My father turn 21 three weeks after Germany surrendered to the Allies. He was released from an American prisoner-of-war camp just before the end of the war and told to find his own way home. He and his mother had agreed that if they survived they would meet up in Rothenberg. My grandmother told the story of wandering the streets with his picture in her arms, looking everywhere for him. He had managed to find a room in town about three stories up, and was just washing the only pair of socks he owned and hanging them out the window sill to dry, when she looked up and spotted him. She ran into the door and noticed that it had been a school for very young children, and so she always felt that it was appropriate that she found her "little boy" in a kindergarten. They had been quite well to do, and even though their home ended up being taken by the Russians, my grandmother managed to sell enough jewelry and artwork to Allied occupation forces to enable my father to complete his dream of medical school. In 1955, he emigrated to the United States, it was very proud to become a citizen. He passed away just a few months ago three weeks shy of his 94th birthday.
@WorldEye88 Well, unfortunately, in Germany, at the time, there was a lack of opportunity. He left partly for this reason and also out of fear. His family's home ended up in the Russian sector, and at first, the Russians tried to bribe him to come to East Berlin and work as a doctor for them, and then started to actually threaten him and follow him. One of the reasons he left Germany was because he was in danger of being made to work for the Communists. He got out before he was kidnapped. He wanted very much to work on Phenylketonuria (PKU) testing for infants, and Duchennes Muscular Dystrophy, and sponsorship by the state of Maine and the United States allowed him to, along with his students and other colleagues, advance medical understanding and progress towards curing these terrible diseases, which benefits the entire world.. not just Germany, not just the United States. He told me once that he had considered going back to Germany for a while, but by then he had fallen in love with a single mother who had a baby and had made a life for us here. I'm very proud of him and his achievements. He also was a graduate studies professor in Pathology and Clinical Chemistry at Ohio State University and the Medical College of Virginia, teaching others who followed in his footsteps and continue to be inspired by him.
I saw an interview on TV with former wehrmacht soldier. Before the war, in his family home in Berlin he had been a keen young fan of Hitler but he left home after blazing rows with his father who sad Hitler was a madman who would bring destruction on Germany. During the war he served in North Africa was wounded and ended up in Normandy where he was captured soon after D Day. After release from the POW camp he new he couldn't return home so made his way as far as Essen and found a place there. The second day there he tried to get some shoes repaired and then joined a cue for bread. After one of the shoes fell out of his bundle the man in front picked it up and turned to him, of course it was his father. He described how it seemed like ages that they looked at each other until his father handed him the shoe, smiled and said very gently "I told you so". They waited together to get their bread and the Father took him to the house where he was living with the man's Mother and Sister and from that day on his Father never mentioned the war again in his presence.
@@TheReubenmurphy It was definitely part of a series but I only watched a couple of them. It was focussed on the lives of the ordinary Germans and the home front. I was very interested but I had too much else to do at the time. It was on the 'Yesterday' channel but before it was called that (I think it was just the 'History' channel then) but I don't recall any mainstream media identifiers in the credits. Searching on the German home front might find it for you, I think the particular episode was about youth movements.
I know this is a loooong comment but . . . My dad was born in Germany in 1943. His small town had been bombed during the war. Rubble remained the normal landscape for most of his childhood. As a toddler he would take his wagon and search through the rubble trying to find any materials or scraps that he could try to sell for money/food (You read that right: AS A TODDLER). Throughout his childhood, he had to share a single bed with everyone in his household (3 siblings, his mother, and grandmother), often times that meant taking shifts of who got to sleep in the bed. Because of this, for the rest of his life, he would never be able to sleep for more than 4 hours a night. Christmas and birthday presents meant socks and underwear, if he was lucky. And no, this was no exaggeration. My dad rarely spoke of his childhood because it was so painful for him. I have only seen 2 pictures of my dad as a little boy. In one, there was a stack of building blocks that the photographer had put there as a prop. They were stacked into a tower for the photo, but my dad kept knocking the blocks over refusing to take a picture with it intact. When asked why, he said because they didn't have buildings/towers that weren't broken/in ruins (he was 4). At 74 yo, he still had visible scars on his face from where his teachers (ex-Nazis) would hit him with their rings turned inward. Finally when he was 10yo, my dad decided he wanted to imigrate to America the day he turned 21 (the youngest possible age). He spent his while adolescence after working his ass off to make that dream happen. And he did it, without help from anyone. On his 21st birthday, he boarded the ship to New York.
This was my expierence as well as an iraqi immigrant. Had to look for scrap metal to sell as a toddler and my teacher pulled my ear so hard it bled and got infected. Still have the scar under my ear. I live in europe now, life is much better away from the war. War never changes.
