I am a
new volunteer at The Labour History Archive & Study Centre and my first task was to delve into a small box
of correspondence and documents related to a Captain Mildred. We do not know by
whom or why this was passed to the museum but when I opened the box I was delighted
to find a treasure trove of correspondence addressed to the Captain, various
news cuttings and leaflets. The majority of the contents related to the
Captain’s role during WW1 when he was in charge of Conscientious Objectors who
were held at Horfield Prison in Bristol awaiting decisions made by Appeal
Tribunals . In 1916, volunteers to join the British Army were dwindling and so
the Government had introduced conscription, whereby men had to serve their
country in the military for a specific period of time. A clause was added
allowing those whose “conscience” did not allow them to bear arms, to be freed
from military service – for example religious objectors who believed it was against
their religion, such as Quakers, or pacifists who were against war in general.
Many Conscientious Objectors (COs) did want to do “their bit” and became stretcher bearers or helped in
factories. However, some refused to do anything at all that was involved in the
war and these were known as “absolutists”. Capt Mildred was in charge of, some
of these men as they awaited decisions about their future.
Undeniably, there is evidence that many COs were treated harshly in prison. 5.970 were court martialled and 819 spent over two years in prison; indeed, 73 were known to have died as a result of their treatment. However, was it possible that individual Officers, working within the constraints of the system, helped to make life for some of these men, more bearable?
Captain
Daniel Mildred – The Face of Compassion?
I found
several letters from relatives and those who were representing imprisoned
conscientious objectors in the Captain’s papers and they are full of praise for
the Captain’s understanding and compassion. As I read the letters written by
relatives and peace campaigners on behalf of the COs in Capt Mildred’s care, I
realised that although they were very critical of the harsh conditions under
which the men were kept, many had extremely kind words to say about the
Captain. Until now, these have been lost to history.
One lady
– Miss Agnes Edith Bendy –who represented some of the prisoners, wrote him several
letters. In one she states:
“may I take this opportunity
to thank you for all the kindness you have shown to my friends in your charge;
we are so used to hatred from the world that the slightest consideration is
appreciated..............”
“There
is a look on your face so seldom seen in the face of an experienced soldier -
the look of one meant by his Creator to love his fellow men, not to murder
them”
One of
the conscientious objectors under his care was Geoffrey Austin Lees, and among
Captain Mildred’s papers, I found a news cutting from The Times (unfortunately undated); it was a letter from his mother,
Clara Lees in which she complains of the fact that her son is being held in a
prison. However, whilst she is unhappy
with his diet and the fact that he cannot receive letters or books, she is full
of praise for his “beautifully clean cell” and in particular, for Captain
Mildred, of whom she states “In justice, I must say that he was extremely kind
and courteous” He allowed her to give her son a bible, said that she could
write to her son (although he could not reply).and allowed her a visit on his
birthday in which she gave him fruit and cake. Her son “spoke well of everyone,
from the highest to the lowest”. He “suffered no brutality of any kind and
wholly blamed the Tribunals – the people in the barracks were only doing their duty”;
they had not been the ones who made the rules regarding confinement, nor the
laws on conscription.
Among Captain
Mildred’s papers, I also found leaflets and booklets setting out the views of
the Non-Conscription fellowship, so I think it is highly likely that he wanted
to find out more about the views and beliefs of conscientious objectors. I
think this is a wonderful clue to his caring attitude in attempting to
understand the motivation and beliefs of his prisoners.
Contrary to popular belief, the treasure trove of the Captain’s papers shows that even within harsh regimes, there were men in charge who, whilst upholding the “letter of the law” went out of their way to help make conditions more tolerable. The kindness of some of these men is never mentioned. I could not find anything in my researches to find testaments to compassionate treatment of prisoner of conscience within the constraints of the system. Indeed, the assumption is that all prisoners were abused or mistreated. I have found one statement concerning the men held at Horfield- and therefore under the care of the Captain, that states “”A few were at Horfield, where the routine ill-treatment...included bread and water diets .........and they could not send letters or have bibles”. The letters and communications above show this statement to be grossly misleading. While of course it was a very harsh regime, it does seem that the Captain did try to show as much compassion as he could with relatives and peace campaigners acknowledging his kindness.
Sadly, the Captain only survived the War by 9 years but received a very warm tribute in the local press, following his funeral.
My first
foray into cataloguing has been absolutely fascinating. To read letters that
surely have not been seen for nearly 100 years, that reach out and tell us
today what kind of man Captain Daniel Mildred was has been deeply rewarding. I
have been privileged to be able to rescue him from obscurity and reflect him in a very positive light. No-one
knew how highly regarded he was- even by prisoners' relatives and quite resolute and hardy
peace campaigners! What countless other treasures lie within the archives? I
hope to find many more untold stories in my research over the coming months.
RIP Captain Daniel Mildred 1870-1923
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