world war 2 polish POW's Oxford area camps

[mrsbogcat]

Hello everyone
This is my first time posting here. I have been looking into my grandfather who came to the UK after World War 2 and at some point made his way to South Wales and stayed in Hostels before marrying my Nan. He was Polish and spent most of WW2 in a POW camp, Stalag V1-B Neu Versen. We believe for a while he went to a displaced person camp. My grandfather and dad were having a conversation about University once and my grandfather joked "I went to Oxford". There are so many camps for displaced people in Oxford and many of them seem to be for families. I am trying to find out if there were any for single men or would they have gone to the same camps as families. I think he as the only member of his family to come the the UK. I really would like to narrow down the camps where he mat have stayed so I can try and get his military records. I have tried to obtain them for Poland but have been told by someone there that I may have more luck in the UK, Thanks

[pinot]

Hello mrsbogcat, and welcome to Rootschat, where you will get lots of help. May I suggest that you make a new post to the Common Room with something like "camps, Oxford area" in the TITLE. You may get more attention that way and some useful replies. Best of luck!

[sarah]

Hi Pinot,

Posts can be moved if they have been posted in the wrong place, I thought that the ww2 board was the best place for this first post by mrsbogcat.

Regards

Sarah

[Regorian]

Poles weren't POW's, thousands of them fought valiantly for the Allies, Italy at Monte Cassino, Polish Armoured Division in Normandy onwards and Polish Parachute Brigade at Arnhem. Of course they hoped to return home after the War. Not to a Soviet dominated Poland of course. Many commited suicide. 30,000 Polish were were murdered by 'our gallant Russian allies' at Katyn Wood for refusing to fight in the Red Army. There were some Polish formations in the Red Army.

From 1945, Poles were in British Army camps for similation and training into British Society. I had a good Polish friend who was trained as an architect and did very well here.     

[IMBER]

Poles weren't POW's, thousands of them fought valiantly for the Allies, Italy at Monte Cassino, Polish Armoured Division in Normandy onwards and Polish Parachute Brigade at Arnhem. Of course they hoped to return home after the War. Not to a Soviet dominated Poland of course. Many commited suicide. 30,000 Polish were were murdered by 'our gallant Russian allies' at Katyn Wood for refusing to fight in the Red Army. There were some Polish formations in the Red Army.

From 1945, Poles were in British Army camps for similation and training into British Society. I had a good Polish friend who was trained as an architect and did very well here.     

Some confusion here. Poles WERE prisoners of war. Some 400,000 were captured by the Germans and, as mrsbogcat has shown, some were held at Stalag V1-B Neu Versen. However, others reached the UK and after serving during the war later entered the Polish Resettlement Corps in the UK. As for finding out more here are some suggested sources of information:

For MOD Polish records, please contact:

Margaret Goddard or Barbara Kroll
 APC Polish Enquiries
 Building 60
 RAF Northolt,
 West End Road
 Ruislip,
 Middlesex HA4 6NG

Phone: 0044 (0) 208 833 8603
 Email: margaret.goddard135 "at" mod.uk

Also suggest you approach:

The Sikorski Institute
 20 Princes Gate
 LONDON SW7
Phone: 0044 (0) 20 7589 9249
www.pism.co.uk

You might also consider:

Polish Home Army Ex-Servicemen Association
 240 King Street
 LONDON W6 0RF

Imber

[pinot]

Humbly accepting Sarah's discretion while feeling glad that my intervention may have speeded up mrsbogcat's research  .

[Regorian]

In 1951 Census 162,339 persons gave their POB as Poland. Up 44,642 from 1931 Census. Latter would reflect Poles who fought for Britain.

Overall, Swindon, Wilts. was the desired residence and then London. My friend lived in NW London. A Polish Naval officer and his wife lived in a caravan in our grounds for some years after WWII. It enabled them to buy a nice big house in Iver Heath after they left us.   

[greenrig]

I'm interested to know Regorian - where did you source this statistic from the 1931 Census, given that this census has been lost for England and Wales?   Is there some abstract or summary of 1931 available?
 I

In 1951 Census 162,339 persons gave their POB as Poland. Up 44,642 from 1931 Census. Latter would reflect Poles who fought for Britain.

[Regorian]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poles_in_the_United_Kingdom#Polish_Resettlement_Corps_1946%E2%80%9349.

See Post-War dispersal and Settlement section.

This was all under Polish Resettlement and Settlement Act 1947.