Antisemitism, Refugees and the Holocaust: Pamphlets in the Parkes Library

James Parkes (1896-1981), whose Library on Jewish/non-Jewish relations is the largest and best used of the printed Special Collections, was a keen collector of pamphlets. For him, they gave the “day to day savour of an actual period which a historian seeks to catch”. Describing the collection’s transfer to Southampton in (appropriately) a pamphlet, Parkes highlighted the 2,000 historical and contemporary pamphlets which he had acquired, and described the immediacy he found when studying those from the emancipation period.

Thanks to Parkes, users of his Library can find the same immediacy in the leaflets and pamphlets that he collected during the 1930s and 1940s. Intended to educate and inform, most were produced by the organisations with which he worked to combat antisemitism in this country or to help refugees from Nazi Europe. Amongst the pamphlets are publications by the Board of Deputies of British Jews, the Christian Council for Refugees from Germany and Central Europe and the National Committee for Rescue from Nazi Terror.

1930s pamphlets from the Parkes Library

In response to the formation of the British Union of Fascists in 1932 and the growth of antisemitism, the Board of Deputies circulated a range of leaflets and pamphlets for both Jewish and non-Jewish audiences via its Press and Information Committee and later its Coordinating Committee. Addressing the Jewish community, they warned against attending fascist meetings where clashes between the groups would create public disorder, whilst other pamphlets stressed the patriotism of the Jews, the contribution they made to society and also the threat to the Jewish communities of Germany and Austria.

The Co-ordinating Committee: [a brief survey of its work] (1938) Parkes BZ 6601.B61

As well as publishing pamphlets and reprinting articles from the press, the Board also supported speakers at open-air campaign meetings, often held in the same place and immediately after an antisemitic meeting. Each of the series of thirty Speakers’ Notes addresses an individual antisemitic allegation, giving a refutation based on authoritative sources. In the initial “Hints to Speakers” they are advised, amongst other things, to keep to the facts and verify references, to treat all questioners with the greatest courtesy and to stick to policy and avoid personalities.

From: Speakers’ Notes prepared by the Co-ordinating Committee of the Board of Deputies of British Jews (1938) Parkes BZ 8211.B61

As the situation deteriorated in Europe, many organisations were set up to help refugees. The Christian Council for Refugees from Germany and Central Europe was established in 1938 to raise funds for the relief of “non-Aryan” victims of Nazi oppression, that is those who were defined as Jews by the Nazis, but not Jewish by religion. James Parkes was a member of its Council whilst Rev. W.W. Simpson was the General Secretary from 1938-1942. The pamphlets published by the Council were intended to generate support for its work and to overcome negative attitudes towards refugees. Titles included Refugees Have Proved their Worth and Refugees and Industry which highlighted the work of refugee industrialists in establishing over 300 factories in Britain, often in deprived areas, in the six years prior to the war.

The Refugees & Industry Christian Council for Refugees from Germany and Central Europe (1941) Parkes cabinet BZ 6651.C58

With so many organisations becoming involved in the struggle to help European Jews, the picture was muddied for both those seeking help and those trying to provide it. A Central Office for Refugees was created as a communications channel between government departments and the refugees organisations, the Executive Committee consisting of representatives of the Central Council for Jewish Refugees, the Christian Council and the Refugee Children’s Movement. The pamphlet Bloomsbury House (1942) issued by the Central Office provided a guide to all the refugee organisations headquartered at Bloomsbury House (making it clear why such a guide was needed) and was also a manual of general information on questions of refugee employment and welfare. The Central Office’s pamphlet, Entertaining our Refugee Guests provided advice under such headings as private hospitality and entertainments.

From: Bloomsbury House Central Office for Jewish Refugees, 2nd ed. (1943) Parkes BZ 6651.C46

Another organisation with which Parkes was involved, this time as a member of its Executive Committee, was the National Committee for Rescue from Nazi Terror. Set up in March 1943, the Committee worked to bring the pressure of public opinion to bear on the British Government in the hope that it would take a lead in rescuing and providing a home for Jewish refugees. Again, publications were seen as crucial in both publicising the Nazis’ treatment of the Jews and in generating support. Rescue the Perishing (1943) by Eleanor Rathbone M.P., a prominent member of the Committee, contained descriptions of massacres in Poland, a twelve-point programme of rescue measures as well as replies to anticipated objections such as “we cannot spare the food” or “we have not the accommodation”. 

