Denis Johnston, James Quick, Emile Du Bois, Buchenwald

On a day when we are thinking about the discovery and liberation of the camps in Nazi Germany...

In 2022, I gave a presentation at The BBC at 100 Symposium, National Science & Media Museum, Bradford, Yorkshire...

About the Irish writer, Denis Johnston, a Diaspora Studies approach, focussing on his time as War Correspondent for the BBC, and his unwieldy memoir...

Johnston, Denis. (1953) Nine Rivers from Jordan: The Chronicle of a Journey and a Search. London: Derek Verschoyle.

Most probably his masterpiece, but difficult to absorb without also absorbing the tropes of Irish Modernism.  The memoir presents a long complex meditation - in essence, all internal debate, about Irish neutrality, journalistic balance, violence and guns, ends when he reaches Buchenwald...

More detail on my blog below...

https://fiddlersdog.blogspot.com/2022/09/the-bbc-at-100-symposium.html

In his memoir Johnston writes - very clearly - about the liberation of Buchenwald, and being shown round by two imprisoned Channel Islanders, James Quick and Emile Dubois.

I have now shared notes with Gilly Carr, Professor in Conflict Archaeology and Holocaust Heritage.

https://www.frankfallaarchive.org/

James Quick and Emile Dubois/Du Bois are in her archive...

https://www.frankfallaarchive.org/people/emile-harry-aristide-du-bois/

Emile ‘Harry’ Aristide Du Bois

Date of birth 2 October 1899

Place of birth Jersey

Deported from Jersey

Deportation date 1 March 1944

Deported to:

Cherche-Midi Prison

Buchenwald Concentration Camp

WARNING: CONTAINS DISTRESSING DETAIL OF TORTURE AND ILL-TREATMENT

https://www.frankfallaarchive.org/people/james-thomas-william-quick/

James Thomas William Quick

Date of birth 3 October 1910

Place of birth Guernsey

Deported from Guernsey

Deportation date 18 November 1942

Buchenwald Concentration Camp

And see Johnston, Denis. (1953) Nine Rivers from Jordan, pages 392-397.

The added detail now, I suppose, is that clearly Denis Johnston was a very careful war correspondent - in the midst of the horrors of Buchenwald, 1945, which he describes so movingly, he took careful note of the names of his informants.

And he carefully recorded their names in his 1953 memoir.

The Dictionary of Irish Biography entry

Johnston, (William) Denis

is by Maume, Patrick

https://www.dib.ie/biography/johnston-william-denis-a4313

Patrick O'Sullivan

Visiting Professor of Irish Diaspora Studies, London Metropolitan University