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Find letters by author, location, battle, keyword, or theme across all 50 stories in the memorial.
50 letters in the archive
A Letter Never Sent
Hannah Weiss → Karl Weiss · 1943-09-12 · Berlin, Germany
Found hidden in the walls of a Berlin apartment during renovations in 1998. Hannah wrote this letter to her husband Karl, who had been taken to the Eastern Front. She died in a bombing raid before she could mail it.
The Night Before D-Day
Sergeant Robert "Bobby" Sullivan → Margaret "Maggie" Sullivan · 1944-06-04 · Upottery Airfield, Devon, England
Written the night before loading onto transports for D-Day, this letter was found in Bobby's barracks bag after he was killed when his C-47 was hit by flak over Utah Beach.
The Cliffs of Gallipoli
Jack O'Brien → Mary O'Brien · 1915-05-02 · Anzac Cove, Gallipoli, Turkey
Jack writes to his sister Mary from the cliffs of Gallipoli, describing the chaos of the landing, the heat, the flies, and the strange beauty of a place that was meant to be their finest hour.
Cups of Tea and Gentle Hands
Edith Baker → Margaret Baker · 1916-08-15 · Étaples, France
Edith, a VAD nurse at the vast Étaples base hospital, writes to her sister Margaret in London as the wounded from the Somme pour in like a tide. She describes the horror, the humour, and the small graces that keep her going.
From the Ridge, with Pride
Thomas "Tommy" MacKenzie → Eleanor MacKenzie · 1917-04-10 · Vimy Ridge, France
Written from a captured German dugout on the heights of Vimy Ridge on the morning after the victory. Tommy's letter is a love letter to his wife and a declaration of a nation's coming of age.
The Moon Over Changsha
Sergeant Liang Weiguo → Lin Mei · 1942-01-04 · Changsha, Hunan Province, China
Found in the lining of a sergeant's cap after he fell defending the bridge approach at Changsha. He wrote this by moonlight on scrap paper, knowing he would not see the morning.
Christmas Eve, 1917
Friedrich Müller → Greta Müller · 1917-12-24 · Verdun, France
Written on Christmas Eve during one of the coldest winters of the war. Friedrich describes the unofficial ceasefire and the carols drifting across no man's land.
In the Shadows of Lyon
Dr. Antoine Lefèvre → Madeleine Lefèvre · 1943-05-20 · Lyon, France
A French resistance doctor writes to his wife from hiding in Lyon, having just treated a hidden Jewish child. The letter was smuggled out and hidden in a hollow book.
I Never Got to Say Goodbye
Henri Dubois → Marie Dubois · 1916-06-04 · Verdun, France
Henri wrote to his wife Marie from the hell of Verdun, describing a daughter he had never seen. The letter fell from his pocket as he died. A German soldier kept it for ninety years before it was returned to Henri's granddaughter.
Four Hours as Husband and Wife
Haruo Araki → Shigeko Araki · 1945-05-11 · Chiran Air Base, Kagoshima, Japan
Second Lieutenant Haruo Araki married his childhood sweetheart at 11 PM and had four hours with her before flying his final mission. He was 21 years old.
If I Should Fall
Jean-Luc Moreau → Claire Dubois · 1915-04-22 · Ypres, Belgium
A French soldier's letter to his sweetheart, written before the Second Battle of Ypres. Jean-Luc was a poet before the war.
The Cherry Blossom Winds
Lieutenant Kenji Yamamoto → Yuki Yamamoto · 1945-04-05 · Kanoya Air Base, Kyushu, Japan
A kamikaze pilot's final letter to his young wife, written the day before his mission. The letter is composed in careful calligraphy and includes a death poem.
My Darling Zen
Frederick Key → Zen Hall · 1916-02-14 · Guillemont, France
Frederick Key wrote 42 letters and 15 postcards to his beloved Zen Hall. This was his last — written on Valentine's Day 1916. He died on the first day of the Somme. She wrote in her diary: 'Letter came saying my darling killed... went to Lichfield.'
On the Hills of Cassino
Giovanni Rossi → Lucia Rossi · 1944-02-15 · Monte Cassino, Italy
A young Italian partisan writing to his wife during the Battle of Monte Cassino. The letter was smuggled out by a medic.
A City of Ashes and Song
Krystyna Nowak → Jan Nowak · 1944-08-15 · Warsaw, Poland
Smuggled out of burning Warsaw by a Home Army courier, this letter was written by a young medic to her brother, a POW in Germany. It would not reach him until after the war.
Above the Clouds
Flight Lieutenant James 'Jimmy' Armstrong → Rose Armstrong · 1940-09-15 · RAF Middle Wallop, Hampshire, England
Written at dawn on Battle of Britain Day — the decisive air battle over England. Jimmy was shot down hours later. The letter was found in his locker at RAF Middle Wallop.
