Service Life:

Campaigns:

• The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.

Although many perished in times of national conflict and in the service of their country, many more survived including those interned as Prisoners of War. Stories of those who did survive are included as part of this site, especially those with high gallantry awards, those included against an external rolls of honour and those who had a distinguished career in wartime and military leaderhip.

Detail :

Served during the Great War in the Royal Irish Rifles and as part of the Poona Division. Reference is found of Major Dunn serving in Turkey as a Prisoner of War. The full version of the following extract can be found on Pietre Stones credited to Bro. A. R. Hewitt and is part of the Transactions of the Quatuor Coronati Lodge, published 1964.

"One well-recorded case of Masonic activity amongst prisoners of war in Turkey during the First World War is that of a "Lodge of Instruction", named Cappadocia, conducted by brethren imprisoned in Yozgat. The inaugural meeting was held on the 14th February, 1918, with Bro. Major E. G. Dunn as Master. By-laws were approved and a nominal roll prepared, which does not seem to have survived, but it would appear that there were 14 original members. It was later declared that "all newly arriving Freemasons were ipso fact members of the Lodge". It met on alternate Fridays, first in the "Chapel" and later in a store-room, until the 13th September, 1918. At these meetings, of which there were 12, the opening and closing ceremonies in the three degrees, as well as the initiation, were rehearsed or addresses on Freemasonry were delivered. Working tools and other items were made by the brethren. Collars of canvas were fashioned and covered with blue paper, each with the appropriate badge of office cut tins. Handkerchiefs, trimmed with such ribbon as was available from the local bazaar, were worn as aprons. Minutes were kept and have survived, having been presented to the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2, by Bro. Durm. (12) Benevolence was not forgotten, for sums of money were collected and passed to the Camp Chaplain for the benefit of the many starving Armenian women and children in the locality.

It would appear from an introductory note to the Minutes by Bro. Dunn that "towards the end of 1917 a Petition was sent to Grand Lodge for a temporary Charter as a special case in view of the peculiar circumstances we were placed in. This, however, could not be granted, so we had to be content with our Lodge of Instruction".

The minutes of the last meeting, held on the 13th September, 1918, record that "Bro. Major Dunn expressed
the sympathies of the Lodge on the recapture of Bro. Lieut. Sheridan, and on behalf of the Lodge bid God-speed to Bro. Lieut. O'Donoghue. Bro. Capt. Sweet seconded Bro. Major Dunn's proposals and suggested that a note of sympathy be sent to Bro. Lieut. Sheridan". The natural desire for freedom was obviously in many hearts, for Bro. Dunn has added a postscript to the minute book. He wrote: "Here the records end abruptly, for it was just after this final meeting that some 25 officers escaped. They scattered in small parties, but all excepting eight . . . were recaptured. The inevitable result was our confinement to quarters and no further opportunity for meeting occurred before we left Yozgad for repatriation."

The minutes of the Cappadocia Lodge of Instruction reveal the existence of two others in Turkey. On the 30th August it was recorded that hearty greetings were received from the Lodge of Instruction at Aflum Karakisa. Again, on the 13th September it was reported that a "Lodge" called Mesopotamia, of which there were no less than 60 founders, had been formed at what appears to be "Busia", but the writing is not clear. Apart from these bare references, no information concerning these two "Lodges" has come to light."

The Edinburgh Gazette shows that he was still serving in its publication of 10th February, 1922.
"Major Ernest. George Dunn, D.S.O., The Royal Ulster Rifles."

Masonic :

Ernest was a Captain of the Royal Irish Rifles located at Bombay in 1905 at the time of his initiation. He further joined McMahon Lodge No. 3262 in 1909 at Quetta and the Lodge of Antiquity, No. 2 in 1919.

Source :

The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:

• The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
• The (UK) National Archives
• Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
• ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry

Additional Source:

• Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
• Researcher : Bruce Littley