Description
Object description
67 letters, airmail letter cards and airgraphs (140pp, plus some envelopes) written to his parents and young brother Peter in Prestwich, Lancashire, by a Trooper, later Corporal, in the Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) (July 1942 – September 1945), with detail of training with 81B Troop, 'B' Squadron, 55th Training Regiment (TR) RAC, Farnborough, Hants, his first impressions of the Army, in regimental cross country team, writing from Aldershot (July 1942), driving, lack of air raids, his thrill at driving Valentine and Crusader tanks, doing commando PT courses, threatening his brother with unarmed combat demonstrations, considering applying for a commission but unsure whether it was fair on his girlfriend, Kath, to wait for him so long, hospitalisation with appendicitis (August 1942), and a period of recuperation (September 1942), missing his overseas draft to the Eighth Army, losing weight and patience, convalescence at 118 Military Convalescent Depot, Silwood Park, Berkshire (October – November 1942), the cold and damp, returning to HQ 4 Troop, 5th TR RAC (December 1942), postings being put off and joining 'C' Company 52nd TR RAC, Bovington Camp, Dorset (January 1943), finally getting a draft and drawing tropical kit, a poem dedicated to his mother, writing from a troopship at sea with no idea of their destination (June 1943), arriving at 'C' Squadron, RAC Depot, India Command, first impressions of India, the differences in Army life, getting a bearer (servant), meeting someone from Prestwich, joining 'A' Squadron, 25th Dragoons RAC (XV Indian Corps) (September 1943), the death of a friend, references to his cousin Joy's marriage being postponed when her fiancé, Derrick (Frederick), in the RAF was shot down and made prisoner, his dislike of Indian sanitation, wanting to get on with his job and get home, a gap in the letters with only airgraphs from October 1943 – April 1944 while they were in Burma, letters resuming in July 1944, getting photographs taken, being 'on the wagon', a letter to a friend Mollie Shannon saying he had met up with her boyfriend Ron, arranging for his parents to vote for him by proxy in case of an election, with his vote to go to a candidate of the socialist Common Wealth Party, news of the lights coming back on in Prestwich (October 1944), plans for going into the family business and opening a chain of bakeries after the war starting with the family home, losing weight due to the heat and a short period in hospital (October - November 1944), his Sunday routine, a camera his mother sent him going missing in the post and taking ages to arrive, telling his mum about his brother's girlfriend, considering getting engaged to girlfriend Kath (January 1945), his brother getting new false teeth, Kath accepting his proposal but not until he comes home, Ron and Mollie splitting up, anger at being confined to barracks for having a bath after 7.15pm because he had been playing hockey for the squadron, his parents looking to buy a shop in Market Place but the price being high, Ron getting engaged to a WRNS, his unease at not hearing from Kath (April 1945), moving to Burma and news of the end of the war in Europe (May 1945), being evacuated to hospital with suspected malaria which turned out to be exhaustion (June 1945), advising his mother to keep Peter out of the Army until he has to go as there is nothing nice about the actual fighting, Joy and Derick getting married at last, his 23rd birthday, returning to India, his promotion straight to Corporal and now having to pay income tax, spending a quiet VJ Day, Kath breaking off their engagement shortly after (August 1945). Throughout he gives few details of his duties or the war due to censorship, but mostly talks of letters and parcels to and from home, particularly cigarettes, mentions of his on-off girlfriend Kath, weather, entertainment, films and books, money, plans for post-war life, his brother Peter growing up, and news from home, mainly engagements and weddings. Together with: his 'Aeroplane Diary' (Letts), for 1943, with brief entries from 11 April – 18 August 1943, including the journey in a troopship via Africa, arriving in India (June 1943), his 21st birthday, going to Poona, attending wireless courses, joining 25th Dragoon Guards at Ranjit (August 1943), going to Ranchi, joining 'A' Squadron, and references to his cousin Joy being due to get married; three newspaper cuttings about Joy and Frederick Hawthorne's marriage; ms notes (5pp) about his experiences for a talk at the Prestwich and Whitefield Rotary Club; photocopies of two portrait photographs of Hirst, photocopies of four pages of an annotated photo album showing Hirst and other members of 'A' Squadron 25th Dragoons in India, a copy of a photo of a wedding present to Joy from Hirst, and extracts from the book 'Some Letters From Burma' by Tom Grounds with annotations from Hirst highlighting references to 'A' Squadron.
