The Australian War Memorial Collection. Test site
Dry and brittle white bread, broken into two halves. The bread is housed in a square, brown cardboard box affixed with a red cross label. The label is stamped 'AUSTRALIAN BRANCH BRITISH RED CROSS SOCIETY'. Handwritten in black ink on the front of the label is 'Bread sent to Prisoners of War from Berne, Switzerland. See Captain Miles for descriptions.'
This well preserved piece of bread is of the type supplied by the British, Canadian and Australian Red Cross Societies to their prisoners of war in Germany during the last year of the First World War.
The bread was manufactured in Switzerland, from Canadian flour, specially imported for the purpose by the International Bureau de Secour. Parcels were sent weekly from Berne, addressed to individual prisoners in Germany. The addresses were supplied by the Red Cross Societies concerned, who also shared the cost of manufacture and distribution.
Due to the type of flour used to make the bread, when soaked in water, split open and dried quickly by the prisoners, it made a soft white bread. This bread was both nourishing and palatable, and a welcome change from the German black 'sawdust' bread.
Prisoner of war issue black serge peaked cap with painted on waterproofed 'leatherette' style lining to crown. The soft peak is reinforced with top stitching. Cap has a brown cotton drill, top stitche
Handwritten cardboard label in red ink and pencil, 'Australian Prisoners of War c/- Aust Red Cross Commissioners 36 Grosvenor Pce England ('54 Victoria Street' is crossed out) London SW', secured in a
Typed cardboard label 'AUSTRALIAN PRISONERS OF WAR, AUSTRALIAN RED CROSS COMMISSIONERS 54, VICTORIA STREET LONDON' secured in a steel holder with three turned in edges. A round steel holder containing
Studio portrait of Prisoner of War (POW) 4013 Private (Pte) William Woodland, 51st Battalion from Jarrahdale, Western Australia. Pte Woodland enlisted at the age of 18 on 26 August 1915 and embarked f
Allied prisoner of war black woollen peaked cap with brown cotton hat band. A pair of metal eyelets are fixed to either side of the cap's crown for ventilation. The crown is lined with black leatheret
Pair of German issued black woollen trousers without cuffs worn by Allied prisoners of war . A 60mm wide strip of brown cotton drill fabric has been let into the outward facing side seam of both legs.
