Face of pride and pain: 78-year mystery is solved as woman pictured at Buckingham Palace in 1943 is identified as British RAF ace’s Polish widow who was collecting his medal after letter of condolence from King George VI
- Poland’s Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) posted photo on Facebook of mystery woman in uniform
- They appealed for help from internet sleuths in naming the woman and finding out her life story
- After image was shared 4,000 times, she was named as Maria Barr, widow of Squadron Leader Philip Rex Barr
- Photo showed her posing at Buckingham Palace with his posthumously-awarded Distinguished Flying Cross
- Couple met on a troop ship which was ferrying fleeing troops from France to the UK after Germany’s invasion
- They married in December 1941 but he was shot down and killed during bombing raid 11 months later
A story of doomed love between a dashing wartime RAF officer and his bride has been pieced together with the help of internet sleuths.
Poland’s Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) appealed for help from ordinary citizens earlier this year when they posted an image on Facebook of an unidentified dark-haired woman in uniform who was holding a red box.
The researchers, who chanced upon the picture in their Second World War archive, wanted to know if the ‘female stranger photographed over 70 years ago on one of England’s streets’ had ‘returned to the Motherland’ or been ‘destroyed by the war’.
They added that they were also interested in knowing if she or any possible children or grandchildren of hers were still alive.
After the post was shared more than 4,000 times, ordinary Poles came across both Polish and English newspaper cuttings which revealed the woman was Maria Barr, the Polish widow of an RAF pilot who was shot down and killed in late 1942.
Born Maria Barczyńska, she married Squadron Leader Philip Rex Barr in Glasgow in December 1941 after the pair met on a troop ship in south-western France and subsequently fell in love.
Tragically, he was killed just 11 months later when he was shot down during a bombing raid over Belgium.
The previously-mysterious image showed Maria wearing the smart uniform of the Polish Red Cross outside Buckingham Palace in London in 1943 after she had collected the Distinguished Flying Cross medal which was posthumously awarded to her husband.
Also found was a photograph of the couple on their wedding day, along with a letter of condolence sent by King George VI to Maria after Squadron Leader Barr was killed.
The story behind an image of an unidentified woman posing in smart uniform has been uncovered thanks to internet sleuths. Thanks to the discovery of old Polish and English newspaper cuttings, researchers at Poland’s National Institute of Remembrance (IPN) found out that the image (left) shows Maria Barr, the widow of an RAF pilot who was shot down and killed in late 1942. Born Maria Barczyńska, she married Squadron Leader Phillip Rex Barr in Glasgow in December 1941 after the pair met on a troop ship in south-western France and subsequently fell in love. Above right: The couple on their wedding day
After the IPN shared the image, some commentators had suggested the ‘small box’ could be a medal box.
Others rightly believed that Maria’s uniform belonged to the Polish Red Cross, whose members served in Scotland during the war.
Within days of the post appearing, internet sleuths, historians and journalists had uncovered not only her past, but also her marriage to Barr.
An old newspaper cutting from June, 11, 1943 in a UK-based Polish publication called Dziennika Polskiego revealed Maria’s name. Whilst her identity was discovered in March, the news had not been reported in the UK until now.
Squadron Leader Barr had Polish heritage himself: his great-grandfather’s name was Barciński and his family had anglicised it to Barr.
Following the outbreak of war in 1939, sparked by Nazi Germany’s invasion of Poland, Maria fled to France, where many Polish servicemen were heading following their country’s defeat to Adolf Hitler’s forces.
Also found was a letter of condolence sent by King George VI to Maria after Squadron Leader Barr was killed
In November 1942, just 11 months after the couple married, Squadron Leader Barr (pictured above in flying uniform in front of an RAF plane) was shot down and killed during a bombing raid over Belgium
Another image showed Maria posing with the open box containing her husband’s Distinguished Flying Cross. The identity of the man next to her is unknown
But following France’s own surrender to Nazi forces in June 1940, Maria made her way to the fishing town of Saint-Jean-de-Luz, in south-western France, where the MS ‘Sobieski’, a Polish ship being used to evacuate troops to the UK, was waiting.
