Where did the World War II evacuees go?
After Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939, Britain moved children out of cities likely to be hit by the Luftwaffe. So, where did the evacuees go in WWII?
Image: Five young evacuees speak with a nurse in North Devon | Public Domain
World War II massively upended British society – but it wasn’t entirely unforeseen change. In late 1939, the UK government launched Operation Pied Piper. This scheme intended to evacuate especially vulnerable people out of cities expected to be hit hard by enemy bombing.
These individuals included the pregnant and infirm, but especially children. With the new Sky HISTORY series World War II with Tom Hanks on the way, we ask: ‘Where did the evacuees go in World War II?’
What was Operation Pied Piper?
Britain and France declared war on Nazi Germany on 3rd September 1939, opening up the European theatre of World War II. At the time, traumatic memories of the First World War still reverberated.
This earlier conflict had seen proportionately large numbers of women and children killed in air raids. In 1938, Sir John Anderson headed a committee proposing that select urban groups be evacuated to rural areas in the event of a new European war reaching Britain.
It was thought that these leafy backwaters would serve as relatively safe harbours for children in wartime. Conversely, cities were heavily populated by workers in war-related industries, like munitions manufacturing. These areas were deemed much more likely to be attacked by German bombers.
How did Operation Pied Piper work?
Operation Pied Piper got underway on 1st September 1939, the same day that Nazi Germany invaded Poland. Children between the ages of 5 and 14 were sent to live with foster carers at a safe distance from the projected bombing. (Children under the age of 5 were also evacuated, but with their mothers.)
These foster carers would look after the kids until the latter were able to safely return to their prewar lives. In most instances, evacuation was voluntary, not compulsory. Nonetheless, within just three days, about 1.5 million civilians had been evacuated.
Where did the evacuees go in World War II?
London was the most obvious choice of urban area to empty. However, contrary to popular memory, other bustling conurbations across the country saw similar treatment. Examples include Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Tyneside and Greater Glasgow.
So, exactly where did the evacuees go in World War II? Generally, if an area was predominantly rural and sparsely populated, evacuees would be welcomed there. Such places were plentiful in the likes of Wales, Scotland, Devon and Cornwall.
How were the children welcomed at their new homes?
Sadly, not always warmly. Some were lucky enough to be able to stay with friends or relatives in the country. Otherwise, they would have to wait to be chosen by foster families willing to take them in.
This wait could be distressingly lengthy for those kids perceived as undesirable. Some evacuees moved onto farms where they would help out with the agricultural work. Others found themselves at spacious country homes owned by families much more affluent than their own.
Did some child evacuees go abroad, too?
Yes, but not as many as the UK government initially expected. In 1940, the Children’s Overseas Reception Board (CORB) enabled parents to send their offspring to Canada, Australia or New Zealand.
More than 2,000 children were sent overseas under this scheme before tragic circumstances led the government to pull the plug in October. The month prior, the SS City of Benares had been carrying 99 children across the Atlantic when the ship was torpedoed by a German U-boat. 77 of the child passengers died in the disaster.
How did child evacuees keep in touch with their parents?
It wasn’t unusual for the children to write letters to their parents or even occasionally meet up with them in person. Sometimes, the parents would do the travelling, paying visits to the foster homes. Other times, they would bring their little ones back home with them, especially for special occasions like Christmas.
After the first wave of evacuations in September 1939, civilians waited with bated breath for the anticipated barrage of German bombing. The wait surprisingly lasted for months – a period that came to be dismissively branded the ‘Phoney War’.
Complacency soon set in, with evacuees in the hundreds of thousands returning home by January 1940. When the Blitz struck the following summer, many were sent away again.
The return to normality…or not
When the war ended in 1945, where did the evacuees go? World War II had left many affectionately attached to their supposedly temporary homes. Consequently, not all embraced going back to the prewar status quo.
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