WEAPONRY

'These men must have revolvers', scribbled Churchill on one of Gubbins' weekly reports, and so they were issued with these, usually .38 Smith and Wessons or .455 Webley Mk VI. Some Auxiliaries possessed or acquired German Mausers or Lugers, which were much prized if they accepted the 9mm Sten gun ammunition.

Other personal weapons were the Fairburn Commando dagger, which was worn just above the knee, attached to the battledress trousers by five khaki buttons engaging in buttonholed tags in the top and sides of the leather sheath, and a vicious assortment of personal rubber truncheons (issued) and coshes (home made). Many Auxiliaries also made their own,cheese-wires' for garrotting sentries. These consisted of a two-foot length of thin piano wire with a short broomstick handle at each end. Ingenuity did not stop there. it is known that some patrols in Kent experimented with bows and arrows for silent killing and to carry explosive or incendiary charges.

Auxiliary Units were given high priority in the provision of patrol weapons and explosive devices. They were provided with such items as Thompson sub-machine-guns, plastic explosive, and certain delay mechanisms, long before these became generally available to the Forces.

As well as the.45 Thompson, unit small arms included the Sten and a .22 BSA or Winchester sniping rifle with telescopic sights and silencer. These were intended to takeout sentries and guard dogs (and, possibly under operational conditions, collaborators and informers, although these intentions were unspoken).