}
Douglas Motorcyles
4.1.1.2 Douglas Motorcycles
‘With my heart thumping against my ribs I opened the throttle, until I was jumping at 40 m.p.h. from cobble to cobble’
W H L Watson, the Royal Engineers, despatch rider
Douglas Motors in Kingswood supplied over 25,000 motorcycles to the Armed Forces. These were used by all the Allied Forces, in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Despatch riders used the motorcycles to deliver messages to the front line, often under fire. Thomas Montague Pitcher was born in Kingsdown and trained as a cellist. He joined the Royal Flying Corps in October 1915, aged 22. He was sent to France as a despatch rider. Early in 1917, he rode his motorcycle into a shell crater hidden in the mud. His hand was impaled on part of the handlebars. He was sent back to Britain on a hospital ship, suffering from tetanus and frostbite. When he recovered, he was sent back to France.
After the war, Thomas returned to Bristol and worked in the music industry. He kept his medals in his tool box, saying that he felt no pride in them.
Douglas Motors in Kingswood supplied over 25,000 motorcycles to the Armed Forces. These were used by all the Allied Forces, in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Despatch riders used the motorcycles to deliver messages to the front line, often under fire. Thomas Montague Pitcher was born in Kingsdown and trained as a cellist. He joined the Royal Flying Corps in October 1915, aged 22. He was sent to France as a despatch rider. Early in 1917, he rode his motorcycle into a shell crater hidden in the mud. His hand was impaled on part of the handlebars. He was sent back to Britain on a hospital ship, suffering from tetanus and frostbite. When he recovered, he was sent back to France.
After the war, Thomas returned to Bristol and worked in the music industry. He kept his medals in his tool box, saying that he felt no pride in them.