The story of the death of Capt. Romas Marcinkus, who served in the British Air Force

In 1942, in the city of Sagau, 60 kilometers from Berlin, in the prisoner-of-war camp for pilots and officers Stalag, Luft III, among the English, Canadian and American pilots there were also pilots of other nationalities who fought on the side of the Allies. Our compatriot, a famous athlete, and a pilot of the Lithuanian Air Force, Capt. Romas Marcinkus, also ended up in this camp. He entered the prisoner-of-war camp as an RAF officer-pilot.

In late 1942, RAF Squadron Leader Roger Bushell, who had already spent about three years behind barbed wire, was admitted to the camp. He attempted to escape twice, but was captured and tortured by the Gestapo both times.

After serving his sentence for the last escape in the camp's "cold" section, where prisoners were kept in solitary confinement for 3-4 weeks and received only bread and water. Despite this, Bushell, having appeared in the camp, immediately began to prepare for the escape again. He was the first to gather supporters of the escape around him, to whom Capt. Marcinkus also joined. Bushell's escape plan was called "Big X". It was decided to dig three underground tunnels at the same time, so that one would be real, and the others would be dug in order to mislead the Germans, allowing them to "find" two of the three. 500 prisoners were recruited for this work, and according to the plan, about 200 prisoners would be able to escape.

The actual tunnel entrance was skillfully disguised in the corner of one of the barracks under an iron stove. The tunnel was dug 20 meters deep, taking into account that this layer of earth would hold the German trucks passing above. And. in addition, at this depth, the tracking devices installed in the camp were no longer effective. 200 men, called “penguins”, were used to scatter the excavated earth. When they went for a walk, they filled their pockets with earth. Special holes were made in the pockets, fastened with a needle or other means. While walking around the camp area, the hole in the pocket was unfastened, through which the earth would spill out. Various workshops were established, where civilian clothes were sewn, necessary documents were forged. The workers were protected by special guards. who warned of danger with an agreed sign. Most of those preparing to flee do not speak German, and decided to travel through Germany, like foreigners brought to this country for work. Marcinkus' friend, Briton Tim Wallen, "adopted" Lithuanian nationality. When asked how much he knew Lithuanian, Tim replied:

- I hope I won't meet a Gestapo officer who speaks Lithuanian better than me...

The escape took 18 months to prepare. One tunnel was found by the Germans, and the other was filled with earth during the winter months, when it was no longer possible to 'scatter' it to the 'penguins' due to the snow from the real tunnel, named 'Harry'.

The digging of the “Harry” tunnel and preparations for the escape were finally completed in early spring 1944, and the implementation of the plan was scheduled for March 24.

Even before dark, prisoners determined to escape gathered in the barracks where the entrance to the tunnel was located. There were 200 of them in total. They were given civilian clothes, the necessary documents, a small amount of money and some food saved from R. Kryzas's parcels. The 200 men were waiting for the night and a risky march that evening.

It was getting dark. The end of the tunnel was being hastily dug, which was already behind the barbed wire fence. It turned out that the calculation was not entirely accurate: the opening leading to freedom was right behind the wire, when in the meantime it should have been behind the bushes growing in the forest. This made the escape considerably more difficult, since the area separating the opening from the bushes had to be crossed, and the guard had to be avoided. By dawn, 86 prisoners had crawled out to freedom, and at dawn the 87th was spotted by the guard from the turret and killed. Those crawling through the tunnel, upon hearing shots, retreated back to the barracks and dispersed. The alarm was sounded. The prisoners were lined up and counted. The camp commandant, upon hearing the report that as many as 86 were missing, was speechless. Such an escape caused a storm. A state of alarm is declared throughout Germany. All ports, railway stations, trains and roads are checked down to the last detail. Four thousand people are arrested during this hunt: foreigners, Jews, deserters, runaway workers, etc.

Twenty-six hours after the escape, Hitler himself was presented with a Gestapo report in Berchtesgaden. At that time, Himmler, Keitel, and Goering were meeting in Berchtesgaden. After listening to the report, Hitler called the government aces to an informal meeting and caused a storm. Himmler blamed Keitel and Goering, saying that this camp was under their direct control. Hitler, ending the argument, declared that all escapees must be caught and shot. Goering tried to talk Hitler out of it, reasoning that such an act could harm German prisoners in Allied hands. Hitler relented, ordering the shooting of most of those captured. (Goering and Keitel confirmed this at the Nuremberg Trials).

SS General Mueller, the head of the Berlin Gestapo, sent a secret circular to all Gestapo chiefs in the districts, called the “Sagau Order,” ordering these killings to be carried out in secret. Of the 86 escapees, only 3 reached England. The others were captured. About 50 escaped prisoners were shot in various parts of Germany after torturous interrogations. The most common method was this: while transporting the detainee from one place to another, the cars were stopped in a secluded place and the detainees were ordered to march forward. The escorting guards would kill from ambushes, writing reports that the detainee had tried to escape.

The bodies of those shot were burned in crematoriums. The urns were brought to the Sagau cemetery. Among them was the urn of Capt. R. Marcinkaus.