|
E
J. Eaman
J. Eaman is noted on a list of prisoners of war on a document entitled 'Men in Englander Lager, Ruhleben',
held by Hull Local Studies Library (provisional catalogue entry: Hohenrein Collection F 10b), supplied by senior local studies librarian
David Alexander Smith in July 2008, for which I am grateful. The document
notes that Eaman was a merchant seaman on board the Euclid, and interned in Barrack 17.
Albert Edward Easton-Cook
Albert Edward Easton-Cook is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben
(register number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Easton-Cook is recorded
as having been born on April 10th 1892 in Bruges, Belgium, and is described as having been a clerk prior
to his internment. His home address was 41a Rue Jean Robie, St. Giles, Belgium. At the time the register was recorded, Easton-Cook
was noted as staying in box 4, having arrived from Berlin on January 27th 1916.
Frank Eckersley
Frank Eckersley was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society in the Manchester Guardian
of January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those
Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as Oddfellows' Arms, Kenyon Street, Ashton-under-Lyne.
Frank was listed in The Times of January 8th 1916 ("Released Civilians" p.5, col. D) as one of 69
men released from Ruhleben on Thursday, January 6th, 1916, who subsequently travelled to Flushing for their return trip
to England.
J. C. Eden
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO 383/22 on
the possible exchange of Ruhleben inmate J. C. Eden and a German Prisoner of War called Lieutenant Suhle.
A Mr. Eden was also noted in the third issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine
(May 1916, p.32) as having played the lead role in the play "Le Controlleur des Wagons-Lits" in the camp.
Sir Timothy Eden, Bart.
The Times of July 26th 1916 gives an account by Sir Timothy Eden of his
year and a half long internment at Ruhleben, he himself having just been released ("Life at Ruhleben", p. 5, col. E). The
article tell us that he came from Windlestone Hall, Ferryhill, Durham, and that before his internment at Ruhleben he
had also spent a brief period of time at Rastadt. The article goes on to describe his impressions of life in the camp,
and the serious mental health problems beginning to affect some of the prisoners.
Follow up letters complimenting Eden's account appeared in the Times on November 25th 1916 ("Exchange
of Prisoners", p.6, col.B), and November 28th 1916 ("Civilian Prisoners", p.3, col.E).
The Times of February 16th 1917 contains a copy of a memorandum sent to
them by Eden, signed by 150 returned prisoners of war from Ruhleben, making a plea for a general exchange of civilian prisoners
with Germany ("Ruhleben Captives" p.5, col. F).
Eden was further noted in Times of February 17th 1917 as preparing to take
part in a demonstration of relatives and friends of the Ruhleben interned at Kingsway Hall on February 26th (p.11, col. G).
A summary of the meeting was later carried in the paper on February 27th 1917 ("British Prisoners in Germany", p.5, col. B).
Eden was also recorded in a 48 page pamphlet published in 1917 by the Ruhleben Prisoners' Release
Committee (thanks to Jim Mackay, Dec 2007).
Eden's obituary in The Times of May 15th 1963 gives an indication of how Ruhleben affected Eden after
the war ("Sir Timothy Eden", p.16, col. D):
During his internment at Ruhleben he had taken part in the prioners' dramatic
entertainments, which left him with an ambition to go on the stage. After the war Mrs. Patrick Campbell took him into her
touring company in the provinces, and he also acted in the West End in Godfery Tearle's production of Hamlet. It was, however,
as a painter and writer that he was to make his reputation.
The Liddle Collection at Leeds University holds some items relating to Eden's stay Ruhleben,
under reference number RUH 18. These are two photocopied sketchbooks from 1914 and 1915; photocopied
correspondence and papers relating to attempts to secure the release of British Civil Prisoners of War interned at Ruhleben
from 1916 to 1917; papers and programmes relating to the Ruhleben Dramatic Society from 1915; and a photocopied manuscript
of his recollections. The items were placed in the Collection by his son, Sir John Eden, in 1976.
J. J. Edgars
The National Archives contains records from 1915 at FO383/79 regarding
J. J. Edgars, a British subject interned in Ruhleben, specifically a claim regarding
private possessions lost by him on SS Kesteven when the trawler was torpedoed in the North Sea, and enquiries
regarding payment of his wages, and remittance of an allowance to his wife.
Edge
Mr. Edge was recorded in the second issue of "In Ruhleben Camp" (June 1915),
page 2, as giving a series of lectures on the human body in the camp school, every Tuesday morning at 10.00am.
P. Edge
P. Edge, of Liverpool, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published
by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
He was also recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society in the Manchester Guardian
of January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those
Detained at Ruhleben". In this article his address was recorded as 25 Girnley Avenue, Calderston Park, Liverpool.
Robert Edminson
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO383/25 concerning
Robert Edminson, a British civilian prisoner of war at Ruhleben. The documents relate to an
enquiry from his cousin, Mrs J. Thompson of Stocksfield-on-Tyne, Northumberland.
Victor E. Edmonds
The Liddle Collection of Leeds University holds an interview with Victor
E. Edmonds carried out by Peter Liddle in October 1977, at RUH 19. The original tape number for the audio
recordingis 479, whilst a transcript is also held. The online index tells us that Edmonds was born in 1894 at Clapham
Park, South London, and that he was secretary to the head of a gramophone company in Berlin from February 1914, before being
arrested and interned at Ruhleben for the duration of the war, living in Barrack 10.
Harry Edward
Harry Edward's signature was recorded on March 27th 1915 by fellow internee Christopher Cornforth,
in an autograph book now held at the Imperial War Museum.
Many thanks to Christopher's granddaughter Christine Pierce who provided this information in
December 2007.
Thomas Edwards
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Thomas
Edwards was noted as being from 29 Pennard Road, Shepherds Bush, and as having been born in London in 1890.
He worked as an engineer and was arrested in Hannover on 4 AUG 1914, and after being imprisoned in Bentheim and
Linden was sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 7.
Guy C. Eglinton
Guy C. Eglinton was a member of a committe of 30 ex-Ruhleben prisoners who after the war contributed
and collected funds to provide a headstone for fellow internee Cecil Duncan-Jones, who died shortly after his release from
the camp and his return to England. (Many thanks to Cecil's great nephew Richard Duncan-Jones for providing this information
in June 2007.)
A short piece of information on Guy was found from the Abebooks website, regardiung the sale of a
book written by him entitled "Reaching for Art":
Author was a civilian prisoner in Germany during the First World War, and he
developed a world view of the arts while a prisoner. Later he went to London, and then moved to NYC, where, at the age of
32, he drowned at Fire Island. These essays reveal an intellect with a good future, cut short.
(Many thanks to Doug Johnston).
H. Egremont
H. Egremont was a regular contributor of sketches to the Ruhleben
Camp Magazine. He is also noted in the first issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (March 1916, p.36) as having recently given
a lecture on the "Development of the Theatre".
In the fourth issue of the magazine (August 1916, p.31), Egremont submitted a drawing entitled "The
Doll's House".
In the fifth issue of the magazine (Christmas 1916, p.45), fellow artist
J. O. B. contributed a drawing of Egremont.
Egremont was specifically thanked for his illustrations for the Ruhleben
Camp Magazine by the editor, C. G. Pemberton, later in the same issue (p.62).
Roland Egremont
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO383/69
regarding conditions at Ruhleben, including a letter from Miss Maud Egremont of Teddington,
Middlesex, relating to a report about sanitary conditions from her brother, Roland Egremont, who had recently returned from
Ruhleben, as well as a request for compensation for losses.
P. Elies
P. Elies was thanked for articles written for the Ruhleben Camp Magazine by its editor, C. G. Pemberton,
in the fifth issue (Christmas 1916, p.62).
F. G. Ellen
F. G. Ellen is noted on a list of prisoners of war on a document entitled 'Men in Englander Lager,
Ruhleben', held by Hull Local Studies Library (provisional catalogue entry: Hohenrein Collection F 10b), supplied by senior local studies librarian
David Alexander Smith in July 2008, for which I am grateful. The document
notes that Ellen was a merchant seaman on board the S. S. Castro, and interned in Barrack 3, box 7.
