The original timbered mediaeval house (which now contained three flats) had been destroyed in the Second World War but since then had been lovingly restored. In fact, the exterior had been remade so that it was an exact replica of the original – even to the extent of having the 16th century’s householder’s name replaced on the front in Gothic script. Redecorated inside, the ground floor flat was small but perfect for my present needs. A door led from a quiet alley directly into a sitting room with a marbled floor covered with scatter rugs. At the back, a small galley kitchen looked out on a yard, large enough to sit out on a warm day but not overlooked by any other building. Work fizzled out altogether in the ensuing months. An insurrection in a British ex-colony and more trouble in Northern Ireland meant that troops were transferred from Germany and many cases were put on hold as a result. Apart from review work which I completed at Brockendorf in the morning, I found I had a great deal of spare time so embarked on reading Tolstoy’s War and Peace and other books about Russia.
