PART ONE INTO CAPTIVITY “Well here Lam a Prisoner of War in Germany, this was one of ‘the lst places I thought I should get to.” Flight-Sergeant Steele in a letter home, December, 1940. [Shot down over France, 9 December, 1940; killed con the morning of 19 April, 1945 when British Typhoons accidentally strafed a marching column of British POWs. at Gresse, near Mecklenburg, Germany.)Many 0 Gormar Second their ex vast me experie attemp! surprisi mistake time ra ingenic tothis fis 2) made « fot en picture inthis story’. blame compe hunge some! bests! in P, what | British unde upto watch thelr them follow libera each ot a durin majo ther escay I SURRENDER “Boina wits secs, seni, guard dog: ach were the Components of Fitle’s new order for Europe in the sommer ‘of ogo. Hasty sssembled, the Staags, Oflags and Dslags* arited wast numbers of men tapped before Dunkirk and on the plains of Northen France From the fr shores of the Baltic Seat the high Alpine pastures of che Svs nd Iain frontiers, and from theiey waters of se Vista in the east to the formidable natural boundary of the Rhine on het wwestom fank, Germany's prisoners were destined to suffer in many Alfeent kinds ofcamps Now, over forty years later, their names and locations can sil awaken emotional memories for many ex-POWs. In them, they left behind mach of thei youth and fends ho didnot survive the ordeal of captivity. Ic . ‘however, not at all easy ro understand what life as a prisoner of the Germans mist have been like. When Potty Officer Macey got home from POW camps in aly and Germany, he red to explain tis {ohis fends but found that "you would not and others would not tindestand fly what I was tying t convey fo you. Is an exper= nce which must be lived through in order to understand itt is filles entirety. Thats all can say Every man who was captured went through a traumatic ordeal which was mon personal and his reaction differed according to ples, time and circumstance. The only common feeling wasone of surprise thathe should bein the bag’ at al. As Commander Scurfield wrote t0 his wife whilea POW befor filling, apically, victim ofa British at strike in 194s, We were prisoners =the last ching lever expected tobebucby God's Providence we were alive” [Although this was to bea crucial venti dei fves, most fighting sen were hardly conscious of the moment that sent them into Captivity. In battle the pressure of events was generally 50 gre that * Sul abbreviaconof Stanger = a central prison camp for Ocher Ranks She Ofna nig Luft: Sommer Lge = Cental camp for RAF prisoners Dale Dechganplaer = ta campMany 0 Garmar Second their e» vast mi experi atemp surpris mistabe time re ingenic tothis fims @ made ‘get an picture inthis story’ blame comp hunge dest: In F what Britist und! up to watch thelr ther follon Nibers ‘each not ¢ ‘urit male ther 4. Prisoners ofthe Rech the infantryman sheltering desperately from enemy fre, the navigator {touched at the escape hatch about jump into the void below or the ‘Sor wih lings hal all of ily water reacted wethow though othe tmost powerful human instinc of selt-survival. So it was often large {ose Of lack coupled with the random nature of survival which decided who should die and who shoul survive tend up ina German P*Since they never expected to be capered, most men ad very litle knowledge of what this involved and had given virally no ehouggit to the matter before finding themselves atthe weong end ofa German bayonet or machine pista ; Equally ile attention had been paid to this tthe highest levels oF Britah government, even though over 135,000 men of the armed forces eventually fond themselves in copivty in the strugele against the Nazis Only the fill of Tobruk, in ly, 1942, which Viscount Aanbrooke Inter confessed was "a staggering blow’, raised the problem for mltary leaders and policane st home. They ould ardly ignore the fact that 33,000 British, Canadian, Indian and South Afican de- fenders, despite many individual acs of bravery, had been forced into 2 humiinng surrender by an attacking force of oughly half thee pumber. ‘Even after this military catastrophe no general insractions were issued as to how and why individuals should surender nd what night be expected to happen to them if they di. The reason for this tras simple: Fighting men were not told match about such matters in se it weakened ther resolve to cary on the struggle with every ‘Smce oftheir strength agains the enemy “This lack of information could have 9 devastating result on men who were suddenly caprared:l was toaly unprepared to bea POW.” hoted Captain Irwin, We had received no instractions whatsoever cerning Being taken prisoner. believe that we were badly rained forwar “There was also a saying commonly heard on many operational bomber stations that the best irerow were those with the least imagination. There was some trath inthis because to much thought Shout the possibility of sudden and vilenedeth could case ma to dctieationally or lose control entirely at eical moments in the heat ofan ‘Most men who went to war managed to push that fear into the deepest eceses of ct mind and kepe thereby believing that i was only other people who ‘bought it or by taking a false view that once your number was up there was naching you could do about it are Surrender Sergeant Lowman of Bomber Command, shot down in 1944, remembered that cavalier attitude to death: "Ar the time one volun teers to become aircrew you could not have any idea ofthe high loss rate, When you do start fo work up to appreciate this of course, you still elude yourself hat it will never be you, On being shot down four ‘of my crew were killed and on reaching prison camp, meeting an old colleague who was on the Air Gunners’ course with me, we accounted for nearly all the course (approx. 40) and they were all dead. Faced by such ferocious odds against surviving, men ttied to keep death at arm's length; and, since they rarely thought seriously about being killed, the idea of being captured or suffering long-term, imprisonment seemed an even more remote possibility. For men of the British Expeditionary Force taken prisoner in the Spring of 1940, there was much bitterness at what they believed was fir superiors, "There was no lack of courage during the sharp campaign’, thought Lance-Corporal Hancy, ‘but owing to the enemy’s superiority of tanks, forces and air support we were ‘overcome and most of us were convinced that we had been rather “let down" by the Powers that were in so-called control at chat time.” When they were forced into defeat and surrender by the German Bluczkrieg which advanced with such apparent invincibility cowards the Channel ports, many soldiers thought members of the Wehrmacht ‘were superhuman, Private Dyson, ordered to throw down his ammunition, steel helmet and ammunition pouckes, could not re~ member being frightened at the time because ‘events had moved so quickly and I'was probably more shocked at their efficiency. They ‘were, inevery respect, ewenty years in advance of our army with theit ‘camouflaged combat jackets, sub-machine guns, hand-grenades and Vehicles. To me they appeared as men from another world, deeply bronzed and obviously very fit and highly trained.” At this time the prisoners were not illtreated. One German in fact patted Dyson on the head in an unmistakable gesture which said ‘Cheer up!” After the first heady days of Blic2krieg victory in the west until shortly before the collapse of Germany’s resistance in 1945, her troops {generally behaved correctly towards their prisoners and there was a ‘mutual respect which front-line soldiers often develop for each other. When that respect was missing, soldiers were exploited a8 soon 38, they were taken into captivity. Many Germans, while displaying little mercy towards Russians taken on the Eastern Front, openly showed distaste and contempt for their