My elder brother now 95 yrs ( still here) was in the army of occupation he said unlike some, he felt sorry for the kids and women - he always gave them any food he could, I remember the German and Italian POWs working in the fields in the UK, they were treated so well they never wanted to escape, 25,000 stayed here after the war, I read that some families took POWs in for the Christmas period.
I respectfully commemorate all German soldiers who fought alongside Turkey in World War I and shared the same fate with them. It was an honor to fight alongside you.
My Mom was a teenager who survived WWII and lived through this time there, to her dying day she only hated 2 things- Nazis and Communists, both of whom she blamed for what happened to her home country.
@@JUAN_OLIVIER are you daft? You seriously expect to settle terms with Nazi Germany? You are going to blame Britain for Hitler invading a sovereign nation? Who's to blame for the holocaust, Canada?
Its amazing how Germany was destroyed and seventy years later, the country is an economic powerhouse- it says a lot about the German spirit and mindset.
because our royals ran out of any potential,,,,so thats where the Germans come in,,,,George Ludwig,,,Georgian era began= eventual 'powerhouse',,,! hustory is meaty and twisted to what we have led or distracted from believing,,,,i share this beautiful place(earth) with some crazy people,,,M😎
My father witnessed the destruction firsthand in September of 1945, his Liberty Ship landed in Breman a port on a river. He saved some young German girls being sold by their mother who was selling them to the sailors disembarking the Liberty Ship. He told his crew mates that they would not want that to happen to their own family members. He brought Spam and they made a soup for the block of people with roots and tree bark, they cut the Spam into tiny chunks. It was the only meat they had in months. They were starving. He said there were no buildings standing and people were coming up from the ground, they were living in basements and holes. He traded cigarettes for Hummels. Gave the children 5 cent Hershey bars.
river pc Yes, I was always proud of my father, he was a devout Methodist. He was assisting the war effort while his family was imprisoned in Concentration Camps at Tule Lake and Heart Mountain.
@comfortableman12 No one cared about polands independence when it was in soviet hand. Almost as if the allies only needed a reason to start a war with Germany.
Have to tell you dude , I was in Germany in 1964-1970 and the reason they are such a powerhouse today is they have had 70years of hard work and getting on with it, not moaning or wailing, just sheer bloody hard work. My German land lady was in her 50/60s in the sixties and she got her son up for work in the morning then went to work in the fields till 17.30 in the evening, and didn't complain
Its a myth that they (The Germans) work harder than you and me. We all work hard, especially if we are working class! The secret of the rebuilding of Germany into the economic powerhouse that it is today is down to factors such as efficient management and engineering prowess. And yes, help and financial aid from the United States and Britain.
@@kengrimes1012 You have no clue,but if you would spent a week in a greek village they would teach you what real,physical demanding labour means,and believe me germans are not by far so hard workers like for instance japanese,they are not willing to do overtime or work on weekends,the keyword for the economic prosperity after world war two:Marshall plan.
Belgian, born in 12-1944 in Antwerp. Living for the past 35 years in Nepal. I remember still going with my parents to Koln in Germany. My father had been a prisoner of war in Germany, but apparently treated very well by a German farmer family. He wanted to thank them for their kindness. I only remember the destruction and people sitting on it. For one reason or another this remained in my memory, more then 70 years after.
Both of my parent's families were bombed-out of their homes during that war and both of my mother's parents died in 1945 directly because of it. My late uncle and aunt were getting married in 1943, and while the photographer was taking his pictures, a German bomber flew overhead and machine-gunned the party. Nobody moved a muscle apparently as the bullets spattered harmlessly into the meadow next to the church. And yet I never heard a single expression of any hatred from my family over the years towards the Germans. It was always the Nazis who were the bastards, and may they rot in hell!
Looking at the women clearing bricks (Trümmerfrauen) reminds me of my Grandmother in Berlin. Backbreaking work all day starting at 7am til dark Mon-Sat. She barely earned enough to keep herself and 3 children fed. I was so proud of her! RIP.
My grandmother lived in Berlin until 1947. I've been studying WW2 for 25 years and still have trouble imagining what life must have been like for her. Absolute insanity.
My sympathy for the average German citizens who lived through the horror of the bombing raids and the iron boot of Russian occupation. The sad part is only 3% of Germans were Nazi party members. 3% destroyed their country. Wake up USA.
@@loneranger6168 nope, lot more than 3%,majority more like. Iron boot you say, more like response to atrocities committed by the "brave german troops " and allies on the occupied territories. Pay back ya know .
@@elcheapo9444 yes it's not so violent because they've softened us up with an illusion of a peaceful free progressive society which it is far from really🤣🤣
I visited West Germany from the US several times in the early 80’s and already by then there was almost no visual evidence that WWII ever happened. The only clues were occasionally a row of buildings would have a gap where one was missing. Their attention to detail was incredible.
