Austro-Hungarian POWs in Russia; a 1915 photo by Prokudin-Gorskii

Burial of a Japanese POW and a Russian convict in the permafrost of Gulag. The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy (1867 - 1918 Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky ( August 31, 1863, Murom  &ndash September 27, 1944, Paris) was a Russian The Gulag was the government agency that administered the penal labor camps of the Soviet Union. Painting by Nikolai Getman provided by Jamestown Foundation

A prisoner of war (POW, PoW, PW, P/W or PsW) is a combatant who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. Nikolai Getman (Николай Гетман Микола Ґетьман an artist was born in 1917 in Kharkiv, Ukraine, and died at his home in Orel, The Jamestown Foundation is a Washington DC -based Think tank, whose stated mission is to "inform and educate" policy makers about events and trends which A privileged combatant is a person who takes a direct part in the hostilities of an armed conflict within the Law of war and is someone who upon capture qualifies as a Prisoner

Ancient times

For most of human history, depending on the culture of the victors, combatants on the losing side in a battle could expect to be either slaughtered, to eliminate them as a future threat, or enslaved, bringing economic and social benefits to the victorious side and its soldiers. Typically, little distinction was made between combatants and civilians, although women and children were certainly more likely to be spared. Sometimes the purpose of a battle, if not a war, was to capture women, a practice known as raptio; the Rape of the Sabines was a notable mass capture by the founders of Rome. The Latin term raptio refers to abduction of women, either for Marriage (e The Rape of the Sabine Women ( rape in this context meaning " Kidnapping " ( Raptio) rather than its prevalent modern meaning Typically women had no rights, were held legally as chattel, and would not be accepted back by their birth families once they had bore children to those who had killed their brothers and fathers. Personal property is a type of Property. In the Common law systems personal property may also be called chattels or personalty.

Likewise the distinction between POW and slave is not always clear. Some of the indigenous people of the Americas captured Europeans and used their labour and used them as bartering chips; see for example John R. Jewitt, an Englishman who wrote a memoir about his years as a captive of the Nootka people on the Pacific Northwest Coast in 1802-1805. The term Indigenous Peoples or autochthonous peoples can be used to describe any Ethnic group who inhabit a geographic region with which they have the earliest historical The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World, consisting of the Continents of North America and South America John Rodgers Jewitt (born on 21 May, 1783 in Boston, England) was an armourer who entered the historical record with his Memoirs The Pacific Northwest is a region in the northwest of North America (the term refers to the land not the ocean

Qualifications

To be entitled to prisoner of war status, the captured service member must be a "lawful combatant" entitled to combatant's privilege--which gives them immunity for crimes constituting lawful acts of war, e. A privileged combatant is a person who takes a direct part in the hostilities of an armed conflict within the Law of war and is someone who upon capture qualifies as a Prisoner g. , killing enemy troops. To qualify under the Fourth Geneva Convention, the combatant must have conducted military operations according to the laws and customs of war: be part of a chain of command and wear a "fixed distinctive marking, visible from a distance", and bear arms openly. The law of war (also law of armed conflict, LOAC) is Law concerning acceptable practices relating to war In a Military context the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed within a Military unit and between different Thus, francs-tireurs, "terrorists", saboteurs, mercenaries and spies may be excluded. The phrase francs-tireurs was used to describe Irregular military formations deployed by France during the early stages of the Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871 Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening an enemy oppressor or employer through subversion obstruction disruption and/or destruction A mercenary is a person who takes part in an armed conflict who is not a national or a party to the conflict and is "motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by

In practice, these criteria are not always interpreted strictly. Guerrillas, for example, may not wear an issued uniform or carry arms openly yet are sometimes granted POW status if captured (although Additional Protocol 1 may give them POW status in some circumstances). Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc These criteria are normally restricted to international armed conflicts: in civil wars insurgents are often treated as traitors or criminals by government forces, and are sometimes executed. War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units However, in the American Civil War both sides treated captured troops as POWs despite the Union considering the Confederacy separatist rebels, presumably because of reciprocity. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty-three The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 After the hunger strike by Bobby Sands and his Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) colleagues, the British government allegedly gave some POW privileges to IRA prisoners. Robert Gerard Sands (Roibeard Gearóid Ó Seachnasaigh commonly known as Bobby Sands, (9 March 1954 – 5 May 1981 was a Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Óglaigh na hÉireann ( IRA; also referred to as the PIRA, the Provos, or by some of its supporters as the

However, guerrillas or any other combatant may not be granted the status if they try to use both the civilian and the military status. Thus, uniforms and/or badges are important in determining prisoner of war status.

Middle Ages

See also: Prisoners of war in Islam

During the Middle Ages, a number of religious wars were particularly ferocious. The rules and regulations concerning prisoners of war in Islam are covered in manuals of Islamic jurisprudence, based upon Islamic teachings in both the A religious war is a War caused by religious differences It can involve one state with an established religion against another state with a different religion or a different In Christian Europe, the extermination of the heretics or "non-believers" was considered desirable. A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Heresy is an introduced change to some system of belief especially a religion that conflicts with the previously established canon of that belief Examples include the 13th century Albigensian Crusade and the Northern Crusades. The Albigensian Crusade or Cathar Crusade (1209&ndash1229 was a 20-year military campaign initiated by the Roman Catholic Church to eliminate the Cathar The Northern Crusades or Baltic Crusades were Crusades undertaken by the Catholic kings of Denmark and Sweden, the German Livonian ^[1] Likewise the inhabitants of conquered cities were frequently massacred during the Crusades against the Muslims in the 11th century and the 12th century. The Crusades were a series of military campaigns of a religious character waged by much of Christian Europe against external and internal opponents A Muslim (مسلم pronounced Muslim, not Muzlim) is an adherent of the Religion Noblemen could hope to be ransomed; their families would have to send to their captors large sums of wealth commensurate with the social status of the captive. Nobility is a government-privileged title which may be either hereditary (see Hereditary titles) or for a lifetime Ransom is the practice of holding a prisoner to extort money or property to secure their release or it can refer to the sum of money involved In pre-Islamic Arabia, upon capture, those captives not executed, were made to beg for their subsistence. The history of Pre- Islamic Arabia before the rise of Islam in the 630s is not known in great detail During the early reforms under Islam, Muhammad changed this custom and made it the responsibility of the Islamic government to provide food and clothing, on a reasonable basis, to captives, regardless of their religion. Many Reforms took place under Islam between 610 and 661, including the period of Muhammad 's mission and the rule of IMPORTANT PLEASE READ ##### For all questions relating to the addition of (pbuh peace be upon him or other honorifics For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. If the prisoners were in the custody of a person, then the responsibility was on the individual. ^[2] He established the rule that prisoners of war must be guarded and not ill-treated, and that after the fighting was over, the prisoners were expected to be either released or ransomed. The freeing of prisoners in particular was highly recommended as a charitable act. Mecca was the first city to have the benevolent code applied (rather than what Mecca’s people expected: complete massacre). Mecca ˈmɛkə also spelled Makkah ˈmækə (in full Makkah Al-Mukarramah (Arabic mækːæ(t ælmʊkarˑamæ مكّة المكرمة, literally Honored However, Christians who were captured in the Crusades were sold into slavery if they could not pay a ransom. The Crusades were a series of military campaigns of a religious character waged by much of Christian Europe against external and internal opponents ^[3]