Italian allies for whom immediate looting of rings, watches, money, documents, cigarettes and other personal effects was part ofthe legitimate spoils of war. ‘The very young SS Panzer troops who captured Gunner HarrisonMany < Gorma Secor their vast m experi attome surprie mmistak time r ingent to this films ¢ made get an pictur inthis sory’ blame comp hunge best int what Britis fund 6 Prisoners ofthe Reich were, however, very diferent ~ ‘highly trained in brutality and rogant, drunk with suctese and eiomentary power” ~ they soon Screwed pone ihn isthe foreveryone when he cnespected happens, he wrote ‘one first goes numb, then devase tatiog stn, sometimes bravado, but soon al his was knocked out of and we weresure we were goingtobeshor until asenior officer ‘Aer coming straight nto the army from cv ie, mach ofthe BEF hed bow pitchforked into batt having recived only pook {runing with insdequate equipment. Ina war which suddenly came Spon them they surrendered to an enemy ovet_whom they ha nstantly becn misled by propaganda at home. Like most of his nate, Povate Drysdale knew hardly snydig und he was apeaed "Tova prety aive aa we young soldiers were from working css Homesatthactime, who were nfveneed in thoughtas regards the war by he news media and had very hide ineligence of our own to fom out what twas all about, Tova so naive tha after being xptured I went up tosome German tanks and rapped them with my ttle o see ifthey were relly made of wood, a5 we were led (0 believe rom our propaganda machine, eanassure you that hey were notimade of wood stall” Gtiers found the act of surendet could be just as taumati, Ccaputin Loder was forced to surende: after weighing various possi Biles in he knowledge hat men's lives werein dhe balance. After his platoon was spouted by a German patrol he decided that was useless tbhold outany longer in he farm ea Hazehrouck where they hadset up defosive positon: ‘We were completly olated and hadno food Thi very litle ammunition, We col noe possibly lst long asthe idem wabalready on fre and it would only bean unnecessary sacrifice oflfetoresic further. Wethereforesurrendered. "The enemy Was round uson thre side and wellin thereat 8 weaficrwards learned.” ‘Despite the fac tha surrender took vacety of forms twas, then, generally not something ove which the indvidal had much contol ‘On the other hand, there was 3 fondamental difference which imseked off soldier from sllor snd sien when they actually gavein to the enemy. Thinking about this, Corporal Bell commented: Ait Grow were invariably captred ster being shot down or after balling Suto damaged area Sailors were captured after being taken off STnking ship and felt recat being saved. In both eases these Service- ten hed wery ile direct contact witht enetny and fleonly ret a tring sill alive after some long-ditance bombing and, possibly, {Relig For the solder, pascal the infntryman, wars tully ‘Eferen sae of afarsenaling the acral layingdown of arms and fasing of hands before handing over his shocked and outraged person Surrender 7 to an armed enemy. It was personal, usually undignified and ex- Ceedingly depressing and bore with ita tremendous feeling of guilt, a feeling very difficult to throw off. Ie took me years to shake off the feeling and I think this is why so many soldier-prisoners engaged in rather dangerous games with theie captors.” ‘Among the many thousands of British soldiers taken prisoner few were to escape the enormous weight of depression and guile chat accompanied thei act of surrender. ‘The combination of shock and Kaleidoscopic rush of events was often so great on Allied aircrew as they came tumbling out ofthe skies lover enemy territory that they knew very litle of what was happening, to them until they stood on enemy soil ‘This was certainly so in the case of Pilot Officer Sidwell who ‘escaped from the shattered rear-gunner’s turret ofa Stirling after the aircraft had been hit over Hamburg, killing four of its seven crew His reactions on hitting the ground in one piece were typical of many aircrew I shared the numbing experience of most RAF POWs ‘who were shot down. I think the mind took time to adjust to such vastly-changed circumstances in a short time. Suddenly from a com~ fortable Mess (to which you returned if your luck held out) and the trappings of normal life, you were placed ina situation where you only. hhad what you stood up in, and you thought back co the things you'd done or hadn't done 2t home. Tater on, in a POW camp, Sidwell thought back to his capture and. remembered he had received no briefing about the numbing of the senses suffered by capeured airerew ~ nor had anyone else in the compound, AAs he remarked: ‘I was like the ochers. I hadn't really ‘thought anything about being shot down and certainly nothing about [being a] POW. ‘Some aircrew, like Flying Officer Griffiths, knew even less about their escape, The fits sign of trouble over Berlin came when he heard a Toud bang and saw flames shoot from the starboard wing. After ‘members of his crew bailed out at 18,000 feet the aircraft went into a spin and blew up, knocking Griffiths unconscious. He recounted what happened next: i awoke falling through the ar, pulled my ‘chute and, hit the ground seconds later. Four of my crew were killed, With three Tumps the size of hens’ eggs on my head and many superficial cuts on the face, [thought I was bleeding from the eas, [rolled myselfin my parachute and using my ‘"Mae West” 2s a pillow went to sleep until ‘dawn,’ During the next day he was spotted by police who were combing the area and taken prisoner. Sergeant Roberts had an even mote painful experience over Berlin ‘when he was badly burned on the face and one hand after his LancasterMany 0} German Second their ex vast me experiei attempt surprisi mistake time rat Ingenio tothis films er made d get ane picture inthis story’ Blamed compo! unger some what I British on into hundre up tof watche their e Prisoners ofthe Reich was hit by flak, He managed to get out of the aircraft but nearly died before the police picked him up. ‘As I reached the ground m parachute caught in a high tree and I was lee suspended about forty feet up. In an endeavour to evade [captare] I released my harness and fell to the ground - my leg was injured and my shoulder dislocated =I n the thick snow untill was feund. . . and during this time nds of strange ways airerew managed to survive by the skin of their teeth. Blasted out of the sky, colliding with each other ovge! hheavily-attacked targets, lost on faulty instrument bearings, beaten by foul weather conditions - whatever the cause, the toll on bomber and} toa lesser extent, fighter crews ensureda steady stream of airmen into the big prisoner of war camps set up specially 0 receive them and this did not slacken until almost the end ofthe war. ‘One of those shot down during the final struggle in Europe ‘was Flying Officer Britain. Returning from a high speed raid his Mosquito was hit by f_ak over the Dutch coast. Together with his Royal Canadian Air Force pilot, Flight-Lieutenant Guy Hacket (later killed in a civilian lying accident) he crossed over the coast north of their projected fight track when disaster struck: “Asha instant the port wing caught fre. What dilemma. Thesituation ‘was pretty bad as the flames were close tothe empty petrol tanks. Guy thie to dip the wing in the sea and at che second attempt the port engine fet dead. In we went, Ie happened too fist to realise the danger, if any ‘After trying desperately to catty out ditching procedure, Guy discovered ‘ed come down on a sandbank in only afew inches of water. thought, the kite was sinking slowly ‘Making an exit through the emergency hatch, welugged ourK” type dinghies tothe end ofthe sandbank, nd stopped to enable our hearebeats tobecome normal. Guy returned tthe plane and threw in an incendiary