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Red Duster, White Ensign: The Story of Malta and the Malta Convoys
Red Duster, White Ensign: The Story of Malta and the Malta Convoys during WWII.
- GenresNonfictionHistory
287 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1959
About the author
Ian Cameron
143 books11 followersPseudonym of Donald Gordon Payne.
Donald Gordon Payne was an English author of adventure novels and travel books.
Donald Gordon Payne was born in Denmark Hill in South East London in January 1924. His father, Francis, was a New Zealander, who served in the First World War with the ANZACS. His mother was Evelyn Rodgers, a nurse during the Great War.
He was educated at Dulwich College Preparatory School and then at Charterhouse School. As a child he travelled with his parents to New Zealand and parts of the East coast of Australia – an experience which left him with a lifelong affection for these countries.
Deferring his place at Corpus Christi College Oxford, he enlisted in the Fleet Air Arm in 1943. After training at Sealand, near Liverpool, and at Kingston, Ontario, Canada he was awarded his wings and joined Swordfish Squadron 811 and later 835. He took part in Atlantic and Russian convoys in 1944 and 1945 as a Swordfish pilot, mainly on anti-submarine duties.
After the war he studied at Oxford and became an editor and ghost writer for the London based publishing firm of Christopher Johnson. From there he moved into a full-time career as a writer.
Using James Vance Marshall as a pseudonym, Payne wrote such books as A River Ran Out of Eden (1962) and White-Out (1999). His most famous book is probably Walkabout (1959), first published as The Children and later made into a movie starring Jenny Agutter.
Payne has also used Ian Cameron and Donald Gordon as pseudonyms. As Donald Gordon, he published, among others, Riders of the Storm (2002), an official history of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. As Ian Cameron, he wrote The Lost Ones (1961), later dramatized by Disney as The Island at the Top of the World, as well as The Mountain at the Bottom of the World (1975) and The White Ship (1975).
He disliked publicity of any kind, preferring to stay out of the limelight. During his long and distinguished publishing career he made few author appearances, notably for the Royal Geographical Society, the Royal Lifeboat Institution and the Reader's Digest.
He lived in Surrey, England, and had four sons and one daughter. He passed away on 22 August, 2018 at the age of 94.
Donald Gordon Payne was an English author of adventure novels and travel books.
Donald Gordon Payne was born in Denmark Hill in South East London in January 1924. His father, Francis, was a New Zealander, who served in the First World War with the ANZACS. His mother was Evelyn Rodgers, a nurse during the Great War.
He was educated at Dulwich College Preparatory School and then at Charterhouse School. As a child he travelled with his parents to New Zealand and parts of the East coast of Australia – an experience which left him with a lifelong affection for these countries.
Deferring his place at Corpus Christi College Oxford, he enlisted in the Fleet Air Arm in 1943. After training at Sealand, near Liverpool, and at Kingston, Ontario, Canada he was awarded his wings and joined Swordfish Squadron 811 and later 835. He took part in Atlantic and Russian convoys in 1944 and 1945 as a Swordfish pilot, mainly on anti-submarine duties.
After the war he studied at Oxford and became an editor and ghost writer for the London based publishing firm of Christopher Johnson. From there he moved into a full-time career as a writer.
Using James Vance Marshall as a pseudonym, Payne wrote such books as A River Ran Out of Eden (1962) and White-Out (1999). His most famous book is probably Walkabout (1959), first published as The Children and later made into a movie starring Jenny Agutter.
Payne has also used Ian Cameron and Donald Gordon as pseudonyms. As Donald Gordon, he published, among others, Riders of the Storm (2002), an official history of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. As Ian Cameron, he wrote The Lost Ones (1961), later dramatized by Disney as The Island at the Top of the World, as well as The Mountain at the Bottom of the World (1975) and The White Ship (1975).
He disliked publicity of any kind, preferring to stay out of the limelight. During his long and distinguished publishing career he made few author appearances, notably for the Royal Geographical Society, the Royal Lifeboat Institution and the Reader's Digest.
He lived in Surrey, England, and had four sons and one daughter. He passed away on 22 August, 2018 at the age of 94.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 28, 2014
Brilliant, just brilliant. Obviously a thrilling story as this recounts the events of Malta under siege in World War 2. We follow the convoys, the bombing raids, the suffering of the civilians, the inspired leadership of Lord Gort, the naval battles fought around the island, the air battles without number. Faith, Hope and Charity get a good mention. The writing is pacey and keeps us moving along while still giving enough detail to satisfy even a ww2 nerd like me. As I say, just brilliant.