Clear signs of the horrible destruction is how ugly many cities are today. The most beautiful old houses were destroyed and hastily replaced by purely functional buildings with no homogeneous structure. My home tome used to be stunning but nowadays it is one of the ugliest cities I can imagine.
Couldn’t disagree more. The signs are everywhere to this day. Maybe you didn’t pay much attention to street layouts and architecture. Many cities in West Germany were rebuilt quickly, cheaply, and without paying attention to history. Some were almost entirely destroyed. On top of my head Dortmund: 95% destroyed, rebuilt in a most awful style of the 50s, historical downtown ugly beyond imagination with only one or two pre-war building surviving (cathedral and another one on the main square). It is difficult to walk through it and not to wince. Next Munich. Terribly patched up historical downtown. One could go on... what didn’t help is that since I believe the 89s UNESCO “forbid” reconstruction of historical buildings. Meaning of a given building “vanished” it cannot be rebuilt as it was say in 1600. Instead, a new and almost alway out of style monstrosity has to be erected. However, I see old palace in form east Berlin is being rebuilt (from scratch, it was dynamited by the communists) so maybe Germans wised up.
@@pawelpap9 So true! That war, in truth a European civil war, caused all our downfall (untergang). Terrible things were done all across Europe by post-war town planners in the name of progress. So many of German's beautiful cities were destroyed by allied bombings. I see that Dresden was (to a degree) rebuilt in the image of its former glory. But to a degree we all suffered from an kind of 'Americanisation' of our architecture. Cheap materials, vulgar sensationalist designs, inhuman proportions. The effects of that terrible war are still with us. I weep for the former beauty of Europe.
My parents taught Canadian soldiers stationed in Germany only ten years after the end of WW2. They said there were still a lot of wrecked buildings with bullet holes everywhere. By 1977, when we went back to visit on a family trip, my parents said the town they had lived in was almost unrecognizable as everything had been rebuilt. I just went back last month and there is absolutely no evidence of war damage anywhere - except a few noticeable exceptions, left that way on purpose as a reminder. They are shocking - like the Wilhelm Kaiser Church in Berlin with a massive bomb hole in the church tower - surrounded by upper class West Berlin. Amazing. Japan, where I lived in the 1990's is the same - totally rebuilt. In Hiroshima, you would never know anything had happened there - now a joyful, youth-oriented and prosperous city. Vietnam? Same.
I am living in Vietnam. I live it here. Glad I left LA behind. Younger folks here have never seen war. Older folks stopped talking about the past long time ago.
My father was posted to Germany in the USAF in the early fifties and said that parts of the country still looked like the war had ended the week before he arrived. FYI, it took every bit of almost 4 decades to completely rebuild the country...and they still find unexploded bombs in German cities.
@@pawelpap9 I was posted to West Germany in the US Army in the late eighties and they were still finding things. Your comment made me think... I've not been to Berlin but considering the US/UK ran aerial strikes on the city 24/7 for five years and then the Russians came in shooting on the ground and brought decades of communism with them? They probably have significant recovery issues in Berlin and all over eastern Germany.
In the 1950s and 60s most of this country was still heavily damaged from years of bombing and battles fought therefore it took over 40 years for the rebuilding process to finish.
The owners of the Google/RU-vid network, who own all the other networks, don’t want the world to know the truth especially historical truth as they’ve pulled down from youtube countless times since its 2017 release the most forbidden documentary ever published! But the full ten-part series is still available at archive-dot-org: "Europa The Last Battle". Watch it while you still can!
England and France declared war on Germany because Germany invaded Poland. But really Soviet Russia also invaded Poland and NEVER gave back to Poland the territories it invaded and England and France did nothing about this - double standard! Germany was not the only culprit, - communist Stalin Rusia was just as bad and got away with it.
"England and France did nothing about this" What exactly did you want them to do against the Soviet Union which had the largest standing army at the end of the war?
Allegedly Winston Churchill said after the war, "we've killed the wrong pig". Too bad Stalin never had to go to court. Perhaps both Hitler and Stalin are sitting in the same pot of boiling oil in hell now?
Alot of WW2 was the fault of the Allies because we didn't help the Weimar Republik better and make it stronger..Rather we kept pushing all we could out of them by way of reparations. We likely would have never had WW2 had we treated Weimar Republik better or if it was still inevitible than it only would have involved Japan.
Greg Egan That was the single greatest thing ever :) and if not mistaking that's the very plan we follow today when we remove hostile governments and help them rebuild.
I saw this a year ago. And read the comments below. Some excellent points, and some idiots. Some constructive contributions, but some really stupid conversations. Well done Documentary. Thanks for posting.
My grandfathers said the same thing; When they went through France, the French were sitting around waiting for someone to start fixing things, but when the got to Germany, the Germans were knocking mortar off the bricks and stacking them up, waiting to rebuild.
