Underground

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21.10.40 [George Orwell]

October 21, 2010 in Margesson, Political, Priestley, Underground, War-time by orwelldiaries

With reference to the advertisements in the Tube stations, “Be a Man” etc. (asking able-bodied men not to shelter there but to leave the space for women and children), D. [1] says the joke going around London is that it was a mistake to print those notices in English.

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17.6.40 [George Orwell]

June 17, 2010 in Canada, Canada House, Gwen O’Shaughnessy, Paris, Political, Scottish private, Underground, War-time, evacuation, french, german, medals, navy, newspapers, patriotism, review, surrender by orwelldiaries

The French have surrendered. This could be foreseen from last night’s broadcast and in fact should have been foreseeable when they failed to defend Paris, the one place where it might have been possible to stop the German tanks. Strategically all turns on the French fleet, of which there is no news yet…

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14.6.40 [George Orwell]

June 14, 2010 in British government, Franco, French Morocco, Germans, Hitler, Italians, Negrin, Paris, Political, Spanish, Spanish Morocco, Tangier, Underground, Versailles, War-time, advertising by orwelldiaries

The Germans are definitely in Paris, one day ahead of schedule. It can be taken as a certainty that Hitler will go to Versailles. Why don’t they mine it and blow it up while he is there? Spanish troops have occupied Tangier, obviously with a view to letting the Italians use it as a base. To conquer Spanish Morocco from French Morocco would probably be easy at this date, and to do so, ditto the other Spanish colonies, and set up Negrin or someone of his kind as an alternative government, would be a severe blow at Franco. But even the present British government would never think of doing such a thing. One has almost lost the power of imagining that the Allied governments can ever take the initiative.

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