Expulsion - Vertriebenen
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Soviet Aerial Attacks (2 partial Reports)
The content and material for this post came to my possession via a recommendation of a very good Polish friend who lives in Elbląg, Polska (formerly Elbing, Westpreußen). The Soviet military text was generously translated by Irina Yanushkevich (retired Linguistics Professor and ManyRoads partner). The original source material was sourced and posted on facebook by Szymon Gieryga. English translation of the two Soviet documents (contained in the above folder). Frisches Haff Flucht-Report-1 (English Translation) 3) ACTIONS TAKEN AGAINST THE ENEMY TROOPS RETREATING ALONG ICY ROADS ACROSS THE BAY OF FRISCHES HAFFOn the 18th the division was to perform a special task: to destroy the enemy troops retreating along the spit…
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70 years on…
As everyone most certainly knows, this year is 2015. 7 May 2015 marks the official surrender date of German forces, some 70 years ago.For those who focus on 1945 as the end of WW2 in Europe, it was. Sadly, 1945 was not just an ending; it was also the beginning of the total destruction and removal of a ~600 year old way of life, a culture, and the homeland for millions of Eastern Germans. In the years following 1945, some 12 to 14 million people were forcibly removed from their homes and expelled from the recently surrendered German Eastern provinces. To place these events into a reasonably balanced historical context,…
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Grete geb. Roschkowski & Hannelore geb. Petroschka- Remembrances of Elbing
Hannelore Petroschka and Grete geb. Roschkowski were among the tens of thousands of Germans forcibly removed from their home by the German Expulsion – “Ethnic Cleansing” of Elbing/Elblag following World War 2. In March of 2013, I was contacted by Hannelore’s grand-daughter who wrote: My Grandmother Hannelore was born in Elbing [West Prussia] in 1923 to Julius Petroschka and Grete Roschkowski (whose family owned a furniture factory in Elbing). After my grandmother died a lot of her belongings were lost but we have recently discovered a box of photographs which included a lot of post cards from Elbing and the surrounding areas. It seems my great grandmother purchased them before…
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Die Wedhorn Vertreibung (Expulsion)
Note: This account is the product of numerous discussions, interviews and writings between Frieda geboren Wedhorn, her son Norbert Grohmann, and Mark Rabideau. Every effort has been made to remain true to the intent, content and events of this life altering time. During the days preceding Frieda geboren Wedhorn’s capture and deportation by the Soviets, heavy fighting began in and around the Wedhorn family home in Orlofferfelde, Westpreußen. During this time, around March 1945, Soviet Red Army soldiers came to the Wedhorn farmhouse, took possession and refuge within it and while there they attacked and raped Frieda (geboren Wedhorn). Shortly after the rape, the Soviet soldiers were forced to leave…
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Heimatortskartei gets personal
Almost all ManyRoads readers know that my mother’s family was among those expelled by the allies from the the former German Eastern province of West Prussia following World War 2. Today, I had the great honor to read and view the Heimatortskartei records of my relatives and their friends/ neighbors. I have placed the images I found on line and will update this image library as I find more documents. For those interested, here are the images I managed to obtain.
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Danzig- Westpreussen (West Prussia) Heimatortskartei
For those wishing to gain access to photographic images of the actual Heimatortskartei from the towns, cities & villages which were near what used to be Danzig in West Prussia, they are available on FamilySearch. (LINK to Danziger Gebiet (Area ) Westpreussen (West Prussia) Heimatortskartei). These represent images of a civil register (handwritten and printed works) of refugees from the former province of Danzig-Westpreußen, Germany, now Gdańsk and Bydgoszcz provinces in Poland. For those of us whose families were expelled from their homes by the allies after World War 2, this represents a set of documentation that could contain the handwriting of ‘our’ family members, from that place and time.…
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German Expulsions & the Diaspora
While doing some research for an email response, I came across a body of work related to Die Vertreibung (The Expulsion). These papers are presented on the website of Dr. Stefan Wolff. Stefan Wolff is Professor of International Security at the University of Birmingham, England, UK. A political scientist by background, he specialises in the management of contemporary international security challenges, especially in the prevention, management and settlement of ethnic conflicts and in post-conflict stabilisation and state-building in deeply divided and war-torn societies. Stefan Wolff, “Stefan Wolff,” political research, academic, Stefan Wolff, n.d., http://www.stefanwolff.com/. Ethnic Germans in Poland and the Czech Republic: A Comparative Evaluation Co-authored with Karl Cordell and…
