Shooting Through:
Campo 106 escaped POWs after the Italian armistice
by Katrina Kittel
The stories of WW2 prisoner of war (POW) escapers from a cluster of rice farms in Italy known then as Campo 106 include Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians from all states. West Australians who enlisted into the 2/28th and 2/32nd Battalions, as well as other military units, feature strongly in the book.
The 2/28th Battalion alone contributed hundreds of POWs to prison camps in Italy, of which 163 ended up at Campo 106 and escaped from there in 1943. The 2/32nd Battalion included WA-raised men, of which 104 2/32nd soldiers ended up at Campo 106. Their stories pepper the book’s narrative, and the names of these men are listed in the Appendix.
The book’s narrative includes POWs’ stories illustrating the variety of outcomes post-escape: reaching Switzerland on foot, trekking south to Allied lines, fighting with partisans and British special missions, laying low with Italian families, and for the less fortunate, execution by fascists or Germans. The book’s appendix includes 790 Australians at Campo 106, as well as New Zealander POWs reaching Switzerland.
One POW example: James ‘Jim’ Brennan OAM, a well-known Indigenous veteran of 2/28th Battalion, from Kalgoorlie area, became a POW of the Italians in 1942 and after 7 months on the loose in northern Italy, being sheltered by Italian peasants, he was recaptured in 1944 by fascist troops, whereas 3 other POWs with him were executed on the spot. This story forms a book’s chapter, worked from War Crimes file, affidavits, POW Reports, private memoirs, and Italian accounts.
If you wish to buy a book and you mention you saw it on this site you will receive a discount and a signed copy.
You can order the book direct from Katrina on her website – https://katrinakittel.com.au/
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Moya Sharp
Owner at Outback Family History
My name is Moya Sharp, I live in Kalgoorlie Western Australia and have worked most of my adult life in the history/museum industry. I have been passionate about history for as long as I can remember and in particular the history of my adopted home the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia. Through my website I am committed to providing as many records and photographs free to any one who is interested in the family and local history of the region.
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