Frederick Ellerton
Frederick Ellerton is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Ellerton is recorded as having
been born on August 28th 1886 in London, and is described as having been a lithographer prior to his internment.
His home address was 10 Brook Road, Stoke Newington, London, N. At the time the register was recorded, Ellerton was noted
as staying in box 13.
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Ellerton
is noted as being from 11 Tyssen Road, Stoke Newington, and as having been born in Woodford in 1886. He worked as a lithographer
in Heidelberg, where he was arrested on 5 AUG 1914. After a brief period held in Donauschingen and Berlin, he was
sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 5.
P. W. Elliman
P. W. Elliman was recorded in the Times of July 8th 1916 ("Back from Germany", p.7,
col.A) as arriving at Gravesend on July 7th 1916, having been released from Ruhleben.
William Arthur Ellington
William Arthur Ellington was an inmate at Ruhleben, as confirmed by
a postcard he posted from the camp on June 18th 1917, which was placed on sale on E-Bay in September 2005. The card
was addressed to a Mr. R. H. Symons, Parr's Bank, Crewkerne, Somerset, England, and states that Ellington was interned
in Barrack 2, Box 6.
Philatelist Jim Mackay contacted me in December 2007 to say that he holds
an acknowledgement card sent to the Danish Red Cross (where it was forwarded to England) for a parcel of 2 loaves received
on 4 Dec 1917. The card was written by Wm Arthur Ellington, bar 2 box 6.
Ellington was one of a group of Ruhleben inmates
released on March 6th 1918 to England, as noted in files at the National Archives in Kew under accession number MT9/1238.
It is not known if this was the same person, though it seems likely.
Edward F. Elliott
Edward F. Elliott, of London, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published
by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
From Marcus Bateman's website, we learn that Edward was chief officer on
the 'Iris' and that at the time of his internment, his address was noted as 57 Pitcairn Road, Mitcham. He was one of a group
of Ruhleben inmates released on March 6th 1918 to England, as noted in files at the National Archives in Kew under accession
number MT9/1238. Throughout his time there, Edward was interned in Barrack 11.
Nathan Elliott
The National Archives in London hold records from 1915 at FO383/75 concerning
an enquiry regarding the welfare and whereabouts of Nathan Elliott, interned in Ruhleben, by his
wife. The documents contain the information that she had returned to her mother's home in Copenhagen.
Sir Charles D. Ellis FRP
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO383/39 regarding
conditions at Ruhleben camp, including an account of conditions sent by prisoner Charles
D. Ellis to his father, A. C. Ellis of Finchley Road, London.
Ellis was born on August 11th 1895 and educated at Harrow, becoming Victor Ludorum in 1912 and 1913
at RMA Woolwich and Trinity College, Cambridge. He eventually died on January 10th 1980, aged 84, and his obituary was carried
in The Times of January 15th 1980, giving some detail of his time at Ruhleben, and his collaboration with neutron discoverer
James Chadwick ("Sir Charles Ellis", p. 14, col. F):
"The son of A. C. Ellis, he was born on August 11, 1895 and educated at Harrow,
where he was Victor Ludorum in 1912 and 1913, RMA Woolwich and Trinity College, Cambridge.
"At Woolwich he passed out first and joined the Royal Engineers. he was interned
in Germany during the First World War and it was at this time that he met James Chadwick, discoverer of the neutron, who had
been working with Geiger and had ben caught by the outbreak of hostilities. Chadwick was working in a stable in Ruhleben the
internment camp carrying out experimental research. Ellis, later to be Chadwick's colleague at Cambridge, learnt much from
Chadwick starting with the quantum theory and radioactivity, since Chadwick's interest was centred on the work of Planck,
Nernt and Ernest Rutherford.
"In Ruhleben Chadwick, with Ellis's help, worked on the ionization which occurs
in the oxidation of phosphorus and also on the photo-chemical reaction of carbon monoxide and chlorine. Some equipment for
this was obtained through the kindness of Professors Planck, Nernt and Lise Meitner; the remainder was constructed in the
way that all prisoners of war learn..."
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Ellis
was noted as being from 68 Fichley Road, London, and as having been born in London in 1895. He was arrested in Bremen
on 6 NOV 1914. After a brief period held in Bremen, he was sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack
7.
H. J. Ellis
H. J. Ellis was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message of greeting to Sir Edward Letchworth,
Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in the Times of December 28th 1914 (page
3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
Ellis, of Bangor, North Wales, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published
by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
Bernard C. Ellison
Bernard C. Ellison was a Ruhleben inmate released from the camp in January
1917. The Times of January 9th 1917 reported his arrival back at Gravesend, quoting him as saying that he had been suffering
from "consumption due to insufficient food", and that he had originally been arrested whilst on holiday in Belgium.
Wallace Ellison
Wallace Ellison, formerly a worker at the United Shoe Factory in Frankfurt, was
interned at the beginning of the war.
Wallace was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society in the Manchester Guardian of
January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those
Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as 83 Victoria Road, New Brighton.
As an inmate at Ruhleben, Ellison was appointed in March 1915 by Powell,
the camp captain, to chair the Education Department, as recorded in the Scotsman on 29/3/1915 (p.8) and the Times on 29/3/1915
("More and Better Food at Ruhleben" p.4 col A). The department's remit was to control and administer the schools,
classes, lectures, library and newspapers.
On March 3rd 1915, Ellison was briefly mentioned in a postcard by Frederick
Cox, sent to C. F. Gardner at the British United Shoe Machinery Co. Ltd. The card was reproduced in Frank Bachenheimer's "A
Postal History study of ... The Ruhleben P.O.W. Camp 1914-1918", and from the text it is apparent that Gardner was evidently
in correspondence with Ellison as well:
Ellison and the boys have shown me several postcards received from you at different
times, and I was very pleased to gather that you and yours are well.
Ellison made an escape attempt in 1915, which did see him leave
the camp, but he was subsequently recaptured and returned to Ruhleben.
The story of Ellison's escape attempt, published in the book "Fifty Amazing
Stories of the Great War" in 1936, can also be read at the Great War Great Escapes website. And an autobiographical
account of the life of Frenchman Dr. Henri Beland, written in French, which refers to the doctor's meeting with Ellison in
prison, can be found at the Un Jours en Prison a Berlin e-book, on the internet.
From Beland's notes, it is known that Ellison made an escape attempt from Ruhleben in 1915, which
was unsuccessful, and which saw him taken to Stadvogtei prison in Berlin, where he remained for many months. From here he
made a second escape attempt in 1916, lasting ten days out in the open, before being recaptured and returned to the prison.
Documents on this attempt are held in the National Archives in London at FO383/199 and FO383/76. Also at FO383/76 are
records concerning a previous imprisonment at the Stadtvogtei for making a stand against attempted subsidising of British
'negro' prisoners at Ruhleben from German funds.
In August 1917, after a newly drawn up agreement between Germany and Britain over prisoners who had
attempted to escape, Ellison was finally returned to Ruhleben - from which he made a third, and this time successful
escape attempt!
Ellison was noted in an article in the Scotsman newspaper of January 25th 1916 as being a prisoner of
Ruhleben who had tried to escape, and who had ended up in a Berlin jail on one meal a day as a consequence. His case was being
investigated by Mr. Gerard ("Complaints of Treatement at Ruhleben", p.5).
From the editor's note on page 143 of the reprinted
edition of Geoffrey Pyke's "To Ruhleben and Back, it is noted that Ellison was captain of Barrack 13. His involvement with
Pyke's escape attempts are noted anonymously in Pyke's recollections. The Editor's epilogue in Pyke's
book mainly concerns Ellison's activities:
"Unknown to Pyke when he wrote this book, fellow conspirator Wallace Ellison
followed him out of Ruhleben thirteen days later, bolting from a work detail on July 23rd, 1915. Pyke and Falk had considered
it too dangerous to ride trains near the Dutch border, but that is precisiely what Ellison did, covering the entire distance
in one day - arriving there, in fact, the same day as Pyke and Falk did. As predicted, he was immediately arrested by German
border guards and sent back to Ruhleben. He escaped again - successfully, this time - in November 1917."
