Theodore Marburg Jr.

Captain Theodore Marburg Jr. (November 27, 1893 - February 24, 1922) was an American citizen who lost his U.S. citizenship when he became a member of the Royal Flying Corps. An act of Congress restored his citizenship, and other Americans who volunteered with allied forces.[1]

Theodore Marburg Jr.
Theodore Marburg Jr. in 1916
Born(1893-11-27)November 27, 1893
France
DiedFebruary 24, 1922(1922-02-24) (aged 28)
Mexico
Cause of deathSuicide
Spouse(s)
Gesell de Vavario
​
(
m. 1916; div. 1921)
Parent(s)Theodore Marburg

Biography

He was born on November 27, 1893 in France to Theodore Marburg, the United States Ambassador to Belgium from 1912 to 1914. He was educated at Oxford University. After graduation he joined the Royal Flying Corps in England. While on a mission to photograph the German lines in 1915, his plane crashed and a strut pierced his left knee, requiring the leg to be amputated.[1][2] In 1917 he served as a wing examining officer at Canadian headquarters in Canada, and then he returned to England and flew at Shoreham in the south of England before becoming an instructor at Gosport.[3]

In 1916 the United States Department of State refuse to issue him a passport since according to the department taking the oath of allegiance to the British breaks allegiance to the United States.[4] This case, which was widely publicized, led to a bill, signed in October 1917 by President Wilson, that restored US citizenship to US citizens who enlisted in Canadian, British, and French services before the US declaration of war if they took an oath of allegiance at a US consulate.[5] An important reason Marburg wished to return to the US was to secure an American made artificial leg, and when he returned to the US he was treated at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.[3] After the war, Marburg moved to the American Southwest where he purchased a cattle ranch, believing an outdoor life would be good for his health.[3]

He married Baroness Gesell de Vavario of Belgium in Southampton, England in April 1916.[6] Unhappy with ranch life, she abandoned him and they divorced on August 15, 1921 in Santa Cruz County, Arizona.[3][1] On January 3, 1922, he married Harriet de Forest Brown, the daughter of George Brown. After Marburg's death, Harriet would marry John Wentworth, son of Moses J. Wentworth.[7]

He shot himself in the head on February 17, 1922 in Mexico.[8][9] The shot to the head did not kill him immediately, he was brought to a hospital but died on February 24, 1922.[10][1] He was buried in Druid Ridge Cemetery in Pikesville, Maryland.[11]

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References
  1. "Theodore Marburg, Jr. Shot in the Head. Bride is in Baltimore" (PDF). New York Times. February 19, 1922. Retrieved 2015-03-13.
  2. "Marburg, Air Hero, Here For Cork Leg. Bride, Who Was A Baroness, And Father, Former Diplomat, Accompany Him. Talked With King Albert Elder Marburg. Says Belgian Monarch Is Confident Of Victory. Shells Over His Villa". New York Times. April 24, 1916.
  3. "Ted" Marburg Shoots Himself While in Mexico, The Baltiomore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland) February 19, 1922, page 22, 15, accessed November 6, 2017 at https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14929686/ and https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14929677/
  4. Americans at War in Foreign Forces: A History, 1914–1945, Chris Dixon, page 75
  5. Americans at War in Foreign Forces: A History, 1914–1945, Chris Dixon, page 87
  6. "Will Wed A Baroness. Lieut. Theodore Marburg, Jr., Injured Aviator, To Marry A Belgian". New York Times. April 8, 1916.
  7. Mrs. Theodore Marburg, Jr., Will Wed John Wentworth, The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore, Maryland) December 3, 1924, page 3, accessed November 6, 2017 at https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14929083/
  8. "Marburg Loses His Sight. Young American Accidentally Shot In Mexico Undergoes Operation". New York Times. February 21, 1922.
  9. "Theodore Marburg Jr. Has a Relapse". New York Times. February 22, 1922.
  10. "Capt. Marburg Dies From Bullet Wound. His Bride Of Seven Weeks Is Said To Have Lost Race To Reach His Bedside". New York Times. February 25, 1922.
  11. "Releases Marburg's Body. Sonora Governor Allows Removal To Baltimore For Burial". New York Times. February 26, 1922.
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