Francis Browne

Francis Patrick Mary Browne , SJ , MC (born January 3, 1880 in Cork ; † July 7, 1960 in Dublin ) was an Irish Jesuit and military chaplain who was best known for his photographic work . As an ambitious amateur photographer, Browne carried his camera with him on all missions and trips, he succeeded in taking important photographs of historical events such as the maiden voyage of the Titanic or the battles of the First World War .

childhood

Francis Browne was born on July 3, 1880, in Buxton House, Cork , Ireland, the youngest of eight children. The mother died of puerperal fever eight days after Browne was born , his father died in a swimming accident in 1889. The orphan was then raised and supported by his uncle Robert Browne, then Bishop of Cloyne .

School and education

Browne attended various Christian schools in Cork and Dublin and graduated from school in 1897. After finishing school, Browne went on a trip to Europe, for which he received his first camera from his uncle . The uncle was inspired by the poem "Ars Photographica" by Pope Leo Leo XIII , in which photography is described as a separate art form.

After the end of the trip, Browne joined the Jesuits and spent two years in the novitiate of St. Stanislaus College, Tullabeg. He then attended the Royal University in Dublin, where he was a classmate of James Joyce . This immortalized him as the "Jesuit Mr. Browne" in the novel Finnegans Wake . In 1902 Browne passed his exams and traveled to Chieri, near Turin , to study philosophy . In 1906 he returned to Dublin to teach at Belvedere College.

In 1909 he visited Rome with his uncle and brother , where they had a private audience with Pope Pius X in the Vatican . The Pope allowed Browne to take a picture of him.

From 1911 Browne studied theology at the Milltown Institute of Theology and Philosophy in Dublin, which he graduated in 1916.

On board the Titanic

The Titanic in the port of Southampton on April 10, 1912

In 1912 Browne received from his uncle as a gift a ticket for the maiden voyage of the Titanic . The short trip should go from Southampton ( England ) via Cherbourg ( France ) to Queenstown ( Ireland ). Browne boarded the ship on the afternoon of April 10, 1912 and moved into cabin A-37 on the promenade deck . Then he began to document life on board with his camera. He held z. B. the reading and writing salon of the first class, his cabin on the A-deck, the gym and the swimming pool in the picture. The only known recordings of the dining room of the first class and the radio room of the Titanic are from him . He also received the last pictures of many crew members and passengers, including the captain Edward J. Smith , the gym manager TW McCawley, the engineer William Parr, the major Archibald Butt and numerous passengers of the third class.

At dinner, Browne befriended an American millionaire couple, who offered to pay for the entire trip to New York if he would keep them company. Browne immediately telegraphed his supervisor for permission, but received the harsh reply, "Get off the ship - Provincial ." Browne kept the message in his wallet for the rest of his life, explaining in later interviews that it was the only time that sacred obedience had saved a man's life.

Browne ended the voyage on schedule on April 11, 1912, when the Titanic docked in Queenstown. He then returned to Dublin to continue his theological studies.

When the Titanic sank on April 15th, just four days after Browne left the ship, there was huge interest in Browne's pictures. Reprints of the photos appeared in newspapers and books around the world, with Browne being careful to keep the original negatives to himself. The company Eastman Kodak honored Browne with the lifelong supply of free movies. In return, Browne regularly contributed pictures and texts to Kodak Magazine. Despite the success of his pictures, Browne continued to pursue photography as a hobby: he developed a large part of the pictures himself and often did not make any prints from the negatives due to the high cost of the photo paper .

With the ordination on July 31, 1915, Browne completed his theology degree.

First World War

Francis Brownes Orders and Awards on display at the Cobh Heritage Center

In 1916, 36-year-old Browne was sent to mainland Europe to join the Irish guardsmen as a chaplain in the war . He served in the guards until the spring of 1920, where he took part in the Battle of the Somme , the Battle of Messines and the Third Battle of Flanders .

Browne was wounded five times during the war , one seriously in a gas attack . On June 4, 1917 he was awarded the Military Cross (MC) for "excellent service in the field" .

On February 18, 1918, he received the silver clasp (so-called "bar") for the military cross. The reasoning stated: "For conspicuous gallantry and the fulfillment of duty. He was tireless in his efforts to help the wounded during an attack. Determination under heavy shell fire was a great example for everyone." Browne was awarded the Croix de Guerre by France .

During his time as a military chaplain, Browne took many photos of soldiers' life and the war. A picture which Browne titled "Guard on the Rhine" became an iconic picture of the First World War. The picture shows a soldier guarding the banks of the Rhine in Cologne .