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Worse than War
In keeping with our emphasis on die Vertreibung and Ethnic Cleansing, we recommend you either view Daniel Jonah Goldhagen’s documentary “Worse Than War” or read his book of the same title. To quote Dr. Goldhagen: (source website- disappeared) I hope that you choose to have a look at it. Whether or not you end up agreeing with every conclusion and proposal in Worse Than War, the [documentary] offers a plethora of new information and perspectives not just on genocide or eliminationism but on critical aspects of humanity and modernity, society and politics. I hope to rouse your intellect and conscience, even if I at the same time challenge your views…
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Flucht aus Polen
They said, the war was over. Still, the suffering continued. They were hungry. Alone. Afraid. Father had never come home, from Stalingrad. Brother, an infant, was dead. Home was gone, given to others. Of the family, Mother and the two sisters survived. They had their fear, their lives, their uncertainty, and each other. Mutti had sent Lilli to beg a cup of food from another expelled family… (photo, Lilli, age six or seven, is in the dark coat with cup). Her face shows the the feelings of humiliation she still remembers. This poorly written piece is true. Circumstances such as Lilli’s Vertreibung can never be justified; yet, they continue. Different…
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Political Debate about the Center Against Expulsion in Berlin (ARD)
Political Debate about the Center Against Expulsion in Berlin. Flucht und Vertreibung – Eskaliert der deutsch-polnische Zoff? (ARD Anne Will’s political talk show) Unfortunately, it is not easy or simple to find factual information about controversial subjects like die Vertreibung (the Expulsion). We extend our sincerest appreciation to all our readers who have shared their experiences, links, articles, and photos on the subject. We hope that you find these videos informative and helpful in developing a more complete and balanced understanding of what happened to Eastern Germans following the loss of World War 2. For more background on why we present this information, please read: On the “Vertreibung”, Expulsions, and…
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Frieda Senger- Cyrillic Conversion
As many of you are aware, I have been trying to decipher a Russian document that Soviets created as justification for sending my grandmother into a Gulag following WW2. To help me with my sleuthing, I have found and used the following tools: Russian letters & script Russian online keyboard Automatic Cyrillic Converter My grandmother’s document may be viewed here: Frieda Senger -Suchdienst & Soviet Records. What I did to help me in my search was to carefully look at the Cyrillic script and attempt to define each letter using the script as presented on the site at item 1 above. Once I found (or thought I found) the script…
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Zeyer- the end
Recollections of an officer of the chief administrative district in Zeyer. Johannes Jahn, farmer and farm owner in Zeyersvorderkampen. see original document This document has been translated and reworked with additional family history by Mark Rabideau. The District of Zeyer was located in the northeast corner of the Free State of Danzig, in the area that included the towns of Grosses Werder, Zeyer, Stuba and Schlangenhaken. The district followed the Nogat River, starting at the village Zeyer to the Vistula Lagoon estuary. The total area of the District was about 2510 hectares (~6200 acres) of which 480 hectares (`1200 acres) were the village of Zeyer, Stuba with the village of…
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On the “Vertreibung”, Expulsions, and Hope
Of late, I have received numerous queries and comments from our readership regarding my position on and interest in the ethnic expulsions of German peoples from Eastern Europe after World War 2. I think this is a fair question that merits response. I guess I would begin my response by stating that expulsions and holocausts (genocides) did not start nor end with the Germans of 1930-1940s Europe. From a historical context some of the earliest genocides were (according to Wikipedia): the destruction of Melos by Athens during the Peloponnesian War (fifth century BCE) the genocides of Amalekites and Midianites (described in the old Testament). the Yu Ding records that Liwang…
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Sudeten Vertreibung- Sudeten German Expulsion
“Töten auf Tschechisch” Zwei Tage nach Kriegsende treiben tschechische Milizen deutsche Bewohner Prags mit brutaler Gewalt aus der Stadt. Es ist der Beginn der Vertreibung fast aller Deutschen aus der Tschechoslowakei. ZDF Film. This film details the history surrounding the expulsion of Germans from Prague, the Sudetenland and Czechoslovakia. Both the NSDAP actions and crimes preceding the expulsion and the brutality with which the ultimate German expulsion were conducted by the Czech people and government after the war are detailed. Vertreibung der Deutschen aus der Tschechoslowakei Die Vertreibung von 200.000 Tschechen 1938-1939 – die Vertreibung der deutschen Bevölkerung 1945
