The end of WWII

[packleader]

I saw the end of the war in a hamlet near the Austrian/Swiss borders because during the war, mothers with their children had been relocated to the country side. Now comes the exciting part. I had been watching our farmer's cows on a meadow but went home for lunch. There I saw some strange soldiers on donkeys bargaining with farmers for some chickens. Well, they were Moroccans serving in the French Army. I stared at them, but they did not noticed me. At the farm house, they panicky pulled me inside and hid me in a cave inside the hay. After all, we had been told that Moroccans eat little children. But much more seriously, in the barn next door two dozen German soldiers (deserters) were hiding still fully armed. Luckily nothing happened. Well, that's how WWII ended for me.

 

[Alligatorob]

I was born in Germany, and my birth certificate has a swastika as seal on it. I saw the end of the war in a very small village near the Austrian/Swiss borders because during the war, mothers with their children had been relocated to the country side. Now comes the exciting part. I had been watching our farmer's cows on a meadow but went home for lunch. There I saw some strange soldiers on donkeys bargaining with farmers for some chickens. Well, they were Moroccans serving in the French Army. I stared at them, but they hardly noticed me. At the farm house, they panicky pulled me inside and hid me in a cave inside the hay. After all, we had been told that Moroccans eat little children. But much more seriously, in the barn next door two dozen German soldiers (deserters) were hiding still fully armed. Luckily nothing happens. But a village a few miles away went up in flames. Well, that's how WWII ended for me.

Wow!

Worthy of a short story or more, have you ever written it up? How did you get to California?

 

[Gaer]

Wow!

 

[hollydolly]

I was born in Germany, and my birth certificate has a swastika as seal on it. I saw the end of the war in a very small village near the Austrian/Swiss borders because during the war, mothers with their children had been relocated to the country side. Now comes the exciting part. I had been watching our farmer's cows on a meadow but went home for lunch. There I saw some strange soldiers on donkeys bargaining with farmers for some chickens. Well, they were Moroccans serving in the French Army. I stared at them, but they hardly noticed me. At the farm house, they panicky pulled me inside and hid me in a cave inside the hay. After all, we had been told that Moroccans eat little children. But much more seriously, in the barn next door two dozen German soldiers (deserters) were hiding still fully armed. Luckily nothing happens. But a village a few miles away went up in flames. Well, that's how WWII ended for me.
BTW, when I hitch-hiked years later in France, I never had a bad experience. I was repeatedly assured that they had forgiven the "boche" but hated the English because they had not come a friends but conquerors looking down on the French.

how could the French have reason to hate the English when in fact it was the French who were the damn cowards!!

 

[Murrmurr]

how could the French have reason to hate the English when in fact it was the French who were the damn cowards!!

Bad blood between France and England goes way back. Centuries. The only reason the French partied with Ben Franklin was to ire the King of England, and they supported our fight for independence for the same reason.

 

[Old Salt]

I was born in Germany, and my birth certificate has a swastika as seal on it. I saw the end of the war in a very small village near the Austrian/Swiss borders because during the war, mothers with their children had been relocated to the country side. Now comes the exciting part. I had been watching our farmer's cows on a meadow but went home for lunch. There I saw some strange soldiers on donkeys bargaining with farmers for some chickens. Well, they were Moroccans serving in the French Army. I stared at them, but they hardly noticed me. At the farm house, they panicky pulled me inside and hid me in a cave inside the hay. After all, we had been told that Moroccans eat little children. But much more seriously, in the barn next door two dozen German soldiers (deserters) were hiding still fully armed. Luckily nothing happened. But a village a few miles away went up in flames. Well, that's how WWII ended for me.
BTW, when I hitch-hiked years later in France, I never had a bad experience. I was repeatedly assured that they had forgiven the "boche" but hated the English because they had not come as friends but as conquerors looking down on the French.

Your story is similar to mine, packleader! In my story the Moroccans hated the French and the French were incredibly arrogant! We cowered in a shelter when the Colonial troops first entered, just like you scared to death because of the propaganda. Moroccan entered and the first words out his mouth were: Heil Hitler! Then he handed out chocolate bars to the kids!
By the sound of it you must have been born near Lindau?

 

[Old Salt]

BTW, when I hitch-hiked years later in France, I never had a bad experience. I was repeatedly assured that they had forgiven the "boche" but hated the English because they had not come as friends but as conquerors looking down on the French.

I had a French penpal only months after the occupation, so things improved when it came to French-German relations! But at that time there was a definite contempt for the French by English and Germans alike, possibly by the Americans as well! They all thought that for someone who had done so little during the war they were given too much glory! Stressing that those are not personal opinions but general opinions expressed at that time!

 

[SeniorBen]

how could the French have reason to hate the English when in fact it was the French who were the damn cowards!!

A lot of the French supported Hitler and went even further than what was asked of them when going after Jews in France. Damn Vichies. Plus, the French are the reason we got involved in Vietnam. That was their territory that we were protecting, initially.

