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Remembered Today:

Cassel POW Camp


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I have been allowed so see and copy a great many photographs of this camp, the photograph is of a memorial erected by the British, Belgium, French and Russian troop who were imprisoned here, however I've been unable to find where the memorial is now.   Looking at modern photographs of the POW camp and burial grounds it doesn't appear.  In the collection are photographs of many of the men imprisoned her, many with the names of the back, and many group photos  and 3 which show funerals of a Russian Officer and a French Officer. They were sent home by a POW who was interned here between 1915 until 1918.  He was in the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders.  We'd like if possible to see if the memorial survived??

Kassells POW Camp Germany 1918.jpg

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Hi,

there is a 25 pages booklet, published recently (2018) by the Kassel stamp-collector´s club that deals mostly - but not only - with the postal history of this camp and has lots of postcards and a map of the camp in it. There are a few postcards of the memorial´s inauguration. The booklet costs 5€. I bought it at the Kassel city museum.464622339_Fotoam10-02-2019um19_13.jpg.deae86fd8de0d1297d7d53beca39593e.jpg

GreyC

 

Edited by GreyC
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The British sergeant on the extreme left of the first photograph appears to be 8276 Sergeant Arthur Henry BOYCE, 2nd King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry - see unpublished postcard photograph attached (Sgt. Boyce top, middle).

 

Born Soham, Cambridgeshire 1886.

Died Doncaster, Yorkshire, 1961.

Served with the KOYLI c.1904 - c.1925 and again in WW2 with the Royal Artillery.

Captured at the Battle of Le Cateau, 26Aug 1914 and held at Niederzwehren POW Camp near Kassel (Cassel), Germany.

 

Mark

Photo 1.jpg

Photo 2.jpg

Photo 3.jpg

Edited by MAW
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  • 2 years later...

Arthur Henry Boyce was my grandfather. - would love to know where did you find the image and postcard?  We have some more family photos so will track them down and upload to this site. 

2nd Btn KOYLI, was wounded at Le Cateau. He was with Major Yate and must have been one of the 19 survivors with him taken prisoner. He was repatriated in 1917. Arthur continued his service with the KOYLIs and was promoted to WOII. He was awarded the MSM in 1920 for services to the King.

His military record shows he was a POW from 26 Aug at Le Cateau field hospital and later at Res Laz Hollande Strasse Reserve Hospital for a rifle shot to his left hand. by 18 Jan 1915 he was transferred to Gelf. Nieder prison camp, Niederzwerhen (Kassel).

 

His younger brother was Albert Boyce, No 757 - 27 Oct 1888 - 22 Jan 1915,  In 1911 he was a private in the 2nd Btn Rifle Brigade in Calcutta.  Albert Boyce, Lance Sergeant, died of his wounds on Friday 22 Jan 1915 (France & Flanders).

1st image - Arthur Henry Boyce

2nd image - Albert Boyce

 

 

d92fe901-e66f-4d16-a885-71a20abea470.jpg

0d812472-dbe0-4d81-8a15-504fdce43e0c.jpg

Edited by Amanda Boyce
photos added
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Amanda,

The annotated postcard photograph was purchased in 2017 from a specialist military postcard seller on ebay ('bugseye40').

Do you know how and why Arthur Henry Boyce was repatriated in 1917?

Mark

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Thanks, sadly I've only just picked up this family story as I had lunch with my mother at the weekend and she insisted that my grandfather (on my father's side)  had been interned in Switzerland not Germany which led me to google, this site and your thread.....   So, after a bit more investigation it's assumed by the family that the repatriation was as part of an exchange of injured/long term prisoners (over 18 months POW)  http://www.switzerland1914-1918.net/prisoners-of-war-interned-in-switzerland.html

The ICRC site as a record of him under the 'British servicemen interned in Switzerland' category and a link to a newspaper article in the English Herald 16/9/1916 - an incomplete copy and a page missing so will try to track down the 'list' to see if we can confirm he was named in the article

https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/File/Details/440664/3/2/

https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/List/440664/701/50256/

He went to Murren in Switzerland and we have postcards he sent and some more photos (will scan and upload)

I still can't find details of his return to the UK but believe he embarked at Hull, working on that one and have a cousin who knows much more about his story.

