A Doctor at War
Page 21
This film will give you some idea of the conditions and the degradation to which the human mind can descend. You will see thousands of corpses lying about and the condition of the bodies. You will also see the well-fed condition of the SS who were stationed there. You will see people fishing for water with tins in a small tank. What you will not see is that the water was foul and there were dead bodies in it. That was all the water that was available to drink. You will see the dead; you will see the living; and you will actually see the dying. What the film cannot give you is the abominable smell, the filth and squalor of the whole place which stank to high heaven.
At the time when these trials were taking place in Lüneburg the same film was shown to a local audience of Germans. Apparently it was the source of some amusement. Many of them presumed it to be British propaganda.
Herford spent a frantic week in Belsen – probably the longest of his life – during which time his unit helped save the lives of thousands of Hitler’s victims, and ease the passing of countless others. The logistical problems were enormous, but within a few weeks the camps had been cleared, and the survivors requiring treatment transferred to military hospitals. Although 8 May 1945 was Victory in Europe day, Herford was scarcely aware of the German surrender, so involved was his unit in coping with the aftermath of the Belsen tragedy.
All that remained of Belsen was its name, which quickly passed into the language as synonymous with inhumanity and evil.
AFTERWORD
The end of war in Europe brought the end of Herford’s military ambitions. Fellow officers tried to persuade him that with his distinguished record he should continue to build on his achievements with a fulfilling career in the regular army. His bravery and sense of duty were unquestionable and his achievements had been richly rewarded with a row of medals; but he strongly felt that now war was over his medical training could best be used in service to the civilian public.
Like many servicemen anxious for release back to their wives and families Herford had a long wait for his demobilization. On 1 June his unit was moved to Goslar in the Harz mountains, where they became responsible for the provision of food and medical supplies to some 40,000 displaced persons and German wounded in an area 100 miles square. It was a curious time. The fight had completely gone out of the German people. Many of them assumed that Germany as a nation would never exist again. And despite the atrocities for which the Nazis were responsible, Herford remarked that neither he nor his men ever felt or displayed anger or animosity towards the people they were now helping. Such was the sense of relief that six years of battle were over, there was no room for triumphalism. On 17 August 1945, three days after the end of war in the Far East, Herford was promoted to Colonel Assistant Director Medical Services 5th British Infantry Division in Brunswick. He was gratified to have received the appointment, but it did not sway his resolve to leave. He applied for a Rockefeller Fellowship to study Occupational Hygiene at Harvard which he was granted on 5 October, but he had to wait until January for his final release from the military.
Happily married to Mary for over 40 years, he became the proud father of four daughters. In later life he retired to his beloved Cornwall. Mary died in 1985, and Colonel Herford in 2002. An obituary written by Claire Herford appeared in the British Medical Journal in September 2002, but none appeared in the major newspapers – a glaring omission which hopefully this book goes some way to redress.
Colonel Herford was a truly formidable man and in war and peace served selflessly as a soldier for justice.
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© 2013 Matthew Hall
A Doctor at War was first published in Great Britain 1995 by Images Publishing (Malvern) Ltd.
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Author’s Note: A Doctor at War is based on Martin Herford’s extensive diaries, correspondence and a draft typescript of his autobiography. Copyright is held by Martin Herford in the diaries and typescript, some sections of which are incorporated in the book.
Front Cover: RAMC medical transport moving forwards in North Africa. (© IWM E 13321)