PRISONERS OF WAR

FRANZ VON WERRA, A GERMAN POW WAS

TRANSFERRED TO CANADA TO PREVENT HIM

FROM CONTINUOUSLY TRYING TO ESCAPE.

HE STILL ESCAPED THOUGH, AND TRAVELLED

ALL THE WAY TO SOUTH AMERICA IN ORDER TO

RETURN TO EUROPE. HE WAS THE ONLY

WESTERN HELD POW TO RETURN TO

COMBAT OPERATIONS

DAMAGED ALLIED AIRCRAFT WOULD PURPOSELY

VIOLATE SWISS AIRSPACE SO THAT THEY WOULD

BE HELD IN NEUTRAL SWITZERLAND RATHER

THAN BECOME POWS IN GERMANY

DURING WWII, GERMAN SOLDIERS IN THE US WERE

EVEN SOMETIMES ALLOWED TO LEAVE THEIR

CAMPS ON THE HONOUR SYSTEM. WHEN SOME

POWS, LIKE FRANZ VON WERRA, RETURNED TO

GERMANY, THE NAZIS ACTUALLY BEGAN TO TREAT

THEIR POWS BETTER

THE STOCKDALE PARADOX IS NAMED AFTER

JAMES STOCKDALE, A POW IN JAPAN. HE WAS

FAMOUS FOR NOTING THAT THE OPTIMISTS NEVER

MADE IT OUT OF THE CAMPS. IT WAS THE

STOICS AND THE REALISTS THAT SURVIVED

UNTIL THE END OF THE WAR. (THE PARADOX

IS THAT THE OPTIMISTS DIED BUT THE

REALISTS SURVIVED)

JOHN THORNTON, A POW DURING THE KOREA

WAR, RODE AN IMAGINARY BIKE AROUND HIS

CELL UNTIL THE GUARDS TOOK IT AWAY

SAYING IT WAS "AGAINST REGULATIONS"

THE US PLAYING CARD COMPANY BICYCLE

HAD CREATED SPECIAL CARDS THAT REVEALED

AN ESCAPE ROUTE WHEN THEY WERE SOAKED.

THESE CARDS WERE GIVEN AS CHRISTMAS

PRESENTS TO ALL POWS IN GERMANY

AFTER THE END OF WWII, POWS HELD IN CANADA

DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE BECAUSE THEY HAD BEEN

TREATED SO WELL

UPON LIBERATION OF THE DACHAU CONCENTRATION

CAMP, THERE WERE REPORTS THAT SOME OF THE

INMATES TURNED ON THEIR CAPTORS AND BEAT

THEM TO DEATH WITH SHOVELS