American families in Occupied Germany - 1946
Jun 26, 2015 21:33:30 #
carlysue wrote:
Interesting read,Richard, and certainly nothing that ever appeared in our WWII and post war history. Hopefully we would learn what was done "right" and what were "mistakes" when occupying a country post war, but not sure we ever learn.
Thank you, Carlysue. The schoolbooks for history classes are scrubbed of controversy, making the subject so dry that kids lose interest in delving any further than those few paragraphs or chapters. The TV and Hollywood films go in the other direction, distorting the battles and bloodshed while ignoring the humanity and politics. Despite our many postwar mistakes in Germany, I must say we did a far better job than the French did in Germany after the First World War in 1918. Their irresponsible demands in the Versailles Treaty created a horrendous economic cyclone in the 1920s which bred the Nazi party.
Jun 26, 2015 21:39:32 #
Treepusher wrote:
There is History, and there is What Happened. I like hearing what happened from someone who was there. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for your comments, Treepusher. My little 500-word essays can only touch on the rich mix of events that made up the four years or so of Military Government in the Occupation of Germany.
Jun 26, 2015 21:42:07 #
MTG44 wrote:
Thanks again for you history lesson. Always look forward to them.
Thank you for your interest, MTG! I hope I won't let you down.
Jun 26, 2015 21:54:02 #
richosob wrote:
Thank you Richard for another great story related to WW 2. Hope to see more. When you look at the destruction of those cities in Germany after the war you can't help but wonder how they rebuilt them so fast. I mean these were large cities that were leveled to the ground.
Rich
Rich
Thanks for your comments, Rich. When we walked or rode through the ruins at the time, we wondered if those cities were going to remain ruins like those of the ancient Middle East. But we underestimated the strong attachment those citizens had for their cities. They had hopes for a better, peaceful life -- and they finally, slowly got it. Here's a shot of what it looked like at the start.
Somebody lived in these Frankfurt ruins in 1946
Jun 26, 2015 22:00:55 #
Jill Jillson wrote:
Thanks for sharing another piece of history!
Hi, Jill! You're welcome. I just hope I can meet my own schedule of recalling the things I think will interest the UHH members.
Jun 26, 2015 22:02:18 #
phlash46 wrote:
Well done! :thumbup: :thumbup:
Thank you for the two thumbups, phlash!
Jun 26, 2015 22:09:21 #
Drb68 wrote:
Richard.....thanks for the effort you go to in putting this info out. I find the dialogue and photos very interesting. It would be valuable to have all these posts in a book. I look forward to the next installment. Thanks again.
Thank you for your comments, Drb. I'm glad you find these little posts interesting. I figured I'd better get them on paper while I'm still around. There already are a bunch of history books dealing with that period, although most are out of print now. Anyway, my style is different, I'll admit.
Jun 26, 2015 22:12:42 #
Jun 26, 2015 22:15:09 #
RichardQ wrote:
Thank you, Carlysue. The schoolbooks for history ... (show quote)
Richard, I lived in Eastern Europe during the WW2. And what William J Renard posted makes my blood boil.
Jun 26, 2015 23:14:19 #
As I have said several times.......thank you for these insights to the reality of the times. Keep 'em coming!
Jun 27, 2015 00:13:42 #
tbohon wrote:
Richard once again you've outdone yourself. This is a subject about which I had never heard ... and it disturbs me on several levels. As always I greatly appreciate your photos and the stories behind them ... and look forward to learning more and more from your future posts.
Thanks!
Tom
Thanks!
Tom
Thank you, Tom. I'm gratified that you find these little reports interesting. The Army was a reluctant host for the dependent families. It was only after General Eisenhower and numerous Congressmen were suddenly faced by a crowd of irate service wives, around February 1946, that the Army scrambled to arrange a program for all the necessary facilities. President Roosevelt originally thought the Occupation would last only two years, long enough to destroy the German industrial system, after which the Allies would let the Germans rot in their ruins. It didn't work out that way.
Jun 27, 2015 00:37:58 #
Steve_m wrote:
Most of the Germans wanted Hitler to be their leader. You have to look at time before the war. He was feeding their ego about them being the super race. Everybody else was niemand - no one, nobody. That was a music to their ears. Opening theirs eyes at Dresden bombing that was too late. Then it was obvious that the Third Reich was just their dream.
Steve, the German people in 1933 were still reeling from the economic catastrophe dumped on them by the disastrous Versailles Treaty of 1919. The social upheavals and riots were used by the Nazi party to persuade the middle class that they could install a government powerful enough to restore order. Some very powerful American industrialists agreed, and joined forces with German industrialists to quietly back Hitler. Some of them, like Henry Ford, also admired the virulent anti-semitism promoted by Hitler. What rallied the German people was Hitler's insistence that they would not let themselves be "pushed around" by the Allies. He broke the restrictions imposed by the Treaty, and told the Germans the Allies would do nothing about it. And they didn't, proving to the Germans that he truly was "The Leader."
Jun 27, 2015 00:53:13 #
Steve_m wrote:
Well, who started that mess? What would happen those Romanians, Serbs, Czech, Polaks, Russians if you guys have won? You demonstrated how you can do killing in the big way. Don't try to get sympathy!!!! There is none.
Steve, you are absolutely right to condemn the Lebensraum expansions of the Third Reich, which uprooted populations in 1938 and 1939, forcing peasants from their lands so Germans could take over. The reverse was to be expected when the tide turned. The Sudeten Germans were forced out and driven into Germany, where they were not welcomed. The survivors became part of the millions of displaced persons (DPs) which the U.S. Army unexpectedly found on its hands. The Russians insisted that all DPs from Russia and Eastern Europe be returned to them. Many resisted and even committed suicide -- and the Russians killed some as soon as they were handed over, in sight of the sickened Americans.
Jun 27, 2015 01:21:08 #
ole sarg wrote:
You realize that an E5 with over 4 years only earned $154 per month and if in base housing did not receive a housing allowance. So that $20 per month for a cook was too much for a Sgt to afford.
Domestic help was supplied to boost the german economy. On Okinawa in 1960 had a person assigned to polish my shoes and make the bed, etc for 75 cents a month and that was to boost the economy.
Domestic help was supplied to boost the german economy. On Okinawa in 1960 had a person assigned to polish my shoes and make the bed, etc for 75 cents a month and that was to boost the economy.
Thank you for your comments, Ole Sarg. I never meant to imply that all families can afford a full-time cook. But some officers can. There are other family expenses I didn't mention (space, you know). The kids have to pay tuition, for example: $4 a month per child for children of non-coms of the first three grades (ranks), and $8 a month per child for children of officers and civilians. In 1946 and 1947, the Army was not interested in "boosting" the German economy. The Occupation ran under the harsh mandates of JCS 1067, which were punitive, not charitable. That changed when the Marshall Plan was announced (April, 1948).
Jun 27, 2015 11:07:34 #
richosob
Loc: Lambertville, MI
RichardQ wrote:
Thanks for your comments, Rich. When we walked or rode through the ruins at the time, we wondered if those cities were going to remain ruins like those of the ancient Middle East. But we underestimated the strong attachment those citizens had for their cities. They had hopes for a better, peaceful life -- and they finally, slowly got it. Here's a shot of what it looked like at the start.
I'll bet the last thing one would expect to see when walking through this destruction was laundry on a clothesline.
Rich
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