Letter to John Taplin's Father from the British Red Cross

Letter to John Taplin's Father from the British Red Cross

John has changed names with another prisoner of war. The Letter suggests a reason for this.

1944-10-12

One double sided typewritten sheet

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EThorntonEMTaplinWJ441012-0001, EThorntonEMTaplinWJ441012-0002

BOK/VH

[missing letter]AR [missing letters]GANISATION OF [missing letter]HE ORDER OF [missing letters]ED CROSS [missing letters]ETY a[missing letter]d [missing letters]RDER OF ST. JOHN OF JERUSALEM

[Red Cross Society crest] PR[missing letters]ONER [missing letter]F W[missing letters] DEPARTMENT [Order of St John of Jerusalem crest]

ST JAMES’S PALACE,
LONDON, S.W.1

12th October, 1944.

When replying please quote reference:- RAF/M3861

W.J. Taplin, Eq.,
12,Whitesmead Road.
Stevenage. Herts.

Dear Mr. Taplin
re: [underlined] 1268696 F[missing letter]ight [missing letter]ergeant J. Taplin [/underlined]

[missing letter]hank you for your letter of October 9th in which you enclose[missing letter] two postcards which you have received from y[missing letter]ur son. We see that he has written to you i[missing letter] the name of another Prisoner of War, who we have been able to identify in our records. Your son has apparently made a[missing letter] e[missing letter]change of name and number with this sol[missing letter]ier, who was for a time interned in the [missing letter]ame camp as he was and when you write to him in [missing letter]uture you should address your le[missing letter]ters to him exactly according to what he puts on t[missing letter]ose he sends home. In the card dated [missing letter]une [missing number]th your son gives you this instructi[missing letters].

We would [missing letter]ike to assure you that ther[missing letter] is no need fo[missing letter] you to be [missing letter]nxious about thi[missing letter] [missing words] many similar [missing letter]ases have b[missing letter]en brought to ou[missing letter] notice and w[missing letter] think the r[missing letter]ason for the

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exchange is probabl[missing letter] your [missing letter]on’s desire to go on a working par[missing letter]y and be more fully occupied than he wo[missing letters]d [missing letter]e in t[missing letter]e base camp. R.A.F. Prisoners of War, who are N.C.O.s. do not go out as a [missing letter]ule [missing word] working parties.

Stalag VIII A [missing letter]s situated at Goerlitz [missing word] in the map of [two indecipherable words] of War camps, a[missing letters] we send you her[missing letter]with it will be found in squ[missing letters] .5.

It is not unlikely th[missing letters] this change of identity may come to [missing word] end after some little time and shoul[missing letter] you[missing letter] son’s letters home be written once [missing word] [missing letter]n his own name, will you be good enou[missing letters] [missing letter]o let us know.

It is obviou[missing letter] that he will not have been receiving th[missing letter] letter[missing letter] whi[missing letter] you have sent him during t[missing letter]e past [missing letter]onth addressed in his own name, bu[missing letter] he will understand th[missing letters] [missing word] will, of course, not [missing letter]efer to the ma[missing letter]ter when you write to you[missing letter] son.

Yours sincerely,

p.p. E. [missing letter]. THORNTON [indecipherable letters]

Director.