War Heroes: Douglas Bader Part 3

By SUSAN BROCKER, Illustrator W.H. Anderson

When he came to, German soldiers were bending over him. The Germans knew all about the famous fighter ace with no legs. He was well treated in a prison hospital. They even broadcast a message to England, asking that his spare leg be airlifted to him. But, as soon as he was back on two feet, he tied his bedsheets together, lowered himself from a window, and escaped.

He was recaptured and sent to a prison camp. Again and again, he tried to escape, only to be recaptured. The Germans didn't know what to do with this determined man. Finally, they locked him up in Colditz Castle, where the most difficult prisoners of war were kept. By then, his legs were damaged, and he stayed in Colditz until he was freed at the end of the war.

Douglas Bader believed that people could achieve anything if they had the will and the courage. For many years after the war, he travelled to hospitals around the world, bringing hope to children who had lost their limbs by showing them how well he managed on his own artificial legs. In 1976, he was knighted for his work.

Publisher: Shortland Publications, $8.95
Age: 10-12 years