Small and large heritage of the Great War: an archaeology of a prisoner of war camp in Tuchola, Poland

Abstract

ABSTRACT The centenaries of the outbreak and end of the Great War have caused a renewed social, cultural, and scientific interest in the complex nature of the conflict as well as its manifold consequences. Archaeology has been actively involved in re-discovering the material imprint of the Great War on various local landscapes. This paper discusses the application of, and recent advancements in, non-invasive archaeology of the Great War in Poland, taking research at a prisoner of war (PoW) camp in Tuchola, Poland as a case study. Through an analysis of the historical, oral, and material records related to the opening, operating, and closing of the camp, we intend to present recent analyses and discoveries related to the Tuchola camp and indicate the role of archaeological research with regards to such archaeological landscapes as PoW camps dated to the Great War.