New WW1 archives discovered at the Red Cross, Geneva

MasterDabber

MasterDabber

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I saw this reported on the BBC News this morning

These newly discovered archives deal with the capture, death, or burial of servicemen from over 30 nations drawn into the conflict; personal effects, home addresses and grave sites cover page after page.

All were passed to the Red Cross by the combatants; volunteers logging the information by hand before sending it on to the soldiers' home countries.

Apparently at the start of the war there were 12 people in Geneva doing the inputting, by the end there were 1,000!

Unfortunately it's going to be a while before they become generally available as the digitising processs is only just starting.
 
Thanks for the link Derek. :thumb2

According to Peter Barton, the UK's copies no longer exist, but the originals are still here and are immensely important.

"To a military historian, this was like finding Tutankhamen's tomb and the terracotta warriors on the same day," he told me.
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Truly amazing that things like this can still be found, I’m sure they will take all care in preserving the information.
 
You're right... amazing!

"I still can't understand why no-one has ever realised the significance of this archive -but the Red Cross tell me I'm the first researcher who has asked to see it."

The records could potentially reveal the whereabouts of individuals whose remains were never found, or never identified. Grave after grave in the World War I cemeteries mark the last resting place of an unknown soldier.
Click to expand...
 
I've just been reading about that as well.
Quite amazing that they've only just discovered all these records.
I shall look forward hopefully to being able to access them, 2014 is the current estimate.
 
It looks like the UK did originally have copies of these files but somehow they seem to have disappeared?

Another quote from the BBC website.....

According to Peter Barton, the UK's copies no longer exist, but the originals are still here and are immensely important.
Click to expand...
 
Fascinating stuff!

I wonder how many of those names on the memorials to the missing will now one day be carved onto the headstones of unknown soldiers?
 
MasterDabber said:
It looks like the UK did originally have copies of these files but somehow they seem to have disappeared?
Click to expand...

Derek,

Many WWI records were lost during the Blitz, a fire damaged much of the then National Archive. It's been a problem for anyone trying to research. Some of the damaged records are available and fortunately for those of the Guards regiments, they maintained dual records that have survived.

It's one of the exciting things about this find for me. I have a relative, killed on the Somme and named on the Thiepval Memorial, whose records are as lost as his body still is.

There's a chance, albeit a slim one, that the Red Cross records will record more information than I currently have about him, even less likely but still a remote possibility, it may point to where he was buried at the time.
 
Hi Mike
Thanks, I never knew that... very interesting. It never seemed like the kind of thing you would just lose.
I guess it's going to be a while (several years I think) before this info becomes generally available but let's hope it helps you with your searches eventually.... good luck.
 
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