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Noel Carritt
Noel injured by shrapnel during the Spanish Civil War
Born	1910 Heath Barrows, Boars Hill, Oxfordshire, England
Died	1992
Nationality	British
Education	Zoology degree from Oriel College (Oxford University)
Occupation(s)	Biology teacher, engineer, trade union organiser
Organization	Founding member of the October Club (Oxford University)
Known for	Communist revolutionary, anti-fascist, member of the International Brigades
Political party	Communist Party of Great Britain
Partner	Liesel Carritt
Children	Colin (son) Sally (daughter)
Parents	Edgar Frederick Carritt (father) Winfred Carritt (mother)
Relatives	Anthony Carritt (brother) Michael Carritt (brother) Bill Carritt (brother) Brian Carritt (brother)

Noel Carritt (1910-1992) was a British communist activist, teacher, and volunteer for the International Brigades. Noel was born into the famous Carritt family, notable for their Marxist and anti-fascist politics which heavily influenced Noel. As a young man he saved German Jewish activist Liesel Carritt from being deported to Nazi Germany by agreeing with her to enter into a marriage of convenience.

In 1936 Noel, his wife Liesel, and his brother Anthony, all joined the International Brigades and took part in battles against fascist forces led by Francisco Franco and backed by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. Noel was wounded during the war, and his brother Anthony was killed while serving as an ambulance driver. During the Second World War Noel became an engineer with Fairey Aviation, helping to create military aircrafts.

Childhood and background

Noel was born in Heath Barrows, Boars Hill, into the famous Oxfordshire based Carritt family, notable for the family's large number of Marxist revolutionaries and academics. Noel was born one of seven children, the majority of which became lifelong anti-fascist and socialist activists.

The Carritt family's home in Boars Hill became famous as a hub for left-wing intellectual debate, attracting a wide number of people including communist trade union leader Abraham Lazarus, multiple Labour Party politicians including Dick Crossman, the novelist Iris Murdoch, and numerous poets including WH Auden and Stephen Spender. The Carritt family were also friends with another family of left-wing activists which lived close to them called the Thompsons, whose famous members included the historian E. P. Thompson and his brother Frank Thompson. The children of both families attended Dragon School together.

Early adult life

Noel Carritt was born in 1910 and attended school in Sedbergh, Cumbria.

In 1928 Noel was accepted into the University of Oxford and studied at Oriel College to study Zoology. During this time Noel became a founding member of the October Club, Oxford University's first ever communist society.

During the early 1930s, Noel and the rest of the Carritt family welcomed and financially supported Jewish refugees arriving in Oxford following the rise of Nazi Germany. Noel and some acquaintances of his (W. H. Auden and Julian Murray) agreed to enter into marriage of conveniences to stop Jewish refugees from being forcefully deported back to Nazi Germany. Noel married a German refugee and communist activist called Liesel, whose father was the former editor of Weimar Germany's main liberal newspaper the Frankfurter Zeitung. Although the marriage begun as a method to stop Liesel being deported to Germany, the couple appears to have had an affectionate relationship and bonded through their mutual communist political beliefs. After marriage, Noel and Liesel left Oxford and moved to Sheffield where Noel began working as a teacher.

Spanish Civil War

In 1936 the Spanish military under the leadership of fascist leader Francisco Franco, and with support from Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, started a war known as the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) in an attempt to overthrow the Spanish republican government. To help fight Franco, the International Brigades were created to recruit anti-fascist volunteers from across the world to fight against fascism and help defend the Spanish republican government.

In December 1936 Noel left his teaching job without notice to join the International Brigades and caught a train to London. While in Victoria station, Noel wrote a message to his parents written on the back of a cheque that explained his decision to travel to Spain to join the International Brigades.

Noel's wife Liesel and Noel's brother Anthony Carritt, also decided to join the International Brigades, both of whom took part in battles against fascist forces during the war.

In February 1937, Noel joined the rest of the British Battalion and fought in the Battle of Jarama, where fascist forces which were far better armed and organised were able to inflict massive casualties upon anti-fascist forces. Of the 500 British volunteers present at the battle, only 160 survived. During the battle he was injured in the hand by shrapnel, before quickly recovering and joining the republican offensive during the Battle of Brunete where his brother Anthony was serving as an ambulance driver. During this time, Noel followed in his brother's footsteps and also became an ambulance driver. During the battle, Noel's vehicle was hit by fascist aircrafts towed to a republican medical center in Escorial. During this time Noel was informed that Anthony had gone missing. Noel spent days searching for his brother, before accepting that Anthony had been killed by fascist forces. Anthony's body was never found.

After the Battle of Brunete, Noel was moved to Huete where British medical volunteers had established themselves in an old monastery. The administrator of these volunteers happened to be a man called Peter Harrisson who had been Noel's friend when they both lived in Boars Hill. Noel was appointed the role of political commissar in addition to his driving duties. Noel used his position as a political commissar to organise 'singsongs' and entertainment for anti-fascist troops. Noel also served briefly as an assistant anaesthetist under a Dr Jolly, but soon found that Noel he was not suited for this work.

