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With a title like this there was a wealth of material on display - the mixture and variety was far too much for me to describe fully and so I have either made a brief reference to the subject matter of each person displaying or else I have picked one or two items to describe. There was something for everyone and this was exemplified by the good turnout of members - the highest in over a year. Thank you for coming and an open invitation to all members within easy (and not so easy) travelling distance of Waterloo to come and join us. We welcomed Vittoriano Zambrini from Italy (visiting family in London) and Tom Handley who travelled up from Somerset (and not for the first time). Keith Tranmer started the proceedings with some fine material connected with Austria - the occupation of Moldovia during the Crimean War; the war with Denmark (1864) and various other campaigns, including that with Italy and Prussia (who declared war in 1866). He also showed a letter from General Bartlett which was illustrated and described in the last (Summer) edition of the Newsletter. Finally Keith showed items connected with Airships L31 to L33 which flew over Essex on the raids to London, including a picture postcard showing an unarmed Special Constable who single handedly took charge of the 22 crew of the Zeppelin L33 which had been brought down on the Essex coast on 24 September 1916. Michael Goodman displayed a variety of Czech postcards published 1940-42 cancelled with Czech Field Post commemorative postmarks. He also showed a variety of WW1 items with cachets and slogans from the War Savings Association - "Feed the Guns", "Buy National War Bonds", "Buy National War Bonds Now", "British Tanks WSA", including proof impressions. Lastly he displayed items showing variants of the postmark used at the Pewsey Central Flying School at Upavon 1917-21. Tom Handley - an Ethiopian specialist - showed Italian invasion mail 1896 and Ethiopian mail of 1935-36 during the Italian invasion, including the earliest known censored cover of 1935 and internal censored mail. He also showed items from various Red Cross detachments, including Britain and mail from the British Legation in Addis Ababa. John Daynes showed items from part of the Gerald Davis correspondence he had acquired, when he was serving in the Orkney & Shetland Defence Force and in Burma. He also showed items to/from the late Major J A Smith (a founder member and first and only Chairman). The Burma items included material posted through Burma from China and items from the Burmese RN Volunteer Reserve, postmarked in London; Army Signals covers and a cover from the First American Volunteer Group with the address Box 2000, Rangoon, Burma postmarked Experimental PO R21 of 18 October 1941. Alistair Kennedy included a selection of WW2 items connected with Puckeridge and Standon, Herts; he also had a potpourri of material including items from the Mauritius Artillery, Russian patriotic envelopes; mail to both British and German POWs in Curragh Internment Camp, Eire; Liberation of France (postcard sent September 1944 to USA); National Registration Identity card (a very topical subject at the moment in the UK with the talk of identity cards) and WW2 Hungarian military postcard. John Leathes showed material from the U-Boat organisation at Kiel after the operational flotillas had left for the Atlantic coast - depot ships, personnel bureau, U-Boat acceptance command and mail from C-in-C U-Boats staff (Feldpost M24932). Keith Fitton showed a selection of mail from the Seychelles in WW1 to various locations in Europe - he made the point that no censorship markings were applied in the Seychelles during WW1. He also showed a number of WW2 censored items, Seychelles forces, including 1504 Company Pioneer Corps and an unrecorded Seychelles censor mark. Vittoriano Zambrini displayed a selection of internment camp covers form Switzerland - some to the British Legation in Berne, but all bearing internment camp postmarks. He also showed a couple of items with a query concerning the cachet "Evade Post". Peter Burrows had a WW2 flavour with Comfort Fund material (mainly covers and cards) including items from Serbian Relief Fund; Australia - 1st Light Horse Comforts Fund; Canadian Field Comforts Commission and Reinforcement Camp Recreation Committee and New Zealand comforts items. Guest Keith Elliott displayed postal stationery used in Malays, including Malaysian airmails, Australian Forces - franks; YMCA and Salvation Army printed covers; concessionary rate Australian and Indian (but not British) forces; 12c Letter Card and variants, including uprated for UK and use of stamps or franks of various Malaysian states. Peter High had some unusual items to show - and not his usual hospital ships ! Instead he displayed a number of radio messages found on notice boards or in files on American warships destined for the scrapyard. These included messages announcing the end of the war in Europe and also the end of the war against the Japanese. Frank Schofield regaled us with his usual topic of the British Army in Italy during WW1 - again as usual well research and well written up: this time it included items from the British Adriatic Mission in Rome, British Artillery units attached to the Italian Army; the British Military Mission to the Serbian Army in Belgrade. Also RFC/RNAS units in Italy, including No 3 Balloon Base in Brindisi as well as British Ambulance units in Italy. Chris Cruttwell displayed the Portuguese Army in East Africa during WW1, showing various regimental cachets which authorised free postage. Keith Lillywhite displayed Kriegsmarine material, including items from Hitler's personal yacht, floating flak batteries, U-Boat postcards, sail training ships - still in use today in other guises in the USA, Portugal and Ukraine. Lastly he showed a selection of East German humorous military-related postcards. Eddie Weeks showed Boer War POW ships - warships or liners moored off Capetown, incoming mail to POWs aboard these ships, each of which had its own cachet. Ships included HMS Penelope, Manila, Harlech Castle, City of Cambridge and Roslin Castle. Nick Colley displayed WW2 naval items - registered/postage due and also the Royal Naval College at Chester during the war. Peter O'Keeffe put up for display British forces registered mail from both WW1/2 showing a wide variety of registered labels; postmarks included not only British FPOs but also Fleet Post Office A. |