Skip to main content

Traces of History: Uncovering the Forgotten Secrets of Stalag XXA in Toruń

Even in the face of inevitable terrain changes, the latest technologies are allowing historians and enthusiasts to discover deeply hidden evidence of the past. Around the Toruń fortress, the location known as Stalag XXA, remnants of wartime dramas still lie concealed. Join us on a virtual journey tracing the paths of prisoners of war (POWs) and find out what the terrain relief reveals around Fort XI, the main headquarters of the POW camp.

Toruń and Stalag XXA: Places That Remember

The history of World War II in Toruń is inextricably linked to the POW camp system in Military District XX. A key site was Stalag XXA (also known as Stalag 20A), which operated within the 19th-century forts. Although the landscape around Fort XI is constantly transforming, modern methods such as laser scanning and aerial photo analysis make it possible to spot what was once blurred by time and nature.

The analyzed terrain relief clearly shows the shape of Fort XI. As you know, this fort was the central point of Stalag XXA, where thousands of prisoners of war of various nationalities were held. Unfortunately, despite its historical significance and the fact that many mementos of the prisoners of war are preserved to this day, the fort remains an officially private and closed facility to visitors.

stalag XXA Fort XI


Traces of Labor and a New Camp: Connections Between Stalag XXA and Stalag XXC

The remnants of sub-camps (Arbeitskommandos) are also visible around Fort XI and its vicinity. This is where POWs were sent for forced labor, often on the nearby railway. Analysis of the terrain confirms the locations from which this labor force was used for German war purposes.

Interestingly, the construction of Stalag XXC features in these same stories and studies. The POWs who worked on this site, which later mainly held Soviet prisoners, eventually some of them also found themselves there, having been transferred as part of the organization of POW camps in the Toruń area.

Toruń's Last Bastion of Defense

The final historical trace visible on the map is the defensive systems, which bear witness to the panic and preparations for the final confrontation. Clearly outlined are the trenches and fortifications from 1944/45 that were hastily built to prepare Toruń for defense against the advancing Soviets. These defense lines, though never fully utilized, stand as a grim symbol of the last months of the German occupation.

Thanks to new technologies and research conducted in the area of the former Stalag XXA and Stalag 20A in Toruń, we can continue to restore the memory of the life and death of thousands of prisoners of war.

Stalag XXA in toruń POW Camp


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Just few hours to understand life in Stalag XXA(20A) in Torun

"I will always be grateful to Pawel for helping me understand better what happened to my father when he was captured by the German army after the fighting at Dunkirk. Like many former British POWs, Dad was reluctant to tell his children very much about what he had endured during the war. We knew he spent most of the war in German POW camps, in particular one in Poland. From his army records we discovered that camp was Staleg XX-A. I contacted Pawel at very short notice recently when I was in traveling with my husband in Europe. Pawel was able to meet me in Torun to walk me through the history of Staleg XX-A and some of the forts of Torun. My father, John Wilkinson, was with the British Expeditionary Force, serving in the  Light Tank Regiment of the 1st East Riding Yeomanry. We believe he fought at Cassel in France before being captured.  It was extraordinary for me to walk with Pawel at Torun where the British POWs disembarked, knowing my father would hav...
Post a Comment
Read more

Thanks this trip we've discovered new facts about POW from Stalag XXA in 1945

That was wonderful trip. During three days we saw couple of places connected with POW path of Jack Stansfield. Moreover thanks his son Michael we saw notes with memories of last days in Stalag XXA in Torun. In opposit to all facts which says that prisoners left camp in late december 1945 Jack wrote that they started to march on 21 january! That means that lasts groups of POW left camp in 10 days before Torun was liberated. Fortunatley Jack survived afeter he escaped from march. He met russians army and polish partizants. Below we presents you short memories about Jack and trip to Poland... My father was called Jack Stansfield, he was born in August 1918. He was brought up in the market town of Malton in North Yorkshire where his parents were publicans. He joined the Territorial Army in March 1939 and was mobilised on the declaration of war. Jack enlisted in his local regiment joining the 5th Battalion of the Green Howards. After a short time at the Regimental HQ in Richmond, North...
Post a Comment
Read more

Living conditions in Stalag XXA

Monthly bath in Stalag XXA Living conditions Lawrence Travers Dorins a former POW describes „fort XI was surrounded by a high bank and the fence around it with gates across the entrance road, on one side there was also a dry moat with a bridge on it. The bridge led to a tunnel” The fortress was covered with trees, bushes and earth so that the fortress could not be visible from the bird's eye. Prisoners slept in caponiers where initially were supposed to sleep Prussian soldiers. Yet PoW describes the rooms as if there were designed as rooms in the concentration camps. Rooms looked as semi tunnels. “The perpendicular walls were about 3m high and the height of the arched roof was about 5 m, wooden bunks provided sleeping spaces. Each room had only two small windows which obviously allowed no ventilation. Due to the end of the night the air was solid and everyone would have a headache due to oxygen starvation” .In those rooms kept approximately 32 men. There were three shelves whe...
2 comments
Read more