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- Notes:
- French and British prisoners board a train at Cambrai bound for Germany and captivity. Many of these men have lost parts of their uniforms and have adopted civilian clothing. Many carry substantial belongings with them as they head for life in a prison camp.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Two British prisoners of war plane the bark off wooden logs as a German guard in a Pickelhaube watches their work.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A British sailor hands a loaf of bread to a French prisoner under the supervision of a German NCO in the bread warehouse in Zossen. Russian prisoners look on from the right as a British POW loads some bread into a hand truck which will be used to distribute the bread in the camp. Note the stacks of loaves of bread behind the prisoners. Bread was a major component of POW rations in all German prison camps.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners practice a scene from a play on stage in the theater at Limburg. Prisoners often organized quality productions to entertain the other POW's in the camp.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners at St. Elot prepare to march to a prisoner assembly point under guard by German lancers.
- Date Created:
- 1914-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A British prisoner-of-war attempts to shinny down a drain pipe outside the Citadel in an escape attempt, under the nose of a German Landsturm sentry. Escapes from citadels and fortresses were difficult due to pre-war construction which emphasized security, but did occur from time to time.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The German army provided mobile disinfection chambers to prison camps to help with the demand for disinfecting POW clothing. These three chambers are in operation in the prison camp at Koenigsbrueck under the direction of German NCO's. French POWs, dressed in protective clothing, put clothing into the machines while a British prisoner watches the operation. The German Army used these mobile disinfection chambers for use by German soldiers in the field.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British, Russian, and French cobblers work in their shop at Doeberitz making new and repairing old shoes and boots. These shops offered important services to prisoners and offered young POW's an opportunity to learn a trade.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Newly captured British prisoners march through the main gate at Muenster and into captivity for the remainder of the war. German officers supervise the arrival and will soon introduce the new facility to these war prisoners.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of Scottish and English prisoners of war relax in the compound at Doeberitz smoking their pipes and cigarettes. Note the German non-commissioned officer standing to the extreme right smoking a cigarette.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- POW's struggled to build any kind of shelter to protect themselves from the elements when the Germans first opened the prison camp at Sennelager. In this sketch, the prisoners have improvised using earth dugouts and pieces of wood to construct crude shelters.
- Date Created:
- 1914-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- German guards escort a column of British prisoners assigned to an Arbeitskommando somewhere in Germany early in the war.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A labor detachment of British prisoners plane the bark off trees and dig trenches under the direction of German guards early in the war. This work was illegal under the Hague Conventions since the labor supported the German war effort.
- Date Created:
- 1914-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Five British prisoners of war sit on a bench in front of the store room at Limburg peeling potatoes, under the watchful gaze of a German non-commissioned officer. The store room appears full given the bags of supplies behind the window. Note that the British prisoners wear identification bands on their upper left arms.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This drawing depicts French, Belgian, and British prisoners enjoying the evening smoking and playing cards in the canteen at the officers' camp in Burg. They are served by a Russian orderly and Gladys, the hostess. Prisoners were not totally cut off from the presence of women, who occasionally worked in canteens in German prison camps.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British and French prisoners unpack newly arrived letters and parcels from home in the mail censorship room at Zossen. German officers inspect the packages carefully for contraband. POW's often complained about the inspection process which required the opening of tins and the reduction of shelf life of these packages. However, contraband was sometimes discovered which kept German authorities suspicious of parcels or information in letters.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A detachment of British prisoners of war dig a drainage ditch in a field outside the prison camp at Teltow. German Landsturm guards keep an eye on the workers. This area was susceptible to flooding and proper drainage was important to increase agricultural productivity.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A prisoner and a German soldier remove clean bedding from a disinfection machine in the prison camp at Limburg. These clothes have been fumigated and are safe to return to their owners, now that they are free of vermin which might have spread disease in the camp.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This drawing depicts a British prisoner-of-war looking forlornly through the camp fence guarded by a German Landsturm sentry at Mainz. War prisoners succumbed to "barbed-wire" disease which was caused by confinement in captivity for an unknown period of time.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A British labor detachment, composed of English and Scottish POWs, pulls a wagon, with a German soldier on top, to work in the fields. A German woman on the side of the road has caught the attention of some of the prisoners.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A British aviator receives a military funeral in the prison camp cemetery at Carlsruhe. In attendance at the ceremony are German officers as well as various Allied POW's.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British and French prisoners stand at attention during roll call in the prison compound at Wahn. German officers and non-commissioned officers stand in the center of the first row counting the prisoners and addressing sick calls. The prisoners stand in front of their barrack. Maintaining accurate counts of prisoners was critical for security and labor assignments.