Correspondence between Field Marshal Lord William Birdwood and Lady Janetta Birdwood, 1916 and 1918 - Part 6

2)

in this. I know she must have a dull time of
it at Harefield & I am so pleased with her at
the way she has stuck to it & admire her very
much for it.  She might think it would be
nice "fun" to go to Mrs. D - but I think that is
very unlikely - the novelty would I am sure
be enjoyable to her at first - but when that
was over, there could be little more from them
at Harefield - So I think you might 
write and say. I think she can not throw
over the Australians who were so kind in
taking her in when this hospital was
started & that I wish her to remain with
it.  Nancy will I am sure understand this
 

herself & tell her I do hope she will not be
disappointed about it - & I know she will wish
to stick to the Australians while I do so!
I think too is she is too young for real nursing.
You needn't worry about our not holding Poziēres.  We
have had a real hard time of it there, with continual
bombardments through which it is wonderful that any
one lives - but I am glad to say that as I write
we are advancing beyond it & taking all the
German trenches above it.  All the German
strong second line trenches ran behind
the village which was is a little way down the
hill side on our side of the ridge, so the
taking of the village was not really so

3)
difficult as the taking of the ridge & trenches
beyond it which we are attacking at the present 
moment with an absolute war of artillery - &
about which I feet quite confident.
Saturday morning.  The attack has panned out all right.
I was writing to you up to about mid night last night
while it was going on hard - & by this morning we
had taken all the trenches we wanted & now
hold the whole crest originally held by the
Germans. They evidently don't like it a bit
as they have already counter attacked twice
& have been driven off with heavy loss. They will
certainly do so again, but I do not feel
very apprehensive, and I'm sure we will

hold our own comfortably - but, of course my troops
up there are very tired & I must start relieving
them today, as some of them have probably had no
sleep for a long time.  I haven't yet got full details,
but up to now I know of at least 500 German
prisoners taken, & I hope for more - but I fear no
guns, beyond maxims.  However it is quite as
big & good a thing as has been done here for
some little time.

From what I see in the papers about petrol difficulties
I fancy it is just as well you were not able to
get a car!  I see the Archbishop of York is only
allowed to buy 20 gallons of petrol as a maximum -
with no assurance that he will get even half
as much as that during the month - and that to

4)
visit his whole diocese. You might well have found
yourself unable to buy any,  As I fear we wouldn't
have been able to show any duty necessity - which
would have been rather a sell!  I am so glad
you have quite a comfy trap & do hope it
will do you well & hope your Father's new horse will
be satisfactory.
But I am so distressed my little one, to hear you
are sleeping so badly again. You simply must
get over this.  Remember there is nothing whatever
to worry about.  It is I know the thinking
about it which makes one not sleep.  I know
it is very easy to say this but I can't
think why in the quiet of Thurlby, you
 

didn't sleep all night - try to think as little
about it as you possibly can -  if only the
German Emperor was dead, it might be
quite all right - but really you need not
worry about anything - & especially about not
sleeping.  So for my sake do sleep my
own little one & all my love to you.
Ever your very loving old -

Will.


 

DONATED RECORDS LIST

3376
3rd Series (15)
 

1ST ANZAC CORPS.
B.E.F., FRANCE.
25 March 1918
(*Flight to France*)
1918
My own darlingest, little sweetheart,
I did think it was so awfully sweet & brave
of you to see me off as you did & I hated leaving you like
that with such an anxious time for [[?]] everyone.
I landed quite successfully - just 1 hour & 5 minutes!  It
wasn't though what you could describe as a very pleasant
voyage over & the pilot called it a very "bumpy" one.  It
was blowing much harder than you would think, as the
wind seemed to increase in strength as time went on.
We followed the coast up to Folkestone & then struck
across the Channel where we went to about 4000 feet. You
never saw such a curious sight as it was from there.
Down below it seemed to be a fairly cloudy day, but
at 4000 we had got above all the clouds which
lay in one mass of white billows  below us
absolutely covering the whole of the land. In the
 

middle of the Channel there was a clear belt
& one could see ships like small specks moving
about below one. Then when we got to France
again the whole country was under cloud.  We
struck the coast at Cap Grisnez & worked up to
Bologne & then turned inland. We then had of
course to come down below the cloud, but it was
impossible to avoid them altogether, so had to
keep falling & rising as we got to belts of
them - which was uncomfortable.  While
of course the wind roared the whole time.
I was doubtful at one time if we should
be able to strike the exact aerdrome we
wanted, but my pilot brought us along

2)
                                                                                                            ^{1st ANZAC CORPS,}

^{.                                                                                                                                               B.E.F., FRANCE,
                                                                                                                                             …..………………………….......191}
capitally & we made a most excellent landing
without a bump of any sort a bit before
2.   McGuigan met me shortly after with
the car & we came along to my Corps H.Q.
I am sorry to say one of the beautiful towers
of the town where I landed has been destroyed
during my absence by a big shell & the 
fine organ of the Church near it also destroyed.
It was an old tower of [[French?]] architecture

& I had hoped would have survived.
No orders yet for us to leave here, but
some of my troops have gone, so you
may see references to Australians elsewhere
 

which will not necessarily mean that I
am with them.  Chris [[very?]] well indeed
& very happy.  He tells me he left that
blanket "flea-bag" in a suit case with
his initials on it!  I fancy it will be one
of those in the passage. In the mean time
I took his green canvas valise to A.I.F. H.Q.
thinking I should be able to get his blankets from
the [[?]]. Now that this is not the case
the valise may just as well stay there &
if you'd remember it will you send
the blankets up to Genl Griffiths by