Work Camp 565 L
Work Camp 565 L |
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| POWs were housed in the attic of this building |
Location: Hausmannstätten
Type of work: Farm work
Man of Confidence: S/Sgt C. Tucker, 1373
Number of Men: 15 approx.
Forename |
Surname |
Rank |
Unit |
POW |
Comments |
| Harry James | Adams | Marine | R Marines | 6569 | |
| M.J. (Jim) | Boloski | Pte | 4839 | Christchurch, NZ; also Kalsdorf | |
| Percy Alexander | Dorothy | Cpl | RAVC | 387 | Liverpool; also 576/L, 10030/GW |
| Frank Edward | Doughty | Dvr | RASC | 5591 | Peterborough |
| Leslie Verdun | Fitt | Marine | R Marines | 6237 | London |
| Bertie Wilfred | Gordon | Cpl | R Marines | 6238 | Folkestone |
| John | Jardine | Marine | R Marines | 6829 | |
| Fred | Lang | Tpr | RAC | 5695 | Bolton; also 1/GW, 95/GW |
| Thomas | Proctor | Marine | R Marines | 5859 | Millom |
| Charles | Tucker | S/Sgt | Buffs | 1373 | London; also 550/L, 939/GW |
Photos provided by Ian Jardine and Erwin Legat.
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| John Jardine with cow ready for a local show | John Jardine and Rolf, the farm dog | Fred Lang and John Jardine | Jim Boloski |
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| POWs at a local fruit farm | Unknown farm group + POW |
Ian Jardine is the son of John Jardine. In Sepember of 2017 he visited Hausmannstätten and met Erwin Legat, the son of the farmer for whom John had worked as part of Work Party 565/L. Erwin, who was a young boy during the war, recalled that this Work Party had been created at the request of Erwin's mother, Franziska. Several local farms were suffering a labour shortage and so 15 - 20 POWs plus guards were billetted in Schloss Pfeilerhof, a large house on the outskirts of Hausmannstätten. The POWs were kept in the attic of an outbuilding with the guards sleeping on the floor below.
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| Schloss Pfeilerhof | The stairs to the POW quarters. | Building where POWs were held. |
Each morning the POWs would be split into smaller groups and marched under guard to which ever farm they worked on. As the war progressed, the guards became more relaxed and the the POWs would make their own way to the farms. Ian visited the Schloss with Erwin and met an elderly lady who lived there and recalled the POWs and their guards.
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| The Legat farm | Ian (on right) with Erwin and an elderly resident of the Schloss |
Another farm (no longer exists) |
John Jardine always worked on the Legat farm with Fred Lang. In August, 1944, Fred was transferred to 95/GW for some reason. At the very end of the war, he escaped and returned to Hausmannstätten. His reason for doing this was to meet up with Agnes Harb, one of two young ladies who lived on the farm. After the war, Fred brought Agnes back to Bolton and they married in 1949.
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| John & Fred |
In late 1944, John was told to build an air-raid shelter next to the farm. He did this with the assistance of a POW from a nearby farm, W.G. Wilson. Erwin was able to show Ian the location of this old shelter.
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| W.G. Wilson & John Jardine at air-raid shelter |
Ian Jardine at same site in 2017. |
Ian would like to express his grateful thanks to Erwin Legat and
other residents of Hausmannstätten, including the Mayor, for their warm and
generous hospitality during his 4 days in the village.
