Sweethearts Candy Blog's

These German soldiers were lucky to return home alive. Not many did. Especially from the Russian Front.

Ruins and destruction.

LAST DAYS OF BERLIN UNDER NAZIS: A PERSONAL ACCOUNT (Source)

Dorothea von Schwanenfluegel was a twenty-nine-year-old wife and mother living in Berlin. She and her young daughter along with friends and neighbors huddled within their apartment building as the end neared. The city was already in ruins from Allied air raids, food was scarce, the situation desperate - the only hope that the Allies would arrive before the Russians. We join Dorothea's account as the Russians begin the final push to victory:

"Friday, April 20, was Hitler's fifty-sixth birthday, and the Soviets sent him a birthday present in the form of an artillery barrage right into the heart of the city, while the Western Allies joined in with a massive air raid.

The radio announced that Hitler had come out of his safe bomb-proof bunker to talk with the fourteen to sixteen year old boys who had 'volunteered' for the 'honor' to be accepted into the SS and to die for their Fuhrer in the defense of Berlin. What a cruel lie! These boys did not volunteer, but had no choice, because boys who were found hiding were hanged as traitors by the SS as a warning that, 'he who was not brave enough to fight had to die.' When trees were not available, people were strung up on lamp posts. They were hanging everywhere, military and civilian, men and women, ordinary citizens who had been executed by a small group of fanatics. It appeared that the Nazis did not want the people to survive because a lost war, by their rationale, was obviously the fault of all of us. We had not sacrificed enough and therefore, we had forfeited our right to live, as only the government was without guilt. The Volkssturm was called up again, and this time, all boys age thirteen and up, had to report as our army was reduced now to little more than children filling the ranks as soldiers."

Encounter with a Young Soldier

"In honor of Hitler's birthday, we received an eight-day ration allowance, plus one tiny can of vegetables, a few ounces of sugar and a half-ounce of real coffee. No one could afford to miss rations of this type and we stood in long lines at the

grocery store patiently waiting to receive them. While standing there, we noticed a sad looking young boy across the street standing behind some bushes in a self-dug shallow trench. I went over to him and found a mere child in a uniform many sizes too large for him, with an anti-tank grenade lying beside him. Tears were running down his face, and he was obviously very frightened of everyone. I very softly asked him what he was doing there. He lost his distrust and told me that he had been ordered to lie in wait here, and when a Soviet tank approached he was to run under it and explode the grenade. I asked how that would work, but he didn't know. In fact, this frail child didn't even look capable of carrying such a grenade. It looked to me like a useless suicide assignment because the Soviets would shoot him on sight before he ever reached the tank.

By now, he was sobbing and muttering something, probably calling for his mother in despair, and there was nothing that I could do to help him. He was a picture of distress, created by our inhuman government. If I encouraged him to run away, he would be caught and hung by the SS, and if I gave him refuge in my home, everyone in the house would be shot by the SS. So, all we could do was to give him something to eat and drink from our rations. When I looked for him early next morning he was gone and so was the grenade. Hopefully, his mother found him and would keep him in hiding during these last days of a lost war."

The Russians Arrive

"The Soviets battled the German soldiers and drafted civilians street by street until we could hear explosions and rifle fire right in our immediate vicinity. As the noise got closer, we could even hear the horrible guttural screaming of the Soviet soldiers which sounded to us like enraged animals. Shots shattered our windows and shells exploded in our garden, and suddenly the Soviets were on our street. Shaken by the battle around us and numb with fear, we watched from behind the small cellar windows facing the street as the tanks and an endless convoy of troops rolled by...

It was a terrifying sight as they sat high upon their tanks with their rifles cocked, aiming at houses as they passed. The screaming, gun-wielding women were the worst. Half of the troops had only rags and tatters around their feet while others wore SS boots that had been looted from a conquered SS barrack in Lichterfelde. Several fleeing people had told us earlier that they kept watching different boots pass by their cellar windows. At night, the Germans in our army boots recaptured the street that the

Soviets in the SS boots had taken during the day. The boots and the voices told them who was who. Now we saw them with our own eyes, and they belonged to the wild cohorts of the advancing Soviet troops.

Facing reality was ten times worse than just hearing about it. Throughout the night, we huddled together in mortal fear, not knowing what the morning might bring. Nevertheless, we noiselessly did sneak upstairs to double check that our heavy wooden window shutters were still intact and that all outside doors were barricaded. But as I peaked out, what did I see! The porter couple in the apartment house next to ours was standing in their front yard waving to the Soviets. So our suspicion that they were Communists had been right all along, but they must have been out of their minds to openly proclaim their brotherhood like that.

As could be expected, that night a horde of Soviet soldiers returned and stormed into their apartment house. Then we heard what sounded like a terrible orgy with women screaming for help, many shrieking at the same time. The racket gave me goosebumps. Some of the Soviets trampled through our garden and banged their rifle butts on our doors in an attempt to break in. Thank goodness our sturdy wooden doors withstood their efforts. Gripped in fear, we sat in stunned silence, hoping to give the impression that this was a vacant house, but hopelessly delivered into the clutches of the long-feared Red Army. Our nerves were in shreds."

Looting

"The next morning, we women proceeded to make ourselves look as unattractive as possible to the Soviets by smearing our faces with coal dust and covering our heads with old rags, our make-up for the Ivan. We huddled together in the central part of the basement, shaking with fear, while some peeked through the low basement windows to see what was happening on the Soviet-controlled street. We felt paralyzed by the sight of these husky Mongolians, looking wild and frightening. At the ruin across the street from us the first Soviet orders were posted, including a curfew. Suddenly there was a shattering noise outside. Horrified, we watched the Soviets demolish the corner grocery store and throw its contents, shelving and furniture out into the street. Urgently needed bags of flour, sugar and rice were split open and spilled their contents on the bare pavement, while Soviet soldiers stood guard with their rifles so that no one would dare to pick up any of the urgently needed food. This was just unbelievable. At night, a few desperate people tried to salvage some of the spilled food from the gutter. Hunger now became a major concern because our ration cards were worthless with no hope of any supplies.

Shortly thereafter, there was another commotion outside, even worse than before, and we rushed to our lookout to see that the Soviets had broken into the bank and were looting it. They came out yelling gleefully with their hands full of German bank notes and jewelry from safe deposit boxes that had been pried open. Thank God we had withdrawn money already and had it at home."

Surrender

"The next day, General Wilding, the commander of the German troops in Berlin, finally surrendered the entire city to the Soviet army. There was no radio or newspaper, so vans with loudspeakers drove through the streets ordering us to cease all resistance. Suddenly, the shooting and bombing stopped and the unreal silence meant that one ordeal was over for us and another was about to begin. Our nightmare had become a reality. The entire three hundred square miles of what was left of Berlin were now completely under control of the Red Army. The last days of savage house to house fighting and street battles had been a human slaughter, with no prisoners being taken on either side. These final days were hell. Our last remaining and exhausted troops, primarily children and old men, stumbled into imprisonment. We were a city in ruins; almost no house remained intact."

In the ghost city called Berlin a Soviet woman directs traffic

These Germans have got a new job

Gleefully removing all traces of Nazi rule

Broken men of an once formidable German Army

Hoisting the Soviet flag amongst the ruins

This was the once proud Reichstag.

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Death and despair lay everywhere

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One can but admire the grit and determination of the German people who rose from the ruins and humiliation to build a powerful and prosperous nation again.

Trying to rebuild their lives

After much rumour the NEWS broke that the 7th ARMOURED DIVISION WAS LEAVING ITZEHOE FOR BERLIN. The rumour turned, out to be the truth and near the end of JUNE 1945 our DIV: was on the move from ITZEHOE. (I kept a diary). By the first few days into JULY we were on the AUTOBAHN, and I recorded how many complete times we were halted by our ALLIES for so called checking? The journey was over two hundred miles, (It made me think if our ALLIES behave towards, us like that, WHO WANTS ENEMIES?) At times I have met up with some very uncouth British soldiers, by heck, the Russian soldier at that time takes the Biscuit. Nobody doubts his toughness or bravery, but many had never partaken of the dreaded drug SOAP AND WATER - after all the WAR had been over several weeks. About five of us were Housed' in a room in CHARLOTTENBURG roughly about a mile from the Brandenburg Gate. The house had been damaged by shell-fire. It was habitable, the occupants were herded into the basement to live. (The Russians would not have given them this Weakness) In our room was only one piece of furniture a locked double wardrobe, in no time at all, everybody agreed that our curiosity demanded that we open same which we did (with the help of wire and the adeptness of one of the lads. It was crammed full of SABLE(?), MINK, GREY FOX FURS, whilst we were examining our find one of our OFFICERS came into the room, then ordered us out, under protest. We were given another room sparsely furnished , devoid of any wardrobe, plus furs. All of us chaps went out into the surrounding areas to see the sights. Nearly every British soldier sooner, or later was accosted by a man or woman wanting to barter some jewelry, or small article for cigarettes, chocolate, food. When I saw the devastation, mostly caused by our thousand bomber raids, the stinking heaps of rubble (with trapped rotting bodies amongst them) that once were the finest department stores in Europe, I thought of BRITAIN and her devastation and, her DEAD. YES, THEY (THE GERMANS) DESERVE IT ALL, AND MORE)

In my wanderings I passed a very imposing slightly damaged large house in its own ground. As we (a pal and myself) were passing the large decorated iron gates we declared to one another how was it that the gates were not scrapped for their WAR MACHINE. Our quiet words were overheard by an elderly well dressed woman who was trying to tidy the shattered trees and shrubs in her grounds. In perfect English she said 'That is about the only thing that has not been taken from me'. Immediately I challenged her words by saying 'YOU ARE ALIVE' in a f1ash she said 'barely'. It was an inflammatory word to me and I said 'what do you know about hardship or suffering. To my surprise she asked me how long. I had been a soldier? My reply was similar to these words: 'I have been fighting your lot in the Desert, Greece, Italy, etc: it has cost thousands of British soldiers "Death, Tears, Years, and buckets of sweat. She listened in silence, then said would we care to enter her house. Both of us were alert to MAYBE a trap, although she had no idea we would walk near her house, or accept her invitation. Yes! We entered the house, what a hallway, what windows were intact were leaded framed, coloured, glass. There was a wide stairway and a fine balustrade leading to the floor above. There were a couple of very oblong paintings of long ago. Very little of the furniture remained. (Mrs X said the RUSSIANS had taken it. My pal and I gave her a piece of chocolate, which in return she overwhelmed us with her thanks. I mentioned about the large paintings, why had they remained? Mrs X said within a few days of the RUSSIANS entering BERLIN a high ranking RUSSIAN OFFICER took her house under his wing and allowed her and her woman relative SANCTUARY for the time being. That lasted several weeks, Until, the BRITISH were LET in. In the past previous weeks the R.O. took nearly all her furniture for his own use (WHO COULD BLAME HIM). Her clothing I noticed had plenty of tears, Mrs X said excuse the state of her attire. She paused. 'My clothes were torn WHEN THEY RAPED ME'. Mrs X said that she could not repair them as reels of cotton were unobtainable, even on the BLACK MARKET. Being COLD BLOODED towards her misfortunes I said I would get soon some reels of cotton to barter with her. My pal and I said we would come back another day.

When we arrived back in our Billet several of the lads, including myself decided to enter the room we were evicted from. We were unanimous in our determination that the LOOT was as much ours as the OFFICER who had put one over us. The coast was clear, the lock was picked, and the WARDROBE WAS BARE. Somebody had done very well out of that LOOT. Unfortunate for us, we came second and missed the bus, as the saying goes. Most of us had plenty of spare time, I brought my DIARY and NOTES up to date. Within a week I went back with my pal, to Barter our Trade Goods with Mrs X, we had reels of cotton, cigarettes, coffee. Both sides were satisfied with the bartering then we settled down to talking about our own lives.