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A game of chess pits a French soldier against a French colonial trooper in a German prison camp. Spectators include French prisoners of war and German soldiers. A British POW naps in his chair while wearing his slippers. Board games helped improve the morale in the barracks by giving the prisoners some mental diversions.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners of war work on a German farm, turning over the soil and sifting stones from the dirt. A Landsturm guard watches their work in the background.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French, Russian, British, and Belgian prisoners stand in the court yard and on the stairs of the building to the left in the prison camp at Regensburg. Note the white identification badges on the front of the POW's hats.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French, British, and Russian prisoners of war join civilian internees for this picture of the narrow gauge railway in Guestrow. They sit on one of the locomotives and cars with a German NCO and guards, with a second locomotive to the right. The Germans constructed railways in larger prison camps to move supplies, men, and materials as part of the daily operations of the camp facility.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Two British sailors saw down a tree while another British prisoner of war holds an axe during some winter work. Two German guards look on and observe their progress.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of captured Indian soldiers stand outside of the citadel at Lille with two German soldiers.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British officers perform their morning exercise through callisthenics in front of a group of German guards at Torgau. The British prisoners maintained their daily military drill to the amazement of their German captors.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- German non-commissioned officers supervise the distribution of parcels to British prisoners of war in the compound of the prison camp at Goettingen. A Landsturm sentry, to the extreme left, stands guard during the activity. British parcels were valuable commodities in prison camps due to their rich contents.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The conditions in the Schnurgasse fortress prison in Koeln were dismal for Allied officers. The POW's had an opportunity to shower only once a week and then the supply of hot water was very limited.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Allied prisoners muster in front of their barracks in the prison compound at Dyrotz for a roll call. English prisoners stand to the right, Russians in the middle, and French POW's to the right. On the lower right hand side of the photograph are the wagons and tools used to support the prison camp on a daily basis.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- An Arbeitskommando of British prisoners of war march through the main gate of a German prison camp with shovels over their shoulders in parade fashion. Some children watch the parade to the left.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British officers line up outside the Citadel on the parade grounds for their daily roll call by a German non-commissioned officer. Roll calls helped guards maintain security by identifying absent war prisoners. Frequent roll calls, especially at night, led to POW complaints of abuse. At Mainz, however, the British officers appear to take the roll call in stride.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- An assorted group of British prisoners, including non-commissioned officers, enlisted men, medical corpsmen, and Highlanders, stand in front of their barracks at Wahn. A German guard joins in at the right side of the photograph.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French and British prisoners prepare to board a German troop train at Peronne-Nord for incarceration in Germany. German troops are about to disembark for service in northern France.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Allied prisoners of war had strict orders forbidding fraternization with German guards. There were few restrictions, however, on POW attempts at improving their relations with guard dogs. In this drawing, a British officer and a Russian officer offer some scraps to a guard dog, while a German sentry stands watch at the compound fence.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners collect water at the hand pump so they can wash their clothing in the large outdoor tubs at Limburg. When the weather was warm, prisoners could launder their uniforms outdoors. The barracks where they ate and slept stand behind them.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners of war participate in compulsory exercise in this drawing of the prison compound at Muenster, including wounded POW's, under the supervision of German guards. Two prisoners are busy cutting firewood to the right; behind them stands a one-story wooden barrack found in many German prison camps.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A British prisoner of war is buried in the cemetery at Limburg with full military honors, which included a German band and a Landsturm honor guard. While his comrades lower the casket into the grave, German officers stand at attention to the right. Civilians from Limburg, to the left, also attended the burial service.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British enlisted prisoners participate in the YMCA Sports Day competition at the prison camp at Cellelager before a large crowd of spectators of Russian POW's and German officers. Note the construction of a new barrack in the background.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A labor detachment of British prisoners of war march through a German town on their way to a work assignment. Civilians watch their progress from the sidewalk and follow them on a bicycle.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French and British prisoners are engaged in a "cootie hut" outside of their barracks and next to the laundry at Muenster. The POW's had to regularly take their bedding outside for airing to get rid of lice and other vermin. In this camp, prisoners took their wooden bunks outside as well for cleaning. Some prisoners pass the time by playing board games while others simply sit around talking. German authorities were constantly vigilant to prevent the outbreak of epidemics in the densely crowded barracks of enlisted men.