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- Notes:
- As Austro-German forces mounted a counter-offensive in Galacia in 1915, droves of Russian prisoners arrived at German prisons. Hundreds of recently captured Russian POW's disembark from their railway cars at the train station at Lamsdorf while German guards watch attentively behind a pile of logs. The railroad system provided all the necessities for daily life for a prison camp, ranging from food to supplies to prisoners-of-war.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Armenian Christians that escaped the massacres in Turkey traveled to Port Said in Egypt where they received food and shelter at the refugee stations operated by the Allies.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A Hungarian sentry stands guard at the entrance to the prison camp at Huszt in 1918. The barbed-wire fence enclosing the prison compound does not appear to be in the best of condition. Some of the camp's barracks and some incarcerated Polish Legionnaires stand in the background.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photograph shows four potatoes that have been "sabotaged" by Allied prisoners working on agricultural labor detachments. The POW's cut the eyes out of the potatoes and without these seeds, the Germans would be unable to grow the next crop of potatoes. Due to the effectiveness of the Allied blockade, this practice placed an even greater burden on the German war economy.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A cosmopolitan group of thirteen Allied officers, representing Belgium, Britain, Scotland, France, India, French North Africa, and Russia, pose outdoors at the prison camp at Osnabrueck. The Gerrmans used these types of photographs for propaganda purposes to highlight Germany's death struggle with the majority of the world.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A German medical officer vaccinates Belgian and French prisoners against cholera in the prison camp in Chemnitz. Epidemics raged quickly through prison camps due to the close proximity of prisoners in cramped barracks and German medical staffs took preventative measures to ensure healthy prison camps. German authorities were also concerned about civilian populations and possible epidemics especially since prison camps were constructed near towns and the war prisoners often provided labor for a variety of projects.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian prisoners stand outside the gaily decorated YMCA building, which is festooned with strings of garland, during the inauguration ceremony in the prison camp at Sopronnyek. Hungarian officers stand in the foreground on the right hand sice and an official delegation, led by His Excellency, M. de Sjilessy, the Privy Councilor of the Emperor-King. The Association hut became the center of social activities in most prison camps during World War I.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian prisoners stack freshly baked bread on cooling shelves in the bread warehouse at Josefstadt, under the supervision of an Austrian non-commissioned officer. Large prison camps went through thousands of loaves of bread every day as bread was served with almost every meal.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This French program describes a variety show offered to prisoners on the afternoon of March 21, 1915 in the Stuttgart II prison camp. The program featured acrobats, comedy acts, and musical performances in a two-part matinee.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A labor detachment of French prisoners from Minden are hard at work on a road bed outside of the prison compound. Some of the prisoners are wearing wooden shoes, which often had information about the POW's barracks and serial number. The declining supply of leather in Germany resulted in the distribution of wooden shoes when boots or shoes were no longer available for POWs.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Nine members of the stringed orchestra at Ohrdruf pose for this photograph. The American YMCA shipped musical instruments to prison camps as part of the Association's social program. Access to instruments permitted musicians the opportunity to maintain their talent in preparation for post-war employment and the music performed by the orchestras and bands in prison concerts helped boost the morale of the prison population in general.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British internees with artistic talent or interests could paint and draw in the art studio in Ruhleben. Examples of the internees' work hang on the walls of the room.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French and Russian enlisted prisoners display their wood working projects for two German officers outside of the main prison building at Wuerzburg. There are examples of airplanes, birds, and a windmill which demonstrated the wood working skills of the prisoners. Captivity in prison provided men with considerable time to practice their hobbies and exhibitions allowed the POW's to show off their abilities.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This portrait of a prisoner at Danzig shows one of the multitude of Russian soldiers incarcerated by the Germans. He is an army cook from Korea and probably worked in the prison camp kitchen.