World War Two: Bomb manual for Churchill's 'secret army'

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-24627957

World War Two: Bomb manual for Churchill's 'secret army'

They were Winston Churchill's "secret army", tasked with causing havoc behind enemy lines had the Nazis invaded during World War II. But keeping the identities of the Auxiliary Unit members a secret was crucial to their survival. One of the ways was by hiding bomb-making manuals in plain sight, disguised as old calendars and diaries.

Its cover promises agricultural fertilisers that "do their stuff unseen until you see results".

But turn the page and a comprehensive guide on where to plant explosives and how to make your own bombs is revealed.

The Countryman's Diary 1939 is one of two manuals being auctioned later which shed light on the training and abilities of the guerrilla units.

Sponsored by Highworth's Fertilisers - a fictional company named after the Wiltshire village near where the units trained - the diary gives advice on how to set booby traps and kill German troops using household items.

It was owned by Louis Pugh who commanded a unit in Tenterden, Kent.

The units were formed in 1940 following the Dunkirk evacuation when Churchill became convinced that invasion was imminent.

The cells, recruited mainly from men of the Home Guard, were trained to operate independently and sabotage German supply lines as they invaded.

The trained killers - who would have become the British resistance movement - were also expected to carry out assassinations.

As the owner of a chemical factory, Pugh was deemed suitable to lead a unit that would specialise in using explosives.

After training in Wiltshire, he recruited his unit from trusted local men, built a base at Gibbets Oak Farm and stocked it with weaponry.

(continued, subversive article this?)