Amidst the stories of hosting parties for diplomats, raising money for charity and opening dance schools in Germany and in Australia, Alice Meyer von Forell and her husband Hans were interned in wartime Australia as enemy aliens. I talked about Alice’s life for last year’s booked out PHA (Vic) event, ‘No Place for a Woman’ , but I’m still finding more explore in her journey.
Those who knew Alice in later life knew little of the difficult start she and Hans had had in Australia, first taken from their home in the middle of the night, then imprisoned and interned. After a few months Alice and Hans were released but had to live 100 miles from the coast (because they were still deemed a security risk). After a few months of this ‘freedom’ Hans was interned again. Alice has always struck me as a strong and determined woman and this shines through in her letters (held at the National Archives of Australia) as she advocated for her and her husband’s freedom from internment.
This February I will be reprising my talk on Alice for a PHA (Vic) event to be held in Ballarat at The Gold Museum. BOOKED OUT!
You can read more about Alice on the Hello Ballarat blog.
Alicia Cerreto 