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Museum
The Mass Escape Plot
Prisoner of War
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Prisoner of War

The Mass Escape Plot

A high-security camp

By late 1944, Cultybraggan held prisoners whom the authorities classified as committed Nazis and high security risks. Historic Environment Scotland records a wartime plan for a mass breakout from the camp. It was not carried out.

The murder of Wolfgang Rosterg

Wolfgang Rosterg was a German prisoner known for his anti-Nazi views. On 22 December 1944, fellow prisoners murdered him inside the camp.

Five prisoners were subsequently tried and convicted. They were executed at Pentonville Prison on 6 October 1945.

What the case shows

The case reveals that captivity did not remove political conflict or coercion from life inside the wire. It also shows why this history must be interpreted from evidence rather than reduced to a single dramatic story.

The museum uses official records, surviving objects and personal testimony to examine both the event and the wider conditions in which it took place.