ABSTRACT
Towards the end of the Second World War, the Belgian government decided to initiate a new decoration, the Escapees’ Cross, to honour those servicemen who had escaped from German captivity. This was something of a slap in the face for the escapees from the First World War whose representative organisation, the Union nationale des Évadés de Guerre (UNEG), had been pressing for an award for its members since its inception in 1928. However, the new award also created rifts within the servicemen of the Second World War, with it being given primarily to those who had escaped to Britain. Likewise, other awards were reserved only for officers, and ordinary servicemen were ignored. All this was compounded when the government decided to close its door for new applications in 1951, and this was only revisited in 1975 after a concerted campaign for recognition by ex-servicemen, forced labourers and patriotic associations when a new award was created. Remembrance of the escapees was limited to a few local memorials, and it was not until 2001 that a monument was unveiled in the capital.
