Jim Hargreaves

This week I received a phone call from an old Goldonian, a very interesting man who told me stories of his time spent at
Goldings. JIM HARGREAVES was one of three brothers all who attended Goldings in the 30s, and all three were
members of Mount Steven House.
Jim’s years at Goldings started April 1934 (prior BGC early 1930) he was the youngest of the three brothers,
Arthur was the eldest and then Arnold.
All three were in the same trade, Printing. Jim was in Comp print. Arnold worked with Print machines, and Arthur was
print lino op. Jim admits he would have liked to have been a carpenter / Joiner, but his eldest brother Arthur uttered
these few words of wisdom “If you go into the building trade in the Winter months you’ll struggle for work” with that
he also joined the Print Shop along with his two other brothers.
All three were members of the gym squad under the watchful eye of Joe Patch. And if you have a copy of the video / DVD
the three brothers are seen on one of the 30s films performing Gymnastics, Jim told me Arnold is first through the hoop.
After they left Goldings they all were in the forces Jim was in the R. A. for about six years, and travelled to many
different countries. Italy , Africa, and a short time with Tito’s Partisans in Yugoslavia. Jim was in the 5th army on the
other side of Rommel (Africa). Arthur was in the 8th Army, and second front. Arnold who went to Watts before going to
Goldings, was in the Royal Navy; His ship was the HMS Bulldog .
I could tell from how Jim spoke he was very proud of his 2 older brothers and their achievements, and so he told me of his
brother Arnold, and the part he played in the capture of the German Enigma Machine.
Headed by Sub-lieutenant David Balme in 39/45, Arnold was part of the boarding party with seven others, who boarded
and took over the German submarine (U-110) later to be found carrying the Famous Decoding Inigma Machine.
about which later two films were made (U K and Hollywood).

9 May, 1941

The German submarine U-110 was captured on 9 May 1941 in
the North Atlantic south of Iceland by the British destroyers
HMS Bulldog and HMS Broadway and the British corvette
HMS Aubretia. The U-boat was allowed to sink the day after to
preserve the secret capture. 15 dead 32 survivers
HMS Bulldog was responsible for the capture of U-110, her
Sub Lt David Balme finding the Enigma code machine ciphers
and codebooks. U-110 was taken on tow and Bulldog kept her
afloat for 17 hours then let the towline slip. The intention was to
tow U-110 into Iceland but Admiralty realised this would have
been a massive error of judgement. In the event, allegedly, U-110
resolved the matter herself by sinking.

HMS BULLDOG

In May of 1941, Commander Baker-Creswell was in command of the Royal Navy Destroyer HMS Bulldog. At that time,
the Germans had a coding machine called Enigma, which they believed allowed their naval ships to send and receive
messages from the Naval Command, that could not be broken by the British or their Allies. In particular, Admiral Donitz
used this machine to orchestrate the movements and attacks of his U-Boat Fleet in the Battle of the Atlantic. Bulldog was
attacking a U-Boat contact, suddenly, and unexpectedly U-110 surfaced, the immediate reaction of any Escort Captain is
to go full ahead and ram. Baker-Cresswell, in a split second decision, stopped his Destroyer from ramming this U-Boat,
and most likely sinking her. On his bridge, he recalled in his mind attending a Staff College lecture about the capture of
ciphers in 1914, from a stricken German Naval vessel. He quickly realised his opportunity to emulate this feat, and
ordered the launching of a boarding party from his ship under the command of Sub Lieutenant David Balme. On board
U-110, scuttling charges that were set, did not operate, and the British Sailors quickly located and collected Enigma, and
it’s essential accessories.
The First Sea Lord delighted
Admiral Sir Dudley Pound as First Sea Lord at the Admiralty was delighted with this coup. He signalled
"His Congratulations," and added " The petals of your flower are of rare beauty." rather cleverly acknowledging the
importance of this capture, and not disclosing its identity. Bulldog's Commanding Officer was awarded a Distinguished
Service Order, and at the investiture, King George V1 told him, your action is " The most significant event of the War at
Sea." For many years this story remained a tightly held secret - the Official Historian did not learn about it until 1957,
and the total story only saw the light of day, when, in 1997, Peter Padfield published his book " War Beneath the Sea.
"Joe Baker-Cresswell made it to Captain, Royal Navy, and retired in 1957, and lived to be 96, when he died in May of
1997. His quick thinking changed the course of "The Battle of the Atlantic." in particular, and "The War at Sea." In
general.

Introduction

The German Enigma machine was the basic unit around which the German codes were built. This electro mechanical
machine was fitted with three wheels or rotors, inserted into a steel cylinder. Each letter to be used within the coded
message had 150 trillion possible substitutions. The German High Command believed this machine rendered their secret
codes unbreakable. The British decrypters at Bletchley Park, just outside London, had not been able to crack the coded
messages produced by the Enigma Machine. At its peak, 10,000 people were involved at the Government Code and
Cipher School. Commander Baker-Cresswell achieved the ultimate prize: An Enigma Machine intact, with its Rotors
and Settings.