@@CptFoupoudav Umm No. I think you missed my point. They remarked on the industrious Germans and the French, who seemed depressed over back to back World War destruction of the Country. Sorry if I hit a nerve, didn't mean to, but my Grandparents were far from stupid.
They were waiting for the Germans to rebuild France since their county knocked it down in the first place, and not to mention sent innocent ex soldiers to clean up the mines which was fucked up in my opinion
@@isaiahnavarro8268 Well my friend, perhaps France, Britain, USA defacto, should not have declared war on Germany??? Fact remains, very very little of French infrastructure and housing was destroyed by German military activity. The great majority of the destruction, plus French mortality, was caused by the allied invasion.
+bublycat I just came down here to write this comment to find you wrote it. I train my mind to not be sure 100% and always check the background of who exactly tell the facts and his position around this fact
YEA I SAW THE PRISON IN BERLIN WHERE YOUNG FOLK WHO MADE A COMPLAINT ABOUT THE SYSTEM THEN WERE EXECUTED FACE UP ON A GILLOTINE IF YOU DONT BELIEVE ME GO TO BERLIN AND ASK TO VISIT THE PLACE.
talboters44.I did not live in Berlin, but in another German City. It happened all over Germany that people were taken out of their bed by the GESTAPO and were taken to concentration camps or shot after torture. It was a lousy time for all Germans who didn't believe in the Nazis and hated them. Everybody had to keep their mouth shut. People these days don't know how lucky they are because of Democracy and freedom.
My Dad was Austrian,he went off with the German merchant navy in 44 or 45 when he was 18 and his ship was captured by the US. Spent some years in the States before coming to Australia in 54.It's lucky he didn't have spend time in Austria or Germany after the war.
Don't forget the Marshall plan, billions poured into the country, they had no debts to repay. The UK on the hand were still paying back their war debts to the US for many years.
@@deniseg-hill1730 The UK is still suffering for standing up to Hitler's aggression, (while Germany was helped immensely by the Marshall plan) and being the only country (with the other Commonwealth nations) who did this, while the US was still making huge profits from both sides, and the Soviets were happily feeding the Nazi war machine with raw materials even after they were invaded... Trains full of steel and coal were still being sent to Germany while Stalin was frozen in disbelief for weeks after the Nazis began Operation Barbarossa. And companies like IBM were knowingly providing the Nazis with the means to exterminate the Jews for years after the Commonwealth fought German aggression. But both the US and the Russians like to pretend that they won the war single-handedly with no help from anyone else.
@Nuclear Gravy then just be thankful he didn't lead your nation. Because that could of been anyone of us. Eg My 12 year old sister or my mother being brutalised by the savage red army scum.
Another useless quote that people love to say as if if makes any sense. Would you like a Nazi version of history or maybe their "science" to feel more superior ?
My grandfather was part of an engineering corp, and after the war, he stayed for a while as part of the efforts described in this video. His consternation was the need to continually hold some of his men back from mistreating the German citizens, and from looting civilians' residences, even when they were still living in them. He had caught one group of American soldiers carrying someone's stuff out and yelled at them in front of other soldiers and the Germans. He confided in my mom that he believed that the war was necessary, but also wrong. He was a Lutheran of German descent, and he had to kill other young men (German Lutherans) who looked like they could have been part of our family. Sadly, the "shell shock" he developed caused him great anxiety, and psychological and mental problems became a part of our family's history. In the end, though, his personal faith helped keep him focused on right and wrong, and freely admitting when he was wrong. And he was the closest I ever had to a father of my own.
@@willleon9165 He lived 80 years and a day. I don't know if he had much interest in politics, but he was a Bible reading Christian, and believed that that was the sole means to judge a man.
40% of american people are middle european or german descendant. Your grandfather was right: he was killing his own family. ¿Why USA go on in war against germans? ¿For his properly interest? 5.000kms an an ocean between USA and Germany.
Life in Germany After World War 2, part 1: Brought to you by Herbert Von Karajan conducting The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and Lucky Strike: "It's Toasted!"
Nostalgia For Infinity And the reason the west is now suffering from increasing censorship. The globalists are taking charge and WW3 is probably on the horizon. All wars are now against whites and Christians as (they) won’t be happy until our genocide is complete.
that should be expected when the door's wide open for everyone to come inside.. When i roam around Berlin, 2:6 is the ratio of someone from the middle east to the native citizenry.
nomans land That was then , now that dust has settled and there is no more wars for land that happened long ago so that still makes it right? And we’re all racist because we don’t let blacks and others do whatever they want because of slavery? A little late to fight back now isn’t it ?
As Volksdeutsch from Italy I can say just a thing: war destroyed 700 years of history. And ethnic germans especially in the east Europe paid too much. My Opa paid a lot but at least he remain alive and in his Heimat...
@Hello There yes.. That's awful part of the history. 20 mio people lost forever their properties and Heimat. Many others were killed or died in captivity. Many others were sent to Kazakhstan or Siberia. Many others lost their identity of ethnic germans to save their lives (like my Opa). Do you know what is more disgusting me? That nowadays in Germany young generation hate their ancestors and their past. They are to supporting a new fascism surely worst than the nazional socialism. Do you know why? Because at least in the past in the focus of all was the german Gemeinschaft. Now they are following something that is against the moral, the natural laws and their national Gemeinschaft. This melting pot and this moral degeneration is something that I personally find worst than every other dictatorship of the past. We should fight to give justice to the people that really lost all during WWII just because ethnic germans. We should remember that cities like Stettin, Danzig, Königsberg, Tilsit, Memel, Breslau, Aussig, Teiplitz, Eger, Straßburg, Bozen were part of german history. I am proud to be ethnic german and I try to teach my son all that I know about the true history. Not the history of the winners...
@android user belive me, here it's something under. The lobbies want just a new form of slavery. Profit is their only objective. Do you know Kalergi? Thanks god if you are russian. If you are from Ukraine you can see what's is the sad part of the new capitalism. Dividi et impera.
@@walsch80 I know lots of germans still live in kalingrad but they still there just chilling with papa putin to they are back in the arms of our people
@@IndianaJonesTDH the germans that remain there are from Volga area. Russlanddeutsche in german. They are with german origin but since 100 years integrated in russian society. I know personally Russlanddeutsche and they said exactly what I heard to me ( half german fron Italy): for russians we are germans and for germans we are russians. But belive me that you love the Heimat or the place where are you born. It's a good thing that we have in us both cultures. Really, I find people that insult just "ignorant" or "gopnik" 😏
A rather sad and depressing slice of history, each one of us who lived through that period has through experience a different perspective, - we lived through it...... Hans
Hans Balkie Of course it's sad when you lose a war. The Allies showed mercy towards your people. I'd like to hear some gratitude for what you were given.
Amazing. People just don’t know what happens at the end of a war. The Germans did well to bring their country back from hell. Yes they had a lot of help from the allies, particularly the USA, But in the end they did it.
The USA paid many billions of $$$ to help Germany rebuild, and Europe in general. 70 years later, the EU tries to takeout the USA and force it into the New World Order of communism and death.
@@markdavid4897 Don’t be naive. We gave them the money so they could hire our contractors so we could build their country. It’s the same we did in Iraq. We bring it down, then we use tax money to pay American contractors to go rebuild. It’s a vicious cycle of making money through war. War=money, otherwise it wouldn’t exist.
I knew a man who fought against the Germans. He said there were two things that stuck out about them. 1. It was always a tough fight. Most times they won. 2. He said they were ALWAYS very brave.
@@youguysdonthavetheright8070 Soviets did not burn entire villages soviets didn't kill 25 mln civilians. British and americans napalm bombed civilian parts of Konigsberg, Dresden, Tokyo nuked Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
My Dad was stationed in Berlin at about this time. With a crew of American lawyers, they helped to rewrite the laws that Germans would have to follow. Later on they went on to help them write a constitution.
That would be actually a great subject for a movie or a documentary. I am afraid that new generations, particularly in Germany, tend to forget or minimize the impact Americans had on shaping the new post-war Germany. I wonder whether your Dad wrote memoirs. It would be fascinating to hear more.
I wonder what would have happened if, after WW 1, Germany got the same help to get back on its feet, instead of the disastrous Treaty of Versailles. I’ll bet WW2 would never have happened and Adolf Hitler died as a nobody somewhere in Austria.
I beg to differ, have you heard Trump's BS. That really worked, January 6 reminds me of Hitler's own insurrection back in November 1923 (Beer Hall Pusch).
@@RamonRodriguez-hq7vn The totalitarians we should be worried about are the ones distorting what occurred on January 6, the ones talking about “re-education” efforts, the ones doing their best to cancel and harm those with whom they disagree, the ones censoring information so that alternative viewpoints cannot be heard, and the ones trying to tell Americans who they may and may not vote for in 2024.
@@TrueNorthPatriot This has been my thought for the past six years, since Trump was campaigning back in 2015. While I was an Officer Cadet back in the mid to late 80s, we studied Nazi Germany and how the National Socialists came to power. I listened to Hitler's speeches on VHS, with English subtitles. This is not a simple thought, this is well thought out and learned. You may not see it, and that doesn't mean that it's a simple overtly used analysis. I see the similarities. I sincerely wish you could research this, and come up with your own thoughts. Take care.
My Mom was a little girl at this time. Growing up she always had a huge food stock. For a family of four; 2 pantries, 2 refrigerators, 1 freezer, a full kitchen and a big garden. We always wondered if it was because of the War, she said “Hmm, maybe. I never thought about it”. 💜
The generation of my grandparents had to endure TWO world wars including the destruction and suffering brought upon the entire population afterwards and inbetween. I cannot even begin to imagine what they went through but never complained! Nowadays people get a „depression“ and complain to no end when they have to limit themselves for a few months.
