9 min
The WW2 escape line that fooled the Nazis Witness History: World War Two
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- History
In 1940 a daring rescue operation began to help Allied servicemen escape from Nazi-occupied France.
French resistance fighter Roland Lepers was among those who guided stranded Allied soldiers and airmen to neutral Spain during World War Two. The 1,000 km route became known as the Pat O’Leary Escape Line - or the Pat Line.
It’s estimated 7,000 Allied personnel escaped through this route and similar escape lines, thanks to a network of people who clothed, fed and hid them. Peter Janes was one of those British servicemen.
Roland’s daughter Christine and Peter’s son Keith, speak to Jane Wilkinson about their fathers’ adventures.
(Photo: German-controlled checkpoint in France, 1940. Credit: Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images)
In 1940 a daring rescue operation began to help Allied servicemen escape from Nazi-occupied France.
French resistance fighter Roland Lepers was among those who guided stranded Allied soldiers and airmen to neutral Spain during World War Two. The 1,000 km route became known as the Pat O’Leary Escape Line - or the Pat Line.
It’s estimated 7,000 Allied personnel escaped through this route and similar escape lines, thanks to a network of people who clothed, fed and hid them. Peter Janes was one of those British servicemen.
Roland’s daughter Christine and Peter’s son Keith, speak to Jane Wilkinson about their fathers’ adventures.
(Photo: German-controlled checkpoint in France, 1940. Credit: Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images)
9 min