Red Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem armband that belonged to Fritz Ziegler.

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Object Description

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Object Name

Armband

Object ID

2008.021.003

Title

Red Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem armband that belonged to Fritz Ziegler.

Date

[193-?].

Description

Armband; red ribbon-like textile armband with a symbol of the Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem (Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller, or just Sovereign Order). The armband is red with a white 8-pointed star enclosed in a white circle on the middle of one side. The star is the Maltese cross. This armband was owned by Fritz Ziegler.

People/Subject

Ziegler "Castle"

This house, located at 22926 Rawlison Cres., Fort Langley, was built for lumber magnate John Hendry as a recreational property several years before World War I. Hendry had a vast lumber empire, including B.C. Mills, Timber, and Trading Co.. Toody Wilson (b. 1908) remembers that when she was young, the Ziegler "castle" was owned by a seamstress who had a son younger than her. This might have been Hendry's widow, as Fritz Ziegler bought the house from her in 1939 and built it up into the castle it became. Ziegler worked over the years to make this home a castle, naming it Schloss Klipphaus after a castle built by one of his forefathers in 1528 near Dresden, Germany. The house also became known as Monk's Hall, due to the number of concrete monks that adorned the front entrance. During WWII Fritz Ziegler was interred at three different camps for German and Italian "aliens" and prisoners of war, but in 1943 he was released and placed under house arrest in his Fort Langley home. Fritz was appointed Consul of Monaco in 1965, and Consul General in 1978, and Prince Ranier, Princess Grace, and children Caroline, Albert and Stephanie may have visited the house. Fritz and his wife, Harriet, began opening their house to tours by the public in 1960 and giving the proceeds to charities and St. George's Anglican Church, of which they were members. Fritz died on August 21, 1996, at the age of 94. His widowed second wife, Nancy, stayed in the house until her death in approximately 2006. Most of the house was demolished in approximately 2006, but the chapel was saved and was attached to the new house on the site.

Ziegler, Fritz

Fritz Alfred Wilhelm Ziegler was born in Germany in 1902, to parents Wanda and Fritz Ziegler, a chemist. The family moved to Canada and took up residence in Vancouver in 1911, became citizens in 1913, and in 1914 started "Ziegler's Chocolates." They eventually had eight stores in Vancouver and one in New Westminster. When the senior Fritz Ziegler died in 1923, Wanda, Fritz and sister Alma continued running the stores until 1956. The Ziegler family purchased a property on Rawlison Cres. in Fort Langley in 1939, which included a two story farmhouse. Fritz worked over the years to make this home a castle, naming it Schloss Klipphaus after a castle built by one of his forefathers in 1528 near Dresden, Germany. The house also became known as Monk's Hall, due to the number of concrete monks that adorned the front entrance. During WWII Fritz Ziegler was interred at three different camps for German and Italian "aliens" and prisoners of war, but in 1943 he was released and placed under house arrest in Fort Langley. Fritz married Harriet Louise Bowell, great granddaughter of Canada's fifth Prime Minister McKenzie Bowell, on September 22, 1943. After she passed away in 1971, Fritz married her sister, Nancy Bowell. Nancy and Harriet's father was the Bowell of Bowell MacLean (BowMac Motors), the Vancouver landmark. Fritz was a friend of King Peter of Yugoslavia who bestowed two knighthoods upon him and asked him to carry on the charitable work of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitalers. He was appointed Consul of Monaco in 1965, and Consul General in 1978, and Prince Ranier, Princess Grace, and children Caroline, Albert and Stephanie visited. He was involved in the Langley Centennial Museum Committee, a founding member of the Langley Arts Council, and a president of the Langley St. John's Ambulance Society. Fritz and his wife began opening their house to tours by the public in 1960 and giving the proceeds to charities and St. George's Anglican Church, of which they were members. Fritz died on August 21,1996, at the age of 94.

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