Description
Object description
A series of 121 ms letters (662pp) mostly to his mother and sister, written whilst serving as a Lieutenant in the 66th Brigade Royal Field Artillery (13th Western Division) and from April 1919, in the 336th Brigade RFA (18th Division), covering his voyage to Mesopotamia via South Africa and India, May – August 1917 and his service in Mesopotamia, August 1917 – September 1919, largely relating to his finances but also including detailed descriptions of his relaxing voyage to Mesopotamia and the onboard facilities, the fear of submarine attack, the good relationships with the people of Durban where they stopped en route, the duties of his Indian servant, some descriptions of his experiences under fire whilst supporting the infantry advance, the capture of enemy weapons, bombing attacks by enemy aeroplanes, the difficulties of moving gun positions, methods of coping with the extreme heat of the summer and the severe cold in winter, the problem of disease such as malaria, sand fly fever and smallpox, the high quality of food available which was imported from Australia and Japan and supplemented with local purchases and hunting, the shortages of food for the local Arab population, the wide variety of alcohol available, an incident of violence amongst the ranks over alcohol during Christmas celebrations (1917), the keeping of animals such as horses, dogs, sheep, chickens and monkeys, the capture of resources such as farmland, springs and mines, the growing of crops by the Army, sporting activities including football, polo, horse racing and cricket, his impressions of the Indians, Turks, Germans, Arabs, Armenians, Jews and Kurds, his leave on a tea plantation in Ceylon, the muted reaction to news of the Armistice, the attempts by the British forces to provide for the post-war society in the region by establishing orphanages and funds, fighting against Kurdish insurgents led by Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji (May – June 1919) and the procedures for demobilisation.
Content description
A series of 121 ms letters (662pp) mostly to his mother and sister, written whilst serving as a Lieutenant in the 66th Brigade Royal Field Artillery (13th Western Division) and from April 1919, in the 336th Brigade RFA (18th Division), covering his voyage to Mesopotamia via South Africa and India, May – August 1917 and his service in Mesopotamia, August 1917 – September 1919, largely relating to his finances but also including detailed descriptions of his relaxing voyage to Mesopotamia and the onboard facilities, the fear of submarine attack, the good relationships with the people of Durban where they stopped en route, the duties of his Indian servant, some descriptions of his experiences under fire whilst supporting the infantry advance, the capture of enemy weapons, bombing attacks by enemy aeroplanes, the difficulties of moving gun positions, methods of coping with the extreme heat of the summer and the severe cold in winter, the problem of disease such as malaria, sand fly fever and smallpox, the high quality of food available which was imported from Australia and Japan and supplemented with local purchases and hunting, the shortages of food for the local Arab population, the wide variety of alcohol available, an incident of violence amongst the ranks over alcohol during Christmas celebrations (1917), the keeping of animals such as horses, dogs, sheep, chickens and monkeys, the capture of resources such as farmland, springs and mines, the growing of crops by the Army, sporting activities including football, polo, horse racing and cricket, his impressions of the Indians, Turks, Germans, Arabs, Armenians, Jews and Kurds, his leave on a tea plantation in Ceylon, the muted reaction to news of the Armistice, the attempts by the British forces to provide for the post-war society in the region by establishing orphanages and funds, fighting against Kurdish insurgents led by Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji (May – June 1919) and the procedures for demobilisation.
History note
Cataloguer SMR