Leo Whisstock, National Secretary of the Royal Naval Patrol Service Association, tells the tale:
“The bird watching fraternity are now scratching their heads and thumbing through reference books and preparing their cameras for the chance of the picture of a lifetime. Rather than keep you in suspense any longer, the short answer is Lowestoft, North Lowestoft to be precise and the exact location is – I will wait for the groans – the Sparrows Nest Gardens.”
“To explain for those who have not worked it out yet, the Sparrows Nest Gardens was used during the Second World War from 1938 to 1946 as the Central Depot of the Royal Naval Patrol Service, HMS Europa, which was a unique branch of the Royal Navy set up specifically for minesweeping, anti-submarine work and patrol and convoy escort work around the world.”
“In total, there were about 66,000 men in the Patrol Service and at any one time there would have been about 2,000 in Lowestoft at the Nest. The Royal Navy has always been known for using nicknames. The men of the RN Patrol Service became known, because of the location in Sparrows Nest Gardens, as ‘Sparrows’ usually pronounced ‘Sparrers’ but they also got the name of ‘Churchill’s Pirates’ and ‘Harry Tate’s Navy’.”
“So that has explained the Sparrows, what about the wrens? Well, these were the Women’s Royal Naval Service (WRNS) but always referred to as ‘wrens’ and these did all the admin work at the base in the drafting office, the mail office, medical services, in fact any job that would free up men for active service. The sailors were keen to get friendly with the girls in the drafting office to try and get a good next draft and the expression was that the sailors were ‘up with the lark in the morning and out with a wren at night’.”
“So now we have the sparrows and the wrens but what about the kite? Well, when you visit our museum, which is in the original WWII-built Naval Base offices, you will see the kite outside by our mine. The kite is a piece of minesweeping equipment that holds the sweep cable at a depth and away from the ship.”
“So important was the Sparrows Nest during the war that the fascist Nazi propaganda broadcaster William Joyce, known as Lord Haw Haw, who broadcast from Germany, often referred to the ‘Sparrows in the Nest’ and ‘blowing the little birds out of the nest’ but they never did – and to this day veterans of the RN Patrol Service refer to themselves as ‘Sparrers’.”
Come along and visit us, we are open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 09.30 to 12.30 but can open at other times by mutual agreement.
Website: www.rnpsa.co.uk Email: hq@rnpsa.co.uk