I have always been a big fan of Max Hastings and own copies of his books Overlord and The Korean War. As an Englishman, his views about World War II and the Korean Conflict are very interesting to contrast with American authors covering the same topics. Over the last few weeks, I have been reading Hasting's book Armageddon about the final battle for Germany. As I near the end of this book, I am struck by the horror...the excruciating horror of the war to end Nazism. The senseless deaths, the unmitigated suffering of millions of people defies understanding at times. At times, the book, which is very good, can lead you into feelings of great despair. And maybe it should. We often forget the true costs and horror of that war as we move our cardboard legions around colorful, hex-covered maps. But now and then we should pause and reflect on the costs of World War II and be forever grateful for the sacrifices made by so many men women to remove the darkness of Nazi tyranny from the world.
The cover page for my blog reflects the price Germany paid for Nazi Germany. In 1985, in East Berlin as a student in Germany, I stood and watched the changing of the guard at the Neue Wache. The East German soldier passed so close to me that I got a great shot with my tiny Kodak instamatic camera (the old 110 film ones). Germany was separated for over forty years. Today it's hard for us to remember a time when Germany was divided. Let's hope Germany continues to grow and move far from the dark days of 1945.
I highly recommend reading this book, if and when you have the opportunity. It certainly moved me and educated me further about things I might otherwise...rather not have known...but needed to and to never forget.
Below are some pictures I took during my time as a student in West Germany that speak to the war long past.
Passing through Checkpoint Charlie...a memory I will never forget.
October, 1985 while hiking near Sigmaringen…we stumbled upon a memorial to a German Wehrmacht Captain who fell at Stalingrad.
The cross to one of the thousands who perished at Stalingrad.
The Plotzensee Memorial...one of the most difficult places I have visited. Here the plotters of the July 20th Plot were hanged. A truly terrible place.
The Sigmaringen memorial.
The sign that led us to the Sigmaringen memorial as we hiked the woods near the Danube River.
The death strip of the Berlin Wall as seen from West Berlin...East German soldiers can be seen laying mines in the distance.
Sorry for a somber post, but I believe it's important that we never forget the terrible consequences and costs of the Second World War. May we never need to revisit such terrible days.
No comments:
Post a Comment