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Today, on January 22, is passing the 76^th anniversary of evacuation of Stalag 344 Lamsdorf. Then, in 1945, the German authority, due to the approaching Red Army, ordered that all men, who were able to walk, must leave the camp. The evacuation began with the British POWs, sending them on foot on a long and difficult march to the West. In the following days, among others, Polish, Soviet, Yugoslavian and Italian soldiers, left the camp. The evacuation happened under severe weather conditions in frost, snow and among strong wind. For that reason, and due to the fact of large number of causalities, it was named, by the prisoners-of-war themselves, as ,,the death march”. The participating in it soldiers covered a total of up to 1000 km. They regained their freedom in April and May, 1945. The number of those who perished, is estimated at about 8 thousand.

This final stage of the camp's existence is documented in numerous prisoner-of-war relations. Among them are accounts by soldiers of the British army (e.g., Vern Richardson, a Canadian tankman), the Soviet army (e.g., Sergei Voropayev), and the Warsaw insurgents (e.g., Wiktor Natanson).

The employees of the Education and Exhibitions Department of the Central Museum of Prisoners-of-War have prepared a series of films entitled the ,,Roads to freedom”, wherein will be presented selected accounts. The first of them is today on. You are welcome to visit us on our Museum’s Facebook page!