Description
Object description
Small number of documents pertaining to Gunner Matthews' Second World War service in 3 Battery, 6th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Royal Artillery) and his death whilst a prisoner of war in the Far East: fold-out letter / photographic souvenir 'Greetings from Durban' written to his wife en route to Singapore in December 1941 ("I still don't know where we are going and it is no use telling you any of the rumours"); photograph of him and a fellow serviceman taken in South Africa; two letters from the Royal Artillery to his wife dated September 1942 regarding allowances payable to her and her husband's probable status as a prisoner of war; official notification dated September 1943 that Matthews is confirmed as being a POW; letter dated March 1945 from the War Office to Matthews' wife informing her that her husband's name was included on a list received from Tokyo of POWs reported missing after the sinking of a transport from Thailand to Japan; official notification dated December 1945 to his wife of Matthews' probable death; letter dated March 1990 to Mrs Matthews from the Far East POW Association, confirming her late husband's death as a result of the sinking of the Japanese POW transport ship RAKUYO MARU in September 1944, and the inclusion of his name on the Singapore Memorial as having no known grave.
Content description
Small number of documents pertaining to Gunner Matthews' Second World War service in 3 Battery, 6th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment (Royal Artillery) and his death whilst a prisoner of war in the Far East: fold-out letter / photographic souvenir 'Greetings from Durban' written to his wife en route to Singapore in December 1941 ("I still don't know where we are going and it is no use telling you any of the rumours"); photograph of him and a fellow serviceman taken in South Africa; two letters from the Royal Artillery to his wife dated September 1942 regarding allowances payable to her and her husband's probable status as a prisoner of war; official notification dated September 1943 that Matthews is confirmed as being a POW; letter dated March 1945 from the War Office to Matthews' wife informing her that her husband's name was included on a list received from Tokyo of POWs reported missing after the sinking of a transport from Thailand to Japan; official notification dated December 1945 to his wife of Matthews' probable death; letter dated March 1990 to Mrs Matthews from the Far East POW Association, confirming her late husband's death as a result of the sinking of the Japanese POW transport ship RAKUYO MARU in September 1944, and the inclusion of his name on the Singapore Memorial as having no known grave.
History note
Cataloguer SWW