Genealogy Chat

Can anyone tell me how I would find out information about my late Grandfather James Edward Jamieson? The family story is that his ship was torpedoed somewhere off the coast of Norway and he was captured by the Germans and spent the next 3 or 4 years in a POW camp in Germany. I have no idea what the name of the ship was or where he was held as a POW. Very scanty information but has anyone got some info to help me track his records down? Granddad was typical of his generation and he never spoke about his service during the war.

Thanks in advance

Records arent available online to view . next of kin can apply for them at c£30 but they take many months to be supplied by mail

Army Personnel Centre
HQ Secretariat
Historical Disclosures
Mail Point 400
Kentigern House
65 Brown Street
Glasgow
G2 8EX

There are two references to J. E. Jamieson on FMP prisoner of war records but they don't give much detail:-

Prisoners of War 1939-1945 - British Navy & Air Force Officers


First Name(s):J. E.

Last Name:Jamieson

Rank:Able Seaman

Section:Merchant Navy : Officers, Ratings & Foreign Seamen

Camp No:Mil. N.

POW No:25470

Rank Abbrev.:A.B.

Regt or Corps:Merchant Navy : Officers, Ratings & Foreign Seamen

Camp Type:Marlag und Milag Nord (Milag)

Name of Ship:Thistlebrae

and

Prisoners of War 1939-1945 - British Army held in German territories


First Name(s):J. E.

Last Name:Jamieson

Rank:Gunner

Camp No.:344

PoW No.:13933

Soldier No.:945797

Record Office:Royal Artillery (Field) Record Office, Foots Cray, Sidcup, Kent

Camp Type:STALAG

Camp Location:Lamsdorf

Regiment:Royal Artillery

No idea if either are related to you though

Acording to the link below the ship Thistlebrae was captured/seized by the Germans in 1940

The German steamship Inster, formerly the British Thistlebrae, seized by the Germans and renamed, was bombed by British aircraft and sank off Laboe.

http://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?147860

Roy

He may have completed a POW questionnaire. These are held at the National Archives - not online, so you would have to go there or get someone to go for you.

Thanks again to everyone that has helped.

If nothing else it's taught me not to take family stories at face value. So much for a torpedoed ship!

Thanks

Steve

To close this out?

At Trondheim, steamer THISTLEBRAE (4747grt) in drydock for a 4 April collision at Trondheim, was seized by German forces, renamed ALTKIRCH for German service, and later renamed INSTER. Her thirty three man crew was made prisoners of war.

Most of the crew ended up at the Marlag und Milag Nord German prisoner-of-war camp complex for men of the British Merchant Navy and Royal Navy. It was located around the village of Westertimke, about 30 km (19 mi) north-east of Bremen, though in some sources the camp's location is given as Tarmstedt, a larger village about 4 km (2.5 mi) to the west

So my Grandfather James Edward Jamieson was taken POW of April 9th 1940 and spent the rest of the war in Germany.

Thanks to everyone who helped.

Steve