Letter from Air Ministry to Mrs. Wells
Title
Letter from Air Ministry to Mrs. Wells
Description
A letter from Air Ministry to Mrs. Wells informing her that the her son Sergeant R. H. Wells had been reburial from Dusseldorf Cemetery and re-interred at Reichswald Forest British Military Cemetery, Grave 9, Row A, Plot 7.
Creator
Date
1948-04-28
Spatial Coverage
Language
Format
One page typed letter
Publisher
Rights
This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal.
Contributor
Identifier
EAirMinWellsH480428
Transcription
AIR MINISTRY,
2, SEVILLE STREET,
LONDON, S.W.1.
P.411332/43/S.14.Cas.C.7.
28th April, 1948.
Dear Mrs. Wells,
I am very sorry to renew your grief in the sad loss of your son, Sergeant R.H. Wells, but I am sure you will wish to know that a report has been received from the Royal Air Force Missing Research and Enquiry Service in Germany concerning his last resting place.
The report states that his remains have been removed from Dusseldorf Cemetery and reverently re-interred in the British Military Cemetery at Reichswald Forest, in the district of Cleve, where he now rests in Grave 9, Row A, Plot 7. You will be glad to know that the comrades who lost their lives with him are buried in graves nearby.
This reburial is in accordance with the policy, agreed upon by His Majesty's and the Commonwealth Governments, that our fallen in Germany should not be left in isolated cemeteries, but should rest together in special military cemeteries which have been selected for the natural beauty and peace of their surroundings. The graves there will be maintained in perpetuity by the Imperial War Graves Commission who will consult you later, regarding the inscription upon the headstone they will erect to his memory. A photograph of the grave will be sent to you, although this may not be for some considerable time.
I do hope, the knowledge of his last resting place and that it will be always reverently tended, may be of some slight comfort to you in your great loss.
Yours sincerely,
[Signature: Burch]
Mrs. H. Wells,
115 Ashton Road,
Saffron Walden,
Essex.
2, SEVILLE STREET,
LONDON, S.W.1.
P.411332/43/S.14.Cas.C.7.
28th April, 1948.
Dear Mrs. Wells,
I am very sorry to renew your grief in the sad loss of your son, Sergeant R.H. Wells, but I am sure you will wish to know that a report has been received from the Royal Air Force Missing Research and Enquiry Service in Germany concerning his last resting place.
The report states that his remains have been removed from Dusseldorf Cemetery and reverently re-interred in the British Military Cemetery at Reichswald Forest, in the district of Cleve, where he now rests in Grave 9, Row A, Plot 7. You will be glad to know that the comrades who lost their lives with him are buried in graves nearby.
This reburial is in accordance with the policy, agreed upon by His Majesty's and the Commonwealth Governments, that our fallen in Germany should not be left in isolated cemeteries, but should rest together in special military cemeteries which have been selected for the natural beauty and peace of their surroundings. The graves there will be maintained in perpetuity by the Imperial War Graves Commission who will consult you later, regarding the inscription upon the headstone they will erect to his memory. A photograph of the grave will be sent to you, although this may not be for some considerable time.
I do hope, the knowledge of his last resting place and that it will be always reverently tended, may be of some slight comfort to you in your great loss.
Yours sincerely,
[Signature: Burch]
Mrs. H. Wells,
115 Ashton Road,
Saffron Walden,
Essex.
Collection
Citation
Air Ministry, “Letter from Air Ministry to Mrs. Wells,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed August 12, 2026, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/collections/document/61266.