How Monopoly Games Helped Allied POWs Escape During World War II.
Escape and Evasion Maps, also called silk maps or cloth maps, are maps made for servicemen to be used in case of capture or being caught behind enemy lines.
Developed during World War II, these maps were used by many American and British servicemen to escape from behind enemy lines. These maps could be used without a rustle or crackling. They could also be hidden inside cloth uniforms, such as in a seam or inside a collar, that wouldn’t betray their existence during a frisking or inspection. The silk maps could also be used to patch clothes, filter water, make a sling for an injured arm or to make a bandage. They could also be used to blow the nose. “The Allies needed to be able to print their clandestine maps on a material that would be hardier than paper — material that wouldn’t tear or dissolve in water and that would be light enough for the user to pack into a boot or cigarette packet at a moment’s notice. 
(Silk maps, which have long been in use among militaries, have the added advantage that they don’t make noise as they’re being held or stored — an important attribute, when you’re a prisoner in search of escape. The maps were quite effective. Some 35,000 British and Allied troops in all escaped from enemy territory, and it is estimated that almost half of them used variations on these maps to help in their escape or evasion of capture.
SAKAMPF board game. 1933 After 1933 all German children’s organizations were outlawed except for the officially sanctioned Hitler Youth, and the paramilitary overtones of German youth culture became more pronounced. These priorities were reinforced by Nazi-themed toys, books, and board games such as SAKAMPF, which prepared young boys for an active role in the armed forces and encouraged them to identify with the Nazi insignia and ideology.
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