This post is part of an ongoing series featuring items from the newly acquired Julio Mario Santo Domingo Collection.
I came across this French volume the other day and assumed it was about some sort of military hero, but as I took a closer look at the cover of the book I noticed that he was apparently a Swiss officer, a Swiss diplomat, a French officer, and a vagabond?? So who was Hans Ormund Bringolf? Clearly my interest was piqued though I couldn’t find much reputable information only vague theories and scant biographical sketches. From these sources a picture emerged of a man who seemed to go in out and of military service while having a number of sketchy dealings.
Bringolf was first in the Swiss military while studying the law and earned the nickname “Lieutenant Blessed” because he had been declared prematurely dead on several occasions while on maneuvers, presumably due to his recklessness. After earned his law degree he joined the Swiss Diplomatic service during which time he forged some checks and was
expelled in 1904. To avoid prosecution he went to America where he was a commander of a U.S. police contingent in the Philippines, though he was later jailed for fraud in Peru. After he was released he went back to Germany where he pretended to be Baron von Tscharner, was found out and served another prison sentence. During World War I he served in the French army in Serbia where he earned another nickname “The Lion of Manastir” for his audacious behavior on the front. This supposedly inducted him in the Legion of Honor. However it wasn’t long before he was caught up in more fradulent actitivies.
Eventually he settled in Hallau where he wrote his memoir, this version was edited by Blaise Cendrars and translated by Paul Budry. It would be interesting to see how Bringolf presents himself in this book for it seems more likely that a description of him as “criminal” is more apt than vagabond. To explore his interpretation of his life story you can find this volume in Widener’s collection.
Feu le lieutenant Bringolf. [Traduction de Paul Budry. Version de Blaise Cendrars]. Paris, Au sans pareil, 1930.
Thanks to Alison Harris, Julio Mario Santo Domingo Project Manager, for contributing this post.