Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 15 December 1915 Letters 1916-1923 Marie Martin

This work was originally published by Maynooth University in Ireland in 2017. In 2026 this data, stored in a relational database was extracted and converted into this TEI/XML document.

 Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities Vienna, AT 2026

This is an open access work licensed under Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International license (CC BY-NC 4.0).

Christmas letter from Marie Martin (1892-1975) to her mother Mary. Marie writes regarding presents sent and received and of the quiet in her hospital; there are relatively few patients where she is stationed at the moment but a new envoy is arriving soon. Marie describes some diversions such as a visit to a French opera called Manon with the matron, and she writes of the ongoing war effort in Serbia. Marie closes with a mention of her Uncle Frank who is in poor health.Marie Helena Martin, later known as 'Mother Mary', was a volunteer nurse during the First World War. She served in field hospitals in Malta, Leeds, and France working for the British army and later went on to become the founder of the Medical Missionaries of Mary (MMM).

 Medical Missionaries of Mary BF119-1915-12-15, BF119-1915-12-15 https://letters1916.ie/item/1101 English Marie Martin 1915-12-15 Malta Mary Martin Greenbank Monkstown Ireland Female World War I (1914-1918) Personal Relations

The data in these XML files was generated based on a data dump from the Magellan database (https://github.com/Maynooth-Center-for-Digital-Humanities/Magellan). Each database record has been converted to a JSON file (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/json). The element section of the JSON file contains the TEI-encoded contents of the letters. The TEI XML has been cleaned and made well-formed using a Python script (https://github.com/letters1916static/letters-data/tree/main/src).

 15th Dec:1915. My own dearest Mother I hope I have timed this rightly as I want it if possible to arrive on Christmas morning, so that I shall share in all you are doing in spirit as I can— not be there in person to greet you all & wish you every blessing, happiness & luck. I know you will miss us all very much as I miss you all but I hope you will get a nice cheery letter from the boys saying they are well & happy, as this leaves me. Perhaps Tommy will be able to get up for a few days leave. I hope so as I know what a difference it would make to you. A 1000 thanks for the lovely blouse, gloves & the vest which I shall wear at o it has turned bitterly cold & they will make me so comfortable. Ireland seems to be coming on, it did please me to see they were all made in Ireland. I cannot tell you how nice it is when one is away to see people are thinking of you. Granny has sent me such lovely gloves with Xmas wishes & poor Uncle Bernard who has so much to think of sent me such a nice present & card. I am longing for your next letter it is some time since I heard but am sure to get one in a day as two only a few things &letters came up here today, they always arrive in dribs & drabs. This is the quickest mail we have had from England. Grannys parcel was only posted on the 8th and I received it to day. A very funny thing happened yesterday, I was in a great hurry on duty & just ran out of the tent and saw a girl on horse- back talking to another R.A.S. I looked at her well & said to myself that is very like Miss Judway,( the pretty girl out on a trip to the W.J. who lost her brother in the war) but had not time to stop to find out then but afterwards asked the R.A,S & she said it was & that she is out on a visit with the Govenor so she is going to ask her to come & see me some day I am sure she will ask me out to Tea some day. I should like to meet her again very much— perhaps she will not be so keen,— she looks as pretty as ever. I sent you a very small present by post enclosed in Violets parcel, with all my heartiest wishes. I have bought you some very handsome lace but I was nervous about sending it in case it gets lost but if I hear these small ones arrive safely I shall send it on. I thought the lace & insertion would come in useful for under clothing it is nothing wonderful but strong & good. We have a new M.O a Mr Martin who is a tutor for feeds & treatments he keeps us very busy with the comparatively few patients we have now but I do not know what we shall do when we get in the new convoy if they are bad cases. It is just pouring now I hope it will be stopped by the time I go on duty as one gets drenched, going from one ward to another. The Matron has been very kind to me & asked me to go again to the Opera last Monday night I enjoyed it very much, it was called 'Manon' the scene was laid in France in the 17th century. The news from Servia seems very bad and the poor British seem to be leaving a hard time of it. I hope you have heard lately from Charlie— poor boy. What a surprise it must have been for them at Clyde Rd when Uncle Charlie arrived, do you know I miss him very much he has always been so kind to me & and I used to see so much of him. I sincerely hope he is really stronger, It is very sad to hear Uncle Frank is so poorly all he suffers. Well I hope you are having a nice dinner party on Christmas day & having all the relations & I hope someone special for Ethel and Violet don't forget to give the Aunt a chance with Mr. G. Now I shall close this with very good wishes & blessing. I am longing for your next letter they are always so sweet and thoughtful. With heaps of love to you dearest of all mothers Your ever loving and grateful daughter Marie xxxxxxxxxxx I enclose quite a good photo of our flock. Best love Marie Marie Martin Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 29 December 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Lewis Martin, 18 June 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 27 August 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Lewis Martin, 21 June 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 17 June 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Lewis Martin, 23 June 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Lewis Martin, 2 July 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 7 September 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Lewis Martin, 26 June 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Lewis Martin, 20 August 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 27 August 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 17 September 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 18 Sept 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 19 September 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 21 September 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 27 September 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 4 October 1916Letter from Marie Martin to Mary Martin, 13 July 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, July 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 15 July 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 15 July 1916Letter from Geo. R. Boase to Marie Martin, 10 July 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 20 July 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 3 August 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 8 August 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 12 October 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 27 December 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 27 November 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 23 [January] 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 15 December 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 4 April 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 12 November 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 8 July 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 6 February 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 9 April 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 18 November 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, [November'] 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 13 August 1916 Greenbank Monkstown Ireland Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 15 December 1915 Malta Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 27 December 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 27 November 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 23 [January] 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 15 December 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 4 April 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 12 November 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother Mary Martin, 6 February 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 9 April 1916Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, 18 November 1915Letter from Marie Martin to her mother, Mary Martin, [November'] 1915