Letter to a correspondent for the Jewish Chronicle
Letter to a correspondent for the Jewish Chronicle
Description
This letter is addressed to Mr Lucien Harris. During the Second World War he worked as the Manchester correspondent for the Jewish Chronicle. The Jewish Chronicle was founded in 1841 and during both world wars it reported on Jewish experience and Jewish service. In his career Harris reported on the situation on the home front, such as schools and housing set up for Jewish child refugees to Britain. As this letter shows, he also reported on life for Jewish servicemen whilst in stationed in the UK.
This letter is from the Public Relations Officer of Western Command. It enables him to visit the Czechoslovakian Army Camp, which was based at Cholmondeley Park Camp in Cheshire. 3,500 Czech soldiers and airmen were based here after the evacuation from Dunkirk, where these soldiers had played a key role in defending Dunkirk.
The instruction to the Camp Commandant show Harris would report on the ‘Jewish personnel’ in the camp for his paper. However any report would be be checked and censored before being published.
Harris had made such a positive impression with these men that on 2 October that year he received another letter, this time from the Czech army Captain wishing him a Happy New Year ‘in my name and in the name of the Jewish soldiers and officers in the Czech army’.