 |
www.cameronians.org click here to print this page |
|
|
|
SOLDIER OF THE MONTH
Private David Cruickshank
1st Battalion The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)
 |
Private Cruickshank joined the regiment at the outbreak of World War One. When his battalion were engaged in heavy fighting in Le Cateau in September 1914, David found himself injured and behind enemy lines:
Luckily he had found himself in the home of Madame Baudhuin, a local woman, who took the young Cameronian in and decided, without hesitation or thought for her own safety, that he would stay in her house. Madame Baudhuin was no doubt compelled to help by the thought of her eldest son who was serving away from home with the French army. |
David and Aimee, 1919 |
After a few months recovering from his wounds in Madame Baudhuin’s house but unable to rejoin his regiment, David became anxious to go outside again. It was then he hit upon the idea of dressing as a woman in order to evade the attention of the German soldiers occupying Le Cateau. With the help of a young local girl Aimee, who taught him how to walk and dress like a woman, and his now fluent French David managed to pass rather convincingly for a young French woman; ‘Miss Louise.’ David was now able to enjoy walks outside with his young friend and even attracted the attention of the German soldiers, who instead of arresting the young soldier were actually keen to ask ‘Miss Louise’ out on a date.
David lived like this for two years and according to him:
“During these two years, some amusing adventures befell me. In the parish and the surrounding area German soldiers who met me in their comings and goings seemed to find me attractive by the way in which they looked at me. Of course I avoided their advances, although it was not always easy to escape their attention.”
However while ‘Miss Louise’ was flirting with the Germans a local woman known only as Madame D had taken a keen interest in him. Unbeknown to David she was a collaborator with the German army occupying Le Cateau. He continually rejected her advances until she angrily decided to seek revenge.
At midnight on the 10th of September 1916 a group of German soldiers arrived at the Baudhuin household armed with revolvers. They discovered David, who did not have time to escape to one of his usual hiding places in the house. He was arrested, along with Madame Baudhuin and her son Leon, and imprisoned.
The three accused stood trial on 16th October 1916 where Madame Baudhuin was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment and David was sentenced to death. However, upon hearing David’s sentence Madame Baudhuin pleaded passionately with the judges to rethink their decision announcing that:
“The cruel battlefield has already perhaps robbed me of one of my sons and it seemed to me that God had sent this British boy in his place.”Touched by her obvious affection for the boy in spite of the danger it which it had placed her, the court reduced his sentence to twenty years imprisonment.
David was sent to prison. For the next two years he endured dreadful conditions and was put to work making coffins for dead prisoners.
When peace finally came in 1918, David was liberated on the 2nd of December and he made his way back to Glasgow. However he had not forgotten his friend Aimee with whom he had fallen in love:“We had agreed that the marriage would take place as soon as the Military Authorities – with the War at an end – gave me back my freedom.”
As soon as he could, David returned to France where he and Aimee were married on the 12th of February 1919. David and Aimee remained in Le Cateau where they had a son, also called David. They then moved to Paris where they ran a bar, and had another son, George.
However due to the tightening up of foreign labour laws, the couple were forced to move to David’s home town of Glasgow and they were repatriated by the British Legion. The couple endured very hard times when they returned to Glasgow, due to the depression. Eventually they moved to Stroud in Gloucestershire where they worked for a mill making British Army tunics. After the death of Aimee in 1964, David returned to Glasgow for a few years before returning to Stroud to live with his family. He died in 1973, having never really recovered from the death of Aimee.
As for Madame Baudhuin, after her release from prison she returned to Le Cateau where she was awarded the Allied Subjects Medal from the French government. She was also invited to London in 1927 by The Daily Telegraph newspaper, where she was received by King George V and Queen Mary and awarded the OBE for her immeasurable courage in sheltering the young Cameronian soldier.
With thanks to the Cruickshank family for providing helpful information and a photograph of David and Aimee Cruickshank.
Text copyright of South Lanarkshire Council Museums Service.