Chapter 44 Summer Madness Saturday the 7th of September, it also

been the day on which the Joint Intelligence Committee advised the Chiefs of Staff that

an invasion was once again imminent. Hundreds of invasion barges were now stacked up the

other side of the channel, and numbers were increasing daily. They also had intelligence

on German troop movements, and had picked up the fact that von Richthoff and Stivebommers

had been moved near to the Paddakale. Four German spies had also been caught landing

from a rowing boat on the southeast coast, and they confessed that their job had been to

report troop movements of British reserve forces. Furthermore, the conditions of the

tide and moon not to say the weather were highly favourable between the 8th and 10th of

September. It all seemed to point heavily to one thing. With enemy bombers already over

London, the Chiefs of Staff accepted the JRC's advice, and at 5.20pm, issued an official

alert. The army was already at 8 hours notice, but General Brooks Chief of Staff, General

Bernard Paget, now gave the immediate action to all troops in eastern and southern commands,

and then at 8.07pm, Brook issued the signal Cromwell, the code word that warned all troops

to go at once to their invasion battle stations. Although only a warning, however, the Cromwell

signal was issued to all home guard commanders, many of whom interpreted it to mean the invasion

was already happening. Across countless towns and villages, church bells were rung, calling

the home guard to arms. In no time, reports were flooding in of German parachutists landing

and fast motorboats approaching the coast. Of course, nothing of the sort was happening.

Although the British had spent most of the summer expecting German parachutists to

descend at any moment, Gering had still not even pledged his precious Falchimiega to the

invasion operation, despite OKH's plans for them. There were plenty of boats out at sea,

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