Tag: Prisoner of war

6 Oct 1918: POW Graudenz

Sunday. Oct 6th     The news for the last two months has been simply and increasingly glorious.  The final achievements in the last few days, the caving-in of Bulgaria, the smashing of the Turk in Palestine, the successive capture of Armentières, St. Quentin, Lens, La Bassée, Roulers &c. have set our hearts beating.  Today there comes the rumour of a fresh peace proposal from this side.  I wonder!!

4 Oct 1918: POW Graudenz

Friday Oct 4th.     Tonight, about 7.15, the electric lights flickered but failed to go out.  A minute or two afterwards there was a hubbub outside.  It turned out that Capt. Clinton, just released from cells for his attempt at escape viâ the tunnel, had made his sixth successful attempt.  He climbed from an upper window along the insulated electric cables (the scheme for turning off the electric lights to aid him failed) swarmed down a rope once he had crossed the barbed wire, and jumped over the outer wall.  Jolly stout fellow!  He was seen and they gave chase but he soon got lost in the moonless night.  Hope he gets away!

28 Sept 1918: POW Graudenz

Saturday Sept 28th     Got a photo of the Kidlet and an old Bournemouth snap.  Topping to see home photos here.

Nearly forgot to mention; Gerson has been for a long time very keen on escaping.  Last Tuesday [24th Sept] he donned his British Warm, whose pockets were stuffed with biscuits chocolates, Horlicks malted milk, Bovril tablets &c, enough food for ten days.  We shoved him into one of the washing bags together with piles of dirty washing (Pretty filthy for him) – carried him downstairs (Hell of a sweat) and chucked him over the stone balustrade on to the washing cart, I being below to break his fall, and to arrange other sacks around him.  Unfortunately, due to the non-sympathy and wind-up of one of our officers, who was in charge of the washing, we got no help in the matter, and no orderlies to assist us.  He was half buried in the washing bags, and the driver, trampling the bags down, managed, despite our efforts, to tread on his head.  Between pain and suffocation, he fairly yelled, but was unobserved except by us, who loosened the mouth of the bag.  He was carted out, but unfortunately, his cart being heavily loaded, they decided to move some bags to the other cart, when his bag was discovered.  Some fellow stuck a bayonet through it, but fortunately missed him, merely doing their washing a bit of good.  Gerson has been in clink ever since but we take up for him his meals, books &c. regularly.

27 Sept 1918: POW Graudenz

Friday Sept 27th.     Great blowing of trumpets, hooters, sackbuts and psalteries at 5.40 this morning!  Alarm.  Proceeded to dress leisurely, wash &c and paraded on the square with my fellow victims, clad in sweater and British Warm with a couple of biscuits in my pocket in case of delay.  Roll called.  Legions of armed guards marched in (about half a battalion) and surrounded us on all sides.  Officers in blue, pink red yellow; mostly staff people.  It transpired that a methodical search of our rooms and persons was to take place.  The members of each room in turn were called in.  Numbers of civilians, expert searchers, “smellers out” were employed.  In brief, Block I went before Block II and we were the last room but one of Block II.  Hence we were kept on the parade ground, and it was cold and drizzling with rain most of the time, from 6.15 to 2.15, eight hours in all!!!

16 Sept 1918: POW Graudenz

Monday Sept 16     Got up at 6.45, as usual lately, ran round the square five times, which about equals a mile, came back and cooked breakfast, and then discovered that the clock had been put back to winter time, so that it was then only 7 oclock.  One of our mess, who shall be nameless, after breakfast went back to bed again.

All who escaped have been recaptured, except two, mostly on the Polish border, and by patrols, who are probably out for deserters.  The two who are still at large are two Flying Corps fellows, one an Australian.  Good luck to them!

14 Sept 1918: POW Graudenz

Saturday. Sept 13 [14].     In the last 3 days I’ve had 4 clothes parcels, the two sent off somewhen in May, and two sent off in August.  Everything is in beautiful condition.  Not a crease in the slacks or tunics, despite the length of time en route. Everything is marked and labelled jolly sensibly, so that, even had the parcels been smashed, the things would have arrived O.K.  Gee!  I feel 200% better.  Clean underclothes, slacks and light shoes and umpteen baths.  There has been very little pleasure in having baths lately when I’ve had to put on the same old filthy underclothes.

11 Sept 1918: POW Graudenz

Wednesday. Sept 10th [11th].     The Restrictions have been removed, but our roll-calls have been increased to 3 per day instead of 2, at 9 am, 3 p.m. and 7.30 p.m.  After the last roll call we are not allowed to visit the other block, nor to go down into the square at all.  Rather rough!

8 Sept 1918: POW Graudenz

RAB diary Sunday September 8, 1918, Graudenz: “a tunnel has been in process of being built”
Sunday, September 8, 1918: “a tunnel has been in process of being built”

Sunday. Sept 7th [8th].     Great excitement.  For a long time (although I have naturally made no mention of it here)  a tunnel has been in process of being built from a cellar under this block, under the double row of barbed wire, under the outside wall and all ready to open up in the shadow of the wall on a suitable night.  I never had the chance of seeing it, but I believe it was made 2′6″ × 2′6″ and supported by hundreds of bed boards.  It must have been a jolly well organised piece of work, for they had to dig through the foundations, some 3 feet of solid concrete, and then through sandy soil, which required propping every inch of it.  Last night was the night chosen for the escape.  I can’t give details even yet because they would be useful to the enemy.  It was dark soon after nine.  By 11 o’clock all of the parties, sixteen people in all, had gone through the tunnel and got clear in spite of the many guards and patrols actually outside here.  Eight Flying Corps went, five Australians and three others.  Three of them, the first party, all R.F.C. were recaptured almost at once.  They said however that they were Tommies escaped from some other camp in Germany and so, all the other sentries being interested and attracted, the rest got clear away.  Proper wind up here.  The tunnel was discovered about 1am.  Parties came round counting us in bed.  They didn’t discover the correct number of those who had gone for there were dummies in the beds, some only of which were discovered.  We had a parade about 8.30 and we were counted several times.  Huge colossal gust up!  General visited during parade.  Commandant chronically perturbed.  Saluted General literally 30 times during course of a short telling off.  We are ordered to our rooms and not to come out except to draw grub and to attend parade.  Except at those times we may not walk outside even for exercise, and we are not allowed our tins or parcels.

Tonight we held an indignation meeting against the unjust punishment.  We refused to leave the parade ground after ‘appel’ but walked about, until scores of guards were turned out to chase us off.  We roared with laughter and declined to move.  Finally the guards fixed bayonets, and several of our fellows got nasty clouts from the butt-ends of their rifles.  ‘Little Willy’ drew his sword, and is said to have ordered the guards to fire, which, fortunately, both for them and for us, they didn’t do.  You should have heard the shout of laughter that went up when the guards fixed bayonets.

Later.  A notice has been placed up saying that this punishment is on account, not of the escape, but of the continued noise after lights out.  Obviously camouflage however!  The noise, as the authorities well know, was made in collusion with the escapees, to draw the sentries away to the other block.