|
We know Peter's collecting interests and we have seen items from time to time as part of other displays or competitions and also Journal articles. However, I believe that this is the first time that Peter has had the opportunity to devote a whole afternoon to his specialised collecting interest. Specialised it may be, but its application is extremely wide covering as it does almost every conflict and every country. Peter started off the afternoon with two identically captioned postcards showing photographs of "US America's Hospital Ship Red Cross at Falmouth September 1914". However, he had not come cross any reference to a ships name "Red Cross" and wondered if the Red Cross had objected and the vessel quickly renamed. One of the cards was addressed to the Chief Master at Arms, USS Red Cross, c/o 4 Trafalgar Square, London. He then launched into the display proper starting with HMS Melville in Hong Kong during the 2nd Opium War of 1860. The came USS Relief during the Philippine insurrection 1899-1902 following by a selection of items from German hospital ships involved in the Boxer Uprising 1900, including Gera (using Marine Schiffpost No 6) and Wittekind (No 28). Items connected with the Dreadnought were shown - this was the Seamen's Hospital, moored off Greenwich. Included was a wrapper from HMS Imaum to the Dreadnought with a red London paid strike of 15 FE 1854. He also put on a more extensive display of British hospital ships of the Anglo-Boer War period 1899-1902 to that shown in the 16-sheet competition in December, including the Maine, Spartan, Trojan and Atlantian. Next came the Russo-Japanese War 1904-05 with some beautifully illustrated Japanese items from vessels such as the Kise Maru, Kousai Maru and Kobe-Maru. For more information and illustrations (some in colour) please see Newsletter No 260 (Summer 2004). WW1 covered various French hospital ships (including Asie, Aquitaine, Bien-Hoa and Charles Roux). Items included covers written on board ship with cachets or postmarks from the ship, postcards or other prints showing the actual vessels. Still with the French were various hospital ships involved in the Rif Insurrection 1919-26 (including Caroline and Circassie). Italian hospital ships (Nave Ospedale Militare) from the Italo-Turkish War 1911-12 and also WW1 included Regina D'Italia, Konig Albert, Italia, Albaro, Cordove, Flora and others. Peter had a small collection of items associated with the hospital ship HMSH Madras. The citizens of Madras raised money for the ship that carried its name by producing various ephemeral items for sale at the Exhibition of Arts & Industries, January 1916. These included a book of seals (the Madras War Fund seal). WW2 hospital ships included the Dutch Tasman; French Sphinx, Cap St Jacques and Canada; South Africa Amra; HMASH Centaur and Manunda; HMNZHS Maunganui and HMHS Atlantis, Vita and Vashna. Also displayed were illustrated airgraphs from HMSH Maine, St David, Dorsetshire and Leinster. There was a cover and card from the German hospital ship Wilhelm Gustloff which on 30 January 1945 was sunk by the Russian submarineS13 with a loss of over 7,000 lives (mainly women and children refugees). Also shown were the Stadt Passau and Stuttgart. Whilst still with Germany moving forward several decades there were items from the Helgoland which was involved in the Vietnam War between 1966-72. American hospital ships from WW2 shown were the USS Solace, Tranquillity, Relief, Samaritan, Refuge and Bountiful. Many of the items were non-philatelic, mainly cancelled with anonymous US Navy cancels. Another post-war conflict which saw the employment of hospital ships was the Korean War; the Danish vessel Jutlandia, operated by the Danish Red Cross, was involved from January 1951 until October 1953. Peter had a small collection of covers and cards accepting that a great deal of which was philatelic, but including the rare straight line maritime marks (in Danish) and paper currency vouchers (four values) which were used to overcome currency problems when dealing with patients from a number of different countries. Lastly, and some of his favourite items, Peter showed a number of items from British and French WW1 ambulance barges which moved about the rivers and canals of France, almost right up to the front line. They were used almost exclusively to evacuate wounded from the front line. French vessels were named (La Danoise was one) but the British (operated by Inland Water Transport branch) were not. An exceptional postcard was of the interior of one send to Denmark from one of only four Danish volunteer nurses to serve aboard the French barges. |