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Die Rechtlosen- Those without Rights
Flucht und Vertreibung (II): Die Rechtlosen by OstpreussenTV
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Verlorene Heimat- Lost Homeland
Inferno in the East (Inferno im Osten)-Flight and Expulsion (Flucht und Vertreibung) von OstpreussenTV Related Links Expulsion – Vertreibung Flucht und Vertreibung (Photo Gallery)
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Ethnic Cleansing Discussion Groups
Recently a new Internet Expulsion (Ethnic Cleansing) Discussion Group opened its doors for business. If you are interested in learning more about, or are researching, the European Ethnic Cleansings of the 20th Century as described below, these groups may be of interest. Hopefully the discussions will remain constructive as well as informative. The European-Expellees Expellees * EUEEP * EUFV * UESE group describes itself as follows (click here to visit their site): Flight, expulsion, ethnic cleansing, banishment and exile are fates suffered by millions of Europeans in the 20th century and represent a widespread political phenomenon in the world up to this day. This group is intended to serve as…
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NDR Flucht & Vertreibung Geschichten- Expulsion Histories
Flucht und Vertreibung Geschichten von Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR). German Expulsion histories broadcast and published by North German Radio (NDR). Damals in Ostpreußen: Die Geschichte einer Region Flucht und Vertreibung Flucht bei Minus 20 Grad
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Heimatsortskartei & a true history
By the end of WW2, the destruction of Germany was nearly total. Almost every city had been leveled; the remnants of families were scattered all over Germany, Europe, North and South America. Everyone had lost family members or friends. According to Wikipedia losses in the Third Reich were: Country Population 1939 Military deaths Civilian deaths Jewish Holocaust deaths Total deaths Deaths as % of 1939 population Austria 6,653,000 261,000 58,700 65,000 384,700 5.8 Germany (within 1937 borders) 69,310,000 4,456,000 700,000 to 2,284,000 160,000 5,316,000 to 6,900,000 7.7 to 9.9 Ethnic Germans from other nations 7,292,000 601,000 200,000 to 886,000 801,000 to 1,487,000 11.0 to 20.4 Soviet citizens in the German…
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An Elbing Remembrance- Fred Rump
We’ve had some interesting discussions […] lately but I feel that for most of us Elbing and it’s history is far, far away. The people who actually lived there before 1945 are fast becoming a dying breed. In addition, while there is much Information available in German sources, little information can be found in English. Let me store some of my thoughts and a brief historical background on these pages. I was born in Elbing in Dec 1937. My earliest memories are rather vague. See My Story Point is we left under duress with the full expectation to be back in at most 2 weeks. That was the propaganda line.…
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Zeyer Friedhof- 2010
Vergangenheit in aller Munde (the original source article has been removed) Die Kirche und der Friedhof in Zeyer (Gemeinde Elbing) haben den Kampf gegen die Naturgewalten verloren – den gegenmenschlichen Widerwillen und Vergessenheit aber gewonnen. Das war ein wichtiges Ereignis für das ganze Dorf. An der Stelle, wo sich einmal die evangelische Kirche und der dazu Friedhof befanden, wurde am 22. August nach sieben Jahren der Bemühungen ein Denkmal zu Ehren der dort Ruhenden errichtet. Das Denkmal entstand dank den Bemühungen des ehemaligen Einwohners von Zeyer Ewald Frost, der weitere, in Deutschland zerstreut lebende ehemalige Einwohner von Zeyer versammelte, das nötige Geld organisierte und mit Unterstützung der Gesellschaft der deutschen…
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Chelyabmetallurgstroy of the NKVD of the USSR — The Largest Forced Labor Camp for German-Russians
revised 19 Sep 2020 due to broken links with additional source documents added. Tscheljabmetallurgstroj des NKVD der UdSSR — das Groesste Zwangsarbeitslager Fuer Russlanddeutsche Genesis, Purpose and Assignments, Structure (Entstehung, Aufgabe, Struktur) Krieger, Dr. Viktor. “Chelyabmetallurgstroy of the NKVD of the USSR — The Largest Forced Labor Camp for German-Russians.” Volk auf dem Weg, June 2006, 20-22. source article used with permission from from the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection, North Dakota State University Libaries, Fargo, ND (www.ndsu.edu/grhc) Original articles including images (German): Ein Zwangsarbeitslager in Ural- Dr. Viktor Krieger (no translation) Tscheljabmetallurgstroj des NKWD der UdSSR — Dr. Viktor Krieger (translation below) Below follows a translation from the original…
