Today in World War II History
70 Years Ago—Oct. 18, 1943: First Roman Jews sent to concentration camps; of 1200 Jews arrested in Rome, only 16 will survive the war.
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Emily
(new)
Oct 20, 2013 06:56PM
I know that the Jews were the most persecuted, but was that like the standard of survival for other POWs?
reply
|
flag
For the POWs captured by the Germans, the standards varied. For Soviets and other Eastern European countries, the survival rate was abysmally low. The Nazis considered the Slavic peoples to be "sub-human," and gave them lower rations and worked them very hard. For the western Allies, conditions were fairly good and survival was high. Not until the end of the war, when the German people themselves were starving, did the British/US POWs encounter severe conditions. The Luftwaffe, in particular, adhered to the Geneva Conventions for downed airmen - an old-fashioned knightly chivalry - hoping the Allies would also treat their downed airmen well too.
Thank you for you valuable information! ~Emily