Mrs X told us her husband was a very wealthy man connected to [--- Cables] (big branch in E. LONDON). Mrs X had a young girl staying at her house when the RUSSIANS were entering the outskirts of BERLIN. They knew little or no mercy would be shown, especially the females would be ravaged and raped. Another relative (WOMAN) and Mrs X cut all the young girl's hair off, rubbed dirt into her face, and skillfully marked crowfeet at the ends of her eyes to denote age etc, and fitted an old wig, her legs and arms were treated likewise. Excreta was saved and smeared around the disguised girl who wore a dirty long night gown in a small room. This young girl was well schooled in how to behave as if she were an old sick woman (her life might depend on it). Mrs X told me she scrawled in POLISH (she did not know any RUSSIAN) INFECTION hoping all these measures would save the young girl.

Then Mrs X told me four Russian soldiers burst into her house looting, and smashing what they did not want. They entered the young girl's room but fled immediately shouting about the old lady and the notice. After a while they turned their attention to her. She said three of them tried to rape her at once. (My pal and myself were feeling very embarrassed by her frankness, but she continued) as one raped me the other, with the help of his friend brutalized [me]. She quickly pulled her torn frock aside to show her badly bruised, and ill used body. Yes, we were shocked and lost for words. These acts of rape (she said) continued throughout that day, and it was the next day when the high ranking RUSSIAN OFFICER took over. Mrs X said at that time she would have committed suicide, she felt so DIRTY and DEGRADED. One thing alone gave her the will to live was the young gir1 in her filthy disguise as an old diseased lady HAD FOOLED THE RAPISTS. This young girl had not been violated, Mrs X's idea had worked, that gave her the will to live. The young girl was kept disguised, until the Russians moved out, to allow the British to move in. Mrs X said her other relative (age about forty) had fared much worse than Mrs X. This woman was crouched in a pitiful position, whimpering to herself. My pal and myself could not help feeling great compassion to this broken woman. (Myself was thoroughly sick inside to think that some THING OR THINGS of my sex could do this to a helpless woman). When I left that house I promised I would come again!

Back at our Billet we talked at length about Mrs X and I was able to add her story to my notes. Later that week I went back alone to see Mrs X and was able to take some food, for them all, need I say they made me feel like the Good Samaritan with their thanks. Mrs X thought her husband was a prisoner of the RUSSIANS. This time I saw the young girl, nothing could hide from her face the horrific experience she had gone through to preserve her virginity and, very possibly her life. Those THINGS that attacked Mrs X would have torn that young girl's body apart. Mrs X had many influential friends in WEST GERMANY and desired that the young girl should go there for safety. I was able to advise Mrs X how to get her away. (Later she was taken to the WEST and I hope to her much deserved FREEDOM.

My pal (who will be nameless) who was with me at Mrs X, finished up with a good dose of SYPHILIS. [ ... ] My BERLIN pal THINKS he got his DOSE for a bar of CHOCOLATE - some blokes will never learn.

BERLIN was a capital of BARTER - FAGS (cigarettes was the strong currency). One could barter with anything the BERLINERS wanted which was too numerous to mention here. In exchange, Cameras, Binoculars, Jewellery, and small works of art, etc. (The RUSSIANS had weeks of LOOTING before us, the BRITISH TROOPS were allowed into BERLIN. In one Bombed ruin in our sector I noticed a civilian had pitched himself a makeshift stall He was bartering his fountain pens for cigs: I had plenty of Fags so we both done a swap. Several of his well made pens changed hands, they were fitted with glass nibs. (At this present moment in my possession I still have one pen and several glass nibs) (Also still in my possession I have an oblong mirror (small with this man's name and the addresses of his HAMBURG and BERLIN factories) He told me both Factories had been bombed out of existence, the pens he was bartering was what he had managed to salvage from the factory ruins. His ENGLISH was faultless and had travelled widely in BRITAIN advertising his goods, trade mark HARO. Not thinking, I said "Reckon you must be wondering what you are going to eat tomorrow?" No, he said, I don't worry about tomorrow, it's today that matters to me, where am I going to get my next meal? Tomorrow may never come for me.