The 1648 Peace of Westphalia, which ended the Thirty Years' War, established the rule that prisoners of war should be released without ransom at the end of hostilities and that they should be allowed to return to their homelands. The term Peace of Westphalia refers to the two peace treaties of Osnabrück and Münster, signed on May 15 and October 24 of For the Mauritanian Thirty Years' War see Char Bouba war. For the band see The 30 Years War. ^[4]

Modern times

Jan Kilinski leading a group of Russian prisoners of war following the Warsaw Uprising of 1794

During the 19th century, efforts increased to improve the treatment and processing of prisoners. Jan Kiliński (1760-1819 was one of the commanders of the Kościuszko Uprising. The Warsaw Uprising of 1794 (otherwise the "Warsaw Insurrection" insurekcja warszawska was an armed Polish insurrection by the city's populace early in the The extensive period of conflict during the Revolutionary War and Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815), followed by the Anglo-American War of 1812, led to the emergence of a cartel system for the exchange of prisoners, even while the belligerents were at war. In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies A cartel is a formal (explicit agreement among firms Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve A cartel was usually arranged by the respective armed service for the exchange of like ranked personnel. A cartel is a formal (explicit agreement among firms Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve The aim was to achieve a reduction in the number of prisoners held, while at the same time alleviating shortages of skilled personnel in the home country.

Later, as result of these emerging conventions a number of international conferences were held, starting with the Brussels Conference of 1874, with nations agreeing that it was necessary to prevent inhumane treatment of prisoners and the use of weapons causing unnecessary harm. Although no agreements were immediately ratified by the participating nations, work was continued that resulted in new conventions being adopted and becoming recognized as international law, that specified that prisoners of war are required to be treated humanely and diplomatically. A Treaty is an agreement under International law entered into by actors in international law namely States and International organizations. International law is the term commonly used for referring to the system of implicit and explicit agreements that bind together nation-states in adherence to recognized values and standards

Hague and Geneva Conventions

Specifically, Chapter II of the Annex to the 1907 Hague Convention covered the treatment of prisoners of war in detail. The Hague Conventions were international treaties negotiated at the First and Second Peace Conferences at The Hague, Netherlands in 1899 and These were further expanded in the Third Geneva Convention of 1929, and its revision of 1949. The Third Geneva Convention (or GCIII) of 1949 one of the Geneva Conventions, is a treaty agreement that primarily concerns the treatment of Prisoners of Article 4 of the Third Geneva Convention protects captured military personnel, some guerrilla fighters and certain civilians. The Third Geneva Convention (or GCIII) of 1949 one of the Geneva Conventions, is a treaty agreement that primarily concerns the treatment of Prisoners of A military is an Organization authorized by its Nation to use force usually including use of Weapons in defending its Country (or by attacking Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc It applies from the moment a prisoner is captured until he or she is released or repatriated. One of the main provisions of the convention makes it illegal to torture prisoners and states that a prisoner can only be required to give their name, date of birth, rank and service number (if applicable). Torture, according to the United Nations Convention Against Torture, is "any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental is intentionally

However, nations vary in their dedication to following these laws, and historically the treatment of POWs has varied greatly. A nation is a Human Cultural and Social Community. In as much as most members never meet each other yet feel a common bond it may be considered During the 20th century, Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany were notorious for atrocities against prisoners during World War II. The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The German military used the Soviet Union's refusal to sign the Geneva Convention as a reason for not providing the necessities of life to Russian POWs. North Korean and North Vietnamese forces routinely killed or mistreated prisoners taken during those conflicts.

The United States Military Code of Conduct

The United States Military Code of Conduct, Articles III through V, are guidelines for United States service members who have been taken prisoner. The Code of the US Fighting Force is a Code of conduct that is an " ethical guide" and a United States Department of Defense directive consisting The United States of America —commonly referred to as the They were created in response to the breakdown of leadership which can happen in an atypical environment such as a POW situation, specifically when US forces were POWs during the Korean War. The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korean and South Korean regimes with major hostilities lasting from June 25 1950 until the When a person is taken prisoner, the Code of Conduct reminds the service member that the chain of command is still in effect (the highest ranking service member, regardless of armed service branch, is in command), and that the service member cannot receive special favors or parole from their captors, lest this undermine the service member's chain of command.

World War I

American prisoners of war in Germany in 1917.

During World War I about 8 million men surrendered and were held in POW camps until the war ended. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All All nations pledged to follow the Hague rules on fair treatment of prisoners of war, and in general the POWs had a much higher survival rate than their peers who were not captured. ^[5] Individual surrenders were uncommon; usually a large unit surrendered all its men. At Tannenberg 92,000 Russians surrendered during the battle. When the besieged garrison of Kaunas surrendered in 1915, 20,000 Russians became prisoners. Kaunas ( ˈkoʊnəs is the second largest City in Lithuania and a former temporary capital. Over half the Russian losses were prisoners (as a proportion of those captured, wounded or killed); for Austria 32%, for Italy 26%, for France 12%, for Germany 9%; for Britain 7%. Prisoners from the Allied armies totaled about 1. 4 million (not including Russia, which lost between 2. 5 and 3. 5 million men as prisoners. ) From the Central Powers about 3. 3 million men became prisoners. ^[6]

German soldiers captured by the British in Flanders

Germany held 2. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification 5 million prisoners; Russia held 2. The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya 9 million, and Britain and France held about 720,000, mostly gained in the period just before the Armistice in 1918. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom from 1 January 1801 until 12 April 1927 The French Third Republic (in French, La Troisième République, sometimes written as La IIIe An armistice is a situation where the warring parties agree to stop fighting The US held 48,000. The most dangerous moment was the act of surrender, when helpless soldiers were sometimes shot down. Once prisoners reached a POW camp in general conditions were satisfactory (and much better than in World War II), thanks in part to the efforts of the International Red Cross and inspections by neutral nations. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an International humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers worldwide who stated Conditions were terrible in Russia, starvation was common for prisoners and civilians alike; about 40% of the prisoners in Russia died or remained missing. ^[7] Nearly 375,000 of the 500,000 Austro-Hungarian prisoners of war taken by Russians have perished in Siberia from smallpox and typhus. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Smallpox is an Infectious disease unique to humans caused by either of two virus variants named Variola major and Variola minor. Typhus is any of several similar diseases caused by Louse -borne bacteria ^[8] In Germany food was short but only 5% died. ^[9]

