Captured during the retreat to Dunkirk in 1940, Ted Mayhew would spend nearly five years as a prisoner of war in Nazi Germany. Much of that time was spent in a coal-mining labour camp in Upper Silesia, where he and hundreds of other men were forced to work underground in brutal conditions, surviving on starvation rations and clinging to routine to stay sane.
By the winter of 1945, weakened by years of slave labour, Ted was among the tens of thousands of POWs driven west on what became known as the Long March – a desperate journey through snow and ice as the Soviet Army advanced.
Click on the links below to read his story.
Ted’s Wartime Journey Begins
A young Londoner conscripted into war, unaware of the years of hardship ahead
Missing: a Journey From Capture to Captivity
Defeat, separation, and the first steps into years of imprisonment
Shadows of Injustice: Survival and Suffering at E72
Forced labour, deprivation, and endurance in a brutal coal-mining camp
Making the Best of a Bad Job: Adapting to Life as a POW
Routine, resilience, and small acts of humanity amid captivity
Two Million Steps: Surviving the Long March of 1945
Starvation, cold, and fear as prisoners are driven west in winter
A Soldier’s Return – the Long Road Back
Underweight and traumatised, Ted searched for ways to live, not just survive