September 8, 2026
An unusual read for me but I'm planning to visit Malta and this came to hand. It’s a small collection of small islands, part of the European Union, within easy reach of North Africa and even easier reach of Sicily. For centuries, its people relied on being at the centre of wide trade networks for its extra food and resources.
Then it was part of the British Empire and from 1941-43 was continually bombed by fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. The waters around them were thick with submarines and enemy shipping hunting any ship bringing supplies.
This is written very much from a British view, to the point where the author says that, "in one sense, it wasn’t the Islanders’ fight." Except maybe they just didn't want to be fascist.
It uses oral histories and interviews with many people on the merchant and naval ships and some of the Maltese themselves. Understandably, since it was written in the 1950s the author doesn’t focus on the death tolls of these convoys and bombing raids, which were horrendous - 5,700 service personnel on land, sea, and in the air and about 1,600 civilians on Malta. As in any military campaign, there were accidents and happenstance that meant some people died and others lived almost miraculously.
But the most impressive aspect of this history is the organisation of ordinary people who fixed engines, pumps or filters that got a torpedoed ship into port, navigated without equipment, gave first aid or hauled men out of the sea. Thousands of others organised on land in myriad ways to survive extremes that could have overwhelmed them. On land or sea, their ingenuity, creativity and perseverance was deeply impressive. Some were experienced and brilliant and others discovered that they rose to challenges they had no idea they could meet. Very few of these people are named but anyone in Malta or connected to the ships and their crews would have known who they were.
I must find some books where people are organising amidst some catastrophe and not being shot at by Nazis.
Then it was part of the British Empire and from 1941-43 was continually bombed by fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. The waters around them were thick with submarines and enemy shipping hunting any ship bringing supplies.
This is written very much from a British view, to the point where the author says that, "in one sense, it wasn’t the Islanders’ fight." Except maybe they just didn't want to be fascist.
It uses oral histories and interviews with many people on the merchant and naval ships and some of the Maltese themselves. Understandably, since it was written in the 1950s the author doesn’t focus on the death tolls of these convoys and bombing raids, which were horrendous - 5,700 service personnel on land, sea, and in the air and about 1,600 civilians on Malta. As in any military campaign, there were accidents and happenstance that meant some people died and others lived almost miraculously.
But the most impressive aspect of this history is the organisation of ordinary people who fixed engines, pumps or filters that got a torpedoed ship into port, navigated without equipment, gave first aid or hauled men out of the sea. Thousands of others organised on land in myriad ways to survive extremes that could have overwhelmed them. On land or sea, their ingenuity, creativity and perseverance was deeply impressive. Some were experienced and brilliant and others discovered that they rose to challenges they had no idea they could meet. Very few of these people are named but anyone in Malta or connected to the ships and their crews would have known who they were.
I must find some books where people are organising amidst some catastrophe and not being shot at by Nazis.
September 25, 2018
I am always looking for books which really get deep into the heart of a battle, conflict, or mission. Mr. Cameron has created one of the more enjoyable reads which really satisfies my desire for an in-depth look at the battle/campaign of Malta in world War 2.
This book is well written (albeit with a few typos), and gives a very British account of the drama witnessed at Malta. Intense personal accounts are frequent, and provide a grim mental image for the ordeal the men and civilians faced in those early war years. It is hard not to walk away from this read without a ton more respect for those that served there.
The only negative issues I found were those annoying typos and the incredibly poor artwork. Essentially hand sketched outlines for ships serve as a good example of what not to do; they add no real value and actual pictures do exist of those ships. The cover artwork is great, so I was more hopeful about the interior contents.
Overall, I highly recommend this book as a terrific read about the British and Maltese accounts of the battle. There are better reads for the Italian and German accounts, or for strictly the military details, but if you want a good personal accounting of events then this should be on your list.
This was a good 4.5 stars, rounding down due to the typos and poor drawings. 4 Stars overall.
This book is well written (albeit with a few typos), and gives a very British account of the drama witnessed at Malta. Intense personal accounts are frequent, and provide a grim mental image for the ordeal the men and civilians faced in those early war years. It is hard not to walk away from this read without a ton more respect for those that served there.
The only negative issues I found were those annoying typos and the incredibly poor artwork. Essentially hand sketched outlines for ships serve as a good example of what not to do; they add no real value and actual pictures do exist of those ships. The cover artwork is great, so I was more hopeful about the interior contents.
Overall, I highly recommend this book as a terrific read about the British and Maltese accounts of the battle. There are better reads for the Italian and German accounts, or for strictly the military details, but if you want a good personal accounting of events then this should be on your list.
This was a good 4.5 stars, rounding down due to the typos and poor drawings. 4 Stars overall.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews