Joice NanKivell Loch
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Joice NanKivell Loch MBE (24 January 18878 October 1982) was an Australian author, journalist and humanitarian worker who worked with refugees in Poland, Greece and Romania after
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
and
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.Kontominas, B
"The great heroine Australia forgot"
''Sydney Morning Herald'', 8 July 2006


Biography

Joice Mary NanKivell was born at Farnham
sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...
plantation in Ingham in far north
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
in 1887. Her father acted as manager of the plantation for Fanning, NanKivell, a company run by the Fanning brothers and her wealthy grandfather, Thomas NanKivell. The family fortune was lost however when Kanaka labour was abolished and Joice and her parents walked off the property virtually penniless. Her father, George NanKivell, took a job as manager on a run-down property in Myrrhee, North East Victoria where Joice grew up. She had wanted to become a doctor but the family was unable to pay university fees and so she helped on the property until she was 26 years old. After the death of her brother during
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, her father abandoned the farm and Joice went to Melbourne where she worked for the Professor of Classics at the
University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
and reviewed books for the ''
Melbourne Herald ''The Herald'' was a morning – and later – evening broadsheet newspaper published in Melbourne, Australia, from 3 January 1840 to 5 October 1990. It later merged with its sister morning newspaper ''The Sun News-Pictorial'' to form the ''Her ...
''. She met her husband,
Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...
veteran Sydney Loch when she reviewed his fictionalised autobiography ''
The Straits Impregnable ''The Straits Impregnable'' is a fictionalised autobiography written and published during the First World War. The author Sydney Loch had served in the First A.I.F. in the Gallipoli Campaign and the original manuscript was written as an autobio ...
'', which told of the horrors of that campaign. The book had been banned by the military censor fearful that if the truth about the slaughter at Gallipoli were revealed young men would stop enlisting to fight in France. Joice and Sydney Loch went to Poland as aid workers for the Quaker Relief Movement with the aim of writing a book about the damage that
Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...
's troops had inflicted on Poland and were awarded medals by the
President of Poland The president of Poland ( ), officially the president of the Republic of Poland (), is the head of state of Poland. His or her prerogatives and duties are determined in the Constitution of Poland. The president jointly exercises the executive ...
for their humanitarian work.Loch, S (1957) Athos, the Holy Mountain, Lutterworth Press, London, P249 In 1922 they went to Greece as aid workers following the burning of
Smyrna Smyrna ( ; , or ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, Turkey. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna ...
. The Lochs worked in a Quaker-run
refugee camp A refugee camp is a temporary Human settlement, settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for in ...
on the outskirts of
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...
for two years before being given a peppercorn rent on a
Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...
tower by the sea in the refugee village of
Ouranoupoli Ouranoupoli (, formerly ''Ouranopolis'') is an ancient city and a modern village in Chalcidice, Greece. It is part of the municipality Aristotelis. Location The village of Ouranoupoli is situated on the coastline in the northwest part (the ver ...
, the last settlement before
Mount Athos Mount Athos (; ) is a mountain on the Athos peninsula in northeastern Greece directly on the Aegean Sea. It is an important center of Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox monasticism. The mountain and most of the Athos peninsula are governed ...
. To help the villagers, Loch purchased looms so that the women could work as rug weavers; she designed Byzantine rugs, one of which is now on display in the
Powerhouse Museum The Powerhouse Museum, formerly known as the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences (MAAS), is a collection of 4 museums in Sydney, owned by the Government of New South Wales. Powerhouse is a contemporary museum of applied arts and sciences, explori ...
in Sydney. She also acted as a medical orderly and held regular clinics for the villagers. For their work in Greece the couple were awarded medals by the
King of the Hellenes The Kingdom of Greece was ruled by the House of Wittelsbach from 1832 to 1862 and by the House of Glücksburg from 1863 to 1924 and, after being temporarily abolished in favor of the Second Hellenic Republic, again from 1935 to 1973, when it ...
.


''Operation Pied Piper''

During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Loch was awarded another two medals by the Governments of Romania and Poland for saving a thousand
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...
and
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children from the
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by leading a daring escape known as ''Operation Pied Piper'' from Romania where they were running a refugee centre for Poles who had escaped from the Nazis and the Russian invasion. Subsequently, the Lochs ran a refugee camp for Poles at
Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...
. In 1953 they returned to Greece and their tower home and re-established the Pyrgos rug industry in
Ouranoupoli Ouranoupoli (, formerly ''Ouranopolis'') is an ancient city and a modern village in Chalcidice, Greece. It is part of the municipality Aristotelis. Location The village of Ouranoupoli is situated on the coastline in the northwest part (the ver ...
s.


Marriage

Sydney Loch (1888 – 6 February 1955)De Vries, Susanna. ''Blue Ribbons Bitter Bread, the Story of Joice Loch, Australia's Most Decorated Woman''. 2000. Pirgos Press, Melbourne. was a
Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...
veteran and a humanitarian worker. He was born in London, raised in Scotland, and sailed to Australia in 1905, aged 17, working first as a jackaroo. He joined the Australian forces at the outbreak of the First World War and served in Gallipoli until being discharged for wounds and illness. He later became a journalist and writer. He and Joice NanKivell wed in 1919. They sailed for England and secured a contract to write a book on Ireland, which was published as ''Ireland in Travail''.


Other honours

In addition to the honours bestowed on her by Greece, Romania and Poland, she was also honoured by Serbia and her home country Australia, In 1972 on the recommendation of the Australian government she was appointed a
Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
for "international relations".It's an Honour
Retrieved 9 March 2014


Deaths

Sydney Loch died on 6 February 1955. Joice Loch died in her home in
Ouranoupoli Ouranoupoli (, formerly ''Ouranopolis'') is an ancient city and a modern village in Chalcidice, Greece. It is part of the municipality Aristotelis. Location The village of Ouranoupoli is situated on the coastline in the northwest part (the ver ...
on 8 October 1982, aged 95.


Selected bibliography


Fiction

* ''The Cobweb Ladder'' (1916), poetry and prose for children * ''The Solitary Pedestrian'' (1918) * ''Three Predatory Women'' (1925) * ''The Fourteen Thumbs of St Peter'' (1926) * ''Tales of Christophilos'' (1957) * ''Again Christopholus'' (1959) * ''Collected poems'' (1980)


Non-fiction

* ''Ireland in Travail'' (1922) (with Sydney Loch) * ''The River of a Hundred Ways; Life in the war-devastated areas of eastern Poland'' (1924) (with Sydney Loch) * ''A Life for the Balkans'' (1939), the life of Dr John House * ''Prosforion -- Rugs and Dies'' (1964) * ''A Fringe of Blue, an Autobiography'' (1968)


References


Sources

*Adelaide, Debra (1988) ''Australian women writers: a bibliographic guide'', London, Pandora


Further reading

* De Vries, Susanna, Blue Ribbons Bitter Bread: the Life of Joice NanKivell Loch'' (3rd ed., 2005)
Australian threads woven into Greek history, Neos Kosmos (Australian-Greek newspaper) 21 September 2012
{{DEFAULTSORT:Loch, Joice NanKivell 1887 births 1982 deaths Australian women writers Journalists from Melbourne People from Ingham, Queensland Academic staff of the University of Melbourne Australian Members of the Order of the British Empire Australian expatriates in Greece