Private John Donachie, of the 4th Battalion Black
Watch, sent this letter to his mother and cousin Rachel on 25 April
1915. He was killed in action on 9 May 1915. The letter was written
on very thin paper that makes it difficult to read. Only the first
page is shown as an illustration. The transcript contains more extracts
from his letter.
Image
NAS: SC70/8/144/50
Transcript
Firing Line
25th April 1915
Dear Mother,
… We have been having a bit of a rough time out here,
and we are now a fortnight in the trenches tonight, and although
the weather is pretty fair during the day, it is very cold
at night. And as you know, I didn’t like rum at home,
but since I started in the trenches I never refuse my ‘tot’,
as we call it out here, when it comes round in the morning.
It is a grand thing for warming you up on a cold morning.
We were to be relieved last night, but there was something
went wrong somehow, and it was cancelled, so I don't know
when we will be out for a rest now, but I hope it will be
soon as I am getting a bit sore lying cramped up in a dug-out.
I am glad you sent the Scapulars,*
and when we go out for a rest again I will go to the church
and get them blest. I may tell you that the churches out here
are very beautiful and there is shrines almost at every road,
and crucifixes at all the cross-roads, and as Rachel says,
I have seen a good many things since I came out here that
has made me think a good deal different.
I have been in places where the shells have been knocking
houses to atoms and throwing up earth all around, and saw
graveyards with hardly a stone left standing, but yet amidst
it all the crucifix stands without a scratch on it. I have
been in churches where the same thing has happened, all the
walls knocked down by shells, but still the crucifix stands
unharmed. When we were coming up to the trenches, this last
time, I was three nights in one of the churches and had to
sleep inside the alter [altar] rails.
Oh yes Rachel, I have seen enough since I came out here to
make any man think differently. You will even get men that
doesn't belong to the Catholic church with rosaries, and crosses,
and medals, carrying about with them. But I will have to stop
now, writing about all I have seen, for I could fill a book
if I started on that sort of thing.
So I am glad to hear you are all in the best of health...
and I am also glad to know you are all praying for me as I
will need them all. As to sending anything to me, the only
thing I need is writing paper and envelopes and I should like
very much if you send out a cake of some kind, or a biscuit,
because you never see anything like that out here. So I will
have to close now but still remains your loving son,
John
If anything happens to me mother dear, you shall have all
I leave behind, but I hope to come back safe.
* Traditionally,
monks wore scapulars, like a sleeveless coat, as part of their
habit. In modern times, religious members of the laity wore
a smaller version under their clothing in the belief it would
give them extra protection. It consisted of two small squares
of cloth bearing religious images joined by two bands of cloth.
It was worn discreetly across the shoulders and back.
Audio reading
Choose from one of the options below to hear a reading of
the will. The Flash player option will work on most computers
but if you have difficulties you can try the MP3 version.
Once the recording starts playing you can scroll up the page
to read the transcript whilst listening to the audio.
1. What sort of person do you think John Donachie
was? What evidence is there for your conclusions?
2. What evidence is there to suggest that war
changed him?
3. Why do you think that religious belief might
bring comfort to soldiers in war?
4. Different Viewpoints
Work in groups or in pairs. Study both statements below.
Make a case for and against each argument. Set out your
different viewpoints on the worksheets
(opens in new window).
Statement 1
War can never be justified as it goes against Christian
teachings and those of other religious faiths.
Statement 2
Violence is justifiable in certain conditions if it
means defending the weak against an aggressor. (St
Thomas Aquinas’s Just War Theory)
Group discussion
topics Can a religious person be a member
of the armed forces?
There is too much suffering in the world for
there to be a God.