Shell, then beste back to me quickly. Vey cartridges exploded... and ‘machine gun and cannon shells whizzed off inal direcsons. Tay in the ‘water behind my parachute. Guy pulled outhis cigaretes and we drew in thesmokeasitie was the ast cigarette we'd everhave, Lucky?Tllsay we Lock~cither good or bad—wasthekey to most arcrew'ssurvvaland the common’ clement Which ruled their livs and sent them Sato Tn thi sense, every man who found himself behind barbed wire might think hinslf fortunate to be here is colleagues whose nck hadrun outlay inheirgravesinnemy soi, When they bad recovered ffom the raumatic experience of beng shot own, survivors did not fonge that grim rainy Surrender 9 In the case of men of the Royal Navy a rugged determination to stay alive and, like aircrew, alarge slice of luck decided whether or not they would end up in a POW camp. Ttwas only good fortune which saved Leading Stoker Reading’s life while he was serving on the destroyer HMS Siktk when she was sunk off Tobruk harbour. A fying piece of shrapnel furrowed across his neck, permanently scarring him. Immediately behind him stood a ship's cook who was watching the action. The red hot piece of metal tore through his stomach, effectively spilling out his guts. After that, covered in blood and entrails, Reading was almost glad to abandon ship. Some five hours later he was picked up after clinging to a Carley life raft and landed on the mainland where he was sent into Tealian captivity In April, 1941, HMS Voltaire, an armed merchant cruiser, sighted the German auxiliary eruiser Thor in mid-south Atlantic. On board Voltire was Lieutenant-Commander Mercer who described the final ‘engagement of his ship. ‘We both opened fie but che shells from our 1906 guns went wild while Thor's shooting was extremely accurate, the first salvo destroying our radio room. We were thereafter hit with almost every salvo until our guns were put out of action, bridge destroyed, engine room flooded with fuel oil, fires everywhere. Voliire eventually sank -. . leaving about 150 survivors seattcred in the oily water clinging o bits of wreckage." ‘After few hours the survivors were picked up by a motor boat and delivered to the Thor where they were scrubbed down, wrapped in blankets and escorted tothe hold. Asone of only ten surviving officers Mercer knew he was lucky to be alive; puncture marks from shell splinters in his face and legs was, he thought, 2 small price to pay. The realization that he was relatively safe came more slowly to Ordinary Seaman Gant who was serving on HMS Bedouin when she was sunk by tonpedo-carrying bombers. Heavy damage sustained on the upper deck destroyed the Carley floats and many survivors had to make do with floating wreckage. Covered in thick diesel oil and hours later as dusk was approaching, Gant was picked out of the water by a German seaplane and flown t© Syracuse in Italy. After a medical check he bedded down for the night ima local hospital. On opening his eyes the next morning, ‘I heard a nrse singing, saw clear blue skies and a window edged with flowers. Only when I glanced to the other end of the ward where an unshaven armed guard was standing did I realise that I had not been called tothe reat beyond. For me the war was over.” During the first few hours and days of capture, knowledge of just hhow close they had come to being killed dawned on prisoners. As ‘Ceptain Norwood, the last person besides the ship's captain to leave10 Prisoners ofthe Reich ¢ Sikh before she went down, comme ‘aed after several hours in the water was a formality. One resist chs kind of arrest!” POWs knew there was nothing they could have done to have avoided capture in the heat of battle when their ship sank beneath them, This may have been only poor comfort to take with them as they passed behind barbed wire but they realized, ike surviving aircrew, that it was providential for them to See the inside of a camp ata ed ‘Capture inthe sense of 2 TRANSIT Mitrmeats sli lode his way into cape blazing heat under cloudless skies during the first summer of ‘war. With so many prisoners, the Germans had severe problems in coping with the unexpected scale oftheir victory. Railways and other forms of transport were occupied to such an extent that Allied POWs had tobe marched away from the fighting front, often for days on end. For beaten and exhausted troops this was an added indignity. "You cought to see ts. We look a terrible sight: com clothes, filthy and serufly, and as hungry as hell,” wrote Second Lieutenant Heasman, ‘The Germans also had a few special tricks in store for them. They were kept short of food, force-marched up to forty kilometres a day refused any form of cover at night and made to march several time fn circular routes through villages to stamp the mark of German authority on thei inhabitants Despite such attempts €0 subdue local citizens many of them did what they could to help the men marching into captivity, though Private Vincent ‘had the feeling that was to become common toalotof prisoners whenever they were watched by civilians — the feeling that fne was no longer looked upon as a human being who had once had a life of his own, but merely as something abstract that was only categorized as a British, French or Russian prisoner. If a uniform makes one anonymous,” he added, ‘the brand of prisoner-of-war catties one a stage further.” Private Low, trudging through sharp differences berween them: nree defeated countries, observed ‘French people offering food received a German ile burt for ther pains schis wae! Crossing into Belgium was frightening ~ there seemed no Gvilians everyone was keeping to their houses. Holland gaveus a boost~the end ofthe journey on foot and the people impervious to the German rifles giving us loaves, sausage, anything they cold get pase the guards cous ~wonderfal people.”12 Prisoners ofthe Reich ‘Another British Tommy on the oad in northern France, Lance Corporal Rich, "walked from dawn to dusk with no food and very file water, and bitterly sw German guards kicking over butts of water put out by villagers for POWs driven almost insane from the heat and dust of shir forced journey. Near Maastrche in Holland, mums set out tables with food a+ 2 column of starving prisoners approached. “To our helpless disgust” recounted Private Davis, “the sind freed us a ifl-point to pass by on the other side ofthe road Sehile they loaded up on “our” sandwicves. 4 tn some paces, civilians suffered more directly. After being cap- cured at Dunkitk, Private Astley escaped back to England and re-! ported that Food was searce. P/W wereable o obtain food from local Inhabitants but this depended on the guards. In some cass leather Whips were used when food was taken from local inhabitants.” Ravenously hungry, their tongues swollen and lips cracked, clothing hanging in titers, crawling with body Tie and suffering fom dysentery, some limping from foot wounds or arms roughly tied in makeshift slings, battered remnants ofthe BEF wound in fong columns away from the Channel ports under the watchfl gaze of their German guards, Those who collapsed at the roadside were either picked up later or shot out of hand. Otkers fought among themselves for scraps of food or raked death by brea footed shops in search of anything co cat In fcids along the route prisoners clawed at halfotten mangels potatoes and anything edible, ignoring the cheats and blows from their guards, ‘Of course,” wrote Sergeart Tuck, ‘some were fied on as they broke ranks, adding, ‘Trecall one pardcular incident when in the distance | could see a group of four men who had broken ranks and ‘vere raiding a potato patch, With no shout of waming one of the {guards raised his rile and fred, the whole group got up and turned to face back, and then one spun round and fll. The guard then fred two nore shots at him and the poor lads by jumped into