Letter from John Valentine to his wife Ursula

Letter from John Valentine to his wife Ursula

Number 166-23. Writes how her recent letter has restored his good spirits but still awaiting missing clothing parcels. Reports arrival of tobacco and thanks her for music. Catches up with financial issues. Mentions he is fit and working hard with violin and continued practise in incinerator which results in rest of camp questioning his sanity.

1944-06-25

Two page handwritten letter

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EValentineJRMValentineUM440625

Start of transcription
25-6-44
Darling Ursula: I was overjoyed yesterday to have yours of 26th March – in sequence. For one thing I hadn’t heard from you for over a month & secondly by way of reaction from all the good news of the last weeks I was in a very depressed state. Your letter restored my good spirits as does everything that comes from you. Unhappily I still await my missing parcels (clothing) A year has now elapsed since I last had one. Not many go astray. I have just been singularly unlucky. Had some cigs today from Ray Cowdry, please thank him. Many thanks for sending off more music which I shall be delighted receive as well as your parents gift of C.G.B. Please thank them too. Thanks for sending details of household exs. I’m a bit out of touch with monetary affairs nowadays & I can only echo your hope that we’ll be able to manage things so excellently in every way that I intend being everything to you for ever, sending you out to work while I stay at home & looking after Frances. Incidentally, I loved your description of her on that sunny March morning. I wish I could have been with you. I am as fit as ever – a little tired perhaps since I’ve been working harder than ever at my fiddle – over 43 hours last week. Practice conditions are worse than ever since the loss of our theatre. Bands & choirs now practice in the spud room where I spent most of the winter but as the weather has been good I have spent the major part of each day in the incinerator. The latter has been a great success as a practice room for I get absolutely no competition there. The only snag is the sneers & gibes of the rest of the camp by whom serious doubts are cast upon my sanity. I hope they are wrong but I sometimes wonder because derangement is unfortunately not unknown here. [censored sentences] I wish I could forsee [sic] the events of the next 6 months. Sometimes I even visualise liberation – but not often. I hope youre [sic] well darling & looking as lovely as ever. Kiss Frances
John
[page break]
166 23
[underlined] Kriegsgefangenenpost [/underlined]
[stamp]
[inserted] Little Close
Devon Rd
Salcombe
Devon [/inserted]
An MRS U.M. VALENTINE
[deleted FELMERSHAM [/deleted]
[stamp]
Empfangsort: [deleted] BOTTRELLS LANE [/deleted]
Strasse: [deleted] CHALFONT ST GILES [/deleted]
Kreis: [deleted] BUCKS [/deleted]
Land: ENGLAND
Absender:
Vor- und Zuname: Sgt JRM VALENTINE
Gefangenennummer: 450
Lager-Bexeichnung: Kriegsgefangenenlager Nr. [deleted] 6 [/deleted] [inserted] 3. [/inserted] der Luftwaffe
Deutschland (Allemagne)