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British and French prisoners of war draw their daily bread rations from a cart under the watchful eyes of German Landsturm guards. The British troops, used to white bread, considered the German "Kriegsbrot" to be a poor substitution, especially as the war continued and substitute ingredients were added to replace flour supplies.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners of war on a labor detachment march along a snowy road in support of a supply train. One POW is pulling a cart filled with boxes, which may have been parcels for the prisoners. The heavily laden wagon in front is also pulled by several prisoners. POW's often had to march to the railroad depot to load wagons with supplies and parcels for the prison camp.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- German non-commissioned officers carefully inspect food parcels for contraband while British, Scottish, and French prisoners prepare to distribute the censor-approved packets to fellow prisoners. German enthusiasm for detecting banned items sometimes spoiled food preservation by opening cans and tins or cutting through bread and meat products.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian, French, Belgian, and British POW's stand in line for their daily roll call in front of their barracks at Nuernberg. The Germans integrated the Allied prisoners within prison camps to avoid accusations of prejudice or mistreatment and, mockingly, to promote "comradery" among the Allied soldiers.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Thousands of British, French, and American prisoners languish at the prisoner collection center in Laon (the cathedral stands in the background). The Germans captured these prisoners during their Spring 1918 Offensive in northern France.at Soissons-Rheims.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French and British prisoners organize packets in the mail censorship room at Heuberg in preparation for distribution to the prisoner population, while German non-commissioned officers inspect packages for contraband. One German censor is cutting into a package with a knife on the left, a process that did not please most parcel recipients.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A scene in the kitchen of the officers' prison camp in Hannoverisch Muenden. The kitchen staff stands in the background with German non-commissioned officers, Allied enlisted men (who served as the cooks), and several French and British officers. Note the conventional stove in the kitchen instead of the huge pressure cookers designed for mass food production found in enlisted men's camps. Loaves of bread are stacked on the shelves in the back of the kitchen.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Allied officers line up outside of the parcel post window at Burg waiting to receive their packages from home. A German non-commissioned officer mans the window and distributes the packets (after their careful inspection by German authorities for contraband).
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners pose with a soccer ball before a match in the prison compound at Schneidemuehl. The British POW's enjoyed playing soccer and organized leagues to help stay in shape during their long captivity.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British prisoners scrub down the camp laundry at Limburg under the command of German guards. The stoves connected to the chimney heat water which is usually used by the POW's to wash their clothing inside this facility.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photograph, taken early in the war, shows British prisoners of war lounging about on the ground with a lot of free time on their hands and nothing to do in a new German prison camp. The arrival of YMCA secretaries resulted in access to sports equipment and the organization of leagues to promote POW health and morale.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The prison orchestra at Doeberitz, composed of British prisoners, is about to give an outdoor concert in front of a barrack. Prisoners are equipped with a wide range of musical instruments and have wooden music stands, most likely produced in the prison carpentry shop. Note the camp bulletin board on the wall behind the orchestra which announced news and orders.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- With only the perimeter fence constructed, Allied prisoners of war suffer through the night of a rain storm in September 1914. While German sentries march their rounds, prisoners seek whatever shelter they can find in the prison compound. The Germans were unprepared for the capture of large numbers of Allied prisoners or for the long duration of the conflict, as demonstrated by this sketch of Sennelager. The POWs would soon be at work constructing their new barracks.
- Date Created:
- 1914-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A German orderly issues the latest war news from the front as part of the morning sick call for British and French officers at Magdeburg. Note the boots and shoes drying out on top of the ovens inside the dormitory to the left and the tea pots on top of the oven in the center.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British and French POW's visit the canteen in the prison camp in Bautzen. The canteen is well-stocked with boots, slippers, suspenders, knives/razors, and other goods (including sausages) while a German soldier mans the cash register. This photograph was taken early in the war when prison stocks were plentiful and the Allied blockade had not taken its toll on the German economy.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A British prisoner of war adds a shovel load of coal to the fire which heats the stove where other British POW's prepare a meal under the direction of a German non-commissioned officer. The amount of soup prepared in the kitchen at Limburg is reflected in the size of the ladle and stirrer held by the prisoners. Meals had to be mass produced to meet the nutritional requirements of prison camps three times a day.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of English and Scottish soldiers and sailors stand in front of their barrack along with several German non-commissioned officers for a group photograph.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British and French prisoners prepare to open packages from home in the packet mail room in the prison camp at Bautzen. They work under the supervision of a German non-commissioned officer, who is standing to the right.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries