Polish POW's

[PamelaP59]

|help| My father Alfred Frank Whisken was called up for service in 1939. He went to France in february 1940,was left behind at Dunkirk and captured at St. Valery 3 weeks later. He spent the next 5 years in a Polish POW camp.
The problem is, I cannot find out anythin else about this. He died when I was 6, and my mother couldn't/wouldn't tell me anymore than this. Can anyone give me any help on how to find out which camp or which regiment he was in?

Thank you
Pam

[Colin Moretti]

As always, try the TNA guidance leaflets first, in particular this one:
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/RdLeaflet.asp?sLeafletID=303.

Colin

[PamelaP59]

Thanks Colin,

I'll go and take a look via your link now.

Many thanks
Pam

[PamelaP59]

Hi Colin,
I just wanted to thank you again for the link you provided. I have sent a request off to the IRC, and will now sit with fingers crossed that they can find somethinf out for me. I know it could be a long wait, but hopefully it'll be worth it!

Pam

[Ann Dee]

Hello Pam,
Presumably your father was in a German POW camp situated in Poland as there were no 'Polish' POW camps. As next-of-kin, you can request a copy of your father's service record from the Ministry of Defence, which should give you all the information you need. Details of how to do this are on this website:
http://www.veterans-uk.info/service_records/army.html
Good luck with your search.
Ann

[petmas]

You can also obtain his POW records from the International Red Cross at Geneva. Pete

[Peter Goodey]

I have sent a request off to the IRC

Presumably you mean the ICRC. Did you spot this paragraph in the research guide that Colin brought to your attention?

The National Archives' Resource Centre and Library holds alphabetical registers of approximately 169,000 British and Commonwealth PoWs of all ranks who were held in Germany and German-occupied territories (Ref: 940.5472). They give details of name, rank and service/army number as well as regiment/corps, prisoner of war number and, presumably, their final camp location. The lists are described as being corrected generally up to 30 March 1945. The three volumes are:


Prisoners of war, British Army, 1939-1945

Prisoners of war, naval and air forces of Great Britain and the Empire, 1939-1945

Prisoners of war, armies and other land forces of the British Empire, 1939-1945 (2nd edn, Polstead, 1990)

Won't that provide what you need?

[ADM 199]

|help| My father Alfred Frank Whisken was called up for service in 1939. He went to France in february 1940,was left behind at Dunkirk and captured at St. Valery 3 weeks later. He spent the next 5 years in a Polish POW camp.
The problem is, I cannot find out anythin else about this. He died when I was 6, and my mother couldn't/wouldn't tell me anymore than this. Can anyone give me any help on how to find out which camp or which regiment he was in?

Thank you
Pam



Dvr.F A Whisken 124426 was Registered as a Prisoner Of War at St.20A Thorn Podgorz
P.O.W. No. 15214.
Information comes from Prisoners Of War British Army 1939 - 1945 that is mentioned in the thread.
With the Rank of Dvr. your Father would have probably been employed at one of the Work Detachments based on the Camp.

Brian

[ADM 199]

Dvr.F A Whisken 124426 was Registered as a Prisoner Of War at St.20A Thorn Podgorz
P.O.W. No. 15214.
Information comes from Prisoners Of War British Army 1939 - 1945 that is mentioned in the thread.
With the Rank of Dvr. your Father would have probably been employed at one of the Work Detachments based on the Camp.

Brian

Just to add a little more the Camp History is in a File at The National Archives.
WO208/3281.

Brian

[CanadianCousin]

I just had a quick Google - the Wartime Memories Project has a couple of pages on the Thorn PoW camp (Stalag XXa) at http://www.wartimememories.co.uk/pow/stalag20a.html. There don't appear to be any references to your father, but you may get some insight into the conditions and daily life of the prisoners held there.

Hope this helps -

Tim

[Peter Goodey]

I don't think the questioner has been back since her last message in September in this thread so she probably hasn't seen any of the interesting more recent contributions.

[CanadianCousin]

Thanks for pointing that out, Peter - I neglected to check the dates before replying (it comes from looking at 'New Posts').

Hopefully, the fact that she hasn't been back to this thread means that she got the information she was looking for (presumably following Colin's advice). But maybe the additional posts will help someone else who's interested in the same topic.

Let's hope so, anyway -

Tim

[PamelaP59]

Hi Tim, Thank you so much for the information you have provided. I apologise for not getting on here for a long while (longer than I realised), but as I'm sure you're aware there are times when genealogy has to take a back seat. I've also been ill for quite a while to. I hope to get back to the search very soon now, and I do appreciate all the information you have given. Thank you
Pam