Introducing

"This site has been created in order to explain what the captivity of French officers was like in one of the many Oflags (officers’ camps) situated throughout Germany after the disaster of 1940. This topic is little known and very seldom evoked but we must never forget that in 1940, there were 1 800 000 French soldiers, officers, non commissioned officers and conscripted soldiers who were made prisoners. They are the forgotten victims of History and of an ill-prepared war led by commanders-in-chief who favoured a war of position over a war of movement and who refused to listen to the voices of those such as General de Gaulle who predicted disaster if tactics didn’t change ! These men were overwhelmed by the "mechanical force" but they fought bravely with the means they had and nobody has the right to forget that the French army lost 100 000 men killed in its ranks between May 10th, 1940 and the Armistice. This terrible figure illustrates that contrary to what is sometimes claimed, our troops courageously resisted a much better equipped and organised enemy.
At a time when the last elderly witnesses are sadly passing away, it seemed useful and meaningful to leave a testimony for future generations describing the manner in which these men managed, despite their state of utter destitution, to organise themselves in order to live with dignity before their keepers and to prove that in spite of the defeat they still loved their country. These oflags having been occupied alternatively by French and Polish officers, this front page had been translated in two languages."

These two Oflags having been occupied both by French and Polish officers, we 've wished to translate this front page in these two languages.
In the near future, we hope to be able to put on line the Polish translation of the whole text as well as the English one.
The legends beneath each photo and document are being translated by Mrs Magdalena Kruk who works at the Polish War prisoners Museum of Opole and is helping us with this translating task.
You can visit the site of this Polish War prisoners Museum located in Opole town thanks to the link existing at the head called « Liens » (=Links) of this very site.

Texte traduit par M. GENDARME

"The prisoners of the Oflag XXIB located in Schubin arrived to the Oflag IIB in Arnswalde about the end of the year 1943, when their Oflag closed because the Germans needed more soldiers, so that the keepers of that Oflag would have been sent to the front. Thus, our Amicale II B – II D has been called since the end of the second World War also the Amicale of the Oflag XXI B ".

AVIS : Chaque document publié dans ce site, photo, dessin, peinture, etc..., est surligné de la phrase "Propriété de l'Amicale". Cela ne veut pas dire que l'original du document appartient à l'Amicale, mais cela veut seulement dire que la mise en ligne du document est surligné de cette phrase pour prévenir tous visiteurs qu'il est interdit de prendre ce document pour l'utiliser de quelque façon que ce soit. Chacun des documents mis en ligne ne l'a été que parce que le propriétaire nous en a, au préalable, donné l'autorisation.