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Chelyabinsk ITL (Gulag)
This write-up is my effort to document the circumstances and images surrounding the Gulag complex to which Frieda Senger was assigned and interned after World War 2 by the Soviets For more information see: Frieda Senger- Post WW2 Gulag Frieda Senger -Suchdienst & Soviet Records source: Wikipedia.de English: Chelyabinsk was the location of a Soviet Gulag. Chelyabinsk ITL (Work Improvement Camp) was in existence from November 1941 until October 1951. At its height, it held 15,400 persons who were employed building a smelter used for Industrial, Highway, Civil and Residential construction, as well as in open-cast mining. Additionally there was a Prisoner of War Camp #68 for German POWs in…
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Frieda Senger -Suchdienst & Soviet Records
Today when I arrived home a letter from the Deutsches Rotes Kreuz- Suchdienst awaited me. I have to admit the contents were, for me, extremely exciting! 19 August 2010 Update: Thanks to my good childhood friend Sharon we now have a translation of these records. (See bottom of page for the complete text.) Frieda Senger before her incarceration in Soviet Gulags, circa 1940. Here are the documents (with the translations I have in English and German). Translation: German, member of fascist organization (abbreviation in the left corner)Dossier/Document about Frieda Senger German Civil Air Defense. Start: 17th of March 1945 End: ….. 19… Übersetzung: Senger Frieda 40 176 876 Reichsluftschutzbund Anfang…
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Expulsion of German Nationals from Neissbach
Contributed by Researcher 230112 People in story: Thomas Fischer Location of story: Neissbach, Grafschaft Glatz Article ID: A1070371 Contributed on: 06 June 2003
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Expulsion Summary
source document link The results During the period of 1944/1945 – 1950, as many as 14 million Germans were forced to flee or were expelled as a result of actions of the Red Army, civilian militia and/or organised efforts of governments of the reconstituted states of Eastern Europe. Hundreds of thousands of ethnic Germans were detained in internment camps or sentenced to forced labor, some of them for years. The number of expellees and refugees, whose fate could not be ascertained, was estimated to be around 2.1 million, according to two major studies conducted in 1958 and 1965, which were commissioned by the German Bundestag. Millions of German women were…
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Flucht und Vertriebung Gallerie (German Expulsion Gallery)
Ich habe eine kleine Flucht und Vertriebung Foto Gallerie auf ManyRoads gestellt. (I have placed a small Photo Gallery on the German Expulsion on ManyRoads.) Bitte besuchen Sie es zu Errinerung. (Please feel free to visit it and remember.) Fals Sie andere Fotos haben oder davon wissen bitte benutzen Sie unser Contact page. (If you know where I might find additional photos to add to the gallery, please use our Contact page to let me know.) …mark
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Die Flucht aus Ostpreußen- Elena Schlottau
Dieser Eintrag stammt von Elena Schlottau (*1991) Ergebnisse eines Interviews mit Frau C. T.(*1937) Die damals 7-jährige C. T. erzählt von der Flucht aus Wormditt im ehemaligen Ostpreußen. Original Source (used under Fair Use Laws) Das Leben in Ostpreußen kurz vor der Flucht Ich bin damals in Wormditt aufgewachsen, im früheren Ostpreußen. Mein Vater wurde an der Front eingesetzt. Meine Geschwister und ich mussten bei meinen Tanten leben, weil unsere Mutter gestorben war. Einer meiner Brüder und ich sind bei Tante Anna aufgewachsen. Da sie in einer Metzgerei gearbeitet hatte, ist auch so manches Stück Fleisch, ohne dafür Lebensmittelmarken abgeben zu müssen, für uns abgefallen. In Erinnerung ist mir auch…
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Meine Flucht aus dem Memelland
Dieser Eintrag stammt von Jasmin Holtzendorff (*1991) Ergebnisse eine Interviews mit Gertrud Radziwill (*1919) (Please note that the original link is no longer functioning and that the source material has been removed from the source site.) Ich wurde 1919 im Memelland als Deutsche geboren. Das Memelland liegt in Ostpreußen an der Grenze zu Litauen. Eigentlich war das Memelland immer Deutsch.1918 kamen die Franzosen bis 1923. Danach kamen die Litauer. 1939 wurden wir dann wieder Deutsch. Wir haben immer in Ruhe und Frieden mit den Litauern gelebt. Viele Behörden wie z. B. Zoll, Post, Polizei wurden von Litauern vertreten. Die Bahn war dagegen Deutsch. Da wir nur 10 km von der…
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Flucht über das Haff
Dieser Eintrag stammt von Jacqueline Kayser (*1988) Ergebnisse eines Interviews mit Anni (*1926) Original Source (used under Fair Use Laws) Anni, geboren im Jahre 1926, lebte zur Zeit der Machtergreifung Adolf Hitlers mit ihren Eltern und ihren Geschwistern auf einem Gutshof in der Nähe der Stadt Gumbinnen in Ostpreußen. Ihr Vater war dort als Gutsverwalter tätig. Gumbinnen war Bezirkshauptstadt und besaß damals rund 25.000 Einwohner.
