Cowra breakout
E312697
The Cowra breakout was a mass escape attempt by Japanese prisoners of war from a camp near Cowra, New South Wales, Australia, in August 1944, and is considered one of the largest prison escapes of World War II.
All labels observed (2)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Cowra breakout canonical | 7 |
| The Cowra Breakout | 1 |
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
World War II event
ⓘ
military incident ⓘ prison escape ⓘ |
| aftermath |
inquiry held by Australian authorities
ⓘ
most escapees recaptured within 10 days ⓘ |
| category |
1944 in Australia
ⓘ
Japanese prisoners of war in World War II ⓘ Military history of Australia during World War II ⓘ Prisoner-of-war escapes ⓘ |
| causeOfDeathForManyPrisoners | suicide or being shot while escaping ⓘ |
| commemoratedBy | annual remembrance ceremonies in Cowra ⓘ |
| conflict | World War II ⓘ |
| continent | Australia ⓘ |
| country | Australia ⓘ |
| date | 1944-08-05 ⓘ |
| fatalities |
4 Australian soldiers
ⓘ
over 230 Japanese prisoners ⓘ |
| involved |
Australian Army
ⓘ
Australian military police ⓘ Japanese prisoners of war ⓘ |
| legalOutcome | no Australian personnel found at fault in official inquiry ⓘ |
| location |
Cowra
ⓘ
Cowra Prisoner of War Camp Site ⓘ
surface form:
Cowra Prisoner of War Camp
New South Wales ⓘ |
| memorial |
Cowra Japanese Garden and Cultural Centre
ⓘ
Cowra Japanese War Cemetery ⓘ
surface form:
Japanese War Cemetery Cowra
|
| methodOfEscape |
cutting through barbed wire
ⓘ
mass rush from compounds ⓘ |
| month | August 1944 ⓘ |
| numberOfEscapees | about 1100 ⓘ |
| numberOfPrisonersInCamp | about 4000 ⓘ |
| partOf | World War II ⓘ |
| POWCampType | prisoner of war camp ⓘ |
| POWNationality | Japanese ⓘ |
| reasonForBreakout |
desire to die honourably rather than remain prisoners
ⓘ
refusal of Japanese prisoners to accept separation of NCOs and other ranks ⓘ |
| relatedWork |
The Cowra Breakout (1984 miniseries)
ⓘ
various historical studies and books on POWs in Australia ⓘ |
| result | escape attempt largely unsuccessful ⓘ |
| significance |
major event in Australia–Japan postwar reconciliation
ⓘ
one of the largest prison escapes of World War II ⓘ |
| weaponsUsedByGuards |
machine guns
ⓘ
rifles ⓘ |
| weaponsUsedByPrisoners |
baseball bats
ⓘ
clubs ⓘ improvised weapons ⓘ knives ⓘ |
Referenced by (8)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.
this entity surface form:
The Cowra Breakout