To all outward appearances, British WWII prisoner of war Major Alexis Casdagil was a model prisoner. He was held captive in a German prison camp for nearly six years, from 1939 until he was released in 1945. And during his captivity, he created incredibly intricate cross-stitch pictures which were so popular that they were displayed at all four camps where he was held prisoner.

 

One of these works is a huge work made with red and blue fibers stolen from a fellow prisoner's sweater. It depicts the Swastikas and a "banal inscription," clearly aimed at pacifying his captors. But it also included a border of irregular dots and dashes: Morse code, which spelled out the messages "God Save The King" and "F*ck Hitler."

 

Another masterwork included a depiction of the Union Jack. But depictions of national flags was strictly forbidden in the German prison camps. So he lightly stitched on a canvas flap to daintily cover the flag, and stitched "do not open" in German onto the flap. Every week the same guard would lift the flap, and dourly inform Casdagil that such decoration was forbidden. Casdagil would cheekily reply, "You're showing it, I'm not showing it."

 

Casdagil took a huge risk, performing such tiny acts of sedition. But he would be the first person to tell you that this subversive crafting is what saved his soul. 

 

With any luck, most of us will never have to face the crushing conditions Casdagil was subjected to. Despite the Germans' best efforts, despite seeing a fellow inmate "shot in the back for tripping an alarm," he remained resolutely uncooperative. He scrounged up small swaths of canvas, stole fibers from his Greek cellmate, and poured his soul into his crafting. 

 

These intricate works are even more heartbreaking for not being traditionally "artistic." One large piece depicts his cell in excruciating detail. Another became a letter which he sent home to his family, marking the "1,581 days since I last saw you." Casdagil even taught needlework classes to other captured British and Greek officers.

 

An inspirational story of the redemptive power of crafting, to be sure! Casdagil continued his needlework after the war, and his son soon joined him. Major Casdagil died at the age of 90 in 1996, but his son has taken up the cross-stitch mantle. The works of both stitchers are currently on display at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London as part of a show called "Power of Making."