LAST GERMAN PRISONERS SAY GOODBYE
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- Опубліковано 20 лип 2015
- (15 Jul 1948) The last prisoner of war leave for home and the last to board ship, Otto Jager, speaks of returning for a holiday.
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I once had a neighbour who was shot down and injured in the UK. He married the nurse who treated him in hospital and never returned to Germany. He became a baker and had two great boys who I used to take fishing. They were a lovely family. I missed them when they moved away.
The average Jerry is normally quite a decent chap.
my neighbor enid willis died last year at 99. she was in britain when the germans were bombing it.
Name? Informations about? Year? Place ? Fake
Most likely didn't want to return to Germany because communists were too close. Better to stay in England.
Good story,people are people.
I know a German woman, she is 93 years old widow now, she came to follow her boyfriend who was a German POW in England, she came over in 1948. She is a cripple and hardly sees the doctor. I told her that she should seek some help in her late years, as she is not well; She replied "England has been very good to me, I don't want to trouble them, they welcomed my husband and me and treated us so very well"
overopensights please just tell her I kiss her on her two cheeks.
I’d liked also to read her story.
Germans were worthy opponents...
@@tahirjavaid9750 Not if you are Jewish and living in Germany / Austria in 1938 like my family.
Offer to take her to the doctor. If she has such a good attitude, then, if I may ask of you, help her.
@@tahirjavaid9750 sure, after the Russians softened them a bit
I hope those men returned home to live safe, good & happy lives.
Unfortunately most lived with ptsd and many of them killed themselves.
@Nastasiya A lot of Nazi war criminals have got rid of the trials, especially common for mid-rank officers.
Murderers, criminals.
@@wentaoguo6480
Josef Mengele, the nazi doctor mostly know as Angel of Death managed to escape and live his life here in Brazil. This is sad.
@@garypulliam3740 one guy who was a guard at a death camp recently was sentenced to life in prison, he didn't even try to fight it. He just said he wanted to do whatever he could to try to pay for standing by while millions died
My father was an italian soldier fighting in North Africa. He was made prisonner by the British Forces in 1943 and he was prisonner near London from 1943 to 1946. He had only good words for the British People.
Daniele Saletti There was a Italian POW camp near Kew Gardens where the National Archives stands today on the bank of the River Thames , In the 1960s I worked with a couple of Italians that had been in that camp and decided to stay and live not far from the old POW camp, Your father could have been there , The old building had been turned over to the civil service after the war and I saw some of there art work they had painted on the walls still there some 20 years after the war end, Some of the walls with the art work done by the POWs were carefully taken down and preserved for future generations to see. 🇬🇧
He is lucky the French did not get him
Big D The stab in the back.
My grandfather was a US serviceman and worked at the camp in Kew, London. He married my grandmother who lived in Chiswick which is nearby and the came back to California after the war. The camp then became a POW camp my grandfather mentioned to me. We got some photos of him on Kew Bridge by a plaque saying the King of England laid it. Theres lots of photos of him with his friends in pubs by the river. He enjoyed his time in London and said the English people there were so nice and friendly.
@@BigDsGaming2022 ??
Otto looks like he's been on holiday and had a great time. 😂
Otto used to get blotto in the camp!
@@deanpd3402 Its true though, in the republic of Ireland (which was neutral) interned allied and axis servicemen worked and were paid and allowed to visit local pubs where they would drink and socialise. 😆
Otto may have not been quite so happy on the Soviet steppes in neg 50 in one of Uncle Joes work camps,he really won lotto getting caught by der englanders!
My Grandfather was POW in England. He had to work on a farm. The farmer got killed in France in 1940 and his wife decided that this german POW has not only to fill the late husband‘s role on the field and in the stable. But also at night. He always said that this was a better part of his life. Only spoke in the best way about the british people and indeed this also influenced our perception about „the former enemies“. Note that he met my grandmother after the war. So there was no woman waiting for him in war time Germany while he had a normal life in England.
Hallo. I'am a German and very interested about british and german people. In Germany I spoke to many POW. All These people told me that it was a very great time in Britain. Most of the british people was very friendly and helpfull. Thank you so much.
I hope that there will be a never ending friendship between these 2 countries.
@@michaelwiederstein4573
Hallo
I was send by Siemens Berlin in 1980 to Australia for what was meant to be a 18mth. assignment.
42 years later I'm still here....lol.
Why?
Some 6 weeks after my arrival I met a gorgeous British girl in a pup.....she was a schoolteacher on exchange.
Well, as they say.....the rest is history.
We fell in love, decided that Australia was a better place than Europe, got married, had 3 kids and now 5 grandkids, I started a TV repair company, went into selling mobile phones and became a very wealthy man.
These days I'm closer to my British family than my German one.
The only problem during 42 years of blissful marriage ?
My wife never learnt to cook like my mum....baked beans on toast is still one of her favorites....and of course bloody tea.....hahaha.
