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Issues : POWs - World War Two

World War Two, Second World War, W.W.II

Prisoners of War

The capture and treatment of POW's was often problematic, on both the German and Allied sides.

Jacques Vico's family owned the Abbey Ardenne. He describes a haunting memory:

"A young German captain who spoke fluent English asked Windsor [a Lieutenant in Radley-Walters' tank regiment] to reveal Canadian battle plans, but Windsor would only give his name, rank and serial number. Lieutenant Windsor was then punched right in the face. Other Canadians were brought here and they were allowed to shake hands one last time. Then, they were shot one after the other. Next was Doucet, a Canadian Indian who was treated in a racist way by the Germans, and then shot for no apparent reason. Then Corporal Pollard, a boy of only 15 who lied about his age to join the army, murdered in this garden at the age of 18. The Vicos say the Germans searched the bodies of the murdered Canadians, looking for cigarettes. The SS officers then washed the blood from their hands...like Pontius Pilate. ("Valour and Horror" script)

Kurt Meyer, commander of the Hitler Youth division at Ardenne, remembers an alarming detail:

"On the 7th of June I was given a notebook taken from the body of a dead Canadian captain. In addition to handwritten orders, the notes stated that 'no prisoners were to be taken'. Some Canadian prisoners were asked to verify these instructions...they confirmed orders that if prisoners impeded the advance, they were not to be taken." ("Valour and Horror" script)

Canadian commander, Jacques Dextraze, recalls:

"I used to tell my men, "Your job is to kill the enemy, that's your principal job. But the minute an enemy comes out with his hands up in the air, you must respect him, and you must protect him, and you must ensure that this man is as protected as your own men."

Yet, he also explains that sometimes it was clear that not all POW's were treated so well:

"We crossed the river - the bridge had been blown up. Take the little city by the rear. Eighty five prisoners we take. I select an officer, "take them back to the P.W. cage". He goes back, making them run, to the bridge that we had...a farmer's bridge that we had come over you know. These guys had been running for a couple of miles. They came to the bridge (bad cut) No no, you don't take the bridge, you swim. Now these guys fell...went into that water you know. Most of them drowned. Imagine having run you know, they had been fighting before, running you know for a couple of miles, and then the water you know. Now, they were picked up by the engineers rebuilding the bridge. I could have been accused of not having protected them. I'm responsible for these prisoners you see. I felt very bad when I saw them all piled up beside the bridge. I didn't like that very much." ("Valour and Horror" script)

Treatment of POW's at Abbaye Ardenne

The issue of POW's in the "Valour and Horror" Senate hearings