Lt. J. R. Anthony No. 1 Sqdn RFC

Rod_Filan · 25 March 2001, 10:22 AM

I anticipate a formite can confirm or elaborate on this information.

Lieut. J. R. (Jack) Anthony from Pwllheli, North Wales had been in France for seven months when, on 25 May 1917, in action against superior numbers, he was shot and forced to land behind the lines. It was Jasta 18 Ltn. Paul Strähle's 6th victory (claimed north of Wervicq) and a well documented photo exists of Strahl proudly standing with his prize, Nieup.17 A6678. As Lt. Anthony was wounded, a Ltn. Muller took him to his bed and called a doctor. Unfortunately he did not survive and died the next morning. Lt. Anthony's mother learned of this in a letter from a British POW - 2/Lt R. R. Macintosh RFC.

Remarkably another photo of A6678 was taken from a captured german airman and published in 'The Aeroplane' magazine. A6678 is clearly visible and the emulsion of the negative had been scribed with the name 'Tenbrailen' before the print was made.
So I'm thinking... I've always been under the impression german pilots were very gracious hosts to their captured counterparts. Took care of their own, sorta speak. Could it be possible that the Ltn. Muller was perhaps Max Muller? My cross-referencing with 'The Jasta Pilots' leads me to believe Jasta 28 and 18 were at Wasquahal and Halluin respectively. Other than Flanders in an area around Lille, where each of these locations is in relation to Tenbrailen is unknown to me, and at this time any reference to Max Muller is purely my overactive imagination.

The other point I would like to speculate on is the identity of the pilot who was in possession of the 2nd photo. Jasta 18 lost one pilot to capture and it would seem reasonable that to keep a photo of a british machine on your person would imply you had something to do with bringing it down. Any thought as to who this man was?

Additionally, Lt. Anthony had received a letter in early May from Lieut.General Sir Aylmer Hunter-Weston Commanding VIII Army Corp congratulating him on the brilliant performance he had witnessed. Does anyone have an idea what that "brilliant performance" could have been?

*Note: The above link may give you an error message. If that is the case; click on the URL in the location bar and hit 'enter'. There seems to be something screwy about geocities hyperlinks from this forum.

VBR
Rod

Rick · 25 March 2001, 11:52 AM

I suppose the date of capture of the Jasta 18 pilot is out of the question, so how about the date of publication of "The Aeroplane" with the photo in it??

Rick · 26 March 2001, 05:31 AM

Max Müller is a good bet. At the time (25May17) he was only an Offz.Stv. (acting Officer), but that shouldn't deter you. The Jasta 18 pilot POW is more of a mystery. The only one I can find AFTER 25May17 is Ltn.d.R. Hans Schultz, taken POW on 6Jun18. However, he didn't join Jasta 18 until 20Mar18, when Berthold essentially 'swapped' Jasta 15 and 18. Highly unlikely Schultz had anything to do with Anthony's capture/death.

Rick

Rick · 26 March 2001, 05:33 AM

Forgot to add, "Tenbrailen" is most likely 'Tenbrielen' - in Flanders, near, believe it or not, America!!

Rod_Filan · 26 March 2001, 01:21 PM

Rick,
Thanx for the information! I contacted the Anthony family and was informed that a letter from the editor of "The Aeroplane" dated 6 Mar 1918 was recieved by Lt. Anthony's mother. In the letter was explained the circumstances of how the photo was obtained and a copy of it. The letter was sent AFTER the photo was published but it is not known at this time when it was published. I am waiting for the contents of the letter but it is doubtful that it will contain anything relevant to help identify the captured german airman.

VBR
Rod

Rick · 26 March 2001, 01:43 PM

Well, not surprising, that let's Schultz off the hook. That only leaves about 1000 other Jasta pilot POW's, almost any one of whom could have been carrying around the photo (for what purpose is anyone's guess). A lot of the Jasta 18 guys went to other Jagdstaffeln when the Amerika Program kicked in, I suppose it could be one of them, and I further suppose he MIGHT have been involved in Anthony's downing, although only Strahle received credit. Lots of speculation here.

Rick

Rod_Filan · 26 March 2001, 03:50 PM

hehe. Only 1000?

Just to give you an idea of what this is all about; I informed the Anthony family that I would do my best to come up with any probables all-round because for eighty years they have been calling a DH2 airscrew "Uncle Jack's propeller" and wondering whether it was MVR (or at least LVR) that shot him down. They now know for certain that a 15 victory ace from Schorndorf was responsible for his demise and that maybe, just maybe, it was a young Bavarian locksmith who would go on to score 36 victories, receive the PLM and become the second most decorated WWI GAF pilot; that did what he could do to try and save his life.

In addition to the facts, it's a good feeling to give these people anything in the way of informed speculation so that they might pass onto their decendants something more than fiction. Your input will be most appreciated by them. Thanx again for your help Rick.

VBR
Rod

Rick · 26 March 2001, 05:19 PM

Ron,

Well, a Bavarian, 36 v/c's, PLM, sure sounds like Max Müller to me. The only fly in the ointment is that Max didn't score on 25May17, and as you know, Strahle is credited for getting Anthony. HOWEVER, that does not negate the possibility that Müller "helped" with the shoot down, a shared v/c so to speak, except the Germans didn't 'share'. So, it must have been felt at the time that Strahle was the aggressor and received the credit. As you noted, Jagdstaffeln 18 and 28 were both in 4th Armee at the time and quite possibly co-operating, although Jagdgruppen, per se, hadn't been formed yet. Makes for an interesting story. Rick