@@MICKEYISLOWD First thing you have to learn is to present an argument and not an insult. Good manners are important, so I recommend getting some. People today complain very easily about nothing much. Thereby they use psychological terms very incorrectly, just like every difficulty in life is „a trauma“, every challenge is stress and every feeling of sadness is a depression. And not depression (the professionally diagnosed illness, you know, not the self proclaimed mental state) kills men: men kill themselves instead of seeking help which is available for everyone.
i agree. Very grateful to be born in a rare time of peace. Now people create issues to cause pain. Can't imagine being a soldier or a jew in this time period
A friend was stationed in Germany in the early 60's. He said that if a soldier accidentally ran over a chicken the government had to pay the German's full restitution and the price was super high. U.S. soldiers stationed there were always worried they'd damage something. Quite a shift from the 40's.
funny that germans care so much about restitution when it comes to themselves, the allies helped rebuild west germany. russia was still punishing germans in the 60s.
They've certainly had alot happen to them in their short history as an official nation. Although their traditions go back over 2000 years, Germany as a country has only existed since 1870. Germans are a very proud, intelligent people. Its unfortunate that WW2 happened to them.
Spouting platitudes is a waste of time. (Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach.) See? Nobody cares, because it doesn't make a damn bit of difference in the real world!
My neighbour was born in Germany and was 18 when the war ended. She remembers air drops by Britain in the first days after the surrender was signed - she was in the British Zone - because they were starving and the British knew that getting food to them any other way was impossible with most of the infrastructure destroyed. Her whole village gathered around the air-dropped supplies which were marked only "Gift of the British People" in English. You might be surprised to find that this caused great concern. You see, none of the villagers present knew English and the word "gift" in German is POISON; they thought they were being told to commit suicide. Having just lost the most brutal war in history, which they started, they were waiting for the inevitable reckoning and thought this might be it. But someone rounded up the schoolteacher in their village and he knew a little bit of English, enough to explain that "gift" in English was a good thing. They opened the packages and found food, clothing, and other aid. Having become a bit cynical over the years, I find myself wondering if that was a deliberate bit of psychological warfare on the parts of the British; after all, they could hardly have expected the Germans to be fluent in English or, indeed, to be able to read it at all so I'm at a loss to see why they didn't include bilingual markings on the packages....
My old uncle Edward and uncle James were posted to Germany to do their national service.Eddie hated every minute of army life .Jim loved it and became a sergeant. Eddie made some good friends in Germany .Managed to get a job in the stores of the British camp .He loved sneaking out coffee etc to give to his German pals using his wit and intelligence .A sort of Robin Hood .He got court marshalled for pulling the trigger of a sten gun on the instructors finger .It had jammed and this nasty aggressive man shouted at him while grabbing the gun .As he did so Eddie pulled the trigger.He got away with it as the higher authority realized he was a nut case and should have taken it according to procedure. After it all his pals took him out to celebrate and the instructor was transferred to another unit.When Eddie told me he pulled the trigger to let the bolt hit his finger he denied it with a quick wink.He was a lovely man .Gentle and fun to be with.Taught me how to play golf in Scotland then gave me a half set to carry on with as a gift.One thing he commented on was how the cities were wrecked and the German tradesmen rebuilding the place were very well dressed .Their tools were well cared for and they worked wonderfully always doing a good job.
The guy winding the street organ reminded me when I was a British Army child living in Altona/Hamburg in 1954. He had a monkey on a long rope that ran around picking up the coins thrown to him from the appartments we lived in. Precious memories.
Livin in Germany from 1970 to 1999, I recall driving through village after village on weekends and in almost everyone men with out arms and legs, working at jobs. My wife was pregnant with twins when we moved to the second floor of a farm house. Could not get the box spellings up the narrow stairs so hired a carpenter to take a window out and shove the bed through. There he stood in the truck with his one arm pushing up the box springs with the aide of my wife and the landlady in her seventies. Two Germans and my wife who is half German in descent. I was at work when this happened. Wish I had a photo. “Triumph of the Will” in the best sense.
This is a very interesting video which many of those who have made comment, clearly either have not watched or listened to it in its entirety. Put aside your prejudices and open up your minds people.