Through the Blackout
Evelyn Pearce → Captain Henry 'Harry' Pearce · 1940-10-15 · London, England
Written by candlelight in a basement during the Blitz, this letter was never sent — Evelyn didn't know Harry's POW address. It was found 53 years later, tucked inside a copy of Mrs. Dalloway.
My Dearest Margaret
William Clarke → Margaret Clarke · 1916-07-14 · Somme, France
Written on the eve of the Battle of the Somme, this letter was found in William's tunic pocket after he fell on the first day of battle.
Letters Across the Indus
Havildar Amar Singh → Priya Devi · 1916-04-15 · Kut, Mesopotamia (now Iraq)
Besieged and starving in the ancient city of Kut, Havildar Amar Singh writes to his wife Priya in the hills of Kumaon, knowing this letter may never reach her. It was found among the debris of the garrison after the surrender.
For This Soil, For Home
Mehmet Çavuş → Ayşe Hanım · 1915-05-19 · Gallipoli Peninsula, Çanakkale
Sergeant Mehmet writes to his wife on the night of May 19, 1915 — the day of the great Turkish counterattack at Anzac Cove. He speaks of Kemal, the enemy ships on the sea, and the wheat fields of home he will not see again.
The Volga Remembers
Lieutenant Dmitri Volkov → Natasha Volkov · 1942-10-15 · Stalingrad, USSR
An unsent letter found among Lieutenant Dmitri Volkov's belongings after he was killed at the Red October factory. He writes by the light of a burning building as the Battle of Stalingrad rages around him.
The Baby I Never Held
Marco Nardi → Elena Nardi · 1917-10-24 · Caporetto, Italy
Italian soldier Marco Nardi's wife gave birth to their son while he was at the front. He received a photograph but never held the baby. This letter was found on his body after the Austro-German breakthrough at Caporetto.
The Australian Jungle
Colin Simper → Irene Simper · 1945-06-01 · Tarakan, Borneo, Indonesia
Lieutenant Colin Simper had never held his baby son Douglas when he wrote this letter from the jungles of Borneo. He was killed eight days later, trying to save a wounded mate.
The Boy Who Died on His Wedding Day
Thomas Fletcher → Emily Fletcher · 1916-07-01 · Albert, France
Thomas married his childhood sweetheart Emily at 8 AM on July 1, 1916. By noon he was on the front. By 4 PM he was dead. His letter was found in his breast pocket, still smelling of her perfume from the ceremony.
The Belgian Last Stand
Pieter Van Der Waals → Liesbeth Van Der Waals · 1914-10-28 · Yser River, Belgium
A Belgian soldier writes to his wife from the Yser River, describing the desperate flooding of the land to stop the German advance. 'We are drowning our country to save it.' He died three days later.
The Diary That Never Stopped
Doreen Wright → Gilbert Wright · 1940-06-15 · Coventry, England
After her RAF pilot husband was shot down over France, Doreen Wright wrote him a letter every single day for three years — 1,095 letters — even after she knew he was dead. None were ever mailed.
The Christmas Truce Letter
Klaus Weber → Alice · 1914-12-25 · Ypres, Belgium
A German theology student writes to a woman he has never met — falling in love with her photograph during the Christmas Truce of 1914. The letter was found in his kit after he was killed.
The Dutch Nurse
Liesbeth van der Meer → Pieter van der Meer · 1944-08-25 · Amsterdam, Netherlands
A Dutch nurse betrayed for helping Allied airmen wrote this letter from her prison cell. She bribed a guard to smuggle it out. He kept it for 50 years before returning it to her family.
The D-Day Wife
Audrey Gerrans → Joe Gerrans · 1944-06-19 · Sittingbourne, Kent, England
On June 6, 1944, Audrey Gerrans stood on Snips Hill waving a white handkerchief as her husband's convoy rolled past in the dark. She didn't know if he saw her. She wrote him this letter anyway.
The Czech Exile
Jan Novák → Hana Nováková · 1944-10-05 · Dunkirk, France
Sergeant Jan Novák hadn't seen his wife Hana or Prague since 1939. He wrote this letter from the siege lines of Dunkirk, fighting for a country he feared he might never see again.
The Filipino Love Letter
Miguel Santos → Maria Santos · 1942-04-08 · Bataan, Philippines
Captain Miguel Santos of the Filipino Scouts wrote to his wife Maria on the eve of Bataan's fall. He survived the Death March but died in a POW camp. The letter was carried by a fellow prisoner and delivered to Maria in 1945.
The Garden We Never Planted
Thomas Whitaker → Eleanor Whitaker · 1944-06-05 · Southampton, England
Written the night before D-Day, this letter was held by the Red Cross and delivered to Eleanor six months after Thomas was reported missing.
The French Jewish Soldier
David Lévy → Rachel Lévy · 1915-05-09 · Artois, France
A French soldier of Jewish faith from Alsace writes to his wife on the morning of the Second Battle of Artois, blending French and Hebrew in his final farewell.
The Hungarian Bride
Ilona Kovács → István Kovács · 1944-12-24 · Budapest, Hungary
On Christmas Eve 1944, with Budapest under siege and the Soviets approaching, Ilona wrote her 300th letter to her husband István — who never received a single one.
