Timeless Letters of Love & War

Dear World,

There was a time when a man in khaki, with a jhola slung over his shoulder, would come to our houses on a cycle and ring the bell… tring tring. And somehow, we would always know that he is here. The Postman. He would hand over our letter and quietly leave. Wasn’t he like Santa? The Santa of letters.

The anticipation with which we tore open those envelopes from our family, relatives, and friends was unmatched. Sometimes we would read the same letter over and over again, because somehow a letter has the power to freeze a moment, to preserve a memory in ink and paper.

In today’s digital world, where instant messaging has seeped into our daily lives, it is still hard to shake off the nostalgia, the love, and the anticipation that a letter evokes.

A letter carries the tangible weight of words. They have witnessed it all: from the passion of a great conqueror to the vulnerability of a leader, from declarations of love to humble pleas for peace during war. Let’s look at some letters that shaped history and are still remembered for the significance they carry.

Letters of Love

1. Napoleon Bonaparte to Josephine (1796)
Napoleon Bonaparte, the French general who stormed through Europe with his armies, was utterly disarmed when it came to love. Just days after his marriage to Josephine, he left to command the French army in Italy.

From the battlefield, he sent her letters that were nothing less than confessions of raw passion. Those letters bore a testament to passionate love and to a general’s hidden vulnerabilities.

To Josephine, at Milan. Brescia, August 31, 1796

“Think of me, live for me, be often with your well-beloved, and be sure that there is only one misfortune that he is afraid of—that of being no longer loved by his Josephine. A thousand kisses, very sweet, very affectionate, very exclusive.”

At other times, he grew restless:

To Josephine, at Milan. Verona, September 17, 1796

“My Dear, I write very often and you seldom. You are naughty and undutiful, very undutiful, as well as thoughtless. It is disloyal to deceive a poor husband, an affectionate lover. Ought he to lose his rights because he is far away, up to the neck in business, worries and anxiety? Without his Josephine, without the assurance of her love, what in the wide world remains for him? What will he do?
Adieu, charming Josephine; one of these nights the door will be burst open with a bang, as if by a jealous husband, and in a moment I shall be in your arms. A thousand affectionate kisses.”

And then there were promises that sound almost boyish:

To Josephine, at Milan. Verona, November 23, 1796

“Josephine, be vigilant; one fine night the doors will be broken in, and I shall be before you.
Truly, my dear, I am uneasy at getting no news from you. Write me four pages immediately, and some of those charming remarks which fill my heart with the pleasures of imagination.
I hope that before long I shall clasp you in my arms, and cover you with a million kisses as burning as if under the equator.”

Some historians argue, Napoleon used emotional blackmail in his letters, since there are very, very few of Josephine’s replies. But when read against the backdrop of marching armies and conquered cities, these letters reveal something else: a man fierce in battle, yet helpless in love. They outpoured his yearning, his passion, his deep vulnerability. Without these pages, it would have been hard to imagine the softer side of a general of his stature.

2. John Keats to Fanny Brawne

The poet John Keats, forever haunted by frailty and illness, found comfort in Fanny Brawne. He was betrothed to Fanny for three years before tuberculosis took his life at the age of 25.

One of the letters, dated October 1819, from his magnificent collection “Selected Letters” speaks of his raw passion, sentiment, and enchanting love for Fanny.

Here is an excerpt:

My dearest Girl,

I must write you a line or two and see if that will assist in dismissing you from my Mind for ever so short a time. Upon my Soul I can think of nothing else — The time is passed when I had power to advise and warn you against the unpromising morning of my Life — My love has made me selfish. I cannot exist without you — I am forgetful of every thing but seeing you again — my Life seems to stop there. You have ravish’d me away by a Power I cannot resist; and yet I could resist till I saw you; and even since I have seen you I have endeavoured often “to reason against the reasons of my Love.” I can do that no more — the pain would be too great — My Love is selfish. I cannot breathe without you.

Yours for ever

John Keats

3. Leo Tolstoy to Valeria Arsenev (1856)

Tolstoy’s letter spoke not just of beauty, but of something eternal:

November 2, 1856

“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious—your heart, your soul. Beauty one could get to know and fall in love with in one hour and cease to love it as speedily; but the soul one must learn to know. Believe me, nothing on earth is given without labour, even love, the most beautiful and natural of feelings.”

This was not the impatience of passion, but the patience of love that deepens over time.

4. Beethoven’s “Immortal Beloved” Letter (1812)

Ludwig Van Beethoven, a great composer, was never married but had romantic feelings for many women. On July 6 or 7, 1812, he wrote a long letter (around 10 pages) to a mysterious woman he called his “Immortal Beloved.” The letter was discovered from a secret drawer after his death; it was never sent, and we would never know for certain who was his “Immortal Beloved”.

