Excerpt from https://encarta.one.microsoft.com/encarta/
In Western Europe, as chivalry spread in late medieval times, the practice of sparing and ransoming prisoners was introduced. The Hague Conferences and the Geneva Conventions in 1906 and 1929 provided international rules for the humane treatment of prisoners. Prisoners have a right to adequate food, clothing, and quarters and to the transmission of letters and parcels. A member of the armed forces is bound to supply name, rank, and serial number but cannot legally be compelled to give further information to the enemy. However, these rules have been disregarded in many instances, such as by Germany and Japan during World War II (1939-1945) ^^^