World War II claimed the lives of an estimated 60 + million people, so that there were many, many broken, distraught families, torn apart at the roots, having lost one or more family members to the war on both sides of the battle. The survivors grieved for perhaps years, or perhaps even the rest of their lives. This is the bitterness of human warfare, in which in World War II, so many Germans placed their hopes, their trust in Adolf Hitler and his regime, but their dreams turned to nightmares. Having lost almost everything, they had to start afresh with life, without many a family member being present. At Revelation 6, it outlines the deadliness of human warfare through "the ride of the four horsemen", saying at verse 4 with the rider on a "fiery-colored horse", that it "was granted to the one seated on it to take peace away from the earth so that they should slaughter one another, and he was given a great sword." This symbolic rider on a "fiery-colored horse" quickly followed the rider on a "white horse" who had just received a crown to a heavenly government called God's Kingdom.(Rev 6:1, 2) This rider was Jesus Christ, who, in 1914, was given the reigns to God's heavenly Kingdom (Dan 7:13, 14), who then fought an unseen battle in heaven against his archenemy, "the dragon" or Satan the Devil, who lost and was forcibly thrown out of heaven, so that Satan has brought great "woe" on the earth because he is very angry, starting World War I and all the rest of the wars that subsequently followed.(Rev 12:7-9, 12) As a result of World War I, that cost the lives of an estimated 21 million soldiers and civilians, and all future human wars since then, Revelation 6:8 now says that a rider on a "pale horse" came forth, "and the one seated on it had the name Death. And the Grave was closely following him. And authority was given them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with a long sword and with food shortage and with deadly plague and by the wild beasts of the earth." So, since Jesus enthronement as king of God's Kingdom in 1914, war has reaped a massive harvest of casualties, and in which many are ' resting in peace ' in the Grave. But there is the hope that many who have died as a result of human warfare will live again, through a resurrection from the dead.(see Job 14:13-15) These ones can be like the evil-doer on one side of Jesus when they both were on stakes, so that Jesus told the evil-doer who showed faith in him and said: "Jesus, remember me when you get into your Kingdom", whereby Jesus responded with the hope of a resurrection: "Truly I tell you today, you will be with me in Paradise (or on the earth, not in heaven)."(Luke 23:42, 43) The hope of living on a paradise earth is before all mankind (though few will take advantage of it), and God, whose personal name is Jehovah, would love for them to come and "take life's water free", so as to have perfect peace, perfect health, and perfect security forever.(Rev 22:17)
Back then they always Dramatized every situation , especially the struggle that the German people had to indure .It was a day to day struggle too for the former german soldier who stayed alive . Not every german soldier committed a crime against humanity like Hitler or Ickman or Guering .or other terrible cruel henchmen .
My county courthouse has an elevator installed by the Nazis in the 1930s- Thiesen Krupp with Hitlers 3 joined circles that later became the Olympic symbol. As a Jew, it annoys me, but the fact is that it has never broken in over 90 years.
If it's any consolation, the wooden mechanical staircases installed in Antwerp's Voetgangerstunnel (pedestrian tunnel) in 1931 are also still going strong. And their manufacturers were Jewish.
It appears some US police forces behave like an occupying army, not servants of the public. The way they always work together to defeat justice (for killer cops) is a disgrace.
It wasn't lost on our police officers because they were never taught that they aren't everyone's masters. An today they ave really gotten out of hand. American police modern day gestapo.
This reminds me of the scarecrow in the wizard of oz casually responding to his stuffing falling out. "Oh I just keep stuffing it back in again!" (war is so stupid)
In my view this is some form of propganda like the when they talk about military industrial complex leaders. Which is rather stupid since ever country has one and you get my point if youo think about it and what they say
no one speaks about Germans everyone speaks about Japanese development after world war 2. in fact germany lost a lot wealth, assets, people in both the world wars and now look at german economy its amazing at the euro. their auto companies like audi, mercedes Benz, bmw, Porsche are more preferred than the Japanese auto companies across the world, they manufacture aeroplane engines n export it to every country they have become biggest trade partners with countries like mexico, usa, brazil, china, india etc which are one of the biggest economies on earth
It is Japan that has the 3rd largest economy in the world and not Germany. Also, Japan has no natural resources at all. Germany sits in the Middle of Europe with an open market to 400 million people. A Porsche of any quality is 100 grand. Now compare a Volks. to a Honda. The Honda is a much better built automobile and it does not cost a fortune for maintenance as your grand Porsche does.
Readers might be interested in James Pollack's occupation diary and private correspondence 1945-1948. The Americans who had not been bombed by the war were ahead in establishing a German government in the American zone, providing food, bringing railroads back up to speed, etc. The British were behind them. The French zone far behind. The American General Clay should have statues honoring him in the capitals of both countries for his great efforts in this period.
@@TheCoolermaster24 the narrator is so proud of the USA winning WW2 but had no idea of the things to come. Cold War and now gender and identity politics etc. Roosevelt’s Liberal policies and involvement in WW2 has created what we have now. Reward the losers.
@@alexandredelneste270 Stalin defeated the Nazis. Then went on to execute 30 million political prisoners in death camps. Far worse than Hitler. Then we had 50 years of Cold War against the Communists........ You don’t know history.