Rescue the Perishing Eleanor Rathbone (1943) Parkes BZ 6651.R38

The pamphlets collected by Parkes show the changing priorities as the organisations with which he was associated attempted to counter antisemitic and fascist propaganda, to help refugees in the 1930s and to save Jews in the 1940s. Used to publicise the events which had, in some cases brought the organisation into being, they were intended to influence public opinion and to generate support, both financial and moral. For today’s readers, they provide something of the “day to day savour” of the period, which made pamphlets so important to Parkes.

The Jews in Europe Board of Deputies of British Jews (1945) Parkes BZ 2211.B68

William John Bankes

The Wellington Papers might not be the first port of call for those interested in LGBTQ+ history. However, in the many thousands of letters sent to the Duke we have some correspondence with William John Bankes, a politician and explorer who lived during the early nineteenth century. Bankes was an extravagant collector of art and antiquities, which he amassed at his country estate at Kingston Lacy in Dorset.

Hayter, George; William John Bankes (1786-1855), MP; National Trust, Kingston Lacy; http://www.artuk.org/artworks/william-john-bankes-17861855-mp-100431

On 27 November 1833 William John Bankes wrote a heartfelt letter to his friend the Duke of Wellington, asking him to give evidence at his trial.

Old Palace Yard

Nov 27 1833

My dear Lord

The sanction of your good opinion is of such high value before the British public, & above all to one who has had the honor of being personally known & noticed by you during several years, that I have only been deterred from making application to you sooner, first by the feeling that it might seem a sort of presumption in me, & next from a little misgiving that in these days of party spirit & of slander, a coincidence of political sentiment might afford some handle for deprecrating testimony given as to character, in a case where party spirit was sufficiently shown at the outset by the part which the press took.

Several friends however quite opposed to me in politics have readily & cheerfully come forward, & the little wright therefore that was perhaps due to the last consideration is quite done away.

The full advantage therefore of your appearance among those who give this testimony to my character is now felt by my legal advisers, & by myself, & though it is with extreme reluctance that I take the liberty of requesting so great & inconvenient act of kindness, as to appear in court on the trial, yet most earnestly venture to do so.

It is fixed for this next Monday the 2^d of December …

If I have not made all the apologies that are due for so great a liberty, & so inconvenient & disagreeable a request, I am sure your Grace will impute it to the true cause, the insufficiency of all expressions on such a subject, & the harraful state of the mind of

With the deepest sense of respect

My dear Lord Duke

Wm John Bankes.

Letter from W.J.Bankes to Arthur Wellesley, first Duke of Wellington [MS61/WP2/6/106-7]

William John Bankes’ signature on a letter sent to the Duke of Wellington [MS61/WP2/6/106-7]

Bankes had been arrested for engaging in “indecent behaviour” with a soldier in a urinal outside the Houses of Parliament. This was a serious offence as homosexuality was not only illegal at this time in Britain but punishable by death. He said his actions had been misconstrued and denied the charges.

The Duke’s evidence is recorded in the Morning Chronicle of 3 December 1833:

I am acquainted with Mr. W. Bankes; I have known him above twenty years; he came out to Spain, and spent the greater part of his time at head-quarters; I became very intimate with him; he was at head-quarters generally; he went about travelling through the country, but the greatest part of the time he was at head-quarters; I saw him afterwards at Madrid, he was at my brother’s Sir Henry Wellesley’s; and then went with him to meet the late King of Spain, Ferdinand VII; after the war in Spain he went into Asia and Africa, and since then I have been very intimate with him; he has been constantly at my house; and I have met him wherever I have visited, and I do not know any Gentleman with whom I have been more intimate; I should never had believed him guilty of the offence with which he is now charged; his pursuits and habits are honourable and manly – remarkably so; I once gave him a watch – it was in Spain, he had been robbed of his watch at Madrid; he was attacked by two men, and his conduct on that occasion was so firm and manly that it pleased me, and I gave him a watch I had worn for some time.

Wellington and Bankes were clearly on friendly terms. In 1823 Bankes wrote to Wellington thanking the Duke for sending his condolences on the death of his sister; he mentions his father’s medical operation and his plans to improve Soughton Hall, which he had inherited from his great uncle in 1815.

