Major Henry Charles David Marshall - Wallet 2 - Booklet 9 - Part 8

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this caused me a lot of worry as I did not want to 

be separated either from Theo or the rest of the Bn.

Neither Keith nor I volunteered and hoped for the best

In fact we did not worry about it except that I had 

the personal one that Theo might be on it. I believe this 

list was submitted to the Germans who in their usual 

way promptly ignored it and produced their own 

on which both Keith and Theo were included as well 

as myself. I have no idea under what method the 

Germans compiled this for many older men and 

some more senior were left behind. A bit of the sting 

was taken out of the thoughts of leaving Dőssel because 

they were on it but it caused consternation in the 

room when I came back and told them. This was a 

few days after New Year and we gradually became reconciled. 

It was still a bit indefinite at this time as to when we 

were about to leave but reasonably soon. The lads in 

the room arranged a farewell dinner for Theo, Keith 

and I and it took much the same form as the Christmas 

dinner except that we were guests. The other side of the 

party occurred during the later part of the night which 

was our last in Dőssel. Quite a lot of gentle scrapping 

had gone on in the room at odd times and many 

scuffles. My usual method was to take out my teeth empty 

my pockets and put my glasses in a safe place. This 

was recognised as a signal for open warfare and made 

me fair game. We had more or less made an agreement 

for one last tussle but no one knew when it would 

break out on this occasion. To be quite sure I went 

and said cheerio to all the other rooms in my hut 

and in the one in which some recent distilling had 

taken place they offered me a farewell drink. I was not 

watching the pouring out. This distilled spirit looks just 

like gin and is much more potent and I was presented  

with a large glass and by large I mean large of spirit 

coloured with orange. Therefore I had no means of 

knowing how much I was getting. Looking back I 

feel that they too were trying to do things to me. Anyway 

I downed it without a murmur and thanked them 

whilst I had my misgivings. I said farewell and went 

out into the cold when I realised that the effects might 

be potent. I felt on top of the world after this short distance 

back to the room and as soon as I got in I threw 

down the gage by cleaning my pockets and taking my 

teeth out. I did not know at the time that the 

idea worked out over some days was to capture Keith 

and I and shave our lips. Then the fight started. 

We were in the position of having the initiative and 

used it to the full. The room was soon full of 

whirling forms and interlocked bodies. I saw Theo was in a 

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safe place enjoying it. I do not know how long the unequal 

scrap went on - there were eight against us but we gave 

a good account of ourselves. Keith gave in first but I 

was so busy occupying the attentions of the others that 

he could only be held and not shaved. They finally 

got me onto the floor and got as far as lathering my face 

in a very bad way but they did not have just enough 

men to hold my head steady. I could still turn it 

on the floor enough to prevent the razor being used and 

they dare not leave go of a leg or an arm to hold my 

head. It finally became a stalemate and we kept 

our mustaches. I must admit I was careless of what 

I did and I can assure you that the attacking force 

still remember that night. They were only speaking about 

it the other night. The next door room assured us that 

the walls bent and lots of things fell off the pegs. They 

poked their heads in but wisely did not enter for by 

now everyone was ready for a free-for-all. I enjoyed 

myself immensely but know that it was the sock of

hootch which kept me going so long. I could not have 

had it at a better time. I did not know it then but 

felt it next day - that the fibrositis in my knee from 

just before Bardia had returned due to Wickny sitting 

on my leg in a twisted position. It was a great night. 

Our packing was finished and the orders were that we 

were to be searched in the dining room at 2am. It was 

not worth while going to bed so Keith and I sat in front 

of the stove whilst the rest of the room went to sleep. We 

had to be very careful of our lights to make them last. 

About one o'clock I cooked a meal and made tea 

in the bucket and about a quarter to two woke up 

most of the others and gave them a drink of tea and we 

said farewell. We then went to the meeting place of all 

the officers of our Bn on the move and were then lead led 

across the soccer ground to the number two dining 

hall where our kit was to be searched. The lighting 

was very bad and the searchers sleepy and browned 

off so that the search was only cursory. After some tea 

we just sat around waiting for something to happen. 

This did not occur until 6am when we were formed 

up to the false dawn. After the usual series of 

counts to see who could get the answer correct we 

moved out of the camp and down the road towards 

Warburg escorted by a heavy guard with quite a 

large number of Alsatian dogs on the leash. They 

enlivened the march by snapping occasionally 

and the guards were short tempered. They used 

the butts of their rifles once or twice but the incidents 

were isolated. All the same the treatment was 

extremely bad considering that the column was one

 

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Photograph - see Original document

 

Another view of the Schloss from the west sightly different

from the one on the previous page. It is only a slightly

different angle.

 

 

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 of senior offices - no one below the rank of major.  

It was now 14. 1. 42 and we arrived at Warburg

Station and entrained. I think but I am not certain 

now that we knew we were going to Spangenburg. It 

was extremely frosty and this caused the brakes of 

the train to freeze to the wheels. Therefore the train 

could not move and we were held up in the Warburg

siding until midday whilst they lit huge fires of 

brushwood under each brake to thaw it out and 

release it. As senior officers the Germans had provided 

third class accommodation although we should have 

had first class and it was a great improvement on 

the cattle trucks. The seats were hard but each carriage 

was heated under each seat by a steam pipe connected 

to the engine. The door of our carriage would not close 

the catch having stuck and until it was fixed it was 

freezing cold. An old German and his assistant 

came to do the job and we enjoyed the spectacle of the 

argument. But it set us up for the day when the old 

boy took a hammer to belt the catch and with the 

first stroke the head flew off and naturally he missed 

the catch and drove the handle twice as hard onto 

his thumb. It was so cold that it must have hurt 

him. He lost his temper and threw the handle as 

far as he could, blamed his assistant and everything 

else and became more incensed every moment 

because we were laughing. The door was finally fixed 

and the carriage became much warmer. We finally 

moved off about midday and I fell asleep so I cannot 

tell you anything about the journey to Spangenburg. 

There was nothing to tell anyway as the countryside 

was covered with snow. When we arrived at Spangenburg 

a party consisting of senior officers headed by Major 

General Fortune and including all the Lieut Colonels 

or at least most of them were sorted out and marched 

off. They were all carrying as well as we ourselves our 

hand luggage. The heavy baggage was being unloaded 

from one truck and was to be carried up by horsedrawn 

transport later. The remainder of the officers including 

Keith and I were later marched off in a different direction 

and for a short while I was rather inclined to think that 

Theo and I were being separated. Actually the situation 

was that it was nearly dusk and they could not 

handle more than one party that night at the Schloss 

or castle on the hill which was to be our camp. 

Spangenburg had actually been opened in 1940 as 

a British Office and there were officers with us who 

were returning. We were marched to the Lower Camp 

in Olbersdorf village - a little farming community 

about one kilometer from Spangenburg. Here we 

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spent the night.  Our own blankets were with the heavy 

baggage but each bed had one German blanket and the 

central heating was well on and with our greatcoats and 

sleeping in my clothes we were very warm. Next morning  

My one memory of coming to the Lower Camp was crossing the 

bridge across the stream running alongside one side of the 

camp and watching the village children skating on the 

frozen water. It was my first sight of such a custom. 

Next morning we marched up the hill to the Schloss 

towering just above us and it was really on this climb that 

I realised that the scrapping back at Dőssel had damaged 

my old injury in the leg. I was quite glad when we arrived.

 

 

Photograph - see Original document

This is a view of the 

Schloss from the West 

showing the entrance,

the bridge across the 

moat and the steps 

leading down into it.