The Password Is Courage

Coward escapes the forced march toward Stalag VIII-B and finds refuge in a French farmhouse and its barn. A German unit soon requisitions the building to set up a field hospital, placing Coward under closer watch. He hides there to avoid capture as the situation around him unfolds.

Coward is taken to a hospital where he is believed to be a wounded German soldier. His true identity is discovered only after he is already in bed, and he is awarded the Iron Cross while still effectively a prisoner. The medal comes as a testament to his improvisation under pressure.

On the way back toward the camp, Coward and fellow prisoners ignite an attack against an enemy ammunition train. They toss flaming bundles of straw onto the passing rail cars and light them with a cigarette lighter. The act disrupts the German supply line and demonstrates the prisoners' capacity for coordinated sabotage.

Back at the camp, Coward and his fellow prisoner Bill Pope begin an elaborate escape plan. They map guard routines, test weaknesses, and recruit trusted collaborators to maximize their odds. The plan evolves into a full-scale jailbreak concept.

The Germans uncover a tunnel that proves to be old and abandoned rather than the main escape route. Coward then exploits the situation by telling camp officials he knows about a secret Allied bomb site, a ruse that earns him special favors. He uses those favors to bribe guards for crucial materials for the escape.

When the ruse is finally discovered, Coward and Pope are moved to a work camp in occupied Poland. The camp's commanding officer brands Coward a traitor, hoping the other prisoners will kill him. The plan to break the prisoners' spirit through this move fails to break their resolve.

The prisoners trick an Unteroffizier into believing he bore responsibility for a devastating fire that Coward had engineered. The ruse pays off, granting Coward extraordinary privileges, including the chance to travel to the nearby town unescorted. He uses these liberties to continue gathering intelligence and resources.

In the town, Coward makes contact with a Polish resistance agent who provides him with maps and other information. He joins his fellow prisoners in sabotage operations and helps wreck a large supply train. The collaboration strengthens their network and undermines the enemy's logistics.

The escape crew is returned to their old Stalag VIII-B, where they manage to smuggle papers past the initial strip search by pretending to be infested with lice. The ruse preserves their cover as they push forward with their escape plan. The operation regroups for the final act.

On the day of the breakout, Coward opens the vertical access tunnel into a pine grove. Thick tree roots slow the progress, leaving 20 men trapped in the tunnel and 180 in the hut. The group improvises a distraction by singing as a guard approaches, and a concertina player steps outside to divert attention.

Coward reaches the edge of the escape and is aided by Irena, who helps him secure a seat on a train to Vienna. They share a kiss and he vows to return after the war. In the station, he finds Pope and other captured comrades waiting under guard in the station office.

The fugitives are sent to an IG Farben work camp near the Belsen concentration camp. As the front nears, they escape by posing as rubble-clearers, stealing a fire engine and uniforms to speed along a road filled with German troops. They slip past the guards while singing a folk tune, and American troops arrive as their freedom nears.