Month: July 2021

An Unintended Return:  The Tale of S/Sgt. Walter Bonne, a German-Born Jewish Soldier’s Experiences as a Prisoner of War – Aufbau, May 18, 1945

Sometimes, life can be an unintended circle:  You return to the place from which you started or start from a place to which you’ll return.  At least, for a while.    

Such was the case of United States Army Staff Sergeant Walter Bonne, whose experience as a prisoner of war was reported by literary agent and “literatus” (that’s a term new to me!) Kurt Hellmer in the May 18, 1945 issue of Aufbau.  While mainstream in literary style and stylistically akin to postwar accounts of captivity penned about or by many another American Ex-POW – at least, captured in the European Theater of War – S/Sgt. Bonne’s tale is at the same time unusual:  Not only was he a Jew, but he was born in Germany, which in the hindsight of 2021 could be thought to have leant a very fraught dimension to his experiences.  But…  

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In June, 1943, Walter posed for this snapshot at Fort McClellan, Alabama  (From the album of Linda Nachenberg.)

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As for Walter Bonne himself, born in Nurnberg on May 6, 1908, he was one of seven children born to Nathan and Bertha (Stern) Bonne, who passed away in 1933 and 1929, respectively, thus by fate essentially and really being spared the ordeal of surviving in and escaping from Nazi Germany.  Mercifully and thankfully, five of Walter’s six siblings – Alfred, Bella Bernhardine, Felix, and Martin – also survived the war.  However, his older brother Justin Jehuda, born in 1895, died during the influenza epidemic in February of 1919, due to wounds incurred during military service during the First World War.  

Walter sailed from Rotterdam aboard the SS Statendam, arriving in Havana on October 1, 1938.  He reached Miami the following December 6 via the Pan Am Sikorsky S-40 seaplane “Southern Clipper” (NC752V).  In his Declaration of Intention, dated November 29, 1939, he listed his Race as Hebrew and Nationality as German, his last foreign residence as Havana, and, his Occupation as Merchant.  

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From famgus.se, here’s an undated photo of the Southern Clipper, taken at Miami.  

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Walter Bonne’s Draft Card, filed on October 26, 1940, lists his employer as the Greta Restaurant, at 112 Central Park South in Manhattan, consistent with his work in the hospitality business, as described in Aufbau.  The “Name of Person Who Will Always Know Your Address” was his brother Martin, at 287 Ocean Avenue in Brooklyn.   

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From Apartments.com, here’s an undated – but I guess recent! – photo of 112 Central Park South, the building appearing in the center of the photo.

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According to NARA’s World War II Army Enlistment Records database, Walter enlisted in the Army on March 11, 1943, in Manhattan, his serial number being 32860314.  Eventually, he was assigned to the 54th Armored Infantry Battalion of the 10th Armored Division.  Captured during the Ardennes Offensive on December 17, 1944, he was first interned at Stalag 9B (Bad Orb), and then Stalag 9A (Ziegenhain), the latter probably commencing in February of 1945.  Liberated from that POW camp on March 28, 1945, he was flown to Camp Lucky Strike, at Le Havre, France, on April 9.  And from there, he returned to the United States.  

Along with Kurt Hellmer’s Aufbau article of May 18, Staff Sergeant Bonne’s name appeared in that newspaper on April 27, while his name was published in an Official Casualty list – under the very apropos heading “Liberated Prisoners” – in The New York Times on May 5, 1945.  There, rather than his brother Martin, his next of kin is listed as his wife Genia, who resided at 535 West 111th Street in Manhattan.  His name never appeared in the book American Jews in World War Two.  The absence of his name from this reference work is not unusual, since a soldier’s status as a returned POW – per se – was not specifically a criteria for inclusion in the book.  

Walter Bonne passed away on November 3, 200, while Genia (born Genia Eisenstaedter), born on November 3, 1917, died on May 24 of the same year. 

Some twenty images of the Bonne family can be found at Geni.com, where the three photographs below (and the one above, of Walter as a soldier!) were found.  

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Dated 1927 and taken in Nuremberg, this photo shows Martin (left) and Walter.  The lady’s name is unknown.  (From the album of Linda Nachenberg.)

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Walter, probably photographed in Gemany.  (From the Bonne Family album, via Nurit Bertha Gillath)

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Passenger list for the SS Statendam, date October, 1938.  Walter’s name is the third entry.  

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Walter’s Declaration of Intention, of November, 1939.

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Walter’s Draft Card.

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And so, Kurt Hellmer’s article.  The German text of the article follows these two images, and in turn is followed by an English-language translation.

Interestingly, the article does not address a central question about Walter Bonne’s experiences as a prisoner of war:  Did he personally experience any repercussions from his captors upon capture and interrogation (even if his interrogation was only cursory) or later, given that he was a Jew, born in Germany?  Since this topic is unmentioned, there are three possible answers:  1) This didn’t happen.  2) If he did experience any mistreatment, he didn’t wish to dwell upon the subject.  3) He didn’t deem the subject of sufficient importance for discussion with Kurt Hellmer.  Well, some questions will have to remain unanswered.

In a larger sense, the article alludes to an event that received little serious focus until the 1990s, though it received nominal attention in the news media as early as the summer of 1945: The segregation of Jewish POWs at Stalag 9B, as a preliminary step towards the “transport” of 350 American POWS to the slave labor camp at Berga-am-Elster.  Hellmer’s article states, “There were special barracks for Jewish prisoners of war, against which the Americans successfully protested.”  Though S/Sgt. Bonne probably believed and hoped this was so, it was not:  There was no collective protest, let alone a successful one, over the segregation of the Jewish POWs at Stalag 9B. 

And so, on to Bonne’s story…

In Deutschland kriegsgefangen
Die Erlebnisse des Sgt. Bonne – Von KURT HELLMER

Aufbau
May 18, 1945

Die Nichteinhaltung den Genfer-Konvention durch die Deutschen ist heute eine notorische Tatsache.  Schon seit langem haben wir hier an dieser Stelle auf diesen Skandal hingewiesen und ihm die korrekte Beachtung der Bestimmungen, wie sie von den amerikanischen Behörden durchgeführt werden, gegenübergestellt.  Leider ist man heute jedoch nur allzu leicht geneigt, rasch abgestumpft zu werden und neuen Nachrichten über die Verletzung der Genfer-Konvention die nötige Aufmerksamkeit zu versagen.  Das liegt an der Schnellebigkeit unserer Zeit; die Ereignisse überschlagen sich, die Eindrücke konkurrieren miteinander.  Das Ende des Krieges in Europe scheint alles überholt zu haben.  Was gestern noch die Gemüter erregt hat, ist heute schon so verblasst, als wäre es nie gesch_hen.

Diese Einstellung ist nicht ungefährlich.  Denn wenn man die Entwicklung, die heute in der Welt von sich geht, beeinflussen, wenn man zu dem gewaltigen Aufbau Europas beitragen und wenn man den von den Deutschen in Europa Unterdrückten das bringen will, was sie von ihren Befreiern erwarten, nämlich Gerechtigkeit, dann muss man allen neuen Nachrichten aus Deutschland das richtige Gewicht geben.  Dann, und nur dann, wind es möglich sein, gerecht zu handeln.

Die Erlebnisse des S/Sgt. Walter Bonne, eines in Nürnberg gebürtigen amerikanischen Soldaten, der jetzt aus deutscher Gefangenschaft nach New York zurückgekehrt ist, sprechen für sich.  Man braucht sie nicht weiter zu kommentieren.  Aber man muss immer wieder darauf hinweisen, mit welcher darauf hinweisen, mit welcher Bewusstheit die Deutschen die Genfer Konvention gebrochen haben.  Man muss betonen, dass es sich hier nicht um sogenannte Einzelaktionen sogenannter unverantwortlicher Nazis handelt, sondern um die von der deutschen Wehrmacht planmässig durchgeführte Missachtung der in der Genfer Konvention enthaltenen Bestimmungen.  Die deutsche Armee und ihr Generalstab können sich nicht darauf ausreden, dass die Nazis sie zu diesem Bruch veranlasst haben.  Der Generalstab, der jetzt den Zusammenbruch Nazi-Deutschlands zu überleben scheint, ist dafür verantwortlich.  Er gehört ebenso in die Reihe der Kriegsverbrecher wie die Nazis, die sich an deutschen und ausländischen Zivilisten vergangen haben.

In knappen Zügen sind das die Erlebnisse – von S/Sgt. Bonne und tausender anderer amerikanischer Kriegsgefangener in Deutschland:

Die Gefangennahme

Es war acht Uhr abends am Sonntag, den 17 Dezember 1944 als S/Sgt. Walter Bonne zusammen mit 60 seiner Kameraden im Keller eines Hauses in dem luxemburgischen Kurort Clervaux bei Bastogne von den Deutschen gefangen genommen wurde.  Zwei Tage schon hatte schweres Artilleriefeuer getobt; am Sonntag morgen hatten die Deutschen die Amerikaner in dem Ort emgekreist.  Ein Entkommen war nicht moglich: Widerstand gegen den zahlenmässig überlegenen Feind sinnlos.

Mit wurfbereiten Granaten in der Hand kamen einige Deutsche die Kellertreppe herunter und befahlen den Amerikanern, nach oben zu kommen.  Die Deutschen “beschlagnahmten” nicht nun ihre Jeeps, sondern auch ihre Füllfederhalter, Zigaretten, Süssigkeiten, ihre Reisesäcke, Mäntel, Unterwäsche und Toiletteartikel.  Dann pferchten sie die Gefangenen in ein Zimmer ein, das so klein war, dass sie die Nacht stehend verbringen mussten.…

Fünf Tagemärsche

Am Montag früh mussten die Gefangenen losmarschieren.  Den ganzen Tag, ohne Unterbrechung.  Spät abends wurden sie in einer Kegelbahn einquartiert, in der sie die Nacht sitzend zubringen mussten, da zum Liegen kein Platz war.

Am Dienstag kamen die Gefangenen spät abends in einem kleinen Ort in der Eiffel an.  Die Deutschen hatten beschlossen, sie die Nacht — mitten im Dezember! — im Freien verbringen zu lassen.  Die Gruppe, die inzwischen auf 1200 Gefangene angewachsen war, Offiziere und Mannschaften, protestierte.  Man öffnete ihnen die Kirche und gab ihnen zu essen — zum ersten Male nach 72 Stunden schweren Marschierens!  Jeder bekam ein Drittel Laib Brot, einen Löffel Rübenmarmelade und nichts zu trinken, nicht einmal Wasser.

Die Dorfbewohner sahen recht deprimiert drein und manche gaben den Amerikanern heimlich das “V”-Zeichen mit den Fingern. . . .

Inzwischen hatte es zu schneien begonnen und es wurde kälter und kälter.  In der Kirche war es kalt und das Liegen auf dem Steinboden, noch dazu ohne Decke, kein Vergnügen.

Nach einem weiteren Tagesmarsch am Mittwoch wurden die Gefangenen wiederum in einer Kirche untergebracht.  Diesmal erhielten sie eine Tasse Kaffee und nichts zu essen.  Am Donnerstag wurde der Marsch fortgesetzt; spät nachts wurden die Gefangenen in einem Eisenbahnschuppen einquartiert, der so klein war, dass die 1200 Mann stehend schlafen mussten.  Am nächsten Tag, dem fünften Tag seit den Gefangennahme, erreichten die Amerikaner Gerolstein am Nachmittag, wo jeder einen halben Laib trockenes Brot bekam.  Für Getränke waren sie auf Bäche, Brunnen, Schnee und Eis angewiesen.

Im Güterzug

In Gerolstein wurden die Gefangenen in einen Güterzug verfrachtet, je 50 bis 60 Mann in einen Viehwagen mit Stroh und Pferdedreck auf dem Boden.  Die Deutschen schlossen sie ein und machten die nächsten drei Nächte und vier Tage nicht wieder auf.  Ihre Bedürfnisse mussten sie in ihre Helme verrichten und diese durch die kleinen Fenster ausleeren — dieselben Helme, in denen sie auf den Bahnhöfen Wasser fassen mussten.

Auf der Reise wurde der Zug von allierten Bombern beschossen, denn er war nicht als Kriegsgefangenen zug markiert.  Ein Amerikaner wurde bei einem Fluchtversuch niedergeknallt; ein anderer so schwer verletzt, dass er 16 Stunden später, während der Fahrt, gestorben ist.

Ankunft in Bad Orb

Am vierten Tag um 4 Uhr früh erhielten die Gefangenen je ein Drittel Laib Brot und eine Büchse Corned Beef für 15 Mann.  Am Nachmittag kamen sie in Bad Orb an und erhielten die erste warme Mahlzeit: einen Liter Suppe.  Von nun an war ihr tägliches “Menü”: zum Frühstück schwarzer Tee ohne Zucker oder Milch, mittags ein Liter Rüben- oder Gemüsesuppe mit ein paar Gramm Hundeoder Pferdefleisch, und abends etwas Brot mit Margarine und wieder ein halber Liter von dem sogenannten Tee.

Das Lager war die vielen aus ihrer in Deutschland verbrachten Jugend bekannte “Wegscheide”.  Hier gab es Sonderbaracken für jüdische Kriegsgefangene, gegen die die Amerikaner mit Erfolg protestierten.  Die Baracken waren aus Holz und für je 140 Mann bestimmt.  Jetzt waren je 250 in einer Baracke untergebracht und zwei mussten auf einer Matratze schlafen.

In Bad Orb blühte der tollste Tauschhandel.  Für eine herrliche Armbanduhr, die $60 wert war, bekam man zwei Stück Brot und 20 Zigaretten.  Ein erstklassiger Füllfederhalter brachte drei Zigaretten oder ein Drittel Laib Brot.  Ein Päckchen Zigaretten kostete $40.

Stalag 9-A

Ungefähr einen Monat nach der Ankunft in Bad Orb wunden die amerikanischen Kriegsgefangenen in Güterwagen nach Stalag 9-A in Ziegenhain gebracht.  Während der Nachtfahrt herrschte ein schneidender Schneesturm und vielen Soldaten erfroren die Füsse.

In Ziegenhain war die Situation etwas besser, denn die Deutschen hatten das Lager, in dem sich noch rund 20,000 Franzosen, Belgier, Russen und Engländer befanden, gründlicher organisiert.  Ausserdem traf S/Sgt. Bonne dort 120 Palästinenser, darunter sehr viele in Deutschland Geborene, die in Griechenland gefangen genommen wurden und zuerst in einem Lager in Schlesien waren, bis die Deutschen sie von dort vor den Russen “in Sicherheit “ brachten.  Ihr Führer war ein Sgt.  Friedlein, der aus Köln stammte.

Die Verpflegung war ungefähr dieselbe wie in Bad Orb, aber nach einem Monat wurden die täglichen Rationen auf ein Siebentel Laib Brot, ¾ Liter Suppe und 1/4 Liter Tee gekürzt.  Alle Gefangenen verloren an Gewicht und sahen wie Skelette aus; das Krankenhaus war überfüllt.

Einmal wurde Ziegenhain, das nicht als Kriegsgefangenenlager markiert war, von den Amerikaner bombardiert, wobei elf Franzosen getötet und 35 verwundet wurden.  Ein anderes Mal zwangen die Deutschen die Amerikaner, eine bombardierte Eisenbahnstrecke drei Tage und drei Nächte lang zu reparieren.