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Unsere Flucht 1945
Dieser Eintrag stammt von Frau Schölzel Original Source (used under Fair Use Laws) Es war im Januar 1945 als uns gesagt wurde, wir sollten für 14 Tage 20 km entfernt bei meiner Schwester bleiben. Mein Mann und mein Sohn waren beim Militär, und ich war mit meiner 12 Jahre alten Tochter allein.
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Flucht 1945
Onkel Max und Tante Friedel Dieser Eintrag stammt von Tatjana Littich Original Source (used under Fair Use Laws) Ich sehe sie noch davonfahren auf ihrem von einem lahmen Klepper gezogenen, hölzernen Kastenwagen, dem derzeitigen Transportmittel schlechthin. Vorn auf dem querliegenden Brett saß Onkel Max und Tante Friedel, im hinteren Teil des armseligen Gefährtes auf Säcken, in die gebliebene Habseligkeiten verstaut waren, hockte unsere Oma, die mit ihrer öltesten Tochter und deren Mann auf die Flucht ging – 1945 – aus einem kleinen Dorf in Schlesien.
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Die Flucht aus Ostpreußen- Lena Buck
Dieser Eintrag stammt von Lena Buck Original Source (used under Fair Use Laws) Ich habe Friedel H., die am 9. September in Ostpreußen geboren wurde, zu ihrer Flucht aus ihrem Heimatland befragt. Hier erzählt sie von ihren Erlebnissen:
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Die Flucht mit 500 alten und kranken Menschen von Rothenburg an der Neiße
Frau Strack Original source (used under Fair Use Laws) Mein Mann, Diakon des Rauhen Hauses in Hamburg, war bei der Wehrmacht. Ich leitete in Breslau ein Altenheim der Inneren Mission für 200 Personen, das, wie auch die Rothenburger-Anstalten, zum Verband schlesischer Altenheime gehörte.
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Flucht aus Ostpreußen- Nina Schrader
Eine deutsch-deutsche Familiengeschichte Dieser Eintrag stammt von Nina Schrader (* 1982), Wolfenbüttel. Als im September 1945 die Russen von Osten immer näher an das Dorf Tilsit heranrückten, entschied sich auch die Familie der damals 15jährigen Hildegard, das Nötigste zusammenzupacken und die Flucht vor ihnen zu ergreifen. So machten sich Mutter, Vater und zwei von sieben Kindern, Hilde und ihre Schwester Gertrud, auf den langen und beschwerlichen Weg. Zwei Brüder, Franz und Kurt, waren dem Krieg zum Opfer gefallen. Die anderen bestritten die Flucht bereits eigenständig oder brachen schon früher mit eigenem Anhang auf. – Doch auch diese vier sollten bald getrennt werden!
