"Wanders aimlessly about the house.” | Gunner Charles Hailstone
In this blogpost, I explore the life of one of the hundreds of First World War service patients who passed through the wards of Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum.
Born on the 5th of February 1886, Charles was the sixth of twelve children born to James and Susan Hailstone of Queen Street in Merthyr Dyfan.
The 1891 Census tells us that the Hailstone family lived at 9 Holme Street. James was employed as a ‘Labourer’, with Charles's eldest sister Louisa employed as a ‘Servant’ and his eldest brother James employed as an ‘Errand Boy’.
The following year, the Hailstone family was struggling. James had applied to the Cardiff Board of Guardians for outdoor relief due to an “injured foot.”
Outdoor relief provided payments for things such as food and clothing without the applicant having to enter the workhouse. It was given to the able-bodied poor to allow them to remain at home and seek work.
This wasn’t the first (or the last) time that the Hailstone family had applied to the Board of Guardians. In 1884, Susan Hailstone applied for outdoor relief as a result of being “deserted by her husband.” Her application included a request for money to pay for the funeral of their son Thomas.
In 1893, James applied to the Board of Guardians for outdoor relief due to him and his family being “destitute.” All three applications for relief were approved.
By 1901, the Hailstone family had moved to Tair-cross Farm in Llampha. The 1901 Census tells us that Susan was the head of the household. It seems that James wasn’t at the house during the time the census was taken. Charles and his brother were working on the family farm. Charles was a ‘shepherd’ and Edward was a ‘carer of horses on the farm.’
Charles and his youngest brother William, were members of the Ewenny Shooting Club. They also shot for the Fox & Hounds Shooting team. In January 1915, William was admitted to Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum. He died there in November of the same year. His story is one that I will cover in a later blogpost.
On the 12th of December 1915, Charles enlisted at Bridgend. At the time of his enlistment, Charles was living at his family home and working as a ‘Roadman’ - a man who repaired roads for Bridgend Urban District Council - which, up until then, was a reserved occupation. As a result of this, he was put into the Army reserves on the 12th of December 1915. In June 1916 Charles was mobilised as a Gunner and attached to the 116th Siege Battery with the Royal Garrison Artillery.
During the Third Battle of Aisne, Charles was one of 50,000 soldiers captured by the German Army over three days. Charles's prisoner-of-war records are not particularly detailed but they do tell us that he was captured at Pontavert on the 27th of May and that he was wounded on his “Breast/Left Arm & Left Leg.” During his time as a prisoner of war, Charles was in three camps: Dülmen, Münster I and Rennbahn. Following the Armistice on the 11th of November 1918, Charles was repatriated to Britain in January 1919.
When he returned to Britain, it was clear that his mental health was suffering. He was officially discharged at Dover on the 10th of February 1919. His reason for discharge was given as no longer fit for service due to suffering from “Exhaustion Psychosis” caused by war service. Exhaustion Psychosis was an early 20th-century term for what is now known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
“Sullen, morose, slow in answering questions. Very restless, wanders aimlessly about the house.”
Charles was admitted as a service patient to Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum (Angelton) on the 3rd of January 1921. His admission record tells us that this was his first (known) attack and had been insane for six months. His reason for admission was given as “General Paralysis of the Insane - 6 months.”
He was described as being “Sullen, morose, slow in answering questions. Very restless, wanders aimlessly about the house.” The only mention of his time in the military is a note written by Dr McGregor “He joined the army in 1915, was prisoner for 8 months.” Although it is not noted in his case notes, Charles’s mother, Susan died 6 months before his admission - this may have been a contributing factor to the decline of his mental health.
Below are extracts from his case file. You will notice gaps between the dates as during those times he is described as being the same or with no change.
4th January 1921: He is fairly nourished, hair brown, insides blue, pupils regular, unequal and do not react to light, tongue jerky, teeth fairly good. No apparent abnormality in the thorax or abdomen. Knee jerks are absent. There are scars on left leg and right leg.
He is restless, feebleminded, very dirty in his habits, confused and little can be got out of him in conversation, requires much attention. Has no idea of time or place.
13th January 1921: He is very demented and has to have everything done for him, habits defective.
27th January 1921: He is restless, won't stay in bed, very dirty in his habits, does not realise his position.
2nd March 1921: He is demented, noisy, restless, unable to do much for himself.
3rd April 1921: He is rapidly deteriorating is restless, noisy, dirty, and requires to have everything done for him. Declining and there is a tendency for bedsores.
16th April 1921: He has seizures on the 8th & 9th of April. He gradually got weaker and died at 12:15 this morning.
At 12:15 am on the 16th of April 1921, Charles died aged 36. His official cause of death was given as “General Paralysis of the Insane - over 9 months.”
By this time, the Hailstone family seemed to have amassed considerable wealth. This enabled them to pay for Charles (like his brother William) to be buried with his family at Ewenny Priory.
He was buried in the Hailstone family plot on the 20th of April 1921. Charles is also remembered at the War Memorial in Ewenny.
Sad yet human story brought to life. Thank you.
An all too common story in the period, I fear. Thank you for telling these peoples stories.