Die Deutschen versuchten die Amerikaner auch propagandistisch zu beeinflussen und verteilten eine englische Uebersetzung von “Mein Kampf” und viele andere Bücher hauptsächlich antisemitischen Inhalts.

Theater!  Theater!

Inzwischen ging der Krieg gut vorwärts.  Der Rheinübergang hob die Stimmung der Gefangenen und jeder machte Prognosen über die voraussichtliche Dauer des Krieges.  Die Gefangenen erhielten ihre Nachrichten nicht nur durch den amtlichen deutschen Heeresbericht, sondern vor allem von “Kommando-Arbeitern”, jenen Kriegsgefangenen, die zur Arbeit das Lager verliessen und die sie von Zivilisten erfuhren, die das BBC hörten.

Da wurden plötzlich Gerüchte über einen baldigen Abtransport der Gefangenen laut.  Die Deutschen wollten die Gefangenen weiter ins Land schaffen, um ihre Befreiung durch die vorrückenden Alliierten zu verhindern.  Am 27. März war die Front nur mehr 21 Meilen von Ziegenhain entfernt; am nächsten Morgen, um 5 Uhr sollten alle Gefangenen zu einem neuen Bestimmungsort abmarschieren.

Während der ganzen Nacht hielten die Gefangenen Versammlungen ab.  Die phantastischsten Fluchtpläne und Vorschläge, wie man sich im Lager verstecken könnte, wurden gemacht und zum Teil auch ausgeführt.  Der amerikanische Lagerführer gab jedoch den Befehl, alles solange als möglich hinauszuschieben – mit anderen Worten: am nächsten Morgen den Kranken und Schwachen zu spielen.  Das war für die meisten Gefangenen ohnehin leicht genug.

Beim Appell traten die Amerikaner auf dem Fussballplatz an.  Es begann zu regnen.  Die Jungens wurden ohnmächtig, zwölf in einer Sekunde.  Innerhalb einer halben Stunde lagen 3-400 Mann auf dem Boden, stöhnten, ächzten und vollbrachten eine so ausgezeichnete Vorstellung, dass die Deutschen sich entschliessen mussten, den Amerikanern die Rückkehr in ihre Baracken zu erlauben, bis sie für einen Transport mit Lastwagen oder Eisenbahn sorgen konnten.

Die Amerikaner hatten ihr erstes Ziel erreicht: einen Aufschub um 12-15 Stunden.  Während die anderen Gefangenen aus dem Lager abmarschierten, lagen die Amerikaner in ihren Betten und sahen aus, als wären sie bereits gestorben.  Die Deutschen hatten irgend einem Hauptquartier telefoniert; um 2 Uhr kam der Befehl, dass 250 Amerikaner ausmarschieren mussten und die übrigen 1000 im Lager warten konnten.

Die Befreiung

In der Zwischenzeit hatten sich jedoch viele der deutschen Wachen selbst aus dem Staub gemacht und so blieben auch die 250 Amerikaner in Ziegenhain.  Die Amerikaner übernahmen das Lager und waren theoretisch frei.  Es war Sederabend und die Juden unter ihnen veranstalteten einen Dankgottesdienst.

Aber noch waren die Alliierten nicht in Sicht.  S/Sgt. Bonne setzte sich auf ein Fahrrad, fuhr zur Hauptstrasse und wartete, bis die ersten Alliierten kamen.  Es waren amerikanische Tanks, die aber nicht nach Ziegenhain fuhren, sondern geradeaus weiter.  Damit lag Ziegenhain im besetzten Gebiet.

Ziegenhain wurde nun ein deutsches Kriegsgefangenenlager.  Tausend deutsche Soldaten wurden eingeliefert, und die bekamen von den Amerikanern nicht mehr zu essen als diese vorher von den Deutschen erhielten.  Und auch sie mussten eine Nacht im Freien schlafen, genau wie ihre Kameraden es vorher mit den Amerikanern getan hatten.

Die Frauen von Allendorf

In den zwölf Tagen, in denen die bisherigen amerikanischen Kriegsgefangenen auf Ablösung warteten, kamen auch die vielen hundert Frauen, die im Juni 1944 von den Deutschen aus Ungarn nach Allendorf bei Marburg gebracht worden waren, nach Ziegenhain.  (Mit der Veröffentlichung ihrer Namen haben wir im vorigen “Aufbau” begonnen!)  Es waren nur Frauen zwischen 15 und 50 Jahren.  Sie berichteten, dass sie zusammen mit Mädchen unter 15 Jahren und Flauen über 50 Jahren deportiert worden waren, aber bei ihrer Ankunft in Deutschland von den zu jungen und den zu alten getrennt wurden.  Diese wurden als “arbeitsunfähig” bezeichnet und “vernichtet” — verbrannt.  Die Ueberlebenden mussten in einer Munitionsfabrik arbeiten…

Happy End

Am 9, April wurden S/Sgt. Bonne und seine Kameraden nach Le Havre geflogen, wo alle in dem Riesenlager Lucky Strike neu eingekleidet wurden.  Nach einem für alle GI’s obligaten Ausflug nach Paris wurden sie per Schiff nach Amerika zurückgebracht, wo sie einen 60tägigen Urlaub erhielten, nach dem sie neue Aufgaben zugewiesen bekommen — sofern sie nicht 85 Punkte erreichen und entlassen werden.

Für S/Sgt. Bonne, der bis zu seinem Einrücken in die Armee vor zwei Jahren in der Hotelbranche tätig war und der an den Kämpfen in der Normandie, in der Bretagne und in Luxemburg teilnahm, der über 30,000 deutsche Kriegsgefangene interviewte, der zeitweise zu den berühmten “Ghost Riders” von General Patton gehörte und der einmal von einer Landmine verwundet und mit dem Purple Heart ausgezeichnet wurde, war der schwärzeste Traum seines Lebens zu Ende.

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A Prisoner of War in Germany
The Adventures of Sgt. Bonne – by KURT HELLMER

Aufbau
May 18, 1945

Non-compliance with the Geneva Convention by the Germans is today a notorious fact.  For a long time now we have referred to this scandal on this point and compared it with the correct observance of the provisions, as they are carried out by the American authorities.  Unfortunately, today one is now all to prone to be quickly jaded and to refuse to pay attention to news about the violation of the Geneva Convention.  That’s because of the fast pace of our time; events turn over; impressions compete with each other.  The end of the war in Europe seems to have overtaken everything.  What excited people’s minds yesterday has already faded as if it had never happened.

This attitude is not safe.  For if you influence the development that is taking place in the world today; if you contribute to the enormous reconstruction of Europe, and if you want to bring to the Germans what the oppressed of Europe expect from their liberators, namely justice, then you have to give all the new news from Germany the proper weight.  Then, and only then, will it be possible to act righteously.

The experiences of S/Sgt. Walter Bonne, an American soldier born in Nuremberg, who has now returned to New York from German captivity, speak for themselves.  You do not need to comment further.  But one must always point out, point out with which, with what awareness the Germans have broken the Geneva Convention.  It must be emphasized that these are not so-called individual actions of so-called irresponsible Nazis, but disregard of the provisions contained in the Geneva Convention as planned by the German Wehrmacht.  The German army and its general staff cannot be persuaded that the Nazis have led them to this breach.  The General Staff, which now seems to survive the collapse of Nazi Germany, is responsible.  It belongs as much in the line of war criminals as the Nazis, who have passed onto German and foreign civilians.

In a nutshell these are the experiences – from S/Sgt. Bonne and thousands of other American prisoners of war in Germany:

The Capture

It was eight o’clock in the evening on Sunday, December 17, 1944, as S/Sgt. Walter Bonne, along with 60 of his comrades, was captured by the Germans in the basement of a house in the Luxembourg spa town of Clervaux near Bastogne.  Heavy artillery fire had already raged two days; on Sunday morning, the Germans had encircled the Americans in the place.  An escape was not possible: resistance against the numerically superior enemy meaningless.

With grenades in hand, some Germans came down the basement stairs and ordered the Americans to come upstairs.  The Germans did not “confiscate” only their jeeps, but also their fountain pens, cigarettes, sweets, their travel bags, coats, underwear and toiletries.  Then they put the prisoners in a room that was so small that they had to spend the night standing…

Five-Day March

The prisoners had to march on Monday morning.  The whole day, without interruption.  Late in the evening they were quartered in a bowling alley, where they had to spend the night sitting, as there was no room to lie down.

On Tuesday, the prisoners arrived late at night in a small town in the Eiffel.  The Germans had decided to take them the night – in the middle of December! – to spend outdoors.  The group, which had now grown to 1200 prisoners, officers and men, protested.  They opened the church for them and gave them food – for the first time after 72 hours of heavy marching!  Everyone got a third of a loaf of bread, a spoonful of beet jam and nothing to drink, not even water.

The villagers looked quite downcast and some secretly gave the Americans the “V” sign with their fingers.

It had begun to snow and it was getting colder and colder.  It was cold in the church and lying on the stone floor, with no ceiling, no enjoyment.

After another day’s march on Wednesday, the prisoners were again housed in a church.  This time they got a cup of coffee and nothing to eat.  On Thursday, the march continued; late at night, the prisoners were quartered in a train shed so small that the 1,200 men had to sleep standing.  The next day, the fifth day since capture, the Americans reached Gerolstein in the afternoon, where everyone got half a loaf of dry bread.  For drinks they were dependent on streams, wells, snow and ice.

In the Freight Train

In Gerolstein, the prisoners were shipped into a freight train, 50 to 60 men each in a cattle car with straw and horse dung on the ground.  The Germans locked them in and did not rejoin them for the next three nights and four days.  They had to put their needs in their helmets and empty them through the small windows – the same helmets they had to hold water at the stations.

On the trip, the train was bombarded by allied bombers, because it was not marked as for prisoners of war.  An American was crushed during an escape attempt; another injured so badly that he died 16 hours later, on the journey.

Arrival in Bad Orb

On the fourth day at 4 o’clock in the morning, the prisoners received one third of loaf of bread and one box of corned beef for fifteen men.  In the afternoon they arrived in Bad Orb and received the first warm meal: a liter of soup.  From now on their daily “menu” was: for breakfast black tea without sugar or milk, for lunch a liter of beet or vegetable soup with a few grams of dog or horsemeat, and in the evening some bread with margarine and again half a liter of the so-called tea.

The camp was known by many from their spent in Germany youth as “Wegscheide”.  There were special barracks for Jewish prisoners of war, against which the Americans successfully protested.  The barracks were made of wood and intended for each 140 men.  Now 250 were each housed in a barrack and two had to sleep on a mattress.

In Bad Orb the greatest barter flourished.  For a splendid wristwatch that was worth $60, you got two pieces of bread and twenty cigarettes.  A first-class fountain pen brought three cigarettes or a third of loaf of bread.  A packet of cigarettes cost $40.

Stalag 9-A

About a month after arriving in Bad Orb, American prisoners of war were brought in freight cars to Stalag 9-A in Ziegenhain.  During the night driving there was a cutting blizzard and many soldiers froze their feet.

In Ziegenhain the situation was a little better, for the Germans had organized the camp, in which there were still around 20,000 French, Belgians, Russians and English, more thoroughly.  In addition, S/Sgt. Bonne met with 120 Palestinians, including many born in Germany, who were captured in Greece and were first in a camp in Silesia until the Germans brought them from there before the Russians “to safety”.  Their leader was a Sgt. Friedlein, who came from Cologne. [This man was probably Sergeant James Friedland, PAL/10165.]

The food was about the same as in Bad Orb, but after a month, the daily rations were cut to a seventh of loaf of bread, ¾ liter of soup and 1/4 liter of tea.  All prisoners lost weight and looked like skeletons; the hospital was overcrowded.

Once, Ziegenhain, which was not marked as a POW camp, was bombed by the Americans, killing eleven Frenchmen and wounding 35.  On another occasion, the Germans forced the Americans to repair a bombed railway line for three days and three nights.

The Germans also tried to influence the Americans propagandistically and distributed an English translation of “Mein Kampf” and many other books mainly of anti-Semitic content.

Theater!  Theater!

Meanwhile the war went well.  The crossing of the Rhine raised the mood of the prisoners and each made predictions about the probable duration of the war.  The prisoners received their news not only through the official German army report, but above all from “commanders”, those prisoners of war who left the camp for work, and who learned about them from civilians who heard the BBC.

There were suddenly rumors of a speedy removal of the prisoners.  The Germans wanted to bring the prisoners further into the country to prevent their liberation by the advancing Allies.  On March 27, the front was only 21 miles from Ziegenhain; the next morning, at 5 o’clock, all the prisoners were to march off to a new destination.

Throughout the night, the prisoners held meetings.  The most fantastic escape plans and suggestions on how to hide in the camp were made and partly executed.  However, the American camp leader gave the order to postpone everything as long as possible – in other words, to play the sick and weak the next morning.  That was easy enough for most prisoners anyway.

At the roll-call, the Americans appeared on the football field.  It began to rain.  The boys fainted, twelve in a second.  Within half an hour, 3-400 men were lying on the ground groaning, groaning, and accomplished such an excellent performance that the Germans had to decide to allow the Americans to return to their barracks until they could arrange for transport by truck or train.

As the other prisoners marched out of the camp, the Americans lay in their beds looking as if they had already died.  The Germans had phoned some headquarters; at 2 o’clock came the order that 250 Americans had to march out and the remaining 1000 could wait in the camp.

Liberation

In the meantime, however, many of the German guards had made themselves off as dust and so there were 250 Americans in Ziegenhain.  The Americans took over the camp and were theoretically free.  It was Seder evening and the Jews among them organized a thanksgiving service.

But still the Allies were not in sight.  S/Sgt. Bonne sat on a bicycle, drove to the main road and waited until the first Allies came.  They were American tanks, but they did not go to Ziegenhain, but straight on.  So Ziegenhain was located in the occupied territory.

Ziegenhain was now a German prisoner of war camp.  Thousands of German soldiers were taken in and they did not get to eat from the Americans any more than they had received from the Germans before.  And they, too, had to sleep one night in the open, just as their comrades had previously done to the Americans.

The Women of Allendorf

During the twelve days, in which the American prisoners of war were waiting to be removed, hundreds of women who in June 1944 had been brought by the Germans from Hungary to Allendorf near Marburg, arrived in Ziegenhain.  (We started with the publication of their names in the previous “Aufbau”!)  They were only women between 15 and 50 years.  They reported that they had been deported together with girls under the age of fifteen and fifty over 50 years, but were separated from the young and the old on arrival in Germany.  These were called “incapacitated” and “destroyed” – burned.  The survivors had to work in an ammunition factory…

Happy Ending

On April 9, S/Sgt. Bonne and his comrades flew to Le Havre, where everyone was newly dressed in the giant camp Lucky Strike.  After an obligatory trip to Paris for all GIs, they were taken back to America by ship, where they received a 60-day holiday, after which they were given new assignments – unless they reached 85 points and were dismissed.

For S/Sgt. Bonne, who worked in the hotel industry two years ago until joining the army and who participated in the battles in Normandy, Brittany and Luxembourg, who interviewed over 30,000 German prisoners of war, who at one time belonged to the famous “Ghost Riders” of General Patton and was once wounded by a land mine and awarded the Purple Heart, the blackest dream of his life was over.

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The war is (long!) over:  Walter and Genia in 1985. 

