The British Interned in Switzerland

by Henry Philip Picot

Before mentioning the arrangements made for the British Interned, I should like to give a short sketch of the steps taken by the Churches in Switzerland, and of Swiss regard for the spiritual welfare of the Allied and German Interned, before the advent of the British.

I take the Roman Catholics first, as most of the Allied Interned were of that persuasion. The "Mission Catholique," founded by Mgr. Bovet to give moral aid to Ps. of W., engaged itself from the very first to provide, under the direction of the "Aumônier en Chef," for the religious requirements of the Roman Catholics. Mgr. Colliard, Bishop of Lausanne, was appointed President of the Mission, and the Abbé Savoy, one of its members, was charged, in collaboration with both native and Interned priests, and with the assistance of Mgr. Gariel, Professor at the University of Fribourg, with the duty of organizing services in the centres of Internment.

Apart from purely spiritual efforts, the Mission also organized a series of Conferences dealing with the geography, history, industries, and social life of Switzerland.

Early in 1916, the Abbé, now Captain Aumônier Herbert Savoy, was nominated Chaplain-General to the Roman Catholics, Captain Aumônier Spahn to the Protestants, and Dr. M. Erlanger, of the "Rote Mogen David Society," to the Jews. These appointments affected the French, Belgian, and German Interned, the British not having as yet made their appearance in the country.

Each centre of Internment was as far as practicable considered as forming part of local parish organizations, and Interned priests were also appointed to assist the Swiss in their work. The services were held in the parish churches or chapels and oratories improvised for the occasion. Protestants being in a minority, it was not found possible to arrange in an adequate manner for their worship, and Captain Aumônier Spahn could only hold a service for the men once a fortnight, the dissemination of the Interned throughout the various cantons adding to his difficulties. The Jews were ministered to by Grand Rabbi T. Lewenstein at Zürich, and by Dr. M. W. Rappaport and Rabbi Jules Wolff.

The above arrangements met with little difficulty in their application, as they simply portended an expansion of the existing religious organizations of the country. Language offering no bar to common worship, the addition of accommodation in church, chapel, or synagogue was seldom necessary, and the Interned Frenchman, Belgian or German took his place as a member of the ordinary Swiss congregation. The clergy, too, understood the psychology of their flocks, and were not puzzled by any new manifestations of racial characteristics.

In the case of the British, the conditions were of a different order. Here, at once, the differences of race, religious observances, and language became apparent, and it was evident that I should be thrown on my own resources in providing for the spiritual welfare of our officers and men. Château d'Oex was, I found, well served as to religious needs. The importance of the place as a popular mountain resort for British tourists had led to the maintenance there by the Colonial and Continental Church Society of a resident Church of England Chaplain, the Rev. E. Dudley Lampen, and there was also a resident Swiss Roman Catholic priest, the Abbé Bullet. Both these gentlemen placed themselves at my disposal for the service of the men. The Rev. A. M. Sutherland, Minister of Trinity Presbyterian Church of Lausanne, likewise offered himself for duty, and in due course established, at his own expense, a chapel at Château d'Oex for the use of his military congregation.

In September, 1916, the C.C.C. Society further sent the Rev. Isaac Hutchinson from England to assist Mr. Lampen, and these gentlemen performed all the duties connected with the Anglican Church at Château d'Oex, Rougemont and Rossinières, until their relief in 1917, when Army Chaplains were appointed by the Chaplain-General for duty in Switzerland.

At Leysin Church of England services were conducted by the resident Chaplain, the Rev. Mr. Tisdale, who also rendered valuable assistance in his relations with the British Catholics, when as yet no English-speaking priest visited the place.

As regards his military flock, the Abbé Bullet was much handicapped by his imperfect knowledge of English, and I found it necessary, therefore, to make other arrangements, and sought for assistance elsewhere. At this juncture I was brought into touch with the Rev. Father D. V. Rowan, Professor of Exegesis at the University of Fribourg. This town is well known throughout the Catholic world as a seat of learning, and a centre for theological study. For decades past British students have been attracted to its schools, and British professors have long been engaged there at the university and religious institutions. Father Rowan, hearing of my difficulties, at once came forward with the suggestion that he and his British confrères of Fribourg should take it in turn to visit the camps, and thus supplement the work of the local priests. This system was at once adopted and pursued until the winter of 1916-17, when two Fribourg priests, Fathers W. J. Neville and D. Fahey, were allocated duties at Château d'Oex and Mürren as resident Incumbents, a change which gave much satisfaction to them, as they had found the weekly journeys to and from Fribourg extremely trying during the winter months. It was also equally pleasurable to the men to have their spiritual advisers with them at all times.