Letter · 2 Jan 1918 · London, Great Britain and Ireland
No end in sight
GS Richardson was a high-ranking military official who led a number of units (NZ and British) and was promoted through the war. For his bio, see: http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3r16/richardson-george-spafford
Extracts from this letter
"Another year has gone and still we cannot see the end of the war ... At the present time I know of no one who can give any idea as to the probably duration of the war, or as to how it will end..."
"The men themselves are getting tired of the war and are not so keen as formerly ... Our men were very bucked up after Messines but I noticed a different spirit among those I met at Passchendaele."
"There is nothing decisive in any of these and I fail to see how any decisive success can be gained in 1918. Whether I am right in thinking so, history will prove. What I wonder is how the politicians would act if they received a crude and superficial appreciation similar to that given in this letter. I guess they would immediately replace me by a more optimistic General."
