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Stalag XXA Page 2 STALAG XXA & WORKING CAMP LOCATIONS   The following document lists some of the main camps and working camps administered by Stalag XXA, at Thorn in Poland during WW2. These are collectively known as Stalag XXA. Stalag XXA was not a single camp and contained as many as 20,000 men at its peak.   POW’s of the rank of Sergeant and above could elect under the Geneva Convention not to work and if they did so were not required to work and therefore sent to non-working camps. In accordance with the Geneva Convention, POW’s who were required to work, were treated as little more than slave labour. Working POW’s were hired out to Military and Civilian Contractors and were referred to as the Arbeitskommando. In the case of farm work, this was often carried out on State Farms, with minimal living conditions. When working for Civilian Contractors, conditions were little better. Work camps could be large and created particularly for a project i.e. camp (34) at SCHULITZ. This was used for the construction of a large housing project for German Colonists. These are not the traditional POW camps we see on the films with lots of barbwire and Guard Towers but merely accommodation centers.    Each camp within the administration area was given a number. If you have surviving copies of POW letter cards, the number can be found in brackets following XXA; on the sender’s details i.e. XXA (34) is a camp at SCHULITZ. The number of working camps fluctuated but in the summer of 1944 there were 190 within the XXA administration area. POW’s often started in one of the larger camps i.e. Fort 11  & 13 and then were assigned to working camps. Later when their work was completed, they would be reassigned after returning to one of the larger base camps.   Thorn is located in the Polish Corridor south of Danzig modern Gdansk, on the banks of the Vistular river. The Polish Corridor was created after WW1 by the League of Nations and was later annexed by Germany after its invasion of Poland in 1939. Along with colonising the area with Germans, they also changed a lot of the Polish names. These names have again changed since the war with Russian occupation.   When the Russians overran Poland and XXA, the POW’s were marched out into Germany. In the case of GRAUDENZ NEUE HIEMAT, this was 2 January 1945. These POW’s from GRAUDENZ NEUE HIEMAT, were finally liberated by the British over 3 months later south west of Hamburg. They had walked all the way with only the food and water they could scrounge in the middle of winter. The Thorn area and what remained of XXA (hospital from fort 14), was liberated by the Russians on 21 January 1945.   Location XXA NO Occupants Remarks         BOROWKE   20 men Farm work BRACHLIN   10 men Farm work BRAHNAU   600 men in 2 camps Sand shifting BRUSS 20 50 men Road and sewage scheme DEUTSCH CEKZIN     Farm work DORF WALDAU   30 men in old schnapps factory Farm work GEMWALDAU   18 men Farm work GOETZENDORF   30 men Farm work GRANAU   !5 men Farm work GRAUDENZ INTERNAT 35 450 men Working in town factories GRAUDENZ NEUE HIEMAT 35 189 men Satellite built by men from Internat working on building site GRAUDENZ POW MILITARY PRISON   150 British + French & Belgium Punishment prison for POW’s serving sentences issued by German Court Martials GROS LUBIN     Farm work GROS ZIRKWITZ   14 men Farm work GRUNLINDE   5 men Farm work GUT KONSCHUTZ     Farm work HASENAU   16 men Farm work KAMIN   14 men Farm work KARLSDORF   16 men Farm work KLEIN BARTELSEE   450 men Sand shifting KOENIGS NEUKIRCH     Farm work KONITZ POW ward   6 men summer 1944 Civilian hospital KONITZ   30 men Work in town KOSELITZ   12 men Farm work KRUSCHIN   9 men Farm work KULMISCH NEODORF 20 11 men Farm work LICHNAU   35 men Farm work LOTTIN     Farm work LOWIENEK   8 men Farm work LUSHKAU   18 men Farm work MAXTAL   40 men Railway yard working in sidings MONTAU   18 men Farm work NEUHORST   18 Men Farm work NEUKIRCH   At village school