The Liddel Collection
at Leeds University has vast amount of material related to Ellison's time at Ruhleben, held at RUH 20.
These include: a tourist map of Frankfurt; a Soldier's Prayer Card from August 1914; a Christmas dinner menu from December
1914; a Christmas card from December 1914; a letter written to his father from Ruhleben, dated March 10th 1915; a letter from
Raymond Eggelston, dated December 1st 1915; two editions of 'In Ruhleben Camp' (June 27th 1915 and August
29th 1915); Bound copies of 'The Ruhleben Camp Magazine' (March 1916 to June 1917); two editions of 'The Ruhleben Camp
Magazine' (April 1916, August 1916, and June 1917); a copy of the publication 'The Ruhleben Bye-Election' (1915); a Ruhleben
Horticultural Society Membership Card (1916 to 1917); a letter to his father from H. Armstrong relating to his escape from
Germany, dated December 31st 1917); letters to Miss Beatrice Kelsey (May 12th to 16th 1918); six large photographs; two
scrapbooks of press cuttings (1918 to 1919, and 1928 to 1929); Miscellaneous press cuttings relating to Ruhleben, from 1917
to 1934; two tickets for a public lecture entitled 'My Escape From Germany' by W. Ellison at Colwyn Bay on February
15th 1918; German banknotes from 1917 and 1918; a portrait sketch; two bound typescript plays 'The Lone Game' and 'Love
and the Enemy'; a poster for 'My Escape From Germany' by W. Ellison at Colwyn Bay on February 15th 1918; a copy
of the magazine 'The Great War... I Was There!'; offprints of an article 'The German People and the War' by W. Ellison from
'The Wheatsheaf'; an advertisement for his book 'Escapes and Adventures' by W. Ellison from 'Blackwood's Advertiser'; a ,anuscript
dinner menu; published illustrations; a letter from Frances Stevenson relating to Ellison's escape, dated November 30th 1917;
about 120 letters from Ellison, mainly to his family, from June 2nd 1911 to November 23rd 1917; a typescript
letter to Karl Abshagen, dated May 1st 1964; a typescript letter to James Gordon, dated January 25th 1965; two
photograph albums, relating to Stadvoigtei and Ruhleben camps; and 140 photographs and postcards, from 1914 to 1919.
The online index also tells us that Ellison was a
lecturer on Economics at Frankfurt University at the outbreak of the war, and was arrested in August 1914 whilst returning
to England and held at Sennelager Camp before being released. He was then interned at Ruhleben from Nov 1914, living
in Barrack 13, and attempted to escape in 1915, when he was captured and held at Stadvoigtei Prison, from where he also
tried to escape in October 1916. He returned to Ruhleben and successfully escaped to Holland, between October and November
1917, and then served as a secret agent on the German-Swiss border until the end of the War.
W. Ellwood
W. Ellwood is noted on a list of prisoners of war
on a document entitled 'Men in Englander Lager, Ruhleben', held by Hull Local Studies Library (provisional catalogue entry: Hohenrein Collection F 10b), supplied by senior local studies librarian
David Alexander Smith in July 2008, for which I am grateful. The document
notes that Ellwood was a merchant seaman on board the Coralie Horlock, and interned in Barrack 11, loft.
John Emoe
John Emoe was one of nine men released from Ruhleben in January 1917, as reported in the Times of
January 12th 1917 ("Nine Prisoners Released from Ruhleben", p.5, col. B).
Ennis
Ennis is noted in the second issue of In Ruhleben Camp (June 1915, p.14) as having played for the Rest
of Ruhleben team against the Varsities, in the Ruhleben Cricket League.
Stephen Erhard
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO383/26 regarding
Stephen Erhard, detained at Ruhleben, namely an enquiry from his son, Ernest Erhard,
of Redcross Street, London. Further documents at FO383/75 concern a claim against the German authorities regarding the
sequestration of his property by the German authorities.
Dick Errington
Dick Errington was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message of greeting to Sir Edward Letchworth,
Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in the Times of December 28th 1914 (page
3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
R. Errington
R. Errington, of Sunderland, was named in a list
of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
C. F. G. Esders
The Liddle Collection at Leeds University holds various items relating to
inmate C. F. G. Esders, donated by him between 1980 and 1981, and held at RUH 21. These are an
'Assault At Arms' programme and poster; 1st, 9th and Eve of Empire Day Promenade Concert posters; 10th Promenade Concert poster,
from July 18th 1916; and a manuscript of his recollections. The online index also tells us that Esders was living in
Essen at the outbreak of the First World War, before being interned at Ruhleben, for the whole war. He later became a
major in the army.
Estall
Estall was released from Ruhleben in January 1917, as reported in the Scotsman newspaper on January
31st 1917 ("British Civilians From Ruhleben", p.6).
William Estall
William Estall was recorded by fellow internee Christopher Cornforth, in an autograph book now held
at the Imperial War Museum. He was interned in Barrack XI. he may well be the Estall noted above, and the William Estill noted
below.
Many thanks to Christopher's granddaughter Christine Pierce who provided this information in
December 2007.
William Estill
William Estill, was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message
of greeting to Sir Edward Letchworth, Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in
the Times of December 28th 1914 (page 3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
Estill, of Liverpool, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned
at Ruhleben, as published by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
Joseph Ettershank
Joseph Ettershawk was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message of greeting to Sir Edward Letchworth,
Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in the Times of December 28th 1914 (page
3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
Many thanks to Alan Way, Joseph's
grandson, for the following additional contribution in March 2008:
Joseph Ettershank was my grandfather, he was chief engineer on one of
the Curry Line ships sailing out of Leith to Italy but mostly up the Baltic, and in 1914 the day war broke out his ship was
in Hamburg where the crew were taken prisoner and my grandfather sent to the Ruhleben Camp.
Another of the camp inmates I knew personally in Glasgow during
the 1939/45 war was the musician James Peebles Conn.
Dr. Maurice Leon Ettinghausen
Dr. Maurice Leon Ettinghausen is referred to in the second issue of the
Ruhleben Camp Magazine (April 1916, p.24) as the camp's reference librarian.
After the war, Ettinghausen took to selling antiquarian books, and at his death in 1974, aged 91,
was described as "probably the oldest antiquarian bookseller on the international scene". His obituary appeared in The Times
of November 20th 1974, where his stay at Ruhleben was again briefly noted ("Dr. M. L. Ettinghausen", p. 19, col. E).
The Imperial War Museum has a series of photographs under the heading of
Ettinghausen Maurice (Dr), five of which show various named people held at Ruhleben, the other showing a civilian internment
camp (possibly Holzminden). These are accessible at ID:2002-03-10.
Dr Manfred G. Heber in Grand Canaria has several postcards in his collection
concerning Ettinghausen, dated 20 APR 1915 (from Monreus), 26 OCT 1915, 9 NOV 1915, and 28 NOV 1917 (from Berlin). All state
him to be in Barrack 6, Box 2. Further cards in his collection then list him in Barrack 13 - a postcard from Basel on
12 MAR 1917, also 25 MAY 1917 on an envelope from 'CMS', a postcard dated 28 JUN 1917 from 'DMS' (photocopy), a postcard from
Copenhagen dated 22 MAR 1918, a postcard from CMS on 30 APR 1918, and another dated 9 AUG 1918.
A Camp Messenger Service postcard to Dr. Ettinghauser, franked April 30th
1918, was reprinted in Frank Bachenheimer's "A Postal History Study of The Ruhleben P.O.W.
Camp 1914 - 1918", confirming that he was in Barrack 13.
Maurice's grandson Henry contacted me in August 2007 to state that his
grandfather has been born in Paris in 1883 and eventually passed away in Oxford in 1974, having resumed his trade as an antiquarian
bookseller in the United Kingdom after the war. Many thanks to Henry for his contribution.
Evans
Evans was noted in the second issue of In Ruhleben Camp (1915, p.22) as being on the winning Welsh
side against the Scots-Colonial team, in a friendly rugby international at the camp.
David Evans
David Evans is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register number
2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Evans is recorded as having been
born on November 18th 1888 in "Blaenffos. S. O. Cardigan", and is described as having been a student prior
to his internment. His home address was Blaenffos, Cardigan. At the time the register was recorded, Evans was noted as
staying in Box 18.