References

Walter Bonne, at…

…Biography, at geni.com

…Photos, at geni.com

Kurt Hellmer, at…

…Wikipedia

 Serial numbers of WW II US Army enlisted personnel, at…

… Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File

Sikorsky S-40 Flying Boat, at…

… Wikipedia

…and…

Pan American Airways – The Flying Clipper Ships

110-112 Central Park South, at…

… Apartments.com

Plus, a book!

Prisoners of War – Armies and Other Land Forces of The British Empire, 1939-1945 (“All Lists Corrected Generally Up to 30th March 1945″), J.B. Hayward & Son, in Association with The Imperial War Museum Department of Printed Books, Polstead, Suffolk, England, 1990 (First published in 1945 by His Majesty’s Stationary Office)

The One That Got Away!…  “I Was A Prisoner of War of the Nazis” – “Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis,” Aufbau, October 15, 22, and 29, 1943

Whether in war or peace, the nature of man has many facets, which, depending on the circumstance and time, can vary as much within the soul of one person as between different individuals:  Courage.  Fear.  Deliberation.  Rashness.  Boldness.  Hesitation.  Judgement.  Foolhardiness.  Discernment.  Obtuseness.  Bravery.  Cowardice.  Cunning.  Naivete.  And so much more.

One way in which these aspects of the human character have been chronicled, whether in fiction, popular culture, or the “historical record”, is in accounts of the escape from captivity of prisoners of war.  Whether described in official documents, letters and diaries, family stories, legends, passing anecdotes, or the unexpressed memories of men, there are innumerable such tales.  One such account – of very many – from the Second World War, appeared as a three-part series in the New York-published German exile newspaper Aufbau – “Reconstruction” – on October 15, 22, and 29, 1943, under the simple and apropos title “Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis” – “I Was a Prisoner of War of the Nazis”.

Written by an un-named Yishuv soldier who escaped from German captivity (the events of the story having transpired in German-occupied Greece) the series commences with the soldier’s interrogation by German officers, continues with fleeting  recollections of his life as a POW (always with escape and defiance in mind), follows with accounts of thwarted escape attempts, and concludes with the soldier’s first encounter – while “on the run” after his eventual, successful escape – with Greek civilians. 

In terms of the soldier’s escape attempts, the first attempt – well, contemplated escape attempt! – would have involved the author and his friend “Sch.” jumping from a moving freight car during a moonlit night.  This plan was aborted at the last moment when rifle fire was heard and a guard entered the car, after which the author and Sch. seem to have been reproached other POWs for jeopardizing the well-being of their comrades. However, during the next train stop, a POW from the adjacent freight car did escape: That man momentarily distracted a guard with the light of a match, and then concealed himself by lying between the rails and allowing the cards to pass over him.

Subsequently, another escape was planned, again involving a night-time train jump by the author and Sch. This was aborted when Sch. pulled the author back into the train, after the author had been “noticed” (again?) … by other POWs?

The second escape attempt occurred as a group of POWs were marching through the pass of Thermopylae: The narrator and Sch. jumped into a nearby ditch during a moment when the column of POWs was temporarily unguarded.  Their immediate escape occurred unnoticed, but the uncoordinated, spontaneous “escapes” of other POWs attracted the attention of a lieutenant and some guards.  Before the arrival of these German soldiers, Sch. and the author managed – unnoticed – to rejoin the main column of POWs.  The other “random” escapees were returned to the POW column to the accompaniment of rifle butts.  Tellingly, two escapees never returned.

So, the third time was the charm.

After leaving Thermopylae the POWs were again loaded onto freight cars.  At night, alone – Sch. having no further interest or motivation in escaping – the narrator jumped from a moving freight car as the train passed over a bridge.  Pursued by rifle fire, he reached the bridge’s railing, and – taking very much of a leap of faith – fell into a stream or river, remaining underwater.  Upon reaching the limit of his endurance, unable to hold his breath any longer, he rose to the surface of the water and saw that he had been left behind: The train has crossed the bridge, without him.

He was a free man.

The tale is well-written, compelling, and inspiring, yet also (deliberately?!) enigmatic, for absolutely nothing is revealed about the soldier’s experiences prior to his capture, let alone the events surrounding his post-escape evasion and eventual return to Allied forces – which together almost certainly encompassed a time period vastly longer than the brief duration of his actual captivity.  Though I’m certain information about each and every aspect of his escape was recorded, corroborated, and archivally preserved by the British military (and probably still exists somewhere – where?! – within The National Archives (not the National Archives!)) for security reasons, this information obviously could never have been released to the news media in wartime.  This, the tale’s “truncated” nature and abrupt end, at least in a literary sense.

Despite the story’s gripping nature and its direct relevance to the nature of the Jewish military service during the Second World War (well, at least in the European Theater…), to the best of my knowledge nothing relating to the tale appeared in any other wartime Jewish periodical.  This was probably attributable to lack of awareness on the part of publishers and editors of other English-language organs of the Jewish news media (whether in the United States, England, South Africa, the Yishuv, or elsewhere) to the very venue of the article’s publication – Aufbau, let alone the article having been published in German.  

One of the most interesting aspects of the story is apparent from its first installment: The author’s identity is a mystery; neither his rank nor his name are given.  His identity is only resolved – and at that, partially resolved – in the third and final part of the series.  However, a general idea of his background can be gained from these clues: 1) Quoting from the introduction to the first installment: “The author of the following diary pages fled as a very young man from Nazi Germany to Palestine and became a member of kvutzah [kibbutz]”.  2) The soldier (and three fellow POWs, “S. and D. and R.”) hailed from the kvutzah of Ashdoth-Ya’akov, now known as Kibbutz Ashdot Yaakov (Ihud); just south of Lake Tiberias.  3) He was born in Germany and graduated from high school there, his parents (…alas, alas…) remaining in that country as of the summer of 1941.  4) He was living in Haifa through 1938.

____________________

This Mapple App Apple Map shows the location of Kibbutz Ashdot Yaakov:  Designated by the red pointer, it’s just south of Lake Tiberias. 

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So, who was this anonymous author?  If you scroll to the very end of this post, you’ll see that the series’ final installment (unlike the first and second installments) published on October 29, 1943, concludes with the initials: “F. J-n.”  Though – perhaps deliberately? – not an exact match, I am confident that these initials refer to Private Y.M. El-Jo’an (serial number PAL/12083), who was reported in The Palestine Post of August 15, 1943, as having escaped from German captivity.  The time-frame of Aufbau’s series fits the August 15 news item perfectly, strongly implying that El-Jo’an evaded (certainly with the assistance of Greek civilians?) for over a remarkable two years, given that the fall of mainland Greece to German forces occurred at the end of April, 1941.   

____________________

Here’s the Post’s front page for August 15, 1943, with the article highlighted…

…and, here’s the brief article itself:

PALESTINIAN P.O.W.’S
ESCAPE

Three Palestinian soldiers, serving in the Royal Fusiliers, who were previously reported prisoners of war, are now officially announced to have escaped from enemy hands.  They are:

Pal/23163, Spr. D. Chaver;
Pal/23183, Spr. J. Menachem;
Pal/23317, Spr. S. Dalah.

Another Palestinian soldier previously reported a prisoner of war, has now been recaptured from enemy hands, is Pal/12083 Pte. El-Jo’an, Y.M., P.C.

____________________

So, assuming “F. J-n.” was in reality Private Y.M. El-Jo’an – as I’m confident he was – I have absolutely no idea of what became of him afterwards.  Paralleling this, I have no information about Sappers Chaver, Menchem, or Dalah.  Perhaps they, too, evaded or escaped from captivity in Greece.  I’m certain their stories would be as compelling as that of Private El-Jo’an, if they could be found.

________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

________________________________________

Of the forty-five Yishuv soldiers captured by the Germans who did not return from or eventually survive captivity, there were thirteen men who attempted to escape, but did not succeed.  They were:

Disappeared after escaping

Private Menashe Durani: 9/5/41 – jumped from train

Died while evading capture

Private Abraham Gelbart: 4/25/42

Shot or killed during escape attempt

Sapper Aharon Arman: 1/26/45
Corporal Michael-Chaim Brajer: 1/16/45 or 1/26/45
Sapper Abraham Elimelech: 7/19/41
Private Norbert Gabriel: 11/1/41
Sergeant Itzchak Goldman: 4/29/41
Private Saadia Tzabari: 4/28/41 – jumped from train
Corporal Shlomo Tzarfati: 10/1/41
Private Jakub Weissberg: 10/30/42
L/Cpl. Aaron Weissman: 8/19/41

Escaped; apprehended 5/17/44, but shot shortly after recapture

Private Dov-Berl Eisenberg – died of wounds 6/28/44
Private Eliahu Krauze – died immediately

Of these thirteen soldiers, some of their stories are partially known; some are barely known; and some will never be known.  (Well, among men.) 

Very brief biographical profiles of these soldiers are presented below, based on information in both volumes of Henry Morris’ invaluable two-volume work We Will Remember Them, random issues of The Jewish Chronicle and The Palestine Post, plus, information available via the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, and, Izkor, The Commemoration Site of The Fallen of the Defense and Security Forces of Israel, where their portraits were found. 

Note that eight of the thirteen have no known graves.

And so, they are…

– .ת. נ. צ. ב. ה –

תהא
נפשו
צרורה
בצרור
החיים

Arman, Aharon (אהרון ארמן), Sapper, PAL/23378, Royal Engineers
1039th Port Operating Company
Stalag 344 Lamsdorf
1/26/45: Shot during escape attempt
Born 1921
Mr. and Mrs. Nathan [Natan] and Miriam Arman (parents), Tel Aviv, Israel
Krakow Rakowicki Cemetery, Poland – 2A,C,6
We Will Remember Them II – 42
German POW # 4784; Year of birth: CWGC 1926; izkor.gov.il: 1921

____________________

Brajer, Michael Chaim [Chaim-Michail] (חיים-מיכאל ברייר), Cpl., PAL/23009, Royal Engineers
1039th Port Operating Company
Stalag 8B Teschen
1/16/45 or 1/26/45: Killed while fleeing POW camp
Born Kandesh, Hungary, 9/2/13
Mrs. Malja Brajer (wife), Tel Aviv, Israel
Mr. Batseva [Bat-Sheva] Brajer (father)
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 4
The Jewish Chronicle 7/25/41
We Will Remember Them I – 239
German POW # 4334; POW List as “Breyer, Michail Chain”; LJC gives name as “M.C. Breyer”, and rank as “Sapper”; CWGC and Izkor.gov.il. dates differ.

____________________

Durani, Menashe (מנשה דורני), Pvt., PAL/13216
603rd Palestinian Port Company
Stalag 344 Lamsdorf
9/5/41: Jumped off train during transfer of POWs to Austria, and disappeared
Born Peta Tikva, Israel, 1918
Mr. and Mrs. Yosef and Shvedia Durani (parents), Raanana, Israel
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 9
The Jewish Chronicle 7/25/41
German POW # 4869

____________________

Eisenberg, Dov [Dov-Berl] (דב-ברל אייזנברג), Pvt., PAL/11797, Mentioned in Despatches
Pioneer Corps
POW in Poland
5/17/44: Escaped
Died while POW 6/28/44 (murdered)
“All the days of his captivity Dov did not fall in his spirit, he tried to escape from his captivity, and at the first opportunity he escaped with a friend and the two hid in secret.  Squads of German soldiers set out in search of them and later captured them and led them back to the camp.  On the way to the camp, they met a German officer who ordered them to come with him to look for another escaped prisoner.  As they walked in front of the officer, [?] pulled out a gun and shot them in the back.  Dov’s friend was killed on the spot and Dov was fatally wounded.  A [?] asked the Germans to take him to Bloomsdorf Hospital, but they did not comply with his request and brought him to a military camp.  On 6/28/44, Dov died of his wounds.   He was laid to rest in the British Military Cemetery in Krakow, Poland.”
Born Lodz, Poland, 2/24/21
Mr. and Mrs. Haim and Hava Eisenberg (parents)
Crackow Rakowicki Cemetery, Crackow, Poland – 4,A,9
We Will Remember Them I – 242; We Will Remember Them II – 65
We Will Remember Them I as “Eisenberg, Dov”; CWGC as “Eisenberg, Berl”; Izkor.gov.il as “Dov-Berl Eisenberger”

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Elimelech, Abraham (אברהם אלימלך אל-מלך), Sapper, PAL/23170, Royal Engineers
1039th Port Operating Company
POW in Greece
7/19/41: Wounded and killed while attempting to escape
Born Komotini, Greece, 1915
Mr. Hajim [Haim] and Roza Elimelech (parents), Tel Aviv, Israel
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 4
The Jewish Chronicle 7/25/41
We Will Remember Them I – 242

____________________

Gabriel, Norbert [Norbert-Nahum] (נוברט-נחום גבריאל), Pvt., PAL/11574
Palestine Regiment
POW in Greece
11/1/41: Killed while attempting to escape
Born Moglanice, Poland, 5/2/03
Mr. and Mrs. Yaakov and Ernestina Gabriel (parents)
Phaleron War Cemetery, Greece – 12,B,11
The Palestine Post 8/19/41
We Will Remember Them I – 244
We Will Remember Them I as “Gavriel, Norbert”; CWGC as “Gabriel, Norbert”; Name not present in Prisoners of War – Allies and Other Forces of the British Empire

____________________

Gelbart, Avraham [Avraham-Yitzhak] (אברהם-יצחק גלברט), Pvt., PAL/13746
Pioneer Corps
POW in Greece
4/25/42: Died during escape attempt
“Following his service, his unit was transferred to the Kalamata Peninsula in Greece, where he was taken prisoner.  They were put on a train and on their way from Athens to Thessaloniki, when slowing down from journey in the mountains Abraham took advantage of the darkness and jumped out.  After a few days of wandering in the mountains he arrived at one of the villages where he was warmly received by the residents and also given shelter in an attic room.  Stayed with them for about two years, working as a shoemaker and liked all the people of the village.  One day, after learning that a patrol of Italian and German soldiers was approaching the village for search purposes, Avraham fled to the forests and took an old shotgun with him.  While in the woods a bullet was fired from his rifle and he was wounded in the leg.  A few days later, he returned to the village, but in the meantime he lost a lot of blood and developed necrosis in his leg.  He died, and was buried in the Christian cemetery in the village.  It was written on the monument that he was not afraid of the Germans.  In 1945, his body was in the main military cemetery near Athens where he was buried as an unknown soldier.  In 1961, when it was clarified beyond any doubt that this was indeed Abraham’s grave; a ceremony was held there.  A new monument was erected with a Star of David and an inscription in Hebrew, stating, among other things: “From the depths of the past, you have returned to the bosom of faith that has been restored.””
Born Germany, 5/8/12
Mrs. Penira Gelbart (wife), Herzlia, Israel
Mr. and Mrs. Shlomo and Hana Gelbart (parents)
Phaleron War Cemetery, Greece – 3,C,15
The Jewish Chronicle 10/19/45
We Will Remember Them I – 244
We Will Remember Them I as “Gelbart, Avraham”; CWGC as “Gelbart, Abraham”; Year of birth: CWCGC 1902; izkor.gov.il: 5/8/12

____________________

Goldman, Itzchak [Icchaak] (יצחק גולדמן), Sgt., PAL/10889
Pioneer Corps
POW in Greece
4/29/41: Killed while attempting to escape
Born Yaroslavl, Poland
Mr. Shmuel Goldman (father)
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 9
We Will Remember Them I – 244
We Will Remember Them I as “Goldman, Y”; CWGC as “Goldman, Icchaak”; Yad Vashem Studies XIV, p. 90

