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John English was with 9th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry during the Second battle of Ypres. Throughout May 1915, he wrote almost daily letters home to his wife, Beryl, who was about to give birth to their second child. The letters detail the events and conditions, but English never forgets to enjoy the small moments of peace or normality.

The letters has been transcribed by Durham at War volunteers and edited for some spellings and punctuation. You can read some extracts below or download the whole transcript.

‘We did our digging last night all night and had only about 20 shells to contend with. It was dark of course. As I was walking about the line of trench I heard a shell coming and jumped into the trench for shelter. I jumped right on to a man’s bunk and he thought he was gone poor fellow. I do not think it is any disgrace to take cover from their awful shells in fact I think it is wise to do so as their spreading effect is awful. They make huge holes in the ground about three or four yards across and about four feet deep. We finished our work without any casualties I am glad to say.’
2 May 1915

‘The Germans were attacking at two places and we could see the yellow chlorine fumes of the gas, which the beasts use to suffocate our men, rolling over the country. It keeps quite close to the ground, only high enough to catch the men.’
3 May 1915

‘I got up about 8.30 and had bacon, eggs and tea and jam, and now I am sitting in the sun feeling as happy as can be away from you, dear heart. We are all as jolly as sand boys. I had a good wash and shave this morning too, which is worth a good deal, and Jock is like himself again after the nightmare march.’
3 May 1915

‘Do take care of your dear self, darling, for my sake and for the sake of our kid. God bless him and tell him his daddy loves him and would like to hug him and have his little hands patting my face, oh how I should love it. I feel very home sick at times, not because I am tired of this but for sheer want of you, my darling. We have only just had our baptism and have a lot to do yet no doubt but I question if we shall ever be in a hotter place than we were at Verlorenhoek. The Colonel was reading from the Journal that the bombardment was the heaviest the world has ever known and I can well believe it.’
9 May 1915

‘We had an interesting time last night, we were out between our front line trench and the Germans for the purpose of filling in an old trench. As soon as I told the men where they were, they hurried up and filled it in in record time, then when we finished we had to come back a little further and fill in some dug outs. We buried all sorts of equipment and things. I got a German rifle and brought it back. I hope I may be able to get it home, but the Authorities will not allow us to send any souvenirs or any clothing home, so that means I cannot send my dirty clothes home but I shall get them washed, I have already got one lot washed. We lost one killed and six wounded yesterday.’
17 May 1915

‘Ypres itself was burning fiercely and the red flame lighted up the whole place. The railway was a bad place to march on, the men had to march in file instead of fours. In places the railway runs along an embankment, at other places through a cutting just like all railways. Every here and there telephone wires were lying across the road over which the men all tripped up and it was full of shell holes, rails torn up and lying across the road. All this interfered with the column getting along… It was all very weird, the gaunt and broken telegraph poles standing up silhouetted against the red glare on our left front… we had come too far and had to scramble down one at a time off the embankment over the gutter and through the hedge. The bank was steep and the only bridge over the gutter was one narrow plank, to bring a battalion through that on a black dark night was awful. Many of them came scrambling down the bank, flopped into the ditch which was full of water, floundered in it until they found the gap in the hedge, all this mind you with a heavy pack and equipment on and a rifle in hand.’
18 May 1915

‘I had a look through the wood where the Commanding Officer and I spent the wet night which I told you of. The wood is so different, trees lying about everywhere uprooted and cut off, the ground is all dug up with shell holes, and dug outs. The garden, vinery, stables, and every other building in the place is shattered, there is one small building, which seems to have been an observatory, which is still standing, all the glass is broken and it is filled up with sand bags.’
25 May 1915

‘My congratulations to you my darling. Both doing well, that is so good, and I hope and pray both continue to do well. How pleased and how thankful and proud I am my sweetheart. Oh, that you may go on well and soon be your own sweet self again. I got Mrs Kelly’s wire last night, the 28th, just before we left Potijze for down country and it is such an awful march through Ypres, I took it for a very good augury, and as a matter of fact it was just a quiet midnight moonlight stroll without anything happening.’
29 May 1915

Date: 1-31 May 1915

Author: English, John

Reference: D/DLI 7/1151/1-28

Where to find this: Durham County Record Office

Contributed by Durham County Record Office | Dorothy C. | Kenneth M. | Henry R. | Melissa D.