the ae ewiceas hhe was it, There were several more incidents of this type. But hat particular one [somehow can never forget So hard was the lengthy march into ssptiviey for prisoners already shocked by te ir and storm ofthe German Blitzkrieg that they spent very last ounce of willpowerin moving forward, dazed and seupeied, Svithin the long columns of trudging men. As Major Booth found on the march: "When one reaches an advanced stage of exhaustion, planned thinking becomes almost impossible and all one wants isto ‘tick with one's own friends and to goon, doing what everyone cles doing slmore automaticaly. ‘Some things, however, did force chemaelves about the hazy dull ness of extreme fatigue. Corporal Hope recalled “one outstanding column to dash into‘ Transit 13 memory... during the eatly days ofthe enforced march ...isthatof ‘coming suddenly upon a huge pile of British steel helmets (10-15 feet high), I remember precisely my own fearful reaction to this ~ some~ how British propaganda had been so good that lat any rate (& I think t00 some of my comrades) imagined that the owners had all been shot and similarly, when first we were bedded down in the fields, a vague sense of supreme mistrust came over me because of the maching gun ‘emplacements at ground level. We really wondered how long we had rolive." ‘One fact which many British POWs also noticed was their position atthe very end of the columns of marching prisoners. They thought it ‘was deliberate German policy to teach them a lesson as the only nation, not to have surrendered after the fall of France. What was only too obvious was the high state of preparedness with which many Frenchmen marched into captivity. "The French were lamentable’, complained Lance-Corporal Longmore, ‘with little or no intention of making a fight for it, however hopeless and were n hificently equipped for the long walk. . . to Germany. Their packs contained good strong boots, clothes & endless articles of food which the Germans allowed them to keep. . . The “Entente Cordiale” was atts lowest ebb in 1940, asthe French responded readily to German cfforts to drive a wedge between the Allies.” Mose prisoners who survived usually found cheir way through a mobile reception camp (Beweglicher Auffangslage to a Front Stalag Tying some way behind the ightng ines, at Lille and Poperinghe in July, 1940, which was capable of imposing a. minimum of Organization on them. They were ten sent on toa staging point In roo there were a number ofthese notably at Brassls and Tree ‘on the Franco-German border, where the city was en fete for German. ictoriy, Rifleman Porter arrived at Teer where Brith POWs were paraded ikea crews’ past hose inhabitantson ther way toamassive Eotbed-wite compound, “Oaths, kicks and ile buts helped us on our wwaye be rested. Overhead Autered huge Nazi bants celebrating the ll of France “There were some prisoners who atrved at this staging point a Emmerich or who celled east to Hemer afer sailing up the Rhine But this was no pleasure tip for men suflering greatly from over- Crowding on the decks of river steamers or confined below inthe Sting dack holds of barges During fequent ws on deck o ecleve themselves, prisoners had to squat on a pole slung alongside deck level: German goards promptly puta bilet through anyone who lost Wis balance and plunge ino the water below "When Private Rud and his mates gotto Hemer they were forced toMany 0) Germ Second their ex vast me experie attemp ‘surprisi mistake time ra ingenio tothis fims a made ¢ stan peture inthis story’. blamec what i British on inte hundre up tof 14 Prisoners ofthe Reich parade through the town where loudspeakers proudly announced the Arrival of ‘Churchill's beaten army". Then, as Rudd recalled, even the German officers were surprised when the bloodied, unshaven and ragged British were ‘suddenly called to attention and ordered to march in fives... by our own NCOs. I don't know how it was done, but 1 found myself getting into step with the rest of them and marched ‘through the town as iF we owned the place. This is whatitseemed like to me; probably the Germans said it was pathetic although it was noticeable some ofthe jeering died away.” 4 To French POWs watching this defiant display, the effect was inspiring, “Te was almost a victory mares,” related Robert Guerla ‘march by men who were sure of themselves and of their cause, and not the least bit affected by their status as prisoners. They marched down the street, heads held high . . . bearing their dirt and rags magnificently." ‘At staging points, POWs were packed in batches of fifty, sixty and even more into cattle erucks and sent on to their first permanent camps. There were grim smiles and muttered oaths as they saw the wording on the boarded high-sided wagons with their barred swindow-slits: For 8 Horses or 40 Men.” ‘What was to follow was so terrible hat men never forgotit. As well as dreadful hunger, thirst and mental toreure about relatives at home there was the claustrophobia of a dark and airless wagon, freezing by night and unbearably hot by day. These conditions were made even ‘worse by the all too infrequent stops for men, bent double from the agony of dysentery, to relieve themselves and the scant rations of black bread and potatoes or thin potato stew. ‘After three days and nighes without ever seeing where they were going, men squatted and crushed together in an overpowering stench ‘of excreta and unwashed bodies. Those who were il lay suspended in strips of blanket lashed to the roofs of tracks. Some died and remained where they were their bodies swaying in time to that ofthe train ~ ‘until the end of the journey. Holes were gouged out of solid plank floors through which urine and faeces were scooped, Some trucks were so packed that men temporacily lost all use of their limbs. ‘Still hor, eucks stink,” sribbled Gunner Scott on his fifty-six hour rail journey into Poland, ‘Some of boys dying. God itis terrible to see ourselves, we cannot stretch our legs ~ too many in truck.” In later years anything that could happen to them seemed bbearable when measured against that horrific journey. The very fact that they had survived toughened them mentally and physically. Not every soldier capoured in 1940 was transported to a prison camp inthe same way. Under Article 4 of the Geneva Convention officers Transit 15 were separated from Other Ranks and sometimes sent off under more bearable conditions. Captain Loder, for example, arrived at Trier by lorry and train, only three days after he was captured and observed that “we were lucky in our journeys as some prisoners had marched 1200 miles,” Afterwards he Was sent to Oflag VIL C/H at Laufen by cattle teuck in a group of 200 officers, all of them feeling the steain of their journey by the time they got there. Captain Irwin also journeyed ro Laufen by cattle eruck after ‘arching part of the way, finding it ‘not very gruelling’ but Captain Lyon got there the following month only after foot-slogging through France and Holland and so by various stages to Bavaria. He also witnessed a punch-up berween the Allies. French officers were separated at Doullens from British prisoners and sent off by another route after feelings between the ewo groups rose to a dangerous level “due to apro-German faction among the French officers” There was also a roving remnant of the BEF which was not picked up after Dunkirk. These evadets tried to get back across the Channel ‘oF to Marseilles For a while, about 150 British soldiers who had struggled south wards were aliowed out on parole in the town until ugly fights with members of the German garrison led to their removal inland. Under the armed control oftheir Viehy guards they worked among the vines ‘of southern France until they were transported 0 Italian, Austrian and German prison camps; ‘Notentirely a Cook’s tour,’ remarked Gunner Taylor. "The second great influx of prisoners into German camps came in September, 1943, following the surrender of the falians when Winston Churchill had what he termed ‘an objective of the highest importance.’ This was to liberate British prisoners in Italy and prevent them being transported into Germany. "I regard it as a matter of honour and humanity’, he wrote in his sonorous phrases to President Roosevelt, ‘to get our own flesh and blood back as soon as possible and spare them the measureless horrors of incarceration in Germany during the final stages ofthe war.” Unfortunately forthe 80,000 POWs trapped in camps in northern Italy, Germany had other plans. Before Churchill’s ‘red hot rake’ could be drawn from southern Italy through the German Wintrstel- lung ~ their holding line south of Rome ~ German troops began ‘moving them northwards over the Brenner Pass into Austtia and on, {nto prison camps throughout the Reich, When the Italian capitulation became known a secret order fom London was received in all camps: ‘Stand fast no attempts must be made to induce or provoke mass breakouts.” Prisoners filly expected to be free and were ordered in nearly alltothis fms a! get an picture inthis story’ blame: ‘compo hunge come! bests: in P. what | British hundr teach rot a attem urin: major the re escer 16. Prisoners ofthe Reich amps to Keep fit and stay pt’ uni arrangements could be made by the Allis for thir reas I is df to imagine thee sek doe appointment on being taken sway to asecond esptvity inthe Reich Sergeant Nel, one of the vit in September, 1943, fle ‘eather depresedThadso hoped that might spend apart of te Autumn England, Everything comes to he who wats, We waited and the blasted Germans came ies Major P's fui for nor giving prrmision to cvacuat ourselves weso wished now wear propedly Irthe soup and wl have co wait ntl Germany i absolutly rsh Before wearefce again. Major P--— ought to have known that they wouldnt leaves alone, Germans aren't socaly routed.” \ “The stand fat policy sccms to hve been Ordered by General Montgomery. Thete were genuine far that prisoners might be Cnet offen mae to oncentation camps Hf they showed signs of resistance, ominous report were recived of armed POWs on the lose being massacred by German troops and i was thought they imight become entangled inthe Allied fron ine ati fought novtrrds “Atany rat, the directive cme from the topand, after moda sat work, was tansmitted asa direct order to camp leaders. In some Places they had the unhappy trkof sig Bech Bayonets to prevent Brush POUs leaving Cap as the lallans crepe away andthe German troops atrved Yer thousinds of Britsh prisoners did manage to getaway from their camps and cvade Gerotan seach parties nl they drifted into Allied forces in southem Tly or crossed the border into neutral Switzerland In camps where the senior man ws song enough 0 disobey absurd orders and often with he direct assitaneof the Kalan Commandant, al the pesoner: took off forthe mountsing a 3¢ Campo PGsq where Saft Sergeane Cowie noted on 11 September: ‘Evacuation sf camp ordered by Carsp Commandant. At 5 pm. Camp Leader advised to tavel South through the mountains. ‘The panty moved off at's pn. and travelled 5 km along the valley Sopp forthe nigh, everyéhing ic ‘Ale many hurrsising expos sore of them eventally reached thesafety of Aled forces or were intreed in Switzerland. Often, they trereonly successful throug the courageos flor of aan evi Ie parson groups. Without their asitance ts certain that numbers Of them who eventually reached salery would never have made But POWs who remained at large were hounded relentlessly by German army units and bombarded with propagands eset With tmessages ike the fllowing example carried out of captivity By Corporal O'Loughlin: Transit 97 “Wor prisoners who have evaded om concentration camp. Foci cerswho are wondering inthe impervious region of Tily REMEMBER: ‘The Ralian army has been thoroughly reorganised nd you wll soon discover what frightful fate is hanging on your heads ‘Should you be caught whilein possesion ofarms, oF should you have joined 2 gang of "partisans, you will be considered Franc-tireare and a8 such you will be tied in accordance with the laws of war. ‘Why, then, will you still put up with hunger, defy danger and suffer all sore of discomforts? Why showld you prolong Your suffering forthe sake of what i hopeless cause? ‘Surrender tothe Italian Miltary Authorities who will reat youas wellas they did formerly and willagain recognise youas ‘war prisoner ‘Only following this course will you beable to avoid being. condemned and to hope to see again your Fatherland and th ‘dear ones who are anously awaiting you return home. [Not at all impressed by this, Corporal O'Loughlin and the rest of his group struggled against freezing temperatures and deep snow across the Alps into Switzerland where they were interned for the rest of the For the great majority of prisoners there was, however, no escape from the search partes. By acting swiftly and adopting a number of ‘cunning tricks German troops forced the majority of British POWs ‘onto tains bound for a new captivity. These were men who had ‘originally been brought mainly from desert fighting in North Arica ‘where German forces had handed them over, almost apologetically, 0 the Italians, ‘One successful German ruse was recorded by Sergeant Prosser: “Major W— gave us a lecture... and told us he didn’t think the Germans would move us out of the country. The Germans took che ‘camp overin the evening, they said they would only be here fora few days and that they have only taken over to keep order and to prevent the prisoners roaming the countryside.” ‘Another deception which kept POWs quiet enough to be moved was that witnessed by a Fleet Air Arm pilot, Lieutenant Cambell. He remembered at Campo PG136 in August, 1943, that ‘We were shepherded into a flet of trucks, all one thousand or so of us. The trucks were swelteringly hot and the Germans let us have the covers down. We proceeded towards Modena, very excited, as we were sure ‘we must be released soon asthe fighting in Italy collapsed; “V" signs to all che Italians, laughing and waving. We got to Modena, drove through the town to the railway station, into the tation yard and thereMany « Gormai Secone their © vast m experie aitemp surpris what | British on int und up to watch thelr € the m follow. 18 Prisoners ofthe Reich they were, dozens of cattle erucks. The whole atmosphere changed ~ in almost silence we clambered out and in due course we were herded {nto cattle trucks. The one thing, we had dreaded was coming to pass swe were heading for Germany. Determined attempts by prisoners to hide in camp or escape while in transit met with swift and often drastic German action, as Captain Nicholls quickly found out. On the way to Germany he passed through Campo PG78 and tried to escape from there: 1 thought I would hide up in the loft of our building, above the plaster ceiling: Iwas by no means the only one with thesame dea. When mosebt the officers were being loaded into tucks to go tothe station we got up into the roof and hoped to stay thee until everybody had gone. But he Germans were nt that stupid. They seta few troops fring up through the celing up into the loft. Not being very brave I came down pretty Aquick[ly}as did the others Teas very depressing being carted olin eucks othe railway station {A couple of brave chaps tried to make a break by jumping from the ‘rucks but they were shot co discouragethe ret. It certainly discouraged The prisoners who were rounded up by the Germans soon di covered they had to cope with a different régime. "With characterise thoroughness, they counted, recorded, tabulated and grouped us wrote Private Ayling of the motor-cycle unit which took over his camp while Trooper Stopford begat his journey north ‘under