Theodore William John Schurch
Schurch in British custody (11 May 1945)
Born(1918-05-05)5 May 1918
Hammersmith, London, England
Died4 January 1946(1946-01-04) (aged 27)
Pentonville Prison, London, England
Cause of deathExecution by hanging
Criminal statusExecuted
Conviction(s)Treachery (8 counts)
Desertion with intent to join the enemy
Criminal penaltyDeath
Military career
Allegiance United Kingdom
 Nazi Germany
 Kingdom of Italy
Service/branch British Army
Years of service1936–1942
RankPrivate
UnitRoyal Army Service Corps
Battles/warsSecond World War

Theodore William John Schurch (5 May 1918 – 4 January 1946) was a British soldier who was executed under the Treachery Act 1940 after the end of the Second World War. He was the last person to be executed in Britain for an offence other than murder.

Early life

Schurch was born in Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital, Hammersmith, London, while his Swiss father was living in Britain. During his late teens, Schurch was a member of the British Union of Fascists.[1]

In 1936, he enlisted in the British Army as a Royal Army Service Corps driver.[2]

Double agent

In June 1942, Schurch was captured by Axis forces at Tobruk during the North African campaign. Soon afterwards, he began working for both Italian and German intelligence. He often posed as a prisoner of war to gain the trust of Allied prisoners, including Lieutenant Colonel Sir David Stirling, initiator of the Special Air Service.[2]

Trial and execution

Schurch was arrested in Rome in March 1945, and charged with nine counts of treachery and one count of desertion. He was tried by court martial at the Duke of York's Headquarters in Chelsea, London, in September 1945, Major Melford Stevenson presiding. He was defended by Alexander Brands KC. During his court-martial, Schurch demanded to know the religion of each judge. After learning that one of the officers was Jewish, he asked for him to be removed. The request was granted after Schurch's lawyer said "The question of fascism looms large in the accused's mind, there would be an inevitable clash between the accused and the major."[3] Schurch was nevertheless found guilty of all counts and received the death sentence mandated under law.[4]

Schurch was hanged on 4 January 1946 at HM Prison Pentonville, at the age of 27.[5] His execution was carried out by Albert Pierrepoint, who had hanged William Joyce the previous day for treason.[2]

Schurch was the only British soldier executed for treachery committed during the war.[2] However, Duncan Scott-Ford, a merchant seaman, and civilians George Johnson Armstrong and Oswald John Job were also hanged for treachery, and New Zealand-born Captain Patrick Stanley Vaughan Heenan of the British Indian Army was convicted of espionage, and shot by a guard. Harold Cole, a British POW who betrayed members of the French Resistance, was shot dead by the French police in January 1946, a month after he escaped from custody.

Civilians William Joyce and John Amery were executed for high treason, a different offence.

References

  1. ↑ Graham Macklin (2007). Very deeply dyed in black: Sir Oswald Mosley and the resurrection of British fascism after 1945. International Library of Political Studies. Vol. 14. I.B.Tauris. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-84511-284-4.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Macintyre, Ben (2016). Rogue Warriors. New York: Crown Publishing Group. pp. 177–178, 189–190, 203–204, 350–351. ISBN 9781101904169.
  3. ↑ "Jewish Officer Removed from British Military Court at Request of Pro-nazi Defendant". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  4. ↑ "News in Brief." Times, London, England, 3 January 1946: 4. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 20 March. 2015.
  5. ↑ "Soldier Executed." Times, London, England, 5 January 1946: 2. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 20 March. 2015.

Further reading

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