Baird, James Douglas: my Army recollections (June 17 - July 18, 1980)
Interviewee: Baird, James Douglas, 1907-1990
ABSTRACT: Lieut. Col. James Douglas Baird, D.S.O. Royal Canadian Artillery Baird_J_0003_01.mp3 (Side 1) Born on June 28, 1907 in Red Deer, Alta. where he received a high school education (d. June 12, 1990, Victoria, B.C.). Initially served with the 61st Field Battery, Royal Canadian Artillery (R.C.A) (militia) in Edmonton. In Sept. 1939 he joined the 91st Field Battery in Calgary where the conditions were inadequate and the equipment was old and insufficient. In late 1940 he was commissioned in the 6th Field Regiment, R.C.A. where he had been serving as a non-commissioned officer. Transferred to the newly formed 17th Field Regiment, R.C.A. where intensive training was undertaken at Petawawa. They proceeded overseas in Dec. 1941 to unsuitable barracks at Aldershot, England. Anti-invasion duty at Hove. Inadequacies of Exercise Spartan and general training are described. (15:00) Promoted to major in 1943 and joined the 13th Field Regiment, R.C.A., eventually becoming second-in-command. In the training for D-Day the early lack of success with towed twenty-five-pounder equipment firing from landing craft was a source of concern, and, although fairly effective results were finally obtained, much more accurate fire was achieved with self-propelled 105-mm. guns (Priests). The Sherman tank chassis provided a more solid gun platform. (23:00) New fire-control instruments had to be developed. Baird was fire-control officer in a specially fitted motor launch on D-Day. By noon of that day they were several hundred yards inland, but with an arc of fire of 340 degrees the situation was critical. By July 30, 1944 the regiment had been in action for fifty-five days and was refitted at Bayeux with twenty five-pounder towed equipment. The Priests were converted to armoured personnel carriers (Kangaroos). He returns to a discussion of fire-support at D-Day landing, (45:00) Baird_J_0003_02.mp3 including rocket attacks by Typhoons. States opinion of the effectiveness of the 105-mm. gun compared to the twenty-five pounder in the anti-tank role and comments on the German 88-mm., "the finest gun ever made". Called "Back Slope Baird" because of his insistence that all movements across country should be done between the contour lines on the map. He found French maps quite unreliable with contiguous maps drawn on a different grid. He proposed a simple method of correction which was eventually adopted by the artillery. (13:00) Gives examples of ammunition expenditure and Mike and Uncle targets. The 3rd Canadian Division was accidentally bombed by the United States Air Force and the Royal Canadian Air Force during the operation against Falaise. (40:00) Discusses action during Operations Totalize and Tractable. Feels that the lack of experience of the 2nd Canadian Division and of training of the 4th Canadian Armoured Division were partly responsible for the failure to close the gap at Falaise sooner. Baird_J_0003_03.mp3 (Side 2) The attacks on Boulogne and Calais are described. By careful use of land contours the regiment was able to bring fire on the latter city: an important factor in the surrender. Awarded the Distinguished Service Order. (07:00) In Belgium fifth columnists correcting German artillery fire from an old telephone exchange were discovered, taken out and shot by members of the regiment. Describes the extremely wet conditions in Breskens Pocket and at Walcheren Island. Very effective German artillery fire in the Hochwald. Dutch civilians very helpful, however in Normandy civilians not as trustworthy. (29:00) Baird_J_0003_04.mp3 After the German surrender one had to be constantly on guard as many weapons were in civilian hands. Hitler Youth troops very cocky and required some control; S.S. Panzer troops, on the other hand, "were terrific soldiers". General comments on Canadians stationed in Holland. (45:00) Accounting for stores and surplus ammunition. Demobilized Feb. 1946. Baird joined the R.C.A. militia in Victoria in 1947 and retired in 1951. Comments on officer training: it is advantageous to come up through the ranks as long as this is accomplished in a reasonable period of time. Unification had a poor effect on the armed forces. It promoted a lack of esprit de corps which could result in reduced effectiveness in action. (12:00)
Rank: Lieutenant-Colonel. Medals and Honours: Distinguished Service Order (DSO)
An interview/narrative of James Douglas Baird's experiences during World War II. Lieutenant-Colonel Baird, D.S.O. served with the Royal Canadian Artillery. Interview took place on June 17, 27 and July 18, 1980.