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Newly arrived French prisoners march into the prison camp at Heuberg carrying their worldly belongings over their shoulders, under Landsturm guard. Most men arrived in prison camps with few comforts and while the Germans provided food and clothing, most POW's relied on parcels from home to support them in captivity.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- World's Alliance secretaries distribute relief funds to Serbian, Russian, and possibly a British prisoner outdoors at the prison camp at Haskovo. The Association sought to provide welfare support to destitute POW's to help then survive their incarceration. Some of the prisoners are recuperating from wounds but are able to muster to receive their money. The World's Alliance distributed 3.3 million Swiss francs to Allied prisoners in Bulgaria during the war.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photograph provides a general view of Afion Karahissar where the Turks maintained Allied officer prisoners. The city and mountain can be clearly seen in the photograph.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Several British prisoners had the opportunity to go skiing in the mountains outside of Yozgad during the winter. The Turkish authorities felt confident that British POW's could not travel very far in the mountains of Anatolia, especially during the winter.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A Russian officer tries his hand at fishing while other prisoners test out the water in the lake by the bathing house behind the hotel/prison facility at Bezau (Kreuzstein). Swimming kept the POW's in shape while fishing added fresh food to their dinner table.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A bird's eye view of the prison camp at Wieselburg from the town with the countryside in the background. Wieselburg was one of the largest prison camps in the Dual Monarchy.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Prisoners assemble outside of a YMCA hall in an Austrian prison camp in preparation for their Christmas celebration. Dignitaries are standing on the steps of the building by the front door.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- 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:
- Russian tailors are busy at work at the back of this workshop while cobblers labor behind the screened-wire wall to the right in the prison camp at Stendal. Skilled laborers supported the operation of prison camps by making and repairing shoes, boots, and clothing for the benefit of POWs. Apprentices also gained the opportunity to learn a trade that would help them find work after the war.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian medics treat wounded Russian prisoners at the dispensary at Ulm under the direction of the German medical staff. Many lightly wounded prisoners arrived in prison camps for treatment in the prison infirmaries and hospital wards. The Germans sent more seriously wounded prisoners to military hospitals for treatment until their conditions improved.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Actors perform a scene from a play in the French theater at Celle. The theater includes a piano to the left and a stage with scenes. The audience is accommodated by a large number of benches. Theater performances were important for the mental health of POW's incarcerated in prison camps since plays provided mental diversions from their captivity.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Exterior view of the prison hospital by the camp entrance in the prison camp at Ebersdorf bei Chemnitz. The Germans housed Allied prisoners in the newly constructed buildings of the casern in 1914 and Russian POW's remained in the camp long after the Armistice of 1918.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A large group of French and Belgian prisoners of war pose for a photograph in the prison camp compound at Goettingen. One can see the Bismarck Tower on top of the hill behind the prisoners.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A German guard smoking a pipe ties a Russian POW to the stake for some infraction of the camp rules at Lamsdorf. Violations of prison camp rules resulted in different kinds of punishments, often physical in nature. German authorities sought to maintain discipline in their prison camps and corporal punishment were practiced by both Allied and Central Power nations.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Interned Polish Legionnaires tend to their uniforms in the prison compound at Huszt on a sunny day in 1918. The security fence is not in good shape but the prisoners do not appear to be tempted to escape.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Prisoners of war sell a variety of food and other items outside their barracks in the prison compound in a German prison camp. Prisoners from Britain, France, and Russia assemble to inspect the wares available for sale. Food sales would become far less frequent in the later years of the war.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- To celebrate the Christmas season, the French prisoners organized a special concert for December 1917. This program highlights the music performed at Muensingen (the Christmas celebration for Russian and Serbian prisoners would follow in January 1918 due to the Orthodox calendar).