All the best

Mandy

 

Interned in Switzerland.jpg

R50256 - English Herald Switzerland.JPG

Edited by Amanda Boyce
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Mandy see my reply to your other post, R50256 has two pages, you need to scroll down to the 2nd page :)

Charlie

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8 hours ago, charlie2 said:

Mandy see my reply to your other post, R50256 has two pages, you need to scroll down to the 2nd page :)

Charlie

Thanks Charlie, doesn't seem to want to scroll for me, on my laptop I just get the 1 page....tried it on ipad and it works there!  Great to have your help!

So here is the list placing him at the Alpenruh Hotel, Murren.  Seems that the hotel burnt down in 1919 but expect it would have been similar and/or they would have been billeted in the staff accommodation that the new hotel was 

https://alpenruh-muerren.ch/en/Offer/Hotel/History

I think he also had a family visit so will try to find out more about that...

There's  also a good explanation of the exchange programme in this link:

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=a2LNDwAAQBAJ&lpg=PT113&ots=OIF43evUZs&dq=alpenruh hotel murren 1917&pg=PT111#v=onepage&q=alpenruh hotel murren 1917&f=true

 

English Herald - list 2.jpeg

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HELP!

So on this ICRC record card there is a P number - P 15125

The link is to a seemingly unassociated record.  I've tried different combinations of the numbers,, especially for the 2nd digit which looks like a 5 but unclear.

Any ideas for tracking down this P number or the correct record number?  (I know it's like looking for a needle in a haystack).

Thanks

Mandy

ICRC 2.jpg

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It's a list of French POW's in Lazaretts , dated 3 Feb 1915.

How I got there: Name: Boyce  Nationality : French or Belgian    Military

Then click on any card, and type in P 15125

Somehow I thought that PA means "Prisonniers Angleterre" (English prisoner) , and "P"  just Prisonniers (all other nationalities), so the list would be in the French Army files.

I am most probably mistaken, but at least it got us there!

141455588_BoyceFrench.jpg.93405cadf45737c07636f356d500b72b.jpg

https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/File/Zoom/E/02/02/C_G1_E_02_02_0076/C_G1_E_02_02_0076_0134.JPG/4

1478491885_BoyceFrench1.jpg.22d4d614acd57bbebe50260ae72fb989.jpg

https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/File/Zoom/E/02/02/C_G1_E_02_02_0076/C_G1_E_02_02_0076_0109.JPG/4

 

Edited by JWK
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16 hours ago, JWK said:

It's a list of French POW's in Lazaretts , dated 3 Feb 1915.

How I got there: Name: Boyce  Nationality : French or Belgian    Military

Then click on any card, and type in P 15125

Somehow I thought that PA means "Prisonniers Angleterre" (English prisoner) , and "P"  just Prisonniers (all other nationalities), so the list would be in the French Army files.

I am most probably mistaken, but at least it got us there!

141455588_BoyceFrench.jpg.93405cadf45737c07636f356d500b72b.jpg

https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/File/Zoom/E/02/02/C_G1_E_02_02_0076/C_G1_E_02_02_0076_0134.JPG/4

1478491885_BoyceFrench1.jpg.22d4d614acd57bbebe50260ae72fb989.jpg

https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/File/Zoom/E/02/02/C_G1_E_02_02_0076/C_G1_E_02_02_0076_0109.JPG/4

 

 

 

ah thank you, that makes sense.....good to have your knowledge, much appreciated, Mandy

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  • 7 months later...

Private George Augustus Mulford of the Sheffield City Battalion (12th Bn., York & Lancaster Regt.) number 12/1003 was wounded and captured on 1 July 1916 and spent time imprisoned at Camp Cassel.

His story is online here:   http://www.pals.org.uk/sheffield/mulford.htm

Original is at Imperial War Museum Department of Documents (84/41/1) 

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