Wives & Sweethearts

This exhibition looks at aspects of soldiers' relationships with loved ones, from courtships, weddings and births to separation and deaths. On show are personal items belonging to soldiers and their sweethearts dating from the Napoleonic period to the present that explore the relationships of soldiers and their families and show the changing roles of soldiers' partners over the centuries. Key exhibits include a love token sent by a soldier at Waterloo to his wife, Roger Fenton photographs of 'Women of the Regiment' during the Crimean War, a Boer War letter sent with a pressed flower, embroidered postcards from WWI, and a diamond-encrusted sweetheart brooch from WWII.