The Ottoman Empire often treated prisoners of war poorly. The Ottoman Empire (1299–1923 ( Old Ottoman Turkish: دولتْ علیّه عثمانیّه Devlet-i Âliye-yi Osmâniyye, Late Ottoman and Modern Turkish Some 11,800 British soldiers, most of them Indians, became prisoners after the five-month Siege of Kut, in Mesopotamia, in April 1916. The Siege of Kut was a major battle of World War I. It was part of the Mesopotamian Campaign (in what is now Iraq) Mesopotamia (from the Greek meaning "land between the rivers" is an area geographically located between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers largely corresponding Many were weak and starved when they surrendered and 4,250 died in captivity. ^[10]

The most curious case came in Russia where the Czech Legion of Czech prisoners (from the Austro-Hungarian army), were released in 1917, armed themselves, and briefly became a military and diplomatic force during the Russian Civil War. Czechoslovak Legions ( Československé legie in Czech and Slovak were Czech and Slovak volunteer armed forces fighting together with the Entente powers The Russian Civil War (1917–1923 was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed

Release of prisoners

At the end of the war in 1918 there were believed to be 140,000 British prisoners of war in Germany, including 3,000 internees held in neutral Switzerland. Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation The first British prisoners were released and reached Calais on 15 November. Calais (kaˈlɛ in English often kæˈleɪ traditional English pronunciation /ˈkælɨs/ Kales is a town in northern France. Plans were made for them to be sent via Dunkirk to Dover and a large reception camp was established at Dover capable of housing 40,000 men, which could later be used for demobilisation. Dunkirk ( French: Dunkerque, dœ̃kɛʀk or; Dutch:; is a harbour city and a commune in the northernmost part of France, in the Dover is a town and major ferry port in the county of Kent, England. Demob redirects here For the television series see Demob (TV series.

On 13 December 1918 the armistice was extended and the Allies reported that by 9 December 264,000 prisoners had been repatriated. A very large number of these has been released en masse and sent across Allied lines without any food or shelter. This had created difficulties for the receiving Allies and many released prisoners had died from exhaustion. The released POWs were met by cavalry troops and sent back through the lines in lorries to reception centres where they were refitted with boots and clothing and dispatched to the ports in trains. The Cavalry (from French cavalerie) is the second oldest of the Combat Arms, and as Soldiers or Warriors who fought mounted on Upon arrival at the receiving camp the POWs were registered and “boarded” before being dispatched to their own homes. All commissioned officers had to write a report on the circumstances of their capture and to ensure that they had done all they could to avoid capture. An officer is a member of an armed force who holds a position of authority Each returning officer and man was given a message from King George V, written in his own hand and reproduced on a lithograph. It read as follows:

The Queen joins me in welcoming you on your release from the miseries & hardships, which you have endured with so much patience and courage.

During these many months of trial, the early rescue of our gallant Officers & Men from the cruelties of their captivity has been uppermost in our thoughts.

We are thankful that this longed for day has arrived, & that back in the old Country you will be able once more to enjoy the happiness of a home & to see good days among those who anxiously look for your return. George R. I.

World War II

Treatment of POWs by the Axis

Germany and Italy generally treated prisoners from the British Commonwealth, France, the U.S. and other western allies, in accordance with the Geneva Convention (1929), which had been signed by these countries. The Axis powers also known as the Axis alliance Axis nations Axis countries or sometimes just the Axis were those Countries Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the See also Geneva Convention for the amelioration of the condition of the wounded and sick in armies in the field (1929 The Geneva Convention (1929 ^[11] Nazi Germany did not extend this level of treatment to non-Western prisoners, such as the Soviets, who suffered harsh captivities and died in large numbers while in captivity. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Empire of Japan also did not treat prisoners of war in accordance with the Geneva Convention. The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku

New Guinea, 1943. New Guinea, located just north of Australia, is the world's second largest island, having become separated from the Australian mainland when the area now known An Australian POW about to be beheaded.

When soldiers of lower rank were made to work, they were compensated, and officers (e. g. in Colditz Castle) were not required to work. Colditz Castle is a Castle in the town of Colditz near Leipzig, Dresden, and Chemnitz in the state of Saxony The main complaint of British, British Commonwealth, U. S. and French prisoners of war in German Army POW camps, especially during the last two years of the war, was the poor quality and miserly quantities of food provided, a fate German soldiers and civilians were also suffering due to the blockade conditions. The German Army (Deutsches Heer heɐ) is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. A blockade is any effort to prevent supplies Troops information or aid from reaching an opposing force Fortunately for the prisoners, food packages provided by the International Red Cross supplemented the food rations, until the last few months when allied air raids prevented shipments from arriving. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an International humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers worldwide who stated The other main complaint was the harsh treatment during forced marches in the last months, resulting from German attempts to keep prisoners away from the advancing allied forces.

Soviet POWs in German captivity

In contrast, Germany treated the Soviet Red Army troops that had been taken prisoner with neglect and deliberate, organized brutality. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya The first eight months of the German campaign on their Eastern Front were by far the worst phase, with up to 2.4 of 3.1 million POWs dying. Soviet POWs were held under conditions that resulted in deaths of hundreds of thousands from starvation and disease. Starvation (also called inanition) is a severe reduction in Vitamin, Nutrient, and Energy intake and is the most extreme form of Most prisoners were also subjected to forced labour under conditions that resulted in further deaths. An official justification used by the Germans for this policy was that the Soviet Union had not signed the Geneva Convention. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 This was not legally justifiable, however, as under article 82 of the Geneva Convention (1929), signatory countries had to give POWs of all signatory and non-signatory countries the rights assigned by the convention. See also Geneva Convention for the amelioration of the condition of the wounded and sick in armies in the field (1929 The Geneva Convention (1929 ^[12] A month after the German invasion in 1941 an offer was made by the USSR for a reciprocal adherence to the Hague conventions. The Hague Conventions were international treaties negotiated at the First and Second Peace Conferences at The Hague, Netherlands in 1899 and This 'note' was left unanswered by Third Reich officials ^[13].

According to some sources, between 1941 and 1945, the Axis powers took about 5. 7 million Soviet prisoners. About 1 million of them were released during the war, in that their status changed but they remained under German authority. A little over 500,000 either escaped or were liberated by the Red Army. Some 930,000 more were found alive in camps after the war. The remaining 3. 3 million prisoners (57. 5% of the total captured) died during their captivity. ^[14] According to Russian military historian General G. Krivoshhev, 4. 6 million Soviet prisoners were taken by the Axis powers, of which 1. 8 million were found alive in camps after the war and 318,770 were released by the Axis during the war and were then drafted into the Soviet armed forces again. ^[15]. In comparison, 8,348 Western Allied (British, American and Canadian) prisoners died in German camps in 1939-45 (3. 5% of the 232,000 total).

