Benjamin Stark

[marys girl]

My grandfather Benjamin Holdsworth Stark served in the West Yorkshire Regiment and fought at Arras, Oppy Wood and Gavrelle. His record was one of those destroyed in the fire in world war 2. Can anyone tell me where the prisoner of war camp Breslau was situated as I can't seem to find it.

[DavidJP]

Hi,

Breslau is now the city of Wroclaw in south west Poland.

Little bit of info here on wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_prisoner-of-war_camps_in_Germany

Seems that there may have been 3 pow camps in the VI Army Corps District of Breslau.

Have you searched here https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/ for your grandfathers POW details?

Hope this helps.

Kind regards

David

[mmm45]

https://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/File/Zoom/E/15/01/C_G1_E_15_01_0080/C_G1_E_15_01_0080_3903_0.JPG/

He was 12 th WYR when captured

Ady

[marys girl]

Thank you so much for this. I have looked up info about the battles he was in so I know a little bit about his time there. Unfortunately he would not talk about it only said it was terrible and would not say anything else, As far as my mum knows he was gassed in the trenches when he was taken prisoner. Thanks for helping me build up my picture of his life there. anne

[MaxD]

Have you accessed the war diary of his battalion?  His POW record has the date 12 Dec 1917 which looks like the date he was captured.  On that day, the battalion were in the line at Mory near to Arras.  The diary records " An intense hostile bombardment commenced at dawn.....the enemy attacked in considerable force and was beaten off.  20 minutes later he again attacked and succeeded in gaining a footing in.....support trenches. A and D Companies suffered heavily, losing 70% of their effectives.  Bombing fights and hand to hand fighting in progress all day and night". The casualty figures for 12th/14th December included 106 missing, among whom it can be supposed, was your grandfather.
The book "War behind the wire" by John Lewis-Stempel deals with POWs experience in the Great War but it does not make for easy reading, particularly for a relative.

maxD