Ts. transcript of the above.

Throughout the period covered by this diary, 21 year old John Wilfred Kelly was serving as a Gunner in 153 Battery, 51 HAA Regiment, at that time commanded by Colonel H M J McIntyre (see 21 January), and the main interest of the diary lies in its record of the writer's experiences and feelings during the first siege of Tobruk. 51 HAA Regiment RA, who came under 4th AA Brigade 7th Armoured Division) advanced rapidly from Egypt into Libya at the beginning of Wavell's offensive in January 1941 and at one point Kelly's Battery were further forward than some of the infantry., so that they had little opportunity to wash and were living on a diet of bully and biscuits. The diary entries for 19-23 January describe the operations leading to the capture of Tobruk from the Italians: after seeing the extent of the arms and equipment which had been at the latter's disposal in the town Kelly remarks "I think if we had been defending this town it would never have fallen. These it is were never able to fight and they never will be" (31 January). That same day saw the first German air raid on Tobruk and from 20 February onwards they became a daily event for the garrison which by 14 April, with the German capture of Bardia and Sollum, found itself under a state of siege. "It seems that they cannot get us out of this place and that we will either be killed or taken prisoner" (14 April). When on 27 April the RAF were forced to withdraw because they could no longer service their aircraft, the AA batteries, all now under the 9th Australian Division, became the sole means of defence against the incessant air attacks by both day and night on Tobruk, and the town was also subjected to heavy artillery fire and a series of determined infantry and tank attacks. Even though the Royal Air Force were again in evidence from 13 June onwards, during the period between 3 March and 19 August the AA batteries went into action against aircraft on 1350 occasions (20 August) and this took a considerable mental and physical toll of their personnel. On 31 May Kelly records "most of the fellows are worn out and skin diseases are very prevalent", while his entry for 16 July reads "morale getting low. Too many of the boys are sick" (see also 29 June, 9 July). It is not surprising, therefore, that Kelly was infuriated by BBC broadcasts and press reports which suggested that the air attacks had a negligible effect on the garrison (11, 14, 15 August, 29 October). The culmination of the siege came in November first with rumours of a full-scale German attack using paratroops (15 November) and then with the opening of the successful Allied offensive to relieve Tobruk, during which 153 Battery again fired as field artillery (20-27 November). Following further heavy artillery duels, the siege was finally lifted on 10 December although air raids on the town continued. The last entries in Kelly's diary refer mainly to his efforts to scrounge food to supplement their monotonous diet and to the Battery's eventual relief in February, when there was an imminent threat of another siege of the town.

The notebook containing Kelly's original manuscript diary also includes fair copies of two poems "Sons of Tobruk" (3pp) and "Ack-Ack" (2pp) and an ms. account (6pp) by Kelly of a dive-bombing raid on the town, as well as some press-cuttings about the siege.