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Allied troops, P.O.W. and workers in Great Britain during WW2.

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Following on with World War II.  I have already put down my thoughts on how Great Britain could not have won the war without South African gold (and diamonds) I now want to show that without South American oil from Venezuela she could not have carried on the war.  I was always under the impression that the oil came from the Middle East but when Italy entered the war in 1939 it became more difficult to transport oil from the Middle East due to closure of the Mediterranean and the threat of Italian submarines in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean so oil had to be obtained elsewhere.  I show here a few covers covering the subject including one from what I believe was the largest oil refinery in the then British Empire the one in Trinidad. 

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More oil.

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To continue with the South American involvement in World War II.  I discovered that South American citizens were actually serving in the British forces from at least Brazil and Argentina; with at least one of them serving in the Royal Air Force Commandoes (Which is something else I had never heard of despite having served in the RAF myself for thirteen years).  On top of this British forces were serving in South America, some as guards in Curacao others as liaison officers in at least Brazil (or were they recruiting).  On top of this I found that the Brazilian Navy was involved in the 'Battle of the Atlantic' and had an army fighting in Italy - and this from a neutral country.  I am showing below the items from, brazil, Argentina and Uruguay that I have managed to find and am looking for any information that I can glean especially with regards to what appears to be the unrecorded London 'undercover' address of 'River Plate House' and the River Plate London Committee that was housed there.  It would appear that the River Plate House from WW2 was demolished or maybe bombed, I can find no information or images relating to it.  Can anyone help?

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More South American.

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To continue with allied troops stationed in great Britain during World War II I am posting a few covers from the Czechoslovakian troops who seemed to be concentrated around Leamington Spa.  I know that many air crew found their way into Stratford-upon-Avon as a friend later living in Vereeniging had previously been married to one of them.  He had died and she remarried.  I was offered his accumulation of philatelic bits and pieces but didn't collect that area then - oh the missed opportunities!

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Czechoslovakia continued.

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Great posts Jamie. I really enjoyed reading your "military related posts".  You have a great skill, in unearthing the history behind a cover. I particularly like this, than just focusing on postmarks and and censor numbers. That is what postal history should be.

I also like the way you present "mutilated covers". Many of these WWII covers went through a lot. The recipients possibly in a hurry to hear the news, opening the covers by hand.

I must open my box of GB covers and have another look. One of my most prized piece from WWII is a humble POW card posted from Germany to Cyprus. I found it when I was a boy in a book in our school library and was a thank you note to the school for sending a food parcel to the prisoner. For a boy of around 15-16 at the time and  collecting stamps this was akin to winning the lottery. He was probably in the Mule Transport Company (600 volunteers). 

Two of my uncles served in the war, the one got killed in Italy and the other survived the war married an English woman from near Yorkshire and eventually emigrated to Australia. 

Here is a photo http://media.iwm.org.uk/ciim5/37/902/large_000000.jpg of what looks like an aloof and disgusted Lord Lloyd inspecting the regiment in Mowbray.  

 

 

Dear Yannis,  Thank you so much for your comments.  I often wonder if anyone ever reads what I post and what is more important learns from it.  I remember back in the 70's I used to get shot down because I used post cards in my collections, today it has become the done thing.  Referring to the 'mutilated covers'  I know many who still prefer the pristine F.D.C. but I look at them as the 'Antique Documents' of the future when they will be taken out of their hiding place in a museum, have the tissue paper folded back and you will only be allowed to touch them if you are wearing silk gloves!  We get the honour of searching for them in dealer's 'scrap boxes'.

I am interested in your POW card as many of the Basuto men who were recruited as labourers were used in the Italian Apennines as muleteers because of their skills learnt with Basuto Ponies.  Also I wondered when looking at your photograph, 'Were British officers and politicians taught to walk like that at school?'

I attach one of my favourite 'mutilated' covers, it is addressed to the 'Long Range Desert Group' in North Africa.  Can you imagine what stories it could tell?  It looks as if it went campaigning with the addressee when he went out on desert patrols.  'Quite against Regulations... Old Boy!'.  But as you can see it didn't because he poor fellow ended up as a P.O.W. 

Jamie.

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Obviously, the finishing school for bowler-hatted chaps like that who wanted to learn to walk properly was Monty Python's Ministry of Silly Walks.

That's a lovely LRDG cover, Jamie. I've seen it before, I think.  'Ice Cold in Alex' and Sylvia Sims comes to mind. Perhaps that's because of the thirsty and continuing Kalahari Oldsmobile thread?

@Jamie @Steve

I might not have been very active, lately but have been reading all your posts with great interest. I have been busy with work as well as writing up some of my Cape of Good Hope items that I have hopefully when the latter is finished I will have posts to keep the forums busy for a few months.

I managed to dig out the Cyprus World War II covers and wrote the first two pages. Maybe they might be of interest to Jamie and find a possible connection to the Lesotho, although the covers I have are from France, Egypt and Mowbray GB.  

As the Universe has its way, the POW card is from STALAG IV C, which employed many of the prisoners on the German effort to convert coal to petrol, and here you have it, a connection to SASOL.

I will post the balance soon, including also some from the Indian contingent when they were in Cyprus for a couple of months. In terms of RSA, I have a few Marion Island early covers, including one with a rare postmark. 

As for British politicians they are a unique breed! 

 

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