On 11 February 1945, at the conclusion of the Yalta Conference, the United States and the United Kingdom signed a Repatriation Agreement with the USSR. The Yalta Conference, sometimes called the Crimea Conference and Codenamed the Argonaut Conference, was the wartime meeting from 4 February The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located ^[16] The interpretation of this Agreement resulted in the forcible repatriation of all Russians (Operation Keelhaul) regardless of their wishes. Operation Keelhaul was a program carried out in Austria by British and American forces in May and June 1945 that decided the fate of up The forced repatriation operations took place in 1945-1947. ^[17] Many Soviet POWs and forced laborers transported to Nazi Germany were on their return to the USSR treated as traitors and sent to the gulag. OST-Arbeiter (Ostarbeiter Eastern Workers was a designation for Slave workers gathered from Eastern Europe to do Forced labor in Nazi Germany World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Gulag was the government agency that administered the penal labor camps of the Soviet Union. The remainder were barred from all but the most menial jobs.

In the Pacific War, the Empire of Japan had never signed the Third Geneva Convention of 1929. The Pacific War was the part of World War II —and preceding conflicts—that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands and in East Asia, between The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku See also Geneva Convention for the amelioration of the condition of the wounded and sick in armies in the field (1929 The Geneva Convention (1929 The Empire, however, violated international agreements signed by Japan, including provisions of the Hague Conventions (1899 and 1907), which protect prisoners of war (POWs). The Hague Conventions were international treaties negotiated at the First and Second Peace Conferences at The Hague, Netherlands in 1899 and

Prisoners of war from China, the United States, Australia, Britain, Canada, Netherlands and New Zealand held by the Japanese armed forces were subject to murder, beatings, summary punishments, brutal treatment, forced labor, medical experimentation, starvation rations, and poor medical treatment. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island No access to the POWs was provided to the International Red Cross. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is an International humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers worldwide who stated Escapes were almost impossible because of the difficulty of men of European descent hiding in Asiatic societies. ^[18]

According to the findings of the Tokyo tribunal, the death rate of Western prisoners was 27. 1% (American POWs died at a rate of 37%),^[19] seven times that of POW's under the Germans and Italians^[20] The death rate of Chinese was much larger as, according to the directive ratified on 5 August 1937 by Hirohito, the constraints of international law were removed on those prisoners. also known as, (April 29 1901 – January 7 1989 was the 124th Emperor of Japan according to the traditional order reigning from December 25 1926 until his death ^[21] Thus, of 37,583 prisoners from the UK, 28,500 from Netherlands and 14,473 from USA were released after the surrender of Japan, the number for the Chinese was only 56. The surrender of Japan in August 1945 brought World War II to a close ^[22]

Treatment of POWs by the Allies

According to some sources, the Soviets captured 3. The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. 5 million Axis servicemen (excluding Japanese) of which more than a million died. The Axis powers also known as the Axis alliance Axis nations Axis countries or sometimes just the Axis were those Countries ^[23]. According to G. Krivoshhev, the Soviets captured in total 4,126,964 Axis servicemen, of which 580,548 died in captivity. Of 2,389,560 German servicemen 450,600 died in captivity. ^[24] One specific example of the tragic fate of the German POWs was after the Battle of Stalingrad, during which the Soviets captured 91,000 German troops. The Battle of Stalingrad is a commonly used name in English sources for several large operations by Germany and its allies and Soviet forces conducted with the Of the German troops captured in Stalingrad, many already starved and ill, only 5,000 survived the war. The last German POWs (those who were sentenced for war crimes, sometimes without sufficient reasons) were released by the Soviets in 1955, only after Joseph Stalin had died. War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war" including but not limited to "murder the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied ^[25] See also POW labor in the Soviet Union, Japanese prisoners of war in the Soviet Union, Italian prisoners of war in the Soviet Union, Romanian POW in the Soviet Union. Systematic POW labor in the Soviet Union is associated primarily with the outcomes of the World War II and covers the period of 1939-1956 By the end of World War II there were from 510000 to 600000 Japanese POWs in the Soviet Union and Mongolia interned to work in Labor Over 60000 Italian prisoners of war were taken captive by the Red Army in the Second World War. There were a significant number of Romanian POWs in the Soviet Union during and after World War II, especially from 1943 on

German soldiers taken POW by the Polish Independent Highland Brigade during the Battle of Narvik of 1940

During the war allied nations such as the U.S., UK, Australia and Canada tried to treat Axis prisoners strictly in accordance with the Geneva Convention (1929). "SBSP" redirects here For other uses see SBSP (disambiguation. The Battles of Narvik were fought from 9 April until 8 June 1940 as a naval battle in the Ofotfjord and as a land battle in the mountains surrounding The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Axis powers also known as the Axis alliance Axis nations Axis countries or sometimes just the Axis were those Countries See also Geneva Convention for the amelioration of the condition of the wounded and sick in armies in the field (1929 The Geneva Convention (1929

Japanese prisoners sent to camps in the U. S. faired well, but many Japanese were killed when trying to surrender or were massacred just after they had surrendered. (see Allied war crimes during World War II in the Pacific)

Towards the end of the war, as large numbers of Axis soldiers surrendered, the U. Allied war crimes were violations of the Laws of war committed by the Allies of World War II against civilian populations or military personnel of the Axis S. created the designation of Disarmed Enemy Forces (DEF) so as not to treat prisoners as POWs. Disarmed Enemy Forces, and &mdash more uncommon &mdash Surrendered Enemy Forces, was a U A lot of these soldiers were kept in open fields in various Rheinwiesenlagers. List of Rheinwiesenlager listing from north to south with official number A4 Büderich A1 Rheinberg A9 Wickrathberg Controversy has arisen about how Eisenhower managed these prisoners. [2] (see Eisenhower and German POWs). Canadian Novelist James Bacque has alleged that US General Dwight '''Eisenhower''' oversaw the deaths by starvation or exposure of one million German Many died when forced to clear minefields in Norway, France etc. How many died during the several post-war years that they were used for forced labor in France, the Soviet Union etc is disputed. Unfree labour is a generic or collective term for those work relations especially in modern or early modern history in which people are employed against their will

See also List of World War II POW camps

Post World War II

U. Allied POW Camps during World War II List of POW camps in Britain List of POW camps in the United States List of POW camps S soldier taken as a POW by Chinese forces and shot in the head with his hands tied behind his back during the Korean War. The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korean and South Korean regimes with major hostilities lasting from June 25 1950 until the

