| Content Note | Includes: Handwritten letter from Dr. R.A. Birdwood, father of the casualty, to the Secretary of the War Office requesting further information and photograph of the grave, as well as the conditions under which relatives would be able to visit the cemetery, dated 11 January 1919; handwritten letter from Agnes Birdwood, mother of the casualty, to Fabian Ware regarding photographs received from local French residents who were also tending to the grave, and enquiring when a standard Commission headstone would be erected, dated 27 October 1919; letter from Agnes Birdwood informing the Directorate of Graves Registation and Enquiries (DGRE) that she did not want Lieutenant Birdwood transferred to another cemetery, dated 2 November 1919; letter from Major D.A.A.G., for Major-General, D.G.G.R.&E., to Agnes Birdwood regarding the erection of a board on the grave with instructions that it was not to be removed, dated 7 November 1919; sketch drawing of the temporary German cross marking the grave, undated; photograph of the German wooden cross marking the grave, undated; Letter from the IWGC Principal Assistant Secretary to Agnes Birdwood regarding the transfer of Lieutenant Birdwood to Auberchicourt British Cemetery due to arrangements made by the French Authorities, dated 29 June 1922; letter from Dr. R.A. Birdwood to No. 3 Branch Office, IWGC, regarding the removal of Lieutenant Birdwood’s grave without informing or obtaining consent from the next of kin, dated 24 July 1922; correspondence explaining why the grave was transferred from the cemetery; Handwritten letter from the Mayor of Somain to Agnes Birdwood regarding offer to place Lt. Birdwood in a War Memorial Tomb in Somain Communal Cemetery, dated 1 September 1922; handwritten letter from Agnes Birdwood to Fabian Ware enquiring about the delay in returning Lieutenant Birdwood to Somain Communal Cemetery, dated 26 October 1922; letter from the Secretary, IWGC Enquiries Branch, to the IWGC Director of Works regarding the special authority granted by the Vice Chairman for the return of Lieutenant Birdwood to Somain Communal Cemetery, dated 8 December 1922; letter from the IWGC Principal Assistant Secretary notifying Mrs. Birdwood of the exhumation and return of Lieutenant Birdwood to Somain Communal Cemetery, dated 4 January 1923. |