Russian POWs and their guard in Almdal

 Then there was the German Prisoners of the state. They were political prisoners and military deserters,  the so-called Festungs-
 häftlinge, who normally were kept in the German fortresses.
 Under poor and brutal conditions, they were working at the defense line. No machines were available and everything had to be
 done by hand.  The death count among these prisoners was very high. Either they died of epidemic deceases or were  killed
 attempting to escape from the hard work and bad existence.
 Up early, and on foot to the battery where they worked. After a long days hard work, they went back to the camp on foot where
 they only got some small rations of vegetable soup.
 Constantly watched by the guards with mounted bayonets. There are stories about how even minor violations was rewarded
 with a bayonet, some chalk and the mass grave.  Where these graves are situated is unknown today.  
 A lot of circumstances indicate that the POWs had much better conditions than the state prisoners. After the war some grave-
 yards for the POWs were found, but no remains of the prisoners. It also might be possible, that the prisoners were considered a
 like, and just made some different work.
 If they died the POWs were registered, and the prisoners were not.
 An example of the hard labor was water to the concrete in the batteries. Often it was situated 1 or 2 km away and was carried in
 buckets. Day and night when the work started.
 

Team of state prisoners at Arrild.

 The POW graveyard at Lögumkloster.

 The German authorities established the graveyard for POWs. It was founded in 1915 for the POWs that were kept under rather
 poor conditions at Lögumkloster.
 It contains 71 French, Belgian and Russian victims of a Typhus epidemic in 1915. Also the doctor of  the camp is resting here. 
 At tombstone on Danish, French and Russian has been raised by surviving POWs
 
 The state prisoners lived in camps at Genner , Skovby, the farm Damgaard at Rugbjerg, Abkær, Strandelhjörn,  Galsted, the farm
 Östergaard at Gammelskov, Hyrup, Öster Terp, Toftlund, Arrild,  Öbjerg,  Ullemølle, Skärbäk, Gaardkrog at Vester Gasse,
 Lögumkloster  and Döstrup.
 
 Every camp was under command of a Leutnant, and every camp contained one or more penal companies with 250 men each.
 A pioneer battalion staff and 6 pioneercompagnies supervised the construction site. Some POWs were stationed in the small
 communities like Almdal, and several stayed after the war.
 One of those who stayed was Dimitri.                                     
                                            
 
                                                                                              
                                                                                                   Dimitri´s tombstone in Almdal

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