Interviewer: Thackray, William S.
- In Collection:
- World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, Canadian
- Falaise Gap, Battle of, France, 1944
- World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--France --Maps
- Baird, James Douglas, 1907-1990--Interviews
- Military training camps--England--Aldershot
- Hawker airplanes
- Canada--Canadian Army--Field Regiment, 17th
- Hochwald Forest, Battle of, Germany, 1945
- Operation Infatuate, 1944
- Gunnery--Effectiveness
- Canada--Canadian Army Overseas--Maneuvers--Exercise Spartan
- Hitler Youth
- World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--France--Normandy
- World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Rhine River Valley
- Tank destroyers
- World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Scheldt River Estuary (Netherlands and Belgium)
- Canada--Canadian Army--Field Regiment, 13th
- Artillery, Self-propelled
- Canada--Canadian Army--Officers--Education
- Breskens Pocket, Battle of, Netherlands, 1944
- Operation Switchback, 1944
- Military occupation
- Walcheren Island, Battle of, Netherlands, 1944
- Priest (Self-propelled gun)
- Friendly fire (Military science)
- Fighter planes
- Canada--Canadian Army Overseas--Main Training Base (Aldershot, England)
- Amphibious warfare
- Canada--Canadian Army Overseas--Barracks and quarters
- Operation Totalize, 1944
- Military maneuvers
- D-Day, 1944 (Normandy invasion)
- Operation Tractable, 1944
- Operation Blockbuster, 1945
- Canada--Canadian Armed Forces--Organization
- World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--France--Calais--1944
- Canada--Canadian Army--Drill and tactics
- Fire control (Gunnery)
- Typhoon (Fighter plane)
- World War, 1939-1945--Amphibious operations
- Canada--Canadian Army--Field Battery, 91st
- Calais, Battle of, Calais, France, 1944
- Distinguished Service Order (Great Britain)
- Canada--Canadian Army--Field Battery, 61st
- Canada--Canadian Army--Royal Canadian Artillery
- Kangaroo (Armoured personnel carrier)
- World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Scheldt River
- Canada--Canadian Army--Field Regiment, 6th
- Boulogne, Battle of, Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, 1944
- 4 sound recordings (MP3)
- 49, 0
- 54.75844, -2.69531
- 60.10867, -113.64258
- One original sound tape reel (ca. 150 min.) : 1 7/8 ips, 2 track, mono. ; 2 sound cassette copies : standard, mono. in Special Collections.
- Canadian Military Oral History Collection
- BJD_003
- Special Collections Finding Aid: https://uvic2.coppul.archivematica.org/reginald-herbert-roy-fonds
- April 13, 2007
- Digital sound recording in .wav format at 16 bits and 22 kHz. In .mp3 format at 64 kbps and 22 kHz. Digitized by JW, technical and cataloguing metadata provided by JF and JP. Transferred from audio reel to audio cassette between 1987-1997. Interview migrated to digital format for UVic Special Collections in 2007. Migration metadata by KD and MT.
- Rights
- This interview has been posted with the understanding that it may be used for research purposes only. Should the interviewee or their heirs have any objections to this interview being accessible on the Internet, it will be removed promptly. Contact UVic Special Collections for permission if using for other than research purposes: speccoll@uvic.ca
- DOI
| Thumbnail | Title | Date Uploaded | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|
|
SC141_MilitaryOralHistory_GenericThumbnail |
|
|
|
Baird_J_0003_01.mp3 |
|
|
|
|
Baird_J_0003_02.mp3 |
|
|
|
|
Baird_J_0003_03.mp3 |
|
|
|
|
Baird_J_0003_04.mp3 |
|