*Gefangenenlager Schneidemühl, (Now Pila), in Poland
36616 Private James Kayley. 9th Leicester’s Regiment
18/06/1897 – 29/01/1974
This is a record of my paternal Grandfather’s journal notes from 5th April to 21st December 1918. I have copied everything here as he wrote it, but have tried to punctuate for ease of reading. He could speak a little German, and has used some German words in his journal. Again, for ease of reading, I have replaced these words with the best English equivalents, and these are shown in italics. However, some words he used have proved elusive, so any words I have been unable to read clearly, or could not understand, I have also shown in italics. I intend to carry out research in order to clarify some of the places and events referred to. His notes are contained in two small notebooks, the earlier notes may have been written from memory, and not as a daily routine. However, his notes from the later notebook are more structured, hence the change of layout when this notebook starts. I should however warn the reader that the journals do contain some mundane information, mostly about food, which was probably very important for him and his comrades.
His comments from 11/11/1918 are particularly noteworthy, as are his notes written whilst awaiting transport home, which clearly highlights both his, and his comrade’s frustration at the long delays and lack of good information. It must have been chaos in those first weeks after the armistice, and word of mouth information probably became both embellished and diluted. I suspect that it may have appeared to him that he was constantly being lied to by the German officers. The references to Doris relate to my Grandma, his then girlfriend or fiancée.
* Gefangenenlager Schneidermühl is written on the front cover of one of the journals and translates to:
Detention Camp Schneidermühl, and In 1918, Schneidermühl was an important railway town in the Prussian region of the German Empire, but it is now called Pila, and is in Poland.
36616 Private James Kayley. 9th Leicester’s Regiment
18/06/1897 – 29/01/1974
This is a record of my paternal Grandfather’s journal notes from 5th April to 21st December 1918. I have copied everything here as he wrote it, but have tried to punctuate for ease of reading. He could speak a little German, and has used some German words in his journal. Again, for ease of reading, I have replaced these words with the best English equivalents, and these are shown in italics. However, some words he used have proved elusive, so any words I have been unable to read clearly, or could not understand, I have also shown in italics. I intend to carry out research in order to clarify some of the places and events referred to. His notes are contained in two small notebooks, the earlier notes may have been written from memory, and not as a daily routine. However, his notes from the later notebook are more structured, hence the change of layout when this notebook starts. I should however warn the reader that the journals do contain some mundane information, mostly about food, which was probably very important for him and his comrades.
His comments from 11/11/1918 are particularly noteworthy, as are his notes written whilst awaiting transport home, which clearly highlights both his, and his comrade’s frustration at the long delays and lack of good information. It must have been chaos in those first weeks after the armistice, and word of mouth information probably became both embellished and diluted. I suspect that it may have appeared to him that he was constantly being lied to by the German officers. The references to Doris relate to my Grandma, his then girlfriend or fiancée.
* Gefangenenlager Schneidermühl is written on the front cover of one of the journals and translates to:
Detention Camp Schneidermühl, and In 1918, Schneidermühl was an important railway town in the Prussian region of the German Empire, but it is now called Pila, and is in Poland.