His words made me THINK. SEX, was for the asking, a couple of fags, and SEX was yours! And there was plenty of extras, the lads at the V D clinic would confirm that statement. What small shops with windows in had hundreds of small articles, mostly rings, jewellery etc, with a message saying what they wanted in exchange.

The RUSSIANS were going to allow some BRITISH troops to visit the CHANCELLERY in EAST GERMANY. I jumped at the chance to see the BUNKER where Hitler and Eva Braun committed suicide. None of us troops were allowed to be- ARMED, when we passed through the BRANDENBURG GATE. We travelled in a charabanc although the CHANCELLERY was a few hundred yards into RUSSIAN BERLIN. A German civilian guide was on the coach, but the Russian would not allow him off the coach. The once SHOW PIECE was a shattered ruin the long marbled wide pillared corridor was flanked at intervals by STALLS covered by medals decorations of various GERMAN ORDERS. These were staffed by Russian soldiers waiting to do BUSINESS. All the very large rooms leading from the main corridor were no different in damage, all were in ruin.

My main interest here was the so called BUNKER. This was on the left of the corridor as you entered the CHANCELLERY. What I could see was a 1arge blackened hole several yards deep with loads of burnt containers and many unidentifiable debris. Whatever inquest we have about HITLERS DEATH HOLE we must always remember it took the RUSSIANS many weeks before they allowed THEIR ALLIES into their SELECTED AREAS. At that time I was very glad to get Back to the BRITISH SECTOR. We were to1d afterwards we were some of the first of the ALLIES to visit the CHANCELLERY. (Now it has been bulldozed out of existence). Facing the BRANDENBURG GATE ( in our sector) on the right was the REICHSTAG burnt out in the thirties, alleged to have been started by a HALF WITTED COMMUNIST if I remember rightly? What amused, me looking inside this huge domed ruined build1ng, I looked up to the highest point of the smoke blackened ceiling was GRAFFITO most of it looked like RUSSIAN words. I thought how the hell did any persons reach there to do it . Nearby was an area called the TIER GARTEN where a large number of German civilians, soldiers, British, and a large number of Russian soldiers, men and women milled around to do the business of barter. The RUSSIAN AMAZONS I saw were tough in their behaviour as any male, they were heavily armed, many looked hard faced individuals, At times 1 have seen an AMAZON strike the male Germans with her fists in arguments over bartering. Every GERMAN civilian (through an interpreter) had horrific stores of what the RUSSIANS done etc, (some of the stories I took with a pinch of SALT). One incident which I believed took place (two witnesses to what happened, one spoke excellent ENGLISH). They said both with their elderly wives and one young daughter age thirteen took refuge in a dark cellar, out of range of the Shelling of BERLIN. They hid the young girl in the back of the cellar, but alas in vain, a smoke bomb forced everybody out of the cellar. The unfortunate child was held down, and raped by many. Their wives suffered likewise, the protesting husbands were badly beaten up, and they said they were lucky to escape with their lives. Their young daughter was now mentally unstable.

One of several things that made me think not too kindly about the Russians was the arrogant manner in which they conducted themselves in our Sector. There was a railway bridge in our CHARLOTTENBURG area, this was guarded by a RUSSIAN sentry, who was not particular in swinging his bayoneted rifle in our direction when we passed over that bridge and demanded a fag. Most of the lads were tough as leather regards the demands of these sentries. Most times the lads gave them a fag out of pity, "because all the sentries in our sector, were a poor lot. We were forbidden to enter their area (East Germany) yet they entered whenever it suited them (that was my opinion).

Before I 1eft BERLIN, I called upon Mrs X again, she seemed very pleased to see me and I was able to give her a small packet of coffee, plus some soap. Mrs X shed a few tears when I would not accept any gift in return. She mentioned that her only Son Was killed in CRETE and the last she heard of her husband was. from Russia. At the beginning of the WAR she said nearly every German thought the FATHERLAND was invincible, until the debacle of the AFRICA CORPS then reverses in RUSSIA. What downhearted her friends and associates was the very heavy BOMBING OF BERLIN. All knew she said that they would never be bombed, this proved the writing on the wall that THEIR TURN HAD COME.