Cheers
from Oz
So you are saying that he stayed in England.???
@@norbertschmitz3358 I love that “bloody tea”. I am 72 , and have always loved Tea. I live in Houston, Texas where it is usually hot,, especially in the summer. Iced tea is my favorite drink with meals. Occasionally, I will drink a cup of hot tea. What we Americans really love is our coffee-hot or cold. We Americans probably drink about half a gallon a day. I was a nurse, RN, here in Houston and South Texas for about 45 years. Nurse , doctors, and other medical folks drink a ton of coffee, especially on the night shift!!
@@johnindo6771
Hello john
I'm 68....not much difference.
Well,
we love what we grew up with.
Coffee is the national drink in Germany, after WW2 the most valuable commodity's on the black market were Coffee and Cigarettes .
Having said that, I grew up in a rural town, and peppermint tea was very popular...so were lots of plants for there perceived medical properties.
But
We never ever drank tea with"" bloody milk in it""......hahaha
Cheers
from Australia
One of those who stayed was the footballer Bert Trautman, who was the goalie for Manchester City. I read his biography and it's a very interesting story.
I just found out that before he was taken on as a footballer, he volunteered for bomb disposal in Huyton near Liverpool. He also played in goal for 17 minutes in the 1956 FA cup final with a broken neck but still made key saves. He was made of stern stuff.
@@noelmajers6369 In those days if you didn't finish the game you didn't get a medal.
(during the war) He jumped a fence to escape some American soldiers, turned around to se a British soldier with a cup of tea, I think the British soldier said something along the lines of "oi jerry, fancy a cup of tea?"
Bret was a Nazi youth and joined Wehrmacht at 17. They put him at a checkpoint, but he escaped and went to the front line. In his years of service, he received 5 medals (inc. Iron Cross First Class)
Famous for continuing playing in a game in which he sustained broken neck!
Hey Otto, just remember to leave the tank at home next time. Don't want any misunderstandings, you know.
In California, during the war, what is now Beale Air Force Base was then called Camp Beale. There was a German POW camp there. My grandparents were cattle ranchers in that area, from the time of the Great Depression into the 80s. During the war, a German escaped and was found hiding on the neighboring ranch. The MPs came and got him. After the war he decided to stay in the US, and lived in the area. He would visit and spend holidays with the neighbors. And many other of the prisoners at Beale decided to stay.
Too bad the Japanese Americans were not given the same treatment. They were locked up in camps in their own country during the war, stripped of all their possessions and dignity.
@@MOV1983 very true. That was a national disgrace. I toured the Manzanar camp many years ago. The man who gave the tour was an older gentleman of Japanese descent, who had been interned there. He was critical of course of what happened, but interestingly enough he was as critical if not more of the Imperial Japanese government and the atrocities they committed, i.e., the Rape of Nanking, Pearl Harbor, etc. He criticized the imperialism, Communism, Nazi-ism, and totalitarianism that was so prevalent at that time all over the world. And let us not forget it was Franklin D. Roosevelt, who on February 19, 1942, signed Executive Order 9066 which authorized the internment of Japanese-Americans.
@@greggd2027 That is correct!
Was at Beale in 1971 and there was still evidence of the POW camp that had once existed.
@@MOV1983 Nice if you had a word for the poor sods who were prisoners of the Japs.
One of my good friend's parents came to the US in the mid 1950s. His father had been a German soldier held captive in the USSR until 53 or 54. His mother's family lost everything when she was a child. Her parents were quite wealthy and were killed in the bombings around Frankfurt. She went on to a convent and became a nurse. When the dad was released (one of the lucky few) he got back to Germany and met her, fell in love, got married and went to America. They did really well and were good people but my friend's dad never ever talked about his time as a prisoner in the USSR. Understandable.
Amazing that 24k stayed in england. Of course if the option was east germany it makes sense.
jammer3618 rien d’étonnant à cela surtout si tu as tout donné puis tout perdu dans ton pays (…)
and no roots/family left in Germany too.. war wiped out many families
Parts of Germany no longer existed, having been annexed into Poland.
I worked for a lady who dad was a German who opted to stay rather than go back to East Germany
@@dragonfitter cool
And that, everyone, is how you win a war. With forgiveness and compassion.
We Yanks treated the German POWs held in the USA in accordance with the Geneva Convention and most returned to dear old Deutschland healthy, happy - and some a little wealthy - because they had been paid for their labor by the U.S. Army. My landlord in Berlin during the Cold War in 1975 was one such German POW who ended up in Melbourne, Florida working at the Naval Aviation base for several years. When he got paid off by the U.S. military upon his return to Germany - he found himself wealthy in terms of occupation dollars. He took that capital and purchased one of the few intact homes in an upscale West Berlin neighborhood - subdivided it into several apartments - and rented those units out to the U.S. soldiers stationed in the American Sector. In 1975 while stationed in Berlin as a single NCO who wanted a bachelor Pad - I rented out the last remaining apartment of the now elderly couple. I got a very good rate - I told him I was from Melbourne, Florida and lived only a few miles away from his former POW camp.
