Willi Birkelbach
Under National Socialism
### Under National Socialism

Still aged only 17, Willi Birkelbach joined the [Social Democratic Party (*"Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands"* / SPD)](/wiki/Social_Democratic_Party_of_Germany "Social Democratic Party of Germany") in 1930\. Politics were already deeply polarised at the time, with the [Reichstag](/wiki/Reichstag_%28Weimar_Republic%29 "Reichstag (Weimar Republic)") gridlocked by two extremist political parties that would neither work with the mainstream moderate parties nor react to the logic of the [1932 national election results](/wiki/July_1932_German_federal_election "July 1932 German federal election") by entering into a Nazi\-Communist coalition between themselves. In January 1933 matters nevertheless took a turn for the worse when the [National Socialists](/wiki/Nazi_Party "Nazi Party") [took power](/wiki/Machtergreifung "Machtergreifung") and lost no time in [transforming the country](/wiki/Gleichschaltung "Gleichschaltung") into a [one\-party](/wiki/One-party_state "One-party state") [dictatorship](/wiki/Enabling_Act_of_1933 "Enabling Act of 1933"). Political activity \- except in support of the government \- was banned. Birkelbach, however, worked illegally between 1934 and 1938 for the [Socialist Workers' Party (*"Sozialistische Arbeiterpartei Deutschlands"* / SAP)](/wiki/Socialist_Workers%27_Party_of_Germany "Socialist Workers' Party of Germany") which had broken away from the mainstream [SPD](/wiki/Social_Democratic_Party_of_Germany "Social Democratic Party of Germany") in 1931 in order to push, belatedly, for closer collaboration between Communists and Socialists so as to block a take\-over by nationalist populists. On 10 October 1938, Birkelbach was arrested by the [Gestapo](/wiki/Gestapo "Gestapo"). He faced the justice system and was charged with preparing to "commit high treason" (*"Vorbereitung zum Hochverrat"*), which was the usual charge under such circumstances. He was convicted and sentenced to a thirty\-month jail term. He spent those thirty months in prisons in [Butzbach](/wiki/Butzbach "Butzbach") and [Münster](/wiki/M%C3%BCnster "Münster"). Slightly more than eighteen months following his release, on 15 November 1942, he was conscripted into [punishment division 999 (*"Strafdivision 999"*)](/wiki/999th_Light_Afrika_Division_%28Wehrmacht%29 "999th Light Afrika Division (Wehrmacht)"), a recently created [penal military unit](/wiki/Penal_military_unit "Penal military unit") intended for fighting in [North Africa](/wiki/Tunisian_Campaign "Tunisian Campaign"). However, the fortunes of war moved on, and by the time he was captured he had been sent to fight in [Greece](/wiki/Military_history_of_Greece_during_World_War_II "Military history of Greece during World War II"). He managed \- possibly with others \- to desert and join up with [Greek partisans](/wiki/National_Liberation_Front_%28Greece%29 "National Liberation Front (Greece)"), whom he accompanied northwards into [Albania](/wiki/Albania "Albania"). Here he was captured by the British. He spent approximately two years, between 1944 and 1946, as a [Prisoner of war](/wiki/Prisoner_of_war "Prisoner of war"). The British took him to a prisoners' camp in Egypt. Most of the other prisoners were also German, and together they set up what they called a "desert university" (*"Wüstenuniversität"*), studying to prepare, Birkelbach later said, for a postwar return to democratic structures.


What happened to people who were captured by the Nazis while fighting with partisans?