Watch Steve McQueen in the 1962 classic, The Great Escape
IT was planned to be the biggest prisoner of war escape ever, with more than 200 men involved in a mass breakout.
“But Bushell was dashing and daring, a powerful man, not quite 6ft, with a thick mop of dark brown hair, a strong, deep voice and striking, bright blue eyes that seemed to shine in the dark.“The impact of the escape organised by Bushell was enormous but his contribution to the war effort, which went far beyond the breakout from Stalag Luft III, has never been officially recognised.
When the planned time came, all those involved knew the escape was a forlorn hope because the weather was appalling, with freezing temperatures. Only three made it home — two Norwegians and a Dutchman — and 23 were returned to captivity in Germany. After making 2,500 maps for the escape, Plunkett had volunteered to be the “unlucky” 13th man out of the camp.Like all surviving PoWs, after the war Plunkett was given a questionnaire to fill out.In that 1945 document, which has only just come to light, Plunkett wrote: “There are two individuals . . . whose activities have a direct bearing on the fate of the 50 executed prisoners of war.
“The prisoners worked in breach of the Geneva Convention, which governs the conduct of war, and it could be argued that the Nazi regime had every right to execute them — if only they had known about their activities.
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