Most of us associate prisoner-of-war camps with 20th-century conflicts, but an archaeological evaluation undertaken in July 2009 by Channel 4’s Time Team revealed that the first specially constructed camp dates to the late 18th century, when it was used for incarcerating thousands of enemy prisoners taken during the Napoleonic Wars of 1793-1815.
The site of what is believed to be the world’s first purpose-built prisoner-of-war camp will soon be open to visitors. The Norman Cross Camp, just south of Peterborough in Cambridgeshire, was established by the British government during the Napoleonic Wars.…
Napoleonic war camp saved for the nation The first purpose-built prisoner-of-war camp in the world – dating from the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars – has been saved for future generations through its recent purchase by Nene Park Trust, with…
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What was life like for German prisoners of war who were interned in England during the Second World War? Wessex Archaeology’s recent excavation of a camp outside Oswestry in Shropshire suggests that its inmates saw out the conflict in relative comfort, with a packed programme of activities – but hints of tensions brewing between inmates and guards were also unearthed. Carly Hilts reports.
Around 2,000 German prisoners were housed at this camp, research suggests.
La Glacerie in Cherbourg, Normandy, is the first WWII prisoner-of-war camp for German soldiers in France to be excavated and studied. How does living memory measure up to archaeological research? Robert Early compares the hard evidence with the witness accounts.