____________________

Krauze, Eliahu (אליהו קראוזה), Pvt., PAL/11786, Mentioned in Despatches
Pioneer Corps
POW in Poland
5/17/44: Murdered
“On the first day of his internment in the POW camp he began to look for a way to escape and return to the front.  After three years in a POW camp in Buiten, Germany, he came to terms with a captive friend, Dov Eisenberg.  On 5/17/44 they tried to escape but were immediately captured and returned to the camp.  One of the Nazi sergeants ordered them to accompany him on the pretext of searching for a third captive who had disappeared and in the field shot them from behind.  Dov was seriously injured and Eliyahu was killed on the spot.  He was laid to rest in the British Military Cemetery in Krakow, Poland.”
Born Lodz, Poland, 1920
Mr. and Mrs. Gronem [Gronam] and Frida Krauze (parents)
Mr. Abram Feldman (uncle), Bnai Brak, Israel
Krakow Rakowicki Cemetery, Poland – 4,A,5
We Will Remember Them I – 249

____________________

Tzabari [Zabary], Saadia [Shlomo] (סעדיה צברי), Pvt., PAL/13145
Pioneer Corps
POW in Greece
4/28/41: Jumped off train during transfer to Germany via Yugoslavia; spotted and killed by German guards
Born Sanaa, Yemen, 1925
Mr. and Mrs. Seadya and Zehava Tzabari (parents)
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 9
We Will Remember Them I – 260
We Will Remember Them I as “Tzabari, Saadia”; CWGC as “Zabary, Saadia”

____________________

Tzarfati [Zorfati], Shlomo (שלמה צרפתי), Cpl. PAL/23152, Royal Engineers
1039th Port Operating Company
POW in Greece
10/1/41: Killed while attempting to escape
Born Thessalonika, Greece, 1916
Mrs. Sarah Zorfati (wife), Tel Aviv, Israel
Mr. and Mrs. Aron [Aharon] and Bienvenida [Benvenida] Zorfati (parents)
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 4
We Will Remember Them I – 260
We Will Remember Them I as “Tzarfati, Shlomo”; CWGC as “Zorfati, Shlomo”

______________

Weissberg [Waisberg], Jakub [Jacob] (יעקב ויסברג), Pvt., PAL/00890
Pioneer Corps
POW in Greece
10/30/42: Killed while attempting to escape
Born Poland, 1903
Mr. Adolf Weissberg (father)
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 9
We Will Remember Them I – 261
We Will Remember Them I as “Weissberg, Y”; CWGC as “Waisberg, Jakub”

______________

Weissman, Aaron [Aron] (אהרון וייסמן), L/Cpl., PAL/23026, Royal Engineers
1039th Port Operating Company
Stalag 8B Teschen
8/19/41: Killed while attempting to escape
Born Bucharest, Rumania, 1/1/14
Mr. and Mrs. Itzhak David and Feige Weissman (parents), Tel-Aviv, Israel
Athens Memorial, Athens, Greece – Face 4
We Will Remember Them I – 274
German POW # 4875; POW List as “Weisman, A.”

________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

________________________________________

So, here are all three parts of “F. J-n.” / Private Y.M. El-Jo’an’s story as published in Aufbau.  Transcribed verbatim and presented in chronological order, each segment is followed by an English-language translation.  Note that the first installment of the series is given a prominent “above the fold” presentation, but the last two parts are allocated to the newspaper’s last page.  

Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis
October 15, 1943

Der Verfasser der folgenden Tagebuch blätter floh als ganz junger Mensch aus Hitler-Deutschland nach Palästina und wurde dort Mitglied einer Kwuzah.  Bei Ausbruch des Krieges trat er als Freiwilliger in die britische Armee ein, in der er jetzt einen hohen Offiziersrang bekleidet.  Während der Kämpfe in Griechenland geriet er in Nazi-Gefangenschaft, aus der er sich nach kurzer Zeit befreien konnte.  Die Schilderung dieser Gefangenschaft und Flucht ist nicht allein als individuelles Schicksal interessant, sondern sie gibt auch Aufschluss über die Art, wie aus Deutschland stammende jüdische Soldaten der alliierten Armeen behandelt werden, wenn sie in Nazi-Gefangenschaft geraten.

Ende Mai war es, als man uns — endlich! — zum Verhör auf die Kommandantur brachte.  In der Zwischenzeit hatte die Gestapo alle Dokumente, die sie über uns ehemalige deutsche Juden hatte, herbeigeschafft.  Gemäss internationalen Recht sollte uns genau die gleiche Behandlung wie den britischen Gefangenen zuteil werden; dieses Recht wurde in der Weise umgangen, dass versucht wurde, uns nachzuweisen, dass wir uns in Deutschland vor der Flucht irgendwelcher Vergehen schuldig gemacht hatten.  Einer der Gefangenen wurde unter Sonderarrest gesetzt, weil in den Gestapo-Akten verzeichnet war, dass er beim Verlassen Deutschlands die letzte Rate für eine gekaufte Schreibmaschine geblieben war.  Dies ist ein Beispiel.

Mein Name wird aufgerufen.  Ich trete in das Zimmer des Lagerkommandanten und salutiere.  Er erwidert den Salut.  Die strengen Blicke dreier deutscher Offiziere richten sich auf mich.  Just in diesem Augenblick gewinne ich meine ganze Sicherheit wieder: Was kann mir schon Schlimmeres passieren, als dass man mich erschiesst! So muss man mit Deutschen reden.

‘‘Sie haben Eltern in Deutschland?” fragt der Kommandant scharf, ja drohend.

“Ja”, antworte ich ruhig.

“Sie haben ein deutsches Gymnasium absolviert?”

“Ja.”

“Sie kennen Deutschland?”

“Gewiss.”

“1938 hat der deutsche Konsul in Haifa Sie aufgefordert, sich zum Armeedienst zu stellen; wie kommt es, dass Sie als Freiwilliger in der britischen Armee gegen Deutschland gekämpft haben?”

“Weil Deutschland unser Feind ist; ich hasse meinen Feind!”

Wider Erwarten erhob sich der Offizier vom Stuhl, trat auf mich zu und klopfte mir auf die Schulter: “Sehr gut!”

Ich gestehe: aus mir sprach nicht allein verzweifelter Mut, sondern auch Erfahrung.  Ich wusste bereits, dass diese Frage uns allen gestellt wird, und dass es das Beste sei, kurz angebunden und wahrhaft zu sein.  Einige jüdische Soldaten aus Palästina hatten geantwortet, sie seien in die Armee eingetreten, weil sie arbeitslos waren.  Sofort flogen sie zur Tür hinaus, wurden dort von der Wache mit Fusstritten behandelt und weiter befördert.  Das gleiche passierte einem jüdischen Offizier, der in England der Armee beigetreten war.  Er hatte die Frage mit “Konskription” beantwortet.  Er flog alle Treppen hinunter und musste vom Platz getragen werden.  Drei meiner Kameraden aus Ashdoth-Jaacov (Name einer Kwuzah in Palästina. D. Uebers.) S. und D. und R. gaben die gleiche Antwort wie ich und kamen glimpflich davon.  Ich wurde also nicht hinausgeschmissen, sondern verlies erhobenen Hauptes das Kommandanturzimmer.

Vor dem Abtransport ins Reich

Wir hungerten sehr.  Je zwölf von uns erhielten einen Laib Brot.  Täglich wurden Tausend von uns aus dem Lager wegtransportiert.  Unser Brigadier Plenigton liess uns, bevor man ihn wegtransportierte, den folgenden Befehl zugehen:

“Soldaten der britischen Armee, Australier und Neuseeländer!  Euer Schicksal hat es gewollt, dass Ihr in Gefangenschaft geraten seid — für Kriegsdauer.  Der Feind war uns an Zahl überlegen.  Ihr werdet nun Deutschland mit eigenen Augen zu sehen bekommen.  Vielleicht wird Euch vieles dort gefallen; doch hütet Euch vor jeder Beeinflussung.  Es sind Gerüchte in Umlauf, dass am Ufer von Corinth unsere Unterseeboote warten, um flüchtige Gefangene aufzunehmen.  Ich halte das für ausgeschlossen.  Unser Schicksal ist besiegelt.  Gefangenschaft.”

Die letzten Tausend zu denen auch ich gehörte, wurden am 9 Juni abtransportiert.  Ich hatte wieder einen bösen Malaria-Anfall, und die Hitze war unerträglich.  Nackt standen wir vor der Kommandantur.  Unsere Kleider und Schuhe hatten wir zur Desinfektion abgeben müssen, jeder bekam einen Fetzen, wie ein Taschentuch gross, um seine Blösse zu bedeken.  So schritten wir durch die Gässchen von Corinth zur See, um ein Reinigungsbad zu nehmen.  Die Einwohner entsetzten sich, als sie diesen von bewaffneten Deutschen flankierten Zug der Nackten erblickten; sie stürmten, ständig sich bekreuzigend, in die Häuser.  Wir aber vergassen, dass wir nackt waren: endlich aus der Baracke heraus und frei marschieren dürfen! Wir vergangen, dass wir bewacht wurden, stürzten in die Gemüsegärten, gruben mit den Fingern die Rüben und Gurken heraus und assen sie mit der Gartenerde.  Endlich wieder sich den Magen füllen können, gleichgültig mit was!  Schliesslich wurden wir von der aufgeregten Wache wieder zu einem Zug zusammengeprügelt und zum Strand gebracht.  Dort wurden wir mit Karbol bespritzt, und die unbarmherzige Sonne briet unsere Haut.  Doch als wir endlich in der See “frei” schwimmen durften, vergassen wir alle Not.  Wir schrien vor Lust.

Auf dem Rückwege marterte uns wieder der Gedanke: Gefangenschaft.  Wir blickten sehnsüchtig zum Meer zurück, das uns mit den Ufern Erez Israels verbindet.  Und morgen geht’s nach Deutschland.  Bei mir stand der Entschluss fest: Ich werde fliehen.  Ich habe meinem Mädel — im Lande dort — versprochen wiederzukommen, ich werde mein Versprechen halten!

Wir beschliessen die Flucht

Die letzte Nacht verbrachten wir im Hofe vor der Kommandantur.  Von Corinth her knallten in regelmässigen Abständen Salven.  Wer waren die Opfer?  Aus unserer Mitte wurden die Kranken und Schwachen ausgesondert und weggebracht.  Wir haben sie nie wieder gesehen.  Wenige nur hatten sich krank gemeldet, jeder wollte bei den “Seinen” bleiben.  Ich und Sch., ein Jugendlicher aus Kfar-Jehoschua, und die vier Brüder S. aus Petach-Tikvah beschlossen, zusammenzuhalten und nach Fluchtmöglichkeiten Ausschau zu halten.  Unsere Wasser flaschen sollten immer gefüllt sein und unsere Eiserne Ration, bestehend aus drei Schachteln Biscuit und Kränzen getrockneter Feigen, durfte bis zur Flucht nicht angerührt werden.  Mich quälte es, dass ich keine Chinin-Tabletten mehr hatte, denn jeden Tag konnte sich eine Malaria-Attacke einstellen.  Das griechische Wörterbuch “Anu Nachsuy arzah” hegte ich wie ein Kind.

Bei Morgengrauen brachen wir auf: tausend Mann in Dreier-Reihen.  Wir sangen: “Anu nachasor arzah — libnoth ulebaloth bah” (Wir werden ins Land zurückkehren, es aufzubauen und zu bewohnen).  Unsere Stimmen waren die von Verhungernden, doch sie klangen trotzig, ja mutig.  Die Häuser von Corinth antworteten uns im Widerhall, die Einwohner rissen Fenster und Türen auf, um uns ein “Victory” – Zeichen zuzuwinken.  Wir marschierten wie Sieger, während die Nazi-Wache die Geschäftigkeit nervöser Büffel zeigte und zwangsweise zum Takt unseres Liedes marschieren musste.  So sahen uns die Einwohner von Corinth zum letzten Male.

Ein kleines Automobil flog an uns vorbei.  Es trug in gotischen Buchstaben die Aufschrift: “Deutsches Konsulat, Kalamata.”  Ja, Kalamata war die Stadt, wo wir die britische Flotte vergeblich erwartet hatten — just in der Nacht, da wir palästinensischen Jungens die Deutschen aus dem Ort vertrieben hatten.  Das hatte unser Los besiegelt.  Oft seither träumte ich, dass vor Kalamata drei Panzerschiffe halten, um uns aufzunehmen.

Durch aufgerissene Strassen, an zerstörten Häusern und niedergebrannten Stadtvierteln vorbei, marschieren wir.  Durch Wiesen, Felder und Gärten marschieren wir.  “Nach Deutschland” — denken die meisten, ich und Sch. neben mir jedoch denken: in die Freiheit.  Heute schon oder morgen wollen wir es versuchen.  Unsere Blicke wärmen sich aneinander.  Die anderen merken es uns an.  Einer der vier Brüder S. flüstert mir zu: “Auch wir sind entschlossen.  In Bulgarien oder Rumänien brennen wir durch und schlagen uns von dort nach Russland.”  “Meine besten Wünsche”, antworte ich; ‘‘ich bin sicher, es wird euch gelingen.  Wir aber machen es schon in Griechenland.”

Hakenkreuz über der Akropolis

In Isthmia am Isthmus werden wir verladen: je 50 Mann in einen Viehwagen.  Griechische Frauen sind eifrig bemüht, uns frisches Wasser heranzubringen, unsere Flaschen zu füllen.  Es wird aber nicht gewartet, bis alle versorgt sind, man stösst, quetscht uns in die Wagen.  Die Hälfte kann sitzen, die andere Hälfte muss stehen.  Wie der Zug sich in Bewegung setzt, werden die Türen zugemacht, ein Riegel wird draussen vorgeschoben, doch eine Türspalte bleibt offen, durch die etwas Licht und Luft eindringt.  Diese Spalte muss fur uns breiter werden!

Nahe einer Schule halten war.  Es ist Unterrichtspause.  Die Kinder rufen uns mit hellen Stimmen Grusse zu, auch rufen sie: “Kerenda Mussolini!”  Ja, das griechische Volk ist mit uns, das wird unsern Fluchtplan fördern.  Man lässt uns aussteigen, wir werden in den Hof einer Kaserne gebracht.  Wir merken jetzt: Wir sind in Athen.  Wir sind an der gleichen Stelle, von der wir zum Kampf gegen die Deutschen ausgerückt waren.  Jetzt aber weht von der Akropolis eine riesige Hakenkreuzfahne.

Wir haben seit einer Woche kaum etwas zu essen bekommen.  Jetzt werden jedem Gefangenen ein Stückchen Käse und zwei Biscuits ausgehändigt, das soll für zwei Tage langen.  Wann wird das ständige Hungergefühl, ein Ende haben?

Osterreichisch Artilleristen betreten den Hof, lassen sich mit uns in ein Gespräch ein: “Ja, wir können in Deutschland Fachleute gut gebrauchen”, sagt einer.  “Ich bin Landwirt”, wehre ich ab.  “Auch gut”, fährt er fort.  “Auf meinem Hof arbeiten zwei Franzosen und ein Pole, es wird noch Platz sein für einen Engländer.  Seien Sie froh, für Sie ist der Krieg zu Ende.”

