Marking the 80th anniversary of The Great Escape

This March marks 80 years since The Great Escape in 1944. To mark the occasion, Second World War and aviation historian Steve Darlow visited the former prison camp in Poland to remember the lives of the airmen.

On the night of 24 March, 1944, and into the early hours of the next morning, a group of Allied prisoners of war attempted a daring escape from Stalag Luft III, a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War.

The meticulously planned operation involved digging three tunnels codenamed ‘Tom’, ‘Dick’, and ‘Harry’. The prisoners ingeniously disguised their activities, using tools made from scavenged materials and distributing sand from the tunnels around the camp compound.

On the fateful night the escape was put into action, complications arose as the exit of the tunnel ‘Harry’ fell short of the planned location due to a miscalculation in distance. Despite this setback, 76 prisoners managed to escape through the tunnel, but unfortunately, only three successfully evaded recapture.

The escape was a remarkable feat of courage, determination, and teamwork, demonstrating the resilience of the human spirit even in the face of overwhelming adversity. However, the aftermath of the Great Escape was tragic, as the Gestapo captured and executed 50 of the recaptured prisoners, in violation of the Geneva Convention.

Steve Darlow visited the Stalag Luft III in Poland on Sunday 24 March 2024 and laid wreaths on behalf of the Fund. He said: “The Great Escape is firmly etched in our memory, owing to the success of the 1963 film, but it is always worth remembering, and reminding younger generations, that the breakout from Stalag Luft III in March 1944 involved real people, with real lives, hopes, and ambitions.

“The escapers, a multi-national group of prisoners, devised and carried out a truly remarkable escape plan, both audacious and ingenious, and we rightly celebrate their extraordinary courage and determination. All of this is tempered, however, by the unforeseen and tragic aftermath of the escape, when the Nazis, acting in contravention of the accepted conventions of war, murdered fifty of the recaptured escapers.

“It is now 80 years since The Great Escape, and we will remember, and continue to remember, all those involved. We commemorate those who, in their bid for freedom, lost their lives.”

You can read more about The Great Escape here.