The 1963 film "The Great Escape" is one of the most beloved war movies ever made, but the real story is both more remarkable and more tragic than the Hollywood version. For one thing, no Americans participated in the escape—the tunnel was entirely a British and Commonwealth operation (Americans had been moved to a separate compound).
The operation, masterminded by Squadron Leader Roger Bushell (codenamed "Big X"), was staggering in its ambition and organization. Three tunnels were begun simultaneously—named "Tom," "Dick," and "Harry"—to ensure that if one was discovered, the others would continue. The tunnels were engineering marvels: 30 feet deep to avoid seismophone detection, shored with bed boards, lit with electric lights tapped from the camp's power supply, and ventilated with hand-operated air pumps.
To dispose of the bright yellow sand excavated from the tunnels, prisoners designed bags worn inside their trousers that released sand gradually as they walked around the compound—the "penguins" dispersed tons of sand this way. A tailoring department produced civilian clothes from uniforms. A forgery department created passports and travel documents. Over 600 men were involved in supporting the escape.
On the night of March 24-25, 1944, 76 men escaped through "Harry" before the tunnel was discovered. Of these, 73 were recaptured. On Hitler's personal order, 50 of the recaptured officers were murdered by the Gestapo—shot and their bodies cremated to prevent forensic examination. The murders were a flagrant violation of the Geneva Convention.
Only three escapees reached freedom: two Norwegians who made it to Sweden and a Dutchman who reached Spain. After the war, a special RAF investigation unit tracked down and brought to justice many of the Gestapo agents responsible for the murders.