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Evans
is noted as being from Blaenffos, Cardigan, and as having been born in Cardigan in 1888. He was a student in Charlottenburg,
where he was arrested on 5 OCT 1914. After a brief period held in Charlottenburg and Berlin, he was sent to Ruhleben,
where he was interned in Barrack 5.
Evans' obituary in The Times of October 31st 1968 gives some background
to his internment ("Obituary: Prof David Evans", p. 12, col. F):
"Emeritus Professor David Evans, for over 30 years Head of the Department of
German, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, to which he gave a lifetime of service, has died at the age of 81.
"He was a student of the college, and after graduation in 1910 spent three
years at the University of Berlin. He was one of the group of British university men who were overtaken by outbreak of the
First World War and spent the war years in the civilian internment camp at Ruhleben..."
The obituary goes on to outline a subsequent academic career at
Birmingham and Aberytswyth universities, as a professor in German studies. he was survived by his wife, two sons and
a daughter.
Ifor Leslie Evans
Ifor Leslie Evans was noted as a former inmate at Ruhleben in his obituary
carried in The Times of June 2nd 1952:
"Ifor Leslie Evans was born in Aberdare in 1897, and he received his early education
at Wycliffe College, Gloucester. While he was pursuing subsequent studies in Europe in 1914 he was arrested in bavaria at
the outbreak of war as a Russian spy and interned at Ruhleben..."
Robert Evans
Robert Evans is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register number
2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Evans is recorded as having been
born on November 10th 1860 in Portmadoc, and is described as having been a mariner on the "George Casson" prior
to his internment. His home address was 7 Madoc Street, Portmadoc. At the time the register was recorded, Evans was noted
as staying in loft B, having transferred there from Barrack 14 on April 19th 1915.
Thomas Evans
Thomas Evans is noted on a list of prisoners of war on a document entitled 'Men in Englander Lager,
Ruhleben', held by Hull Local Studies Library (provisional catalogue entry: Hohenrein Collection F 10b), supplied by senior local studies librarian
David Alexander Smith in July 2008, for which I am grateful. The document
notes that Evans was a merchant seaman on board the Saxon Prince, and interned in Barrack 8, loft.
W. J. Evans
W. J. Evans, of Cardiff, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published
by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
Peter Best Every
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO383/64 regarding
an enquiry from seaman Peter Best Every, interned at Ruhleben, about the possibility of his release,
with him being over 55 years of age.
Thomas Exton
Thomas Exton was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society
in the Manchester Guardian of January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian
Prisoners: Full List of Those Detained at Ruhleben".
F
Rudolph Fabel
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Rudolph Fabel is noted as being from Johannesburg,
South Africa, and as having been born in Kimberley on 16 JUL 1885. He was an erector, and was arrested 2 FEB 1915 in berlin,
and was duly sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 4.
J. Fabian
Dr Samantha Letters of the University of London contacted me in September
2007 to inform me of a J. Fabian, aged 28, who was taking the penultimate stage in the University of London's Arts degree,
called Intermediate Arts, at Ruhleben between 1914 and 1918.
Dr. Letters is currently helping to pull together a book celebrating the
150th anniversary of the university's external system, which included the degree programme organised at Ruhleben, and which
will feature within a chapter of the book. More information on the project can be found at http://www.londonexternal.ac.uk/alumni/anniversary_year.shtml.
Arthur Facer
Arthur Facer is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register number
2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Facer is recorded as having been
born on June 22nd 1892 in Leeds, and is described as having been a correspondent prior to his internment.
His home address was 64 Victoria Gardens, Leeds. At the time the register was recorded, Facer was noted as staying in
box 4, having transferred there from Barrack 11 on September 22nd 1915.
Facer was also listed as being at Ruhleben in an earlier Foreign Office
file in FO 369/710 dated 11 OCT 1914. The list was communicated to the Foreign Office by a Nurse Coe (with
thanks to Simon Fowler).
Anthony Fachiri
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Anthony
Fachiri was noted as being from 190 Gloucester Terrace, London, and as having been born in Liverpool in 1887. He
was arrested in Bremen on 13 OCT 1914, where he had worked as a cotton broker. After a brief period held in Bremen, he
was sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 7.
Fachiri was noted as a linesman in a mock international between England, led by Bloomer, and
the Rest of the World, led by Cameron, on May 2nd 1915. Kick off took place at 4.30pm, and a document with the teams
listed was recently discovered amongst some Foreign Office files by the National Archives, in November 2005.
Fachiri is also noted in the second issue of In Ruhleben Camp (June 1915, p.14)
as having played for the Rest of Ruhleben team against the Varsities, in the Ruhleben Cricket League.
Fachiri is further noted in the second issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (April 1916, p.38) as having
been elected to the Ruhleben Golf Committee, at a meeting held on February 25th 1916, with forty members in attendance.
He is further recorded in the fourth issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (August 1916, p.37) as
playing cricket for the Barrack 7 side.
The Manchester Guardian of August 19th 1915 (p. 6) names A. Fachiri as having been bowled out by O' Neill in a Lancashire
versus Yorkshire Cricket match. The article suggests he acted as wicket keeper in the match, for the Lincolnshire side.
Frank Norman Fair
The Scotsman newspaper reported on March 9th 1916 that Frank Norman Fair had
been released from Ruhleben a couple of days earlier ("Released from Ruhleben", p.5).
George Fairly / Fairley
George Fairly was recorded in the Scotsman newspaper of January 11th 1916
("German Cruelty to British Seamen", p.3) as having returned to North Shields after his internment at Ruhleben. Fairly was
a member of the vessel San Wilfrido, and along with 70 other men on board had been captured early in the war and marched through
the streets to Enrison, where they spent two days surviving on raw herring, before being taken to Ruhleben. He noted in the
article that the English seamen had been brutally treated by the Germans, including being struck by bayonets in their mouths.
George Fairley (sic) was also listed in The Times of January 8th 1916 ("Released Civilians" p.5, col.
D), where he was decsribed as one of 69 men released from Ruhleben on Thursday, January 6th, 1916, who subsequently
travelled to Flushing for their return trip to England.
John Arthur Falck
John Arthur Falck is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Falck is recorded as having
been born on November 8th 1894 in Huddersfield, and is described as having been a student prior to his
internment. His home address was 13 William Street, Huddersfield. At the time the register was recorded, Falck was noted
as staying in box 12, having transferred there from Barrack 14 on April 19th 1915.
Falck was also noted as playing on the Rest of the World side, led by Cameron, in a mock
international between England and the Rest of the World on May 2nd 1915. Kick off took place at 4.30pm, and a document with
the teams listed was recently discovered amongst some Foreign Office files by the National Archives, in November 2005.
Edward Morris Falk
Edward Morris Falk successfully attempted an escape from the camp
in 1915, with fellow inmate Geoffrey Pyke, who upon his return to Britain wrote up the story of their escape in the book
"To Ruhleben and Back", with their story also covered in Blackwood's Magazine.
Additional information on Falk's and Pyke's escape attempts can be gleaned
from the recollections of fellow potential escapee, Wallace Ellison, at the following website: Wallace Ellison
The Scotsman newspaper of July 26th 1915 carried an article about Falk's
arrival in Amsterdam on July 24th, just after his escape, along with fellow inmate Geoffrey Pyke ("Adventurous Journey from
Ruhleben", p.8). A further article on July 27th gave readers a lot more detail of their escape effort ("Escape from Ruhleben
- British Civilians Trying Journey", p.3). The Manchester Guardian also covered the escape on July 26th 1915 in an article
entitled "Englishmen Escape from German Camp" (p. 4).
The Liddle Collection at Leeds University holds a few items relating to
Falk at RUH 22. These include two photographs; a typescript of his recollections, from 1920; a photostat letter from
the Junior Army and Navy Club; and a photostat obituary, with his service career. The online index also tells us that Falk
was born in 1878 in Bradford and educated at Bradford Grammar School and Leeds University, later becoming a civil engineer.