Grüsse für zuhause

Die Kameraden wissen, was ich im Schilde führe.  Sie schleichen sich einzeln zu mir und tragen mir Grüsse für Frau und Kinder auf. D. aus Petach Tickwah händigt mir zwei goldene Manschettenknöpfe ein: “Nutze sie auf deinem Wege auf die beste Art! Sag meiner Freundin, dass ich alles Schwere, was immer es sein mag, ertragen werde, denn ich gebe die Hoffnung nicht auf, sie wieder zu sehen.” Sch. vom Ohel-Theater in Tel-Aviv trägt mir einen Gruss an seine Frau und seinen “Dreikäsehoch” auf.  “Du siehst ein bisschen verrückt aus”, witzelt er.  “Ich habe meinem Mädel versprochen zurückzukommen; ich muss Wort halten”, murmele ich.  “Wir sind verrückt, die wir uns wie Schafe zur Schlachtbank treiben lassen”, gibt er schliesslich zu.

Ein baumlanger Nazi donnert durch den Hof: “Sammeln!  Und ohne jüdische Nervosität!”

Wie viele Juden hast du in deinem Deutschland schon gequält und getötet, du Nazihund! denke ich bei mir.  Von da her kennst du die jüdische Nervosität.  Ich habe sie nicht mehr, mich hat Palästina abgehärtet.  Wenn wir uns einmal Auge in Auge gegenüberstehen werden, du Missgeburt, wirst du es sein, der von Nazi-Nervosität geschüttelt werden wird”.

Der erste Fluchtversuch

Wieder auf dem Bahnhof von Athen.  Je 50 Mann weiden in einen Viehwagen gepresst.  Ich und Sch. nehmen abermals den Platz an der Türspalte ein.  Man überlässt ihn uns gern.  Auf dem ersten und dem letzten Wagen des Zuges sind Maschinengewehre montiert, in jedem zweiten Wagen sitzt auf einer Kiste ein Nazi mit Gewehr und Revolver.  “Wir versuchen es im ersten Tunnel”, flüstere ich Sch. zu.  Während der Zug langsam durch die Vorstädte fährt, säumen die Bewohner, in der Mehrzahl Frauen, Mädchen und Kinder, das Geleise zu beiden Seiten, rufen uns ermutigende Wort zu, machen das Victory-Zeichen.  Die verärgerten Nazis lassen die Maschinengewehre knallen, doch das schreckt die Athener nicht.  Wir strecken unsere Arme durch die Türspalte, rufen und singen, vergessen für eine Weile unsern Hunger.  Zur Strafe wird nun auch die schmale Türspalte geschlossen.  Die Enge ist unerträglich, die Luft zum Ersticken.  Viel später erst wird die Spalte wieder geöffnet, wir fahren an Flugfeldern vorbei; Flugzeuge brennen, Tanks liegen verendet auf den Wegen.  Wege und Brücken sind stark bewacht.  Man traut den Griechen nicht; das aber macht die Ausführung unseres Planes schwerer als wir es uns dachten.  Die Nacht bricht an, es ist starkes Mondlicht.  Das ist gut, denke ich mir; wenn der Mond auf der einen Seite scheint, springen wir auf der anderen Seite ab.  Es ist abgemacht, dass ich als erster abspringe.  Sch. wirft mir das Säckchen zu und springt nach mir.  Verlieren wir uns, stosse ich drei Schakalrufe aus, Sch. antwortet mit dem gleichen Signal.  Sind wir aber zu weit auseinandergekommen, so treffen wir uns am Morgen vor der Kirche des nächsten Dorfes.

(Wird fortgesetzt)

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I Was a Prisoner of War of The Nazis
October 15, 1943

The author of the following diary pages fled as a very young man from Nazi Germany to Palestine and became a member of kvutzah [kibbutz].  When war broke out, he joined the British army as a volunteer, in which he now occupies a high officer’s rank.  During the fighting in Greece he fell into Nazi captivity, from which he was able to free himself after a short time.  The description of this captivity and escape is interesting not only as an individual fate, but it is also indicative of the way Jewish soldiers of the Allied armies coming from Germany are handled when they fall into Nazi captivity.

It was at the end of May, when we arrived – finally! – brought to the headquarters for interrogation.  In the meantime the Gestapo had all the documents brought in, that they had about us former German Jews.  According to international law, we should receive exactly the same treatment as the British prisoners; this law was bypassed in an attempt to prove to us that we were guilty of escaping any misdemeanor in Germany.  One of the prisoners was placed under special arrest because it was listed in the Gestapo files, that the last payment remained on a typewriter purchased when leaving Germany.  This is an example.

My name is called.  I step into the room of the camp commandant and salute.  He returns the salute.  The strict glances of three German officers are directed at me.  Just at that moment, I regain all my confidence: What possibly worse can happen to me, than being shot!  So, you have to talk to Germans.

“Do you have parents in Germany?” asks the Commandant sharply, even threateningly.

“Yes,” I answer calmly.

“You graduated from a German high school?”

“Yes.”

“You know Germany?”

“Certainly.”

“In 1938 the German consul in Haifa asked you to join the army service; how is it that as a volunteer in the British army you fought against Germany?”

“Because Germany is our enemy; I hate my enemy!”

Contrary to expectations, the officer rose from his chair, came up to me and patted me on the shoulder: “Very good!”

I confess: that not only desperate courage but also experience spoke to me.  I already knew, that this question is asked of all of us, and that it is best, to be short and to be true.  Some Jewish soldiers from Palestine had replied, that they had joined the army, because they were unemployed.  Immediately they flew out the door, were treated there with footsteps by the guard and further “promoted”.  The same happened to a Jewish officer, who had joined the army in England.  He had answered the question with “Conscription”.   He flew down all the stairs and had to be carried off the square.  Three of my comrades from Ashdoth-Ya’akov (name of a kvutzah in Palestine, D. Uebers.) S. and D. and R. gave the same answer as me and got off lightly.  So I was not thrown out, but left the commandant’s room with head held high.

Before Transport to the Reich

We were very hungry.  The twelve of us were given a loaf of bread.  Every day, thousands of us were taken away from the camp.   Our brigadier Plenigton sent us the following order, before being transported away:

“Soldiers of the British Army, Australians and New Zealanders!  Your fate has willed it that you are in captivity – for the war period.  The enemy was superior to us in numbers.  You will now see Germany with your own eyes.  Maybe you will like a lot there; but beware of any influence.  There are rumors circulating that on the shores of Corinth our submarines are waiting to pick up fleeing prisoners.  I think that is out of the question.  Our fate is sealed.  Captivity.”

The last thousand to which I belonged, were transported on 9 June [1941].  I had another bad attack of malaria, and the heat was unbearable.  We stood in front of headquarters naked.  We had to hand over our clothes and shoes for disinfection; everyone got a rag, like a large handkerchief, to cover his nakedness.  So we walked through the streets of Corinth to the sea to take a cleaning.  The inhabitants were horrified when they saw this train of naked men, flanked by armed Germans; they stormed into the houses, constantly crossing each other.  But we forgot that we were naked: finally out of the barracks out and allowed to march freely!  We passed that we were guarded, rushed into the vegetable gardens, dug out the turnips and cucumbers with the fingers, and ate them with the garden soil.  Finally to be able to fill your stomach again, no matter what!  Finally, we were beaten up again by the excited guards to a train and taken to the beach.  There we were splashed with carbolic, and the merciless sun roasted our skin.  But when we finally were allowed to swim “freely” in the sea, we forgot all hardship.  We shouted for joy.

On the way back we were tortured again by the thought: imprisonment.  We looked back longingly to the sea, which connects us to the banks of the Land of Israel.  And tomorrow we go to Germany.  The decision was made for me: I will flee.  I promised my girl – back home – I will keep my promise!

We Decide to Escape

The last night we spent in the courtyard in front of headquarters.  From Corinth burst salvos at regular intervals.  Who were the victims?  From our midst the sick and the weak were separated and taken away.  We never saw them again.  Few people had called in sick; everyone wanted to remain with “his”.  I and Sh., a youth from Kfar-Yehoshua, and the four brothers S. from Petach-Tikvah decided to stick together and look for escape opportunities.  Our water bottles should always be filled, and our iron ration, consisting of three boxes of biscuits and wreaths of dried figs, was not to be touched until the flight.  It tormented me, that I did not have any quinine tablets any more, because every day a malaria attack could set in.  The Greek dictionary “Anu Nachsuy arzah” I cherished as a child.

At dawn we started: a thousand men in rows of three.  We sang: “Anu nachasor arzah – libnoth ulebaloth bah.” (We will return to the land to build and inhabit it.)  Our voices were those of starving people, but they sounded defiant, even courageous.  The houses of Corinth responded to us, the inhabitants broke open windows and doors, to wave a “Victory” sign to us.  We marched as victors, while the Nazi guard showed the activity of nervous buffalo and was forced to march to the beat of our song.  So we saw the people of Corinth for the last time.

A small automobile flew past us.  It bore in Gothic letters the inscription: “German Consulate, Kalamata.”  Yes, Kalamata was the city where we had waited in vain for the British fleet – just at night, when we Palestinian boys drove the Germans out of the village.  That had sealed our lot.  Many times since then I dreamed that three battleships are stopping before Kalamata to receive us.

We are marching through torn-up streets, past destroyed houses and burnt-down neighborhoods. Through meadows, fields and gardens we march. “To Germany” – think most, me and Sch. thinking next to me: into freedom.  Today or tomorrow we want to try it.  Our eyes warm each other.  The others notice us.  One of the four S. brothers whispers to me: “We are also determined.  In Bulgaria or Romania, we burn through and beat ourselves from there to Russia.”  “My best wishes,” I reply; ‘‘I am sure you will succeed.  But we already do it in Greece.”

Swastika on the Acropolis

In Isthmia on the isthmus we are loaded: 50 men in each cattle car.  Greek women are eager to bring us fresh water; to fill our bottles.  But it is not waited until all are supplied; you push; squeezes us in the car.  Half can sit; the other half must stand.  As the train begins to move, the doors are closed, a bolt is pushed out, but a door gap remains open through which some light and air penetrate.  This crack must be wider for us!

A school was holding [class] near us.  It is class break.  The children greet us with bright voices, they also shout: “Kerenda Mussolini!”  Yes, the Greek people are with us, that will promote our escape plan.  We are dropped off, we are brought into the yard of a barracks.  We now note: we are in Athens.  We are in the same place from which we were debarked to fight the Germans.  But now blowing from the Acropolis a huge swastika flag.

We have hardly had anything to eat for a week.  Now, each prisoner is given a piece of cheese and two biscuits, which will last for two days.  When will the constant feeling of hunger come to an end?

Austrian artillerymen enter the yard; engage in a conversation with us: “Yes, we can make good use of experts in Germany,” says one.  “I am a farmer”, I refuse.  “Also good,” he continues.  “On my farm there are working two Frenchmen and a Pole, there will still be room for an Englishman.  Be glad, the war is over for you.”

Greetings for Home

The comrades know what I’m up to.  They sneak up to me individually and give me greetings for wife and children.  D. from Peta Tikva handed me two gold cufflinks: “Use them on your way in the best manner!  Tell my girlfriend that I will endure all hardship, whatever it may be, because I will not give up hope to see her again.”  Sch. from the Ohel Theater in Tel-Aviv gives me a greeting to his wife and his “Drei Käse Hoch”.  “You look a bit crazy,” he jokes.  “I promised my girl to come back; I have to keep my word,” I mutter.  “We are crazy, we drive like sheep to the slaughter,” he finally admits.

A skinny Nazi thunders through the yard: “Gather!  And without Jewish nervousness!”

“How many Jews have you already tormented and killed in your Germany, you Nazi dog!”, I think to myself.  From there you know the Jewish nervousness.  I no longer have it; Palestine hardened me.  When we meet face to face, you freak, it will be you who will be shaken by Nazi nervousness.”

The First Escape Attempt

Back at the station of Athens.  50 men pressed in every cattle car.  Sch and I take the place again at the the door crack.  You leave it to us.  Machine guns are mounted on the first and last cars of the train; in every second car sitting on a box a Nazi with rifle and revolver.  “We try in the first tunnel,” I whisper to Sch.  As the train slowly drives through the suburbs, the inhabitants, mostly women, girls and children, line the tracks on both sides, calling encouraging words, making the victory sign.  The angry Nazis crack the machine guns, but that does not scare the Athenians.  We stretch our arms through the crack in the door, shout and sing, forget our hunger for a while.  As a punishment, the narrow doorway is now closed.  The narrowness is unbearable; the air suffocating.  Much later, the crack is opened again; we drive past airfields; burning aircraft; destroyed tanks lying on the roads.  Paths and bridges are heavily guarded.  One does not trust the Greeks; but that makes the execution of our plan harder than we thought it would be.  The night is breaking, it’s strong moonlight.  That’s good, I think; when the moon shines on one side, we jump on the other side.  It’s settled that I’ll jump first.  Sch. throws me the little bag and jumps after me.  If we lose ourselves, I’ll make three jackal calls, Sch. responds with the same signal.  But if we have come too far apart, we meet in the morning in front of the church of the next village.

(To be continued)

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Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis
October 22, 1943

In unserem Artikel in der vorigen Nummer wurde berichtet, wie ein in Deutschland geborener Palästinenser, der in der britischen Armee diente, von den Nazis gefangen genommen wird und nach Deutshland abtransportiert werden soll.  Im ersten Artikel beschrieb er das Verhör vor Nazi- Offizieren, die Behandlung der Gefangenen, die Reise im Viehwagen durch Griechenland und seinen ersten missglückten Fluchtversuch.

II.

Einer schaffts

Bei der ersten Weg krümmung strecke ich die Hand heraus, um den Riegel zurückzuschieben und drücke dabei den Körper nach.  Da schiesst man auch schon.  Auf der nächsten Haltestelle betritt eine Wache unsern Wagen.  Wer war es gewesen?  Wir stellen uns alle schlafend; doch als die Wache den Wagen verlässt, setzt es Vorwürfe von allen Seiten: Um der Verrücktheit des Einen willen dürfen licht alle gefährdet werden!  Jetzt dringt Geschrei aus dem benachbarten Wagen.  Dort hat einer Magenkrämpfe.  Seit Athen hat man uns keine Gelegenheit gegeben, unsere Bedürfnisse zu verrichten.  Jetzt schreien auch andere.  Hier eröffnet sich eine Möglichkeit…, denke ich mir.  Endlich wird der Zug zum Halten gebracht, man erlaubt uns, in kleinen Gruppen auszusteigen.  Nein, da ist keine Fluchtmöglichkeit.  Doch ich sollte beschämt werden: Als der Zug sich schon weiter bewegte und die wenigen Gefangenen draussen brutal in die Wagen zurückgestossen wurden, fiel es einem ein, sich eine Zigarette anzuzünden.  Er hielt das Streichholz so, dass es dem Nazi für eine Sekunde die Augen blendete.  Diese Sekunde benützte er, um zu verschwinden.  Wie aber verschwand er?  Plötzlich war er selber wie ein Zündholz erloschen.  Es war uns allen ein Rätsel.  Später einmal traf ich ihn in Corditza, und da erzählte er mir, er sei einfach durch die Räder zwischen die Schienen geschlüpft, habe sich längelang ausgestreckt, bis der ganze Zug über ihn hinweggefahren war.  Ja, so war er: ein geborener Palästinenser, ein “Sabre” (hartes, Palästina eigentümliches Kaktus-Gewächs; Bezeichnung für das unverwüstliche Landeskind).

