Podcast
Episode II
Episode II
Service of Intellectual Assistance to Prisoners of War during WWII
11 December 2025
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We seek in these episodes to tell stories about the rich history of the IBE, but in so doing also highlighting the personal elements of these narratives – where we see individual storylines greeting the universal themes promoted by the IBE since its inception in 1925. As you have enjoyed the collections of the Documentation Center, we invite you to enjoy the voices that bring those same collections to life.
How was it possible for the “young” IBE, founded only in 1925, to make a pivot from being an educational institution to one dedicated to intellectual aid efforts? How did they get these remarkable efforts off the ground and make it happen logistically? How did they navigate the politics of wartime, the unfortunate censorship issues, the complexities of funding? And what was the personal impact on a young POW of having access to books while imprisoned in a Romanian camp of the axis powers?