He served in the Militia Battalion of the King's Shropshire Light Infantry after the Boer War and as Assistant District Commissioner
in Nigeria. Falk was on holiday in Germany at the outbreak of the First World War and was held as a British civil prisoner
of war at Ruhleben, from where he successfully escaped to Holland, returning to Nigeria for the duration of the War.
During the Second World War, Falk served in the Home Guard.
Walter Fane
Walter Fane is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register number
2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Fane is recorded as having been
born May 12th 1878 in London, and is described as having been a butler prior to his internment. His home address
was Sachsenring 89, Koln. At the time the register was recorded, Fane was noted as staying in loft A.
F. E. Fanning
F. E. Fanning was noted in the first issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (March 1916) as having supplied
a list of lectures regarding the Nautical and M.E.A. Circles to the magazine's editor.
He was also recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society in the Manchester Guardian of
January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those
Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as 29 Palm Street, Longsight.
Farmer
Farmer was noted in the third issue of the Ruhleben
Camp Magazine (May 1916, p.18) as having taken part in a debate against Mr. Ramm entitled "Is Legislation
Directed by Social Reform?".
Fawcett
Fawcett was in the Barrack 20 football team at Ruhleben, and according
to issue six of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine played in the cup final in April 1917. The first leg was a scoreless draw, and
in the rematch three days later, Barrack 20 won, 3-0.
Thomas Fawcett
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Thomas
Fawcett is noted as being from 42 Edward Road, Balsell Heath, Birmingham. He was a foreman of works at Wygmael near
Louvain, Belgium, where he was arrested on 12 SEP 1914, and sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 6.
J. Feldmann
J. Feldmann is noted as having stayed in Barrack 6 on a postcard from Bern
dated 22 AUG 1916 (with thanks to Dr. Manfred G. Heber in Grand Canaria).
Aaron Felix
Aaron Felix was a British Ruhleben prisoner released in October 1916, as noted in the Scotsman
newspaper of October 9th 1916 ("Released from Ruhleben - Arrival of British Party at Rotterdam", p.6).
Aaron Felixbranth
Aaron Felixbranth was one of five men released from Ruhleben in September 1916, who were hospitably
cared for by the Society of Freinds, as reported in the Times of October 7th 1916 ("Back From Germany", p.7, col. E).
Reginald A. Fellowes
Reginald A. Fellowes was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message of greeting to Sir Edward
Letchworth, Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in the Times of December 28th
1914 (page 3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
According to the Times of November 4th 1918, Fellowes' stay at
Ruhleben was brief:
All the male civilians came from Holland, with the exception of the Hon. Reginald
Fellowes, who left Germany the previous Saturday. He was undergoing a cure when the war broke out, and has, with the exception
of a brief stay in Ruhleben, been interned at Selle ever since.
Montague Ernest Feltham
Montague Ernest Feltham is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Feltham is recorded as
having been born on February 14th 1882 in London, and is described as having been a singer prior to his
internment. His home address was Reichstr. 30I, Dresden A. At the time the register was recorded, Feltham was noted
as staying in box 26, having transferred there from the Tea House on April 22nd 1916. He later moved to Barrack 16 on November
22nd 1917.
Feltham is noted as having been in the Teahouse on a postcard dated 25
FEB 1916, and a letter dated 25 FEB 1916, both of which are held by Dr. Manfred G. Heber of Grand Canaria (with
thanks to Dr. Heber).
Ferguson
Ferguson was noted in the fifth issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (Christmas 1916, p.58) as having
played for the winning B side in a second division match between the A team and the B team, on October 3rd 1916. The
score was B: 4 to A: 1.
J. C. Ferguson
J. C. Ferguson was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian
Society in the Manchester Guardian of January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's
Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as 39 Staincliffe Hall Road, Batley.
George W. Fergusson was appointed in March 1915 to be on the committee of the Kitchen Department,
as reported in the Scotsman on 29/3/1915 (p.8) and the Times on 29/3/1915 ("More and Better Food at Ruhleben" p.4 col
A). The department's remit was to control the kitchens and all questions regarding the food of the prisoners. In
the second issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (April 1916, p.11), he was sketched by C. M. Horsfall, and described as working
in the "end kitchen".
Fergusson was also noted as having been involved in musical concerst at the camp. In the first issue
of "In Ruhleben Camp" (June 6th 1915), the following concert was promoted:
"In the course of the next week also Mr. Lindsay and Mr. George Ferguson will
hold an invitation vocal and piano recital on strcictly classical lines, the programme will include selections from the works
of Bach, Brahms and Beethoven".
Fergusson was also recorded in The
Times as being about to give a concert at the Ruhleben Exhibition on Friday, February 7th, with fellow former Ruhleben musicians,
all of whom had been professional musicians captured in Bayreuth. The article appeared on January 30th 1919 in the Times ("Ruhleben
Exhibition", p.11, col. F).
In March 2008, I was contacted by
George's grandson, also George, who provided me with the following additional information.
George W. Fergusson was a prisoner
at Ruhleben for three and half years. His son, Eugene Stuart Fergusson, born in 1914, remembered his father
coming to visit both he and his mother periodically in a horse drawn wagon whilst out buying food for the camp, and on these
visits, George used to smuggle butter to them. He produced an unfinished manuscript about his stay at Ruhleben called "The
Goat". After the war, George, his wife Ethyl Ostrander Fergusson, and their son, emigrated to the USA in 1918-19 via Ellis
Island. He continued his career as a voice teacher and opera singer until his death.
Many thanks indeed to George for sharing
this information regarding his grandfather.
H. M. Field
H. M. Field was listed in The Times of January 8th 1916 ("Released Civilians" p.5, col. D) as one
of 69 men released from Ruhleben on Thursday, January 6th, 1916, who subsequently travelled to Flushing for their return
trip to England.
Harry Field
Harry Field was noted in an article in the Scotsman newspaper of April
12th 1916 as being a Canadian pianist who had recently endured an eleven month internment at Ruhleben. Prior
to his incarceration, Field had been based at Leipzig and Dresden in Germany. On the afternoon of April 12th 1916, following
his release, Field gave a piano recital at Steinway Hall.
Siegmund Fielder
The National Archives hold documents at FO383/206 concerning
a request for Siegmund Fielder, a German naturalised in Australia, to be allowed to return to Australia after his release
from Ruhleben in 1916.
F. B. Collins Fielman
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO 383/25 concerning
the release from Ruhleben of F B Collins Feilman, and an enquiry pertaining to his subsequent whereabouts.
Filmore
Filmore was present at the Ruhleben Exhibition on February 10th 1919, where he was one of the prisoners
who entertained the King and Queen on a Royal visit to see for themselves what the civilians had endured, and as recorded
in The Times of February 11th 1919 ("Ruhleben Exhibition", p.9, col. F). Filmore, along with Milner, presented the King
with a rabbit skin bound volume of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine.
Louis Egerton Filmore
According to Elizabeth Beasley, daughter of Ruhleben inmate Jack
Griggs, L. E. Filmore was her father's favourite parodist, whom she can remember quoting from "All the world's a
cage...". As well as his parody of Shakespeare's "7 Ages" in In Ruhleben Camp issue 1 (page 7), Filmore also penned a page
from "Pepys Hys Diarie" for Prisoners' Pie, and wrote about "Alice through the Lager Glass" in Ruhleben Camp Magazine
issue 6 (page 12). He edited the Ruhleben Camp Magazine and was author of several "Ruhlimericks".
Joseph Powell's book described Filmore as a barrister-at-law, while
John Davidson Ketchum recorded him as a member of the staff of "Punch".
Filmore was one of a group of Ruhleben inmates released on March 6th 1918 to England, as noted in
files at the National Archives in Kew under accession number MT9/1238. He was interned within Barrack 8.
Karl Fink
Karl Fink is noted in a document in FO 369/710 as a 38 year old English born hotel
owner sent first to Berlin's Stadtvogtei on 21 AUG 1914 and then to Ruhleben on 9 SEP 1914. The information was
originally compiled by the American Embassy in Berlin.
George Augustus Finney
George Finney was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message of greeting to Sir Edward Letchworth,
Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in the Times of December 28th 1914 (page
3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
G. Finner (sic), of London, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben,
as published by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
From Marcus Bateman's website we learn that Finney one of a group of Ruhleben inmates released
on March 6th 1918 to England, as noted in files at the National Archives in Kew under accession number MT9/1238.
