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An Extraordinary Italian Imprisonment (Hardback)

The Brutal Truth of Campo 21, 1942-3

Military > Prisoners of War WWII

By Brian Lett
Imprint: Pen & Sword Military
Pages: 251
ISBN: 9781473822696
Published: 3rd November 2014

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This book tells the story of prisoner of war camp PG 21, at Chieti, Italy, between August 1942 and September 1943. It was grossly overcrowded, with little running water, no proper sanitation, and in winter no heating.

Conditions (food/clothing) for POWs were so bad that they were debated in the House of Commons.

The prisoners suffered under a violently pro-Fascist regime. The first Commandant personally beat up one recaptured escaper. A pilot was murdered by an Italian guard following his escape attempt. Tunnels were dug, and the prisoners were even prepared to swim through human sewage to try and get out. Morale in the camp remained remarkably high. Two England cricket internationals staged a full scale cricket match. Theatre and music also thrived.

After the Italian Armistice, in September 1943, the British Commander refused to allow the ex-prisoners to leave camp. Germans took over the camp, and most prisoners were transported to Germany. Some managed to hide, and more than half of these subsequently escaped. After the war, a number of the Camp staff were arrested for war crimes.

Brian Lett's book pays tribute to the many thousands of men who were captured by the enemy during World War Two. It tells the shocking story of the notorious Italian Campo 21 where his father, Major Gordon Lett DSO, was imprisoned.

Somerset Life

Brian Lett provides us with a book that tells the little-known story of the prisoner of war camp PG 21, at Chieti Italy.

Recollections of WWII (Blog Spot)

As featured on.

BBC Radio Somerset

As featured in.

The Royal Gazette (Bermuda)

This book provides a unique insight into the Allied POWs held in Italian camps and specifically in Campo 21.

Firetrench

About Brian Lett

Brian Lett is an author of World War Two history, who has seven books currently in print. He has lectured extensively upon irregular warfare in World War II, including to the British Army. He is a recently retired Queen's Counsel who practised at the Bar of England and Wales for forty-seven years.

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