Content description
67 letters, airmail letter cards and airgraphs (140pp, plus some envelopes) written to his parents and young brother Peter in Prestwich, Lancashire, by a Trooper, later Corporal, in the Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) (July 1942 – September 1945), with detail of training with 81B Troop, 'B' Squadron, 55th Training Regiment (TR) RAC, Farnborough, Hants, his first impressions of the Army, in regimental cross country team, writing from Aldershot (July 1942), driving, lack of air raids, his thrill at driving Valentine and Crusader tanks, doing commando PT courses, threatening his brother with unarmed combat demonstrations, considering applying for a commission but unsure whether it was fair on his girlfriend, Kath, to wait for him so long, hospitalisation with appendicitis (August 1942), and a period of recuperation (September 1942), missing his overseas draft to the Eighth Army, losing weight and patience, convalescence at 118 Military Convalescent Depot, Silwood Park, Berkshire (October – November 1942), the cold and damp, returning to HQ 4 Troop, 5th TR RAC (December 1942), postings being put off and joining 'C' Company 52nd TR RAC, Bovington Camp, Dorset (January 1943), finally getting a draft and drawing tropical kit, a poem dedicated to his mother, writing from a troopship at sea with no idea of their destination (June 1943), arriving at 'C' Squadron, RAC Depot, India Command, first impressions of India, the differences in Army life, getting a bearer (servant), meeting someone from Prestwich, joining 'A' Squadron, 25th Dragoons RAC (XV Indian Corps) (September 1943), the death of a friend, references to his cousin Joy's marriage being postponed when her fiancé, Derrick (Frederick), in the RAF was shot down and made prisoner, his dislike of Indian sanitation, wanting to get on with his job and get home, a gap in the letters with only airgraphs from October 1943 – April 1944 while they were in Burma, letters resuming in July 1944, getting photographs taken, being 'on the wagon', a letter to a friend Mollie Shannon saying he had met up with her boyfriend Ron, arranging for his parents to vote for him by proxy in case of an election, with his vote to go to a candidate of the socialist Common Wealth Party, news of the lights coming back on in Prestwich (October 1944), plans for going into the family business and opening a chain of bakeries after the war starting with the family home, losing weight due to the heat and a short period in hospital (October - November 1944), his Sunday routine, a camera his mother sent him going missing in the post and taking ages to arrive, telling his mum about his brother's girlfriend, considering getting engaged to girlfriend Kath (January 1945), his brother getting new false teeth, Kath accepting his proposal but not until he comes home, Ron and Mollie splitting up, anger at being confined to barracks for having a bath after 7.15pm because he had been playing hockey for the squadron, his parents looking to buy a shop in Market Place but the price being high, Ron getting engaged to a WRNS, his unease at not hearing from Kath (April 1945), moving to Burma and news of the end of the war in Europe (May 1945), being evacuated to hospital with suspected malaria which turned out to be exhaustion (June 1945), advising his mother to keep Peter out of the Army until he has to go as there is nothing nice about the actual fighting, Joy and Derick getting married at last, his 23rd birthday, returning to India, his promotion straight to Corporal and now having to pay income tax, spending a quiet VJ Day, Kath breaking off their engagement shortly after (August 1945). Throughout he gives few details of his duties or the war due to censorship, but mostly talks of letters and parcels to and from home, particularly cigarettes, mentions of his on-off girlfriend Kath, weather, entertainment, films and books, money, plans for post-war life, his brother Peter growing up, and news from home, mainly engagements and weddings. Together with: his 'Aeroplane Diary' (Letts), for 1943, with brief entries from 11 April – 18 August 1943, including the journey in a troopship via Africa, arriving in India (June 1943), his 21st birthday, going to Poona, attending wireless courses, joining 25th Dragoon Guards at Ranjit (August 1943), going to Ranchi, joining 'A' Squadron, and references to his cousin Joy being due to get married; three newspaper cuttings about Joy and Frederick Hawthorne's marriage; ms notes (5pp) about his experiences for a talk at the Prestwich and Whitefield Rotary Club; photocopies of two portrait photographs of Hirst, photocopies of four pages of an annotated photo album showing Hirst and other members of 'A' Squadron 25th Dragoons in India, a copy of a photo of a wedding present to Joy from Hirst, and extracts from the book 'Some Letters From Burma' by Tom Grounds with annotations from Hirst highlighting references to 'A' Squadron.
History note
Cataloguer SJO