There were several civilians who would have given their High teeth to get to WEST GERMANY and I have heard them ask our SOLDIERS to help them. (It was a possibility that one or two soldiers were Bribed enough to help them) What I knew, and saw, several young girls and women, went back to the West disguised as British soldiers. I had seen that myself. They were taken to the West by lorries, especially mixed in with returning soldiers to the West. Some eventually, married one of their rescuers, alas, many of these Romances fell by the wayside to the cost of both parties. Amidst our part of this once Beautiful City one could read into every ruin their deserved misery, and 'Now, it's their turn', and paid, with interest. The BERLINERS could be seen scurrying amongst the rubble with their pathetic bundles of bits and pieces. Unfortunately, to me they looked and, acted like rats by disappearing into the man made holes leading to the basements of the large destroyed departmental stores. At that moment in time I had litt1e sympathy for most of these wretched people, because I could not forget. that those of the so called MASTER RACE had caused so much misery to MILLIONS of innocent people. At that time I saw very few young people and no cats or dogs. (I had no illusions about what had happened to these Pets by the starving BERLINERS). With meagre supplies of fresh water and no power, the populace faced an austere future which was bleak indeed. Although there had been published in ARMY ORDERS not to FRATERNISE with the ENEMY, most times it was never enforced. It was quite common to find amongst the educated BERLINERS many who spoke excellent ENGLISH and had stayed or worked in BRITAIN. Without any exceptions all were very grateful that the BRITISH had. arrived in BERLIN. Most of the remaining younger German population took Cover when the RUSSIANS were entering the outskirts of the CAPITAL. Some of these people escaped the fine COMBING by the RUSSIAN soldiers by LIVING in the damaged sewers, and large drains under the CITY. Many, I was told, were smoked out, some died in the stinking hell of excreta, and stagnant waste when they (hiding BERLINERS) failed to get out of their hiding at once. The RUSSIAN soldiers threw hand grenades into their HIDEOUTS and sealed these people in their TOMBS. Those who gave themselves up to their Captors, quietly, were shipped into EAST GERMANY for their LABOUR CAMPS (Many I am sure would live long enough to regret that they ever surrendered to the RUSSIAN AUTHORITIES. DEATH would have been much kinder to them.) A few I saw who came out of hiding, were pasty looking, emaciated, and looked so very, very much older than they were. These people HITLER had declared were the MASTER RACE, if only they knew what their destiny held for them. Many of the lads were informed very soon we would be moving back to ITZEHOE. For some soon our demobbed number would be coming up. We left Berlin and headed back down the AUTOBAHN to FREEDOM, well it seemed like that after leaving what I would have then called the CAPTIVE CITY. When we arrived back a great number of us in 7th ARMOURED DIV: were being transferred to the 11th ARMOURED DIV: for our last six weeks in the ARMY.

The Germans used heavy artillery to control the uprising of August-October, 1944.

HITLER'S HEAVY GUNS



Ustashi brutality. Slavko Kvaternik [the second in command to the Croatian WWII fuehrer, Dr Ante Pavelic] explained [on the day of formation of the WWII "Independent State of Croatia", on April 10, 1941] how pure Croatia would be built - by forcing one third of the Serbs to leave Croatia, one third to convert to Catholicism, and one third to be exterminated. Soon Ustasha bands initiated a bloody orgy of mass murder of Serbs unfortunate enough not to have converted or left Croatia on time. The enormity of such criminal behavior shocked even the conscience of German commanders...

Dead soldiers strewn on the streets of a once proud, but now totally destroyed city. Berlin ruined. 1945.

Bingo! An American bomber hit by German anti air craft gun over France...

The German resistance ends. Happy and relieved Soviet soldiers watch as the remains of the German forces in Berlin come out of their hideouts and surrender their arms, Germany, May 1945.
American and Russian troops meet at the Elbe April 1945. War time allies later turned cold war adversaries.

Liberated inmates of a concentration camp getting back at a former guard.

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