Valentin Torras Y Closa

At the time of the writing of this book about his becoming a prisoner of the Germans, Torras was 36 years old and had been working in Valenciennes as a mechanic in a factory. At the outbreak of war he was arrested by the Germans, and despite having been assured that he would be sent back to Spain, instead he was incarcerated in German camps for a period of 21 months before he was released.