Als der Zug den ersten Tunnel passierte, machte ich abermals einen Versuch herunterzuspringen; auch diesmal wurde ich bemerkt, Sch. zog mich in den Wagen zurück.  Ich war sehr enttäuscht, denn bald kamen wir in das Flachland hinter Larissa, wo die Möglichkeit zu einer Flucht stark gemindert war.  Müdigkeit übermannte mich nach all der Anspannung.  Die meisten Insassen waren krank nach der ganztägigen Fahrt im überfüllten Viehwagen.  An der Haltestelle Gradia stiegen wir aus: Wir durften marschieren.  Wie das gut tat!  Doch, ach, wie weh das tat, als wir viele, viele Stunden lang auf steinigen Wegen über das Massiv der Termopylen marschieren mussten.  Eine wundervolle Landschaft!  Auf jenem hohen Pass, den wir bald betreten werden, hat, 480 Jahre v. Chr. Leonidas mit dreihundert Spartanern Xerxes.  Riesenheer aufgehalten.  Man kann nur mit schmerzenden Augen in die Landschaft sehen, nur mit schmerzendem Kopf an ihre grosse Geschichte denken.  Hätte man uns Palästinenser an dieser Stelle eingesetzt, wir hätten wie Leonidas gekämpft; jetzt führt man uns, stösst man uns mit Gewehrkolben durch den Termopylenpass in die Gefangenschaft nach Deutschland.  Ja, man stösst uns; denn die Nazi- Wachmannschaft fühlt sich in dieser Einsamkeit, fern von einer Militärbasis, nicht ganz wohl.  Rennen müssen wir, schnell, schnell!

Vor dem ersten Dorf jenseits des Passes kommen uns die Bauern entgegen und helfen uns die Packe tragen.  Manche von uns haben nichts mehr von ihren Sachen, sie hatten in ihrer Müdigkeit alles auf dem Wege von sich geworfen.  Wir dürfen rasten.  Wenn wir uns hinlegen, zittern unsere Knie.  Wir sind auf einer Bergspitze.  Eine deutsche Aufschrift am Wege lautet: “Vorsicht!  18 Kilometer bergab.”

Zweiter Fluchtversuch

Ich gebrauche die Ausrede, dass ich ein Bedürfnis verrichten will, gehe seitwärts und beschliesse, den abschüssigen Hang hinunterzurollen.  Sch. schleicht mir nach, will das gleiche tun.  Schon aber steht ein deutscher Soldat an meiner Seite.  Ich flüstere Sch. zu: “Ich versuche es bei der nächsten Krümmung des Weges, du hinter mir.  Die erste Wache wird uns nicht mehr, die zweite noch nicht sehen.”

Wie gesagt, so getan.  Ich springe, verschwinde in einem Graben; Sch. und einige andere folgten meinem Beispiel.  Diese anderen verdarben uns den Brei.  Denn durch sie, die spontan und ohne Ueberlegung und Vorsicht handelten, wurde die Aufmerksamkeit der Wache auf uns gelenkt.  Ein Soldat schrie: “Herr Leutnant, es ist was passiert!’’  Der Leutnant und einige seiner Leute umzingelten mit gestreckter Waffe den Graben; bis aber die Aktion durchgeführt werden konnte, hatten die meisten von uns Zeit in die Reihen zurück zuschleichen.  Die Nazis schössen in den Graben hinein, brachten einige Flüchtlinge mit Kolbenstössen zuruck.  Zwei fehlten.  Waren sie von den Kugeln getroffen worden?

Jetzt ist die Stimmimg unter den Kameraden einheitlich gegen uns.  Man hetzt gegen uns, doch man verrät uns nicht der untersuchenden Wachmannschaft.  Sch. flüstert mir zu, ich dürfe nicht mehr auf ihn rechnen, er sei mit seinen Nerven zu Ende.  Schliesslich wolle er noch einmal sein Mädchen wiedersehen.  Dann mache ich’s allein, erwiderte ich ihm; auch ich will meine Geliebte wiedersehen.

Wir marschieren, marschieren; es ist keine Kraft mehr in uns, automatisch tun die Beine ihren Dienst.  Auch die Wachmannschaft ist vollkommen erschöpft.  Wir haben die Thermopylen bereits hinter uns und bewegen uns auf Lamia zu.  Auf dem Bahnhof angelangt, sinken wir wie leere Säcke zu Boden.  Doch nein, auf müssen wir und schnell in die Wagen hinein je 50 in einen Viehwagen.  Wir bilden alle einen einzigen verworrenen Knäuel.  Ich habe mir meinen Platz an der Türspalte zu wahren gewusst.

Frei!

Jetzt fahren wir über eine Brücke.  Ist das Wasser tief genug?  Kann man springen? — geht es mir durch den Kopf.  Ich warte nicht, bis ich mir selbst eine Antwort gegeben habe.  Riegel weg, Tür auf und an das Geländer gesprungen!  Die ersten Schüsse knallen.  Ich schwinge mich über das Geländer und springe.  Ja, das Wasser war tief genug.  Ich bleibe unter der Fläche, solange mein Atem es verträgt, dann tauche ich auf: der Zug ist über die Brücke hinweg und fährt in seinem normalen Tempo weiter.  Wahrscheinlich hat man mich nicht wieder auftauchen gesehen.  Ich bin ein freier Mann!

Ich schwimme zum Ufer zurück, strecke mich hin und trockne in der Sonne.  Ich sollte eigentlich ein Versteck suchen, doch ich bin zu müde dazu.  Ich liege zwischen hohen Weiden, ich entwerfe einen Plan für weitere Handlungen.  Ich bin jetzt meine eigene Armee und mein eigener Kommandant.  Ich unterstehe keinem Gesetz ausser dem meines Gewissens; ich werde stehlen, wenn nötig rauben, um mich in der Freiheit zu behaupten.  Mir ist gut.  Nur tut mir Sch. leid.  Er ist ein feiner Kerl.

Ich hole meine Eiserne Ration hervor; es ist alles durchnässt, die Feigen schmecken trotzdem gut.  Die Nacht ist angebrochen, Schlaf will mich übermannen, ich kämpfe mit allen Kräften dagegen.  Die Nacht ist die Wanderzeit für den Flüchtling.  Bis zum Morgen muss ich aus der Zone von Lamia heraus sein.  Ich wandere zurück zu den Thermopylen — quer durch Weingärten und Felder und längs enger Stege.  Alles kann Gefahr bedeuten, jeden darfst du verdächtigen, sage ich mir.  Irgendwo werde ich eindringen und mir zivile Kleider verschaffen, in meiner britischen Uniform darf ich nicht mehr gesehen werden.  Nach mehreren Stunden Wanderung falle ich entkräftet hin.  Mosquitos peinigen mich, doch ich habe nicht die Kraft, sie abzuwehren.  Ich sinke in Schlaf.

(Schluss folgt)

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I Was a Prisoner of War of The Nazis
October 22, 1943

In our article in the previous issue, it was reported how a German-born Palestinian serving in the British Army was captured by the Nazis and was to be transported to Germany.  In the first article he described the interrogation before Nazi officers, the treatment of prisoners, the journey in the cattle car through Greece and his first unsuccessful escape attempt.

II.

One [Escape Attempt] Is Made

At the curve of the route, I stretch my hand out to push back the latch, while pushing the body forward.  [There are already shots.]  At the next stop, a guard enters our car.  Who was it?  We all go to sleep; but when the guard leaves the car, reproaches from all sides: For the sake of the madness of one, all will be endangered!  Now shouting comes from the neighboring car.  There are stomach cramps.  Since Athens we have been given no opportunity to meet our needs.  Now others are screaming too.  This opens up a possibility…, I think.  Finally the train is stopped, we are allowed to get off in small groups.  No, there is no escape.  But I should be ashamed: As the train moved on and the few prisoners outside were brutally pushed back into the cars, it occurred to one to light a cigarette.  He held the match in such a way that it blinded the Nazi for a second.  He used that second to disappear.  But how did he disappear?  Suddenly he was extinguished like a match.  It was a mystery to all of us.  Later, I met him in Corditza, and he told me that he had simply slipped through the wheels between the rails, stretching himself out for a long time, until the whole train had passed over him.  Yes, that’s how he was: a born Palestinian, a “Sabra” (a tough, peculiar Palestinian cactus plant; a nickname for the indestructible child of the land).

As the train passed the first tunnel, I made another attempt to jump off; I was also noticed this time, Sch. pulled me back in the car.  I was very disappointed, because soon we came to the plain behind Larissa, where the possibility of an escape was greatly reduced.  Fatigue overwhelmed me after all the tension.  Most of the inmates were ill after the full day’s journey in the crowded cattle car.  At the Gradia station we got out: we were allowed to march.  How that did good!  But, alas, how much it hurt when we had to walk for many, many hours on rocky paths over the massif of Thermopylae.  A wonderful landscape!  On that high pass, which we will soon enter, 480 years before Christ Leonidas stopped Xerxes’ giant army with three hundred Spartans.  One can only look with aching eyes into the landscape, only think of their great story with an aching head.  If Palestinians had been used here, we would have fought like Leonidas; now they lead us, they push us with rifle butts through the pass of pass of Thermopylae into German captivity.  Yes, they push us; because the Nazi guards do not feel well in this solitude, far from a military base.  We have to race, fast, fast!

In front of the first village on the other side of the pass, the farmers meet us and help us carry packs.  Some of us have nothing left of their belongings; they had thrown everything off in their fatigue.  We are allowed to rest.  When we lie down, our knees are shaking.  We are on a mountaintop.  A German inscription on the way reads: “Caution! 18 kilometers downhill.”

Second Escape Attempt

I use the excuse that I want to do something; go sideways and decide, to roll down the steep slope.  Sch. sneaking after me, wants to do the same.  But a German soldier already stands by my side.  I whisper to Sch.: “I will try at the next bend of the path, you behind me.  The first guard will not be with us any more, the second will not yet see us.”

As I said, so is done.  I jump; disappear in a ditch; Sch. and some others followed my example.  These others spoiled the porridge.  Because by those, who acted spontaneously and without thought and caution, the attention of the guard was directed to us.  A soldier shouted, “Lieutenant, something has happened!”  The lieutenant and some of his men surrounded the ditch with their weapons outstretched, but until the action could be carried out, most of us had time to sneak back into the ranks.  The Nazis shot into the ditch, bringing back some fugitives with piston-like thrusts.  Two were missing.  Were they struck by the bullets?

Now the voice among the comrades is uniformly against us.  One agitates against us, but we are not betrayed to the investigating guards.  Sch. whispered to me, I should not count on him anymore; he was over his nerves.  He wanted to finally to see his girl again.  Then I’ll do it alone, I told him; I too want to see my beloved again.

We march, march; there is no power left in us, the legs automatically do their job.  The guards are also completely exhausted.  We already have Thermopylae behind us and are moving towards Lamia.  Arriving at the station, we sink to the ground like empty sacks.  But no, we have to quickly get into the cars, 50 in each cattle car.  We all form a single tangled ball.  I’ve been able to save my place at the door crack.

Free!

Now we drive over a bridge.  Is the water deep enough?  Can you jump? – it goes through my head.  I will not wait until I have given myself an answer.  The latch is off; open the door and jump to the railing!  The first shots crack.  I swing myself over the railing and jump.  Yes, the water was deep enough.  I stay under the surface as long as my breath can withstand it, then I emerge: the train is across the bridge and continues at its normal pace.  I guess they did not see me resurface.  I am a free man!

I swim back to the shore, stretch myself and dry in the sun.  I should be looking for a hiding place, but I’m too tired.  I lie between high pastures; I design a plan for further action.  I am now my own army and my own commander.  I am not subject to any law except that of my conscience; I will steal, rob if necessary, to maintain myself in freedom.  I am good.  Now my Sch. Is suffering.  He is a fine fellow.

I bring out my Iron Ration; everything is soaked, but the figs taste good anyway.  The night has come, sleep wants to overwhelm me, I fight against it with all my strength.  The night is the walking time for the fugitive.  I have to be out of the zone of Lamia by morning.  I walk back to Thermopylae – across vineyards and fields and along narrow walkways.  Everything can be dangerous, you can suspect anyone, I tell myself.  I will enter somewhere and get civilian clothes; I can not be seen anymore in my British uniform.  After several hours of hiking, I fall over exhausted.  Mosquitoes torment me, but I do not have the strength to fight them off.  I sink into sleep.

(Conclusion follows)

____________________

________________________________________

____________________

Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis
(Schluss)

Der Morgen danach
October 29, 1943

Das Geräusch eines Motors weckt mich am Morgen.  Das Klopfen eines Motors, der mit Ersatzmaterialien angetrieben wird.  Ein deutscher Motor also.  Und ich trage noch meine englische Uniform!  Ich verkrieche mich, und obwohl ich am Verdursten bin, rühre ich mich nicht von der Stelle.  Wieder sinke ich in Schlaf.  Der Hall von Axtschlägen weckt mich.  Ich richte mich auf, der Holzfäller erblickt mich, kommt unschlüssig auf mich zu.  ‘‘Ich bin ein britischer Soldat, aus der Gefangenschaft entflohen”, sage ich in meinem Wörterbuch – Griechisch.  Er hat mich verstanden, drückt mir fest die Hand, küsst mich.  Er überlässt mir seinen Krug Wasser, etwas Wein und Brot; gibt mir zu verstehen, dass ich den Tag über hier bleiben müsse.  Am Abend werde er kommen und mich holen.

Er kam mit seinem Esel.  “Andaki”, flüstert er mir zu.  Das heisst: “alles in Ordnung.”  Er stülpt mir einen Riesen hut auf und wirft einen Shawl über meine Schulter, um die Uniform zu verdecken.  Er geht voraus, ich in Sehweite hinter ihm.  Wir machen einen Umweg durch das Dorf, gelangen durch Gärten und Hecken zu seinem Haus.  Ein kleines Mädchen fasst meine Hand, ich spüre, wie ihr Herzchen in freudiger Erregung pocht.  Es bringt mich ins Haus: Mutter und Kinder, sowie andere Familienmitglieder begrüssen mich herzlich.  Er ist dunkel, der ganze grosse Raum wird von dem Lichtlein am Hausaltar schwach erhellt.  Die Holzfällerfrau bringt einen alten schweien Stuhl heran, ladet mich zum Sitzen ein, und alle kauern auf der Diele um mich herum.  Ein Mädchen zieht mir die Schuhe ab, wäscht und trocknet mir die Füsse.  Ich bin verlegen, doch lasse ich es geschehen.  Mir fällt ein: das war Tradition im alten Griechenland.  Soll sich seither hier nichts geändert haben?

“Lechajim”

Der Bauer-Holzfäller tritt ein: freudig und stolz, dass ich mich in seinem Hause befinde.  Er bringt Kuchen und Wein.  Wir trinken.  Mir fällt das nötige griechische Wort nicht ein, ich sage das hebräische “Lechajim” (Trinkgruss: “zum Leben”).  Sie sprechen mir das Wort schlecht und recht nach, in der Meinung wohl, es sei der englische Trinkgruss.  Die Bäuerin bringt Brot und warme Suppe.  Obwohl die Suppe nur massig warm ist, brennt sie mir im Magen, der so lange schon nichts Warmes gespürt hat.  Der Bauer schneidet das Brot, teilt jedem sein Stück zu: mir zuerst, dann der Bäuerin, dann den übrigen Familienmitgliedern.  Nach dem Essen bringt er ein paar abgetragene Hosen und einen Rucksack.  Er weist mir ein Holzgestell zum Schlafen an und verspricht mir, mich vor Morgengrauen zu wecken.