the ‘most uncomfortable conditions we had yet endured and with superior and stricter guards.” "Yet despite strict German discipline on the journey overthe Brenner ass there were many POWs willing :0 risk everything on escaping. This was a difficult and exceedingly dangerous task and only very ‘occasionally successful Even with long odds against it, however, men repeatedly tried to avoid a second dose of captivity. One of them was Lieutenant Freer Roger who managed to break through planking to release the pin of the door catch on a railway wagon taking him to Austria. Atthe bitter hour of four in the morning he jumped from the train as it slowed down with atleast five other POWs close behind. ‘The train was doing, about 20 m.p.h, We went outone by ene lke parachutists, A—— and. just missed a telegraph pole and landed softly half way down a steep railway embankment. The best sight [have ever seen was the tal light of the guard’s van disappearing in the distance. No shots disturbed the silence of the night as we picked ourselves up.” Steering south-east by'the stars they linked up with hundreds of Transit 19 Make or break eff to get rough to the Bish ins “This was typical ofthe stores told by most POWs who attempeed to escape wile in tans. They ended up in captivity with ile ‘Sance of getting avay again, ietenant Moody was one prisoner ‘vi had nearly reached Aled safety once before when be ws picked Up by German patrol in December, 1943, after geting away ftom a Sintaking him to Austra, “After that he wrote, Tim fai gaveup Iles though [could break down and cry Iwas so disappointed ‘obesonento safety ands confident an thea, when Ilestexpected it tobe taken prisoner again ade at east two other attempts before Trrived in Germany bus 'm afi they were only half-hearted 3 ¢hink my spre was broken afer the second attemp ‘While most British prisoner in German camps were captured in xo oF came from Italy in 1943 there were others who arrived from rece and Crete between June, 1941 and April 1043. Among them was Gunner Peacosk, one of thousands of Brith and Common- ‘wealth troops taken ffom a collecting point for prisoners ae Corinth dnd transpored by ral and on foot through Yugoslavia into Austria dnd Germany. This march had a strange, dreamlike quality” which tas heightened by the sight of thre salors from one of our sunken {hips dtelag intptanly bactoocon rocky oad uot owe middle-aged German guards who were siting exhausted by the roadside ‘After the fll of Crete another large batch of POW founds way to German camps. After being rounded up on the island men were battened down inthe scinking holds of small lian freighters forthe sea journey to Salonika. From there they travelled through the Balkans and Ausra under primitive conditions. Lance-Corporal Morey as one of many Royal Marines who suffered a tough journey to Sil IVB at Mahberg, north-west of Dresden, on the River Elbe: “Toilet and washing Gcltes were non-existent onthe tin, bit we were ornate in ur wagon in that the open windows were only covered with barbed ste fo prevent tsespe, 40 we were able to use empty food cans and throw une and txerement trough the windows, fesning the tn for future se” ‘When they eventually reached Mahlborg, Morey andthe sthers were confined to ther hits becate of violent ontoreak of diphtheria, Afewards he went to work eamp and remained tele forthe est of the war There was trickle of arrivals from the bloolly-opposed Dieppe landings in August, 1943; moxtof them were Canadians, A number of British prisoners ako began co arrive in Germany afer getting ashore at the Anzio beach-headin January, 1044. They were wally taken coMany 0 Germar Second. their ox vast me experi attempt ‘surprisi rristake time ra: Ingenio tothis « fms ar made ¢ ‘got an picture. inthis story. blamed compo! hunger ome t beste. in Pr what I British on inte! hundre up tof watch their: the me follows Nberati tach § atom during: fot ac) 20 Prisoners of the Reich ome where they were interrogated ia a former lm studios and Rome try ofa wan camp at Latcrina neat Florence, Wer seer ue ruck to various prison camps in Gray Ti any thousands of solders who stormed the Nosmandy aa at pshed on aaistbiter resixanc the Germans beget hes aula prisoner PivteSudworth was one of those eee ee tok us into aed, deprived ts ofall akables and Cera SS a shot Fortunately, tne of our fighter planes cae a cy moment, wagging thse wings im recognition. The aoe yr cover, Eat we sood thee saving, Whilst th Cerra cd una protective cre, Afra while, when 28 Fane ot mere dong, the Germans came bac, gave Us OM cartons and herded us off towards ete HQ ee dott to Rennes inthe Brest Peninsula but onthe ental He umaged to survive Aled ir rids and had fo By need Bom angey Frenchmen by the German guards. "We a ott gut lead to complete oor journey all in one Pie Vihat was to be their final group of British prisoners was captured py ia Getmane atthe “bridge too fa = Amber. One soir who by the Cem ote, Corpral Goode, fl ino the has ar oe ops who were eniey correct and even shared out oot keane they had tote som nearby shops ee veo schureh im the town suburbs where machine gn ate eee areeutin, One tang which he remembered above aaeeer enc cater of altar candesicks and chalices bouncing a ae ged floor asthe altar table ws sept clear for ao oes andergoing interrogation he was sent by alunder Wehnnah unr vo Germany Trees vlliers who surtenered on the battlefields of Normandy or in te klng fells of Arahem had ore considerable advantage over ina ee Red been caprred eres the war. Unlike them, they ene eda no be spending the est of theives behind barbed Tey were abo at an advantage in that they were spared the long wall go captivity, The prisoners who had suffered from it later eulied Gace eck wkh mixed feelings of hated and pride in Haan ae eer re ak “The lang march wae ony possible once in Tate ser Hieumes concluded Corporal Walker, “drawing on Your on ong snd Bolly resources to keep moving and dodge te fe tes ‘Scena ifxime was certainly more than enough for most men a ee thir prison camps. Bu whether hey served at German Transit 21 prison camp early or late in the war, however, they were troubled by the same doubts and uncertainties 2s to what awaited them there. Unlike soldiers who had been captured by the Germans, surviving aircrew were all brought to the same place. At the small town of ‘Oberussel near Frankfurt the authorities had established, in a small barbed-wire enclosure, 2 central Air Force Interrogation Centre offically named Auswertungsstlle West but commonly known as Dulag Luft. This was the principal centre for the whole western theatre of operations. Durchgangslager Luftwaffe ~ or German Air Force Transit Camp ~ was located in permanent brick buildings and received its frst pris— loners, thirteen British and French officers, early in December, 1939. New huts were erected in mid-1940 to accommodate increasing, ‘numbers of airerew shot down so there developed an interrogation centre with three barracks, one of them housing the British Permanent Staff. “Associated with this was the Hohemark Hospital of fifty to sixty beds which dealt with wounded POWs. The orthopaedic specialist there was Oberar2t Ittershagen: “he seemed a man who practised ‘medicine inthe highest traditions ofthe profession, without partiality whatsoever for rank, creed, nationality or religion,” commented Air ‘Commodore Ivelaw-Chapman who spent some time at the Hohe- mark with a badly smashed shoulder. Also connected with Dulag Luft vas a transit camp at Wetzlar to which prisoners were sent as soon as possible after thei interrogation had been completed. ‘There was a set procedure for dealing with incoming aircrew. Each ‘man was put into a separate cell which was sparsely furnished with a ‘bed, tableand chair. Prisoners could not open the double window and individual heaters