James Finnucane
James Finnucane was one of the Ruhleben prisoners
to sign a message of greeting to Sir Edward Letchworth, Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914,
and printed in the Times of December 28th 1914 (page 3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
George Frederick Fischer
George Frederick Fischer was appointed by Powell, the camp captain, to chair the camp's Sanitation Department
in March 1915, as recorded in the Scotsman on 29/3/1915 (p.8). The department's remit was to maintain hygenic conditions in
the camp by attention to the latrines, drainage, disinfection, baths, and the conditions of the barracks and the lofts.
The National Archives also holds documents from 1915 at FO383/35 regarding
Fischer, relating to the execution of a power of attorney in respect of his trust property
in England.
Fischer was also noted in the second issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine
(April 1916, p.38) as having chaired a meeting of the Ruhleben Golf Committee held on February 25th 1916, with forty members
in attendance.
J. Fisher
J. Fisher was noted in The Times of December 8th 1915 as having been one of the 160 prisoners released
from Ruhleben on the previous day who had travelled by train to Flushing ("Returning Civilians" p.9, col.F).
J. H. Fisher
In an article in the Scotsman newspaper of October 27th 1915, J. H. Fisher was
listed as captain of Barrack 3 ("Ruhleben Camp - Success of Civil Administration", p.9).
Fisher was noted in the third issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (May
1916, p.43) as having been the chair of the Cricket Committee.
John Flatford
John Flatford was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society in the Manchester Guardian
of January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those
Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as 18 The Drive, Ilford.
J. Fleming
J. Fleming was an Edinburgh University man who was interned in Ruhleben after the outbreak of war.
The Scotsman newspaper on 1/1/1915 (p.8) recorded the text of the following postcard sent to Edinburgh University:
"Best greetings to the old 'Varsity from the following students and ex-students
at present resident at Ruhleben - James L. Mounsey; H. J. W. Tillyard, lecturer in Greek; W. J. Crosland Briggs, M.A., 1914;
Harold Luck, M.A., 1913; M. F. Liddle, M.A., 1909; J. Halliday, M.A., 1914; James Peebles Conn, Bucher scholar in music, 1902;
J. M. Dickson, M.A., BSc., Agric.; R. Herdman Pender, M.A., teacher in George Heriot's School; E. G. Burgoyne, J. Fleming,
1895-97; Robert McNeil, 1905-6; Eric G. Riddell, 1908-9, former students."
Samuel Fletcher
Thanks to philatelist Jim Mackay who contacted me in December 2007.
He holds a postcard sent from Worcester on 12 Jan 1915 addressed to "British Civilian Prisoner of War" Mr Samuel Fletcher,
Barrack 12. No further information on Fletcher is known as yet.
William Henry Fletcher
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, we learn that William Henry
Fletcher was resident at 55 Ainslie Street, Grimsby, was born in Cork on 19 MAR 1886, was a ship's officer
arrested in Hamburg on 16 OCT 1914, and after a brief stint confined to the hulks in Hamburg was sent to Ruhleben,
where he was interned in Barrack 1.
Fletcher was also named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published by the
Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
Gordon B. Flint
The Liddle Collection of Leeds University holds a few items relating to Gordon B. Flint at RUH 23, all
of which were donated by his nephew, T. B. Flint, in February 1981. These items are 11 photographs, and various photocopied
press cuttings, passes and papers from January 5th 1916 to November 9th 1918. The online index tells us that Flint was educated
at Edinburgh University, and was on holiday in Germany at the outbreak of the war when he was arrested and interned at
Ruhleben, where he spent the war in Barrack 2. Flint was a doctor.
Flitton
Flitton is noted in the second issue of In Ruhleben Camp (June 1915, p.15) as having taken 3
for 8 for Barrack 6 in a cricket match between Barracks 5 and 6, in the second division of the Ruhleben
Cricket League.
Sydney Flitton
Sydney Flitton is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Flitton is recorded as
having been born on April 20th 1891 in Radwell, Herts., and is described as having been a merchant prior to
his internment. His home address was 215 Nevells Road, Letchworth, Herts. At the time the register was recorded, Flitton
was noted as staying in loft B, having transferred there from Barrack 14 on April 19th 1915.
Flitton is also recorded as having spent some time in the Schoningsbaracke between January 3rd 1918
and January 15th. He is also recorded as having spent some time in the Lazarett between April 15th and April 26th.
This may be the same Flitton as noted above, although the barrack numbers are different.
T. Foden
T. Foden was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society in the Manchester Guardian of
January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those
Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as 84 Windmill Lane, North Reddish.
Arthur Clow Ford
Arthur Clow Ford is noted in the first issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine
(March 1916, p.36) of having previously tried to give a lecture on George Bernard Shaw, which was "strangled at its birth
by Captain Brassbound". He is further noted as having given a literary lecture on Shakespeare (p.36). This was not the first
Shakespeare lecture given, as the seventh issue of In Ruhleben Camp (Sep 1915, p.8) describes how he gave a lecture entitled
"The National Ideal of Shakespeare" as part of a Shakespeare Evening:
Mr. Ford has that happy way of knowing how to let Shakespeare give his lectures
for him, a way that has made his 'Varsity lectures here so popular.
In an article on the camp's school in the same issue, Ford is noted as its chairman, and of being
"a lecturer at Lausanne" (p.17).
On April 27th 1916, Ford gave a further lecture in Ruhleben as part of a Shakespeare week at
the camp, as noted in the Scotsman newspaper of May 15th 1916 ("Shakespeare Celebrations in Ruhleben", p.7).
In The Times of March 30th 1936, Ford was noted as receiving a new appointment at London University:
Mr. Arthur Clow Ford, M.B.E., B.A.(Lond.), has been appointed
External and Extension Registrar from September 1, 1936. Mr. Ford was educated at George Watson's College, Edinburgh, and
the University of Lausanne; and has been Deputy External Registrar since 1921. During the War he was interned in Germany,
where he took an active part in the organization of the Ruhleben Camp School for internees. He has been for some time vice-president
of the London University Extension Association.
Captain H. L. Ford
H. L. Ford was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message of greeting
to Sir Edward Letchworth, Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in the Times of
December 28th 1914 (page 3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally." Captain
H. L. Ford, of London, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published by the Scotsman newspaper
on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO 383/20 concerning a
complaint of non-receipt of parcels sent to Ford, by the General Steam Navigation Company.
W. Ford
W. Ford was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published by the Scotsman
newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
W. A. Ford
W. A. Ford was noted in The Times of December 8th 1915 as having been one of the 160 prisoners released
from Ruhleben on the previous day who had travelled by train to Flushing ("Returning Civilians" p.9, col.F).
David Forman
David Forman was one of the Ruhleben prisoners to sign a message of greeting to Sir Edward Letchworth,
Grand Secretary of English Freemasons, postmarked December 9th 1914, and printed in the Times of December 28th 1914 (page
3, col. B). The message stated:
"Worshipful Sir & Bro.,
We the undersigned brethren, at present interned with other British civilians
at the concentration camp at Ruhleben - Spandau, Germany, send hearty good wishes to the Grand Master, officers and brethren
in Great Britain, hoping that we may have the pleasure soon of greeting them personally."
Forman was one of a group of Ruhleben
inmates released on March 6th 1918 to England, as noted in files at the National Archives in Kew under accession number MT9/1238.
He was interned in Barrack 8.
Frank Carlyle Forrester
Frank Carlyle Forrester is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Forrester is recorded as
having been born on December 25th 1881 in Canterbury, and is described as having been a clerk prior to
his internment. His home address was 2 Avenue House, St. John's Wood, London. At the time the register was recorded, Forrester
was noted as staying in R.1.
Forrester is further noted as having enjoyed periods of leave from the camp. These were:
1917 - 22/12 to 27/12; 31/12 to 2/1/1918.