Farm work NOWE     Working in sawmill OBERWALDEN   16 men Farm work OBKAS     Farm work OSTERWICK   10 men Farm work PRUSS   12 men Working in flour mill RESMIN   20 men Farm work SALESCH   20 men Farm work SANSKAU   42 men in 2 camps Farm work SCHARFENHOF (SKARPI)   16 men Farm work SCHLAGENTHIN   12 men Farm work SCHLUSSELMUHLE     Farm work SCHMENTAU   20 men Farm work SCHULITZ 34 114 men Building site for homes for German Colonists SCHULITZ 48     SCHULITZ 129 200 Men Working in ship yard on banks of Vistula SEEHOF   10 men Farm work STARGARD   120 men Working in town STIRNAU     Farm work STRASBURG (BRODNICE)   90 men Working in town & railway yard Thorn (KOPERNIKUS)   British non working NCO’s. first Later one compound 4000 Russians, small Russian Italian Hospital, other compound occupied by those turned out of fort 14 hospital in summer 1944  Two compounds of wooden huts. Non working camp 3 miles south of Thorn.   Thorn Fort 11 1 Used for POW registration in July 1940 later occupied by 25 top French Generals moved from Germany   Thorn Fort 13 3 & 13   Central camp for administration of XXA. Working parties in town Thorn Fort 13A     Working parties assigned Thorn Fort 13B       Thorn Fort 14   40 regular staff +New Zealand dental unit from Crete Australian doctors of 5 Australian General Hospital from Greece Hospital for XXA Thorn Fort 15   400 Warrant Officers and NCO’s Non working Camp for men previously in Stalag XXA & XXB  Thorn Fort 16   Top French generals   Thorn German Military Hospital   More seriously ill Ward in civilian hospital in Thorn TREUL   16 men village school Farm work VANDSBURG   Farm fun by Protestant nuns (Sister Edna) Farm work WALDOWKE   13 men Farm work WILKENWALDE   30 men Farm work WEICHSELHORST   20 men   ZAHN   10 men Farm work ZEMPELBURG   100 men Sawmill producing sectional huts ZEMPELKOWO   16 Men Farm work   MILITARY FORTS AT THORN The forts around Thorn were built to protect it from invasion and were constructed with reparations received from the1870 war between France and Germany The following is a list of the Polish names of the Forts at Thorn. I know from research that Forts 11 to 16, situated on the south bank of the Vistula, were used for POW’s. I have included the other names where known, as these may also have housed POW’s at some time. The Forts at Thorn, were cleared of POW’s in the Summer of 1944, when they were prepared for the defence of Thorn against the Russians.   FORT NAME     1 ? 2 ? 3 S JABTONOWSKIEGO 4 STAFANA ZOTKIEWSKIEGO 5 KAROLA CHODKIEWICZA 6 JAREMY WISNIOWIECKIEGO 7 TADEUSZA KOSCIUSZKI 8 KAZIMIERZA WIELKIEGO 9 BOLESTAWA CHROBREGO 10 BATERIA NADBRZEZNA 11 STEFANA BATOREGO 12 WLADYSTAWA JAGIETTY 13 KAROLA KNIAZIEWICZA 13A PRZYCZOTEK MOSTOWY 13B KOLEJOWY 14 JOZEFA BEMA 15 HENRYKA DABROWSKIEGO 16 ?   Map showing the Thorn area. Fort 13. Fort 15. Michael Roche I thought you may like to publish the attached list of books as it provides more information for families of men now dead, researching the subject: Escape Route Green by Warren Tute, (ISBN 0460039636). Private Leonard Green and Angus Paton managed to escape and made it back to England via Sweden. Both were awarded the DCM which were presented to them by King George V1 at Buckingham Palace on the morning of 6 June 1944, D-Day. Being Jewish, Leonard took an amazing risk to escape. Prisoner of Hope by David Wild (ISBN 0-86332-711-7) Memories of POW Chaplin at Stalag XXA Thorn Poland. He visited soldier in work camps administered by XXA the area of Thorn. In 1943 there were 180 of these with as many men as 600 working at one location. A TERRIER GOES TO WAR by Jim Roberts (ISBN 0-75410-257-2) This is the true story of the experiences of a member of the Territorial Army, or 'Terrier' from the time of the Munich crisis in September 1938 until demobilisation in February 1946. Taken prisoner while serving with the Queen Victorias Rifles in Calais in May 1940, Jim was shipped off to Stalag XXA Thorn in Poland where he became prisoner of war