Letter from John Valentine to his wife Ursula

Letter from John Valentine to his wife Ursula

Number 46. He writes of an upcoming transfer to prisoner of war camp named Heidekrug as far to east as possible in Germany, the likely transportation there and the subsequent change to living conditions and mail arrangements. He also writes about his fiddle tutor, his inability to taste food and a likely time to return home.

1943-06-02

Two page handwritten letter

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EValentineJRMValentineUM430602

NUMBER 46. 2nd June 1943
Darling Ursula: I have bad news for you - in a few weeks we are to be moved not just a short distance as we once thought - but to a place in East Prussia called Heidekrug about as far East as you can go & still be in Germany. It will mean, alas, less correspondence for my arrangement will fall through & I will not be able to renew it on account of different circumstances. As you told me that you enjoyed hearing from me, it has been one of my greatest pleasures recently to be able to devote most of my “limited rations” to you – you see anything that I can do to give you pleasure is a joy to me & there are so few opportunities for me nowadays However there’s nothing else I can do about it & you’ll just have to lump it. Stories of the new camp indicate that it won’t be up to the standard of this & that we shall be massed together in buildings holding 450. I don’t expect to be Block Leader there, the older prisoners will naturally take all the reduced number of jobs & priviliges [sic]. In the light of recent events & you would be amazed to know the extent of our knowledge I am even more certain that I’ll be home for your 29th birthday – I dropped the pleasant thought of your 28th long ago. It is still a long time off unfortunately & time just crawls here; in the aggregate that is, for the individual days pass quickly enough. I am still tasteless – funny, the Dutchmen treat that disease in much the same manner that you did – i.e. it doesn’t matter much what I eat nor in what form since I can’t taste it anyway. We are all busy speculating as to the means whereby we shall be transported to the new place (cattle truck is the usual conveyance for a POW here) and what conditions will be like there. I ask one thing in particular a place to practice my fiddle on which I am as keen as ever. We anticipate that it won’t be exactly baking in the summertime. Mail & parcels will take even longer to arrive but we will have to put up with that. I had a letter from your Mother yesterday posted just before her departure. Please thank her for it. I hope she & your Father have had a safe & pleasant journey. I hope you won’t forget that holiday of yours this year. Quite frankly I wouldn’t mind one myself. Harry Friend, my fiddle tutor, was in India as a child. His Father was an army musician all his life (Kneller Hall) a vertuoso [sic] on the clarinet & played almost every other instrument in a normal band or orchestra. He taught Harry the fiddle. I hope you are well dearest & Frances too. Im [sic] always thinking of you. All my love. John
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103
[underlined] Kriegsgefangenenpost [/underlined]
[postmark] PASSED P.W. 1163 [/postmark] [postmark] GEPRÜFT 64 [/postmark]
An Mrs U M VALENTINE
LIDO
Empfangsort: TENTERDEN GROVE
Straße: HENDON
Kreis: LONDON N W 4
Land: ENGLAND
[underlined] Gebührenfrei! [/underlined] Landesteil (Provinz usw.)
Absender:
Vor- und Zuname: Sgt John Valentine
Gefangenennummer: 450
Lager – Bezeichnung: M.-Stammlager Luft 3
[underlined] Deutschland (Allemagne)