Brown summarized a selection of the best photos in a book, which he distributed free of charge to his former comrades.

Later life and death

After the war, Browne returned to Dublin, where he was appointed superior of Gardiner Street Church in Dublin in 1922. During this time, Browne began to take photographs of Irish life. However, since he continued to suffer from the long-term effects of the injuries sustained in the war and especially the gas attack, Browne's health in Dublin deteriorated noticeably.

Hoping that the warmer climate would help his healing, Browne was sent on a mission to Australia in 1924 . The year-long trip that Browne also took to Sri Lanka , South Africa , Yemen , Egypt , Greece , Italy and Portugal was documented with photographs.

In 1929, Brown was called to the Irish Jesuit Mission staff. As his work mainly involved preaching on missions and religious retreats across Ireland, he had plenty of time during the day to devote himself to his photography hobby . He documented his church trips and made numerous pictures of parishes and cities in Ireland, England and East Anglia .

When the Second World War broke out , Browne requested again to serve as a military chaplain. Because the application was processed too late due to an administrative delay resulting from the establishment of an Irish Jesuit province, it was too old at the time of the decision to resume military service. Browne therefore used the time of the war for a series of photographs that captured everyday life in Ireland and the handling of the restrictions caused by the war.

In 1950, Browne contributed a number of images to a planned brochure for the Irish Mother and Child Program. Because the program met with strong political opposition, the brochure was not published. Even so, Browne was satisfied with his work and kept a copy of the planned brochure in his case along with his photographs and negatives.

Francis Browne died in Dublin on July 7, 1960 and was buried in Glasnevin Cemetery , Dublin. The estate of Browne, including all photographic works, passed to the Jesuit order after his death. It is estimated that there are over 42,000 photos in his estate.

Rediscovery of the photographic work

After his death, Browne's work was initially forgotten; the large metal case with all the photos and negatives went to the archive of the Jesuit order.

In 1985 the suitcase was rediscovered by the Jesuit Father Edward E. O'Donnell. O'Donnell recognized the importance of the images and alerted publishers to the negatives. As a result of the newly awakened interest, Browne's photos have so far been printed in over 25 illustrated books, several exhibitions (including at the Center Pompidou in Paris ) and numerous magazines. The Titanic photos, which are regularly used in publications on the subject, were compiled in an illustrated book in 1997 and reissued on the 100th anniversary of the sinking in 2012.

Oscar director James Cameron used Browne's photographs as a reference to reconstruct the ship's bridge for the film "Titanic" .

In retrospect, critics compare Browne's work with that of Erich Salomon , Henri Cartier-Bresson or Robert Doisneau . The Sunday Times called finding the pictures "the photographic equivalent of discovering the Dead Sea Scrolls " .

Since the original negatives are now decomposing, the restoration specialists David and Edwin Davison were commissioned to preserve them. David Davison summed up Browne's life's work in 2014: “His first pictures in Cobh were of schooners coming into port and at the end of his life he was photographing transatlantic planes at Shannon Airport . He was fascinated by all of this. "

Individual evidence

1. ^ Extract from the birth register . irishgenealogy.ie. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e} Turning the camera on Father Browne . The Irish Times. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
3. ^ ^{A b} That Jesuit on the Titanic . L'Osservatore Romano. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
4. ↑ ^{a b} Rev. Francis M. Browne . Encyclopedia Titanica. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
5. ↑ ^{a b} The Man Behind the Famous RMS Titanic Photographs . 30 James St. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
6. ↑ ^{a b} How Holy Obedience Saved a Priest's Life on Titanic . National Catholic Register. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
7. ↑ ^{a b c} Fr.Browne's Titanic Album released to mark centenary . Derry Journal. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
8. ^ ^{A b c} Frank Browne: the Father of photojournalism , The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved April 17, 2019. 
9. ↑ ^{a b} Stunning first World War pictures by Fr Browne published . The Irish Times. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
10. ^ London Gazette  (Supplement). No. 30111, HMSO, London, 1 June 1917, pp. 5468-5477 ( PDF , English).
11. ^ London Gazette  (Supplement). No. 30530, HMSO, London, February 15, 1918, pp. 2155-2157 ( PDF , English).
12. ^ London Gazette  (Supplement). No. 31827, HMSO, London, 16 March 1920, pp. 3401-3402 ( PDF , English).
13. ^ ^{A b} The Life and Lens of Father Browne . The Irish Catholic. Retrieved April 17, 2019.