William Swale collection

  • This material is held at
  • Reference
      GB 206 Liddle Collection RUH 52
  • Dates of Creation
      1914-1977
  • Name of Creator
  • Language of Material
      English German
  • Physical Description
      2 boxes; manuscript, typescript, photographs, postcards, and printed material

Scope and Content

4 Christmas cards (1914-1918); 30 postcards (1914-ca. 1918); 4 postcards with sketches used to illustrate a lecture (n.d.); 3 watercolour cartoons (n.d.); 50 photographs (1915-1918); Papers from the American Consular Service (13 Aug. 1914); Manuscript letter to the Home Office confirming considerate and courteous treatment of British residents in Mannheim (1 Nov. 1914); Manuscript letter, with typescript translation, from a German friend regarding the causes of the First World War (27 Sep. 1914); 2 manuscript notebooks "Ruhleben Memories" and "Stable Jottings" (1914-1915); Letter to his Father (2 May 1915); Supplement to Ruhleben paper (June 1915); Printed theatre and concert programmes, revue extracts, poems and song-sheets (1915-1917); Tercentenary Shakespeare Festival song-sheet (23-30 Apr. 1916); Manuscript verses of the Ruhleben song and five other songs (n.d.); Issue of The Ruhleben Daily News (25 Jan. 1916); Typescript English text of Russian poem (8 Jan. 1916); Issue of magazine Prisoners' Pie (1916); Fragment of Summer issue of The Ruhleben Camp Magazine (Aug. 1916); Press cuttings from The Daily Telegraph (20 Sep. 1916) and Selfridges News (ca. 1916); Manuscript letter, with typescript translation, from a German uncle (21 June 1916); German press cutting relating to Ruhleben (n.d.); Ruhleben Camp School membership card for Winter Term (1916); Prospectus of work for Autumn Term at Ruhleben Camp School (1917); German certificate (22 Nov. 1918); 3 books bound by W. E. Swale at Ruhleben Camp School (n.d.); Booklet of "Special War Cartoons" published by The Daily Graphic (n.d.); Typescript projected index for Ruhleben magazines (n.d.); Typescript recollections "A Barbed Wire Society" by J. D. Ketchum (n.d.); Typescript recollections "We Band of Brothers" (May 1962); Autographed Ruhleben reunion dinner menu (3 Nov. 1967); Letter to Edmonds relating to reunion dinners (5 Oct. 1970); Papers relating to Ruhleben reunion dinners (1973-1974); Typescript list of future professions entered into by a selection of Ruhleben prisoners (13 Dec. 1974); Typescript autobiography "Slide Rule in Hand: An Engineer Looks Back - 1890-1974" [1974]; Typescript list of books and articles dealing with Ruhleben (n.d.); Manuscript and typescript notes from letters to his mother (n.d.); Typed transcript of an interview recorded with Peter Liddle (Apr. 1977): Typescript essay "Novel Evidence on the Tay Bridge Disaster" (Aug. 1977); Letter (20 Sep. 1977); Typescript "Memories of Ruhleben Camp" compiled by W. E. Swale and Peter Liddle (Nov. 1977).

Administrative / Biographical History

William Eric Swale (1890-1980) was born in London and educated at the City of London School. He studied engineering at Aachen, 1911-1913, and was working for an electrical manufacturer at Mannheim at the outbreak of War. Held as a British Civil Prisoner of War, he was interned at Ruhleben, 1914-1918, living in Barrack No. 11.

Access Information

Access is unrestricted

Acquisition Information

The papers were placed in the Collection by W. E. Swale in 1977 and 1978. See Ruhleben Correspondence File and Swale Correspondence File.

Note

In English and German

Other Finding Aids

Alternative Form Available

Microfilmed

Related Material

Tapes 439 and 462: interview recorded with Peter Liddle in Apr. 1977.