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- In this "London Chronicle" cartoon, two German children ask their rotund grandmother if they could visit the prison camp at Ruhleben to watch the interned British civilians starve, if they behaved themselves. The British government accused the Germans of maintaining cruel conditions in the internment camp, including inadequate dietary rations.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of officers and non-commissioned officers of the Polish Legion pose for a photo outside of their barracks at Werl. These men refused to take an oath of allegiance to the new Polish Regency set up in Warsaw in 1916 by the Central Powers because they sought independence under Polish rule.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Prisoners of war enjoy a lively soccer match on the athletic grounds at the prison camp at Celle. POW's took these games seriously and acquired the proper sports gear to play their games rather than playing in their military uniforms.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of sick and wounded French colonial soldiers stand in the hospital garden at Giessen under the care of French orderlies. They are recuperating in the fresh outdoor air.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A Russian prisoner of war performs a song on his mandolin in the prison camp at Goettingen. Music was an important source of entertainment, especially for Russian POW's.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Thousands of Russian prisoners celebrated Christmas outdoors in the prison compound at Purgstall by a large, decorated Christmas tree. American YMCA Secretary Paul B. Anderson took this photograph during the celebrations.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Disarmed Italian prisoners assemble under an Austrian guard at Kostanjevicza in preparation for transportation to a prison camp in the Dual Monarchy.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian prisoners of war study in a synagogue in the prison camp at Zwickau. Several sit at a table, reading the Talmud and several men standing in the rear of the synagogue wear prayer shawls. The synagogue is not as ornate as the Catholic chapel in the camp.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The program cover for a New Doeberitz Empire performance in November 1915, which features an English soldier instead of the traditional sailor as the camp's mascot.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French war prisoners enjoy a game of bowling in the prison compound at Landshut. A German non-commissioned officer, to the left, appreciates the fine throw. Bowling was one of the popular games enjoyed by French POW's in prison camps.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- German doctors and Belgian prisoners treat French and Belgian prisoners of war in the camp infirmary in Ludwigsburg. POW's arrived in camps recuperating from serious to light wounds and many became ill in captivity. The Germans provided extensive medical care, especially after epidemics broke out in several prison camps which resulted in Allied protests and neutral inspections.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The first French prisoners of war returning from Germany cross the Rhine River at Kehl on 21 November 1918. They were led by a French flag and the former prisoners sang the "Marseillaise" while a French officer saluted the troops to the left.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This is a photograph of several members of the Flying Squadron that the International Committee sent to Europe in the Spring of 1915 to serve as War Prisoners' Aid secretaries. They are posing with European YMCA secretaries who are already providing war relief work in their own countries.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French soldiers throw up their hands in surrender in the face of an overwhelming cavalry charge by the Bavarian 6th Lancers at the Battle of Legarde early in the war during the German offensive in northern France.
- Date Created:
- 1914-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British interned civilians file through the prison camp kitchen and have hot soup ladled into their dinner buckets. Before leaving through the exit on the right hand side, a prisoner smells his bucket to figure out what kind of soup is on the menu that day. Note the bars on the windows to prevent nocturnal visits from hungry or enterprising internees.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A wagon full of parcels stands outside the prison camp parcel post office at Ulm. French prisoners unload the wagon under the watch of a German non-commissioned officer. A German officer watches from the right, standing next to a basket full of goods. The parcels will be inspected by German censors and then distribution to the POW camp population. Note that the wagon is not designed to be pulled by a horse; the prisoners pulled the wagon from the train station to the camp.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The German officer seated at the desk was the camp censor at Doeberitz. He was responsible for inspecting all of the mail that the prisoners sent and received in the camp for contraband information. He was assisted in his duties by the Russian prisoners in this photograph.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The POW kitchen staff, with their German non-commissioned officers, stand with their cooking utensils in front of the prison kitchen at Meschede. The staff, composed primarily of French POWs, is well equipped with a wide range of cooking tools. Note the presence of German officers and several civilians in the back row, which suggests that a camp inspection was underway at the time of this photograph.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A winter view of the monument that French prisoners of war at Rennbahn designed and constructed in memorial to Allied POW's who died at Muenster II. The commandant arranged for free photographs of individual graves to be sent to family members through the camp's British Help Committee.