Stalag III-C Alt-Drewitz
Encyclopedia
Stalag III-C Alt-Drewitz was a German Army
World War II
prisoner-of-war camp
for Allied
soldiers. It was located on a plain near the village of Alt-Drewitz, Brandenburg
(now Drzewice
, one of the boroughs of the town of Kostrzyn nad Odrą
, Poland
) about 60 kilometres (37.3 mi) east of Berlin
.
Initially the camp served as a place of internment of several thousands of soldiers and NCOs
from Poland
, France
, Britain
, Yugoslavia
and Belgium
. From 1943 a number of Italian
POWs were also kept there. The majority of the Soviet
prisoners (up to 12,000) were killed or starved to death. Most of the lower rank prisoners were sent to Arbeitskommando
to work in industry and on farms in Brandenburg
. However the administration stayed with the main camp.
, for Belgian and French prisoners from the Battle of France
. From May to June 1941 Yugoslavian and British prisoners arrived from the Balkans Campaign. In July 1941 Soviet prisoners taken during Operation Barbarossa
arrived. They were held in separated facilities and suffered severe conditions and starvation. They were not accorded the treatment required by the Third Geneva Convention
. Thousands of them died of starvation and disease.
In September 1943 Italians arrived who had been interned because of the Italian Armistice. In September 1944 the first Americans arrived, taken prisoner as a result of the failure of Operation Market Garden
or during the advance of the U.S. Army towards Germany. On 1 December 1944 the roster showed 2,036 Americans, 631 Belgians, 1,416 British, 17,568 French, 1,046 Italian, 2 Polish, 1,591 Serbian, and 13,727 Soviet prisoners. In December 1944 more American prisoners arrived, taken prisoner during the Battle of the Bulge
. On 31 January 1945 the camp was liberated by the Red Army
. The American and British prisoners were eventually moved by train to Odessa
on the Black Sea for repatriation.
was a paratrooper of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division
. Captured in Normandy
in June 1944 he was taken to POW camp. He escaped twice, and after being recaptured was sent to Stalag III-C. In early January 1945 he escaped again and made his way to a Soviet tank battalion. He convinced the Soviets to allow him to fight with them. Wounded during a German air attack he was in a Soviet military hospital, from where he was sent to Moscow to the U.S. Embassy. He is believed to be the only American serviceman to have actually fought in a Soviet unit.
Walter Mehlhaff, of the 16th Infantry Regiment
, 1st Infantry Division, was captured on 19 September 1944 during the fighting on the German border. Imprisoned at Stalag III-C he escaped from a work group in early January 1945. He made his way towards Poland and finally was taken to Odessa for repatriation.
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
prisoner-of-war camp
Prisoner-of-war camp
A prisoner-of-war camp is a site for the containment of combatants captured by their enemy in time of war, and is similar to an internment camp which is used for civilian populations. A prisoner of war is generally a soldier, sailor, or airman who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or...
for Allied
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
soldiers. It was located on a plain near the village of Alt-Drewitz, Brandenburg
Province of Brandenburg
The Province of Brandenburg was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1815 to 1946.-History:The first people who are known to have inhabited Brandenburg were the Suevi. They were succeeded by the Slavonians, whom Henry II conquered and converted to Christianity in...
(now Drzewice
Drzewice
Drzewice is the north-western borough of the town of Kostrzyn nad Odrą in western Poland. Until 1952 it was but a village. During World War II Stalag III-C Alt-Drewitz, a Nazi POW camp, was located there....
, one of the boroughs of the town of Kostrzyn nad Odrą
Kostrzyn nad Odra
Kostrzyn nad Odrą is a town in western Poland, at the confluence of the Oder and Warta rivers, on the border with Germany. Located in the Lubusz Voivodeship, in Gorzów County, it had 19,952 inhabitants as of 2007.- History :...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
) about 60 kilometres (37.3 mi) east of Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
.