North Korean POWs being guarded by a U.S. Marine during the Korean War

During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, the Indian Armed Forces captured more than 90,000 Pakistani soldiers in East Pakistan (which became an independent nation following the war)^[26]. The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korean and South Korean regimes with major hostilities lasting from June 25 1950 until the The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a major military conflict between India and Pakistan. Organization and command structure The headquarters of the Indian Armed Forces is in New Delhi, the capital city. The Pakistan Armed Forces ( Urdu: پاک عسکری) are the overall unified military forces of Pakistan East Pakistan ( Bengali: পূর্ব পাকিস্তান Purbo Pakistan, Urdu: مشرقی پاکستان Mashriqi Pakistan) was ( Bengali: বাংলাদেশ inc-Latn Bangladesh) officially It was one of the largest surrenders since World War II. India originally wished to try some 200 of them for war crimes for the brutality in East Pakistan, but eventually acceded to releasing them as a gesture of reconciliation. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country War crimes are "violations of the laws or customs of war" including but not limited to "murder the ill-treatment or deportation of civilian residents of an occupied Operation Searchlight was a planned military pacification carried out by the Pakistan Army to curb the Bengali nationalist movement in erstwhile East Pakistan

Regardless of regulations determining treatment to prisoners, violation of their rights continue to be reported. Many cases of POW massacres have been reported in recent times, including October 13 massacre in Lebanon and June 1990 massacre in Sri Lanka. The October 13 Massacre took place on October 13, 1990, during the final moments of the Lebanese Civil War. Lebanon (ˈlɛbənɒn Arabic: ar لبنان Lubnān) officially the Republic of Lebanon or Lebanese Republic (ar الجمهورية اللبنانية The Kalmunai massacre refers to two series of mass killing that occurred on June 1990 in Kalmunai, a Municipality within the Ampara District of Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island

During the 1990s Yugoslav Wars, Serb forces committed many POW massacres, including: Vukovar, Škarbrnja and Srebrenica massacres. The Yugoslav Wars were a series of violent conflicts in the territory of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY that took place between 1991 and Serbs ( Serbian: Срби Srbi) are a South Slavic people living in the Balkans and Central Europe, mainly in Serbia, The Vukovar massacre was a war crime that took place between November 18 and November 21 1991 near the city of Vukovar, a mixed Croat Škabrnja massacre (Masakr u Škabrnji was a War crime, atrocities committed by Serb forces during the Croatian War of Independence. The Srebrenica Massacre, also known as Srebrenica Genocide, was the July 1995 killing of an estimated 8000 Bosniak men and boys in the region of Srebrenica

Numbers of POWs

This is a list of nations with the highest number of POWs since the start of World War II, listed in descending order. These are also the highest numbers in any war since the Geneva Convention, Relative to the treatment of prisoners of war (1929) entered into force 19 June 1931. See also Geneva Convention for the amelioration of the condition of the wounded and sick in armies in the field (1929 The Geneva Convention (1929 Events 1179 - The Norwegian Battle of Kalvskinnet outside Nidaros. Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The USSR had not signed the Geneva convention. ^[27]

Prisoner nationality	Number	Name of conflict
Soviet Union	4 - 5. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 7 million (2. 7 - 3. 3 million died in German POW camps) [28] (ref. Streit)	World War II (Total)
Nazi Germany	3,127,380 taken by U. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers S. S. R. (474,967 died in captivity) [29]	World War II
France	1,800,000	Battle of France in World War II
Poland	675,000 (420,000 by Germans, 240,000 by Soviets in 1939; 15,000 Warsaw 1944)	World War II
United Kingdom	~200,000 (135,000 taken in Europe, does not include Pacific or Commonwealth figures)	World War II
United States	~130,000 (95,532 taken by Germany)	World War II
Pakistan	90,368 taken by India	Indo-Pakistani War of 1971

List of notable POWs

List of POWs that attracted notable attention or influence by this status:

A Pakistan stamp shows the 90,000 POWs in Indian camps following its surrender in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a major military conflict between India and Pakistan. Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and A postage stamp is an adhesive paper evidence of pre-paying a fee for postal services India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a major military conflict between India and Pakistan. This stamp, released with the aim of raising the POW issue at a global level in securing their release, is one of the very few stamps issued by a nation about its POWs.

