Seventy-six prisoners escaped from Stalag Luft III camp 80 years ago this week on the night of 24-25 March, 1944 after spending almost a year tunnelling. All but three were recaptured and within a week 50 were shot on the direct orders of Hitler.

What happened to the prisoners in The Great Escape?

An outraged Hitler had 50 of them shot, an appalling abrogation of the Geneva Convention, to which Germany was a signatory. Twenty-three were reincarcerated. Only three made it all the way to freedom—a Dutchman and two Norwegians, all flyers with the British Royal Air Force.

How many POWs survived The Great Escape?

Only three men successfully fled to safety—two Norwegians who stowed away on a freighter to Sweden and a Dutchman who made it to Gibraltar by rail and foot. A furious Adolf Hitler personally ordered the execution of 50 of the escapees as a warning to other prisoners.

Were The Great Escape prisoners betrayed?

Great Escape prisoners of war were betrayed by English informants, according to claims in newly unearthed intelligence documents. The 1944 mass breakout from Stalag Luft III, immortalised in the 1963 war film, led to the arrest and execution of 50 Allied escapers, on the direct order of a vengeful Adolf Hitler.

How many prisoners were executed in The Great Escape?

Adolf Hitler was so incensed by the escape that he ordered the 73 recaptured men executed, and the Nazis eventually settled on killing 50 — all in violation of the Geneva Conventions on the treatment of war prisoners.

Stalag Luft III: The POWs Who Escaped The Nazi Fortress | WW2 Prisoners of War |Timeline

How much of The Great Escape is true?

Based on Paul Brickhill's 1950 non-fiction book of the same name, the film depicts a heavily fictionalized version of the mass escape by British Commonwealth prisoners of war from German POW camp Stalag Luft III during the Second World War.

How many died in The Real Great Escape?

The escape enraged the Germans and a directive was issued by Hitler to shoot all of the recaptured men. In the end 50 were killed, an act that horrified the Luftwaffe. Charles said: "The following day [after The Great Escape] we were kept most of the day on the parade ground.

What happened to the German colonel in the Great Escape?

Allied former prisoners at Stalag Luft III testified that he had followed the Geneva Conventions concerning the treatment of POWs and had won the respect of the senior prisoners. He was repatriated in 1947. He died in 1963 at the age of 82, less than two months before the film The Great Escape was released.

Why did Colin go blind in The Great Escape?

[39] In fact, no one in the film says that Colin Blythe's blindness is the result of eyestrain. He identifies his problem as "progressive myopia", suggesting that he has not only heard of the condition but has also been diagnosed.

Is there any truth to the Great Escape?

For the most part, however, it's a broadly accurate retelling of how, in March 1944, 76 POWs tunnelled their way out of Stalag Luft III. According to historian Guy Walters, author of The Real Great Escape, it's the tone that's wrong. In truth, there was no duty to escape.

Who was the longest kept POW?

United States Army Colonel Floyd “Jim” Thompson, the longest held prisoner of war (POW) in American history, and his wife, Alyce, were products of the idealism of post-World War II America. When Thompson was shot down and captured, they began a journey that changed them forever.

What were the mistakes in The Great Escape?

Factual errors

The airmen did not pack overnight bags for their missions. The film shows the executions being carried out by uniformed German troops using a Spandau machine gun. In reality, the executions were done by Gestapo agents who used pistols at close range.

Why was Stalag Luft 3 so nice?

Because the guards were Luftwaffe personnel, the prisoners were accorded far better treatment than that granted to other POWs in Germany.

Are any actors from The Great Escape still alive?

John Leyton - John Leyton played the role of Flight Lieutenant William Dickes, a tunnel digger. John Leyton is still alive as of today and is known for his music career as well [3]. Angus Lennie - Angus Lennie portrayed Flying Officer Archibald Ives, a blind prisoner of war.

What happened to the bodies of The Great Escape?

The cremated remains of the Great Escapers were returned to Stalag Luft III. The newly-appointed camp commandant was appalled by the killings and allowed the prisoners to build a memorial to house the ashes. In 1948, a Royal Air Force search team travelled to the camp to collect the ashes.

Did anyone get away in The Great Escape?

During the night of 24 March 1944, 76 airmen escaped from the Prisoner of War camp Stalag Luft III. Only three made it home and, of the remainder, 50 were murdered on Hitler's orders. Alan Bowgen explains what really happened in the so-called Great Escape, one of the Second World War's most infamous incidents.

Who was the highest paid actor in The Great Escape?

Watch the trailer for The Great Escape (1963)

By then, Steve McQueen was the undisputed big name, but he was actually paid $87,500, to James Garner's $150,000. During filming he had become powerful enough to threaten to walk off the project if he wasn't given a bigger role, and he made various other ego-driven demands.

How much of The Great Escaper is true on Wikipedia?

It is based on the true story of 89-year-old British World War II Royal Navy veteran Bernard Jordan who "broke out" of his nursing home to attend the 70th anniversary D-Day commemorations in France in June 2014.

Did Steve McQueen do his own stunts in The Great Escape?

He did his own cycle stunting in "The Great Escape," explaining matter-of-factly: "What stunt man do you know who could ride that good." After he completes ''Nevada Smith," McQueen heads for Formosa to film "The Sand Pebbles," plans to take his family along. He's married to actress-singer-dancer Neile Adams.

How many prisoners died in the Great Escape?

Of the 76 successful escapees, 73 were recaptured, most within several days of the breakout, 50 of whom were executed on the personal orders of Adolf Hitler.

Does Stalag Luft III still exist?

Stalag Luft III was evacuated on 27 January 1945 and the prisoners eventually reached Stalag VII-A. This camp was liberated on 29 april 1945 by the U.S. 14th Armored Division. The camp today: There is not much left of Stalag Luft III, as it was demolished after the war.

What happened to Hendley in the Great Escape?

Hendley and Blythe are not seriously injured, but German soldiers arrive on the scene almost immediately. Blythe cannot see them, and they shoot him dead. Hendley is recaptured. Sedgwick, now in France, witnesses three German soldiers killed in a drive-by shooting at an outdoor cafe by French resistance guerrillas.

How were American pows treated in Germany?

The Germans were hardly the genial hosts, whether you were a POW during World War I or World War II. There was severe punishment for escape attempts, there were meager rations and drafty bunkhouses, and there were irregular deliveries of packages from the Red Cross.

Why did The Great Escape fail?

Tunnel collapses, men getting stuck and a blackout caused by a nearby air raid all contributed to further delays. In the end, the rate at which the men were escaping was around one every six minutes, that's ten per hour, which was a lot slower than the planned one every minute or two.

Who jumped the motorcycle in The Great Escape?

Ekins, acting as stunt double for Steve McQueen while filming The Great Escape, was the rider who performed what is considered to be one of the most famous motorcycle stunts ever performed in a movie. He was recognized for his stunt work by being inducted into the Stuntmen's Hall of Fame.