The Yanks treated the German POWs held in the USA in accordance with the Geneva Conference ... until the war ended and their status was changed. Their treatment changed and many were not repatriated, but were sent to Britain, France, etc. to be forced laborers for years after the war. Whether their treatment was humane depended on the country they were sent to.
@@adammosel4895 This is true. My German landlord in Berlin during the 1970s was a young man of 15 years old and drafted in January 1945 into the German Army and was made a flak crewman. After a short boot camp his unit of 13 to 15 year old boys was stationed in the Frankfort area - and were overrun by the U.S. Army in April 1945. He said he knew the war on over for them one April morning when they woke up to discover their officers and NCOs - hardcore veterans- had bugged out and left them alone to face the wrath of a U.S. Armored Division a few miles down the autobahn headed their way. So the boys had a little conference among themselves and decided to go home to momma. But alas! They didn't get far and found themselves surrounded by American armored infantry that was getting to position to attack them from the rear. The G.I.s held their fire and give them a chance to give up - which they all did - and marched them back to their fighting positions. The G.I.s were shocked at the field positions they had built over the winter and the weapons they had amassed that would have resulted in a high body count for the Americans had they attacked this fortress. As you can imagine - the Yanks were quite pleased with this particular bunch of Krauts and treated them well passing the word on to the MPs to go light on them in the POW camp - and this did happen. However, at some point the French Army came into the picture and things went dark for the boys - they all ended up as slave laborers. Most of them were sent to a French town in Normandy blown to pieces - and there shown a picture of what the town looked like before WW II. The French military told them, "You lads can go home....after you murdering Huns put it back together again! This took until 1949 and when he finally got back home to Germany his own mother walked past him on the street near the main Berlin train station without knowing her own son, because he had lost so much weight and was so rundown, dirty and wearing Salvation Army rags. The man hated the French, but loved the Americans who spared his life and at least tried to do the right thing.
@@Ronbo1948 Wasn't most of the damage to towns in Normandy caused by allied bombing? Perhaps your landlord was in a town shelled by the Germans, though?
The Danes were pretty vengeful, too, although the occupation there had been relatively benign. The Danish economy actually grew during the war. Here is a trailer for a Danish movie that addressed it:
ua-cam.com/video/YvsKIBSPfWw/v-deo.html
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_prisoners_of_war_in_the_United_Kingdom#Numbers_of_German_POWs_in_Britain,_1946%E2%80%931948
Despite having the most resources, we Americans did not have the best survival rate for POW in captivity. The honor belongs the UK.
Heard of the Rhineland Meadows?
One that didn't rush home ended up marrying my Gran, who was British. Would love to find my German relatives..
If u know your granfathers date and place of birth and service number there's agood chance u could trace your German relatives i lived in Germany for nearly 10years
Germany is a great country. Germans are strong people.
Nice to see kindness
If only the Russian POW's returning to the USSR were that lucky......
Many Russian POWs returning home were executed by the Stalin and treated as Traitors and ended up in Gulags .
John Rada I don't know? I'm sure that any sane parent would teach their children about the horror's of WWII. Real funny.
motorrebell my great great uncle escaped from a german pow camp he was stripped of all of his medals and made to fight in a penal battalion he was previously a scout
motorrebell I think they were only pardoned and survivors were released from gulps after Stalin's death.
motorrebell Stalin was bloody bastard ...!
The difference between Hitler & Stalin...?
Answer : Hitler he did'nt smoke..!
Brits were cunning and smart. They didn't interrogate high officers under duress. They kept them all in a manor under audio surveillance. The bickering among them about what led to failures held more information than anything obtained under harsh interrogation.
The rooms had hidden microphones. Some of the officers realised what was going on and kept quiet unless they were outside. They didn't know there were wires among the trees too. Downed Luftwaffe pilots were sent there even though they were not senior officers, because their personalities could not avoid boasting.
Different subject but the Brit’s were also fantastic cryptologist. Glad we’re Allie’s. Cheers from Texas.
@@faithlesshound5621 I have a book about Bletchley Park. This gets mentioned in it . Everything was bugged . They even wined and dined high ranking nazis at the Ritz and other fashionable restaurants. Churchill went nuclear when he found out ,but was all for it when he realised the intelligence that was being gained from it .
@sjones5616 We were, thanks to early help from the Poles, who were into Enigma before WW2 even started. The Germans penetrated Royal Navy book-cyphers in the first half of the war. And you, our American friends, had made good inroads into Japanese cyphers before Pearl Harbour.
