1st CMMGB: Pte RW Mercer - Letters from the Great War

1st Canadian Motor Machine Gun Brigade

Pte. Richard William Mercer
Personal Letters from the Great War: 1915 - 1919

Previous Letter Letter 45:

Pte. Richard Mercer to William and Georgina Mercer - December 13, 1918
Rheinbach, Germany

Dec 13/18^[269]
Hermannianum
Rheinbach, Germany

Dear Father & Mother:-

We are well into Germany now and this is the building we are staying in at present. It is a Convent^[270]. Thanks very much for Xmas card received yesterday.

The people here are fairly hospitable the reason is obvious of course. We are very close to the Rhine now and the city of Bonn. My address will always be France no matter where I am over here. Got a letter from Walter the other day and he thinks he will be in Canada very soon. However it won't be long before I will be back.

Your Loving Son
Rich
911016 R.W. Mercer

Footnotes
^[269] The 1st Canadian Motor Machine Gun Brigade, War Diary noted the following on, "Thursday, Dec 12, 1918, RHINEBACHE, Germany, The Brigade moved to RHINEBACHE (APP. VII) E Battery and Armoured cars proceeded to BONN as G.OsC. guard (APP IX) Lieut. P.A.Green M.C. M.M. taken on strength.." The next day, Friday the 13th, and in Rhinebache for a second day, the diary stated "Unloading of Brigade transport and cleaning equipment." The former action in Bonn is probably associated with a major parade over one of the main bridges and involves General Arthur Currie. In this instance it is quite likely Pte. Mercer is not part of this action and remained in Rhinebache working on their transportation equipment to complete their movement to Friesdorf and Bonn on the Rhine. He likely used any free time to write a number of letters or send home some quick postcards.
^[270] The name of the German convent, as noted on the photographic postcard, is Hermannianum. It is not known if the convent was vacant, or was evacuated for use by Allied military units passing through the municipality to the Rhine. The term makes reference to “orchid” in Latin.

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