Correspondence between Field Marshal Lord William Birdwood and Lady Janetta Birdwood, 1915 - Part 1

25 March 

1915 

ON BOARD THE

CUNARD

R.M.S “FRANCONIA”.

My own darling Jenny Jane.

What a sailor I shall have

become by the time this war is over!

Here am I moving down to Egypt again

for a few days, only to be starting off from

there again before long. And the number

of ships I've been on too! Curiously

enough in all that big storm when I was

on "Doris" I kept perfectly well & happy

& was up on the bridge most of the time

watching the unfortunate torpedo boats

battling for their lives. You'd see one

poise on a wave, when the wind

would catch it & turn it almost 

broadside on. It would right itself

just in time not to be turned over, &

even the tops of the masts would be

hidden in the waves. Towards evening

however it got very cold, & when I had to

go down below to find everything tight

shut, with "horrid & fish like smells", it

was rather too much for me & I found 

lying down the best thing for me. You see

on one those ships, you can't sit down at

all except down below, so have no chance

of an easy on deck if you are feeling

gentle. I can't tell you how thankful I 

was when we heard our 2 torpedo boats

were safe - or rather that their crews were -

for it would have been awful to think of

a lot of men losing their lives almost along

side of one. A lot of my Australians

went across the hills of Lemnos to bring

in the crews of the boat which was

wrecked there, & took them brandy &

blankets. I got up there just too

late to be at the attempted forcing of the 

straits by the fleet, 2 days before I arrived.

It was I think hopeless with all the

mines about that there are. The last time

I was up there I went up, reconnoitring

on the "Irresistable" & it is too sad to think

of her being at the bottom now. I don't suppose

I'd have been on board her this time, as

the admiral had transferred his flag, &

we were most extraordinary lucky in losing

only old ships & saving practically all

lives on board. One of the little Destroyers

came away with 670 men on board -

they must have been just like ants on an

ant heap & I believe it was magnificent

the way in which all the small boats

at once flocked in & surrounded &

escorted the tottering, giant wounded

battle ships, until they either

plunged down below the waves or

got them away to safety as in the

case of "Inflexible". The "Queen Elizabeth"

had one or two nice holes made in her

but none to matter much. The French

"Bouvet" was I believe a poor old thing

about fit to go to the bottom, but she

did this terribly rapidly - just shoving

her nose under the water & going straight

to the bottom, so lost nearly all her men.

I fear these French sailors do not at

all impress one & they seem so very

helpless. I imagine you will have 

seen all about this in the papers long

before now, but if you haven't please

don't of course mention what I write

now - or at any time.

I find Sir Ian H. not altered in the

2)

ON BOARD THE

CUNARD

R.M.S."FRANCONIA."

least: I had expected to find him

much older, but he hasn't aged & is

as charming & nice as ever. He was

most awfully nice about having come 

out here over my head saying I might

be sure I should not suffer from this.

Exactly what I anticipated has evidently

happened - viz. that they took the whole

thing much too light heartedly at first

at home & thought that a moderate sized

force would be sufficient. Now that

it is realised a very large International

Army is necessary, naturally one of the

most senior Generals we have had to be 

selected & Ian H. is our 2nd senior General, and

I would sooner see him here than anyone.

He has with him Genl. Braithwait whom

you will remember seeing in Simler as his

Chief Staff Officer - & curiously enough the

first man I met on board was Peter Pollen

whom he has brought as an A.D.C. He was retired

some years from the service & is one of the many

"dug outs" now come back. He is a good fellow

too with brains. On his staff too, he has

Winston Churchill's brother who was with

me in Dundonald's  Bde, & it is characteristic

if of him to have brought him, as he worships

at Winston's feet - how the Navy dislike

the latter. This is the finest ship I have ever

been on & we really get quite lost with

it's five decks to know where you are! We

have 2 Battalions of the Naval Division on 

board & a tremendous crowd of officers. I

have with me Wagstaff, Lotbiniėre, Hancock

& my naval staff officer, a very nice fellow called

Michell, but whom I shall now have to

hand over to Sir lan. There are so many things

I'd like to tell you about the whole show,

especially perhaps about the Naval Division &

its & other arrangements, but which I can't

well write. You can take it, this will be a 

long business & I can't think how Churchill

can ever have thought - as I fancy he must

have - he could rush it through with the

Navy. I find Pollen most nice & friendly.

He is now I fancy a very rich man &

Director of many City companies, & told

me he recently offered Babington-Smith

an appointment of £5000 a year! He

asked for your address & said he

wanted his wife to meet you if you 

were ever in town, so perhaps you

will hear from her - do you remember

we always thought her the nicest of

those Muir girls - the little fat one

Heather M. I remember she was.

I am finishing this in Cairo where

I have just arrived back with Sir

Ian H. I don't quite know how long

we will be here, but longer than I

originally anticipated - at all

events over next week. The delay is

most annoying in ways as it

enables so much to be prepared

against us, & already the situation

is much altered to what it was

the first time I went up from here.

3) 

ON BOARD THE 

CUNARD 

R.M.S."FRANCONIA."

 

Tell Nancy I found her letter from

Port Said waiting for me on my

return & was so sorry to have missed

her - it was bad luck my being away

just those 10 days. They evidently

very nearly had an exciting time of

it in the Canal as a small party

of Turks advanced towards Suez but

were easily driven off & have not

appeared since. Lady McMahon &

Irene have arrived here - their Messagerie

boat broke down & for a long time Egypt could

get no news of them as their wireless

didn't seem successful, so there was

some anxiety for their safety as they

were much over due. Lady M. is

looking most wonderfully well - in

fact quite changed - that bad colour

gone & her cheeks not hollow - the result

I imagine of the operation she had. Irene

I haven't seen as she arrived with an

attack of what she had in Simler - a slight

go of pneumonia I fancy. She is engaged

to Capt. Evans-Gordon of the C.I.H. You will

remember him I fancy, a nice looking

tall fellow. They have I understand been

engaged for some time, but it is only now

being given out: I think he is quite a

nice fellow & is now at Ismailia with

Imperial Service Troops.

By the bye if Nancy really wants 

to go in for nursing, I don't see 

why she shouldn't do so, as long

as she goes to a good place where

she will be properly looked after &

she must make up her mind to

stick to it, and not go flying about.

I am returning you 2 notices you

sent me & I think you'd best keep

all such things in future, as moving

about as I will be doing, I shall have

no where to keep them or time probably

to look at them - or indeed any business

matters.

I am glad you were to see poor Mrs 

Jenner - it is very sad to think that

Leon Elliot-Lockhart who succeeded

him in command of the 59th has also

now been killed. I hope Major Leeds

may now get the Regiment.

I haven't seen that poem of Kipling's

"If", which you mention. Did he write

it for this war? I don't fancy we

will make any big advance in France

immediately, indeed I hope the Germans

may attempt to do so first and lose

heavily instead of us - it is a case

of men against time, the latter is

all in our favour, so I hope we will

wait. I do hope you have all got

over your influenza & colds.

Goodbye my own little wife - all

my love to you always.

Ever your very loving old,

Will. 

[*3

DRL

3376 (15)*]

 

D.O.

HEADQUARTERS AUSTRALIAN

& NEW ZEALAND ARMY CORPS

4  APRIL.

1915

 

My own little wife.

At last we really are all

leaving here. I am going with my

staff on Tuesday & every one else goes by

degrees as it takes some time to get

a big force like this off. I will write

again from board ship. It is getting

very warm here in tents so the troops

will be quite glad to get away - indeed

for some time they have been very stale

with all this desert work & are longing

to get some fighting. I think they

little realise what is probably