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This French menu for the prison camp at Zossen-Weinberg appeared in the German magazine "Der Krieg." The menu dates from the early part of the war and describes the lunches and dinners served at Zossen on a daily basis. It includes an illustration of a French prisoner wearing wooden clogs, eating dinner in a chair. The menu gave German readers an idea of the fare the German government provided to Allied prisoners of war under Ministry of War care.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- German doctors and French and Belgian orderlies minister to patients in the hospital ward at Erfurt. Many of the patients appear to be Russian POW's, each enjoying their own metal frame bed. The facility is new and includes a stove in the center of the ward.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French prisoners work in the Parcel Post Office in the prison camp at Friedrichsfeld under the supervision of German non-commissioned officers. The POW's log in packages in preparation for their distribution to the inmates. Business in the office appears to be brisk given the large number of parcels on the shelves and stacked on the floor.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photograph provides a view of the Eastern Gate of the Citadel in Aleppo, where the Turks incarcerated Allied prisoners of war during World War I. Arabs walk along the road at the base of the Citadel and the minaret of a mosque can be seen to the left.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This map shows the infamous "death march" of British and Indian prisoners from Kut-al-Amara to Turkish prison camps in Anatolia. Starved, sick, and wounded POW's went up the Tigris River and to cross the Syrian Desert on foot before they reached the rail line at Ras-el-Ain. Thousands of Anglo-Indian prisoners died during the forced march and the cruel treatment by the Turks became a major political issue in Britain.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian prisoners of war display their basket-making skills outside of their workshop at an unidentified Austrian prison camp. Their handicraft work includes baskets, wicker chairs, and toys. Skilled craftsmen provided materials needed to maintain large prison facilities.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A long line of French prisoners stream through a depression in the French countryside at Ripont towards a prisoner collection center in 1917.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A French prisoner is busy writing a letter from Muensingen in this drawing. POW's were allowed to write two letters and several post cards each week which traveled free through the international mails. Limitations on correspondence were necessary due to the limited number of censors in prison camps.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The arts were another important diversion for prisoners at Muensingen. In this illustration, a POW is busy drawing a picture.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Jozef Jedrosik was the commandant of Neuhammer in 1920 and supervised the internment of Polish civilians and Polish Legion members still in Germany.
- Date Created:
- 1920-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The exit of the escape tunnel dug by French prisoners outside the prison wall at Zwickau. They selected a spot to emerge which was far from the German sentries and difficult to see from the guard tower. Dressed in civilian clothing, they made their way to a neutral country.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Italian prisoners compete in a game of doubles on the tennis court at Dunaszerdahley. Italian POW spectators sit on bleachers watching another game to the left.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A member of the Czechoslovak Legion, Josefu Sobotkovi, faces an Austrian court martial in this courtyard in Breguzzo, Italy. If the drumhead council found Sobotkovi guilty of treason, he would receive capital punishment. The Czechs were Austrian subjects and were tried for taking up arms against the empire.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- WPA Secretary John Klanmann (in the center in civilian clothing) poses with a group of Russian prisoners of war in an unknown Austrian prison camp. These men were most likely involved with the camp's YMCA Welfare Committee and worked closely with the YMCA secretary.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden sits and reviews some documentation with a Swedish assistant as relief workers prepare parcels for Allied prisoners of war in Germany. The princess was from England and she developed a deep concern for the welfare of POW's. She converted a room in the Crown Prince's palace into a supply room to collect and ship relief parcels to needy prisoners in Germany.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Gymnasts, in the Stuttgart II prison camp, perform a pyramid on the parallel bars outdoors in the prison compound. A group of French spectators sit behind the performers. Gymnastic exercises helped keep prisoners in shape and the performances provided a diversion for camp inhabitants.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Interior view of a barrack in Minden I, which highlights the beds and possessions of a wide range of Allied prisoners. French, Belgian, and Russian POWs, as well as some interned civilians, lived communally in these sleeping accommodations. Some of the POWs are eating their dinners at the table at the right. Rations for each barrack were distributed at the camp kitchen on a barrack unit basis and served to the barrack inhabitants at Minden. This avoided the necessity of long quenes as individual war prisoners waited for their rations and sped up the feeding process.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The holidays were often a very difficult time for prisoners far from home. In response, POW's often organized special concerts and other festivities during this time of year. This is the New Year's Day concert program for French prisoners of war at Muensingen on 1 January 1918.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This French prisoner sits in a railway car under the watch of a German Landsturm sentry while en route to the prison camp at Muensingen.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Four Russians stand in the doorway of their earthen barrack at Tuchel I. They have decorated the front of the barrack by painting designs around the door and windows. These types of earthen huts were considered unsanitary and unhealthy by neutral inspectors because of the lack of ventilation which contributed to the spread of disease. On the other hand, these barracks were insulated by earth from the wind and were warm in the winter.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- 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:
- This photograph shows a general view of the city of Afion Karahissar where the Turks maintained two prison camps for Allied POW's. The lower camp was located in houses within the city while the upper camp was located near the foot of the mountain. Allied officers lived in both camps.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of Russian and Romanian prisoners stand next to the compound fence in conversation with Italian POW's in the prison camp at Mauthausen. A barrack stands on the hill behind the Russian and Romanian prisoners.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian prisoners stand in front of the YMCA building in the prison camp at Spratzern. The building and the flag pole are decorated with garlands, possibly for Christmas celebrations.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- German troops round up all of the male inhabitants between the ages of fifteen and sixty in the French village of Guiscard (Oise) on 16 February 1917 for transportation to Germany. The Germans used some of these men as hostages but most, especially those with special skills, became laborers.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This drawing depicts the arrival of 600 French civilian hostages at Zosle in Lithuania on 12 January 1918. The Germans seized these notable citizens, including priests, from Occupied France to serve as hostages during the war. The weather conditions were abysmal as the hostages marched into the camp in a driving snow storm.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This Tartar soldier was fighting for the Russian Army when he was captured and incarcerated by the Germans.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photograph provides an excellent view of the prison camp in Meschede during the Winter of 1914-1915. The railroad station where arriving prisoners disembarked can be seen in the foreground of the photograph. To the left is the infirmary, where new arrivals were disinfected and kept in quarantine to prevent the spread of any infectious diseases and where sick prisoners were isolated to prevent further contamination. After passing a medical inspection, POW's then moved to the main camp in the center of the picture. Prison camps took on the dimensions of towns and even small cities during the course of the war.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- British, French, and Russian officers, who make up the Sports Committee at Werl, pose for a picture with several of the athletes who received awards for winning competitions that day. Sports days were a way to keep prisoners in shape and improve morale in prison camps.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Here are three examples of prison money (Lagergeld) from two prisoner of war camps, Braunau am Inn (one Kronenote) and Marchtrenk (two Kronen note), and a civilian internment camp, Katzenau bei Linz (20 Kronennote). Austrian authorities did not allow prisoners to hold legal currency since these funds could be used to bribe guards or to support prison escapes.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A labor detachment of Russian prisoners of war march to work in a Polish village under a German guard.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The editor and a secretary work in the office of the Commission Romande des Internes in the World's Alliance headquarters in Geneva. The Associaiton produced a monthly newspaper from this office for prisoners repatriated to Switzerland for the duration of the war.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A wounded French medic recuperates in a German hospital in Laon in this color painting. The prisoner is sitting outdoors reading a newspaper.
- Date Created:
- 1917-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Once organized into individual boxes, the American Distribution Committee could serve 922 U.S. POW's in thirty-six minutes with ten days' supply of food from the American Red Cross in the prison camp at Rastatt. American POWs received a wide range of canned foods, bread, and toiletries which significantly enhanced their quality of life in the German prison camp.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photograph of a boy prisoner looking up at a large German officer became famous for propaganda purposes in the West as it demonstrated mighty Germany subjugating the weak. While the boy is identified as "the smallest Russian" in the prison camp at Puchheim. The Russian army employed young boys as powder monkeys and for other duties. Some boys simply followed their fathers into the ranks when the war began. The boy is carrying a loaf of bread under his arm. He is facing a Bavarian officer, as indicated by the Bavarian coat of arms on his Pickelhaube (spiked helmet), and the sword at his side.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- The Germans constructed one-story wooden barracks in most prison camps. They were easy for POW labor to construct and relatively inexpensive. This example is from Puchheim. photographed during the winter. Smoke is rising from the three stoves inside the building.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- French and Russian prisoners are working in the prison laundry at Wahn. They stand next to the large bath tubs where POW clothing was washed and some workers hold poles used to mix the clothing in the tubs. In the back of the room stand shallower tubs for rinsing washed clothing. A cart to transport clothing is also in the picture. Clean clothing eliminated lice and other vermin and helped reduce the spread of disease in the camp.