• Wajid Khan Canadian politician - formerly Pakistan-India War 1971 fighter pilot
• Floyd James Thompson - America's longest-held POW; he spent 9 years in POW camps in Vietnam (1964 - 1973)
• Ali Akbar Abotorabi Fard - Iranian cleric, was a POW in the Iran-Iraq War for more than 10 years
• Ron Arad - Israeli fighter pilot, shot down over Lebanon in 1986. Wajid Ali Khan (born April 24, 1946 in Lahore, Pakistan) is a Canadian businessman and Politician. Floyd James "Jim" Thompson ( July 8, 1933 ( Bergenfield New Jersey) - July 16, 2002 ( Key West Florida) was the Ron Arad ( רון ארד) (born May 5, 1958) is an Israeli Air Force Weapon systems officer (WSO Rumored to be in Iran, he is widely presumed dead.
• Douglas Bader - British leg-less fighter pilot, squadron commander in Battle of Britain
• Leonard Birchall - The "Saviour of Ceylon"
• Fernand Braudel - the famous historian, was a POW in World War II. Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader CBE, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar, FRAeS, DL, RAF (21 February 1910 The Battle of Britain (German ''Luftschlacht um England'' is the name given to the sustained strategic effort by the German Luftwaffe during the summer and Air Commodore Leonard Joseph Birchall CM, OBE, DFC, OOnt, CD DMSc LLD Fernand Braudel ( August 24 1902 &ndash November 27 1985) was the foremost French historian of the postwar era
• Winston Churchill - during the Second Boer War; escaped
• John Cordwell - forged documents to help fellow English soldiers get out of Germany as part of the Great Escape
• Charles de Gaulle - French general and political leader, captured at Verdun, POW 1916-18
• Jeremiah Denton - Awarded the Navy Cross for resistance in captivity during the Vietnam War
• Roy Dotrice - British actor
• Werner Drechsler - killed by fellow German POWs during World War II for informing on other prisoners
• Weary Dunlop - an Australian surgeon and legend among prisoners of the Thai Burma Railway in WWII
• Yakov Dzhugashvili - Joseph Stalin's first son, was captured by Germans during WWII and killed in 1943. Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, KG, OM, CH, TD, FRS, PC, PC (Can ( 30 November 1874 See also First Boer War,, South African Wars (1879-1915 The Second Boer War ( Dutch: Tweede Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle ( ( 22 November 1890 – 9 November 1970) was a French General and statesman who led the Free French Jeremiah Andrew Denton Jr (born July 15 1924 in Mobile Alabama) is a retired United States Navy admiral and a former U The Navy Cross is the second highest medal that can be awarded by the Department of the Navy and the second highest award given for valor. Roy Dotrice OBE (born May 26, 1923) is a British Actor known for his Tony Award -winning Broadway performance The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works Werner Drechsler (born January 17, 1923, in Mühlberg, Germany - died March 12, 1944 in Papago Park, Arizona Lieutenant Colonel Sir Ernest Edward "Weary" Dunlop AC, CMG, OBE, KStJ ( July 12, 1907 – The Burma Railway, also known also as the Death Railway, the Thailand-Burma Railway and similar names is a 415 km (258 mile railway between Yakov Iosifovich Dzhugashvili (იაკობ ჯუღაშვილი Russian: Яков Иосифович Джугашвили ( March 18, 1907 Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party
• Denholm Elliott - British actor
• Henri Giraud - French general, escaped German captivity in both World War I and World War II
• Ehud Goldwasser - One of two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah in 2006, sparking the 2006 Lebanon War--termed POWs by Hezbollah. Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE (31 May 1922 &ndash 6 October 1992 was a distinguished English Actor of stage and Screen, with The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works Henri Honoré Giraud ( 18 January 1879 &ndash 13 March 1949) was a French general who fought in World War I and World World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Ehud (Udi Goldwasser ( Ehud Ben Malka Goldwasser) (אהוד גולדווסר 18 July 1975 - circa July 12 2006) was an Hezbollah (حزب الله, literally " party of God " is a Shi'a Islamic political and Paramilitary organisation Background See also Israel-Lebanon conflict The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO had engaged in cross-border attacks from Southern Lebanon
• Ernest Gordon - Author of "To End All Wars" and former Presbyterian Dean of Princeton University chapel
• E. Ernest Gordon ( 1917 - 16 January 2002) was the former Presbyterian dean of the chapel at Princeton University. To End All Wars, (formerly entitled Miracle on the River Kwai) is the Autobiography of Ernest Gordon and recounts the experiences of Presbyterianism is a family of Christian denominations within the Reformed branch of Protestant Western Christianity Princeton University is a private Coeducational research university located in Princeton, New Jersey. R. (Bon) Hall - Australian Officer, prisoner of the Thai Burma Railway in World War II
• James Hargest - New Zealand politician
• Heinrich Harrer & Peter Aufschnaiter - escaped from India to Tibet
• Erich Hartmann - "The Blond Knight of Germany"
• Rudolf Hess - acted as Adolf Hitler's deputy in the Nazi Party
• Bob Hoover - American World War II pilot, test pilot and airshow performer; captured in 1944 and escaped from Stalag Luft 1
• Wilm Hosenfeld - most remembered for saving Polish pianist and composer Władysław Szpilman from death in the ruins of Warsaw. The Burma Railway, also known also as the Death Railway, the Thailand-Burma Railway and similar names is a 415 km (258 mile railway between Brigadier James Hargest CBE, DSO & 2 bars, MC, ED, MP, ( 4 September 1891 - 12 August Heinrich Harrer ( July 6, 1912 – January 7, 2006) was an Austrian mountaineer sportsman Geographer Peter Aufschnaiter ( 2 November 1899 - 19 October 1973) was an Austrian Mountaineer Erich Alfred "Bubi" Hartmann (19 April 1922 &ndash 20 September 1993 also nicknamed " The Blond Knight of Germany " by friends and " The Black Rudolf Walter Richard Hess ( Heß in German) (26 April 1894 &ndash 17 August 1987 was a prominent figure in Nazi Germany, acting as Adolf Hitler Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 Robert A "Bob" Hoover (born 1922 is a former Air show pilot and United States Air Force Test pilot, known for his wide-brimmed straw hat and Wilm Hosenfeld (full name Wilhelm Hosenfeld May 2 1895 in Mackenzell Hessen-Nassau, Germany &ndash August 13 1952 Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers A composer (literally meaning 'one who puts together' is a person who creates Music, usually in the medium of notation, for Interpretation and Performance Władysław “Władek” Szpilman ( 5 December 1911 &ndash 6 July 2000) was a Polish Pianist, Composer Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland.
• Alija Izetbegovic - President of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was held as hostage for several days by JNA forces during the Bosnian War
• Andrew Jackson - Seventh President of the United States, captured in the American Revolutionary War as a thirteen-year old courier
• Stanley D. Jaworski - Polish POW freed by American soldiers
• Harold K. Johnson - U. Alija Izetbegović (8 August 1925 &ndash 19 October 2003 was a Bosniak activist Lawyer, Author, Philosopher and Politician, who Bosnia and Herzegovina ( Latin script: Bosna i Hercegovina, Cyrillic script: Босна и Херцеговина is a country on the Balkan The War in Bosnia and Herzegovina, commonly known as the Bosnian War, was an international armed conflict that took place between March 1992 and November 1995 Andrew Jackson (March 15 1767 June 8 1845 was the seventh President of the United States (1829&ndash1837 The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" Stanley Dubik Jaworski Sr (ca 1914 &ndash September 7 2007) was a Polish Prisoner of war in World War II, a team member in the 1936 Harold Keith Johnson ( 22 February, 1912 S. Army Chief of Staff 1964; captured at Bataan (1942-45)
• Arthur Koestler - interned in a camp for enemy aliens at the beginning of World War II
• Tikka Khan - Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army
• Yahya Khan - last president of a united Pakistan
• Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski - Commander of the Polish Home Army, and in the Warsaw Uprising
• Gustav Krist - Adventurer and traveler, Austrian soldier in WWI, captured by Russians in 1914. Arthur Koestler CBE ( September 5, 1905, Budapest &ndash March 3, 1983, London) was a World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including 1965 war One of Khan's greatest successes on the battlefield came in the spring of 1965 during the series of clashes between India and Pakistan in the Rann of Kutch The Pakistan Army ( Urdu:) is the largest branch of the Pakistan military, and is mainly responsible for protection of the state borders the security of administered Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan ( February 4 1917 &ndash August 10 1980) was the President of Pakistan from 1969 to 1971 following the resignation Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and General Count Tadeusz Komorowski ( Korczak Coat of Arms) (June 1 1895 - August 24 1966 better known by the name Bór-Komorowski (after one of his wartime code-names The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw Gustav ("Gurk" Krist ( 29 July, 1894 -1937 was an Austrian Adventurer Prisoner-of-war, carpet-dealer and author Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Interned in Russian Turkestan
• Dieter Dengler - a United States Navy pilot who escaped a Pathet Lao prison camp in Laos
• Desmond Llewelyn – went on to a notable acting career, most famously as Q in the James Bond film series
• Jessica Lynch
• Manda Manchiani - captured in 1941 during World War II, attempted escape multiple times then finally she was freed in 1945
