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Robert Eric Hill was my father.
Robert E. Hill lived from 1917 to 2002. During that time he saw lots of change and visited many places.
When he died I found his war diary and various jottings which I have edited into this site.
I did not know my father that well – my parents divorced when I was young. In fact, I once worked out that the total time I spent with him after I was 7 (1959) until he died (2002) was less than 2 years, though, thankfully, we became much closer in his later years, albeit arguing and fighting royally from time to time. However, in the last 10 years of his life I did learn more about him and his life – including the fact that he had a brother – even my mother did not know this until it came to light in about 1996!
So when I became the executor of his will and had to go through much that he had it was a bit like having the answer to the question “what did you do in the war Dad” answered. He rarely talked about it and only twice discussed the Lancastria with me – he found that very hard and basically never swam again in his life after that experience.
This is not a biography but snapshots of his life. As you will learn if you get in to it he was fond of cars; I think they gave him a hobby in all the years he was alone after he and my mother divorced. In fact they remarried in 1999 after my stepfather died – it was my Dad’s way of making sure my mother would have his pension when he went and that has been a godsend to her. Enjoy his story.