Letter from Sir Wilfrid Spender to his wife Lady Lillian Spender, 11 June 1916

Foo, Bar; Bar, Foo

Letter from Sir Wilfrid Spender to his wife Lady Lillian Spender, 11 June 1916

1 D1633/1/1/310 June 11 My pr Still very much in the dumps in spite of
ageing letters. We had a heavy attack last night &
I’m sorry to say for the first time the Hun got
into our trench for a minute tho’ way too soon turned
out. I believe our men behaved very gallantly but
some men are missing who were out on patrol.
It makes me furious by saying they were probably captured
in our lines & assume that our men are lying. I told him he did not understand the Ulstermen
& he thinks a partition, but it makes me
hopeless. He always assumes the worst & thank god
usually finds out he is wrong, & thinks it is an
exception. I told him we could not afford to prevaricate
in our reports as the men would soon find it out & 2 never forgive us. He is incredulous tho’ I have
proven to him that they are not the ordinary type
with who he has been “associated” who are glib
hais. I showed him the men reading thin bibles
which rather surprised him, but he cannot see the
power of information. The pity of it. The English
are unfit to govern Ulster. I hear the Lord Mayor gave great offence by
his speech at this meeting. I’m afraid the Knighthood
has spoilt a good man. No chance of the
bribed in this way. I hope the fine weather has just come in
time to let you have a very restful week end
but wish the feeding. R misses Gen. H, but the promotion
of Col. Henry is the great loss. His strong 3 religious views & his strength of character
was just what the Ulstermen want. We do seem unlucky. No one outside knows
how heroic our men really are, & no one is
able to give them the appreciation they deserve. P calls me an idealist. If it means
believing you are going to get the best out
of men & getting it, I am. I was up till nearly 2AM this
morning so am not much inclined to write. Hope for a longer letter tomorrow.
So glad you will have & Ed
& can explain things to them. I have given
up hoping to do it on paper. The MP still hold out glimmers of hope, 4 & I think there will be chaos in Ireland
later, so perhaps the b w & p r may
again become amphibious & fish in
troubled waters, tho’ not for their own benefit. They are curious animals & a very
funny match, but apparently get on
all right. Your b w
Wilfrid B Spender

This letter is part of a series of correspondence from Sir Wilfrid Bliss Spender to his wife Lady Lillian Spender. The letters date mainly from 1915 to 1918, when Sir Wilfrid was serving in France. The letters concern politics, the Irish question, personal life, and Wilfrid's experience of the Great War. In this letter Spender is writing to his wife, Lady Lillian Spender, née Dean, (1880-1968). Sir Wilfrid Spender (1876 - 1960) was a member of the British Army until 1913 when controversy surrounding his signature of the Ulster Solemn League and Covenant resulted in his resignation. Spender was called up for military service in 1914 and from 1915 served in the 36th (Ulster) Division. Throughout the war, Spender remained in contact with the Ulster Unionist leadership, and consistently opposed Home Rule and the six-county solution. In this letter, Spender describes a recent German incursion into his trench, gives details of his feud with an officer, 'P', whom he sees as incompetent, and regrets the departure of a respected colleague. He also suggests the imminent eruption of 'chaos in Ireland'.

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How to cite

Letters 1916, published by the Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities, Vienna, 2026 (https://letters1916static.github.io/letters1916-static/item__2852.html)