• Keith Matthew Maupin - captured on April 9, 2004. Russian Turkestan ( Russian: Русский Туркестан also known as Turkestansky Krai (Туркестанский край was Turkestan within Dieter Dengler ( May 22, 1938 &ndash February 7, 2001) was a United States Navy pilot during the Vietnam War The Pathet Lao ( Lao ປະເທດລາວ, "Land of Laos" was a communist, Nationalist Political movement and Laos (ˈlɑːoʊs or /ˈlaʊs/ officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a Landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma Desmond Wilkinson Llewelyn ( 12 September 1914 &mdash 19 December 1999 who was a Coal mining engineer Q is a Fictional character in the James Bond novels and films. The James Bond film series are Spy films inspired by Ian Fleming 's novels about the fictional MI6 agent Commander James Bond (codename Jessica Dawn Lynch (born April 26 1983) is a former Quartermaster Corps Private First Class (PFC in the United States Army. Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans) "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Remains found March 30, 2008. Events 240 BC - 1st recorded Perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common
• Charles Cardwell McCabe - a prisoner and chaplain at Libby Prison during the American Civil War
• John McCain - American political leader and Republican nominee for president in 2008, prisoner for over five years in Vietnam
• Olivier Messiaen - French composer
• Dusty Miller - Executed for his faith during internment under the Japanese in Thailand in 1945. Charles Cardwell McCabe (1836 &ndash 1906 was an American who distinguished himself as a Methodist Pastor, an Army Chaplain during A chaplain is typically a Priest, Pastor, ordained Deacon, Rabbi, Imam or other member of the Clergy serving a group of Libby Prison was a Confederate Prison at Richmond Virginia, during the American Civil War. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South The United States presidential election of 2008, scheduled for Tuesday November 4 2008 will be the 56th consecutive The early life and military career of John Sidney McCain III spans forty-five years (1936&ndash1981 Olivier Messiaen ( December 10 1908 &ndash April 27 1992 was a French Composer, organist and ornithologist. "Dusty" Miller was a British POW in Thailand on the Burma Railway during Second World War.
• François Mitterrand - French president, captured during WWII in 1940, escaped 6 times before arriving home in Dec. François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand ( 26 October 1916 8 January 1996 served as President of France from 1981 to 1995 elected as representative of the Socialist 1941
• W. H. Murray - Scottish mountaineer
• Airey Neave - British politician
• A. A. K. Niazi - commander of Pakistan Army in East Pakistan who surrendered along with nearly 93,000 prisoners
• Manuel Noriega - Ex-Panamanian dictor captured by US troops in 1990 then jailed for drugs trafficking offences. William Hutchi(nson Murray ( 18 March 1913 – 19 March 1996) was one of a group of active Scottish Airey Middleton Sheffield Neave, DSO, OBE, MC, (23 January 1916 &ndash 30 March 1979 was a British soldier barrister and politician Lieutenant General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi HJ, MC (1915 - 2 February 2004 was a general officer of the Pakistan Army. East Pakistan ( Bengali: পূর্ব পাকিস্তান Purbo Pakistan, Urdu: مشرقی پاکستان Mashriqi Pakistan) was Manuel Antonio Noriega (born February 11, 1934) He was never officially the President of Panama, but held the post of "chief executive officer" Only detainee in held by US authorities presently officially designated as a POW by the federal government.
• Friedrich Paulus - German field marshal, surrendered Stalingrad to the Soviets in 1943; outspoken critic of Hitler
• Donald Pleasance - English film and stage actor. Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst Paulus ( 23 September 1890 &ndash 1 February 1957) was an officer in the German Military Donald Henry Pleasence, OBE, (5 October 1919 – 2 February 1995 was an English stage and film actor. Was shot down while serving in the RAF during WW2, taken prisoner, and placed in a German prisoner-of-war camp. He would later act in the film "The Great Escape".
• Eldad Regev - One of two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah in 2006, sparking the 2006 Lebanon War. Eldad Regev ( אלדד רגב, August 16, 1980 - circa July 12, 2006) was an Israeli soldier, born in
• Patrick Reid - non-fiction/historical author
• Yevgeny Rodionov - Russian soldier captured by rebel forces in Chechnya and executed by beheading for refusing to convert to Islam
• Jerry Sage - OSI agent - WWII - Steve McQueen character was loosely based on him in the movie "The Great Escape"
• Jean-Paul Sartre - French philosopher and writer, POW 1940-41
• Kazuo Sakamaki - First POW captured by U. Patrick Robert Reid, MBE, MC ( 13 November 1910 &ndash 22 May 1990) was a British Army officer and noted Non-fiction is an account or representation of a subject which is presented as Fact. History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Rodionov (Родионов Евгений Александрович ( May 23, 1977 - May 23, 1996) was a Russian The Chechen Republic (ˈʧɛʧɨn rɪˈpʌblɨk Чече́нская Респу́блика Chechenskaya Respublika; Нохчийн Республика Noxçiyn Respublika Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (21 June 1905 &ndash 15 April 1980 commonly known simply as Jean-Paul Sartre (ʒɑ̃ pol saʁtʁə was a French Ensign Kazuo Sakamaki (酒巻和男 Sakamaki Kazuo, November 8, 1918 - November 29, 1999) was a Japanese S. forces in World War II
• Ronald Searle - English cartoonist
• Léopold Senghor - Senegalize writer and political leader, captured 1940 in France
• Gilad Shalit - Israeli soldier whose capture in 2006 sparked Israel's war against Hamas and later Hezbollah
• William Stacy - lieutenant colonel of the Continental Army, captured during the Cherry Valley massacre; General George Washington attempted to orchestrate a prisoner exchange for Lt. Ronald William Fordham Searle CBE (b 3 March 1920, Cambridge England) is an influential English Artist and Cartoonist England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing Cartoons Traditionally much of this work was and still is humorous and is intended primarily for entertainment purposes Sir Léopold Sédar Senghor ( 9 October 1906 20 December 2001) was a Senegalese Poet, politician and cultural theorist who Senegal (le Sénégal officially the Republic of Senegal, is a country south of the Sénégal River in western Africa. William Stacy (February 15 1734 – August 1802 was an officer of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and a pioneer to the Ohio The American Continental Army was an Army formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America Aftermath Butler purchased the captured officers from the Indians and arranged for some of the women and children prisoners to be freed George Washington (February 22 1732 December 14 1799 served as the first President of the United States of America (1789&ndash1797 and led the Col. Stacy^[30] but was unsuccessful.
• James Stockdale - candidate for Vice President in 1992; decorated member of the U. Vice Admiral James Bond Stockdale (December 23 1923&ndashJuly 5 2005 was one of the most highly decorated officers in the history of the United States Navy The Vice President of the United States is the first person in the presidential line of succession, becoming the new President of the United States upon the death S. Navy; POW in Vietnam
• E W Swanton - captured by Japanese in Singapore; after war, was renowned BBC sports commentator. The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, or the Vietnam Conflict, occurred in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia Ernest William (Jim Swanton CBE ( 11 February 1907 &ndash 22 January 2000) is chiefly known for being a Cricket writer Singapore
• Josip Broz Tito - president of Yugoslavia, Austrian soldier in WWI, captured by Russians in 1915
• Mikhail Tukhachevsky - Soviet military leader and theorist, captured by Germans in WWI
• Charles Upham - Awarded the Victoria Cross twice. See also Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Yugoslavia ( Serbo-Croatian Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Mikhail Nikolayevich Tukhachevsky (Михаи́л Никола́евич Тухаче́вский Michał Tuchaczewski ( &ndash June 12, 1937) was a Captain Charles Hazlitt Upham, VC and Bar (21 September 1908 – 22 November 1994 was a New Zealand soldier who earned the Victoria Cross See below the section "Separate Commonwealth awards" Note that since
• Laurens van der Post - South African writer and war hero, captured by Japanese 1942
• Walther von Seydlitz-Kurzbach - German anti-Nazi general captured at Stalingrad by Soviets
• Kurt Vonnegut - American writer; captured in the Battle of the Bulge and witnessed the Bombing of Dresden in World War II
• Jonathan Wainwright - Commanding General US forces in Philippines; captured at Bataan (1942-1945)
• George Washington - first U. Sir Laurens Jan van der Post (aka Laurens van der Post) (December 13 1906 &ndash December 16 1996 was a famous 20th century Afrikaner author of many The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa Walther von Seydlitz-Kurzbach ( 22 August 1888 – 28 April 1976) was a German General. Kurt Vonnegut Jr (November 11 1922 – April 11 2007 (ˈvɒnəgət was a prolific and genre-bending American Novelist known for works blending Satire, Black The Ardennes Offensive (16 December 1944 – 25 January 1945 was a major German offensive launched towards the end of World War II through the forested Ardennes Mountains The Bombing of Dresden by the British Royal Air Force (RAF and United States Army Air Force (USAAF between 13 February and 15 February 1945 12 weeks Jonathan Wainwright is the name of several men from the same family (see Wainwright family) Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright I (1792–1854 Episcopal George Washington (February 22 1732 December 14 1799 served as the first President of the United States of America (1789&ndash1797 and led the S. President, captured in 1754 by the French during the French and Indian War. The French and Indian War (1754&ndash1763 was the North American chapter of the Seven Years' War.
• D. C. Wimberly - POW in WWII from Springhill, Louisiana, past commander of American Ex-Prisoners of War
• Louis Zamperini - American athlete, member of Olympic team, captured by Japanese 1943