rather too powerful for the small space, could only bbe operated from the corridor outside. Insulating material filled the cavities of the walls and doors to prevent prisoners contacting each ‘ther, though some managed to communicate by tapping out Morse ‘code on heating pipes running through thei cells. Every prisoner was introduced to what looked like a Red Cross form, It was headed ‘Arrival Report Form’ which is precisely what it ‘was but the reception officer usually told them that if they filled in all Aether could more quickly be notified of ther apiviryo, more rately, that they might be shot they ese to co-operate. Many prisoners refused to fil in this form, however, Because, folowing various non-important questions covering nate, rank and Service mmber (which he Geneva Convention required them to give anyway) there were a whole series about their Service squaton, {group stationnumberandso on. Laterin the war, Bomber CommandMany ¢ Germa Secone their e) ‘vast m experie ingenig tothis fms @ made ‘oot an picture inthis story’ blame ‘comp hunge| best in. what i Britis und up to watch their « them ‘ollow. Surin major the re scar 22 Prisoners ofthe Reich aircrew were wamed ofthis flke Red Cross form and knew some of ihe interrogation techniques that would be practised om them 3t Obese eae , Knowing what was likely to happen to chem, new prisoners were reassured when things went according to planeta if was some thinor actor playing. role na play which had already been worked Gun tid Sergeant Brace ofthis cme though he was shaken by the i iroystordeuled Lnowledgeofhissquadron, ames of pilotsand Birra recognition markings ‘Another member of Bomber Command who had been “well brated! by RAT inellgence before bang shot down was Sergeant Binild: knew what to expect when arrived. at Dulag Lafe— ithe was subjected to solitary confinement fr seven days. Daring Unce sessions of interrogation chey glenn no more than my Rank, Name and Nmbee" “ ‘Gm ahose pasoners who refused to Flin che fake Red Cross form che Germang had considerable information although they invariably grvesechpisonescxtaimeinsciar confinement. Even when the fan was ony partly completed useful snippets of itligence were ‘tin gathered by Levan Heinrich Eberhard. tn addition, he wrote Ap tokesments Of each prsoner and submited them t0 the chief interrogator Major Fein Junge ‘ng had been a POW in the First World War and arrived at Dulag Laff it ge at the Kommandant’s request. Each day at noon he bukied his interogators and evaluation experts and impressed on them the need for consideration and courtesy when dealing with thee PeMfost POWs were only interrogated once at Dulag Luft. After a ception office had seen him the nial assessment and fake Red Grek far wore sed by Junge to mutch wp an interrogator to the ze From this point on the interrogator, who invariably spoke excellent Englah and/wore Luftwaffe uniform (though most of them were aly atached tothe Service and carried the nomial rank of Leute), Shade fll use ofthe resources open ohm which nchuded acess tothe Beate und Nachrchen Abii. BUNA for shore, which rea In- formation through Booty. Into BUNA went every strap of material fecavered ftom siteraft shot down and from thee dead and surviving lots maps, some burned or tor, streaked with grease and blood, eters, newspaper cattngs, theatre tckets~ down to every seemingly Ifaigifcane cm ~ were carefully filed away. tn addition there was 2 Complete and continuous history ofeach ai force unit n every Allied Sountry which was kept up t0 date by information from the Press Transit 23 Section, which received material from German agents all over the work, snd from exact transcripts ofimertogators' conversations with prisoners, Information about other srcew was speedily avaiable From the Castalty Recording Branch Having co-ordnated ll te availble evidence the interrogator was aca distinct advange when meeting a newly-captred prisoner and was sometimes able to lead hm on to give new information. Sergeant Warcing was unfortunately persed to fil n a Red Cross form giving his sation and squadron becue the interrogation offices told Bim chat many others had co-operated, “eis to my shame that I did reveal my sqadron” wrote Sergeant Peachey many years late, ding, must, however, point out that before doing s0 he [the ihogus Red Cross official] old me the squadron and where fe Was Sergeant Tomblin, who flew a glider into Arnhem afer surviving the DeDay landings, avived at Daag Luft and was kept in cll on shortratons,Exsopratd by his refi give any operstional details hisinterrogatorgaveup andtold him: "O.K. You win, [willarange for you to go tos peroancnt Stalag Before you gol wil ll you tat youfcw with AleeJohiston, yout Flight, Eight, was commanded by Major Jackson, You came here from RAFDowa Ampacy and you tive Gorse eldest so and 20," His Enowledge stated te, a8 ould only think that somcone had done alot of talking for a hot Steaming dinner, Many aierew at Dulag Lafe who were suprised and dismayed at the accuracy of German nteligence thought that other POWs must havespiled the beans.‘ was quite surprised tthe fcsual information thar as repeated to me and hardly prepared fr eld sevice cap belonging to an A/G [Air Gunner] on our squadron being placed on the table before me,” wrote Sergeant Humes. His interrogation was something ofan an-climax beesse, as he explained, “Siting the tntrance othe interrogation room, ran my Hinges through the sand inthe ire bucketsnd pulled outa compete escape kit minis its cover. hrnely Dred tag, Tnstesd of punishing, humiliating or makreating prisoners, Junge Batissntf nese mete subc wetbon what onc ofthe mon sel intertogitor, Hans Schall, alle. “sarming smiaility.- No Amount of prepartion, headed, could inselate aman from barbed ne pyehosis he very fet of being 4 prisoner exerts powerful pressure upon the tmindandspincotsman. Hes nstarly weighed down with fecing of fuk etea though is captre i noc is wr fault tal, He fc guy, Beeaue he knows he is on the sidline from now unl the end of Che24 Prisoners ofthe Reich J. He sin shor. ame that he cannot be in there fighting with his pals. He is, Spoutas unhappy in i sprit sa man can get be ce we to, were soliers, it was butnatural hat we should exploit thisstncof mind Schar's psychology was abviosly shrew: ‘Thad the impression thar might oven be dangerous jst te alk about the weather swith Him, "said Colonel Zemke of the United States Army Air Force. Not everyone, however, was handed with ha loves t Dui Luft Sergeant Spencer was interrogated ‘afer spending 2 couple o days in asmall cell where the hesting was permanently on and the srclows wouldn't open. It was uncomfortable (ast was intended 19 bey but made the moat oft by drying my clothes out, Pd been in wet Clothes since we ditched several days before” Another POW who Soffered the heat treatment was Pilot Officer Hancock, though he hover knew the reason fort Tiler the war, Killinger, Jane, Eberharde and ewo others were given prison sentences by an Allied rsltary court for maltreating Bows Evenso, tere wasa widespread belief tha the sentences were tnjust especially since Kilinge and Jonge appeated before Goring im tou4t answer charges of Beng fo0 easy on thee prisoners ‘Rt the camp tratermization between the Germans and their prisoners was par of game of bluff and couver-buf. By providing many Thali which could ensure a more oF less civilized existence, the Germans planned to break th aggresive spirit oftheir captives and Seourage them to tall In return, the prisoners hoped to put thei captor eff their guard and exploit every opportunity to escape. Pilot Offer Harvey fad this in mind when joe the Permanent Stat Sinking he sight find 2 way out, "There was a vacancy in the Cookhotse and was able transfer tothe staf. Security seemed abit Shekand was hoping to escape, having altered my