In 1828 Bankes writes to Wellington recommending his brother George for employment. He corresponds again later that same year hoping to obtain a promotion for Edward Case, shortly returned from Portugal. The Duke replied that while Case is highly thought of, his advancement will not be possible.

We hold several other letters between Bankes to Wellington, on more mundane political topics including a series from 1831-2 respecting the Dorset elections.

In May 1841 Bankes was in correspondence with Wellington concerning his sitting for the sculpturer Baron Marochetti. Not long after, Bankes was forced to flee into exile after being charged with committing a homosexual act (still punishable by death) for a second time.

The earliest item in our collections related to Bankes, however, comes from the papers of Lord Palmerston, part of the Broadlands Archives. Bankes had been a student at Trinity College, Cambridge, obtaining his BA in 1808 and MA in 1811; Palmerston was at St John’s from 1803-1806 and so the two must have overlapped for a year or two.

Palmerston’s endorsement describes this item as “Latin lines by Mr Bankes, at Cambridge, upon his being caught listening at the door of the Speculative Society, 1805”. It was originally addressed to M. Bruce Esq, St Johns’ [MS62/BR190/3]

The Speculative Society was an exclusive Cambridge students’ debating club of which Lord Palmerston was a member. Bankes was about 19 years old when he penned this.

Many scholars of LGBTQ+ studies will already be aware of the challenges of uncovering hidden history. Pivotal moments, such as the Stonewall Riots of 1969 and the implementation of Section 28 in the UK, are widely studied and researched, but the experiences of individuals in a time when homosexuality was illegal and punishable by death were naturally rarely recorded. It is through archive material such as Bankes’ correspondence that we are able to glimpse more personal aspects of LGBTQ+ history, and to deduce some of the difficulties that people faced during these times.

Women in Science: the Papers of Annie Mary Trout

In this week’s blogpost we celebrate International Day of Women and Girls in Science, marked on 11^th February each year by taking a look at the life and career of Annie Mary Trout (fl. 1905-1969), who taught mathematics at University College, Southampton and whose papers are now held in our Special Collections.

Annie attended Royal Holloway College, University of London, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts with first-class honours in mathematics in 1907. The following year she received a University of Cambridge Certificate of Efficiency in Teaching. On 1^st April 1916 the Teachers Registration Council issued a certificate recognising Annie as a professional teacher, which was renewed in 1925.

Annie Trout’s Teachers’ Registration Certificate, issued 1^st April 1916 and renewed in 1925 [MS112/A4267/1]

Annie was affiliated with the Royal Aeronautical Society, as shown by copies of her notes sent to their journal at the time of the centenary of the society in 1966. In these notes she reveals that she worked for the aircraft manufacturer Avro: “The Avro 504K […] was the standard training machine for some time after monoplanes were in general use, as it was considered fool proof. (I worked in the Avro design department after the 1^st War till the Slump).”

[Notes on centenary volume of the Aeronautical Journal, 28^th April 1966: MS 112 LF 780 UNI 2/7/75/77]

Avro designed some of the most recognisable planes of the twentieth century, including the Lancaster Bomber of the Second World War and the Vulcan Bomber, a jet plane of the Cold War era.

Her work at Avro included the investigation of “accident prone” machines and inspecting crashed airplanes. She also reflects a little on the role women played at the company and the differences between their work and the men’s. Women were deemed far better than the men at working with small rivets and they finished at 5pm, rather than 6pm when the men finished. Apparently, this was so that the women could beat the rush-hour traffic at 6pm, enabling them to feel a little more refreshed for when they started the next morning. One wonders what the men got up to in the last hour of their working day…

Annie recalls attending a secret and confidential show in Islington in 1918: “Early in 1918 a show was held in Islington of captured German aircraft. The variety in structure was far in advance of our own, which had remained as far as wing structure was concerned very much the same in fundamentals as in 1914.”

Annie also recollects the early years of the library at the University College, Southampton: “The three volumes of Cantor’s History of Mathematics in the University Library came from his [personal] library. After his death [Professor Arthur Berry], his widow sold them to us at far less than their market value, as we were such an ill endowed University institution. I believe that this was owing to Professor Howland (Professor of Mathematics at the time) who was deeply involved in the study of aerodynamics at the time.”

