Belgian POWs Dig Trenches under German Supervision

Notes:

German troops supervise Belgian prisoners in the construction of a new line of trenches outside of Brussels in 1914. Note that the trenches are not dug in a straight line to prevent enemy troops, who seize a part of the trench, from firing the length of the defensive line. Forcing POW's to construct fortifications was a violation of the Hague Conventions. This photograph may have been retouched--note the prisoner in the foreground. He appears as a shadow of a sentry in other copies of this photograph.

Date Created:

1914-01-01T00:00:00Z

Data Provider:

Western Michigan University. Libraries

Subject Topic:

Germany, Work, Combat Work, Belgian POWs, Belgium, World War 1914-1918, Diplomatic History, European History, Military History, and Political History

Rights:

No Copyright - United States. Physical ownership of materials: Willis John Abbot, The Nations at War: A Current History, New York: Syndicate Publishing Company, 1915, 20.

URL:

https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/wwi_pow_camps/107