1918 - 9/2 to 11/2; 16/2 to 18/2; 23/2 to 25/2; 2/3 to 4/3; 9/3 to 11/3; 16/3 to
18/3; 23/3 to 25/3; 30/3 to 2/4; 6/4 to 8/4; 13/4 to 15/4; 20/4 to 22/4; 26/4 to 29/4; 4/5 to 6/5; 11/5 to 13/5; 18/5 to 21/5;
25/5 to 27/5; 8/6 to 9/6; 15/6 to 17/6; 22/6 to 24/6; 6/7 to 8/7; 13/7 to 15/7; 20/7 to 22/7; 27/7 to 29/7; 3/8 to 5/8; and
24/8 to 26/8.
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Forrester is again noted
as being from 309 Regent Street, London, and as havi ng been born in Canterbury in 1880. He was a chief clerk in Wesel, where
he was arrested on 11 AUG 1914. After a brief period held in Sennelager and Cologne, he was sent to Ruhleben, where
he was interned in Barrack 5.
George P. Forrester
George P. Forrester is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Forrester is recorded as
having been born on November 3rd 1880 in Geneva, and is described as having been a pharmacist prior to
his internment. His home address was 4 The Broadway, Maidenhead. At the time the register was recorded, Forrester was
noted as staying in box 16, having transferred there from Barrack 1 on April 19th 1915.
John Percy Forster
John Percy Forster is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Forster is recorded as
having been born on September 18th 1890 in London, and is described as having been a clerk prior to his
internment. His home address was 95 Coronation Avenue, Stoke Newington, N. At the time the register was recorded, Forster
was noted as staying in loft B.
J. W. Forton
J. W. Forton, of Hull, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published
by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
Frank Fortune
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, we learn that Frank Fortune was
from Moorfield, Bristol, and was born in Bristol in 1890. He was a fireman, and was arrested in Stettin on 2 SEP 1914, and
after a brief period of imprisonment in Strettin and Stralsund, he was sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in
Barrack 4.
Richard Fosdick
The National Archives holds docuemnts from 1915 at FO383/69 which include
a list of individuals deemed pro-German, with some personal details and remarks by William Stern and Richard Fosdick, both
released from Ruhleben in 1915 (in docket no. 169394).
Benjamin R. Foster
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1916 at FO383/192 concerning
Benjamin R. Foster, a civilian prisoner at Ruhleben.
The archive holds further documents from 1916
at FO383/208 regarding enquiries regarding Foster's repatriation from Ruhleben
Camp, including a letter from Captain Charles Bathurst asking for Mr. Foster to be considered for exchange with a German
prisoner, an enquiry from Mr. John H. Angus, letters and postcards from Mr. Foster to his wife and Mr. Angus, asking
for assistance for his repatriation on grounds of ill health, a statement by the German authorities that Mr. Foster's
health had improved, and that he could not be released as he was capable of performing services of a military nature.
John Foster
John Foster was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben
Lancastrian Society in the Manchester Guardian of January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany:
Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full List of Those Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as 18 Partridge Street,
Old Trafford, Manchester.
A John Foster was also noted on a postcard dated
18 MAR 1916 as being in Barrack 10 Box 23 - a copy of the card is held by Dr. Manfred G. Heber in Grand Canaria (with
thanks to Dr. Heber).
William John Foster
William John Foster is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Foster is recorded as having
been born on November 22nd 1867 in Glenties, Ireland, and is described as having been a pottery glazer prior
to his internment. His home address was Dusseldorfer Str. 60, Ratingen. At the time the register was recorded, Foster
was noted as staying in box 20, and is later noted as having returned to England on January 2nd 1918.
Joel Foster-Kell
Joel Foster-Kell is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Kell is recorded as having
been born on November 20th 1887 in London, and is described as having been a merchant prior to his internment.
His home address was listed as Tentercroft, Streatham Park, S.W. At the time the register was recorded, Kell was
noted as staying in box 14.
Foster-Kell is also recorded as having spent some time in the Schonungsbaracke between April 17th
1918 and April 18th. He is further noted as having left for Holland on April 25th 1918.
He was also recorded as one of the inmates who gave lectures at Ruhleben
by Francis Gribble, in his essay entitled "Leaves From a Ruhleben Notebook":
"Mr. Foster Kell, who told us all that a brief visit to California had enabled
him to discover about that Western State..."
The National Archives in London also hold records on Kell, in a
document concerning the transmission of money from 1915, held at FO383/26. Further documents are held at FO383/53 regarding
Foster-Kell, who is here listed as an exporter and manufacturer from Streatham Park, London. The letter outlines
the circumstances of his arrest before the outbreak of the war, and signals his intent to claim for compensation.
In the 7th issue of In Ruhleben Camp, Foster-Kell is noted as having
given a lecture on California (p.2)
In the second issue of the Ruhleben Camp magazine (April 1916,
p.22) he is referred to with regard to a recent lecture he gave to the camp's school:
Mr. Foster Kell's lecture on "Crossing the Atlantic" has met with a
most enthusiastic welcome. naturally, but why not "The North Sea"?
From the handbook of the Ruhleben
Football Association Season 1915, Foster-Kell is again noted as being from Tenter Croft, Streatham Park, London
SW, and as having been born in London in 1887. He was a merchant in Wesel, where he was arrested on 3 AUG 1914. After
a brief period held in Wesel, Sennelager and Barmen, he was sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 5.
James Fraier
James Fraier was named in an undated Foreign Office document
contained within file FO 369/710, entitled Russenlager Ruhleben (Ruhleben Russian Camp), implying it was compiled at the outbreak
of internment in 1914. He was described as a 22 year old correspondent who had been working in Berlin.
H. Francis
H. Francis was one of the internees photographed with the Ruhleben Parcel Post - see Alfred Hazell
King's entry for the image.
M. V. H. Francis
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, M.
V. H. Francis was noted as being from Rose Cottage, Loughton, Essex, and as having been born in Loughton in 1897. He
was arrested in Neu-Haldensleben on 4 SEP 1914. After a brief period held in Alten Grabow, and Magdeburg, he
was sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 7.
Walter Francke
Walter Francke is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Francke is recorded as
having been born on April 16th 1891 in Marseilles, and is described as having been a ships broker prior
to his internment. His home address was 15 Craster Road, London, S. W. At the time the register was recorded, Francke
was noted as staying in loft B, having transferred there from Barrack 23 on September 15th 1915.
Francke is also recorded as having spent some time in the Schoningsbaracke between January 11th
1918 and January 16th.
Joseph Frankel
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO383/27, regarding
a Mr. Frankel, interned at Ruhleben, specifically enquiries from his wife, Mrs. Kate Frankel of Norwich, regarding his possible release
as a member of a civilian Red Cross society.
FO383/27 also contains papers, letters and photographs (of individuals,
and a group one of staff at St Bernard's Hospital, near Mons) in support of his wife's contention that as a member of
the Red Cross he should be freed. There are also copies of a parish magazine from St Stephen's Church, Clapham Park, London,
and of The Church Standard,
October 1914. Further documents highlight the subsequent German Government refusal to allow Frankel's release.
At FO383/62, the archives also hold documents regarding Kate Frankel's
claim for losses to property at Jemappes near Mons, as well as an enquiry regarding an entitlement to an allowance due to
her husband's internment at Ruhleben. At this point she is described as being originally
from Holland Park, London, and then later of Norwich.
Frankel was later noted in The Times of December 8th 1915 as having been one of the 160 prisoners
released from Ruhleben on the previous day who had travelled by train to Flushing ("Returning Civilians" p.9, col.F).
Hugh Roy Franklin
Hugh Roy Franklin is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Franklin is recorded as
having been born on March 13th 1891 in Thornton Heath, and is described as having been a correspondent prior
to his internment. His home address was Coniston, Stanford-le-Hope, Essex. At the time the register was recorded, Franklin
was noted as staying in box 27, having transferred there from Barrack 1 on April 19th 1915.
Franklin was moved into the Sanatorium on October 24th 1917, where he remained until December 12th.
It is later noted that he went to Stadtvogtei (possibly to the the prison?) on January 7th
1918.
Donald Fraser
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, Donald Fraser was noted
as being from 35 Ruby Street, Middlesborough, and as having been born in Middlesborough in 1894. He worked as a mariner
and was arrested in Hamburg on 16 OCT 1914. After a brief spell imprisoned on the hulks in Hamburg, he was sent to Ruhleben,
where he was interned in Barrack 8.
