CHURCHILL, Winston An original telegram to the Lt Commanding Officer in the First Battalion Worcestershire Regiment in Kluang

An original telegram [20.5 x 15.5cm]; the verso with postage stamp in Kluang dated 1st June 1951 and with ‘LT. Commanding Off / Worcester Regt / Kluang’ written in pencil; the recto a printed receiving form dated in type 31 31 1745 and headed ‘Lt Commanding Officer First Battalion Worcestershire Regiment Kluang’. Below the telegram message reads ‘= Please thank all Ranks for kind message on glorious first of June may the great traditions of the Worcesters ever continue = Winston Churchill’; the telegram itself fragile, with some creases, nicks and rust marks; a little loss at extremities and browned in accordance with age but else a remarkable survival. 

A superb and important document. 

Churchill’s reference to the 1st June is historic. In 1794 during the French Revolutionary Wars, members of the 29th Regiment of Foot fought aboard a series of ships including HMS Brunswick, where they suffered considerable losses but eventually achieved a great Naval victory. They were subsequently permitted to bear the Naval Crown and the anniversary became one of the regiment’s greatest traditions. The regiment was later amalgamated in 1881 with two others to become the Worcesters.

The 1st Battalion Worcestershire Regiment went on to serve in Malaya during the Malayan Emergency, arriving in Singapore in June 1950 and undertaking a three-year tour. At the time, Churchill was leader of the opposition, having lost the 1945 election. He would reprise the role of Prime Minister in October 1951. On 1st June the HMS Worcester held its First of June ceremony, during which time anniversary greetings were sent via telegrams, one directly to Churchill. The commanding officer at the time was A. H. Gilmore.

This particularly charming response is poignant. Despite no longer being Prime Minister, Churchill maintained a personal connection to the regiment who had a strong Naval history - a particularly appropriate one given his own long association with the Royal Navy and his service as First Lord of the Admiralty. 

A unique item. 

SKU: 1800222