Soviets killed many of there allies soldiers but press for some reason don't like talking about that just the mythical six garrilion which your not allowed to question 🤣🤣
I feel sorry for the German people after the war ended as we treated them like prisoners. We bombed Berlin into almost a ghost town and the made the people mostly women children and old men and injured soldiers struggle to live and with all the coal they were digging up forbid the people for having some. Punishment over the top.
Meine Mutter ist auch Deutsch. She would have been 6 when this film was made. She often talks about the struggles her mother, brothers and sister went through post war. I'm actually hesitant to even send her the link to this film. I am curious about how they lived after the war...this film shows it was even harder than I imagined.
there is a film called Anonyma - Eine Frau in Berlin known as The Downfall of Berlin Anonyma in the UK. It is based on a memoir of a Berlin woman published originally in 1959 in Germany. The film came out in 2009... I got it online (sub-titled).....that gives an authentic image of life in Berlin in 1945..... If you do get it... best to watch it first maybe before showing your mother I think....
I wish the shouted German words were translated, such as during the train scene. The "silent scenes" such as at 15:00 should also get captioned. --If this is Part 1, where is the link to Part 2?
My father told me that German cities were almost none existent right after the war was over. He said they were so bombed out that hardly anything remained except the shells of buildings like you see in this video. He was stationed in West Berlin after coming home and spending 3 months of leave. He was then sent back to Germany to help in the re-construction. He said is was a slow and painful process and the people were bewildered at first. But after about a year he said the pace picked up and the people started to come alive again. He said they had no pride or hope right after the war was over and the Americans and Russians were controlling the whole country. He knew nothing about the East part of Germany but he said they began to have pride in their accomplishments in re-building their country. He did say that most of the industrial manufacturing plants of Germany that were still operational were destroyed in order to keep Germany from starting another War! The World wanted Germany to be mainly an agricultural nation and have little or no manufacturing plants! Of course over the 73 years since WWII ended this has changed.
Interesting and informative. Excellent photography job making it easier for viewers to better understand what the orator was describing. Historians did a very good job presenting actual facts from fiction. Orator presented the documentary very well. Class A research project. Rough & timely rebuilding project. Special thanks to the dear dead departed from the war. Who made this documentary possible!!!😇😇😇😇
The cities look straight out of Fallout. If you haven't heard of the bombing of Dresden, or the Berlin Rapes, I'd highly recommend you check them out. There was victims on both sides of the war, and Germany suffered the worst of it at the end.
The map at 0:17 is strange. I do not know when exactly the movie was made, but the partition of East Prussia and transfer of Pomerania and Lower Silesia to Poland (as a compensation for eastern Poland territories grabbed by the Soviet in 1939) was agreed upon by three powers already in Yalta. So they were not part of Soviet occupation zone.
My father was part of the occupying force in post-war Germany from 1958-1960 (yes, we did occupy them that long). He was fluent in German but didn't really let on to the native speakers, which allowed him to eavesdrop unnoticed on many conversations. When he returned home, he said that denazification had been an utter failure.
EyeLean5280 Don't know what country your calling from but my cousin was with Canadian forces in the mid 70s. Remembering back to the mid 50s when Germans were let into Canada yes denazification was and from whats on the internet now a total waste of time.
Actually WW2 was started or set into motion because of the harshness and unfairness of The treaty of Versailles. That treaty contributed to the conditions in Germany that lead to the rise of National Socialism.
@@sonnydelight5737 I hate how nobody understands this. Literally overnight, because of the crash of the American stock market, Hitler's support shot through the roof. Everyone points the finger at Germany as if they alone created the conditions that lead to WW2. AMERICA destroyed the world economy because of it's filthy greed, Germany was already in hell bc of Versailles then it got much worse because of the stock market crash. Put yourself in the shoes of a German in those days, what Hitler did was logical. Americans need to take responsibility for their actions. Had Americans not been so greedy the stock market crash might not have happened and neither would WW2.
that is exactly Right ww2 pretty much set in motion not only on the western front in the fall of 1918 but the treaty of Versailles in 1919 which the reality the treaty of Versailles was punishing Germany after ww1 was over which it's the allies fault that ww2 had to come after the American civil war ended in 1865 lincolns cabinet tried to do the exact same thing to punished the defeated confederates Abraham Lincoln said no that there would be no blood shed anymore Abraham Lincoln stated plain and simple that he would rather be assassinated than have the confederates punished
ACTUALLLLLY - American chattel slavery and jim crow informed Hitler on how to decimate people by dehumanizing them - which explains why America didn't intervene for A WHILE.
@@HunnifredBee history remembers the holocaust. But look up Churchill's involvement in the starvation of MILLIONS in India during the same 6 year period. Nobody says shit about that. Churchill should be remembered with as much disdain as hitler