Return to England

The longer Noel stayed in Spain following his brother's death, the greater the emotional strain on his parents. To alleviate their worries, Noel applied for leave and in November 1937 he returned to England where he became a trade union organiser for the Trades Union Congress. While visiting a clothing factory in the East End of London, Noel met a seamstress called Florence Simkins who was working as a shop steward for the Tailor and Garment Workers' Union. Noel and his wife Liesel mutually decided to divorce in 1941, before Noel married Florence later that same year. The couple had two children called Sally and Colin.

Second World War

In 1939 following the outbreak of the Second World War, Noel attempted to join the Royal Navy. However, many anti-fascist veterans of the Spanish Civil War were denied roles in the military by the British government and treated with suspicion, leading to authorities denying Noel's application to join the Royal Navy.

Noel then contributed to the British war effort during WWII, Noel became an engineer with Fairey Aviation, helping to create military aircrafts.

Later life, death, and legacy

After WWII, Noel became the Head of Biology at Dr Challoner's Grammar School in Amersham, Buckinghamshire. He worked until retiring in 1981.

Noel Carritt died in 1992, passing away in Checkendon, Reading, Berkshire.

Archival evidence concerning Noel Carritt is kept by the Marx Memorial Library.

Noel's son Collin Carritt went onto lead the campaign to create the first ever memorial to the International Brigades ever built in Oxford. The end result of this campaign was the erection in 2017 of the Oxford Spanish Civil War memorial.

1. Baxell, Richard (30 June 2015). "Oxfordshire symposium on the Spanish Civil War". Richard Bazell. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
2. ^ Meddick, Simon; Payne, Liz; Katz, Phil (2020). Red Lives: Communists and the Struggle for Socialism. United Kingdom: Manifesto Press Cooperative Limited. p. 28. ISBN 978-1-907464-45-4.
3. Farman, Chris; Rose, Valery; Woolley, Liz (2015). No Other Way: Oxfordshire and the Spanish Civil War 1936-39. UK: Oxford International Brigade Memorial Committee. p. 55. ISBN 9781 910448 052.
4. Meddick, Simon; Payne, Liz; Katz, Phil (2020). Red Lives: Communists and the Struggle for Socialism. United Kingdom: Manifesto Press Cooperative Limited. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-907464-45-4.
5. Farman, Chris; Rose, Valery; Woolley, Liz (2015). No Other Way: Oxfordshire and the Spanish Civil War 1936-39. UK: Oxford International Brigade Memorial Committee. pp. 55–56. ISBN 9781 910448 052.
6. ^ Meddick, Simon; Payne, Liz; Katz, Phil (2020). Red Lives: Communists and the Struggle for Socialism. United Kingdom: Manifesto Press Cooperative Limited. p. 30. ISBN 978-1-907464-45-4.
7. ^ Farman, Chris; Rose, Valery; Woolley, Liz (2015). No Other Way: Oxfordshire and the Spanish Civil War 1936-39. United Kingdom: Oxford International Brigade Memorial Committee. p. 57. ISBN 9781 910448 052.
8. Farman, Chris; Rose, Valery; Woolley, Liz (2015). No Other Way: Oxfordshire and the Spanish Civil War 1936-39. United Kingdom: Oxford International Brigade Memorial Committee. pp. 57–58. ISBN 9781 910448 052.
9. ^ Farman, Chris; Rose, Valery; Woolley, Liz (2015). No Other Way: Oxfordshire and the Spanish Civil War 1936-39. United Kingdom: Oxford International Brigade Memorial Committee. p. 58. ISBN 9781 910448 052.
10. Meddick, Simon; Payne, Liz; Katz, Phil (2020). Red Lives: Communists and the Struggle for Socialism. United Kingdom: Manifesto Press Cooperative Limited. p. 28. ISBN 978-1-907464-45-4.
11. ^ Meddick, Simon; Payne, Liz; Katz, Phil (2020). Red Lives: Communists and the Struggle for Socialism. United Kingdom: Manifesto Press Cooperative Limited. p. 31. ISBN 978-1-907464-45-4.
12. "First Person: Honouring the fight against fascism". Oxford Mail. 18 February 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
13. Farman, Chris; Rose, Valery; Woolley, Liz (2015). No Other Way: Oxfordshire and the Spanish Civil War 1936-39. United Kingdom: Oxford International Brigade Memorial Committee. pp. 58–59. ISBN 9781 910448 052.
14. ^ Farman, Chris; Rose, Valery; Woolley, Liz (2015). No Other Way: Oxfordshire and the Spanish Civil War 1936-39. United Kingdom: Oxford International Brigade Memorial Committee. p. 59. ISBN 9781 910448 052.
15. "Noel Carritt". Marx Memorial Library. Retrieved 13 November 2022.