Annie’s papers include a mixture of notes from her life as a mathematics teacher as well as her work with Avro, the aircraft manufacturer. They include many notes on various mathematical problems, including the Theorem of three moments.

As I’m sure our regular readers will know, in civil engineering and structural analysis Clapeyron’s theorem of three moments pertains to the relationship among the bending moments at three consecutive supports of a horizontal beam.

Annie Trout’s notes on the Theorem of three moments [MS112 LF 780 UNI 2/7/75/31]

Annie’s mathematical work and interests are also reflected in the various scientific and technical publications in her papers, such as the ‘Handbook of Strength: calculations’ issued by the Ministry of Munitions’ Technical Department – Aircraft Production, published in February 1918 and marked ‘Secret and Confidential’

Annie Trout’s copy of ‘Handbook of strength calculations, produced by the Ministry of Munitions [MS 112/LF 780 UNI/2/7/75/39]

There are many intriguing aeronautical notes throughout her work, including calculations for ‘wing tip corrections’ marked Miss Hudson (who appears to have worked with Avro too), ‘engine torque’, and a note on ‘Flying Experience for Technical Personnel’ issued by a Lt. Col. Assistant Controller (Design) dated 13^th September 1918.

Special Collections also hold the papers of another mathematics teacher here at the University, Dr Frank Rhodes.

Annie’s interests, however, extended far beyond the cerebral world of mathematics and aeronautics, as shown by her membership of the Southampton University College Gramophone Club, for whom she kept the committee minutes.

At a meeting held 26^th October 1925 it was decided that gramophone records were to be played in the music studios once per week after lunch, the particular day to be fixed by the Students’ Council. At the following meeting one could expect to hear Beethoven’s 8^th Symphony, Schubert and other classical composers. Later, Gilbert and Sullivan would make an appearance.

A catalogue book of records held by the Gramophone Club is also part of the collection. Annie was still enjoying classical music in the late 1930s, as shown by her programme for the 13^th season of the Southampton Chamber Music Club for 1937-8.

Annie Trout’s programme for the Southampton Chamber Music Club, 1937-8 [MS112 LF 780 UNI 2/7/75/60]

Programme for the Southampton Chamber Music Club, February-March 1938 [MS112 LF 780 UNI 2/7/75/60]

Annie also enjoyed cooking and was a keen foodie, her papers include various recipes, such as this one for pineapple cream:

• 2oz custard powder
• 1 ½ litres [?] of milk
• 1 gill condensed milk
• 1 gill of pineapple syrup
• ¾ oz gelatine
• 1 dried pineapple
• 3oz sugar
• Whites of 2 eggs

Evidently, Annie had a sweet tooth, as her papers also include recipes for coconut ice and Turkish delight!

There are also numerous poetic pieces dotted throughout her papers, including a rather satirical example by a D.A. Lloyd titled ‘Keeping up the UCS Tradition’ from December 1948 (UCS being University College Southampton), which mentions the efforts to acquire a royal charter and university status:

They say the college policy is constantly reviewed

Keeping up the UCS tradition

They keep on adding clauses which are often misconstrued

Keeping up …

We’re striving for a charter which we trust will soon appear

And if we work quite hard, we’re told, that day will soon be here

But the feeling of the Union is to stick to darts and beer

Keeping up the UCS tradition

Certain pious student-types dislike our college songs

But they really are quite harmless and possess no evil wrongs

We don’t know what offended, was it ‘Moses in the Nile’

We cannot find a thing in it that’s even mildly vile,

It’s them wot’s done impromptu as is sure to raise the smile

The Beadle’s a majestic figure – part of college life,

The basis of all UCS tradition;

He evidently thought it best to lead a single life,

Keeping up …

They tell us Charlie’s been around for over fifty years,

A busy man by all accounts but somehow it appears

He finds the time at dances to knock off a few free beers

[…]

[MS 112 LF 780 UNI 2/7/75/76]

In one of Annie’s notebooks we find some of her own poetry, written whilst at Royal Holloway College and divided into three sections: ‘Aboriginal’, ‘Contemporary’, and ‘Strictly personal’. The following is an example from the ‘Aboriginal’ category:

The rule for the fresher is easy, the code of the College is plain

But a new year is rising among us, so let us expound it again.

