First published in Great Britain in 2009 by Pen & Sword Military an imprint of Pen & Sword Books Ltd 47 Church Street Barnsley South Yorkshire S70 2AS Copyright © Anton Rippon 2009 ISBN 978 1 84884 132 1 eISBN 9781844685240 The right of Anton Rippon to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the Publisher in writing. Typeset in Ehrhardt by Phoenix Typesetting, Auldgirth, Dumfriesshire Printed and bound in England by MPG Pen & Sword Books Ltd incorporates the imprints of Pen & Sword Aviation, Pen & Sword Maritime, Pen & Sword Military, Wharncliffe Local History, Pen & Sword Select, Pen & Sword Military Classics and Leo Cooper. For a complete list of Pen & Sword titles please contact PEN & SWORD BOOKS LIMITED 47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS, England E-mail: enquiries@pen-and- sword.co.uk Website: www.pen-and-sword.co.uk Contents Preface Acknowledgements List of Plates Prologue 1 Fulfil This Goal 2 China Station 3 Dove of War 4 A Place in the Sun 5 Tsingtao Again 6 Fighting Talk 7 War Footing 8 Under Siege 9 Crash Landing 10 Mr McGarvin 11 American Journey 12 England 13 Welcome to Donington Hall 14 How Far is Derby? 15 Breakout 16 A Flame of Righteous Anger 17 Hero’s Return 18 Restless Feet 19 Incredible and Savage Beauty 20 Final Flight Epilogue Principal Sources The proud young naval officer: Gunther Plüschow in 1906. ( plüschow ) SMS Fürst Bismarck, the flagship on which Gunther Plüschow first served on the China Station. ( Author′s Collection ) A Little bit of Germany by the sea: Tsingtao pictured on the eve of the First World War. ( Bundesarchiv ) German officers horse racing at Tsingtao. Gunther Plüschow had to use the racecourse as a makeshift airfield. ( Bundesarchiv ) Japanese forces land at Laoshan Bay to the north of Tsingtao in September 1914. ( Author′s Collection ) Plüschow′s Rumpler Taube outside the walls of Haichow. ( Dr Ruth Bennett Morgan ) Plüschow presents the engine of the Taube to the local mandarin at Haichow. ( Dr Ruth Bennett Morgan ) A sad moment: Plüschow with his burning Taube. ( Dr Ruth Bennett Morgan ) Plüschow poses in the clothes he wore during his escape from London. ( Plüschow ) Mr McGarvin on board the Mongolia as it reaches the United States. ( Plüschow ) The liner Andania was used as a prison ship in the Solent. It was Gunther Plüschow′s first ′home′ when he arrived in England. ( Author′s Collection ) A newspaper artist′s impressions of life at Dorchester POW camp in 1915. ( Author′s Collection ) German prisoners attract much attention as they are marched through the streets of Castle Donington on their way to Donington Hall in 1915. ( Author′s Collection )