TheDamIrish Posted 22 February Author Share Posted 22 February (edited) Yes, that was my understanding too, he was medically discharged in Spring 1919. Possibly per the disabilities stated on his pension record, GSW Thigh and Neurasthenia. Edited 22 February by TheDamIrish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith_history_buff Posted 22 February Share Posted 22 February This thread may be of interest, or the link therein. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDamIrish Posted 23 February Author Share Posted 23 February Appreciate the link Keith. I did find various other sources with record of my great-grandfather as a PoW, such as "The Wooden City" newsletter about Gottingen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDamIrish Posted 23 February Author Share Posted 23 February (edited) Keith - do you think we could rule out he was repatriated before the Armistice? I read there were some PoWs exchanged before the end of the war and it seems there are more comprehensive records on these repatriations. If I could narrow down the repatriation date to between Nov 1918(end of the war) to Mar 1919(date of discharge), I could at least be contented with this timeline if there is no official repatriation record to be found. Edited 23 February by TheDamIrish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith_history_buff Posted 23 February Share Posted 23 February 3 hours ago, TheDamIrish said: Keith - do you think we could rule out he was repatriated before the Armistice? I read there were some PoWs exchanged before the end of the war and it seems there are more comprehensive records on these repatriations. I think you have answered your own question. I have seen seriously debilitated POWs being repatriated, who will not be returning to active service in a theatre of war, which I do not believe applies to your great-grandfather. It is now a case of waiting for The National Archives UK to confirm they have found his record, and to wait for a copy to be sent to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDamIrish Posted 23 February Author Share Posted 23 February (edited) The idea that he may have repatriated early only crossed my mind as I found a British military court record from June(?) 1918 where a "C.Donoghue - Irish Guards" was given a 122 day sentence for disobeying a superior. Unfortunately there is no regimental number on this record, so I can't definitively confirm this to be the same individual. I thought at first it couldn't possibly be him since he would still have been a PoW in Germany(only the severely injured were exchanged before end of the war) and would they have court-martialled a soldier that just returned home after 4 years as a PoW.... However upon further research, I then learned of the 1918 Bern Agreements(*possibly only applied to French and German PoWs) which expanded the criteria that would make a PoW eligible for early repatriation - one was to include those that had been in captivity for more than 18 months. Alas, I have failed to find any other records that would support this notion so I will just have to wait for the service record as you suggested. Edited 23 February by TheDamIrish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewSid Posted 23 February Share Posted 23 February There were prisoner repatriations/exchanges during the war. If you have access to the British newspaper archives and search under “ repatriated prisoners” there are plenty of articles. Start with 1916 and 1917. Many’s articles of hundreds of men returning in batches. Some local papers name the men with their number which suggests they were publicly listed somewhere, I cant find any in the newspaper articles in the HMSO casualty lists as repatriated - HMSO lists started from summer 1917 and are the same lists I have searched for him before. So if he was one of those selected to return through wounds there was an established route in place for a select few. If might be worth looking through the Times archive. They reported all casualties up until May 1917. It will list his missing and then POW status. It may list repatriated men and will of course carry articles on their return during the war just like other papers. Times archive can usually be reached through your local online reference library. Worth a try whilst waiting for service paper info. Irish Times for the period I believe can also be accessed but i havnt tried that route. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDamIrish Posted 24 February Author Share Posted 24 February Thanks for running a few searches Andy. There is a record of him in the Cassel PoW camp in Jun 1917, so I think we can rule out he was repatriated before then. Nevertheless, I will check the Times archives and other sources you suggested on the off chance the records are misleading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FROGSMILE Posted 24 February Share Posted 24 February (edited) 23 hours ago, TheDamIrish said: The idea that he may have repatriated early only crossed my mind as I found a British military court record from June(?) 1918 where a "C.Donoghue - Irish Guards" was given a 122 day sentence for disobeying a superior. Unfortunately there is no regimental number on this record, so I can't definitively confirm this to be the same individual. I thought at first it couldn't possibly be him since he would still have been a PoW in Germany(only the severely injured were exchanged before end of the war) and would they have court-martialled a soldier that just returned home after 4 years as a PoW.... However upon further research, I then learned of the 1918 Bern Agreements(*possibly only applied to French and German PoWs) which expanded the criteria that would make a PoW eligible for early repatriation - one was to include those that had been in captivity for more than 18 months. Alas, I have failed to find any other records that would support this notion so I will just have to wait for the service record as you suggested. A 122 day sentence of confinement is a quite severe penalty that could only be awarded by a district, or general court martial. If I recall correctly it was above the punishment that could be imposed by a battalion commanding officer (these have been revised at various times) and suggests quite a serious incident of disobedience. Given the PW circumstances that you’ve outlined it seems very unlikely that the man sentenced was your forebear. To put things into perspective even a convicted conscientious objector was most commonly sentenced to 112 days hard labour in prison. See: https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/soldiers/a-soldiers-life-1914-1918/military-crimes-1914-1918-british-army/ Edited 24 February by FROGSMILE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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