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HOLLIS 601715

Maurice Ettinghausen collection of Ruhleben civilian internment camp papers, 1914-1937: Finding Aid.


Harvard Law School Library, Cambridge, MA 02138

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Harvard Law School
fall 1999-spring 2000

© 2003 The President and Fellows of Harvard College

Summary Information

Repository: Harvard Law School Library, Harvard University
Location: Harvard Law School Library, Special Collections
Call No.: HOLLIS 601715
Creator: Ruhleben Gefangenenlager.
Title: Records, 1914-1937
Quantity: 21 boxes
Abstract: Records and papers relating to a German World War I internment camp for male civilians. The camp was established at the Ruhleben Trabrennbahn (horse racetrack) two mile outside of Berlin.

Processing Information:

Processed by Janet Hayashi, 1988 and Michael Austin, fall 1999-spring 2000.

Acquisition Information:

The records of Gefangenenlager Ruhleben were purchased by the Friends of the Harvard Law School Library and the Harvard Law School Society of New York City, probably in 1932, from Dr. Maurice Ettinghausen, a librarian-antiquarian of London, and former internee at Ruhleben.

Access Restrictions:

Access to these papers is governed by the rules and regulations of the Harvard Law School Library. This collection is open to the public. Consult the Special Collections staff for further information.

Use Restrictions:

The Harvard Law School Library holds copyright on some, but not all, of the material in our collections. Requests for permission to publish material from this collection should be directed to the Special Collections staff. Researchers who obtain permission to publish from the Harvard Law School Library are also responsible for identifying and contacting the persons or organizations who hold copyright.

Scope and Content

The Ruhleben collection consists of 21 boxes (various sizes) of material in the following media: photographs; posters; clippings; drawings; receipts, stamps, and tickets; holographs; printed, typed, mimeographed, and jellographed items; correspondence. There is also a wooden model of a barrack, with furniture.
Contents of the collection include runs of camp newspapers and magazines; military orders and camp regulations; concert and play programs; announcements of debates, sports events, flower shows, and academic courses; song lyrics and poetry; minutes of the barracks captains' meetings; lecture notes for courses at the camp school; German souvenirs; hand-printed advertisements for commercial enterprises, such as shoemaking and tailoring.
Most of the materials date from 1914-1918. In addition, there is a catalogue of a 1919 exhibition about Ruhleben, plus a few announcements of internee reunion dinners in the 1920-1930s.
The material contains a great deal of evidence concerning camp life and organization, but there are no personal letters or memoirs of the internees. Most of the material is in English, but there are also runs of camp publications in French, Italian, and German. Some camp administration papers as well as newspaper clippings are in German.
Minimal processing was finished in November of 1988. However, resources at that time did not permit complete processing, chiefly due to the complexity and variety of media contained in the collection. It has now been rehoused and thoroughly reorganized, with the aim of maximizing intellectual access.

Historical/Biographical Information

Ruhleben Gefangenenlager (British Civilian Internment Camp) was established after the outbreak of the First World War at a racetrack in Spandau, a suburb of Berlin, and remained in operation until Armistice Day, 1918. At its peak, the camp held some 4,500 male civilians of military age who had been living or traveling in Germany when war was declared; prisoners were housed in stalls originally intended for racehorses. Most were British, but there were also a few dozen French and Italians, as well as Indians, Jamaicans, West Africans, and Zanzibarees, most of whom had been crewmembers of British merchant ships docked in German ports. About 300-400 internees were Jewish.
The internees established their own camp organization, mail service, social and sports clubs, cultural and educational programs, relief programs, religious services, and hygienic measures.
Studies of camp life include three monographs, all by former internees:
Ketchum, John D. Ruhleben, A Prison Camp Society. Toronto, 1965
Cohen, Israel. The Ruhleben Prison Camp: A Record of Nineteen Months' Internment. London, 1917
Powell, Joseph and Gribble, Francis. The History of Ruhleben. London, 1919

Additional Index Terms

The following catalog entries represent persons, organizations, and topics documented in this collection. An entry for each appears in the Harvard On Line Library Information System (HOLLIS) and other automated bibliographic databases. THIS IS NOT AN INDEX.
Ettinghausen, Maurice.
Ruhleben British Civilian Internment Camp.
Ruhleben Daily News.
Ruhleben Gefangenenlager.
World War, 1914-1918 - Prisoners and prisons, German.

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