The last German prisoners are saying goodbye. After years of captivity, they are finally being released and returning home. It is a bittersweet moment as they bid farewell to their fellow prisoners and the routine of prison life. Some have formed close bonds with their fellow inmates and will miss the camaraderie and support they found behind bars. Others are relieved to finally be free and eager to put the past behind them. As they say their goodbyes, they reflect on the lessons they have learned and the experiences that have shaped them. They carry with them a mix of emotions - gratitude for their release, sadness for leaving behind newfound friends, and hope for a brighter future. The last German prisoners are saying goodbye, ready to embark on the next chapter of their lives, forever changed by their time in captivity.
Otto Jager owes everybody money, you wont see him again
I heard he invented a liquor and grew wealthy.
So proud of my people. Those pows were so happy and the English treated them well.
I heard that when the British occupied Berlin they did not treat them well and neither did the Soviets. It was the Americans who were nice.
@@darkworld9850 Britain though it had little food it's self shared it with the German people, it was the Russians who treated the Germans bad because the way the Germans had treated them, the British got on well with the Germans.
Elsa 0o - that’s not entirely the case. PoW camps in the UK treated prisoners well, to the point many of them didn’t want to go home. We had rationed food and could barely afford to feed our own citizens, yet we continued to feed the prisoners to the best of our ability, letting them stay in our houses along with it to avoid the weather.
There are many accounts online from Italian and German prisoners who speak of how well they were treated, and even returned to our country many years after the war to meet up with British friends they’d made during their stay. There wasn’t any hostility :)
@@hetrodoxlysonov-wh9oo The Russians were not kind to anyone. Germany did nothing to Russia. Do you know about the Bolshevik Revolution, The Ukrainian Genocide. Whatever prison camp the Germans were in they were respected bcs they worked hard, never caused any trouble. There is one video on YT about how the Canadians treated their prisoners. Pretty well. The Germans helped immensely by farming and logging the Canadian men were still in Europe. Most left the camp and became permanent residents. Married some of the local girls.
Dante Matteo Same can be said for the Germans as well. My grandfather fought in both world wars and my mom was stationed with the WAVES in London. My grandfather suffered a broken leg. The British drs did not do a good job of fixing it up. He was captured for awhile and the German drs fixed up his leg to perfection. There was 2 drs and they became good friends and visited when they could.
My Grandfather had Italian POW workers during the war. He ran a timber mill and was a contractor in the woods. Some of The Germans and Italians were fascist which meant they were very unpleasant. However many were not and married local Welsh girls.
German prisoners of war who left Britain & the USA were unanimously impressed with how well they were treated
How the British treated these erstwhile enemies with mercy and compassion speaks volumes about British character.
Your comment speaks volumes about ur ignorance. Read about the "Baralong Incident" (WW1). In WW2, Soviets committed many crimes - so do take responsibility for their actions since it was a group of 3. Also USA & Brit used napalm ("incendiary device"). USA started calling its POWs "disarmed enemy" so they don't hav to stick to the Geneva convention rules.
logibear - After all, you guys (British and Germans) are cousins with a common origin, aren't you ?
You are talking absolute nonsense because many Italians died under British captivity in Africa to the point that the Brits has never let the Red Cross to inspect the prisoners. I'm not impressed with your near total lack of knowledge. The Brits were not better than the the rest...
Nothing wrong with a bit of Napalm. Builds character.
logibear64 and now the English send their subjects (slaves) to prison for defending their homes from home burglars.
Don't believe me?
Look it up yourself...
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I remember the optician shop in early 1970s at Chorlton-Cum-Hardy where I regularly visiting for eye tests etc, a man named Willy (!) was ex German army prisoner.
My grandfather was involved in the capture of Luftwaffe personnel in 1945. He treated them with respect the same as he would want to be treated if he was ever a prisoner of war.
Thank you for your service 🫡 🇩🇪
Fortunate German soldiers returned to home to began a new life.
Lucky devil's
the broken in ones who chose life above everything
They got a chance to experience democracy. They realized that it was better than having a crazy Austrian shout at you all the time.
Who better to learn democracy from than the Empire the sun never sets on.
Within a few years Germany would experience its "Wirtschafswunder," aided by millions in Marshall Aid and at least one senior British General who was determined to let the German car industry rise from the ashes.
A few decades later and Germany would be richer than Great Britain, which had won the war but lost the peace.
With that wave Otto must have been related to the Queen
That’s offensive. I love it!😂
Can pick your friends but not your relatives
LOL Good one!!
The Queens real name should actually read, Elizabeth Saxe Coburg-Gotha(not Windsor!). The Royal family changed their Surname to sound more British when the First World War broke out for obvious reasons. Windsor was chosen simply because it couldn’t sound more British if they tried!
Research it if you don’t believe this.
@@Stormshadow11114 The Saxe coburg married into many European royal houses. French, Portugal, Belgium, Denmark etc
Do you have any documents about the Spanish Civil War? I really like your short videos.