number 10706 A CONDUCTORS JOURNEY by Major James Howe, MBE With musical instruments bartered from German guards, exchanged from Polish prisoners and some provided through British Red Cross channels, he formed a dance band which helped maintain the morale of British captives in Poland and Berlin. He was at Stalag XXB just north of Stalag XXA Mike Roche Photographs Back of the Photo The above photos show Pte. Fred Bates and fellow prisoners at Stalag Luft XXA. Raymond Keech. Names written on the back of above photo: Ron Gilkes, T.Q. Palmer, J.R. Craig, Ken Brown, A. Godfrey, W.A. Gibson, N. Scudder, W. Cope, G. Nicholson, F. Wright, George T. Brown, Walter Vasey (my dad, first on the right as you look at the photograph). This ia a photograph of a small group of POW's with a guard. I believe this to be Stalag XXA. It looks like they are working in a quarry. My dad Walter Vasey is on the guard's left in the white shirt and cap. Unfortunately, I do not know who the others are. The photograph is dated June 1944. Here is the notification my mother first received that my Dad was a prisoner of war. I like the touch about the Post Office. Terry Vasey The following information is taken from a diary kept by Sapper Rex Pearson 262 Field Company ROYAL ENGINEERS during his time as a POW in Poland. He was registered to STALAG XXA which consisted of a number of camps located in some of the 24, 19 centuary underground forts around THORN, various hutted sites, work camps and farms. DATE LOCATION in XXA REMARKS 8 Jun to 18 July 1940 Fort 11 POW processing 19 July to 19 April 1941 BRUSS Camp 20 50 POW's Still in contact with Laurie Dorins and "Natty" 20 April to 28 April 1941 Fort 13A Awaiting assignment to working party 29 April to 14 August 1942 SCHULITZ Camp 34 114 POW's Met Colin Virley after the war. In touch with Fred Walton until he died. "Picculo" Pete also present. 15 August to 22 August 1942 Fort 13 Awaiting assignment to working party 23 August to 26 November 1942 KULMISH NEODORF Camp 20 11 POW's harvesting 26 November to 30 November 1942 Fort 13 Awaiting assignment to working party 1 December to 6 February 1943 GRAUDENZ INTERNAT Camp 35 450 POW's 7 February to 1 March 1943 GRAUDENZ NEUE HIEMAT Camp 35 189 POW's"The Baron" also present This was a satellite to Internat hence same camp number. 2 March to 7 March 1943 Fort 13 Awaiting assignment to working party 8 March to 6 March Fort 14 Hospitalised.This was used as a Hospital for POW's 7 April to 13 July 1943 Fort 13 Awaiting assignment to working party 14 July 1943 to 1 January 1945 GRAUDENZ NEUE HIEMAT Camp 35 In touch with Bob Jacobs and Jimmy Gates 1 January to April 1945 Poland & Germany Forced March from Graudenz to near Hamburg over a period of 3 MONTHS and 3 WEEKS. He was liberated in Germany by English Troops. He would like to contact any of his old comrades who were in these camps at the same time as he was. Please contact via his son-in-law, Mike Roche Update: Thanks for publishing my father in laws details on your site. It has resulted in a contact from the family of a Frank Curtis, Australian Army, who was shot at Stalag XXA in September 1943. A chance in a million but my father in law has a record of him being shot but cannot remember the incident. He was witness to a number of shootings, including one the long march out of Poland to freedom in 1945. He has been able to provide a lot of unknown information for the family together where Frank is now buried. My father in law is now researching amongst his POW friends who are still alive to see if they can throw any more light on the subject. Keep up the good work. Michael Roche     COPY OF ‘DIARY’ ENTRIES OF FRIENDS MADE 1940 to 1944 BY SAPPER REX PEARSON   NAME ADDRESS NAME / NICK NAME MET WHERE & WHEN         E Axon 11 Galbraith Rd, Didsbury, Manchester Stooge Schulitz 41-42 J Adderley Wiltshire St,Salford 7, Lancs Jack Week 10 of March in 45 J.E.Bird Collier St, Marden, Kent Dicky Fort 11 40 L Barden Nedrabs, Pett Rd, Fairlight, Sussex Les 262 RE