The Last Night Before the War
Antoine Roussel → Colette Roussel · 1914-09-05 · Meaux, France
A French farmer conscripted in August 1914 writes to his wife of two months on the eve of the First Battle of the Marne. He died the next day.
The Last Christmas
Robert Giordano → Rose Giordano · 1944-12-24 · Bastogne, Belgium
On Christmas Eve 1944, surrounded by Germans in the frozen foxholes of Bastogne, Private First Class Robert Giordano wrote to his wife Rose in Brooklyn. He was killed the next day. The letter was found frozen in his hand.
The Letter That Crossed an Ocean
James O'Sullivan → Amélie Laurent · 1918-10-08 · Meuse-Argonne, France
Bostonian James O'Sullivan fell in love with a French girl while training. He wrote proposing marriage. She received his letter the same day his commanding officer's letter arrived — he had died at the Argonne. She kept both in a locket for 70 years.
The Locket
Harry Cromie → Vera Vereker · 1916-10-10 · Lesboeufs, France
Captain Harry Cromie was too shy to propose when he saw Vera on leave. He wrote her a letter on the eve of battle: 'By this you will know that I have been killed. I meant to ask you to be engaged to me but when I was on leave I was too frightened to say anything — I loved you very very much.' He was killed 13 days later.
The Norwegian Ski Soldier
Erik Solberg → Ingrid Solberg · 1940-04-15 · Narvik, Norway
Norwegian ski trooper Erik Solberg wrote to his wife Ingrid from a mountain cabin during the Battle of Narvik. His letter was found in the pocket of his white camouflage jacket, stained with snow and blood.
The Greek Parting
Nikos Stavros → Eleni Stavros · 1940-11-14 · Pindus Mountains, Greece
Captain Nikos Stavros of the Greek army wrote to his wife Eleni from the frozen Pindus Mountains, where Greek forces were pushing Mussolini's invasion back into Albania. He was killed a month later.
The Nurse from Étaples
Jack Gallagher → Margaret 'Molly' Sinclair · 1917-03-14 · Étaples, France
An Australian soldier writes to the Scottish nurse who saved him, describing the moment he knew he loved her. He died at Messines Ridge three weeks later.
The Pianist of the Ghetto
Samuel Rosenberg → Leah Rosenberg · 1943-04-19 · Warsaw Ghetto, Poland
On the first day of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, concert pianist Samuel Rosenberg played Chopin one last time on the last piano in the ghetto. His letter to his wife Leah was sealed in a jar and found in the rubble of a bunker after the war.
The Professor's Letters
Johannes Richter → Elfriede Richter · 1914-11-10 · Langemarck, Belgium
A classics professor from Heidelberg — a man who taught Homer and Goethe — volunteers for war and writes to his wife from Flanders. He was killed at Langemarck, one of the 'Kindermord' — the Massacre of the Innocents.
The Polish Pilot
Tadeusz 'Tadzio' Kowalski → Anna Kowalski · 1940-09-15 · Northolt, England
Squadron Leader Tadeusz Kowalski of 303 Squadron RAF wrote this letter on the eve of the decisive Battle of Britain engagement. He fought for England but dreamed of Poland — and the wife and daughter he left behind in Warsaw.
The Piper of the Scots
Angus MacKenzie → Fiona MacKenzie · 1915-09-25 · Loos, France
A Highland piper writes to his wife on the eve of the Battle of Loos. The next morning, he went over the top playing 'The Flowers of the Forest.' He was killed within minutes.
The Resistance Courier
Étienne Mercier → Céleste Mercier · 1943-07-14 · Lyon, France
Smuggled out of a Gestapo prison by a guard who pitied him, this letter is the final testament of a 22-year-old Resistance courier executed three days after his capture.
The Russian Snow
Dmitri Volkov → Natasha Volkov · 1916-06-04 · Lutsk, Ukraine
A Russian Imperial Army officer writes to his wife during the Brusilov Offensive, describing the snow on the Carpathians and the cherry blossoms of their orchard. He was killed by shellfire four days later.
The Serbian Soldier's Promise
Zoran Petrović → Jelena Petrović · 1915-11-27 · Mojkovac, Montenegro
Written during the Great Retreat across Albania, this frozen letter was found in Zoran's hand after he succumbed to hypothermia and starvation in the Albanian mountains.
The Submarine Man
Harold 'Hal' Jensen → Rae Jensen · 1945-04-11 · Subic Bay, Philippines
A submarine communications officer writes to his wife about their newborn son — whom he has never seen. His submarine was sunk 25 days later. All hands lost.
From the Rubble
David (Dawid) Lerner → Rachel Lerner · 1943-04-22 · Warsaw Ghetto, Poland
Smuggled out of the burning Warsaw Ghetto during the uprising, this letter was written by an 18-year-old Jewish fighter to his younger sister — the only surviving member of their family.
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