1888333 Sapper Harry ALLSOPP, Royal Engineers: POW, 02/12/1944

Any information please on where this man was captured;
Sapper 1888333 Harry Allsopp 4th Field Squadron Royal Engineers killed on Saturday 2nd December 1944 aged 28. He was a POW in Stalag 344 and was in a forced labour camp E3 Blechhammer when he was killed during an air raid.
Sapper Harry Allsopp | War Casualty Details 2193506 | CWGC

 

Looks like he was captured, then held in Italy pre-August 1943. He appears on the list of men held by the Italians at that point in time. From file WO392/21 held at the National Archives in London. He is stated as being held at Camp 53 in the listing (see below). Other members with expertise in the Italian campaign and POWs more generally may know more:

 

Thanks, hopefully one of the Italian campaign experts will pick it up.
Regards Richard.

 

Ancestry casualty list states Egypt ?

 

Does it look like he was captured by the Italians in Egypt?
Richard.

 

Sorry Richard, my bad. I meant to simply say he was held by the Italians, not captured in Italy....my apologies.

 

I started this topic over 10 years ago. Other members have added to it over the years. The contents may assist you. He was likely in E793 rather than E3.

Possible Lamsdorf POW Funeral Photos

Steve

 

I don't have a copy of the War Diary but WO 417/32 (British Army Casualty Report dated 04-23 October 1941 ) shows that he was reported missing in Egypt . These reports were usually published about a month after the event they refer to. A later report, WO 417/ 36 records him as being a POW.

Irrespective of who captured an allied seviceman during the North Africa Campaign he was handed over to the Italian authorities and held in an Italian POW camp there before being shipped to Italy.

I suggest that you obtain his POW record from the International Red Cross Geneva. See elsewhere on this forum as to how to go about it.

Out of interest, here is his Casualty Card (Royal Engineers)

Vitellino

 

Found that he was one of the men transferred to Germany from PG 53 Macerata in July 1943 BEFORE the Armistice:

I CAMPI FASCISTI - Dalle guerre in Africa alla Repubblica di Salò

That explains the note in red ink from the IRCS dated 26 08 43, P.1 of his casualty card.

 

Thanks for those valuable additions vitellino, quite a bit for Richard to digest now on his thread.

 

Thank you all so much!
Regards Richard.