It's so nice to see former enemies become real friends...! that's when one realizes what a sheer madness war is ! We kill each other without knowing those we fire at, and viceversa ! That's what is happening right now between Russians and Ukrainians...they're family ! What a mad world we live in, my God ! Anyhow, at least we have had a lasting and real friendship with our German cousins....more than 70 years now, and God willing, forever.
So very true. When I was in the US Marines in the 80s, I was deployed to Japan twice, and stayed at a Japanese house, and was treated like family, even by the older people that were involved in WW2. Once I was lost trying to find a bus, and this elderly man that worked at the bus station took me under his wing, and did not let me go until he was sure I was on the right bus. And I mean physically not letting me go, he had me by the arm until I got on that bus.
Yes, I know we fought a horrific war with the Japanese, but I have nothing but the utmost respect for them. Former enemies can be friends.
@@blockmasterscott - What a nice story. Congrats.
My father initially went to Physical training school for the Mighty 8th AFF 1942 after turning 20, initially a physical training instructor, first in Washington State, then on to Miami Beach, later on afterwards, the AAF switched him to ",,Tank Destroyer,based in South Texas, before shipping out and training- they had a lot of POWs on base, my father who rarely spoke about the war,( later wounded in action) told me he had a German named Josef, clean his barracks,he told me Josef was a Baker back home, in a large bakery and was glad to be out of the war at that time. Lots of German pows had worked locally for the townsfolk and farms and the locals loved them, hard workers, good looking,fit and similar ideology to Southern at the time, ..then my father told me they sent an overflow of POWs who where from Rommels Desert Corp to the camp,and my father said these battle hard guys where different and extremely serious, no talking to guards or uniformed men, nothing, the basketball that was used as a soccer ball was even thrown over the barbed wire deflated..and last, no more Josef cleaning barracks..
Joe Simms I love to see u cross the channel.
Gentleman vs gentleman.
CRAZY POLITICIAN MAKE WARS, NO THE PEOPLE.
@@jorgeaja3036 yes agree
?
are you joking?...
@@witektaaham6297 Exactly. Where in the world did that tripe come from??
It's amazing to see how Europeans are willing to let go hatred and look forward to a brighter future... While other parts of the world still fight on decades of stupid hatred
Did you forget about the Irish?
Agreed
Agree with Gavin
The Balkans powder keg. Ukraine and Russia. Turkey and Greece. We havent seen the last European War.
I think the Russians are still hated wherever they placed their cloven hooves in central and eastern Europe. The rest of the Balkans remember Serb-led oppression. The Greeks and Turks aren't too hairy about each other.
Interesting question, wonder what happened to Otto Yeager after the war?
I suppose that an examination of records from the period would show what happened.
Growing up as a kid in the 70 s one of out neighbours was an ex German pow , who met his English wife whilst ( now that's love ) here , he used to work on the building sites with my dad , he had been in the Hitler youth before the basically boy scouts before joining the German paras , and getting captured , I was always fascinated with his stories as most boys my age were regarding the war .
Amazing story. What was he like as a person if I may ask?
@@rickcastellione2267 all of them were lively people a real member if the community
Not the same for those 90k man of the 6th army of Stalingrad, got back only few thousand in the 1954, Stalin was a true criminal!!
Fascist scum don't deserve to go home.
надо было им воевать лучше или не сдаваться в плен
On November 19, 1942 the 6th Army had 330,000 men on their tables of organization. By January 10, 1943, in 51 days, 140,000 men were casualties, between military action, starvation and disease. That leaves 190,000. The Soviets provided terms of surrender to von Paulus on January 8. The terms were rejected and on January 10 the Soviets began the reduction of the Stalingrad pocket. Around 91,000 were taken prisoner between Feb 1 and 2 when the northern and southern pockets surrendered. The Germans had many chances to avoid this starting with not voting the Nazi's to power on their message of Deutchland uber alles. So remember that when some loudmouth carnival barker promises to make great again.
@@mad_max21 You are really really dumb, son
@@mad_max21 you are a true idiot
0:51 One thing's for sure: Otto Jäger wouldn't have said that he would like to return for holiday, I he had been in Soviet captivity (and survived it).
NO ONE MENTIONS THE JAPANESE THE WAY THEY TREATED POWS
Bataan Death March; the captive Filipino and American POWs were beaten, shot, bayoneted, and, in many cases, beheaded; a large number of those who made it to the camp later died of starvation and disease.
My grandfather was a Japanese soldier but catholic christian, he was forced to execute American, British, French and Filipinos during the war, after the war he married a Filipino. He regret killing POWS and Civilians because of he didn’t obey his superiors, his family in Japan would be tortured and executed
That’s why some of the Japanese soldiers are forced to kill
@@greetswithfire1868 ---Two bombs were not enough
@@stormywindmill Stop confusing the people with the Government. It's always the poor civilians that ultimately pay the price. The dropping of the atomic bombs was a crime against humanity and war crime. The Americans wanted to see the effects of radiation on the human body. There was no reason whatsoever to drop them, the Japanese were trying to surrender for 1 year before then.
