The Brownstown Prisoner of War Camp was Camp 11a in Northern Ireland. Many German prisoners found themselves in Portadown guarded by the Welsh troops.
Locals referred to the men as ‘Blue Caps’, suggesting they may have been members of the Corps of Military Police. The military billets were near the Brownstown Prisoner of War Camp at St. Patrick’s Hall on Thomas Street.
Reports suggest the campsite ran from the Brownstown Road to Fitzroy Street in Portadown, Co. Armagh. At the time, the area was sports fields and marked the western edge of the town. Redevelopment of housing estates in Portadown through the 1950s and 1960s means nothing now remains.
Prisoners in Northern Ireland
As Allied troops reclaimed France and the Lowlands, many captured troops found themselves in Northern Ireland. Authorities interned Italian and German prisoners of war in remote locations throughout the country.
Camp 12 was a documented prisoner of war camp at Elmfield, Gilford, Co. Down. The Brownstown camp may have been a satellite prisoner of war camp. Proximity to the railway line would have made the Brownstown site an ideal holding area for detainees awaiting transport.