John Rawlings Rees
Encyclopedia
John Rawlings Rees OBE
MD RAMC
(also known as 'Jack') (25 June 1890 11 April 1969) was a wartime and civilian psychiatrist and became a brigadier
in the British Army. He was a member of the group of key figures at the original Tavistock Clinic
(more correctly called the Tavistock Institute of Medical Psychology) and became its medical director from 1934. This group specialised in the new 'dynamic psychologies' of Sigmund Freud
and his followers, and in particular the Object relations theory of Ronald Fairbairn
and others. He was recruited to the British Army during the second world war. According, to Eric Trist
, another key member of the original Tavistock group, who was later to become director of the Tavistock Institute:
After the war, the members of this group went on to found the Tavistock Institute
, with funding from the Rockefeller Foundation
. Later, many of them would occupy posts in international health organisations, with Rees himself becoming first President and Director of the World Federation for Mental Health
which he founded, now a non-governmental organisation with formal consultative status to the United Nations
.
at the secret prison locations where he was held following his capture after landing in Scotland. Hess's diaries (reproduced by David Irving
in Hess the Missing Years), record many meetings with John Rawlings Rees, referred to at this time as Colonel Rees, in which he accused his captors of attempting to poison, drug, and 'mesmerize
', him. Rees apparently established a relationship with Hess over the four-year period up to Hess's appearance at the Nuremberg trial
. It was at the request of Major Henry Dicks, who was, according to Trist, a fellow member of the Tavistock Clinic group, that Rees first visited Hess in June 1941. In 1945, Rees was a member of the three-man British panel (with Churchill's personal physician Lord Moran, and eminent neurologist Dr George Riddoch) , which assessed the capability of Rudolf Hess to stand trial for war crimes. Although the trial proceedings refer to a T Rees, they also refer to "the English psychiatrist, Doctor Rees, who had Hess under observation from the first days of his flight to England". In view of the fact that David Irving names this man repeatedly as John Rawlings Rees, and the close Tavistock association with Henry Dicks, it seems certain that this English psychiatrist was indeed John Rawlings Rees, though a T Rees may also have been present at the Nuremberg trials.
, a fact recorded by Trist. Though the official WFMH website does not list directors, a page on the site refers to the annual Rees lecture, "in memory of Dr Mary Rees Hemingway, one of the early women psychiatrists in Britain, and among the first staff members at the Tavistock Clinic when it was founded in 1920". It goes on to say, "she was one of the founders of the WFMH, (her husband Dr John R. Rees was the first President and first Director.)"
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
MD RAMC
Royal Army Medical Corps
The Royal Army Medical Corps is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all British Army personnel and their families in war and in peace...
(also known as 'Jack') (25 June 1890 11 April 1969) was a wartime and civilian psychiatrist and became a brigadier
Brigadier
Brigadier is a senior military rank, the meaning of which is somewhat different in different military services. The brigadier rank is generally superior to the rank of colonel, and subordinate to major general....
in the British Army. He was a member of the group of key figures at the original Tavistock Clinic
Tavistock Clinic
The in London was founded in 1920 by Dr. Hugh Crichton-Miller, a psychiatrist who developed psychological treatments for shell-shocked soldiers during and after the First World War. The clinic's first patient was, however, a child. Its clinical services were always, therefore, for both children...
(more correctly called the Tavistock Institute of Medical Psychology) and became its medical director from 1934. This group specialised in the new 'dynamic psychologies' of Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
and his followers, and in particular the Object relations theory of Ronald Fairbairn
Ronald Fairbairn
William Ronald Dodds Fairbairn was a Scottish psychiatrist, psychoanalyst and a central figure in the development of the object relations theory of psychoanalysis.-Life:He was born in Edinburgh in 1889...
and others. He was recruited to the British Army during the second world war. According, to Eric Trist
Eric Trist
Eric Trist was a British scientist and leading figure in the field of Organizational development . He was one of the founders of the Tavistock Institute for Social Research in London.-Biography:...
, another key member of the original Tavistock group, who was later to become director of the Tavistock Institute:
- "In 1941 a group of psychiatrists at the Tavistock Clinic saw that the right questions were asked in Parliament in order to secure the means to try new measures. As a result they were asked to join the Directorate of Army Psychiatry, and did so as a group."
After the war, the members of this group went on to found the Tavistock Institute
Tavistock Institute
The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations is a British charity concerned with group behaviour and organisational behaviour. It was launched in 1946, when it separated from the Tavistock Clinic.-History of the Tavistock:...