Good rythms.
what the couple of soldiers who survived that hell.
my father, my grandfather my brother my sister
I wanted to know how the guy walked the Thames.
My father wasi n the RAF and had an interesting job. Going to crashed planes and seeing what could be salvaged and used as spare parts. Two of his crew were german POWs, nice young men. They had a little circus, every Monday morning they would refuse to work and after two minute s changed their minds. Father would bring them home on Sundays. We would all have lunch, food courtesy of the RAF and my mother ,a teacher, would work with them on their English.
Ah, those two minutes refusing to work every Monday was probably their (sort of) way of saving the honour of the German armed forces.
"So you worked for the enemy who captured you?"
-"Nein, we did resist them.
a little."
@@AudieHolland Oh yes,they made sure that a German officer heard their protest.
@@AudieHolland Always in front of German witnesses.
I wonder if Otto ever made it back for holiday ?
It would take some work, but records would indicate if he did or not - perhaps at the Records Office in London.
I believe that, for some years after the war, German males had to declare if they were in the armed forces of the former enemy
these man became poor citizens, probably couldnt afford
The German Soldiers were LUCKY to have been taken Prisoner by the Western Allies. Over 95% of those taken Prisoner in Russia NEVER made it home again.
30% died in captivity.
Literally lying about statistics but ok.
95% is the number for Stalingrad PoWs. Who had already been malnourished and weakend when they were taken prisoner.
Actually, serious scholarship places the percentage of German PoWs that died in Soviet captivity at no more than 20%.
Sure, there was not enough food, diseases were rampant and working conditions were hard, but the Soviets nonetheless did not aim to annihilate the German PoW population.
Which is a stark contrast to the German treatment of Soviet PoWs who were deliberately left to starve, shot or put in concentration camps. That's why Soviet mortality was close to 60% while German mortality was 'only' around 20%.
Come back to UK for a holiday? I hope he won't stay at Faulty Towers?
A. I LOVE Faulty Towers! "Qué?" I most certainly love to come back if this COVID insanity would go away. I should have mentioned I do love pub food.
Basil Fawlty: "Oh, you're GERMAN are you? How NICE! Ever been to Devon before?"
German tourist: "Ja! I jumped out of ze Lutwaffe bomber over Exeter after it vas hit by ze flak. Then I vas POW."
(From there the conversation would go...downhill.)
" Oh I see! You are volunteering to go get meat! Not necessary- ve haff plenty off meat! Moo! "
I would love to stay at Fawlty Towers, what a laugh that would be. Basil BASIL
@@j.burgess4459Actually we had a former POW who lived in our village but died before I lived there. It was reported that when he was asked how he came to be there. He would say by U-boat.
im more interested about joe simms walking the thames
0:46 - Probably most all of them with homes east of the Elbe.
My father has been POW in Britain. Much respect and thanks for this culture, people, democracy he felt till he passend away.
Diferença brutal no aspecto dos prisioneiros que ficaram no Reino Unido dos que ficaram na URSS.
What year was this?
These guys look a helluva lot happier than those coming back from Russia.
I think that this was around 1948? A great shame the Russians held on to those that survived (many worked to death) until the mid 1950's.
Maybe if Britain had suffered like the Russians it may have been very different
Commies are born murderers everywhere
But it´s not the Russians those who imposse today on their descendants the guilt complex of WW2 that make them unable to say no to immigrants and refugees that pour the whole Continent as well as forcing them, the german taxpayers, to pay for the nuclear submarines of Israel. It´s the Westerners those who do that.
@@alejandrosotomartin9720 Do you really have to be out here spouting that culture war bullshit?
@@alejandrosotomartin9720 YOU 1st class IGNORANT TWAT !
This gives me goosebumps. After-all the human family is one family whose father is our heavenly father. It is satan who stirs up the nations to war. That whisper of his is so enticing.
Alright jesus no go back
It is the politicians who created war.
from which port did they leave?
Harwich.
What year was this fascinating film made?
Nice stuff
They are returning to something many will find hard to accept be it the Russian occupied areas, a destroyed Germany, hunger, unemployment and uncertainty. I spoke with a U-boat officer who returned to Germany from Canadian POW camps and spoke about the lack of basics like food. He gathered a wife and returned to Canada!
Yeah by most accounts the Germans were treated very well by American and British guards and nearby civilians. Even getting out to work and earn money and rewarde like in America they cooked their own food , had recreational time and personal canteen. Compared to how badly they would've fared in Russian hands. Numerous stories of how they very much preferred to surrender to Americans than to others.
True..but given the way Soviet prisoners (and civilians) had been treated - not just by the SS/Sonderkommandos/etc but by much of the Wehrmacht generally - could they have realistically expected anything else?