The letter sways between burning love and the torment of separation. Historians still debate who this woman was, but perhaps the mystery itself makes the letter more powerful.

What remains certain is this: behind the genius of music was a man desperately in love, yearning to give himself completely.

An excerpt from that letter:

July 6
In the morning-

My angel, my all
my self – only a few
words today, and indeed with pencil
(with yours)
only tomorrow is my lodging positively fixed
what a worthless waste
of time on such – why
this deep grief, where
necessity speaks –
can our love exist but
by sacrifices
by not demanding everything
can you change it, that you
not completely mine.

What fascinates me is how beautifully these letters capture longing and passion, and how they immortalise love across centuries. Read all 10 pages here: https://lvbandmore.blogspot.com/2010/11/1123-immortal-beloved-letter-autograph.html

Letters of War & Peace

1. Gandhi’s Letter to Hitler (1939)

December 1939. The world stood on the edge of devastation as Hitler’s armies marched across Europe. Far away, in India, a frail man clothed in khadi sat down to write. Gandhi addressed Hitler as “Dear Friend”– a beginning that still startles us today. Here is the excerpt:

As at Wardha, C. P., INDIA,
July 23, 1939

DEAR FRIEND,

It is quite clear that you are today the one person in the world who can prevent a war which may reduce humanity to a savage state. Must you pay that price for an object however worthy it may appear to you to be? Will you listen to the appeal of one who has deliberately shunned the method of war not without considerable success? Any way I anticipate your forgiveness, if I have erred in writing to you.

I remain,
Your sincere friend,
M. K. Gandhi

HERR HITLER,
BERLIN,
GERMANY

It was Gandhi’s deep belief in the possibility of change through appeal to conscience. The British intercepted the letter, and it never reached Hitler. But its existence remains significant. The letter reminds us that even in the face of monstrous violence, Gandhi chose dialogue over hatred.

2. Bhagat Singh’s Prison Letters (1929–1931)

Bhagat Singh’s words from prison were filled with the fire of revolution. He wrote letters during his imprisonment from 1929 to 1931 in Lahore Central Jail, as documented in “Bhagat Singh’s Jail Diary,” which revealed not only his courage but also his clarity of thought.

In one of his letters, he stated, “They can kill me, however they can’t kill my thoughts.”

Another time, he wrote to his father, dated 4th October, 1930, where he refused to use political influence to save his life in the case of the assassination of John Saunders.

His letters were not just notes from a prisoner; they were a manifesto of youthful courage. They continue to inspire generations, reminding us that letters can be weapons of conviction sharper than any sword.

Why Letters Still Matter

Unlike today’s fleeting texts, letters had permanence. They were not written in haste, but in reflection. They could be intercepted, delayed, or never delivered, but once written, they carried a heartbeat that still echoes decades or centuries later.

Perhaps that is why we continue to return to them. To read a letter is like travelling back in time.

Isn’t it fascinating that we are here in 2025 and reading a letter from the 1800s? A piece of paper that has survived the tide of time and still carries within it the essence of love, passion, and timeless learnings across centuries.

Letters may no longer arrive in envelopes sealed with ink, but they remain as testimonies to the human spirit, whether in love or in war. They remind us that the written word, when honest, can outlive empires, revolutions, and even death.

And maybe that’s the real magic of letters: they are not just communication, they are memory.

Yours lovingly,
Pinki Bakshi

References

1. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37499/37499-h/37499-h.htm
2. https://www.themarginalian.org/2016/02/19/john-keats-love-letter-fanny-brawne/
3. https://www.fineartphotographyvideoart.com/2021/09/Tolstoys-Love-Letters-to-Valeria-Arsenev.html
4. https://www.mkgandhi.org/letters/hitler_ltr.php
5. https://indianculture.gov.in/digital-district-repository/district-repository/writing-behind-bars-jail-notebook-and-other-prison
6. https://ranjitdisha.com/bhagat-singhs-jail-diary-a-glimpse-into-the-revolutionary-mind/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CBhagat%20Singh%E2%80%99s%20Jail%20Diary%E2%80%9D%20is%20a%20treasure%20trove,philosophical%20beliefs%2C%20and%20aspirations%20for%20a%20just%20society.

PS: This post is a part of ‘Scribbled and Sealed Blog Hop’ hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed under #EveryConversationMatters.

PS: This blog post is part of ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla in collaboration with Ratna Prabha.