4. European refugees from the Nazis: 'we are not all German'
Cartwright Gardens
Not all refugees were German, almost half were Austrian, some Czech, and once war broke out they were joined by Poles, French, Belgian and Dutch. But German and Austrian refugees were designated Enemy aliens once war broke out, and thus subjected to all sorts of restrictions, and many were later interned when Britain was worried about a possible invasion after the fall of France in 1940. Most people, including the British government, did not distinguish between Germans, Austrians, and German-speaking Czechs, being especially suspicious of anyone with communist affiliations. Quite common amongst refugees from the Nazis!
On the eastern side of Cartwright Gardens you will today find University of London's Garden Halls, which were completed in 2017. But in 1937 another new student hall had just been built on this site - Canterbury Hall. When war started, students were evacuated along with rest of university and in April 1940 the building was given over to the Czech Refugee Trust Fund, to house about 300 Czech German refugees. Archives contain an interview with Josephine Bruegel who shared a room with a friend. She was very positive about the accommodation, describing it as wonderful and modern. The rooms had ensuite bathrooms, a rarity in Britain at the time.
Security services kept a close eye on the refugees in Canterbury Hall because there were quite a few communists. Until the Nazis attacked the Soviet Union in 1941, communists were opposed to what they deemed an imperialistic war. In Canterbury House, the influential communist refugee contingent in Canterbury Hall carried on a running feud with the social-democrats and others. And Special Branch received regular reports about Communist agitation there, from anti-communist informers. Apparently all Communists were living on the 5th floor where they held regular meetings, with a courier hurrying from room to room to convey information. The police had to rely on refugee informers because they didn’t speak German. Bruegel describes one episode:
By late 1941, the Czech Refugee Trust Fund received reports of the hall being in a deplorable condition, including broken lavatories and stairs unsafe for use - altogether the residents had caused £5,000 worth of damage. How? Why? The Admiralty requisitioned the building in 1942, no doubt to the relief of the Czech Refugee Trust, and after the war the Hall reverted back to the University of London to accommodate students.
The offices of the Czech Refugee Trust Fund were just down the road at Mecklenburgh Square. It existed until 1975. After the war they helped displaced persons and later refugees from the Communist Czech regime. Nicholas Winton was involved with the Fund, when he was helping to get children out of Czechoslovakia. Doreen Warriner, the Head of the Trust's Committee in Prague later became a professor at the University's School of Slavonic and East European Studies.
Exit Cartwright Gardens to the south and walk down Marchmont Street. In the 1930s and '40s this street would have been much the same as it is today - it was a place where refugees were able to buy essentials, and maybe meet together in a cafe or pub.
At the junction, turn right and walk down Tavistock Place, taking note of the blue plaque for Lenin's house on this street. Just before the junction with Tavistock Square is our next stop - Mary Ward House. Follow the walk