Archive of hundreds of fan letters shows how Sussex singer Dame Vera Lynn offered ‘comfort and connection’

The popular entertainer, whose iconic songs included ‘The White Cliffs of Dover’ and ‘We’ll Meet Again’, lived in Ditchling for many years and died in 2020 at the age of 103.

In 2001 she founded the Dame Vera Lynn Trust for Children with Cerebral Palsy, which was later renamed ‘Dame Vera Lynn Children’s Charity’.

IWM said the archive contains more than 600 fan letters from Dame Vera’s wartime archive, as well as letters from Dame Vera to her husband Harry Lewis, a diary detailing her 1944 tour of India, and shorts and trousers from her tropical uniform.

IWM said a small selection of objects will go on public display at IWM London this spring.

Dame Vera’s daughter, Virginia Lewis-Jones, said: “These items have been kept by my parents since the beginning of my mother’s career, and when she passed on, I took over the reins of her archive. I am very happy to know that these particular items will be kept for posterity in IWM’s Collection, and that a selection of them will go on display for everyone to enjoy and learn about her life. My father also played a huge part in her life and should be remembered also for his care and work. My mother was always so pleased that people enjoyed her music and found solace in the lyrics, as they were so pertinent at the time and even today. Having now found a permanent home at IWM, these items will continue to inspire future generations with the compassion, understanding, courage and hope that she brought to so many.”

Dame Vera was born Vera Margaret Welch on March 20, 1917, in East Ham and used her grandmother’s maiden name as her stage name. She was the star of BBC radio’s Sincerely Yours, which helped connect troops abroad with their loved ones during the Second World War. She was dubbed ‘The Forces’ Sweetheart’ and toured India from March to June 1944.

IWM said that a newspaper poll in 1940 asked British servicemen to name their favourite musical performer and Dame Vera won. The museum explained that while visiting hospitals in India, Dame Vera asked servicemen for the names and addresses of their wives, girlfriends and family members. She compiled these into lists and later used them to write letters, letting people know she had visited their loved ones in hospital. IWM said it has acquired examples of these lists as part of the collection, as well as letters from some of the people she wrote to.

Simon Offord, curator at Imperial War Museums, said: “This significant collection of Dame Vera’s wartime archive provides a rich insight into her personal experience of the Second World War, as well as the millions who found comfort and connection in her music. Dame Vera’s presence during national Second World War commemorations for decades to come means her name is forever connected to the conflict’s memory, and we are honoured to hold these objects, which tell the story of her remarkable legacy.”

IWM said other objects in the collection include: 160 Wartime contracts for more than 200 engagements; receipts from The Decca Gramophone Co Ltd for records ordered by Dame Vera that were sent to servicemen and prisoners of war; The Fan Club Address Book compiled by Dame Vera’s mother, Mrs Annie Welch; and letters and photos sent by Second World War veterans in response a newspaper advertisement to help with her book about her time in India and Burma, Keep Smiling Through: My Wartime Story (2017).