Existing comment:
Rather than being confined in prison or worse, sent to a floating prison hulk, captured French officers who pledged their word (in French, "parole") not to try to escape were permitted to reside in specified Parole Towns. There they lodged in houses or cottages and were free to wander about, so long as they remained within one mile of the town's borders. Some of the finest ship models were presumably made under these relatively relaxed conditions. |