Private Donnie MacRae, a Scottish soldier who died in a German prisoner of war hospital during World War Two, has finally been reunited with his brain 85 years after his death. The brain tissue, removed during a post-mortem examination for research, was buried with the rest of his body in a ceremony at the Berlin 1939-1945 War Cemetery.
Discovery of the Removed Samples
Donnie MacRae was born in 1907 in the Scottish Highlands. He died on March 6, 1941, in a prisoner of war hospital due to Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a rare neurological condition. During an autopsy, German doctors removed parts of his brain and spinal tissue for research. These samples were sent to the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute for Psychiatry, now the Max Planck Institute for Psychiatry, in Munich, where they remained after the war.
It was only recently that an international research group working through stored samples at the institute discovered the tissues and began efforts to return them to Private MacRae's grave. Nicola Nash, a case worker at the Ministry of Defence's Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC), stated that the family was unaware of the removal until this group brought it to light.
Family Relief
Rich Hills, director of commemorations at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), noted that the history of the samples being taken by German medical services had been forgotten or overlooked. A service was held at Private MacRae's grave this week, attended by two of his relatives. Mr. Hills expressed that the family felt relieved and reassured that the samples had been reunited with the original remains.
Private MacRae's Background
Private MacRae was born to Roderick MacRae and Mary MacLean in Badachro, South Gairloch. He had three brothers: John, William, and Alexander. The family were music lovers with a strong bagpiping tradition, and Roderick and his sons were highly accomplished tailors. Donnie had plans to start his own tailoring business in Blair Atholl, Perthshire, where his brother Alexander worked as a chauffeur.
In 1939, Donnie enlisted in the Territorial Army and was called up to fight. He joined the 4th Battalion, Seaforth Highlanders, and in January 1940 embarked for France as part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in the 51st (Highland) Division. He and his comrades were captured by the Germans in 1940 and became prisoners of war. He died the following year at age 33 in a camp hospital. His body was initially buried by the Germans and later reburied by the Allies in the Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery in Berlin.