There are rules for the fresher at meal-times, there are rules for the fresher at prayers.

There are proper remarks in the passage & telling [?] salutes on the stairs.

There are rules for accepting a cocoa & rules for returning a call.

There are jokes that it’s proper to laugh at & some she must not see at all.

There is slang to be used on occasions, (discarded with care the next day),

But for every occasion in College, there is only the quite correct way.

`A.M. Trout, Royal Holloway College. College Poems’ [MS112/LF 780 UNI/1]

In one of her ‘contemporary’ poems Annie gets political, extolling the virtues of a Liberal candidate (B. E. Miles) and his anti-protectionist policies over the Conservative candidate (E. V. James).

In 1929 Annie travelled through Italy, as demonstrated by her pass-card issued by the Ministry of Education – Directorate-General for Antiquities and Fine Arts, giving her free entry to the museums, galleries, monuments and ancient excavations.

Annie Trout’s pass-card for entry to Italian cultural and historical sites [MS112/A4267/1]

It is through the papers of Annie Trout that we learn of another woman of science. In 1969 Annie made corrections to the obituary for Miss Freda Mary Loader, which appeared in the bulletin of the University of Southampton Society. Freda was a student of University College, Southampton and took an Honours degree in Botany, becoming an employee of that department near the outbreak of the First World War. The college was closed for the duration of the War but she returned as a lecturer in September 1920. She was Secretary to the Botany Section of the British Association when it met in Southampton in 1925 and arranged their excursions to the satisfaction of everyone involved. Freda was also Secretary to the Science Faculty Board for many years: ‘her mind was orderly and exact to a degree’. She was also Treasurer for several years to the local branch of the British Federation of University Women. She was Warden of Montefiore Hall for some years and in September 1939 Freda was appointed Vice Warden of Highfield Hall.

In at least two places in Annie Trout’s papers we find references to a fifteenth century poem by (or about) the poet John Audelay:

No mon this book he take away,

[None must take this book away]

Ny kutt owte noo leef, Y say forwhy,

[Or cut out any page, I’ll tell you why]

For hit ys sacrelege, sirus, Y yow say!

[For it is sacrilege, sirs, I tell you]

Beth acursed in the dede truly!

[He will be accursed in the deed]

Yef ye wil have any copi,

[If you would have a copy]

Askus leeve and ye shul have,

[Ask leave, and you will have]

To pray for hym specialy

[To pray especially for him]

That hyt made your soules to save,

[That made it [the book] to save your souls]

                   Jon the Blynde Awdelay.

[John the Blind Audelay]

Indeed, if you should like a copy of anything from the papers of Miss Annie Trout, ask leave and you will have…

Spotlight on collections: the Cope Collection’s 19th-century periodicals

When promoting collections, libraries often highlight the number of books they contain, paying less attention to the periodicals. In this week’s blog post we try to remedy this by taking a look at some of the local periodicals in the Cope Collection, of which there are over 800.

Loosely defined as any ongoing publication, the periodicals range in date from the late 18th century to the present day and in holdings from a few shelves to a single issue. As far as the 19th-century periodicals in the collection are concerned, they demonstrate attempts to establish a county magazine, the activities of local organisations as set out in their annual reports and chart the growing number of titles with a subject focus that were published towards the end of the century. Although not all of the periodicals have local content, their existence helps to shed light on the history of the county and the concerns and interests of its inhabitants.

County Magazines in the Cope Collection

The Annual Hampshire Repository, published in Winchester in 1799, was the first periodical to include a substantial amount of information on Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. Described as an ’historical, economical, and literary miscellany’, the literary element, although including reviews of books such as John Milner’s recently published history of Winchester, was comparatively small. Much of the volume was taken up with reports on different aspects of county life, covering recent events, lists of army officers and clergy, the state of the poor and of agriculture, amongst other things. The Annual Hampshire Repository proved to be short-lived, despite assuring its readers it would be continued occasionally, the 1801 volume was the last to be published.

