The UK's lost prison town with 7,000 people that disappeared off the face of the Earth

A memorial stands to captives connected the tract (Image: Getty/Richard Croft)

South of a regular English provincial town is simply a tract that erstwhile played a important relation connected the location beforehand of 1 of Europe's defining conflicts.

Norman Cross adjacent Peterborough, though, was a situation progressive during the Napoleonic Wars astatine the opening of what is known by historians arsenic the agelong 19th century.

But it didn't conscionable dwell of buildings successful which inmates were house, it functioned arsenic a municipality successful its ain right, implicit with houses, offices, butchers, bakers, a hospital, school, marketplace and banking system.

Constructed successful 1797, it had a capableness of astir 7,000.

Today, immoderate remnants of the operation tin inactive beryllium seen.

The tract is located southbound of Peterborough (Image: Getty)

In fields are "lumps and bumps", Peterborough Archaeology says, arsenic good arsenic a memorial to 1,770 prisoners who died there.

The situation was closed successful 1814.

Historic England says that, successful 1816, its buildings were demolished and the tract was sold. The country is present nether pasture.

Norman Cross was the world’s archetypal specially-constructed captive of warfare campy and the "prototype for the aboriginal improvement of subject prisons".

Experts adhd that the campy has yielded the "largest and finest postulation of captive of warfare craftwork successful the world", including a postulation of carved bony and ivory objects.

Exhibits specified arsenic exemplary ships, guillotines, needlework boxes and playing cards, on with pieces of straw marquetry, much than 800 items successful total, are present held astatine Peterborough Museum.

The site's relation was to "ensure short-term security".

Historic England adds successful the prison's listing: "British successes successful the subject and naval conflicts of the Napoleonic wars, combined with the refusal by the French to speech prisoners arsenic regularly arsenic had antecedently been the case, created an unprecedented fig of captives.

"Although officers could beryllium fto retired connected parole, a caller strategy had to beryllium developed to location the ample fig of soldiers and sailors that had been detained.

"From archetypal hostilities successful 1793, prisoners were shipped backmost to Britain and held successful rapidly adapted subject buildings."