Isle of Man visit August 2023

Last year, Rob and I travelled to the Isle of Man for the first time, to walk in the footsteps of Grandpa (Siegfried Schrotter). He was interned there in 1940 at Central Promenade Camp which was situated right on the seafront in Douglas. The Camp comprised a block of 34 requisitioned boarding houses, all of which were surrounded by an enclosure of barbed wire.

Staying at our seafront accommodation – The Empress Hotel – felt bitter sweet. We were lucky to be there on holiday, by choice and to enjoy the pretty and uninterrupted seaside views from our room, but then our thoughts soon turned to Grandpa. He’d had no say in coming to the island. It was forced upon him. Like thousands of other “enemy aliens” who were mostly German and Austrian Jews fleeing Nazi persecution, Grandpa was arrested and interned in a camp which was surrounded by barbed wire.

During our stay, we were able to pinpoint where Grandpa lived. House 13 is at 1 Castle Drive. Called Manningham House, it stood out, as it is the only brown brick building on Castle Drive. Situated just off the promenade, it has no direct sea view. It is opposite Castle Mona which used to be a hotel and was used by the Officers during the war. This building is now fenced off. Seeing the location for myself, I can confirm that the internee Dr Henry Mendel’s description of it in his diary is apt. He says “Houses 13-18 had the worst situation”. I can understand why.

We peered through the letterbox of the house. It looked old inside, uninhabited and derelict. The hallway, with its dusty floorboards and the old kitchen cupboards made it seem like time had stood still inside the house. If walls could talk we wondered what stories they’d be telling.

We took photographs of House 13, 1 Castle Drive, the seafront and the surrounding area. On the beach, directly in front of Central Promenade and in line with house 13, 1 Castle Drive, I wrote Grandpa’s name in the sand out of stones as a tribute to him. This was a special and poignant moment. It helped me connect with Grandpa and to link the past with the present.

My day at the Manx Museum, looking through the archives, was interesting, but sadly no new information came to light about life at Central Promenade Camp. However, I did get to view and photograph Grandpa’s name on a print out of data, extracted from an army volume recording details of enemy aliens who enlisted in the Pioneer Corps. The extract from the Excel database listed the Manx related entries only.

I was fortunate to meet up with Alan Franklin; past librarian of the Manx Museum for 23 years, now retired and author of “Involuntary Guests : Enemy Aliens and Political Detainees on the Isle of Man in World War Two”. This book was an invaluable source of information for my research into internment on the Isle of Man. It was a pleasure to meet him, to chat about Grandpa and Central Promenade Camp and to be able to thank him for writing the book. On reflection, our trip to the Isle of Man filled me with mixed emotions, but being able to walk in the footsteps of Grandpa was very special. It brought the research about internment to life and made it real. It was good to see these locations first hand and to photograph it all, to keep the memory alive. JR 2024