Stalag VIII-E

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Stalag VIII-E was a World War II German POW camp located 12 km south of the famous Stalag Luft III near Sagan, Germany, (now Zagan, Poland). It was built on the large German Army training grounds next to the village Neuhammer, today called Świętoszów, that are still in use today by the Polish Armed Forces

Contents 1 Timeline 2 Aftermath 3 Sources 4 See also 5 Other reading

[edit] Timeline

• The camp was built in September [1939] to house several thousand Polish prisoners from the German September 1939 offensive.
• After May 1940 they were joined by French prisoners taken prisoner during the Battle of France.
• In 1941 they were transferred to other camps and replaced with Soviet prisoners.
• The first Soviets arrived July 12, 1941.
• In June 1942 the camp became a subsidiary of Stalag VIII-C and its administrative office was closed.
• By June 1942 more than 100,000 prisoners were crowded into this camp. As a result of starvation and disease, mainly typhoid fever and tuberculosis, close to half of them died before the end of the war.
• The Soviet Army entered the camp February 15 1945. The suffering of the surviving prisoners did not end quickly.

[edit] Aftermath

In 1961 a monument was erected at the cemetery next to the site of Stalag VIII-C in remembrance of the thousands who died and are buried here. In 1971 the "Martyrdom Museum of Allied prisoners of War" was established on the site of the camp to house mementos and records of both Stalag VIII-C and Stalag Luft as well as Stalag VIII-E.

[edit] Sources

• History of the Sagan region

[edit] See also

• List of German WWII POW camps
• Stalag

[edit] Other reading

• Account of a Russian P.O.W. in Germany translated from Russian