(Numbers refer to entries in the Letter Book.)
1. Provenance.
The records described below were made by the Committee for the Relief of British Prisoners in France, which was established about 1803 at the depot for prisoners of war at Verdun. The purpose of the committee was to direct the distribution of charitable aid to prisoners either in depots or on their march to them, the money for such "charitable succours" being contributed by prisoners’ families and friends or collected by public subscription in Britain. The extant records comprise just two volumes, a Letter Book and an Account Book, which are described in more detail below (section 9).
These documents are not directly related to any other records in the Matthew Boulton Papers . They probably came into the possession of Matthew Robinson Boulton by the hands of the Rev. William Gorden , one of the committee’s principal correspondents. Gorden was born in 1770 or 1771 and educated at Oxford, and from 1794 till his death in 1837 was vicar of the parish of Duns Tew in Oxfordshire. In 1803 he was detained in France and sent as a prisoner of war to Verdun, where he remained for eleven years. (The reason for his initial presence in France is not known.) After his release he returned to his parish, taking with him, it would seem, the records of the Committee of which he had been a member. He probably first met M. R. Boulton in 1815, the year in which Boulton purchased an estate in the adjacent parish of Great Tew. Certainly the two men were well acquainted by 1823, the date of the only surviving letter between them. But the letter contains no reference to the documents from Verdun, nor has any been found elsewhere in Boulton’s papers.
The following notes describe the context in which these unusual, and possibly unique, records were produced.
2. Prisoners-of-War in Napoleon’s France.
The treatment of prisoners of war during the Napoleonic period was generally good, compared with that experienced in many other conflicts (including, sadly, more recent wars). A recent historian notes that "those taken prisoner might expect some ill-treatment in the immediate stress and rage of battle; but when tempers cooled both British and French generally treated their captives with humanity," and the evidence of the present records tends to support this statement.
After they had been captured, prisoners were marched to those towns where depots had been created to accommodate them. By the beginning of 1808 there were six of these, forming a string close to the north-eastern border of France-Valenciennes, Arras, Givet, Verdun, Sarrelibre, and Bitche; and in 1809 three more were added, at Mount Dauphin, Briançon, and Cambrai [684] . On their arrival at a depot, most of the captives would be confined in the fortress, or citadel, under the charge of the French commandant. Those of higher social status, however, were usually kept as prisoners on parole and permitted to stay in the town or even to travel about the country . This class included men of the army and navy of the rank of lieutenant or above, and such gentlemen as ministers of the Church of England (most of these were probably military chaplains). Communication between the two classes of prisoners was occasionally restricted. For instance, at Briançon in 1809 the commandant forbade the gentlemen on parole from having "any personal conference with the prisoners confined in the fort" [828]. However, at Cambrai in the same year all the prisoners but one were "shut up in the citadel" and were thus under the commandant’s jurisdiction, the exception being a certain Mr. Greet who was on a visit and was therefore under "the civil authority" [809].
The prisoners were not solely members of the army and navy. They also included, for instance, the crews and passengers of merchant vessels captured or sunk by the enemy. In January 1808 there arrived at Arras the surviving crew of the ship The Three Brothers, which had set out from Chepstow laden with timber. According to the survivors’ account the ship had "supported a very gallant action against La Manche, privateer of 55 men, for about an hour. After hulling the privateer through and through, the captain Simpson Cooper was killed and they were carried by boarding; but the privateer [was] sunk and 42 of her crew were lost." The survivors of the English ship included the captain’s son, "a fine lad of 15," who was said to be "much affected" by the death of his father, who had left at Chepstow a wife and six other children. On other occasions the passengers taken included women and children, and sometimes whole families were among the prisoners on the march to depots.
Again, not all the captives referred to in the letter book were British. One of the petitions received by the Committee at Verdun was from a number of seamen of Swedish origin, who claimed relief on the grounds that they had been taken under English colours and many of them were married to English women and had children in England [65].
