In 1918, he was wounded by 2 bullets. One went through his torso and another lodged within his upper body. As he fell, his Jewish prayer book fell from his breast pocket and opened. He read the page and, although he was not a religious man, the prayer he read seemingly gave him the strength to crawl back behind the lines safely.

One of Renee's earliest memories was going down to Victoria Station each night to meet the troop train with the wounded soldiers on board. She and her mother knew that he had been wounded and was coming home but they did not know exactly when. Hence the trip to Victoria station each night. The station was in complete darkness but when the train pulled in at midnight each night, the lights came on and Red Cross nurses would appear to meet and tend to the troops.

The grandchildren in later years would be taken on holiday by Sidney and Chrissy and when they were on the beach, Chrissy would point out the scars from the wounds on Sidney's body to anyone that was interested.

Sidney was fluent in French, Dutch and a little German

He was a member of the London Stock exchange and he went to the city every day in his bowler hat, pin stripes and umbrella until retirement in 1965. He used to meet his stock exchange friends in Lion's Corner House in the city and it was joked that the waitress sent her son to Eton on the tips.

When he got home from work around 3.30, he would go into his green house and tend to the plants. He had moved to a house in Golders Green in 1935. The house had a large garden which he tended himself and during the Second World War, he dug a huge bed in which he grew vegetables and tomatoes for the family.

He was a very stoic man. When a rather ancient dentist filled a tooth over an abscess, he walked all the way home before collapsing in pain.

France, Monday 29th April 1918

Ma Chere,
We are now out for a couple of days rest and as the weather is fine, we are having quite a good time. Last night I received your parcel and was thankful indeed for the contents. Thank all concerned for their welcome contributions.

I am very fit and well and trust you are the same. How is Renee, I suppose I need not really ask. This time I am enclosing a note for Mammy and all the family. I want you to hand out that as opportunities for writing are few and note paper very scarce, they must be content with my enquiries in the notes I send to you.

While we are on the subject of note paper – do you think you could send me a writing pad, about the size of this sheet when next you send me anything? By the way, if you cannot get the little bottles of sweets, send Clark Nicholls & Coombs caramels. The cake was absolutely delicious, I could eat it for years without stopping.

As you say Dear, you are far more anxious than I am. I suppose it is natural but I want you to remember that, except as far as my thoughts turn to you and Renee, I am not troubled with any sad or unpleasant reflections. We are all far too busy making the best of things. I wish I had the opportunity of letting you know the manner of our life, but I am afraid I can only let you glimpse it now and again. For instance, I am writing this in a French village, from which the inhabitants have departed, and we make use of several domestic articles left behind for cooking and making ourselves generally comfortable and snug.

I have received Renee’s report and I think it is a great improvement on the last. Now Dear, I should like to impress on you once more the need for self-discipline. It is no use letting yourself go to pieces so cheer up and once more keep smiling.

With all my love to you and kinder, your own loving Solly.
Lest we forget.


France, Monday 29th April 1918

My dear Mammy,

Lest you should think it strange that I write now for the first time, I want you to believe that if I could write more often I would. I know that Chrissy reads anything in my letter of any interest and consequently it is hardly necessary to write to you personally. Still, for ‘covet’ sake, I suppose I ought to do so.

Anyway, I hope you are as cheery and well as I am myself and that’s a great deal. Send my regards to Phillip and all at home. I sent Katie a Birthday Card.

With love to all,
Solly