Reading the card and finding the reference number

Two types of files can be distinguished:

1. Index cards

These cards were established in Geneva by the Prisoners of War International Agency, for each person registered in the lists that the Agency received from the belligerents countries.

1 Last name and First name
2 Service number
3 Date of birth
4 Reference number of the list containing the prisoner's name
This reference number leads to the register

Please note:

Some cards have many reference numbers (the prisoner may have been transferred and could be mentioned on different lists or documents)
Some cards indicate a reference number but this register does not exist any more. So, you will find no more information about this person.

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2. Cards about the requests from the families

These cards were established in Geneva by the Prisoners of War International Agency. Each card for each person mentioned in the lists that the Agency received from the belligerents countries was established.

1 Reference number of the original letter sent by the family
(directs to no other document, because during the war the original letters were discarded once the card being set up)
2 Last name and First name
3 Service number
4 Missing circumstances as indicated by the family
5 Address of the family
6 ICRC inquiry summary

In this example, no reference number refers to an additional existing document. Your search stops here.

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