How game of monopoly was made to help POWs.

[Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984]

Monopoly has been beloved for generations, but the history of the classic board game isn’t all fun and games. During World War II, specially manufactured Monopoly boards were used to help prisoners of war escape from captivity. In 1940, the British government struck a deal with Waddingtons, the company that manufactured London-themed editions of Monopoly, in which MI9, a secret department of the War Office, tasked Waddingtons with creating a version of Monopoly that contained various tools and information to aid POWs in their potential escape efforts.

The sneakily altered Monopoly boards were distributed to Nazi-run POW camps as part of larger aid packages. In addition to the standard thimble and dog game pieces, each board contained metal “playing pieces” that were actually escape tools, such as a file and magnetic compass. Each version also contained silk maps provided by the intelligence agency, which could be unfolded discreetly without drawing attention. What’s more, these special editions swapped out fake Monopoly money for real German, Italian, and French currency that could be used to bribe guards. The British government also contracted game company John Jaques & Son to create chess sets and versions of Snakes and Ladders that contained hidden compartments with escape tools.

[Father Kit Cool Gun Garth]

Thanks for the Post @Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984.
These are the type of historical insights that make me proud of both our servicemen and especially our Allies that step up to assist in these type of endeavors.

[Father Kit Cool Gun Garth]

 

[Father Kit Cool Gun Garth]

Here is the .PDF magazine article about the making of silk and other escape maps made at Waddingtons, including exploding gun cotton maps!

 

BPxCsNN05jSjJP593VOjwyOr05rpib50Oo4l0C6v-1.pdf

For those that do not have Adobe Reader, I have taken the liberty to cut and paste it below.

[Alpo]

This is a very neat thread. I like the video. I like the PDF.

 

But I wish they had a picture of the file. I really would like to see a file that is both small enough to be considered a monopoly piece, and large enough to be useful.