Treasurer - Mervyn Kluckow –
biography
 Attested into
the Staff Corp in 1957 having completed
my 4.5 months at Llewellyn Barracks my
regimental No was 1226.
Started 6
months Drill,Weapons and Tac course at
S.Inf Gwelo. The first course to be run
at the school after the move from KG V1
barracks. We were accommodated in tents
for the full 6 months of the course.
Some of my fellow students whom you may
know were John Mcvey, Muk Micklesfield,
Gypo Biddle. RSM was Willy De Beer,
Regimental Wing CSM Ron Reid-Daly later
to become RSM RLI and later commissioned
as Training Officer RLI
Was
posted to Llewellyn Barracks as an
Instructer. Spent 1 year there with some
of my Course mates and met up with
others whom you may remember. Bob Bouch
and Len Momson who were PT instr and
Robin Tar who later became RSM RLI. I
was then posted to 1RRR drill hall in
Salisbury as PSI C Company very bored
mostly Admin work.. Spent 1year there
and was then posted back to Llewellyn
where I Completed my contract and left
the army.
From 1960 to 1963 spent
three years cavorting around the world.
- 1 year in the far East.
- 1 year in the USA
- 1 year in Europe& England
- 1 year in Africa including getting to the
Masai Mara and seeing the greatest
natural Spectacle on earth "The Great
Migration" what experience
01/05/1964 rejoined and attested into
the RLI posted to 1 Cdo as a Troopie
third year for pay purposes. OC at the
time Maj Bruce Campling. CSM Vince King.
CO of Battalion Maj GP Walls 2i/c Maj
Jack Cain, Adjutant Capt Dave Parker.
RSM Ron Reid-Daly.
1965 just
after the last Battalion camp I think
which was held at Salisbury South very
close to Salisbury South Golf Club. I
was called in by the CO and told that I
had been selected to attend a 13 week
Vickers Machine Gun Instructors Course
at S. Inf . Suffice it to say I was not
happy about this development as I had
rejoined to Soldier and I told GP WALLS
this as the old proverbial RED light was
already blinking and had a very good
idea as to what was coming having read
extensively on the Mau Mau debacle in
Kenya. However his exact words were if
you come top on the course I will
guarantee you will come back to the
Battalion.
So off I went not knowing
what was in the wind except change. To
cut along story short I went from I
instructors course to the next and was
spent the next year at S.inf.
Finally got back to 1 Cdo and was 2
troop Sgt. Just after the Viljoen
Murders at Hartley Where DennisKroaks
was as well and the subsequent follow up
ops which went on from the Zvimba
Reserve to well past Sinoya. We returned
to RLI Barracks only to be told that I
had been transferred into Base Group OC
Maj Chris Snyman now deceased To Join up
with Uncle Ron and Open up Training
Troop. Now I started to understand the
CO's thinking. It was obvious that the
decision for the Battalion to do its own
training had been in the making for a
long time and it would appear that Uncle
Ron & I had been part to that plan for
some time.
This outcome likewise
did not last for too long either. We had
just seen our first recruit course
through and had returned from Kariba
where the final COIN course had been
conducted when again I was summoned to
By the CO. and advised that The School
of Infantry have First Call on all
Instructors with B grading
qualifications and that I was to be
Posted to S.Inf Regimental Wing as an
Instructor. I was told No amount Winging
& Wining would help Army H.Q. decision.
1 July 1966 I arrived at S. Inf so
fast I had Skid marks on my face. To cut
a long story short I spent the next 7
years as an instructor at the school and
with GP Engela, Frank Turner And I apart
from Instructing on all the Courses we
also Re-wrote all the training pamphlets
and manuals after UDI. It had taken me 3
years & 8 months from Troopie to WO2 .
I was now in GP Walls words the
highest qualified Instructor in the
Rhodesian Army. (cool but that would not
help me in Civy Street.)
It was
in 1968 that Maj John Smitherman who was
then the Cheif Instructor CI at the
school had started doing a CIS(
Chartered Institute of Secretaries) and
talked me into doing it as well. In my
mind it was a good idea as I had no real
Civy street Qualification and again the
RED light was blinking. I shall always
be great to him as it has stood me in
good stead when moving into civy street.
Final year of my 10 year contract I
was again Posted back to Llewellyn
Barracks and left the Army 31 May 1974.
Took up a position in Belingwe as a
Secretary Accountant for a Group of 4
Companies. It was now that I was called
up with 6RRR as Mortar Platoon Commander
6 weeks 6 weeks out continuous until my
last call up December 1980.
After
that purchased a Hotel and opened an
accounting practice which kept me busy
until immigrating to SA. Went into my
own Real Estate business in 1992 and
still serving Sir. Some of the dates
will not be 100% accurate as memory is
starting to fade a little but close
enough
Kind regards,
Mervyn Kluckow
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