batedress to look rors evan andaranging cegular evening ipso ee stores outside thecompound withanother.O.W Before he could put his plan into titer, However, security was tightened up. Afer opting ott of his Stajob he was Sento Stalag VB ‘A number of pesones who eventually escaped suecessillyffom other camps were highly ctcal ofthesctup a Dulag Luft when they store debifed on returning home Fight-Lieutenant Shore was one Prisoner who received invitations to érinking paris atthe house of Rump, the Kommandant. He was determined, however, not % covoperte at al with the Germans and pointedly refused thee offers: Store decided, would be sign the wis list which prisoners could J>Sergeant James was another POW whose suspicions grew after Transit 25 being taken to Dulag Luft from the Hohemark where he had been treated for severe burns sustained while bailing out over the French coast. While on walks inthe neighbourhood with other prisoners he heard of lavish drinking parties for officers and shoots arranged for them outside the camp. A little later, after his transfer to Stalag IXC, hhe came to the conclusion that the permanent staff at Dulag Luft had been raiding Red Cross parcels. ‘Charges such as these continued to be heard in RAF prison camps for most of the war. Pilot Officer Layne, for example, who had flown, ‘with a Pathfinder Force, was interrogated by a friendly young civilian, Inexcellent English he explained chat he had been injured while ying, for the Luftwaffe and now worked for the Red Cross, ‘This, of course, was untrue,’ added Layne. ‘He was, in fact, an aircrew member of the RAF who had collaborated with the enemy. After the war Iheard he haad been tried and sentenced for treason.’ Sergeant Saunders (RCAF) also came across this ‘very handsome’ man. ‘Theard later on that they lined him up and shot him in the cold, grey light of dawn, after the war,” he said. There sno doubt that few RAF prisoners were so softened by the comparative luxury and mildness ofthe regime at Dulag Luft that they accepted anything the Germans could offer and turned traitor. AS Sergeant Wood wrate, “The distrastfalt by transients for the perma nent staff here was surprising and complete.’ But the truth of the matter, which was necessarily hidden from most RAF aircrew, was very different. Flying Officer Dilley, like other prisoners, was furious to find three RAF officers apparently collaborating with the Germans in admin- iscering the tiny camp and enjoying considerable luxury thereby. Te was only when we got home that we discovered the three were British intelligence officers “planted” on the enemy by the Air Ministry.” This arrangement was an extension of tne system initially put into ‘operation by the camp's first Senior British Officer (SBO), the celebrated Wing Commander H. M. A. (‘Wings’) Day, who was sent to Stalag Luft I for leading eighteen POWs out of the fist successful escape tunnel in German sol ‘Newly-captared naval prisoners were usually taken to German naval hheadquarters at Wilhemshaven on the north German coast. The authorities knew that really useful information usually came from prisoners still in a state of shock who were interrogated as soon 38, possible after capture, It was German policy, however, to send there any naval POWs thought co have specialist knowledge, such as, submariners and men taken in the St Nazaire rai, ‘The questioning at Wilhelmshaven was thorough and it was clear26. Prisoners ofthe Rech that the interrogators knew a good deal about British naval oper= Sons, Prisoners there also had fo fill n the same kind of bogus Red fos form as that used at Dulag Lat ‘Kept in serict polation, shamed by capture and desperately lonely, some prisoners fll for wellused German ploy. Thete would bea Tough‘and threatening session, the POW might even be threatened shit death unless he gave operational deals, Then would come 2 Inore sympathetic and even apologetic chat ~‘t had all been an Unforeonate mistake. Would the prisoner care for a cigarette and pethaps confirm afew basi points” Keyed upto face a roughhouse, Ere toughest seaman could be disarmed by such tactic. ‘After being interrogated at Wilkelmshaven, naval POWs were sent ofthe chnd tated wie, rom very ey oni the va he Germans followed a policy akin to that adopted for surviving aircrew Sy bringing together all captured naval oficers, petty officers and Teading hands ina singe cmp, first ofall t Sandbostel and then ata permanent camp for naval personnel sct among alpine tees in fat, Pendly countryside ar Westertimke near Bremen, called Marlag und Milag Nord ‘Ouv ofthe greatest strengths the ordinary prisoner could have was the ability to get om with ie Behind barbed wire, of in a popular Siping. "To See things through”. Ae Pivate Yapp wrote home from Germany in October, 1943" This has no doubt been a bitter di Sppointment for you. . but a Teast the capitulation of Italy was a areee sucess for us. I's also a great step towards the final victory. Thich cannot beso very far off now. 1am very thankful to be out of Taly for they area despicable race and my contempt for them grew wvith the length of my stay there. The Germans onthe other hand have Mode ofhonovr, look, think and ext ke us and eeat slike soldiers. Twas this sheer, bloody-minded determination to find something postive in the most disappointing and miserable situation that un= Toubsealy helped. many" British prisoners to survive when they teached permanent camps in Germany and te occupied counties, “+ Marag und Mig: abbreviation for Marner and Morincinericenlager = naval camp and merchact nay iatemment camp. 3 ARRIVAL TT none POW eee a cmp woud be eid om it ‘memory for ever. Many tried later to explain this and found it was not easy. “A prisoner-of-war camp is a difficult place to describe,” ‘wrote Terence Pritte, ‘probably even more difficult to visualize for those who know of t only by hearsay.” ‘At first sight the appearance of German prison camps was uni formly bleak, especially those situated in the Polish corridor to which ‘most prisoners from the BEF were sent. They had, recalled Lance- Corporal Longmore, ‘an overall smell of rotting potatoes, disinfectant and open cess pits." On entering such places, he added, one's main thoughts were fear of the unknown, degradition and “where is the rnext meal coming from ~ and when Despite the fact that their first dismal impressions were soon confirmed, men were glad to arrive after the hardships of their Jjoumey, a6 Private Mason discovered. After being made to surrender ‘while trying to fight his way back to Dunkirk, he was force-marched through Belgium, arriving eventually at Stalag VIIIB with ‘mixed feelings of utter dejection and relief that the long march was over' ‘This was a common reaction as prisoners dragged themselves into dusty compounds: ‘I was tired, diety and ravenously hungry but the predominant feeling was one of thankfulness at having arrived in a Permanent prison camp,’ wrote Lieutenant Harwood when he got to Offag VII C/H, '25 we had been led to believe conditions would be better and we would be allowed to sleep in comparative comfort. ‘The abulation and documentation of theie prisoners was carried out with typical bureaucratic efficiency by the Germans. I took place usually when they arrived at their first camp although sometimes men’s lives were reduced to a few lines of ink on official forms after iterrogation at transit camps. Lance-Corporal Farret went through the system and recorded the time that was needed to adjust to a life in Captivity after he was captured in Norway. Onarriving at Stalag XXA in Poland he found that ‘while the documentation was completed it gave us time to come to terms with the fact that this was our future ~ ‘aptivity. Usually, a man knows why he is imprisoned .. . but asa POW there isa strange feeling of having been abandoned. That is the