Als er mich weckt, springe ich erfrischt auf.  Ich bin trunken vor Freude: ich bin ein freier Mann, habe Zivilkleider an, mich werden “sie” nicht kriegen.  Die Bäuerin segnet mich, wünscht mir Schutz vor dem Antichrist, dem “Germanus”.  Ich verneige mich tief und schreite los.

Ich schreite durch fruchtbares Gebirgsland.  Bächlein rieseln.  Alle 500 Schritte fülle ich meine Flasche neu.  Ich bin wassertrunken, ich spiele mit Wasser.  Ich erinnere mich, wie wir britische Soldaten in der lybischen Wüste nach Wasser vergebens lechzten.  Ich esse von dem Brot und dem Käse, die mir von der Holz fäller-Familie als Wegzehrung mitgegeben worden waren.  Ich brauche mir nicht mehr den Bissen von.  Munde zu sparen.  Arbeten werde ich — als Viehjunge oder un Stall, ich hab’s ja in Palastina gelernt – bis ich mich wieder zur Armee durchschlagen kann.

In Sicherheit

Durch Weingärten geht es.  In einem sehe ich einen zerschmette_ten Junkers, einige Grabkreuze daneben: deutsche Namen und der Zusatz: “Gefallen für Grossdeutschland.”  Mit “Deutschland erwache, Juda verrecke” hat es begonnen und mit “Gefallen” endet es.

Ich nähere mich einem Dorf.  Dort sind Deutsche.  Ich sehe Spuren von Autorädern, höre Hupen und Klingeln.  Ich schlage einen aufwärts führenden Steg ein, verstecke mich nahe einem Brunnen mit Heiligenbild.  Gegen meinen Willen schlafe ich ein.  Als ich aufwache, kniet eine Frau vor dem Altar.  Ich frage sie: “T’unoma hurian?” (Wie heisst das Dorf?)  “Germanus messo?”  (Sind Deutsche hier?)  Sie erwidert mit einer Frage: “Ssiss stratiatus?” (Bist du Soldat?)

Als ich ihr sage, ich sei ein aus der Gefangenschaft entflohener britischer Soldat, eilt sie auf mich zu, drückt mir die Hände, weint, erzählt, ihr Mann und ihr Sohn seien in Albanien gefallen.  Sie geht, kommt nach kurzer Zeit mit einem Esel zurück, gibt mir zu essen.  Dann lässt sie mich aufsitzen und schreitet neben mir her.  Aufwärts geht es.  Sie lehnt entschieden ab, aufzusitzen und mich den Esel antreiben zu lassen.  Sie bedeutet mir, ich brauche die Kraft gegen diesen verfluchten “Italius”.  Ich blicke ins Dorf hinunter: im Zentrum flattert die Nazi-Fahne.  Diesen Weg zurück werde ich nicht gehen – steht bei mir fest.

Immer aufwärts geht es durch Gärten und Tabakfelder.  Plötzlich bietet sich ein schönes Bergdorf zwischen Obst- und Weingärten meinen Blicken dar.  Die Frau weist auf eine Bergspitze, auf der ein Kloster — “Monastir” sagt sie — steht.  Ich steige ab, atme froh die dünne Bergluft ein.

Einige Minuten später betreten meine Füsse den Boden des Bergdorfes “Ypati”.  Gesegnet sei es.

F. J-n.

____________________

I Was a Prisoner of War of The Nazis
(Conclusion)

October 29, 1943

The sound of an engine wakes me in the morning.  The knocking of a motor, powered by substitute materials.  So, a German engine.  And I still wear my English uniform!  I crawl, and although I’m dying of thirst, I do not move.  Again I fall asleep.  The echo of an ax-strike awakens me.  I sit up, the wood cutter sees me, comes hesitantly toward me.  ‘‘I am a British soldier, escaped from captivity,” I say in my dictionary – Greek.  He has understood me, presses my hand firmly, kisses me.  He leaves me his jug of water, some wine and bread; gives me to understand that I have to stay here all day.  In the evening he will come and get me.

He came with his donkey.  “Andaki,” he whispers to me.  That means “all right.”  He puts on a giant hat and throws a shawl over my shoulder to cover the uniform.  He goes ahead, I in sight behind him.  We make a detour through the village, passing through gardens and hedges to his house.  A little girl holds my hand; I feel her heart beating in joyful excitement.  He brings me into the house: Mother and children, as well as other family members greet me warmly.  It is dark, the whole big room is dimly lit by the little light at the family altar.  The wood cutter’s wife pulls up an old sweaty chair, invites me to sit, and everyone in the hallway is huddled around me.  A girl takes off my shoes; washes and dries my feet.  I am embarrassed, but I let it happen.  I remember: that was a tradition in ancient Greece.  Should anything not have changed here since then?

“Lechaim”

The farmer-wood cutter enters: happy and proud that I am in his house.  He brings cake and wine.  We drink.  I do not remember the necessary Greek word; I say the Hebrew “Lechaim” (drinking greeting: “to life”).  The word is spoken to me badly and right after, in the sentiment probably, it is the English drinking greeting.  The farmer’s wife brings bread and warm soup.  Although the soup is just moderately warm, it burns in my stomach, which has not felt anything warm for so long.  The farmer cuts the bread, distributing to each his piece: me first, then the farmer’s wife, then the other family members.  After dinner, he brings a pair of worn pants and a backpack.  He instructs me to sleep on a wooden frame and promises to wake me up before dawn.

When he wakes me, I jump up refreshed.  I am drunk with joy: I am a free man, have on civilian clothes, “they” will not get me.  The farmer’s wife blesses me, wishing me protection from the Antichrist, the “Germanus”.  I bow deeply and start walking.

I walk through fertile mountain land.  Trickling brooks.  Every 500 steps, I refill my bottle.  I drink water; I’m drunk on water.  I remember how, as thirsting British soldiers we craved in vain for water in the Libyan desert.  I eat the bread and cheese that I got from the wood cutter’s family as a treat for the way.  I do not need the bite of it.  To save money.  I will work – as a cattle boy or in a stable; I learned it in Palestine – until I can make my way back to the army.

In Safety

I go through vineyards.  In one I see a smashed Junkers, some grave crosses next to it: German names and the addition: “Fallen for Grossdeutschland.”  It started with “Germany awake, Judah perish” and ends with “Fallen”.

I’m approaching a village.  There are Germans.  I see traces of car wheels, hear horns and ringing.  I strike an up-leading footbridge, hide myself near a fountain with a holy image.  Against my will I fall asleep.  When I wake up, a woman kneels before the altar.  I ask her: “T’unoma hurian?”  (What’s the name of the village?)  “Germanus messo?”  (Are Germans here?)  She replies with a question: “Ssiss stratiatus?”  (Are you a soldier?)

When I tell her that I am a British soldier escaped from imprisonment, she rushes towards me, shaking my hands, crying, telling me that her husband and son have died in Albania.  She leaves, comes back after a short time with a donkey, gives me food.  Then she lets me sit up and walks next to me.  It goes uphill.  She resolutely refuses to sit, and let me drive the donkey.  It means to me, I need the strength against this accursed “Italius”.  I look down into the village: in the center the Nazi flag flutters.  I will not go back this way – I am sure.

It always goes uphill through gardens and tobacco fields.  Suddenly, my view of a beautiful mountain village between orchards and vineyards.  The woman points to a mountain top on which is a monastery – “Monastir” she says – stands.  I climb off, breathe in the thin mountain air.

A few minutes later my feet enter the bottom of the mountain village “Ypati”.  Blessed be it.

F. J-n.

________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

________________________________________

References

“Gelber 1984” – Gelber, Yoav, Jewish Palestinian Volunteering in the British Army During the Second World War – Volume IV – Jewish Volunteers in British Forces, World War II, Yav Izhak Ben-Zvi Publications, Jerusalem, Israel, 1984

Gelber, Yoav, Palestinian POWs in German Captivity, Yad Vashem Studies, Jerusalem Israel, 1981, Volume XIV, pp. 89-137

“We Will Remember Them I” – Morris, Henry, Edited by Gerald Smith, We Will Remember Them – A Record of the Jews Who Died in the Armed Forces of the Crown 1939 – 1945, Brassey’s, London, England, 1989

“We Will Remember Them II” – Morris, Henry, Edited by Hilary Halter, We Will Remember Them – A Record of the Jews Who Died in the Armed Forces of the Crown 1939 – 1945 – An Addendum, AJEX, London, England, 1994

Prisoners of War – Armies and Other Land Forces of The British Empire, 1939-1945 (“All Lists Corrected Generally Up to 30th March 1945″), J.B. Hayward & Son, in Association with The Imperial War Museum Department of Printed Books, Polstead, Suffolk, England, 1990 (First published in 1945 by His Majesty’s Stationary Office)

The Reconstruction of Memory: Soldiers of Aufbau – Jewish Prisoners of War

[I’ve got lots of “stuff” in the pipeline, both here at TheyWereSoldiers, and at my other blogs, WordsEnvisioned and ThePastPresented.  In the meantime, here’s a “quick” little post…]

Between 1941 and 1945, the German exile newspaper Aufbau – “Reconstruction” – published ten news items about the experiences of Jewish prisoners of war.  Though the topic of Jewish POWs in German captivity is – probably? – more commonly perceived in terms of the appalling fate of Jewish members of the Soviet armed forces captured on the Eastern Front, aviators of the United States Army Air Force (specifically, the 8th, 9th, 12th, and 15th Air Forces) captured throughout the war, or, soldiers of the United States Army ground forces captured during the Ardennes Offensive, another aspect of this topic is, I think, the subject of far less public awareness:  Over 1,300 Jewish soldiers, most from the Yishuv – primarily men serving in Port Companies of the British Commonwealth armed forces – were captured during the fall of Greece at the end of April, 1941.  Most of these men were interned at Stalag VIII-B (later renumbered Stalag 344) at Lamsdorf, in Silesia, or Stalag 383, at Hohenfels, Bavaria. 

Among Aufbau’s articles about Jewish POWs, six are notable for their focus on soldiers from the Yishuv.  While several of these men attempted to evade capture or escape from German captivity, to the best of my knowledge only a mere handful of these men definitely returned to Allied control.  One such soldier, born in Germany and later residing in Haifa, was a member of Kibbutz “Ashdoth-Ya’akov” (Ashdot Ya’akov) in northern Israel.  His experience was the subject of a three-part series of articles in Aufbau, entitled “Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis” – “I Was a Prisoner of the Nazis,” which was published in October of 1943, while his name appeared in a very (very!) brief news item in the Palestine Post.

The topic of the fate of Jewish prisoners of war in German custody was also a focus of the news coverage in the The Jewish Chronicle, and especially, the South African Jewish Times, the latter given that approximately 300 South African Jewish soldiers were captured during the fall of Tobruk on June 21, 1942. 

An Aufbau article of a very different nature was Sergeant Walter Bonne’s “In Deutschland kriegsgefangen – Die Erlebnisse des Sgt. Bonne” – “Prisoners of war in Germany – The experiences of Sgt. Bonne”, which recounts in straightforward fashion German-born Sergeant Bonne’s capture during the Ardennes Offensive, and, his liberation a few months later.    

You’ll be able to read the full text of these above-mentioned articles – in the original German, with Googlific English translations – in the future.  In the meantime, here’s a list of Aufbau’s articles pertaining to Jewish POWs:

Date Article Title
10/17/41 Jüdische Kriegsgefangene in Griechenland  (“Jewish war prisoners in Greece”)
12/18/42 1200 jüdische-palästinensische Kriegsgefangene in Deutschland  (“1200 Jewish-Palestinian war prisoners in Germany”)
10/15/43 Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis  (“I was a Prisoner of War of the Nazis”)
10/22/43 Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis  (“I was a Prisoner of War of the Nazis”)
10/29/43 Ich war ein Kriegsgefangener der Nazis  (“I was a Prisoner of War of the Nazis”)
2/4/44 Jüdische Soldaten in deutscher Kriegsgefangenenschaft – Das Rote Kreuz wacht – Solidarität der englischen Kameraden  (“Jewish soldiers in a German war prison – The Red Cross watches – solidarity of English comrades”)
2/4/44 Erste Mordanklage gegen französische KZ-Offiziere  (“First murder case against French concentration camp officers”)
5/18/45 In Deutschland kriegsgefangen – Die Erlebnisse des Sgt. Bonne  (“Prisoners of war in Germany – The experiences of Sgt. Bonne”)
5/25/45 Buchenwald und Auschwitz (S/Sgt. Fred Levy)  (“Buchenwald and Auschwitz”)
5/25/45 Amerikanische Kriegsgefangene erobern ein deutsches Dorf (PFC Herbert Frank)  (“American war prisoners conquer a German village”)

Soldiers from New York: Jewish Soldiers in The New York Times, in World War Two: A Soldier from Germany – PFC Harry Kaufman (April 17, 1945)

Among the ninety-odd obituaries for Jewish servicemen published in The New York Times during the Second World War, were three for Jewish soldiers born in Germany.  Whether these servicemen were selected for news coverage specifically because of that ancestry – or – this number by chance approximated the relative proportion of German-born Jews in the American armed forces – or – whether the Times’ reporting about these men was influenced by other publications, such as Aufbau – or? – whether this was attributable to social connections with the families of these soldiers on the part of the Times’ staff (which was evidently the case for Army Air Force Captain William Hays Davidow) is unknown.  

In any event, thus far in this project I’ve presented the story of T/4 Alexander H. Hersh, who was killed in action in the European Theater on January 21, 1945. 

In the future, I hope to present information about Berlin-born 2 Lt. Alfred Kupferschmidt, who, as a member of the 116th Reconnaissance Squadron, 101st Cavalry Group, was killed by artillery fire on February 25, 1945, and reported upon in the Times the following May 6.  Like many of the soldiers profiled in this series of posts, Kupferschmidt’s name never appeared in American Jews in World War II. 

But, until then, here’s a “third” German-born Jewish soldier:  Private First Class Harry Kaufman, 32817804.  Born in Bielefeld in 1925, he was the son of Sally and Elsie Kaufman, his family residing at 3593 Bainbridge Avenue in the Bronx.  A member of the 254th Infantry Regiment of the 63rd Infantry Division, his name appeared in a Casualty List published on May 10, 1945.  He was the subject of (brief) news stories in the Times on May 23, the Daily News on May 17, and Aufbau on May 4.  His name appears on page 359 of American Jews in World War II.  A recipient of the Purple Heart, he is buried at the Lorraine American Cemetery at Saint Avold France, in Grave 32 Row 16, Plot D.  

Here is his very brief obituary, as it appeared in the Times:

Refugee in U.S. in 1936 Is Casualty in Germany

Pfc. Harry Kaufman was killed in action in Germany on April 17, according to word received by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Sol Kaufman, of 3593 Bainbridge Avenue, the Bronx.

He came to this country in 1936 from Germany with his parents and tried to enlist in the armed forces in 1942, but was not accepted.  He was a student at the Bronx High School of Science when drafted in February, 1943.

Private Kaufman was injured while a paratrooper.  He later was transferred to the infantry. 

Here’s Private Kaufman’s portrait, as published in the Times.  