And it was here, amidst the chaos and despair, that the couple met.
A pilot with the Bomber Command’s 107 Squadron, Squadron Leader Barr had gone into action on the second day of the war, when his squadron attacked the German port of Wilhelmshaven.
The squadron was then involved in fighting in Norway before taking part in the desperate attacks on German columns during the Battle of France.
It was during one of these missions that he had been shot down. But, along with four British airmen, he made it to the safety of the MS ‘Sobieski’.
Maria and Squadron Leader Barr met on the MS ‘Sobieski’, a Polish ship being used to evacuate troops from France to the UK in 1940
Squadron Leader Barr’s remains are now buried in the Belgian town of Wevelgem, not far from where his Douglas Boston light bomber crashed on 7 November 1942, killing every member of the four-man crew
After arriving in the UK, the couple began dating between his bombing missions and married in December 1941 in Glasgow.
A wedding photograph discovered by Polish genealogist Adam Pszczółkowski, who helped piece the couple’s story together, shows the couple smiling at the camera.
He is wearing his RAF uniform and leaning slightly towards her as she sits on his left, dressed in white with three flowers across her chest.
An old newspaper cutting from June, 11, 1943 in a UK-based Polish publication called Dziennika Polskiego revealed Maria’s name
It was to be one of their last photos together. Just 11 months later he was shot down. Listed as Missing in Action, Maria refused to believe that he was dead.
But a moving letter uncovered by Mr Pszczółkowski, which was written to Maria’s father by her husband’s commanding officer, revealed the terrible news.
Dated November 22, 1942, the letter from Colonel Benedykt Chłusiewicz said that although ‘Rex’s survival is not completely impossible… I think it would be wise for you to prepare Mrs Barr gradually for the worst.’
Despite the bleak message, Maria continued to live in hope until four years later, when, in 1946, her husband’s death was officially confirmed.
His remains are now buried in the Belgian town of Wevelgem, not far from where his Douglas Boston light bomber crashed on 7 November 1942, killing every member of the four-man crew.
Shortly afterwards, Maria received a letter from King George VI.
Typed on headed Buckingham Palace paper, the king said: ‘The Queen and I offer you our heartfelt sympathy in your great sorrow.’
Below the printed words, the monarch had hand-signed the letter, which was also uncovered by Mr Pszczółkowski.
A year later, Maria’s late husband was posthumously awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross medal for his service and sacrifice in protecting the UK.
Collecting the medal on his behalf, it was just after the ceremony that the photo which sparked the hunt for her identity was taken.
In 1947, Maria and her family moved to London where, having finally come to terms with her loss, she remarried – tying the knot with a Polish soldier.
Unable to return to Poland because of the danger of being killed by the Soviet troops who now occupied the country, Maria spent the rest of her life in Britain.
She died in Chichester in 2018 at the age of 95.
After her name was discovered, genealogist Mr Pszczółkowski tracked down Maria’s surviving relatives, who live in Gloucestershire.
With her second husband, Maria had a son, Marek Bohdan Grabowski, who died on September 13, 2019.
He had a son, Stanisław, and daughters, Zofia and Maria. He also had grandchildren: Thomas, Caitlina, Olivia, Leah and Amelia.
Following the discovery of Maria’s identity, president of the Institute of National Remembrance Jarosław Szarek said: ‘I would like to sincerely thank all journalists and Internet users who made the story of a woman from an anonymous photo known to hundreds of thousands of people.
‘It is thanks to the involvement of thousands of history enthusiasts, thanks to the involvement of Internet users, we learned the story of a woman from one of the photos, which is in the IPN’s collection.’
A moving letter uncovered by Mr Pszczółkowski, which was written to Maria’s father by her husband’s commanding officer, revealed the terrible news. Dated November 22, 1942, the letter from Colonel Benedykt Chłusiewicz said that although ‘Rex’s survival is not completely impossible… I think it would be wise for you to prepare Mrs Barr gradually for the worst’
Source: Read Full Article
