1/11/40 - Bombed out at 16 Esmond Rd

                                                                                                                Ministry of Supply

                                                                                                                Cor 4.b Room 612

                                                                                                                Great Westminister House

                                                                                                                Horseferry Rd

                                                                                                                London SW1

                                                                                                                1/11/40

My dear  Ida

                                I have had to leave 16 Esmond Rd, Beford Park, through Bombing. I am now sleeping in the ministry and the above must be considered as my only address at present.

I have not seen Meryn since he told me that his office has been destroyed. Two heavy bombs were dropped quite close to us last night in Great St Peter Street.

                                If ever a city was in the front line and under fire, London has been and is. Yet outside everything is normal as far as possible and everyone cheerful. The people, old, young, families and children you see going to sleep in the shelters at night and then coming away again in the morning are amazingly cheerful.

                                The people have shown us all a shining example of indomitable will, cheerfulness and confidence, in this London of ours.

Hope you are both fit

Love

Your aff cousin

Elydyr

23/10/40 - Bombed out at Chevron's Club

16 Esmond Rd

Bedford Park

London W4

                23/10/40

My Dear Ida

                Do not address any more letters to me at the “Chevrons Club” 74 St Georges Sq. This was bombed out last week and has ceased to exist. I had a very marvellous escape. The Bomb hit the roof of our house and the next and crashed through to the ground floor, completely demolishing all the solid stone staircases and cutting off the bedrooms. I had had a bed made in the basement (to avoid the noise) and was in bed when it happened. About 20 tons of masonry was held up by the solid ground floor above my head, and I only got the ceiling on top of me. The fumes of the ammonal (the explosive), dust and dense black smoke nearly choked me. I got through to the next house no 76 (part of the club) looking as though I had just come out of a flower mulch and then fallen into a soot heap. There were 40 people in the club when we were bombed and no one was scratched! We must be grateful to the almighty for our lives.

I have just heard from Meryn that his office in Berners St has been burnt out and everything destroyed except what was in the strong room.

I had to be away from the office for 3 days owing to shock, but am getting better. I have given you an address, but my only permanent address I can give you is Ministry of Supply, Room 612, Great Westminster House, Horseferry Rd.

Love to you both

Your aff cousin

Elydyr

A group of soldiers stand outside the entrance to a Chevrons Club at 74 St. George's Square..  Chevron’s Club later moved to Dorset Sq and opened by the Queen (then Princess Elizabeth) on 10/02/1948.

21/9/40 - Working at Ministry of Supply

                            Chevron’s Club

                                                                                                                74 St Georges Sq

                                                                                                                London SW1

                                                                                                                21/9/40

My Dear Ida

                I am just sending you a line, hoping that all is well with you. It seems such a long time since I had any news of you.

We have been having a bad time bombing for the last 2 weeks and several houses have been demolished quite close to our place.

The work however goes on with surprisingly little upset at the Ministry of Supply. I never cease marvelling at the astounding courage of the girls here, who do not seem to fear anything and who turn up even though their homes have been bombed.

I saw Meryn the other day, he is very busy with the Home Guard just now.

I am in the Home Guard for the Ministry, but ours is a static force for the defence of our buildings, I sleep in the office once a week. The people of London, even in the badly bombed areas are extraordinarily cheerful, but full of deadly hatred for the Germans, Nazis or otherwise. It is having a quite opposite effect  to which Hitler (and Ribbentrop) thought.

Just drop a line when you can.

               

Love to you both

Your aff cousin

Elydyr

31/5/40 - Staying at Chevron's Club - Working at the War Office

                                                                                                                Chevron’s Club

                                                                                                                74 St Georges Sq

                                                                                                                London SW1

                                                                                                                31/5/40

My Dear Ida

                It seems such a long time since I write to you, but am doing so now.

I am very well in health and we are working as, no doubt you have seen in the papers, 7 days a week, but it is all I can do to help.

We have been badly let down by “Leopold the arch traitor”[1]. I saw a couple of lads just back from Flanders, dusty, dirty, tired but cheerful and full of fight. Wonderful chaps, the sailors, soldiers and airmen of ours and thank god for them and Winston Churchill.

I suppose you have evacuated children in the district now. I see Meryn now and again but have not heard from him for 6 months or so.

Hoping that you and Trixie are fit

Love

Your aff cousin

Elydyr

I hope that you are all cheerful, because all is well.

---

[1] King Leopold III of Belgium, took control of the Belgian Army and without reference to the Belgian Prime Minister or Belgian Government, surrendered to the Nazis on 27^th May 1940. The French Prime Minister accused him of Treason, Winston Churchill said “At the last moment when Belgium was already invaded, King Leopold called upon us to come to his aid, and even at the last moment we came. He and his brave, efficient Army, nearly half a million strong, guarded our left bank and thus kept open our only line of retreat to the sea. Suddenly, without prior consultation, with the least possible notice, without the advice of his ministers and upon his own personal act, he sent a plenipotentiary to the German Command, surrendered his Army and exposed our whole flank and means of retreat”. Winston had made the decision to evacuate on 25^th May. Now seen as a bit of a scapegoat.

24/3/39 - Working at the War Office

                                                                                                               Chevron’s Club

                                                                                                                74 St Georges Sq

                                                                                                                London SW1

                                                                                                                24/3/39

My Dear Ida

                

The War Office is very pleasant to work in, nobody interferes with one’s work and in the case of old civil servants and old soldiers like ourselves there is no question of checking the output of our work. However, it has got to be done and we proved to do this in the easiest way.

Please excuse the paper and the envelope, I am writing this in the WO.