Initially the camp served as a place of internment of several thousands of soldiers and NCOs
Non-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer , called a sub-officer in some countries, is a military officer who has not been given a commission...
from Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. From 1943 a number of Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
POWs were also kept there. The majority of the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
prisoners (up to 12,000) were killed or starved to death. Most of the lower rank prisoners were sent to Arbeitskommando
Arbeitslager
Arbeitslager is a German language word which means labor camp.The German government under Nazism used forced labor extensively, starting in the 1930s but most especially during World War II....
to work in industry and on farms in Brandenburg
Brandenburg
Brandenburg is one of the sixteen federal-states of Germany. It lies in the east of the country and is one of the new federal states that were re-created in 1990 upon the reunification of the former West Germany and East Germany. The capital is Potsdam...
. However the administration stayed with the main camp.
Camp history
The camp was established in June 1940, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) from the fortress at KüstrinKüstrin
Before 1945 Küstrin was a town in the former Prussian province of Brandenburg in Germany, situated on both sides of the Oder river...
, for Belgian and French prisoners from the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
. From May to June 1941 Yugoslavian and British prisoners arrived from the Balkans Campaign. In July 1941 Soviet prisoners taken during Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
arrived. They were held in separated facilities and suffered severe conditions and starvation. They were not accorded the treatment required by the Third Geneva Convention
Third Geneva Convention
The Third Geneva Convention, relative to the treatment of prisoners of war, is one of the four treaties of the Geneva Conventions. It was first adopted in 1929, but was significantly updated in 1949...
. Thousands of them died of starvation and disease.
In September 1943 Italians arrived who had been interned because of the Italian Armistice. In September 1944 the first Americans arrived, taken prisoner as a result of the failure of Operation Market Garden
Operation Market Garden
Operation Market Garden was an unsuccessful Allied military operation, fought in the Netherlands and Germany in the Second World War. It was the largest airborne operation up to that time....
or during the advance of the U.S. Army towards Germany. On 1 December 1944 the roster showed 2,036 Americans, 631 Belgians, 1,416 British, 17,568 French, 1,046 Italian, 2 Polish, 1,591 Serbian, and 13,727 Soviet prisoners. In December 1944 more American prisoners arrived, taken prisoner during the Battle of the Bulge
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...
. On 31 January 1945 the camp was liberated by the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
. The American and British prisoners were eventually moved by train to Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
on the Black Sea for repatriation.
Escapes
Joseph BeyrleJoseph Beyrle
Joseph R. Beyrle is thought to be the only American soldier to have served with both the United States Army and the Soviet Army in World War II. Born in Muskegon, Michigan, Beyrle graduated from high school in 1942 with the promise of a scholarship to the University of Notre Dame, but enlisted in...
was a paratrooper of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division—the "Screaming Eagles"—is a U.S. Army modular light infantry division trained for air assault operations. During World War II, it was renowned for its role in Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, in Normandy, France, Operation Market Garden, the...
. Captured in Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
in June 1944 he was taken to POW camp. He escaped twice, and after being recaptured was sent to Stalag III-C. In early January 1945 he escaped again and made his way to a Soviet tank battalion. He convinced the Soviets to allow him to fight with them. Wounded during a German air attack he was in a Soviet military hospital, from where he was sent to Moscow to the U.S. Embassy. He is believed to be the only American serviceman to have actually fought in a Soviet unit.
Walter Mehlhaff, of the 16th Infantry Regiment
16th Infantry Regiment (United States)
The 16th Infantry Regiment is a regiment in the United States Army.-Formation:The 34th Infantry Regiment and 11th Infantry Regiment consolidated into the 16th Infantry Regiment on 3 March 1869. The 11th Infantry's history prior to the consolidation is normally included with the 16th's.-U.S...
, 1st Infantry Division, was captured on 19 September 1944 during the fighting on the German border. Imprisoned at Stalag III-C he escaped from a work group in early January 1945. He made his way towards Poland and finally was taken to Odessa for repatriation.