January again so time for our yearly game of Escape from Colditz, this year we have five
players so with four teams escaping so the Jerries were in for a hard time!
The story...err...AAR!
After
the success of Super September with multiple Home Runs (POW talk for escapes)
the Colditz Allied Escape Committee led by Colonel Brown-Staines decided that
October would be bigger! New Colditz Kommandant Major Galwitz meanwhile
announced on his arrival he was going to run the Castle with an iron fist and
strengthened the Garrison.
With five players the board starts to fill up! You really need to watch your Pawns...
The
battle of wills started on October 1st as the Escape Committees from the American,
Dutch, French and Polish Prisoner contingents began accruing the necessities to
breakout; clothes, documents, food and the all-important navigating aid, a
compass! All the Escapees were soon ready for action except for the French
who oddly starting building up a supply of Escape Equipment before getting the
basics! This led to Sous-Lieutenant Dispair being the first Colditz inmate to be placed into solitary in October!
The
Dutch ably led by Majoor Al Van der Harrison quickly raided the German Stores amassing
a supply of escape equipment and on Friday October 6 Kapitein Van der Dik disguised as
a sausage vendor walked out the Castle’s front gate and to freedom much to
Major Galwitz’s fury, Gate Guard Schutze Mauser found himself on a train
heading east the very next morning!
Dutch Kapitein Van der Dik (orange Pawn) by the main gate in disguise, notice he is carefully blocking the Guard deployment space...the cunning beggar!
Kapitein Van der Dik now safe and sound with the German Guards trailing way behind him!
But
Van der Harrison’s team was on a roll, Monday October 8 Kapitein Van der
Balz feigning a toothache used 30 feet of rope he was hiding in his
underpants to get into the outer courtyard of Colditz! He was quickly
through the wire and heading to freedom as fast as his clogs could take him
when a German Guard tripped him up. Van der Balz found himself in the cells
along with Sous-Lieutenant Dispair! Major Galwitz was quick to start handing
out Iron Crosses! He also transferred a large number of Guards to patrol the
Castle’s courtyard!
Dutch Kapitein Van der Balz tried to escape via the Dentistry but the Jerries caught him quite a way from safety!
The
next week the whole of Colditz was a hive of activity, the Yanks led by Colonel
Maurice were busy quietly amassing a huge supply of escape equipment, the Dutch
were proving adept at bribing the German Guards for what they required, the
Poles under the supervision of Pulkownik (Colonel) Coplewinski we’re finding it
hard to secure the rope they required for their plans while the French were
still trying to amass there basic Escape Kit, French Général de brigade Davide in the
words of the Allied Escape Committee leader Colonel Brown-Staines really needed
to pull his socks up and get his men motivated! The second week of October ended with the Germans filling
the cells with prisoners raiding the Store, the Kitchen and the Showers!
So
began what came to be called the Big Week, Monday October 16 saw another Dutch
Home Run! Kapitein Van der Butt while in the Officers Quarters took advantage
of a diversion created by other prisoners to get beyond the Castle walls and
sprint to safety, yet again the Guards were caught on the back foot and were
never in with a chance to stop Van der Butt! A furious Galwitz ordered a
crackdown and during the 17th and 18th there was a Roll Call, plus an American
prisoner, Captain Gardiner was sent to the cells when he was found with gate keys moulded from ear wax in his possession and Dutchman van der Balz joined him trying to exit the courtyard using a fake pass he took from the back of a Cornflake packet! Galwitz
retired to his room content Wednesday evening with these successes buoying him but he woke to a tempest Thursday
morning! Overnight Colonel Maurice’s Americans had completed digging a tunnel
using nothing more than a single teaspoon and Captains Martin and Lewis
accompanied by Dutchman Kapitein Van der Balz (fresh from the cells) used it to start a mass breakout! A frenzied rush to freedom ensued and Lewis and Van
der Balz made it, unfortunately Captain Martin was apprehended just after
crossing the barbed wire barrier! Two more Home Runs and the Big Week wasn’t
over yet! The Guards should have paid more attention to the the Polish Prisoners
rendition of Shakespeare’s the Tempest, during the Sunday matinee performance
Polish Officer Kowalski used a tunnel they had dug under the stage to breakout while one of
his comrades recited the soliloquy! Kowalski then negotiated the Castle wall
and the barbed wire perimeter to complete a magnificent breakout! Two weeks later he was back with his
old RAF squadron shooting Nazis from the sky!
American Captains Martin and Lewis in the Canteen Tunnel. It's the Germans turn and he can be seen redeploying his Guards, unluckily for him the Dutch played a diversion card on their next turn clearing the Guards from the Tunnel's exit point and to top it off one of their chaps joined the escape!
The 2 Yank Captains (blue Pawns) were left way behind during the escape by their Dutch compatriot (orange Pawn) who rolled thanks to doubles a total of 33 pips!
Captain Martin's gone off to the cells but the 2 remaining Escapees have a clear run to safety!
Polish Officer Kowalski (green Pawn on board edge) on his way to freedom, the German Guards rolled a 'five' for their pursuit roll he easily outpaced them!
The
Garrison was ticked off by the Big Week and they redoubled their efforts after
it! From Monday October 23 in the courtyard German Guards now outnumbered
prisoners though many inmates joked that it was because of the number of recent
escapes! Moving about the Castle was now dangerous and many prisoners were arrested for
just shuffling around. Despite the German crackdown Général de brigade Davide’s
French finally finished acquiring their Escape Kit requirements and belatedly
started planning their first escape. The final days of October dragged on
seemingly uneventful until late on the afternoon of Tuesday October 31 Polish NCO Wozniak made a ‘Do or Die’ effort to escape! He sprinted from the courtyard
passed the Cells, the Guardroom and several stunned German Guards and found his
way to freedom!
Polish NCO Wozniak joins his countryman Kowalski in successfully escaping Colditz Castle!
So,
October 1944 at Colditz Castle came to an end. The prisoners had scored five
Home Runs and the German Guards had thwarted 4 other attempts to breakout it had been a
busy month!
Board at the end of the game, we played for 2 hours 45minutes, we extended our play by 15 minutes we were enjoying it so much!
Well,
that’s it for this year’s Escape from Colditz romp! The Germans put up a very good show considering all the different plots that were hatching! Like last time it was a hoot and
everyone was a winner except perhaps the French 😃!
Here’s
a summary...
Germans: prevented 4
escapes attempts
Dutch: scored 2 Home Runs and had 2 unsuccessful escape attempts
Polish: scored 2 Home Runs
Americans: scored 1 Home
Run and had 2 unsuccessful escape attempts
French: smoked about 300
packs of Gauloise cigarettes!