Marcus Bateman noted from TNA files in MT9/1238 that Fraser was an apprentice on the Oswestry, and
aged 19.
John Fraser
John Fraser was an AB merchant seaman on the Bellailsa, and who aged 20 when he was interned with
other Hamburg based seamen at the start of the war. He came from Scarpigarth Walls in Shetland.
John's son, also called John, and still resident in Shetland, contacted me by phone in November to
tell me that his father wrote an account of his incarceration, which he later deposited with Shetland Museum (contact 01595
695057). Amongst various souvenirs of the camp he kept a map showing the layout of Ruhleben, also now at the museum.
Many thanks to John jr for his help.
Fred Freeman
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, we
learn that Fred Freeman was from 55 Park Road, Hampton Park, Middlesex, London and born in 1895. He was a steward arrested
in Hamburg on 16 OCT 1914. After a spell imprisoned in Hamburg he was sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in
Barrack 3.
J. Freeman
J. Freeman was noted in the sixth issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (June
1917) as having made a carved oak photograph frame, with a picture of the frame shown in the magazine as an example of craft
craftsmanship.
F. A. French
F. A. French, of Norwich, was named in a list of merchant seamen interned at Ruhleben, as published
by the Scotsman newspaper on 7/1/1915 (p.7).
Captain Thomas Augustine Phinn French
The National Archives in London hold records from 1915 at FO383/79 regarding
the death of Captain Thomas Augustine Phinn French, a British subject at Ruhleben, with a transmission
of the details, arrangements for informing his widow, Mrs. Clementine M. French of Old Lakenham, Norwich, the particulars
for his burial at Spandau, and a consideration of the decision to transport his remains to the U.K.
Jacob Frenkel
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1915 at FO383/25 conmcerning
Jacob Frenkel, a naturalised British subject detained at Ruhleben. The documents are listed as relating
to an enquiry from his brother, apparently also called Jacob Frenkel.
Walter Frentale
From the handbook of the Ruhleben Football Association Season 1915, we
learn that Walter Frentale was from Percy Villa, manor Road, London, and born in 1894 in London. He was a hotel
valet in Berlin, prior to being arrested and sent to Ruhleben, where he was interned in Barrack 2.
Reginald Friend
Reginald Friend is listed in the surviving register from Barrack 5 at Ruhleben (register
number 2), recorded by Neville Stanley Wilkinson in approximately 1916. In the register, Friend is recorded as having
been born on June 19th 1892, and is described as having been a clerk prior to his internment. His home
address was 76 Vancouver Road, Forest Hill, London, S. E. At the time the register was recorded, Friend was noted as
staying in box 7.
Captain Charles Algernon Fryatt
Captain Fryatt was the British merchant ship captain of the Great
Eastern Railway Harwich mail steamship 'Brussels' who was temporarily interned at Ruhleben in 1915, before being taken
to Bruges on trumped up charges of attempting to ram a German submarine. The American Ambassador in Berlin, James W. Gerard,
wrote the following about Fryatt's unfortunate situation in 1917, in his book, "My Four Years in Germany":
Captain Fryatt who commanded a British merchant ship was captured and taken to
the civilian camp at Ruhleben. In searching him the Germans claimed that he wore a watch presented to him for an attempt to
ram a German submarine. They, therefore, took Fryatt from the Ruhleben camp and sent him to Bruges for trial. When I heard
of this I immediately sent two formal notes to the German Foreign Office demanding the right to see Fryatt and hire counsel
to represent him, inquiring what sort of counsel would be permitted to attend the trial and asking for postponement of the
trial until these matters could be arranged. The German Foreign Office had informed me that they had backed up these requests
and I believe them, but the answer of the German admiralty to my notes was to cause the trial to proceed the morning after
the day on which my notes were delivered and to shoot Fryatt before noon of the same day.
As to the evidence regarding the watch, the British Foreign Office learned that,
when captured, Captain Fryatt had neither a watch nor any letter to indicate that he had tried to ram a submarine!
The story was well covered in the Scotsman newspaper - "Deep Indignation
in Holland - Compared with the Murder of Miss Cavell" (July 29th 1916, p.7); "The Murder of Captain Fryatt - His Farewell
to his Crew" (August 7th 1916, p.3); and "The Fryatt Murder - A Call for Reprisals" (August 7th 1916, p.5).
|
|
| The wreck of the S. S..Brussels, after her sinking by U33 |
The National Archives in London hold documents from 1916 at FO383/195
concerning the capture of the Brussels on 23 June 1916, the officers and crew whilst interned at Ruhleben,
a query as to the whereabouts of five of the ship's stewardesses, a list of the crew, with grades and addresses
(in docket no.139424.), as well as on the court martial of Fryatt at Ghent for the ramming of the German submarine on
28 March 1915. The documents note that he was found guilty and shot at Bruges on 27 July 1916, and contain expressions of
abhorrence and proposals for a British reaction.
An enquiry into Fryatt's death was opened in Berlin on April 1st 1919, as reported in The Times
of April 3rd 1919 ("The Murder of Captain Fryatt", p.12, col. B).
Dr. Rocholt, for the Legal Department, presented a formal account of the case as reported
by Lieutenant-Capatin Ganzer, of the submarine U33, who charged Captain Fryatt with endeavouring to ram his vessel a few miles
west of the Maas Lightship on March 28, 1916, at 2 p.m. the reporter then related the circumstances of Captain Fryatt's capture
later on board the steamer Brussels. He said it was originally intended simply to send him to Ruhleben, but he was retained
by order of the Admiralty Staff of the Marine Corps. The sentence of death was confirmed by Admiral von Schroder, the president
of the Court-martial.
The reporter further noted that Captain Fryatt himself definitely denied any intention
of ramming the submarine. He was merely attempting to save his ship.
The Times of July 27th 1926 gave the outcome of the long investigation
into the execution by the Germans of Fryatt, concluding that it was indeed murder ("Ten Years Ago", p. 13, col.
G). The article gives some more detail as to Fryatt's last moments:
"He was allowed a few minutes walk in the prison yard, and at 5 o' clock Mr.
Hartnell (his first officer) was permitted to visit him in his cell. An hour later a Lutheran minister entered and
warned him to prepare for death at once. His last thoughts were of his family, of his wife and seven children, and to the
chaplain he confided their names.."
The Liddle Collection at Leeds University holds some items relating
to Fryatt, at RUH 24, as donated by a Mrs Cooper of Harwich. These are a photocopied press cutting of July
15th 1966, and a publication 'A Short History of the Parish Church of Dovercourt', including a description of the monument
erected to the memory of C.A. Fryatt, from May 1977. The online index tells us that Fryatt was captain of the Great
Eastern Railway Steamship SS Brussels, captured by four German submarines on 23 June 1916. He was taken to Ruhleben and then
to Bruges where he was put on trial for attempting to ram a German submarine. He was illegally executed on July 27th
1916, and his body later brought back for burial at Dovercourt.
Carl Fuchs
Carl Fuchs was recorded as a member of the Ruhleben Lancastrian Society in the Manchester
Guardian of January 15th 1915 (p.12). The article is entitled "Interned in Germany: Lancashire's Civilian Prisoners: Full
List of Those Detained at Ruhleben". His address was recorded as 56 High Street, C.-on-M., M/c.
In a further Guardian article of March 31st 1915 (p.3), entitled
"Ruhleben Lancastrians", by Walter Butterworth, the following is written of Fuchs with regard to Ruhleben based concerts:
Our old friend Carl Fuchs was an attractive figure at these concerts in
the earlier days, but he was happily permitted to return to Jugenheim.
Fuller
Fuller was noted in the first issue of the Ruhleben Camp Magazine (March 1916, p.22) as having contributed
to a debate entitled "That the Abolition of Trade Unions would not be to England's Benefit", with Fuller arguing against the
motion.
Robin Fulton
Robin Fulton was noted in The Times of December 14th 1915 as having been one of the 160 prisoners
released from Ruhleben on the previous day who had travelled by train to Flushing ("Court Circular" p.11, col.B).
|