See also

• KIA – Killed In Action
• MIA – Missing In Action
• WIA – Wounded in action
• American Revolution prisoners of war
• British prison ships (New York)
• Combatant
• Disarmed Enemy Forces
• Geneva Convention
• Illegal combatant
• Laws of war
• Postal censorship
• Prisoner-of-war camp
• Prison escape
• The United States Military Code of Conduct
• War crime
• Civilian Internee
• Soviet POWs in German captivity

Movies

• Andersonville
• Blood Oath
• Empire of the Sun
• Escape to Athena
• Grand Illusion
• Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
• Stalag 17
• The One That Got Away
• Danger Within
• Summer of My German Soldier
• The Bridge on the River Kwai
• The Great Escape
• The Wooden Horse
• Uncommon Valor
• The Deerhunter
• The Brylcreem Boys
• Hart's War
• Tea with Mussolini
• Prisoner of War
• The Great Raid
• Rescue Dawn
• Missing in Action
• Rambo: First Blood Part II
• 1971
• To End All Wars

Songs

• Prisoners of War

References

Other references:

• Full text of Third Geneva Convention, 1949 revision
• "Prisoner of War". Encyclopedia Britannica (CD Edition). (2002).  
• Gendercide site
• "Soviet Casualties and Combat Losses in the Twentieth Century", Greenhill Books, London, 1997, G. F. Krivosheev, editor.
• "Keine Kameraden. Die Wehrmacht und die sowjetischen Kriegsgefangenen 1941-1945", Dietz, Bonn 1997, ISBN 3-8012-5023-7

Further reading

• Roger DEVAUX : Treize Qu'ils Etaient - Life of the french prisoners of war at the peasants of low Bavaria (1939-1945) - Treize Qu'ils Etaient - Mémoires et Cultures - 2007 - ISBN 2-916062-51-3
• Pierre Gascar, Histoire de la captivité des Français en Allemagne (1939-1945), Éditions Gallimard, France, 1967.
• McGowran OBE, Tom, Beyond the Bamboo Screen: Scottish Prisoners of War under the Japanese. 1999. Cualann Press Ltd
• Bob Moore,& Kent Fedorowich eds. , Prisoners of War and their Captors in World War II, Berg Press, Oxford, UK, 1997.
• David Rolf, Prisoners of the Reich, Germany’s Captives, 1939-1945, 1998.
• Richard D. Wiggers "The United States and the Denial of Prisoner of War (POW) Status at the End of the Second World War," Militargeschichtliche Mitteilungen 52 (1993) pp. 91-94.
• Winton, Andrew, Open Road to Faraway: Escapes from Nazi POW Camps 1941-1945. 2001. Cualann Press Ltd.
• The stories of several American fighter pilots, shot down over North Vietnam are the focus of American Film Foundation's 1999 documentary Return with Honor, presented by Tom Hanks. The American Film Foundation is an award-winning production company based in Southern California. Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks (born July 9 1956 is an two-time Academy award and Emmy winning American Film actor, director
• Lewis H. Carlson, WE WERE EACH OTHER'S PRISONERS: An oral history of World War II American and German Prisoners Of War, 1st Edition. ; 1997, BasicBooks (HarperCollins, Inc). ISBN 0-465-09120-2.
• Arnold Krammer, NAZI PRISONERS OF WAR IN AMERICA; 1979 Stein & Day; 1991, 1996 Scarborough House. ISBN 0-8128-8561-9.
• Alfred James Passfield, The Escape Artist; An WW2 Australian prisoner's chronicle of life in German POW camps and his eight escape attempts, 1984 Artlook Books Western Australia. ISBN 0 86445 047 8.

External links

• The National Archives ADM 103 Prisoners of War 1755-1831
• The National Archives 'Your Archives'
• The National Archives 'Your Archives' - ADM 103 Prisoners of War 1755-1831
• Archive of WWII memories, gathered by BBC
• POWs of WWII and their experiences
• Soviet Prisoners of War: Forgotten Nazi Victims of World War II
• Current staus of Vietnam War POW/MIA
• Australian POW FX Larkin NX43393 AIF. Detailed web site and rich resources.
• CBC Digital Archives - Canada's Forgotten PoW Camps
• German army list of Stalags
• German army list of Oflags
• Changi A.I.F. Ski Club
• Colditz Oflag IVC POW Camp
• Lamsdorf Reunited
• Website (official) on New Zealand PoWs
• New Zealand Official History, New Zealand PoWs of Germany, Italy & Japan
• Essays on New Zealand PoWs of Germany, Italy & Japan
• Essay on Escapes of New Zealand PoWs
• Stoker Harold Siddall Royal Navy, captured on Crete 1941, and his life in Stalag VIIA
• Notes of Japanese soldier in a USSR prison camp after WWII