, with funding from the Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation is a prominent philanthropic organization and private foundation based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The preeminent institution established by the six-generation Rockefeller family, it was founded by John D. Rockefeller , along with his son John D. Rockefeller, Jr...
. Later, many of them would occupy posts in international health organisations, with Rees himself becoming first President and Director of the World Federation for Mental Health
World Federation for Mental Health
The World Federation for Mental Health is an international membership organization founded in 1948 to advance, among all peoples and nations, the prevention of mental and emotional disorders, the proper treatment and care of those with such disorders, and the promotion of mental health. Members...
which he founded, now a non-governmental organisation with formal consultative status to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
.
Brigadier John Rawlings Rees and the Rudolf Hess affair
From 1941 Rees, as consultant army psychiatrist, visited Hitler's Deputy Rudolf HessRudolf Hess
Rudolf Walter Richard Hess was a prominent Nazi politician who was Adolf Hitler's deputy in the Nazi Party during the 1930s and early 1940s...
at the secret prison locations where he was held following his capture after landing in Scotland. Hess's diaries (reproduced by David Irving
David Irving
David John Cawdell Irving is an English writer,best known for his denial of the Holocaust, who specialises in the military and political history of World War II, with a focus on Nazi Germany...
in Hess the Missing Years), record many meetings with John Rawlings Rees, referred to at this time as Colonel Rees, in which he accused his captors of attempting to poison, drug, and 'mesmerize
Animal magnetism
Animal magnetism , in modern usage, refers to a person's sexual attractiveness or raw charisma. As postulated by Franz Mesmer in the 18th century, the term referred to a supposed magnetic fluid or ethereal medium believed to reside in the bodies of animate beings...
', him. Rees apparently established a relationship with Hess over the four-year period up to Hess's appearance at the Nuremberg trial
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg Trials were a series of military tribunals, held by the victorious Allied forces of World War II, most notable for the prosecution of prominent members of the political, military, and economic leadership of the defeated Nazi Germany....
. It was at the request of Major Henry Dicks, who was, according to Trist, a fellow member of the Tavistock Clinic group, that Rees first visited Hess in June 1941. In 1945, Rees was a member of the three-man British panel (with Churchill's personal physician Lord Moran, and eminent neurologist Dr George Riddoch) , which assessed the capability of Rudolf Hess to stand trial for war crimes. Although the trial proceedings refer to a T Rees, they also refer to "the English psychiatrist, Doctor Rees, who had Hess under observation from the first days of his flight to England". In view of the fact that David Irving names this man repeatedly as John Rawlings Rees, and the close Tavistock association with Henry Dicks, it seems certain that this English psychiatrist was indeed John Rawlings Rees, though a T Rees may also have been present at the Nuremberg trials.
Post-War "Operation Phoenix"
After the war, according to Trist, Rees and five others got together and formed an 'Interim Planning Committee' (IPC) chaired by Wilfred Bion, meeting twice a week to formulate a new way forward for their work at the Tavistock, based on war-time experience.Founding President of World Federation for Mental Health
Post-war, Rees became first president of the World Federation for Mental HealthWorld Federation for Mental Health
The World Federation for Mental Health is an international membership organization founded in 1948 to advance, among all peoples and nations, the prevention of mental and emotional disorders, the proper treatment and care of those with such disorders, and the promotion of mental health. Members...
, a fact recorded by Trist. Though the official WFMH website does not list directors, a page on the site refers to the annual Rees lecture, "in memory of Dr Mary Rees Hemingway, one of the early women psychiatrists in Britain, and among the first staff members at the Tavistock Clinic when it was founded in 1920". It goes on to say, "she was one of the founders of the WFMH, (her husband Dr John R. Rees was the first President and first Director.)"
Selected bibliography
- The Social Engagement of Social Science: a Tavistock Anthology Vol 1 (1990), E. L. TristEric TristEric Trist was a British scientist and leading figure in the field of Organizational development . He was one of the founders of the Tavistock Institute for Social Research in London.-Biography:...
, Free Association BooksFree Association BooksFree Association Books is an innovative project started in 1980s London. It arose as the brainchild of Bob Young and colleagues, who, disillusioned by the decline of the liberatory movement, began a search using psychoanalysis to understand the problems of liberation...
, ISBN 0812281926 - Fifty Years of the Tavistock Clinic, Henry V Dicks (1970), Routledge, ISBN 0710068468
- The Shaping of Psychiatry by War (1945)
- The Case of Rudolf Hess; A Problem in diagnosis and forensic psychiatry (1948), by John R. Rees, Henry Victor Dicks
- Hess, the Missing Years, 1987, by David Irving, Macmillan Press (many references indexed to Rees) ISBN 0-333-45179-1.