William James Parlett
AWM 54 11/12/30/20
William James Parlett, an Australian from Adelaide who, during peacetime, worked as a tradesman’s assistant, was captured in Libya, near the town of Derna, between 7 and 8 April 1941. After his capture, he ended up in PG 106, Vercelli, where he remained a PoW for over two years. During this period, he worked on a farm with another 60 PoWs. As he recalled, coexistence was not easy: «the Prisoners of War employed on the farm where I was working were continually having disputes with the Padroni [masters]». On 3 September, the group was moved to Vercelli, in a prison camp near the military barracks. On 9 September, they learned of the Armistice.
We were told to stay in Camp until arrangements had been made with the British Authorities for our release. Later the same day, rumours were current that German soldiers were marching on Vercelli. The Italian soldiers deserted the barracks, and most of the soldiers who were guarding us left their posts. As a result, all the Prisoners of War, including myself, who were in the camp, escaped by simply walking out. The escape took place on 10 Sep[tember] ’43.
The group soon splintered into smaller parties, and the PoWs dispersed in the area. Parlett, together with privates Edward Price, William Hyde, and Henrite Fogg, decided to follow the river Sesia. They marched for about a week until they reached a farm, «called Casini Ronchi».
I do not know the name of the occupier of the farm […]. We stayed there for about a fortnight, and during this time, the occupier gave us food and clothing. At night time, the said Pte Price, the said Pte Hyde, the said Pte Fogg, and myself used to separate and sleep in different outhouses on the farm.
Their presence, however, was not left unnoticed:
After we had been at the farm for about a fortnight the said Pte Price and the said Pte Hyde were captured. Pte Fogg and I were not with them at the time of the capture, and on seeing what was happening, we sneaked off through the maize. That night, we returned to the farm, but the occupier was too frightened to do anything more for us. His son, who had been a Fascist prior to the War, had left the farm and gone into hiding.
The two thus resumed their journey, heading north, and travelled roughly 50 miles until they ran into an Italian who spoke English. The man promised to put them in touch with guides to cross the border with Switzerland. He also sheltered them during the night, and the following day, two guides brought them to «Valli Mossa» (most likely the village of Valle Mosso) by train. From there, they started to climb the Alps.
In the mountains the guides handed us over to about a dozen Patriot Officers who told us that we could not get through to Switzerland because the passes had become impassible on account of bad weather. They also told us that the passes were now well-guarded by German soldiers. We stayed with these Officers [for] about a fortnight. There were four other Australian Prisoners of War and three British Prisoners of War also living with the Patriot Officers.
In the mountains the guides handed us over to about a dozen Patriot Officers who told us that we could not get through to Switzerland because the passes had become impassible on account of bad weather. They also told us that the passes were now well-guarded by German soldiers. We stayed with these Officers [for] about a fortnight. There were four other Australian Prisoners of War and three British Prisoners of War also living with the Patriot Officers.
While we were in this area, Italian civilians helped us a great deal by bringing us food, clothing and tobacco and cigarettes. The Sisters of Mercy at Codgila were among those who helped us. I don’t know the names of any civilians who assisted us, but we gave a slip of paper to many who helped us, bearing our names and numbers.
Meanwhile, however, partisan warfare in the area intensified, and the Germans clashed with the partisans in the mountains. As a consequence, the enemy began to occupy all villages, creating severe problems for the escaped PoWs in their search for food. Despite this situation, they survived the winter, and at the end of March 1944, Parlett, Caterson, Hornsey, and Vaughan decided to move back towards the plain near Vercelli. Caterson, in particular, suffered from a problem with his eye and decided to return to the farm where he worked while he was a PoW, looking for help. Parlett and the remaining two also decided to return to a farm, precisely where Hornsey and Vaughan had worked. «The people on this farm used to give us food and clothing, but they were too frightened to hide us».
The group decided to stay in the area for the following two months, until 24 May 1944, when they were surprised by a German patrol and captured. After a short stop in Mantova, they were transferred to Germany, to Stalag 7°, in Southern Bavaria. Parlett and his companions remained there until the end of the war.
Only after his liberation was Parlett able to learn the fate of his other companions. Caterson had managed to stay hidden on the farm where he went until the end of the war. Unfortunately, the other former PoWs hiding in the mountains had not been so lucky. All of them, in fact, had been killed by the Germans at the beginning of April 1944.
Camps related to this story
Sources
AWM 54 11/12/30/20, [Prisoners of War and Internees – Escapes:] Statements by; Pte L A Trevithick; Pte D G Henderson; Pte W Harrison; Pte S Hancock; Cpl B G W Meale; Pte R MacGregorp Cpl A K McLennan; Cpl A G Morrisonp; Pte D H McGregor; Sgt A L Overton, WO11, W Pack; Pte G Parker; Pte L J Parsons; Dvr H F Padgett; Dvr W J Parlett; L/Cpl L H L Pfeiffer; Sgt H J Smith; Pte N L White.
AWM 402/10, – [Middle East – Recovered Prisoners of War (POW), Rolls, 1939-34 War:] Book 10 – N to Q, William James Parlett.