Escapes from World War I prisoner of war Camps in Britain 1914-1920

During WW1 the Central Powers, Germany and her Empire, with Austro-Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey, were pitted against the Allied Powers, Britain and her Empire, with France, Belgium, Russia, and America from May 1917, both Powers imprisoning civilians and combatants from the outset.

Escapes, some successful, others resulting in re-capture, from Prisoner of War (POW) camps around the world have been described in a variety of languages by many authors. Not all accounts of escapes have been translated from original texts, rendering them less well-known than others in, for example, the English-speaking world. Even escapes that were reported in contemporary English-language media have clearly been overlooked by those who, unlike serious family historians delving into archives and scouring newspapers for historical data, rely on publications that for decades have been deftly advertised but poorly referenced. This article, based on my research over many years in a variety of sources, named here, identifies some escapes from POW Camps, particularly in Britain, but also dispels the myth, promulgated on Wikipedia and elsewhere [1] that during World War I only one POW escapee from a camp in Britain reached his homeland.

Who were the POWs?

To better understand who the World War I prisoner of war escapees were, and what motivated them to escape (even if, in general, quickly recaptured) from a relatively safe environment insulated from bloody conflict, it is helpful to understand the conditions,