Guest cantabile Posted 12 August , 2004 Share Posted 12 August , 2004 Hi I'm new to this lovely website but am researching my late grandfather who was a solder in 14-18. He was in the KRRC then Machine Gun Corps, captured (not sure when but believe it may have been the Somme) and held prisoner for almost 2 years in Bavaria where he lived rough in a field with sacking tied on his feet and was marched daily to the nearby salt mine for forced labour. Anyone got a similar bit of history? I cannot find much on this aspect of the war even with wonderful Google.Hope to find a mutual interest,cantabile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manxman Posted 13 August , 2004 Share Posted 13 August , 2004 try and get hold of a book entitled " Prisoners of the kaiser", it will give an insight to the POW situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 13 August , 2004 Share Posted 13 August , 2004 It is by Richard Emden, and published by Pen & Sword. Amazon have a reasonable offer on this book at the moment: click here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevem Posted 15 August , 2004 Share Posted 15 August , 2004 Hi Another good book to read is Silent Battle: Canadian Prisoners of War in Germany, 1914-1919 by Desmond Morton (1992). Whilst the book deals with the experiences of Canadian soldiers there is a lot of information about the conditions in salt mines. Regards Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest cantabile Posted 19 August , 2004 Share Posted 19 August , 2004 Thank you folks, appreciate that info very much. Will keep checking in... cantabile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pete Wood Posted 19 August , 2004 Share Posted 19 August , 2004 If you check the PoW index, newly online at the Great War Forum http://www.1914-1918.net/POW/index.php you may find your man is listed...? What you will definitely find are reports on soldiers who were also forced to work in the salt mines (and coal mines also). If you read their reports, it will also give you a better idea of the terrible conditions these men were forced to endure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Reeves Posted 14 September , 2004 Share Posted 14 September , 2004 Hi I'm new to this lovely website but am researching my late grandfather who was a solder in 14-18. He was in the KRRC then Machine Gun Corps, captured (not sure when but believe it may have been the Somme) and held prisoner for almost 2 years in Bavaria where he lived rough in a field with sacking tied on his feet and was marched daily to the nearby salt mine for forced labour. Anyone got a similar bit of history? I cannot find much on this aspect of the war even with wonderful Google. Hope to find a mutual interest, cantabile My Grandfather was captured in November 1914 and after his third escape attempt was sent to work in the salt mines - possibly near Saltzburg. I don't know of his experiences beyond that - unfortunately he doesn't appear in the POW database. I'm going to have to have a look at Emden's and Morton's books now! Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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