A NEW Forest field was the site of an unusual meeting last week.

Hans Strehlau had made the short trip from his home in Hythe to view the remains of the Setley Plain Prisoner of War Camp 65 where he was held for 12 months in 1946-47.

There, on Thursday, he met up with Poole engineer Gordon Forsey, a former motor transport officer who was stationed at the camp at the same time.

The two 91-year-olds met at the Filly Inn, near Brockenhurst, before visiting an area of heathland almost opposite the pub.

They laughed and joked as they studied an aerial photograph of the camp and tried to find traces of the buildings they both knew as young men.

But the only visible signs were a concrete path and a tiny strip of brickwork that could have been part of the old hospital.

Hans said: "It's nice to come back and meet someone else who was here.

"It's the first time we've ever met – although we might have seen each other 70 years ago.

"I have very pleasant memories of my time here. The war was over and people were starting to live a normal life again."

A sergeant in the German army, Hans was captured in 1945 and held at a PoW camp in Belgium before being transferred to England.

After 12 months at the camp he was sent to work on a farm on the nearby Exbury Estate. There he met his future wife Jean, who helped out on the farm at weekends, and chose to stay in the UK rather than return to his native East Prussia.

Hans remained in agriculture until 1956, when he landed a job at Fawley refinery.

Gordon, of Parkstone, said he had enjoyed his job at the camp and had fond memories of being originally taught to drive by the inmates.

"It was the best posting I ever had," he said.

"Food was still rationed but we lived like kings. The local farmers used to give us the occasional sheep or pig.

"My batman was a former member of the Hitler Youth who brought me a cup of tea at 6am every day.

"The dentist was an SS major who was wanted for war crimes. He was so good the local dentist in Brockenhurst used to come here to get his own teeth done."

Mr Forsey, who still works as an engineer, was a miller at Humphries and Sons in Park Road during the war, working up to 80 hours a week building parts for aircraft as well as tank guns for the African campaign. At night he fought fires wrought by German bombing raids.