The Gilded Cage
Gravenhurst German Prisoner-of-War Camp 20, 1940-1946

Was it incarceration or vacation?

The residents of Gravenhurst in the heart of Ontario cottage country must have wondered, when the Canadian government chose a picturesque site overlooking nearby Lake Muskoka to imprison captured German officers.

Camp 20 housed as many as 490 prisoners at a time during its six years in operation. Although confined by barbed wire and guard towers, they managed to devise an amazing array of cultural and recreational activities. Of course it was their duty to escape — or try to — and their many attempts ran the gamut from ingenious to reckless.

There were dark moments too: tensions between the captors and captured, tensions between the Nazi radicals and the more moderate among the imprisoned.

Written in a clear, engaging style and illustrated with a wonderful collection of historical photographs, this book provides an intriguing glance at a less well known aspect of Canadian war history.

Much of the new content in the expanded second edition is a result of enthusiastic response to the original release by former prisoners and others who came forward with additional information and pictures from their private collections.

DETAILS

Publisher: Gravenhurst Book Committee, 2003
Category: Arts, culture, and education
ISBN: 978-0-9696976-2-6
Price: $28 CDN/USA paperback
Format: 192 pages 10 x 8 in
Features: 135 historical photos / index