During
the Second World War, the Department 9 of the British Directorate of
Military Intelligence (M.I.9 - Escaped British Prisoners of War (POW)
debriefing, escape and evasion) developed a great number of secret
means to conceal tools and instruments in harmless looking objects for
everyday use. The means the pilots carried with them during the air
raid were called
pre-capture.
These comprised many items like uniforms or shoes, that could easily be
converted in civilian plain clothes but also see saws, food, etc. This
department also sent to the POW's in the
Offizierslager
or
Offlag called camps (using fancy organisation
names) parcels with escape aid items (called
post-capture).
About one in 5 parcel contained such materiel concealed in
tooth-brushes, pencils, playing cards, etc. The "empty" ones were
called
dove and the "hot" ones
naughty.
A report established in 1942 (
Per Ardua Libertas
i.e. to Freedom through difficulties) gives a complete (?) list of
these items.
We describe here only the orienteering aids like maps and compasses
(see also the website
Florizel
for good colour pictures of silk maps).
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There
were several types of
escape compasses used by British Airmen to help them to escape capture,
and to aid POW's ‘on the run’. They were just one
item out
of many in the escape packs issued by the Sqd Intelligence Officer
before each raid. (left: an early WWII RAF escape ration and survival
pack containing a compass. Because of the value attached to them
(especially the money packs), they were collected on the crew members
return. They also had to be up-dated with light-weight maps printed on
silk for the relevant mission areas (right: map of France and Italy,
FI). They apparently were issued to Army Special Forces as well.
(both photos: courtesy Kerry FOSTER) |
 |
(For more information visit also the website
www.parachutist.be/escapecompasses.html)
Right: WWI escape compasses made by F. BARKER (pictures
courtesy TradeMarkLondon)
The different types of escape compasses could be:
1. A small compass (in one piece) that was concealed in the hollow-out
heel of a flying boot (see picture 1)
2. One that formed the bottom half of a standard RAF Brass Button for a
No. 1 uniform (see note)
This button had a screw top with a reverse thread (i.e. unscrewed by
turning clockwise - see picture 2)
There were several manufacturers of these buttons: B'Ham Buttons Ltd.,
FIRMIN and J. R. Gaunt. The first one used smaller compasses which left
a space between the rim and the compass.
Nowadays, many fakes are being offered, BEWARE!
3. A compass consisting of 2 trouser fly buttons: the lower one had a
pivot and the upper one was magnetised.
4. A button made of bakelite with a magnetic element in it.
5. A compass concealed in the belt buckle.
6. A razor blade type used by sailors of the Royal Navy.
NOTE: The R.A.F. No. 1 (Home Dress) uniform was for parades and smart
occasions; it comprised a belted jacket with brass buttons for breast
and patch pockets, and a brass buckle for the belt. Strangely, this was
used by both bomber and fighter air crews in the early part of the war.
It was later replaced by battledress (No. 2 dress) that had a waisted
jacket that buttoned on to the back of the trousers, and had black
plastic buttons. The escape compass for battledress was hidden in 2
buttons (i.e. it had no crystal); one for the base and pivot, and the
other had the needle. Airmen and aircrew serving in hot climates had KD
uniforms with black buttons and belts. No. 5 Dress was the Mess Kit.
The most well-known: escape compass
as part of a uniform button.
(Click on the pictures for an
enlarged view)
The photo at right shows a typical
Bomber Command crew in their No. 1 Uniforms. The compass button would
have been one of the central ones. Over this uniform would have been
the heavy fur-lined leather jacket, flying boots etc. Their aircraft
behind is a Vickers Wellington V-Victor (1940 - Pictures courtesy
Michael Curtis). |
The classical design: a square
plate with a red corner
Technical Data
- Diameter: 15 mm
- Depth: 4 mm
- Weight: 2 gr. |
Another design: four big holes and
two tiny ones aligned on a radial line pointing North in the right part
of the disk:
 |
(Photo courtesy John) |
(Photo courtesy John) |
Escape compass collections
(Click on the photos for enlarged
views) |
Bakelite button hung on a thread:
the two dots point North
Trouser's fly compass card (upper) button. Another one was the pivot. |
 |
This razor blade was a magnetic needle. It had to be laid on the
surface of a liquid (like water in a glass) and would then turn around
so that the War Department arrows pointed north. Date : World War Two
Navy soldier equipment. |
Contemporary NATO miniature compass.
|
NATO Stock Number and radiation warning sign on reverse |
Technical Data
Manufacturer: Waltham C. Co.
- Diameter: 15 mm
- Depth: 4 mm
- Weight: 2 gr
- Luminous lubber line on the crystal
(Click on the pictures for enlarged
views) |
Blouse Buckle Compass
The above mentioned website THE PARACHUTIST writes about this device:
"Early RAF uniform blouses used a toothed buckle for securing the belt
section on the bottom of the blouse. (...) The buckle was made of a
non-ferrous metal. The compass element was an arrow shaped piece of
magnetized material concealed on the back portion of the buckle. The
compass pivot was staked on a small swivel joint and when not in use
was folded flat against a cross bar. The compass portion was stored on
the opposite side of the same cross bar. A slider mounted on the same
cross bar retains both the pivot pin and the compass needle assembly.
To use as a compass, the slider is moved to release the compass element
and the pivots swung to a vertical position. The buckle is placed on a
stable horizontal surface and the compass needle assembly placed on the
pivot. The pointed end of the compass points toward the North Magnetic
pole".
Compass folded
Photo courtesy Kerry FOSTER
 |
 |
Click on the picture for a detailed
view of buckle open
|
Concealed maps
(Photos:
Per Ardua Libertas)
Peelable playing cards (set of 48
for 1 map). The joker was the key.
Map in a cigar |
(Click for enlargement)
Map in a pencil |
Handkerchiefs:
the maps were visible when
"washed" with a concealed chemical |
Concealed compasses
(Photos:
Per Ardua Libertas)
Swinger (magnetic needle) in a tooth
brush and a pencil
These needles were used hung on a
thread |
Compass in a fountain pen |
Compass in a stud |
Magnetised pencil clip |
(For more information visit also the website www.parachutist.be/escapecompasses.html)
