Friends in Flanders: Humanitarian Aid Administered by the Friends’ Ambulance Unit during the First World War

244 Pages·2017·12.35 MB·English

by  Linda Palfreeman

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Copyright © Linda Palfreeman, 2017.
The right of Linda Palfreeman to be identified as Author of this work has been
asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
978-1-78284-441-9 (PDF)
First published in 2017 by
SUSSEX ACADEMIC PRESS
PO Box 139
Eastbourne BN24 9BP
Distributed in North America by
SUSSEX ACADEMIC PRESS
ISBS Publisher Services
920 NE 58th Ave #300, Portland, OR 97213, USA
All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purposes
of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Palfreeman, Linda, author.
Title: Friends in Flanders : humanitarian aid administered by the Friends’
Ambulance Unit during the First World War / Linda Palfreeman.
Description: Brighton ; Portland : Sussex Academic Press, 2017. | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017007150 | ISBN 9781845198718 (pbk : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Friends Ambulance Unit. | World War, 1914-1918—Medical
care. | World War, 1914-1918—Religious aspects—Society of Friends. |
World War, 1914-1918—Conscientious objectors—Great Britain. | Society
of Friends—Great Britain—History—20th century. | Quakers—Great
Britain—History—20th century. | Ieper (Belgium)—History, Military—
20th century.
Classification: LCC D629.G7 P35 2017 | DDC 940.4/753—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017007150
Typeset and designed by Sussex Academic Press, Brighton & Eastbourne.
Printed by TJ International, Padstow, Cornwall.
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Contents
List of Illustrations vii
Chronology ix
Abbreviations xi
Preface xii
Acknowledgements xvi
Introduction 1
1 The Coming of War in Europe, 1914 7
2 The Ambulance Unit – Friends and All 18
3 Geoffrey Young Brings News from Abroad 29
4 The Friends are Mobilized 39
5 Hospital St Pierre – The First FAU Hospital in France 66
6 Friends in Ypres 73
7 The Sacré Coeur, Ypres – The FAU’s First Civilian 87
Hospital in Belgium
8 Typhoid in Flanders – Containing the Epidemic 101
9 Château Elisabeth Civilian Hospital, Poperinghe 113
10 A Programme of Welfare in Flanders 138
11 Military Matters 153
12 The Death of Ypres 158
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vi | Contents
Conclusion 176
Appendix 180
Origins and Expansion of the Religious Society of Friends 180
A Note on the Finance of the Unit 183
FAU Leadersafter Flanders 186
Notes 188
Bibliography 212
Index 215
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List of Illustrations
The author and publisher are grateful for permission to reproduce
copyright material as acknowledged below.
Picture section after page 57.
Philip J. Baker, founder of the FAU (Young family archive).
Geoffrey W. Young, war correspondent, FAU leader (Young family
archive).
Laurence Cadbury (Cadbury Research Library: Special Collections,
University of Birmingham).
Jordans Meeting House exterior (© Religious Society of Friends
(Quakers) in Britain).
Jordans training camp 1914 (© Religious Society of Friends
(Quakers) in Britain).
Young trainees at Jordans. (Standing, left to right) P. J. Baker, J. H.
Gray, R. Barrow, C. Gray; (seated, left to right) Donald Gray, Colin
Rowntree, Lawrence E. Rowntree, J. L. Baker (Dr Williams) (©
Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Britain).
Physical excercise at Jordans training camp 1914 (© Religious Society
of Friends (Quakers) in Britain).
First aid stretcher-drill at Jordans training camp 1914 (© Religious
Society of Friends (Quakers) in Britain).
Group photo of trained FAU men in front of the Mayflower barn,
Jordans 1914 (© Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Britain).
Father Delaere and Soeur Marguerite (Young family archive).
Sacre Coeur Hospital after bombing (Cadbury Research Library:
Special Collections, University of Birmingham).
Sacre Coeur Hospital staff Ypres, 1915 (© Religious Society of
Friends (Quakers) in Britain).
Water purifying station, Ypres 1915 (© Religious Society of Friends
(Quakers) in Britain).
Chloride spoons and instructions for water purification (© Religious
Society of Friends (Quakers) in Britain).
Château Elisabeth Hospital and shed extension, Poperinghe
(Rowntree family archive).
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viii | List of Illustrations
Chateau Elizabeth Hospital staff Poperinghe 1915. Dr Rees, seated
centre, is flanked by the Belgian countesses (© Religious Society
of Friends (Quakers) in Britain).
Boys’ orphanage at Wizernes (Rowntree family archive).
Girls’ orphange at Wisques (Rowntree family archive).
Curé Delaere and sisters rescuing valuables (Cadbury Research
Library: Special Collections, University of Birmingham).
Geoffrey Young in front of the ruins of the Cloth Hall, Ypres 1915
(Young family archive).
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Chronology
4 August 1914 Great Britain declares war on Germany after
German troops invade Belgium.
21 August 1914 Philip Noel-Baker publishes an appeal in The
Friendfor ambulance unit volunteers.
1 September 1914 The Friends’ War Victims’ Relief Committee is
reformed to undertake relief work in Europe.
7 September 1914 The First Battle of the Marne commences as
French and British forces take on the German Army. Trench
warfare begins as soldiers dig in on both sides of the Western
Front.
September 1914 The first FAU training camp takes place at
Jordans, Buckinghamshire. Sixty male volunteers are given
instruction in First Aid, stretcher drill, hygiene and field cookery.
31 October 1914 The first FAU party leaves for Dunkirk, rescuing
the crew of the torpedoed Hermes, on the way. Emergency work
in railway sheds with wounded soldiers awaiting evacuation.
November 1914 Emergency ambulance work for the French Army
begins at Woesten. Civilian relief work initiated.
24 November 1914 Hospital St Pierre, Dunkirk, is opened for mili-
tary casualties.
1 December 1914 The Sacré Coeur, the FAU’s first civilian hospital,
is opened in Ypres, for Belgian civilians.
From January 1915 The FAU begins to implement various
measures to combat the typhoid epidemic raging through
Flanders, inoculating civilians, purifying water supplies and
distributing food, milk and clothing to the needy. Children are
evacuated from dangerous areas to colonies and specially-created
orphanages. Much-needed schools are opened and lace centres
established in Belgium to provide employment for refugees.
25 January 1915 Hospital Elisabeth, Poperinghe, is created for
Belgian civilians.
3 March 1915 The Queen Alexandra Hospital for military typhoid
cases opens at Malo-les-Bains. Eight female nurses join the staff.
22 Apr 1915 The Second Battle of Ypres begins. The FAU treats
some of the casualties caused by the first mass use of poison gas
by the Germans.