Sanctuary family

The following source list was originally available only on paper in one of the West Yorkshire Archive Service offices. It may have been compiled many years ago and could be out of date. It was designed to act as a signpost to records of interest on a particular historical subject, but may relate only to one West Yorkshire district, or be an incomplete list of sources available.

The Sanctuary family papers WYB8/2 (WYAS: Bradford)

The Sanctuary family papers are part of the Sanctuary and Hyde family papers held at WYAS Bradford (reference WYB8) and are an important source for conscientious objection during the First World War. The collection, which includes an autograph book and photographs, also highlights the links between sections of the Independent Labour Party which was formed in Bradford in the 1890s, and conscientious objection.

Around 16,000 men were recorded as conscientious objectors after 1916 when conscription was introduced. The issue of conscription was seen as an infringement of civil liberties by groups such as the Independent Labour Party and the No Conscription Fellowship and they endeavoured to support those who refused to take up arms. Pacifist groups including the Quakers also played a large role in conscientious objection. The No Conscription Fellowship was a new organisation set up in 1915 by a mixture of Quakers and Independent Labour Party supporters to campaign against the introduction of compulsory military service in Britain. The prominent Yorkshire politician Philip Snowden was just one of the public figures who supported the Fellowship.

While many conscientious objectors took up non-combatant roles such as stretcher-bearers some refused absolutely to be involved with the war. Such conscientious objectors could be treated harshly; many went to prison at least once and absolutists were locked up for the duration of the First World War. Conscientious objectors in the army were sometimes sentenced to death if they refused to fight although in many cases the death sentence was commuted to 10 years penal servitude. In addition, conscientious objectors were disenfranchised for five years after the war.

The autograph book owned by Norman Sanctuary (WYB8/2/1) contains over one hundred messages from conscientious objectors who were being held at Dartmoor Convict Prison (also known as the Princetown Work Centre). The men who signed Sanctuary’s book came from all over the United Kingdom and many of the messages list the various prisons and camps that the conscientious objector had been sent to before ending up at Dartmoor. In some cases, men had been imprisoned in seven places including Dartmoor and Leeds Prison, Wormwood Scrubs, Cardiff Prison, and Parkhurst are just a few of the prisons named. Little wonder that W Pope of Cheltenham asks ‘where next?’ in his autograph book message.

Conditions in prisons such as Wormwood Scrubs could be harsh for the conscientious objectors; some died in prison and many suffered from mental and physical illnesses. Conditions within Dartmoor Convict Prison, however, were relatively humane as cell doors were not locked, food was sufficient, a library and gymnasium were available and concerts were arranged. The perceived ‘comfort’ of the prisoners at Dartmoor aroused anger in some civilians and the press. Together with conscientious objectors, groups like the Independent Labour Party and the No Conscription Fellowship were also stigmatised by some civilians and sections of the press, often being derided as cowards. Within the collection there are two cartoons contrasting life for a conscientious objector in a prison against life at Dartmoor.

Quotations from literary and political figures abound in the autograph book, including those from Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Tom Payne, Carlyle, Burns and Kier Hardie. It also contains a few cartoons drawn by the prisoners which reveal some of the humour that existed amongst the men. In fact, it is hard not to sense the comradeship between the men whose consciences forbade them to fight which emanates from the autograph book. Many of the men signing the autograph book were members of the Independent Labour Party and the No Conscription Fellowship and therefore shared the same political and moral views.

The group photographs in the collection (reference WYB8/2/2) also highlight the fellowship that existed between the men at Dartmoor. One photograph shows the Independent Labour Party Dartmoor Prison Branch in 1917 with hundreds of members on the moor. Another shows the Bradford and District No Conscription Fellowship at Dartmoor meeting in 1917. Other photographs show Tom Mann, the noted trade unionist and sometime secretary of the Independent Labour Party. Many of the people in the photographs lost their liberty because of their moral outlook and many of the people who supported them suffered as well; some politicians associated with the anti-war sentiments of the No Conscription Fellowship and the conscientious objectors lost their parliamentary seats in the 1918 general election, including Philip Snowden.