In mid-September 1943, further numbers of British, ANZAC, and South African prisoners began to arrive by train from Italy. Most of these men had been captured during the course of the Western Desert Campaign in North Africa, and had since been detained in Mussolini's Italy. However, upon news of the Italian armistice, German forces were directed to seize administration of the Italian prison camps, and within weeks, began the process of entraining allied p.o.w's. for transfer north, into Germany; many were sent to Stalag VIII-C.