Letters to the front

[Guest Northumberland]

How would a card , as in the attached example addressed simply to Signaller Charles Gordon 14th Northumberland Fusiliers, British Expeditionary Force, France; have found it's way to him? How did the local Army Postal Service work and how efficient was it please?

[Will O'Brien]

Northumberland..............Can't add anything to the mechanics of how post was collected, sorted & delivered but I can say that it was very efficient. My understanding is that letters & parcels arrived with the men within three or four days of being sent...................Thats better than the service some of us get today 90 years later

[Desmond7]

Echo Will - plus ... think of public services in context. No cars, no phones, no e-mail!

In 1913 a man from Ballymena could travel to Belfast on the 6am train and be in Belfast for 6.45am start guaranteed. Weekly papers published the timetable for week, it was set in stone and the job was done.

Realise people's lifestyles have changed but in those days - the post DID arrrive as soon as possible!

des

[Jim Gordon]

Like the others I have little knowledge of the working of the Army Postal Service but they were indeed very efficient.

On the first day of 3rd. Ypres, while the 1/7th. Gordons were cosolidating their position after taking Hindenburg Farm, a figure was seen loomimg out of the smoke and rain wearing a Tam O' Shanter instead of the mandatory steel helmet. It was the Battalion Postman delivering the mail among which was a copy of the previous day's Times newspaper.

I used to have a postcard addressed to my father as follows "Trenchland, Somewhere in France" which he had received at the Front. A pretty impressive service !

Regards

Jim Gordon

[laughton]

There is some information here:

http://members.aol.com/reubique/aps.htm

This is also an interesting American description:

http://www.homefrontmagazine.com/feat/letters.html

It appears however that the true story as to how the system worked is on the "Western Front Association" web site:

http://www.westernfrontassociation.com/the...eslettersup.htm

Richard of Canada

[Guest dinkidi]

G'day

Its hardly a definitive answer, but the AWM pic below is almost mind blowing, given the relative acerage of Anzac Cove and say the Western Front.

Rupert Murdoch's dad let the Gallipoli cat out of the bag after supposedly "enquiring" into the postal arrangements at Anzac.

ooRoo

Pat

Mail_oct_15

[Terry_Reeves]

The following publications will give you all the information you need:

History of the British Army Postal Service Vol 2 , 1903-1927; EWB Proud (Proud-Bailey 1982)

The Postal History of the British Army in WW1 - before and after. (1903-1929). - Kennedy and Crabb (1977)

A Brief History of the British Army Postal Service during WW1 - E & A Entwistle (1991).

The importance of mail was taken seriously by the Army, so- much - so , that home mail and overseas mail, warranted the appointment of Brigadier - Generals to oversee the respective distribution.

Terry Reeves

[Guest Northumberland]

Thanks terry et al; most useful

regards

Charles

[ArmyOfficer]

Northumberland..............Can't add anything to the mechanics of how post was collected, sorted & delivered but I can say that it was very efficient. My understanding is that letters & parcels arrived with the men within three or four days of being sent...................Thats better than the service some of us get today 90 years later

Will: Thats an impressive figure; it was taking 3-4 weeks for mail to get from Germany to Iraq last year. Still, you can bet your bottom dollar (pound?) that the soldiers of the time would disagree with your assessment. Nothing more contentious or important to a soldier in a combat zone than mail...they'll always say its NEVER enough and its ALWAYS late. Same with chow.

No one gets more beat up than mail guys and cooks...finance clerks take a close third place.

[Terry_Reeves]

Outward mail to the BEF followed this route:

1. Collected at the GPO in London where, as far as possible it was sorted into unit bundles. It was then forwarded to the Base Post Office overseas.

2. At the Base Post Office it was checked, weighed and handed to the censors. Those letters not already sorted into unit bundles were were arranged by arm of service ie RA, RE, Infantry ect and then into unit bundles , each bundle arranged alphabetically by name of addressee. The mail was then bagged and despatched to the Advanced Base Post Office.

3. Mail arriving at the ABPO ( together with any cross posted mail from within the BEF) was placed in the charge of a mail guard of the Army Postal Service who took it to the Train Railhead.

4. From the Railhead offices the mail was then moved by supply column lorries to the various Refilling Points where the mail guards would distribute it the the various Field Post Offices linked to that particular train. A Post Orderly from each unit would then collect it from the FPO at the Refillng Point for his unit.

The Train refers to the supply train - ie the logistic "tail" of a formation.

Mail to the UK, followed the reverse route.

Terry Reeves

[Robert Dunlop]

Just read about one of the Cameliers in the Jordan Valley, a New Zealander, who received two parcels from home on the same day. The Imperial Camel Corps were located some 70 miles from the nearest railhead and few other supplies got through. However, not only did mail arrive but it was evident that the parcels had been posted the same day. They came by different boats, one of which was torpedoed. The parcel had been rescued and was still able to be delivered on the same day. The contents were useless but the sentiment was appreciated. Another example of the extraordinary efforts that were made to ensure that the mail got through.

Robert

[Canadawwi]

Here's an article about the Christmas mail rush. The article was published December 13th, 1916.