On this Remembrance Sunday, it might be of interest to recall the welcome given by the Swiss to the wounded British prisoners of war as they made their way by train from Constance to Château d’Oex in May 1916.

For those who are unfamiliar with this period of the war, a quick summary may be helpful.

During World War I, Switzerland accepted 68,000 wounded British, French, and German prisoners for recuperation in its many mountain villages and resorts. To be eligible for transfer, wounded soldiers had to be sick or wounded to the point where they could no longer serve. Soldiers were housed in hotels and sanatoria in over 200 Swiss villages such as Davos, Murren, Château d’Oex, Leysin, Montana, Rossiniere, Rougemont and Les Diablerets. Internees included Germans, French, Belgians, British, Indians and Canadians.

The first trainload of British soldiers arrived in Château d’Oex on 30 May 1916.A reporter for the London Times accompanied the soldiers on their journey across Switzerland. The following excerpts are taken from a long article published on 31May. The article gives us a first-hand account of this extraordinary trip set against the backdrop of the terrible conditions of the trenches and the camps in Germany.

The Times - 31 May 1916 BERNE, May 30, 1 a.m. The first train bringing the eagerly-awaited British prisoners from Constance, 304 all told, including 32 officers, has just left Zurich, where it made its first prolonged halt on Swiss soil.

Montreux, May 30, 7 a.m. We reached Berne at 1 o'clock in the morning, and the reception there and at Fribourg, Lausanne, and Montreux was overwhelming.During the two hours stay at Bern, all the officers and men detrained and were entertained at the first of several breakfasts by the Swiss.

At Fribourg, which was passed at 3.30 a.m., another large crowd was wonderfully enthusiastic.

At Lausanne certainly, 10,000 people were in the station at 5 in the morning. The scene was indescribably moving, and none felt it more than our officers and men.

Long before we reached Montreux every compartment was overflowing with flowers, cigarettes, flags, chocolates, newspapers, magazines, and presents of every kind. On every platform was a mass of cheering people waving flags, handkerchiefs and hats and crying “Vive L ’Angleterre!” And answered by our men with British hurrahs and handshakes and shouts of “Vive La Suisse!” That is when they were not drinking coffee brought into the train by Red Cross ladies!

At Chateau d'Oex, which the first of our two trains reached at 10 o'clock, we received a village welcome. The whole population was ready to receive the tired men, who had had no sleep and had travelled off and on for three or four days, and who yet, though many were suffering badly from the effect of their wounds, were quietly happy. The British Minister, Sir Grant Duff, speaking first in French, paid an admirable tribute to the countless deeds of kindness shown by the Swiss to the members of all the belligerent nations. The speech was a fitting end to a very memorable day for all who took part in it. As for our men, friends and relations at home may feel assured that they could not have had a finer and more sympathetic reception, not even in England, and could not have come to a pleasanter resting place after their long and trying imprisonment and the fatigue and sufferings of the war.

Articles covering this period were kindly made available by The Times for theCentenary of this WW1 commemoration. The articles can be consulted at https://interned-in-switzerland-1916.ch/articles-from-the-times-1916/