The names Guckenbiehl, Guggenbühl etc. in Great Britain

The names Guckenbiehl, Guggenbühl etc. in Great Britain

Carl-Ludwig Guckenbiehl left Erlenbach near Kaiserslautern for London. He had been born on May 4th, 1851 in Erlenbach, Palatinate, as the youngest of at least six sons of the herdsman Sebastian Guckenbiel and his wife Maria Margarete Rieder. But while his brothers became farmers or bricklayers, Carl-Ludwig became a tailor of fine ladies' clothes, like long riding skirts, for clients like Angela Burdett-Coutts, 1st Baroness Burdett-Coutts. He worked in Conduit Street, Mayfair, London, but travelled to and fro between London and Paris. In 1877 Carl-Ludwig married Martha Jane Williams born on August 14th, 1856 in West Ham, Essex. They had six daughters and four sons.

Carl Ludwig himself was never naturalized in Great Britain. Before World War 1 the family frequently visited their relatives in Germany, sent post cards from holidays in Lyme Regis to them, and photos from London studios show visitors from Germany.

But WW1 changed things, when close cousins had to fight each other, even if they were not king or emperor. While the youngest son of Carl-Ludwig, was given exemption on application of his employer, two others served in the army. One of them died in action; the other, who had been responsible for collecting up the remains of injured soldiers, developed melancholia on his return. As the descendants of his brother report, many children of Carl Ludwig changed their names after World War I to avoid the anti-German attitude of many British people after the war: two of the sons called themselves "Cooke", reminding the first syllable of the real name "Gukenbiehl" while some girls changed their name to "Beale", reminding the last syllable of "Gukenbiehl". Carl-Ludwig himself died in 1919, shortly after the war had ended.

Carl Ludwig Guckenbiehl at the age of about 26, at the time of his marriage

Carl Ludwig Guckenbiehl at the age of about 26, at the time of his marriage.

Notes

  1. The information about Carl-Ludwig Guckenbiehl and his family was collected by Marion K., a relative and friend who died much too early from pancreas cancer some years ago.

  2. While his descendants think that he came of a family of eight brothers and a sister, only five brothers can be found in the birth records.

  3. The street directories of the London Post Office Directories of 1899 and of 1910 list various tailors in Conduit St., including a habit maker and ladies' tailors. These directories do not include Carl-Ludwig's name, so it seems that he did not have his own shop.

  4. The street directories of the London Post Office Directories of 1899 and of 1910 list various tailors in Conduit St., including a habit maker and ladies' tailors. These directories do not include Carl-Ludwig's name, so it seems that he did not have his own shop.

  5. This was mentioned in the tribunal which decided on the exemption of William Lennard Gukenbiehl. A note on this, which even included the respective dialog between the chairman of the tribunal and the employer, was published in the "Cambridge Evening News" (Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England) of July 27th, 1917, p 3. (Digital version [03.09.2024]).