3. Allowances for the Relief of Prisoners.
Prisoners of war received allowances from the French Government, and for the purpose of apportioning these allowances, they were divided into classes. In July 1809 there were three classes, as follows [761]:
1. Women and children, who received only bread.
2. Masters (or captains) and mates of merchant ships of 80 tons burthen or upwards, who received 29 livres 3 sols a month; though it appears that many of these men could not substantiate their claims to this money due to the loss of their papers or from other causes.
3. This class, the largest, comprised soldiers, sailors, and "all persons considered as such," namely merchant passengers and masters of merchant ships under 80 tons burthen. These received each day half a pound of meat, a pound of bread, a "certain proportion" of pulse, and one sol and a half in money.
But these allowances were often-perhaps usually-inadequate. As William Gorden observed, "However desirous the two Governments may be to alleviate the sufferings of their respective prisoners, yet there must always exist in a captivity of such long duration many wants for which the ordinary allowances may not be sufficient." [761]
Napoleon had prohibited prisoners from receiving pay from their own Governments, but they were permitted by the French Minister of War to receive financial assistance from their friends and families. Consequently sums of money were dispatched by individuals in England for the use of specific prisoners, and subscription funds were established to aid those classes of prisoners perceived to be in the most distress or most deserving of assistance. These funds will be discussed later.
4. Establishment of Committees in Depots.
The earliest of the subscription funds was that promoted by the Patriotic Society (see below), and perhaps it was at the direction of this Society that the committee at Verdun was formed; for it certainly seems likely that the system of committees set up in the French depots had its origin in the directive of an official or quasi-official body, and the Society’s officers would no doubt have been under pressure from subscribers to ensure that the proceeds of the fund were distributed fairly, efficiently, and according to the principles fixed by the Society. The opportunity this measure would have offered to manage by the same means the various individual donations may have provided an additional motive.
At any rate, it is clear that in 1803 or 1804 a number of prisoners on parole at Verdun came together, with the consent of the French commandant, to form a committee . This committee met regularly to discuss business and make resolutions on those matters upon which it was permitted to exercise discretion . Subsequently, prisoners on parole in other depots associated to form similar committees, subordinate to the one at Verdun, with which they corresponded in the manner illustrated by the letter book ; these also met regularly and passed resolutions . It appears that at Valenciennes there was a separate committee for the citadel [20].
When establishing such committees, as in all matters connected with the committees’ work, it was essential to obtain the favour of the commandant of the depot. Although necessarily this was easier on some occasions than on others, in general the commandants were given the reputation of humane men: the commandant at Verdun, for example, Général Wirion , is said to have "particularly interested himself" in the plight of the "indigent class" at his depot [761]. On the other hand, the commandant at Sarrelibre had persistent doubts as to whether the money sent there by the Committee at Verdun was indeed derived from private subscriptions in England, and consequently Commandant Wirion was requested to assure his compatriot of this and other facts [42].
Besides the committees at other depots, the committee at Verdun was also assisted by certain men (presumably prisoners on parole) residing in towns, who had accepted the task of distributing charitable relief to prisoners on the march as they passed through the towns. These men included Charles Forbes at Tours, Major Strickland Kingston at Lyons, and General Scott at Versailles.
It was the duty of the various committees, and presumably also the isolated town-dwellers, to keep proper accounts of their receipts and expenditure, and preserve any corresponding vouchers. Some of the charitable organizations, as will be seen, also required lists to be kept of the numbers of prisoners receiving relief at their hands, together with such personal details as their names, their residences in England, and the names of their ships or regiments. These records the subordinate committees were obliged to send at intervals to the committee at Verdun for its inspection, and the committee at Verdun in turn dispatched reports and accounts to the relevant bodies in England.
5. The Patriotic Society.
During the period covered by the letter book there were three chief sources from which the committee at Verdun received money [405]. The first of these was the Patriotic Society, or Fund, already alluded to.
The Patriotic Society restricted payments "to the aged and wounded, to the instruction of the young men, and to the relief of such prisoners of weak health, whose disorders were not sufficiently dangerous to necessitate their being transferred to the hospital" [761]. Details of the Society’s remittances and any alterations in its policy were communicated to the committee at Verdun by Edward Bolton Clive of Yarmouth, who was presumably a member of the committee for the management of the Fund [58, 79]. In return the committee at Verdun transmitted statements of their accounts and reports of their activities, probably every quarter [405].
