Diary of Captain Henry Wilkinson, Durham Light Infantry
Diary of time spent as a prisoner of war in Germany
Diary titled ‘From Craonne to Hull in seven months, being my diary as a prisoner of war in Germany, 1918’ by Captain Henry Wilkinson.
Captain Henry Wilkinson was taken prisoner of war on 27 May 1918, the first day of the Third Battle of the Aisne, whilst serving with 8th battalion Durham Light Infantry. This diary begins on 26 May with the lead up to the battle and gives an account of his capture and subsequent movements before reaching his final destination of Stralsund on the northern coast of Germany.
Once in the camp, Wilkinson recounts how he passes his days, a large focus being on food, reading and drawing. He refers to a library being set up in the camp and at the back of the diary is a list of all the books he read whilst at Stralsund (“86 books in 218 days!”).
In December 1918, after the Armistice, Captain Wilkinson was repatriated via Denmark. The diary continues throughout this time, ending when he reaches his house in the early hours of New Year’s Eve.
Tuesday 27th August
The morning began with a bath, and on my way back I was told that a box of clothing awaited me … in the afternoon I donned a decent pair of breeches and swanked around!!
Thursday 10th October
I sent a letter to the Pater, mentioning Aunt Eliza – signifying the war.
Wilkinson’s Book List
To learn more about the books that Henry Wilkinson read during his captivity, the Durham at War blog is producing a series of posts that delves deeper into the titles:
Post 1) ’86 books in 218 days!’ 5 books read 15-18 June 1918, published 29 May 2015 http://ww1countydurham.blogspot.com/2015/05/86-books-in-218-days.html
Post 2) ‘A refuge’ 7 books read 19-24 June 1918, published 12 June 2015 http://ww1countydurham.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/a-refuge.html
Post 3) ‘Tragedy or comedy?’ 6 books read 25-29 June 1918, published 19 June 2015 http://ww1countydurham.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/tragedy-or-comedy.html
Post 4) ‘A princess, great men, and the war’ 6 books read 30 June-11 July 1918. published 24 July 2015 http://ww1countydurham.blogspot.co.uk/2015/07/a-princess-great-men-and-war.html
Date: May-December 1918, re-written 1920
Author: Wilkinson, Henry
Reference: D/DLI 7/773/1
Where to find this: Durham County Record Office
Contributed by Dorothy (Durham at War volunteer), and Durham County Record Office