When I joined British Railways in 1984 as a Freight Guard ,one of my colleagues was one these 24,000 who decided to stay in England and the UK ! He joined British Railways in 1948 !
This look like 1951.
From seeing looking up the date of the man cross the Thames.
1948 year of the olympics.
Recommend YT video "Camp Concordia World War II German POW Camp" to see how some German POWs were treated here. The Kansas farmers made this world a better place.
Yup, they got free labor for a bit..Most Germans where farmers and familiar anyhow
Might come back for a holiday lol
My father had a friend at work in the seventies. He was an ex German POW called Ron Shrader. My father was not a practical man. He had attempted to respray his car but did not realise that the paint needed to be baked. Anyway we had a war souvenir WW2 German Scuttle Helmet in the house. Mr fathers car was green so he had the bright idea of putting SS stripes and Swastikas on the car with black electrical tape and turning up at the factory he worked at in his car with the helmet on Ron's birthday. Well when he came to remove the tape the paint came off too. We had to drive around with a car covered with Swastikas for 6 months until he could afford to repaint it.
What about the guy who walked the Thames?
Drowned
I helped a little old German lady she was a good friend. We miss her dearly. She came over after the war and married an English man she used to talk about her life during the war……a war that shouldn’t of happened,I have a great respect for the German people
I so wanted to see Joe Simms walk the Thames...
Shows you why people want to come here to the UK , fair and honest society willing to help wherever you come from
We'll just forget about the British Empire period were you killed much more people than the Third Reich ever did.
People want to come here because the taxpayer funds them with an unlimited supply of benefits.
My family left Briton in 1652.
@Mira Ferriviario Yeah, Britain imposing their view of what is objectively good onto other people. No consent. No example. No. Just brute force and guile. Divide and conquer. Might makes right. The end justifies the means. Just a continuation of Babylon the "great".
@@fredrenton Again please supply the numbers and proof? I doubt you will be able to reply.
Many of those prisoners were oblivious to the horror show that Hitler was conducting in the concentration and execution camps. They were soldiers doing what they were told to do.
"Say Goodbye" as if they were in England on a holiday?????
Well, active duty on the Eastern Front could have been the alternative if they had not been POWs.
A number of released German prisoners actually could not return home which was the case of my maternal grandfather who was from Sudetenland.
Is there footage from the last German POW's, leaving the USSR many years later? I doubt they would come back for holiday.
Sadly,thanks to those smiling men,6 million others could not return home.
Lots more then that..
24,000 of them wanted to stay. I guess that tells you something.
Did 24,000 Brits want to stay in Germ any? I doubt it. They were very badly treated.
actually the British and western troops weren't super persecuted in german POW camps. They were allowed parcels from home, as well as visits by the International Red Cross. The germans viewed the english as Ayrans, from the same germanic blood. That being said, if you were a soviet POW then chances are you'd be starved to death
Rules are never followed in war. All that being said, on the western front, the conventions were to a large part followed, as they are easy to follow in conventional warfare. British POWs were often not shot on the spot, and neither were German POWs. Not saying it didn't happen on both sides, but it was less prevalent on the western front. The Eastern front was more prominent with ideological warfare, and the view of the soviets as sub-human. This mindset wasn't very present when fighting the Americans/British.
Charles McCarron, boo hoo poor Germans, perhaps if they didn't start the war they wouldn't have had the country destroyed?
John Buckley They invaded Czechoslovakia and then Poland, which part of they started it is vague about that?
It´s really a shame it didn´t work out that way with british vs. japanese and german vs. soviet pow´s.
Cruelty and brutality where fairness and the convention of the Hague should have prevailed.
Speaks volumes contrasting Fascist monolithic ideology with the Liberty enshrined in the philosophy of God given Human rights and limited government power! These German prisoners of war had experienced the difference and deeply appreciated it.
Saw some footage of German POW's coming home from Russia in 1955.They were gaunt and sullen.You could see they had been badly knocked around.Makes you realize how lucky these chaps were!
Were they so gentle in Russia? Nazis weren't on the English land as organised troops and you just don't realize how happy YOU English chaps were by this fact!
@@cornucopia8591 I know full well the evils perpetrated by the Fascists in Russia,I wasn't trying to downplay their evil.Sorry if it seemed that way.
@@Westyrulz pows were treated as a slaves almost everywhere, but yes it wasn't resort for them in soviet union especially. It's almost 80 years now, the world is so different today... let's hope all this shit will never back again, good sir.
@@cornucopia8591 Yes I hope for peace too. One thing Russia will never suffer like that again!!
A lot in the USA did not want to go back.
@Jerry V usually no. There were ways around this with time, paperwork, and some connections. Most went back to Germany, but a lot came back a little later on. Read the book Soldat on how to get into America. Actually knew a German who was a displaced person who qualified for immigration into the USA.
@Jerry V one of the Germans I knew was from around Breslau.
@Jerry V Bombing with incendiary bombs from RAF 😱
why did it take 3 years ?