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Geschichte einer Flucht aus Heiligenwalde in Ostpreussen
Autor: www.heiligenwalde.de 25. Januar 1945 Heute musste meine Mutter mit mir und meinen 3 Brüdern das schöne Heiligenwalde verlassen. Mein Vater wurde in den letzten Kriegstagen noch zum Volkssturm eingezogen. Vorher hatte er mit seiner Landwirtschaft auch dafür Sorge tragen müssen, dass er in angemessenem Rahmen die Versorgung der Soldaten an der Front mit landwirtschaftlichen Lebensmitteln sicherstellte. Jetzt wussten wir nicht, wo mein Vater sich aufhölt. Bereits seit Tagen wurde Heiligenwalde beschossen. Die Flucht war von uns längst vorbereitet, auch von anderen Bewohnern des Dorfes, denn ca. 2 Tage vor unserer Flucht waren bereits 2 Pferdegespanne mit einem Planwagen auf die Ausreise geschickt worden, von denen wir allerdings später nie…
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Kriegs- und Nachkriegserinnerungen
Von Carl W. Gaede Ich bin im Dezember 1936 in Kaiserslautern in der Pfalz in Deutschland geboren. Mein Vater war Offizier in der Infanterie des deutschen Heeres. Mutter und Carl Am 7. Januar 1944 von 2:47 bis 3:25 Uhr nachts und noch einmal um 11:45 Uhr am folgenden Morgen wurde das westliche Wohnviertel von Kaiserslautern wie ein Teppich bombardiert und zertrümmert. Meine Mutter und ich wollten dem Grausen dieser Zerstörung entgehen, indem wir versuchten, Familienfreunde in der Nähe Bad Kreuznachs im Hunsrückgebirge zu erreichen. Zu Fuß fanden wir den Weg durch die Ruinen und die noch glühenden Trümmer und erreichten den Hauptbahnhof westlich der Stadtmitte. Unterwegs beobachtete ich, wie Rettungsarbeiter…
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HELP: Deutsche Vertriebene- German Expulsions
Hello Readers, Because of the great shortage of information and histories associated with the expulsions of Germans from Eastern Europe after World War 2, I am placing a call to anyone willing to share their family story with others. Please contact me (use our contact page) with any histories that you may have from family members or elsewhere that involve the expulsion, flight or ethnic cleansing of Germans following the second world war. I will place the information you send (assuming it is not politically motivated) on the internet for others to view and share. It is my hope to contribute a bit of our past in order to help…
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The Expulsion of Germans
Original Article (used within terms of Fair Use; this article has been removed from the original site) By Dr. Alfred de Zayas –The main speaker at the premiere of the documentary travelling exhibition ” In the Claws of the Red Dragon” in Pittsburgh [in 1999], organized in cooperation with Dr. Marianne Bouvier and B. John Zavrel,was Dr. Alfred de Zayas, a prominent expert in international law; he is an American of Spanish-French descent. After law school at Harvard, de Zayas went to Germany on a Fulbright fellowship, took doctorate in History at the University of Goettingen. He works as a legal consultant in New York and Geneva, Switzerland, and is…
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Selbst Jauche half uns nicht
Auszüge aus dem Text von Charlotte Kaufmann (used within terms of Fair Use) Die schlimmste Zeit meines Lebens begann vor etwas mehr als 60 Jahren,genau im Januar 1945. Auch nach dieser langen Zeit sind die Narben nicht verheilt. Die Auswirkungen sind bis heute spürbar. Dieses Schicksal teile ich mit hunderttausenden Frauen und Mädchen aus den deutschen Ostgebieten, die noch vor Kriegsende vom russischen NKWD (Volkskommissariat für innere Angelegenheiten; zuständig auch für Angelegenheiten der Kriegsgefangenen und Internierten) verhaftet und dann zur Zwangsarbeit nach Russland verschleppt wurden. Dort mussten wir stellvertretend für das ganze deutsche Volk Reparationsleistungen erbringen unter unmenschlichen Bedingungen. Wir zahlten mit unserem Körper und unserer Seele für ein Verbrechen,…
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Richard Senger- The Long Road
In late winter of 1944/45, the Senger’s farm was overrun and occupied by a command of the advancing Russian armies. The family furniture and possessions were stolen by non-Germans; the lives and history of the Senger family were unalterably, irretrievably changed. Only the Senger farm and two other farms in the village of Zeyersvorderkampen remained standing following the Soviet bombardment and artillery attacks which accompanied their nearly complete destruction and invasion of the area. Ultimately, the Senger farm was left as the sole ‘undamaged’ farm in Zeyersvorderkampen. At first, the farm was used to house Soviet commanders; ultimately, possession of the farm, lands, buildings and few remaining possessions were confiscated…
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Frieda Senger- Post WW2 Gulag
As the Russians invaded West Prussia near the end of World War 2, they rounded up abled bodied Germans to ‘work’ as slave labor in their Gulags. These ‘unlucky’ Germans (some three million) were shipped by train to forced labor camps in the far East. Frieda Senger, along with her friend and neighbor, Edith Ebel, were among those shipped by rail into the Russian Gulags; in her case, the trip was to prisons some 1700 miles or 2700 kms east. She, like many others, was deported from her and her husband’s lands (which were now in the hands of the Russians) and forced into slavery; she was not seen or…
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Gulag Perm-36
Although, we now know with certainty that Frieda Senger was not interned in Perm-36 Gulag; it does represent a Gulag proximate to her location. The photos in this article represent a good approximation of the Gulags in Chelyabinsk. Frieda Senger spent 2 and one half years starting in 1945 in the Gulags. Somehow, she was lucky and survived. Wikipedia article on post WW2 Germans in Russian Gulags These images are used with permission (Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover…
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