"My fiancé, Morgan Davies was serving in the RAF in 76 Squadron, Bomber Command. We had had to postpone our wedding, which had been expected to take place in the spring of 1944, because all leave from the Forces had been cancelled in preparation for the D-Day landings.
"We rearranged it for the Monday morning of 25 September 1944, as Morgan had been granted five days' leave and I had managed to get five days leave from my teaching post.
"Morgan was given a lift down to Fairwood Aerodrome from his base at Holme-on-Spalding Moor in Yorkshire on Sunday 24th September and at 11a.m. on Monday 25th September, we were married at All Saints' Church, Mumbles, by the Rev. D.G. Wilkinson.
"I carried a bouquet of cerise carnations, wore a wedding dress of gold brocade, with a short train, a matching gold-trimmed veil and an orange blossom head-dress.
"The wedding outfit was not new, as valuable clothing coupons could not be spared. It had been bought from a very sweet deaf girl and it fitted beautifully. Thus there were enough coupons to buy a new going-away outfit-14 coupons for a jumper suit and 18 for a full length coat.
"After the wedding ceremony, we were taken by taxi to the Swansea High Street studio of Mr. Chapman, where our wedding photograph was taken.
"The wedding reception was held at the Osbourne Hotel, Langland, but the number of guests was restricted owing to wartime food rationing. Food points had been collected by family and relatives in order to obtain enough ingredients for a one-tier wedding cake, which had been made by the Chef of the Mackworth Hotel in Swansea, where my Aunt worked.
"After the wedding reception, there being no petrol available for private journeys, we travelled by bus to Brecon, where we spent a very short honeymoon at the Wellington Hotel in very peaceful surroundings 'far from the madding crowd!' When we left, the Proprietor gave us half a dozen fresh eggs as a wedding present.
"On Friday 29th September, amidst a bustle of soldiers and sailors all coming and going, I saw him off from Victoria Station in Swansea, as he had to return to his unit."
Click on the links below for more Mumbles wartime stories
The Ambulanceman
The Barrage Balloon Lands
Mumbles Hill On Fire
A Wartime Vicar
your comments
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Richard Bowen
I was in Newton School - in Edna's class - at the time. We could not understand why Miss Rees, the Headmistress, told us that we must now call Miss Harris, Mrs Davies. Fair broke the boys' hearts when we realised!
Tue May 6 09:09:41 2008
Annie, Pembrokeshire
So sweet that everyone chipped in their points for a wedding cake!
Mon Apr 21 11:19:07 2008
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