Discipline in WW2

[Norm Cromie (RIP)]

Carman:
When you realize the great number of servicemen that were involved in peace and wartime responsibilities, discipline was very important as a way of dealing with those that disrupted the success of any military unit and their operations, among them were the good and the bad. They could be very mild or very extreme.
When we were engaged with the battle for Ortona there was an old castle on the outskirts of Ortona that I believe was to deal with mainly the more serious military crimes. It was run by a sadistic Major of the Royal Twenty Second and one of his punishments was having the inmates dig holes 6x6x6 and then fill them in and this was when the prison was at times under fire by the German artillery. I believe there were a number of casualties and so it had to be abandoned. I would ask you to remember this happened over 60 years ago and my memory is not as exact as it should be.
All punishment comes under a book called the Kings rules and regulations but individual military authorities administrated it often times with their own personal interpretations. One of the worst forms I received for coming off leave one day late was seven days forced drill. Each day after evening mess I was made to load up all my web including my big pack and my small pack and my heavy great coat and then under an NCO made to march on the double for two hours with 10 minute interval breaks each hour. I later learned that this type of punishment was abandoned, as a number of soldiers collapsed who could not tolerate this punishment during warm weather. The one thing every soldier must avoid when being confronted for punishment, never listen to the barrack room lawyers regarding the KR&R I can tell you as a young stupid private I was no match for a number of these war experienced officers. They simply applied their own rules according to their mental outlook at the moment.
I remember stories from my uncles who served in WW1 that there were incidents in which deserters were tied to the wheels of artillery pieces during the firing of these weapons in which their guts were turned to jelly. But, in those days there was no forgiveness for those who could not control their emotions and their personal mental strengths.