They were far better treated and looked after than our soldiers were with starvation rations and summery executions, No wonder these German soldiers look well fed healthy and happy they had a holiday in comparison.
That is the behavior of a very developed people both of them , they are blood tied ancesters
GOTT MIT UNS
we got mittens too
Idiot.
With the results of the 2 world wars, apparently God was NOT with you.
@@Tflexxx02 DARUM GEHT ES DOCH GAR NICHT. Du bist oberflächlich dumm !
Folge dem Ideal der Wahrheit.
一、誠の道を守ること
hitotsu, makoto no michi o mamoru koto
Epheser 6:12
… denn unser Kampf richtet sich nicht gegen Fleisch und Blut, sondern gegen die Herrschaften, gegen die Gewalten, gegen die Weltbeherrscher der Finsternis dieser Weltzeit, gegen die geistlichen Mächte der Bosheit in den himmlischen Regionen.
Jesaja 5:20
Wehe denen, die sagen, dass Gutes böse ist und Böses gut, denen die Finsternis durch Licht ersetzen und Licht durch Finsternis, denen die Bitteres als Süßes hinstellen und Süßes als Bitteres
1.Röm.1,18
Denn es wird geoffenbart Gottes Zorn vom Himmel her über alle Gottlosigkeit und Ungerechtigkeit der Menschen, welche die Wahrheit durch Ungerechtigkeit aufhalten.
Römer 14,12
So wird nun jeder von uns FÜR SICH SELBST Gott Rechenschaft geben
GOTT MIT UNS
Not so much.
The video does not state what year it is, 1948 ?
Since you don't know how to use a computer I looked it up (good question anyway): Britain released their last German POWS in late 1948.
Not all of them....
Well if one dude named Fritz was overlooked then you are right.
Maybe 1955 , yes i say 1955.
Anthony Garcia are you really, really sure about that?
We have very little info on the conflicts these people went through. Thank God it's over.
I wonder if any of these German POW's upon returning to Germany ended being taken prisoner by the Soviets?
As they boarded the ship to return home I saw a chap handing out sandwiches handling them raw with his bare hands. How many pairs of hands had they been through I hate to hazard a guess but just imagine the hue and cry if that practise was carried out today. Those German POW's had worked hard and had done a lot in the production of food for England throughout the late 1940's.
Met a man who sold commercial kitchen equipment to restaurants. There are things that you really don't want to know. I asked which restaurants in our city were clean enough for him to patronize. He said none at all! And there are some "high end" ones here. Said he was uncomfortable just walking into some.
They had soap in WW2. Unless you is French?
When would this have been filmed? I know Russia didn't repatriate its last prisoners for ten years but I'm sure British prisoners were released long before that.
In the film you see the Olympic flag so it must have been 1948
@@mistermunga5861 Ah ha, good catch. Where were the Olympics held in 1948?
Uk released one million POWs in their zone ,needed men to work on the land
By by we see again next War...
He thought in the next war they would be on the same side, fighting the Russians......
Compare those faces with those of the German prisoners finally released by the Soviets in 1955. These guys have no idea how lucky they were.
Compare this with totally destroyed country, where WWII was finished in 1993, then last occupant soviet soldier went out... And without any reparations up to now...
The saxe-coburg und gotha chose to stay i supposed.
Return home : ten year after the second war was over ?
Imagine their reactions when hearing about POWs in the east
The announcer wonders what the newly freed Germans will think of their own country being split in two between East and West Germany. If they chose West Germany, they chose wisely. If they chose East Germany, then they walked into communist Russia. That must have been a surprise. I was told that it was difficult to leave the East side. That must have been from Hell.
"No hate in the heart of Britains for the Germans..." Oh, sure, sure.
A ex german soldier lived across the road from me and i went to school with his kids ,no hatred
Britain had its day in glory as the world superpower, not so much any more, but Britains are also Germanic people. NO? Germany is the big brother of Europe because all Europeans are germanic. NO?
What’s your point?
@@davidcockayne3381 Yes, for many...now. But the indiscriminate killings through bombs of all ages, gender, classes, etc. leave an indelible mark on "many" if not most Britains of that era. My father was in combat in the Pacific. He would never talk about it - ever. The same with the fathers of my friends. I'm 70 and don't blink twice with Germany and Japan. Lived in Germany 6 years and came to love the Germans. I had rescinded orders for Nam. I've watched my peers turn from bitterness. Of course, it doesn't help when you are spit on in uniform.
Let me also say there are better men and women than me who truly have forgiven and moved on.
Did the ones coming home from America feel the same way?
Lots of POW Germans in US stayed also seeing a better country & life.
They were friendly as long as you weren't Jewish or Russian or weren't in a German occupied country.
How did they come to England? With Luftwaffe?
Many of the POWs in our local camp came on Uboat.
Why were they still prisoners of war in Britain 3 years after the war ended?