Taunton 1937

By the end of 1937 things had moved on, many towns were now under the control of militias or the Anglican League.
Taunton is a powder keg, a small keg but one which is repeated across the country.
Unlike Frome and Wells which are firmly in the hands of the SFF and Anglican League, Taunton is split.
As the county town it has the main garrison of the auxiliary police ( part of the BUF). Many are from outside the county, so the uniforms, regular pay and strange accents are causing resentment with the locals.
The Taunton branch of the BUF is small but well supported, as Lord Winterfield uses them as a bodyguard when he is in the area.

The Bishop of Taunton is nowhere as militant as the Bishop of Bath and Wells, but he is a member of the Anglican League as are many of his parishioners. The Bishop is under house arrest for anti-Mrs Simpson Sermons.‘D’ company which operates around Taunton is one of the SFF’s biggest. This has lead to skirmishes between the auxiliary police and SFF.
Market day sees regular fights between the BUF and supporters of the SFF and the Anglican League. So far no guns have been used.
The police are having to deal with a growing black market. Raids on houses in the town have added to the tension.
The police are being sent out in the villages around Taunton to arrest SFF suspects and look for arms caches. The police have to have an armed escort from the auxiliary police to do this.