Angel Perez Martine – The Basque Refugee
Although not born in Sunderland we felt a Spanish Born Mackem – someone who literally made Ships in Sunderland had to be included. The following is taken from the information supplied by Gaizka Garamendi in Spain (thanks to Gerald Hoare of the BCA37 who arranged this) and a chapter from An Inspiring Example: The North East of England and the Spanish Civil War – Watson and Corcoran, 1996, thanks go to Don Watson for this.
Angel Perez-Martinez was born on 9th November 1924 to Ignacio and Fermina. When the Basque government made an international appeal to other countries to shelter refugee children. Mexico, France, Belgium and the Soviet Union readily did so, whilst in Britain the National Joint Committee for Spanish Relief (JCSR) managed to persuade the Home Office to admit 4,000 Basque children on the strict understanding that no public expenditure was to be involved. The expectation was that the children would remain in Britain for about three months, after which it was expected that it would be safe for the Children to return.
The children were to be accommodated in so called ‘colonies’ rather than being individually fostered as it was felt this would best ensure they preserved their Basque culture and national identity. Local organising committees, the Catholic church, the Society of Friends and the Salvation Army organised over 70 homes throughout the country. The twelve year old Angel Perez along with his brother Julio (13) and Sister Trinidad “Trini” (aged 8) were three of the Basque refugee children sailed for Southampton on 21st May 1937 aboard the SS Habana. On arrival at Southampton the children were taken to a camp at North Stoneham where an army of local volunteers had worked hard to set up the camp of large round tents in less than two weeks. Local businesses, churches and organisations such as the Boy Scouts and Red Cross donated food and other items to care for the children until they were later dispersed to various ‘colonies’ across the country. On 30th July 1937 Angel and Julio arrived at Newcastle railway station with eighteen other boys accompanied by a Spanish teacher, Carmen Gil, who had travelled with them from Spain.
On Saturday 31st July 1937 a picture appeared in the North Mail showing Angel and Julio with Commander C. F. Barnett, a Spanish-speaking refugee worker at Tynemouth. The group was met by the Mayor, John Grantham, and a delegation from the local JCSR led by Nell Badsey, secretary of the local Spanish Aid Committee who took them to their accommodation at 40 Percy Park, Tynemouth. Tommy Chilvers, a volunteer at the Guisborough colony records that the children were understandably terrified of planes; when one flew over Hutton Hall the children scattered and “it took over 24 hours to round them all back up.” The refugees at Tynemouth also experienced this, exacerbated by the Artillery displays at Tynemouth Castle. The Percy Park hostel was run by a management committee headed by the treasurer Nell Badsey. Donations to the Tynemouth colony from miners’ lodges provided early funds, the committee also worked with local support groups who organised jumble sales, raffles, street corner collections, concerts, socials and door to door collections. Like many colonies the refugees were assembled into a concert party that would raise funds by singing and demonstrating Spanish dance in support of Nell Badsey who would give talks.
By the Summer of 1938 three quarters of the 4,000 refugee children had been repatriated back to Spain. Angel and Julio were two of only four boys still staying at the Tynemouth Colony when it closed on 30th October 1938; both were sent to the colony at Brampton in Cumbria. Carmen Gill remained in North Shields and eventually married Eric Walker who had been a volunteer at the Tynemouth colony.
Julio Perez returned to Spain in December 1939, followed by Trini in January 1940, but Angel remained in Britain and was formally adopted by William and Nell Badsey, changing his name to William Angel Badsey, gaining naturalisation in September 1947. Angel joined the National Union of General and Municipal Workers (NUGMW) in 1947 and worked in the Shipyards in Sunderland. In an interview conducted for Inspiring Example Angel told Don Watson about his time working in the Sunderland shipyards, that he had been a shop steward, and that he didn’t recall any resentment about his nationality when he was in North Shields or Sunderland.
Compiled by Tony Fox
Solidarity Park 