In July 1809 the regulations for the distribution of the charitable relief provided by the Society were as follows [761]:
Patriotic Society
The charitable committee allows 14 sols per week from the Patriotic Society to the aged of 55 and upwards, as also to those suffering from their wounds. It is wished if possible that this fund should be distributed to them half in money and half in provisions. A list of their names and residence in England is requested, containing also the names of their ships or the regiments to which they belong, the total number to be forwarded the 25th of each month, with the sum expended in their relief. The list of names can be forwarded every three months or as opportunity may offer.
If an establishment can be formed for the education of the young men, the expence attending it will be carried to the account of the Patriotic Society, as also any small expence of medicines for the sick who are not in the hospital.
On 30 Oct. 1807 the committee at Verdun sent a letter desiring the Society to relax their restrictions somewhat and permit a payment of 3 sous a day to prisoners of other classes; but the Society replied that, though "deeply impressed with a sense of the necessity of giving all the relief in their power to their countrymen in captivity, considerations beyond their power to controul oblige them to confine themselves within the line already drawn for their government." With regard to the masters and mates of merchantmen, an allusion was made to the separate subscription already made for their relief, namely, that collected by the Society established at Lloyd’s Coffee House (see below).
In 1807 the sum total remitted by the Patriotic Society was £4700, and its Committee voted the sum of £5000 for the following year [79].
As its regulations indicate, one of the objects favoured by the Society was the provision of education to young men, and in pursuance of this aim schools were established at certain depots. In practice, it seems, the beneficiaries of this provision were usually young servicemen. In October 1808 the committee at Verdun advised the Committee of the Patriotic Fund:
We have been obliged to break up the establishment for the midshipmen which had existed for a long time in the citadel at Verdun, as almost the whole of that class of prisoners have been removed to other dépôts-but an institution has been formed in town for the purpose of affording an opportunity of instruction to the younger part of the mates of vessels, and about 40 persons of this description constantly partake of its benefit. The whole number in the different dépôts who receive daily instruction from your benefactions amounts to 2137 individuals.
The money allowed to be expended on this object clearly extended to the furnishing of schoolrooms, and perhaps even to their construction. In May 1808 John Bell, at Sarrelibre, reported that "the schools are now well fitted up, clean whitewashed, and all the tables and stools in complete repair" [182].
6. The Society established at Lloyd’s Coffee House.
Some time after the formation of the committee at Verdun, its members being of opinion that there were a number of prisoners in need of relief whose needs were not being met by the means presently in operation, they "wrote home to solicit a general subscription." As a result a Society was formed at Lloyd’s Coffee House to receive donations . Lloyd’s Coffee House was the centre of the marine insurance business and it is possible that the Society was principally animated by a concern to relieve prisoners from the crews of merchant ships, though its funds were applied to wider objects. The letter advising the committee at Verdun of the formation of this "very humane and charitable institution" bore the date 12 Nov. 1807 [406] .
The money collected under the auspices of this Society was transmitted at intervals to the committee at Verdun by the banking house of Messrs. Perregaux & Co. of Paris who received the first instalment (£5000) by 29 Dec. [42, 761].
In 1809 the regulations for the distribution of this relief were as follows [761]:
C. L. Subscription
The Society established at Lloyds has authorized the committee to allow to women and children who receive only bread from the French Government from 6 to 9 livres per month according to their situation or their wants.
To captains and mates of merchant ships of 80 tons burthen and upwards who from the loss of their papers or from other causes can not substantiate their claims to the 29 livres 3 sols per month granted by the French Government to prisoners of this description the sum of 12 livres per month is allowed. The same sum is also given to merchant passengers and masters of merchant ships under 80 tons who receive only the allowance of common seamen or soldiers from the French Government.
