Changi Quilts of World War II

by Patricia L. Cummings

Directly following the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese Army in 1942, civilians from Australia, England, Canada, the Netherlands, and elsewhere were rounded up and imprisoned. In all, about 130,000 people were kept in captivity. Figures vary as to the number of people who died of malnutrition, overwork, beri beri, and brutally harsh treatment by their captors.

They were forced to work, building a railroad, and were beaten for non-compliance, or for almost any reason at all. In an attempt to let family members know if they were still alive, and/or their whereabouts, Mrs. Ethel Mulvaney, a native of Canada, came up with the brainstorm of making quilts after seeing children being taught to make hexagon mosaic patchwork, and embroider their initials on those patches.

Embroidery of Names Verifies Presence

The women were happy enough to pass the time making quilt blocks. They were given white squares of recycled cloth like flour bags or bed sheets. Chain Stitch embroidered in the color red was added to the edge of each quilt square.

Hundreds of prisoners participated in this effort and each was asked to embroider their own name, and to add some personal touch to the block. One source states that more than 400 women participated in this effort. Another sources lists three quilts as having been created, each of which features 66 blocks.

One block made by E.M. Muir, (her name embroidered in cream thread), has three flowers created with outline stitch embroidery, in red. Please click on the link to view an image of the block. Press the "back" button on your browser, to return here.

Signature Quilts End Up With The Red Cross

All of the quilts were created within the first six months of the prisoners' captivity in 1942. They were displayed in a crafts exhibit by prisoners. The Changi Guardian, a prison newspaper put together by those poor souls kept at Changi, said this:

Among the exhibits sent over by the women were three quilts made up of individual patches combined together. Each patch provided a mirror of wit and humour, tragedy and pathos and the indomitable spirit existing in the women's camp.

Indeed, the quilts presented many clues as to the national identity and patriotism of the quilters, and other obscure messages that were not readily fathomable by the enemy.

A strategically-calculating woman, Mrs. Mulvaney secured the permission of the Japanese Commander to send the finished quilts for use by the wounded Japanese soldiers in hospitals. None of the quilts appear to have been "used." Ostensibly, they were destined to be given to the Japanese, British, and Australian Red Cross. Ever practical, the quiltmakers stipulated that dry cleaning only should be used.

The three quilts found their way into the hands of a medical officer from Australia. One signature quilt is currently displayed by the British Red Cross in Surrey, UK. The two other quilts are owned by the Australian War Memorial Museum, in Canberra.

The Australian War Memorial Site

The Australian government site provides much information about Singapore, the conditions at the Changi Prison, and the making of the quilts themselves. I will not repeat all of those interesting tidbits here. On that site, one will find an account of the subject matter allowed on the surface of the quilts, and how the word, "prison," was forbidden and had to be removed by two embroiderers.

In addition, Australian War Memorial site provides a recollection of how one of the quilts came to be on permanent loan to the museum. I encourage you to visit the site to read more about this extraordinary and fascinating wartime effort.

To see close-up views, click on individual quilt blocks on this page:
http://www.awm.gov.au/encyclopedia/quilt/detail.htm

Notes: Since writing this brief summary, I have read the magazine cover article "A Patchwork of Internment," by Bernice Archer that was published in History Today, July 1997, 11-18. At the time, Ms. Archer was a research student at the University of Essex.

The author compares the making of the quilt squares to that of "Album" quilt-making in "early America." One should not that album quilts, as we most often think of them, were not made until mid-19th century/1850s. Colonial quilts made in America were wholecloth affairs, not selvaged scrap concoctions, as is commonly-believed.

Usually, "early" quilts in America came with the colonists, or were "imported" later. The author's lack of being more specific in explaining what is meant by the term "early" American quilts, or quiltmaking traditions in America, could lead to confusion, and that is why I mention the point, here.

One can access a copy of Archer's article through a public library, as I did. The file is copyright protected, and while it can be read online, if one has a password, the pdf link cannot be promulgated to unauthorized parties. The color quilt photos, descriptions of prisoner efforts, and its clarity of writing make the article worth attempting to locate, if you are interested in learning more about the details of the Changi quilts.