 Le Marchant Barracks, where the prisoners were held | |
| Date | 1944 |
|---|---|
| Location | Le Marchant Barracks, Devizes |
| Outcome | Failure, death of Wolfgang Rosterg |
The Devizes plot was a failed escape plan for 7,000 German prisoners of war held at Le Marchant Barracks in Devizes. It was scheduled to take place at Christmas 1944, in the belief that there would be fewer guards at the camp and the remainder would be distracted due to festivities. American interrogators attached to XVIII Airborne Corps discovered the plot and reported it to British authorities, with two members subsequently awarded the bronze star medal for their roles in the investigation. Prisoners suspected of involvement were sent to the London Cage for further interrogation by Colonel Alexander Scotland and afterwards to the maximum-security Cultybraggan Camp in Comrie. Feldwebel Wolfgang Rosterg was incorrectly believed to have been an informant of the plans and was lynched by prisoners in Cultybraggan; for their role in his death, five were subsequently hanged at Pentonville prison in the largest mass execution in Britain since 1883.