The soldiers, sailors, and all persons considered as such, receive from the French Government half a pound of meat, a pound of bread, a certain proportion of pulse, and one sol and a half in money per day. The committee allows on the account of the Society established at Lloyds Coffee House to each individual of these classes 14 sols per week ; half in provisions and half in money. As the list of this class would be too considerable to forward monthly or quarterly, it will be sufficient to detail in the account the total number relieved weekly ; and a book can be kept at the depot, containing the names, qualities, vessels, regiments, and residence in England of those thus relieved.
The names and residence in England of the women and children, of the masters, mates, and merchant passengers who partake of these succours, it is requested may be forwarded monthly to the committee. The reason of this request is for the purpose of encouraging the subscriptions which augment in proportion as the families in England find that their relatives or townsmen, prisoners in France, are relieved by their donations.
No individual can be relieved in more that one class. For the uniformity of accounts a sketch is annexed of the manner in which they are kept at the depots.
7. The "Louis Charity."
In 1807 or 1808 the committee at Verdun received from "an unknown quarter" [166], through the bankers Thomas Coutts & Co., the sum of £5000, "to be distributed at the rate of one louis d’or per man to every prisoner in distress" [405]. This donation became known as the Louis Charity, or Louis Fund, and separate books were kept to record the charitable relief given from this source [5, 6, 14]. The distribution was made "in weekly portions of 12s. [sous] each per man"; however, "as there were considerably more than 5000 prisoners to partake of it," the deficiency in the money was made up by transferring money from the remittances made by the Patriotic Society [405]. The distributions ceased in the first week of October 1808, when each person had received his portion.
8. Other Funds.
Besides the three principal sources enumerated above a number of local subscription funds are referred to in the letter book. For example, in 1809, Messrs. Le Mesurier, bankers, remitted £450 from the states of Jersey for the relief of natives of that island [823, 826, 827]; and similar subscriptions were made in the names of Guernsey [5], Merioneth [298], Dartmouth [67, 91], and Cornwall [196].
Infirmaries and dispensaries were established at the depots for the care of the sick and wounded, but it is not clear how these were paid for. By Oct. 1808 there was a hospital at each of the depots, with the exception of Sarrelibre [371] . The hospital at Arras contained separate fever wards [149], and in the following month Lieutenant Norton reported that "an infirmary is talked of in the citadel, which the commandant wishes to have attended by English physicians" [180].
9. Surviving Records.
As noted above, only two of the Committee’s books survive, a Letter Book and an Account Book, though there were probably originally many more.
Letter Book. This volume contains transcripts of letters to and from members of the committee at Verdun, minutes of the committee’s meetings, and other documents. It covers the period 26 Jan. 1808 - 31 Aug. 1809. Written on the edges of the leaves, so as to be read when the book is shut, are the words, "From Jany. 1808 to Aug. 1809," followed by the number 3, which probably indicates that this volume was the third of a series. Most of the book is written in an unidentified hand, but at least four entries were made by William Gorden [643, 683, 805, 838]. For ease of reference, the entries in the book have now been numbered.
Account Book. This volume is entitled "Account with Sir Thomas Lavie for the Young Gentlemen of His Majesty’s late ship Blanche (Y. G. B. account)." It covers the period 28 Aug. 1809 - 1 Apr. 1813, and was therefore begun about the time the letter book was closed, but this appears to be a coincidence. The young gentlemen in question were Messrs. Lyall, Gregg, Secretar, Gordon, Street, Hoy, and Williams, who were presumably captured at the time the H.M.S. Blanche was sunk, and taken as prisoners to Verdun. The book contains various accounts connected with expenditure on their behalf for board, lodgings, clothes, provisions, tuition, and so on. The account at the back of this book with Messrs. Perregaux & Co. suggests that the money was derived from the funds of the Society established at Lloyds. Inserted in the book is a loose sheet containing a "statement of Mr. Master’s debts," 25 Apr. 1810.
ACCESS AND USE
There are no restrictions on access to or use of the Verdun Committee Records. However fragile items or those in a poor state of repair may not be served at the discretion of the Duty Archivist.
List prepared by Adam C. Green, Project Archivist, Birmingham City Archives, under the Archives of Soho Project, November 1998 to March 2004.