- 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:
- Russian prisoners relax on the bank of a small lake while other prisoners enjoy a swim near Grafenwoehr. The Germans fenced off the swimming area to deter prisoners from taking too long a swim. Such excursions usually required prisoners to give their parole, or word, that they would not try to escape during their trip away from camp.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Polish prisoners stroll around the garden in the prison courtyard at Marmosa-Sziget. By growing their own food, POW's could enjoy a diversion and obtain some diversity in their diets. This photograph provides a good view of the exterior of the facility.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photo montage shows Russian prisoners of war assembling for their morning Appell (Roll Call) in the compound of an unidentified German prison camp. Prisons were literally a sea of humanity.
- Date Created:
- 1916-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This is a copy of the 27 January 1915 edition of "The Ruhleben Camp News," a fortnightly newspaper which was the official organ of the Ruhleben prison camp. At a cost of ten Pfennige, interned civilians could read official notes, published in English and German (which included a prohibition against hawking), and a list of divine services for the Church of England, Roman Catholic, Jewish, and Deutsch Evangelisch prisoners.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- While enlisted men rarely had much money in prison camps, officers were in another class altogether. This 100-Mark bill came from the officers' prison camp at Villingen and, as stated on the front of the bill, it was valid only in the prison camp. The currency was issued by the XIV Army Corps in Karlsruhe in October 1915 and had the official stamp of the Ministry of War. This was a considerable amount of money and German authorities had to be careful that this money did not end up in the unofficial black market purchasing contraband nor used for an escape attempt.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian POWs from Wasbek work on a labor detachment clearing brushwood and hauling down trees with ropes. Note the Russian prisoner high in the tree in the center of the photograph. German troops guard the work detail to prevent escapes.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Russian prisoners of war work on wood carving and wicker projects outside their workshop in the prison camp at Aschaffenburg under the supervision of German non-commissioned officers. The workers have displayed examples of their handiwork on the table and on shelves, including a chair, baskets, and an ornate house.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This map of the prison facilities at Kastamuni shows where the Turks incarcerated British prisoners in the Lower House camp. The prisoners had access to a chapel, library, restaurant, badminton court, and soccer field, in addition ot the quarters and messes where they lived and ate. After an escape, the Turks severely limited the prisoners' freedom and privileges in the town.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of Italian and Russian prisoners enter the officer's section of the prison camp at Dunaszerdahley. Note the stack of firewood to the right of the entrance; POW's collected this wood for fuel for the camp.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- Four prisoners compete in a sprint on a Sport's Day in the prison camp at Dunaszerdahley as Italian prisoners observe the race. Track and field events kept POW's in shape and provided entertainment for non-competitors in the camp.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- A group of Russian prisoners of war work in their gardens at an unidentified Austrian prison camp. Gardening allowed POW's to spend some time outdoors, improve the appearance of the camp, and, most importantly, helped vary their diet. The prisoners could augment their rations with fresh vegetables. In many camps, prisoners held garden competitions to test their horticultural skills.
- Date Created:
- 1918-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries
- Notes:
- This photograph depicts French North African colonial troops sitting on a bench in the prison camp at Muenster-Rennbahn. The Germans used photographs of Allied colonial troops as domestic propaganda to emphasize that the empire was truly fighting a global war.
- Date Created:
- 1915-01-01T00:00:00Z
- Data Provider:
- Western Michigan University. Libraries