大象传媒

Mr Donald Board interviewed by Margaret le Cras.
Edited transcript of tape recording of the interview

Now in that last battery the cook was Theodor Bemp from Koblenz on the Rhine, and the Quartermaster was an Oscar Frisch from Munich and he was a bank manager. Now those two became great friends of ours and they were very good to us. They took us food on the quiet when I鈥檇 going home and the soup would be simmering to be going out. He鈥檇 say 鈥淪chnell,鈥� We had cans. 鈥淨uick, get your can鈥� [ ] home. And they鈥檇 come home occasionally. And Frisch, Oscar Frisch, his was the next door, the first cottage, where all the bread and all, everything was kept, the cigarettes, and all that. If he came home, he鈥檇 bring a tin of sardines in oil, or something like that, which was a luxury. And after the war, we corresponded all the time, we became great friends. And Theodor Bemp and his wife, they came over here seven times, and we went over there, well I went five times to their place at Koblenz, my wife went twice and I went five times on my own. One of the things incidentally being four years working with the Germans, at first they鈥檇 be shouting at us to get this, get that, in German, we wouldn鈥檛 know what they meant, fetch this, fetch that, more of this, more of that, but after four years, that was one of the things in the Occupation which has been an advantage to me, I picked up German, going twice on my own I could find a bus at Dusseldorf Airport to get to the station, get my platform, my train, and everything. I could converse in German.
I鈥︹�︹��. That鈥檚 lovely, that you had a time outside the war with them, eh, nothing to do with the war.
Mr Board. Ah, that鈥檚 nothing. We got to know Theo鈥檚 family 鈥� there鈥檚 a photo I must show you after, what I call my German album, snaps taken over their, got to know grandchildren, he had lost a lot in the war, he鈥檇 lost two sons, one in Russia, one in Europe, and a third son who was only fourteen was at home, and he went on the railway station one day, and a German regiment had come in, and had taken off their rucksacks, and on the side they always had their hand grenades, which had a handle on them, stuck in, and he pulled one of these out, and he got blown up. And his house was more or less destroyed, so they lost a lot during the war. Now the other one, Oscar Frisch, he only came to Guernsey once, that was on the fortieth anniversary he came. In my letters I鈥檇 say 鈥淲hy don鈥檛 you come to Guernsey鈥�. I think he had always a fear as to how he鈥檇 be accepted.
I鈥︹�︹��. I must admit, working at the Museum, I met quite a few Germans, and you could spot the ones who had been here because they didn鈥檛 want to ask too many questions, but the minute you started speaking to them, I used to ask them directly, were you here during the war, and once you got over it, they were very very talkative about it. Because the Island would have been lovely to them, eh, because I mean it would have been peaceful compared to the other places that they had been fighting.
Mr Board. Oscar Frisch, the quartermaster, on one occasion I took him up to the Occupation Museum and introduced him to Mr Heaume, because at that time 鈥� we鈥檝e lost touch now - Mr Heaume was getting his odds and ends together at his mother鈥檚 farm, in the loft. And he came down here because I had photographs 鈥� in fact there was an article in the Press probably about a twelve month ago about a young lady called Daphne Priaulx, working at Le Cheminant in the arcade, she was processing the films, we had no cameras they had been handed in, but they were handed back to us, but they were the old cameras 鈥� if there were any interesting snaps of the Germans, she鈥檇 make an extra one, and she鈥檇 pass them on to me, because I knew her. This was all in the Press, about Daphne Priaulx. - But anyhow Mr Heaume came down here, and 鈥�
I鈥︹�︹��. I am sure he would have found you fascinating to hear
Mr Board. Probably. As a matter of fact, I was in Hospital last October, and there was a gentleman I got friendly with in there, and he has either a son or a son-in-law who works in the jewellers on the Bridge, the corner, and I was telling him a lot 鈥� he was in the Occupation
I鈥︹�︹��. Association, society, like, I鈥檝e been to a couple of their meetings and I must say it is very interesting.
Mr Board. I went to one, at the Trelade, but to be honest, I wasn鈥檛 very interested because it was schoolteachers and it was all about, and of course they鈥檙e teaching German Occupation
I鈥︹�︹��. I think it鈥檚 a case of each month it鈥檚 a different sort of subject, so perhaps you didn鈥檛 choose one that was of much interest to you.
Mr Board. But anyhow, back to taking Oscar Frisch to the Occupation Museum, I rung Richard Heaume and told him, I told him he was quartermaster. Well in German he was called die vorwebelwachtmeister, rations master or something like that. And I told him, and he said, when you come out, let me know., and I鈥檒l come down. And I鈥檝e got a photo of Oscar and one of the guns there, and myself, that someone took for us, and when I went out Mr Heaume came down, cup of coffee, piece of cake, and he said you should come one night to the society, and tell them. I鈥檝e never been.

Yes, Theo used to come occasionally, Because when I鈥檝e gone over there, I鈥檇 go with him, he was a Roman Catholic, I鈥檇 go with him, because t the side of where they lived was a quite big Roman Catholic church,
I鈥︹�︹��. So what years did you go to Germany, would you have gone in the late 40s?
Mr Board. The first time was 1952,and then, I can鈥檛 remember the dates, they鈥檙e on my photographs, and in a little book, I鈥檝e got about fifteen photo albums, from when I was a baby, and my son who is now 55, I鈥檝e got his photo albums, my grandson鈥檚 album 鈥� of course his photos go in with ours. If somebody came over here 鈥� friend 鈥� I鈥檇 say 鈥渨hen was it you last came? 1956? Just a moment鈥�, I鈥檇 go in my little book, I鈥檝e got the film number, and all the films, what they are, and the date, and I can go to the album, the album has got the year 19so-and-so to 19 so-and-so, I can do that. So when we went, there were two others came with us, I said we had to go away, take the wife away, and we had two friends at Eldad, who actually later, they became Jehovah鈥檚 Witnesses, and he was one of the head ones, Ernie Bewey They are both dead now, she died only recently, but they were at that time with us at Eldad, and they decided to come away with us.

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