In July 1992, long shadows formed as the sun set over Medellin, the Colombian city nestled in the Aburra Valley. Perched against one of the steep hills overlooking the city sat the La Catedral Prison, although the word prison was hardly a good description. More like a luxurious estate, the...

In February 1864, a group of Union soldiers escaped from Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia. Filthy and starving, the prisoners had set about finding a way out of Libby – which had become an overcrowded hell hole. For other inmates, the long months spent trying to pass the time as the American...