Part of the title page of The Annual Hampshire Repository v.1 (1799) Rare Books Cope per 05.5

Later titles suffered the same fate, failing to establish a large enough local market despite extending coverage to neighbouring counties. In 1827, the editor of The Crypt, or, Receptacle for Things Past, printed in Ringwood, wrote on the qualities required in a county magazine, in response to the proposed new title Wheeler’s Hampshire and West of England Magazine.

“Let the first care in such an undertaking be employed in rendering it truly local; the second in adding just so much foreign matter as not to render it useless or unentertaining to a stranger. As to talent, mediocrity is never sufficient to produce excellence yet local subjects may be interesting of themselves without extraordinary ability in their execution.”

In practice, The Crypt, with its focus on antiquarian matters, contained many general articles as well as those of local interest, such as the reports on the Romsey Music Festival and the Southampton Picture Gallery. Wheeler’s Hampshire Magazine, published in Winchester, lasted for just a year before being absorbed by The Crypt, which in turn ceased publication at the end of 1829. Other casualties amongst the county magazines included Andover’s Hampshire Miscellany of 1819, which had only a little local content in its ‘provincials’ section and the much later Hampshire Magazine, published in Southampton in 1884. It was not until 1960 that a thriving county magazine was established, Hampshire: the County Magazine, surviving for just over fifty years.

Table of contents of The Crypt, v.1 (1827) Rare Books Cope per 05.5

A contrast to the county magazines in terms of both size and content are annual reports, published as a legal requirement by local charities and other organisations. Like today’s versions, they list the organisation’s objectives, its officers and activities, generally concluding with lists of subscribers and the annual accounts. Although issues of individual titles may be sparse, even a single report in the Cope Collection serves a purpose in highlighting the existence of an organisation and suggests the possibility of finding other reports or even the archives of the body concerned, elsewhere.    

Annual Reports in the Cope Collection

Many of the reports are from organisations based in Southampton and were originally part of the Library of the Hartley Institution, from which the University developed. They include a number of reports of charities, including that of the Southampton Boys Shelter (1892) which provided beds and meals for destitute boys, with the intention of improving their condition from being ‘the scum of society’ to ‘good and useful men’. The Southampton Gordon Boys Brigade reports (1888-1890) describe their parcel delivery service and efforts to find permanent work for boys aged between 14 and 16.

From: Southampton Gordon Boys’ Brigade Annual Report (1889-90) Rare Books Cope SOU 33

To improve the situation of poor girls, the Southampton Soup Kitchen, Lodging House and School of Cookery (1882-1893) provided safe lodgings and training for domestic service, at the same time providing food for the poor at low prices. A slightly different concern was the Southampton Charity Organization, a branch of the national society, which acted as a clearing house, investigating requests for support and referring them to the appropriate charity, their reports, (1876-7, 1884) include lists of charities with which they liaised.

Different aspects of town life are shown in reports from other organisations. The Annual Reports of the Southampton Chamber of Commerce (1886-) provide a blow-by-blow account of the dispute between Plymouth and Southampton as to which would be the best base for the West Indian Mail Service whilst that of the Free Library Committee (1888/9) lists not only issue figures for some of the books but also the occupations of the borrowers.

From: the Southampton Free Library Annual Report (1888/89) Cope per SOU 07

Annual reports from elsewhere in Hampshire include those of the Botley and South Hants Farmers’ Club (1845-68), Odiham Literary Institute (1874/5), St Thomas’ Diocesan Home for the Friendless and Fallen at Basingstoke (1879, 1883, 1885/6), Hampshire Reformatory School at Eling (1865) and the Hampshire Union of Workmen’s Clubs and Institutes (1882-3).

Towards the end of the century, the establishment of local societies by those with a common interest led to a new kind of local periodical. The journals or proceedings, as they were often known, might include an annual report, but the focus was on the members’ research in the form of papers read at meetings or those submitted for publication. Examples include the Papers and Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society (1885-), those of the Winchester and Hampshire Scientific and Literary Society (1870-1881), the Southampton Geographical Society (1899-1901) and Southampton Literary and Statistical Society (1870/71).  

Volumes of the Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club in the Cope Collection

Today, some of the 19th-century periodical publications in the Cope Collection can be used as primary sources for the history of the period, but as the nature of periodical publishing changed and the range of publishers and subjects covered increased, titles of importance as secondary sources being to predominate, a trend carried forward in the 20th century.