As long as the dawn of civilizations, there will always be a clash of beliefs. Should this clash be big enough, war is sure to follow, and when there is war, there will always be prisoners. As such, for as long as human conflict exists, so do prisoners. In fact, the first usage of the phrase traces back to the 1670s.
Life in the enemy’s captivity can be a hard one. One can never be sure of what treatment awaits them. Nevertheless, one thing is undeniable. The life of a prisoner of war will not be a walk in the park. It might be offensive to call it that. These are people who have gone through hell and survived. These are people who survived death marches, death camps, and even more deadly things. And then there is coming back to everyday life. The lucky few who are released and repatriated back to their countries will be haunted by these horrible experiences. Like the POW’s life on Bernie McAuley book The Shadows Of Sawtooth Ridge, it will not be easy adjusting to the changes back in the free and civilian life. All hope is not lost, however, as there are still former prisoners of war who are able to adjust to their life.
So why are their prisoners of war? Why do belligerents take the time and effort to keep hostages, especially in the modern era where there are proper rules and etiquette for the handling of POWs stated in the Geneva convention? Are prisoners of war really that worth it?
The answer to that question can be tricky, for as the times rolled on and the world changed, so did the machinations of war. In ancient times, for example, when there wasn’t any war ethics and etiquette, the faith of those on the losing side would usually depend on the culture of the victors. The fighters on the losing side and those who have been taken captive would usually expect to either be executed or enslaved. The Romans, for example, took some of their prisoners of war and turned them into gladiators. These gladiators are unique to other prisoners of war as most of them served not as slaves but as entertainment for the common masses. Every day of their existence became a fight for their lives until they could win their freedom.
Sometimes, the winning side would use their prisoners to bolster their forces. There are times in history when an invading force would use these captured forces as cannon fodder, that is, to use these captured forces as a way to exhaust the opponent’s firepower before the “real” forces come. In a way, these prisoners of war become human sacrifices.
Another type of human sacrifice can be noted in the way the Aztecs practiced their warfare. Constantly at war with next-door rival tribes and groups, the Aztec tribe would seek to collect living prisoners. These prisoners would then become human sacrifices to keep consecrating the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan. In 1497 alone, it is estimated that between ten thousand to eighty thousand and four hundred prisoners of war became blood sacrifices for this practice.
Another reason for keeping prisoners of war that is still being practiced to this day is to keep them as bargaining chips. In the olden times, should the captured POW be someone noteworthy, their family or relatives would sometimes plead with the captors for their freedom in exchange for gold or material wealth. This was especially true during the times when the prisoners were considered more as private property rather than property of the state. Still, this is a crapshoot and a gamble as, more often than not, warring factions would rather kill and ransack than negotiate.
In modern times, however, these prisoner exchanges have become more common practice, especially with the introduction of some treaties and etiquettes during wartime. More often than not, these exchanges are political in nature.
These treaties were started during the Brussels Conference of 1874 and continued until they were cemented during The Hague and the multiple Geneva Conventions.
That said, these are just treaties and agreements made by people. It is still up to the different nations how fateful they are in following these laws. It also does not change the fact the truth about war. That it is a wasteful act of uncountable human lives
Oliver’s Twist 