The history of Ruhleben : a record of British organisation in a prison camp in Germany
by Joseph Powell and Francis Henry Gribble and dated 1919.

Ruhleben P.O.W. Camp was a civilian detention camp during World War I. It was located in Ruhleben, then a village 10 km (6 miles) to the west of Berlin. The camp was originally a horse racecourse.
The camp detainees included male citizens of the Allied Powers living, studying, working or on holiday in Germany at the outbreak of World War I. They also included the crews of several civilian ships stranded in German harbors or captured at sea. The camp contained between 4,000 and 5,500 prisoners, most of them British. Life in the camp has been described in several books subsequently written by detainees
The German authorities adhered to the Geneva Convention and allowed the camp detainees to administer their own internal affairs. Gradually, a mini-society evolved in the camp. Letters, books, sports equipment and a printing press were all allowed into the camp and the detainees organised their own police force, magazine, library and postal service

From the American Libraries Internet Archive files.
Joe

http://www.archive.org/details/historyofruhlebe00poweuoft

Reading one of the accounts of Ruhleben life it was interesting to see that the inmates were very upset by any of their fellows who escaped.

One of their reasons was that as few if any of them spoke any German they were very easy to pick up. Realise that Ruhleben was a civilian concentration camp (the term they used) and that all the inmates were fairly long term residents in Germany. They couldn't speak the language. Plus ça change.

Thanks healdav. As usual some people will go to great length not to get involved.
Cheers.
Joe

Thanks for that Joe - I wonder if you've seen Chris Paton's great website ? I was able to find a POW I was looking for .... fascinating !

http://ruhleben.tripod.com/

Annie

Thanks for the tip Annie, did not know that one. Appreciated.
Cheers
Joe

Hello

My Gt Uncle (photo left) was imprisoned in Ruhleben until 1919.

He was one of a number of International footballers caught in Berlin when war broke out.

There are wikipedia sites that relate.

I was never able to find out why he was not released until 1919, nor what condition he was in that caused him to be sent to a VAD hospital in North Devon to recover... which was lucky because that was where he met his wife, a Somme widow who was nursing there!

Does any pal have thoughts where such data might be found? Red Cross could not help and there is precious little on VAD hospitals on the Web.

Colin

Hello Colin, I'm happy if I was able in a small way, to help you. Hoping you will find answers soon.
Cheers
Joe