Commemorating VE Day at Squerryes

As the nation marks the 80^th anniversary of VE Day on 8^th May, we’ve been diving into the Squerryes archive to revisit the impact World War II had on the estate and the family that lived in Squerryes Court. Thanks to the memoirs of John Warde, father of current owner Henry Warde, we’re able to share this first-hand account with you. John Warde was a baby of 6 months old when war officially started, so a lot of his account is based on what his parents told him, his memories from the tender age of five, and what he learnt in the proceeding years.

At the outbreak of war, John’s father, also called John, having served in the First World War, re-joined the Kent Yeomanry as a Major and Battery Commander at Bromley. He was then sent out to France where he was promoted to Second in Command of the Regiment, and it was whilst he was away that his son John was born.

Back at home, the outbreak of the war changed everything. It was decided to evacuate children from London and a group were sent to live at Squerryes. They were met at Westerham Station and bought to the house in farm waggons all beautifully cleaned and decked out. John’s Mother and the house staff worked very hard looking after them but after a few weeks, the fear of living in London subsided and it was decided that the children could return home. When the blitz started with vengeance in the autumn though, it was decided that the children should be taken further away from London so Squerryes Court wasn’t an option. By then it had be requisitioned by the army anyway. As Major John Warde was a serving officer, the family were allowed to stay in the North East side of the house where they lived for most of the war.

A Royal Army Service Corps unit took up residence at Squerryes Court. On the ground floor, the rooms at the south-west end became an Officer’s Mess and the rooms on the first and second floors became dormitories for the troops. The stables were turned into workshops and two Nissen huts were erected next to the lake and under the lime trees for the troops messing arrangements. The forecourt in the front of the house was used as a parade ground and there was a sentry box by the front gate. In the back yard, the laundry buildings were converted into a washhouse with showers, with the old dairy being used for storage whilst a new concrete block building with a corrugated iron roof was erected to house the latrines. The troops had the run of the garden and used the path round the top for their morning runs and dug some slit trenches for shelter during air raids. A scrambling net was slung between two lime trees near the stables for a mini assault course too.

During this time, the family were self-sufficient thanks to the three-acre walled kitchen garden, half a mile to the west of the house, and milk, eggs and meat came from Home Farm. The kitchen garden was equipped with extensive greenhouses, cucumber frames, a large potting shed and an apple store for the fruit from the adjoining orchard. The garden was designed to produce enough fruit and vegetables to supply the main house all year round and was managed by Head Gardener, Walter Roe, and at team of three people. During the war, Walter gave lectures to the locals on how to grow vegetables and was an extremely skilled and respected man.

As Squerryes is near Biggin Hill, what was the RAF command station for the South East sector, John recalls their being terrific action and several bombs dropped around Westerham. At night, when the air raid siren would go off, John was taken down into the cellar with his sister for safety and on one occasion, after a German bomber was shot down in the park, the wreckage was bought into the back yard at Squerryes by the Army for examination.

John’s mother was also a key part of the local community during the war as she was a member of the ARP Warden (Air Raid Precautions). She used to ride her bicycle through Westerham bellowing ‘take cover’ and John says, the locals were said to be far more frightened of her than the German bombers as they ran for cover!

Towards the end of the war, when John had reached an age when he was able to remember events, he has memories of seeing the movement of troops along the A25 going from east to west. He recalls being fascinated watching the lorries towing guns and sometimes the armoured cars and large tank transporters that would rumble down the road. The troops stationed at the house continued to hold their parades on the forecourt and did their weapons training, whilst dispatch riders came and went on motorbikes delivering messages.

By the time VE Day arrived, John was five and a half years old and recalls being taken down into the town to see the celebrations.

‘We were in Westerham on the evening of VE Day and watched the torchlight procession from White Windows, a house overlooking the junction of the Croydon Road and the High Street. There was a party the following day at the Mess at Woolwich for the wives and children of the officers. We went by train and tram and I can remember arriving at the Mess to see every sort of iced cake and other luxury I had never seen before. I am afraid that I took a piece of each and left it on the side of my plate with one bite out. It was observed that my eyes were bigger than my tummy and on the way home I was given a talking to about greedy little boys and manners by my mother.’

So as the national marks VE Day, we were delighted to be part of the celebrations on Westerham Green on Bank Holiday Monday, meeting many local residents and seeing people enjoy a glass of Squerryes. John Warde Jr was instrumental in setting up the vineyard with his son, Henry, so it was a fitting full circle to be back in the heart of the community 80 years on.

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* © Historical photos courtesy of Westerham Heritage website, under licence (no changes made)

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