 

[Lewkat]

I was born in Germany, and my birth certificate has a swastika as seal on it. I saw the end of the war in a very small village near the Austrian/Swiss borders because during the war, mothers with their children had been relocated to the country side. Now comes the exciting part. I had been watching our farmer's cows on a meadow but went home for lunch. There I saw some strange soldiers on donkeys bargaining with farmers for some chickens. Well, they were Moroccans serving in the French Army. I stared at them, but they hardly noticed me. At the farm house, they panicky pulled me inside and hid me in a cave inside the hay. After all, we had been told that Moroccans eat little children. But much more seriously, in the barn next door two dozen German soldiers (deserters) were hiding still fully armed. Luckily nothing happened. But a village a few miles away went up in flames. Well, that's how WWII ended for me.
BTW, when I hitch-hiked years later in France, I never had a bad experience. I was repeatedly assured that they had forgiven the "boche" but hated the English because they had not come as friends but as conquerors looking down on the French.
Another memory: during the Berlin airlift in 1948, hundreds of children like me stood under the landing path of airplanes at the Tempelhof airport. Airplanes came in every few minutes, and often enough American pilots through out of their windows chocolates and candies down to us waiting children. We called them "raisin bombers." And while walking on streets, passing US trucks with soldiers threw candies in my direction. These positive experiences were the reason why I eventually followed the lure of California's gold.

I was born in Germany, and my birth certificate has a swastika as seal on it. I saw the end of the war in a very small village near the Austrian/Swiss borders because during the war, mothers with their children had been relocated to the country side. Now comes the exciting part. I had been watching our farmer's cows on a meadow but went home for lunch. There I saw some strange soldiers on donkeys bargaining with farmers for some chickens. Well, they were Moroccans serving in the French Army. I stared at them, but they hardly noticed me. At the farm house, they panicky pulled me inside and hid me in a cave inside the hay. After all, we had been told that Moroccans eat little children. But much more seriously, in the barn next door two dozen German soldiers (deserters) were hiding still fully armed. Luckily nothing happened. But a village a few miles away went up in flames. Well, that's how WWII ended for me.
BTW, when I hitch-hiked years later in France, I never had a bad experience. I was repeatedly assured that they had forgiven the "boche" but hated the English because they had not come as friends but as conquerors looking down on the French.
Another memory: during the Berlin airlift in 1948, hundreds of children like me stood under the landing path of airplanes at the Tempelhof airport. Airplanes came in every few minutes, and often enough American pilots through out of their windows chocolates and candies down to us waiting children. We called them "raisin bombers." And while walking on streets, passing US trucks with soldiers threw candies in my direction. These positive experiences were the reason why I eventually followed the lure of California's gold.

There are a couple of books out about those bomber dropping candy to the German children during the Airlift. One, I have, The Candy Bombers tells how the crews would tie candy to handkerchief parts, and other pieces of cloth to use a parachutes so the candy wouldn't be too damaged when it landed. Both books are interesting.

 

[Pappy]

Picture of the candy bomber. Kids called it Uncle Wiggly Wings. Good stories on U-tube.

 

[Geezer Garage]

True, but the US was complicit in handing Vietnam over to the French after the war, when the Vietnamese had been one of our staunchest allies against the Japanese. What goes around comes around it would seem.

A lot of the French supported Hitler and went even further than what was asked of them when going after Jews in France. Damn Vichies. Plus, the French are the reason we got involved in Vietnam. That was their territory that we were protecting, initially.

 

[Magna-Carta]

how could the French have reason to hate the English when in fact it was the French who were the damn cowards!!

I think "damn cowards!!" is a bit strong. The French reason for their hate of the English might have had something to do with Operation Catapult?

Starting with Operation Grasp where the British boarded French warships in British waters and then were impounded by the Royal Navy.

Quickly followed up with Operation Catapult (Battle of Oran); British naval and air attack on the French navy. The operation was ordered by Winston Churchill in response to concerns that the French navy could fall into the hands of the Germans after the fall of France.

British warships attacked French warships in the Algerian port of Mers-el-Kebir. The French ships were given the option to join the British or be neutralised. The (Vichy?) French refused, so the British opened fire, resulting in the deaths of around 1,300 French sailors. It caused a great deal of outrage in France, as many saw it as a betrayal by the British, damaging relations between the UK and France for many years, including after the war.

This 3 minute video gives a very simplified explanation of the events.

 

[Sassycakes]

Fortunately, my dad didn't serve during WW11, the company he worked for made Parachutes so he was exempt from being drafted.

 

[Packerjohn]

Not all Germans supported Hitler and not all Germans were Nazis. There was a certain segment of the population from the Ukraine that supported the Nazis. Reason being is that the Nazis promised the Ukrainians an independent Ukraine. This is historical fact.

 

[Old Salt]

Not all Germans supported Hitler and not all Germans were Nazis. There was a certain segment of the population from the Ukraine that supported the Nazis. Reason being is that the Nazis promised the Ukrainians an independent Ukraine. This is historical fact.

What do you know, for once we agree. My mother's family were Socialists (not Communists) and I was told many times not to repeat any of the anti-nazi jokes they told when safely among themselves! It could have led to a trip straight to the KZ!

And you are right about your observation about the Ukraine. German troops were greeted with flowers when they first entered the country, but quickly lost their pro-German (or I should say anti-Russian) support because Hitler couldn't accept any ally that was Slavic! Slavic equalled sub-human in his barbaric and insane mind!

 

[Been There]

Not all Germans supported Hitler and not all Germans were Nazis. There was a certain segment of the population from the Ukraine that supported the Nazis. Reason being is that the Nazis promised the Ukrainians an independent Ukraine. This is historical fact.

The word “Nazi” was just a party name.

 

[Been There]

A lot of the French supported Hitler and went even further than what was asked of them when going after Jews in France. Damn Vichies. Plus, the French are the reason we got involved in Vietnam. That was their territory that we were protecting, initially.

France was occupied by the Germans until the U.S. entered the war. After that, France became an ally of the U.S., but Great Britain was the U.S.’s best and closest ally.