The WW1 Diary of Charles Robert Nicholson
Charles’ diary states that on the 13th, 14th and 15th of October 1916 his Company were cleaning the streets of Arras and parading, he must have bought these postcards there
The photos show such devastation after the shelling, there are also photos of how it looked before the destruction.
This inkwell must have been another ‘souvinier’ from Arras, it is made from a piece of wood which I was told came from the cathederal. The shell has been made into an ink well, inscribed with ‘Somme 1916’, and what I presume is the makers name ‘Albert 19th N. Fus’.
I suppose the maker was glad of something to take his mind off the war, and maybe make a few shillings to send home to his family.
I’m finding all this terrible distruction quite waring, in some ways it will be a relief to publish my last post on the 14th July.
