Vereeniging (Big Guns) boys and must be the only person ever to put an AA gun through my windscreen - barrel first! Also as a Capeeee do know the term Gocom? for sour figs? I am having trouble with the word.

Thanks for your interest.

#4 · March 23, 2021, 9:12 am

Here is an uncensored Robben Island 5th Heavy Battery cachet on stampless cover to accompany your 7th Heavy Battery from Walvis Bay above. It is from my nascent Robben Island and or Cape Corps display. It would be nice to show covers from all the coastal batteries of WW2 - Saldnaha Bay, Port Elizabeth. East London?

My crowned oval cachet stating 'Department of Defence / Official free Robben Island / 5th Heavy Battery, C.P.A.B.' is not as excellent as yours. Endorsed on "On Active Service", it is postmarked Robben Island '26 JUL 41' and addressed to Upper Pepper Street in Cape Town by a member of the Cape Corps, a gunner serving on Robben Island. As 'Upper Pepper Street' is above Buitengracht Street, it is located in Bo-Kaap, the area formerly known as the Malay Quarter which lies on the town-side slope of Signal Hill. The Noon Day gun is fired from Signal Hill which has a fine view of Robben Island whose heavy battery formed a key part of Table Bay's WW2 Defences.

Regarding the article, yes, it states both field and naval guns. But I will stick to my guns and maintain that the 6" guns of the 5th and 7th Batteries were naval in origin.

Regarding 'Gocom', this sounds a typical Khoi two syllable word. I recall that as boys some of my pals used it to describle the so-called 'Hottentot's Figs'. Sounds like 'gok kom' or bokkom, a sun and wind dried fish. Fish biltong.

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#5 · March 23, 2021, 11:13 am

Two seals for the price of one!

And when you have a spelling problem like I do your remark about the 6" guns sounds a 'little below the belt'!

#6 · March 23, 2021, 12:46 pm

Very punny regarding seals. (Useless info. Table Bay has Robben Island and False Bay has Seal Island - same thing, different language). But maybe the other comment about 6" guns is a probably bit too much for the average stiff philatelic society type.