| Accession Number | RC00083 |
|---|---|
| Map call number | Escape Map Collection |
| Collection type | Published Collection |
| Record type | Item |
| Item count | 1 |
| Measurement | Overall: 18 cm x 22 cm |
| Object type | Map |
| Maker |
Cash, John Richard |
| Place made | Germany |
| Date made | c 1918 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copying Provisions | Digital format and content protected by copyright. Non-commercial use permitted. |
[Escape Map, Nassau - Jutland]
Description
The simplest method of reproduction used by prisoners was tracing or copying maps from originals. This was the most common method used in World War I, and was also used in The Second World War.
A prisoner from Holzminden Internment Camp in Germany used this pencil and ink sketch map in an unsuccessful escape attempt in 1918. The map is drawn in pencil, with rivers drawn in blue ink. Scale 1:3,950,000, covering the area from Jutland, Denmark to Nassau, Germany.
Private John R. Cash, 19 Battalion AIF, donated the map. Private Cash was captured at Bullecourt in May 1917. On the night of 24 July 1918, twenty-nine officers escaped from Holzminden through a tunnel dug by the prisoners. Private Cash bribed a German guard for a map and photographic equipment. He produced 300 copies of the map, which was issued to officers hoping to escape through the tunnel. Ten prisoners made it to England; the other nineteen were recaptured. Private Cash was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for his part in the escape.