Here’s the first page of Aufbau’s May 4 issue.  The headlines are self-explanatory even if one doesn’t know German!

And, here’s the paper’s last page, on which appeared information about military awards, military accomplishments, and inevitably, casualties.  The practice of publishing such news items specifically on te final page of every issue page was established in the newspaper as early as 1944.  In this instance, the news article about Harry Kaufman appears in the upper left corner.  

Once again, Harry Kaufman’s portrait.  This is the same image which appeared in the Times, albeit the latter published only a cropped version of the photo.  Here, Harry’s glider infantry shoulder patch is visible on his left shoulder, indicating that this picture was taken before his assignment to the 63rd Infantry Division.  

Here’s a better view of the shoulder insignia of the glider infantry…  

…and here’s the shoulder patch – an original from WW II – of the United States Army’s 63rd Infantry Division.

A transcript and translation of Aufbau’s very brief news item about Harry Kaufman’s death in battle….

Für die Freiheit gefallen
Pfc. Harry Kaufman

ist am 18. April in Alter von 20 Jahren “irgendwo in Deutschland” gefallen.  Er wurde in Bielefeld geboren und kam 1936 mit seinen Eltern nach New York.  Ende Februar 1943 wurde er in die Armee eingezogen und im November 1944 nach Uebersee geschickt.  Er gehörte der 7th Army an.

Fallen for Freedom
Pfc. Harry Kaufman

fell “somewhere in Germany” on April 18th at the age of 20.  He was born in Bielefeld and came to New York with his parents in 1936.  At the end of February 1943 he was drafted into the army and sent overseas in November 1944.  He was a member of the 7th Army.

__________

This Oogle map of the New York metropolitan area shows the location of the Kaufman family’s residence at 3593 Bainbridge Avenue in the Bronx…

…and, here’s a larger scale Oogle map of the same area.  

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Harry Kaufman’s matzeva at the Lorraine American Cemetery, photographed by FindAGrave researcher Thomas Welsch.

Some other Jewish military casualties on Tuesday, April 17, 1945 (Yom Shishi, 5 Iyar, 5705) include…

– .ת. נ. צ. ב. ה –

תהא
נפשו
צרורה
בצרור
החיים

United States Army (Ground Forces)

Butler, Manfred, PFC, 42136245, BSM, Purple Heart (Italy)
10th Mountain Division, 87th Mountain Infantry Regiment
Born in Germany, in 1926
Mrs. Natalie J. Butler (mother), 863 Hunts Point Ave., New York, N.Y.
Florence American Cemetery, Via Cassia, Italy – Plot F, Row 14, Grave 25
Aufbau 11/9/45
American Jews in World War II – Not listed

Cohn, Irving, PFC, 32272686, BSM, Purple Heart (at Ie Shima, Okinawa)
77th Infantry Division, 307th Infantry Regiment, I Company
Born 5/22/10
Mrs. Mary Cohn (mother), Evelyn (sister), 825 Gerard Ave., Bronx, N.Y.
Mount Hebron Cemetery, Corona, N.Y.
American Jews in World War II – 293

Goltman, David Monroe, PFC, 42126851, Purple Heart
97th Infantry Division, 303rd Infantry Regiment
Born Brooklyn, N.Y, 1/24/26
Mr. and Mrs. Charles and Jeanette Goltman (parents), 1675 54th St., Brooklyn, N.Y.
Cemetery location unknown – buried 1/7/49
Casualty Lists 5/9/45, 6/8/45
The New York Times (Obituary Section) 1/6/49
American Jews in World War II – 329

Hayek, Teddy K., PFC, 32681062, Purple Heart
30th Infantry Division, 117th Infantry Regiment, Medical Corps
Mr. Albert K. Hayek (brother), 239 West 103rd St., New York, N.Y.
(also) 4 W. 109th St., New York, N.Y.
Long Island National Cemetery, Farmingdale, N.Y. – Section H, Grave 9586
Casualty Lists 5/14/45, 5/28/45
American Jews in World War II – 342

____________________

Kiel, David (David Bar Yosef), PFC, 32863120, Purple Heart, 1 Oak Leaf Cluster
34th Infantry Division, 168th Infantry Regiment, K Company (Signal Corps)
Wounded previously, approximately on 1/15/44 and 7/9/44
Mr. Joseph Kiel (father), PFC Bernard Kiel, and, Hyman Kiel (brothers), 37-07 61st St., Woodside, N.Y.
Born New York, N.Y., 9/18/24
Mount Hebron Cemetery, Flushing, N.Y. – Society T.D. Young Men, Block 50, Reference 2, Section A-C, Line 7, Grave 39
Casualty Lists 2/15/44, 9/9/44, 5/12/45
Long Island Star Journal 6/13/45
American Jews in World War II – 361

A pensive mood: Private Kiel’s portrait, as it appeared in the Long Island Star Journal on June 13, 1945…  

…which accompanied the following news item:

Killed in Italy

Private First Class David Kiel was killed in Italy, his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Kiel of 37-07 61st St., Woodside, have been informed by the War Department.  He was extending a communications line to a forward position when he was fatally wounded by bomb fragments, his father and mother were told.  He has been buried in Italy.  His brother, Bernard, is a private first class in the Army in New Guinea.  Another brother is a seaman, 2/C, at the Sampson Naval Training Center.

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David’s matzeva at Mount Hebron Cemetery, photographed by FindAGrave researcher Ronzoni.

PFC David Kiel’s story continued, at least indirectly, at least for a time, at least (and at most) for a few years beyond 1945:  In 1949, Jewish War Veterans Post named in his memory was established in Woodside.  The following three news articles, from the (good ‘ole!) Daily News, and, Long Island Star Journal, report on this event:

JWV to Install
Daily News (New York)
March 13, 1949

Joseph Newman, commander, heads a staff of officers to be installed tonight by the David Kiel Jewish War Veterans Post of Woodside.  The installation will be held in Paprin’s restaurant, 60-21 Roosevelt Ave., Woodside, Queens.

__________

Long Island Star Journal
March 1, 1949

Organizing New Jewish War Veterans Post in Woodside

Four Woodsiders go over plans for the David Kiel Jewish Veterans Post of Woodside institution ceremony, to be held March 13 in Paprin’s restaurant, Woodside.  They are (seated, left to right) Raymond Newman of 59-16 Woodside Avenue, chairman, and Philip Paprin, the restaurant owner, and (standing, left to right) Henry Rosenblatt, Queens J.W.V. Musical Director, and, Rabbi Yehudah Pehkin of the Woodside Jewish Center.  The program includes a dinner and installation of officers.

__________

DAVID KIEL POST TO SEAT OFFICERS
Long Island Star Journal
March 10, 1949

The David Kiel Jewish War Veterans Post will be formally instituted Sunday night in Paprin’s restaurant, 60-21 Roosevelt avenue, Woodside.  Joseph Newman of 59-16 Woodside avenue, Woodside, commander, and other officers will be installed.

They include Bernard Kiel and Jordan Rolnick, vice-commanders; Arthur Schulman, quartermaster; Isadore Kamen, adjutant; Harold Morrison, officer-of-the-day; Dr. Arthur Gordon, surgeon; Milton Hong, chaplain; Wallace Green, officer of the guard; Joseph Zarchy, historian; Joseph Honig, patriotic instructor; Arthur Zarchy, service officer, and Stanley Ganz, Max Schaffer and William Bell, trustees.

Raymond Newman is the arrangements committee chairman.  Dancing will follow the installation.

It would seem that by now, the year 2021, the David Kiel Jewish War Veterans Post no longer exists: Searching the very phrase “David Kiel Jewish War Veterans Post” in DuckDuckGo, and that o t h e r search engine – y’know, that one in Menlo Park? – yields parallel results:  “No results found for “David Kiel Jewish War Veterans Post””, and, “It looks like there aren’t many great matches for your search,” respectively.  This should not be too surprising, given the passage of time and the fragility of human memory, let alone the enormous sociological, demographic, and technological changes that have transpired in the United States, and the rapidly atrophying “West” in general, since the late 1940s. 

If such forces have affected the Western world in general, so are they similarly affecting the Jews of the United States.  As for the future of the Jews in the United States?  About that I make no predictions, other than to say that while history never repeats itself congruently, there is a similarity in patterns of thought and behavior across time and space, for human nature remains unchanged.  And so, the following two essays – by Joel Kotkin and Caroline Glick, despite all their likely ideological differences! – deserve equal contemplation. 

And in time, not just contemplation.

Why American Jews are Looking to Israel

The Threats American Jewry Refuses to Face

____________________

Klein, Jerome R. (Yosef Bar Yakov Klein), Pvt., 13179290
Died Non-Battle
Born 1924
Mr. and Mrs. Jacob E. (7/1/92-5/6/69) and Minnie (1/12/99-8/14/89) Klein (parents), Philadelphia, Pa.
Montefiore Cemetery, Jenkintown, Pa. – Section 4, Lot 353, Grave 1; Date of burial unknown
American Jews in World War II – Not listed

Here’s the Klein family plot at Montefiore Cemetery in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.  Jerome’s resting place is at the left.  

Jerome Klein’s matzeva.  Information concerning the specific military unit to which he was assigned is unavailable.  Given that he’s categorized as having “Died Non-Battle”, I believe his military service was limited to the United States.

____________________

Krieger, Morris J., PFC, 35517750, BSM, Purple Heart (at Mount Serra, Tuscany, Italy)
10th Mountain Division, 87th Mountain Infantry Regiment, F Company
Born 1917
Mrs. Emilie Krieger (wife); Charles Krieger (son; YOB 1942), William J. Krieger (brother); Mrs. Sadie Thomas and Mrs. Mary Winston (sisters), 110 Hill St., Bay City, Mi.
Florence American Cemetery, Florence, Italy – Plot B, Row 6, Grave 5
Cleveland Press & Plain Dealer – 5/23/45
American Jews in World War II – 492

____________________

London, Maurice (Moshe Bar Benyamin), PFC, 33786461, Purple Heart (Germany)
283rd Field Artillery Regiment, A Battery
Born 10/18/19, Philadelphia, Pa.
Mrs. Norma London (wife); “Ganelle” / “Janella”?) (daughter), 3209 W. Dauphin St., Philadelphia, Pa.
Benjamin London (father); Billie and Lena (sisters)
Mount Sharon Cemetery, Springfield, Pa. – Section L, Lot 450, Grave 2; Buried 9/26/48
The Jewish Exponent 5/18/45, 6/8/45, 10/1/48
The Philadelphia Inquirer 5/12/45, 9/24/48
Philadelphia Record 5/12/45, 5/28/45
American Jews in World War II – 537

Private Maurice London’s matzeva.  Examination of the upper part of the column reveals that a photographic portrait set in a ceramic mount may once have been attached to it, in the custom of many matzevot from the 20s through the 40s.  That picture has been lost in the decades since the late 1940s.  

____________________

Paul, Solomon, PFC, 33053838, BSM, Purple Heart
77th Infantry Division, 307th Infantry Regiment
Born 4/25/20
Mr. and Mrs. Louis and Rose Paul (parents), 2732 North Front St., Philadelphia, Pa.
Honolulu Memorial, Honolulu, Hawaii – Plot E-170; Buried 1/3/49
Philadelphia Inquirer 6/11/45
Philadelphia Bulletin and Philadelphia Record – 6/12/45
American Jews in World War II – 452

Penso, Stanley, PFC, 42183678, Purple Heart (Germany)
Born 1926 (?)
Mrs. Ray Penso (mother), 1460 Grand Concourse, New York, N.Y.
City College of New York Class of 1947
Cemetery location unknown
Casualty List 5/19/45
American Jews in World War II – 404

____________________

Sapperstein, Melvin S., Pvt., 36978192, Purple Heart
91st Infantry Division, 361st Infantry Regiment, I Company
Born Detroit, Michigan, 8/7/20
Mrs. Theodora (Alpert) Sapperstein (wife), 2923 Monterey St., Detroit, Mi.
Mr. Sol Sapperstein (father); Eileen (sister), 2923 Monterey, Detroit, Mi.
Machpelah Cemetery, Ferndale, Mi. – Section 6, Lot 36, Grave 413D; Buried 11/28/48
Casualty List 5/22/45
The Jewish News (Detroit) 6/15/45, 11/26/48
Baltimore Jewish Times 4/27/45
American Jews in World War II – 195

Announcement of a memorial service for Private Sapperstein, published in The Jewish News on June 15, 1945.  

Private Sapperstein’s matzeva, as photographed by FindAGrave contributor KChaffeeB.  His name appears atop the stone in Hebrew characters, but the text cannot be resolved due to the angle of the image.      

____________________

Schwartzman, Henry, Pvt., 32899677, Silver Star, Purple Heart
14th Armored Division, 48thy Armored Tank Battalion
Mrs. Sylvia Schwartzman (wife), 1559 40th St., Brooklyn, N.Y.
Tablets of the Missing at Lorraine American Cemetery, St. Avold, France
Casualty List 5/31/45
American Jews in World War II – 436

Unger, Irwin M. (Ezriel Mordechai Ben Yehuda Tzvi), PFC, 42064656, Silver Star, Purple Heart (Germany)
8th Armored Division, 49th Armored Infantry Battalion, A Company
Born 1926
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph (Juda) [1892-3/13/41] and Molly M. (Gottesman) [1897-2/17/77] Unger (parents), 133 Clarke Place, New York, N.Y.
Baron Hirsch Cemetery, Staten Island, N.Y. – First Nadworner Sick Benevolent Association (matezva is missing)
Casualty List 5/18/45
American Jews in World War II – 463

United States Army Air Force

First Lieutenant Nathaniel Norman Shane

– Murdered while Prisoner of War –

On the 17th of April, 1945, First Lieutenant Nathaniel Norman Shane (0-781687), a co-pilot in the 327th Bomb Squadron, 92nd Bomb Group, 8th Air Force, was one of three airmen – from a crew of eight – who were able to parachute from their B-17G Flying Fortress (43-39110, UX * E, otherwise known as Naughty Nancy), after their aircraft was struck by another 327th Bomb Squadron B-17G (44-8903, the un-nicknamed UX * G) in a mid-air collision during a mission to Dresden, Germany.

Missing Air Crew Report 14053, for Naughty Nancy, reveals that the plane’s other two survivors were the pilot, 1 Lt. John W. Paul., Jr., of Dundalk, Maryland, and tail gunner, S/Sgt. Peter B. Taylor, of Worcester, Massachusetts.  Of the eight crew members aboard UX * G, covered in MACR 14052, there were two survivors:  Pilot 1 Lt. Arthur H. Heuther, and co-pilot 2 Lt. Frank K. Jones.

Shane landed uninjured in the vicinity of the German town of Reinhardtsgrimma*, south of Dresden, and was soon captured by a member of the SS named “KIRSTEN”. 

As angry civilians arrived on the scene, Shane was murdered:  He was shot several times by Kirsten.

As documented in Shane’s Individual Deceased Personnel File (IDPF) – in the context of the discovery and identification of Shane’s body in 1948 – “The [Parish] Preacher [“Hinke”, who reported the shooting] evidently seemed to know more than he was willing to talk about.” 

A review of documents in Shane’s IDPF, and, NARA Records Group 153 (Records of the Office of the Judge Advocate General), shows that the case was not investigated beyond the context of recovering Shane’s body.  The limiting factor, of course, was the Cold War (the first Cold War?!):  Correspondence in 2017 with the German Central Office of the National Judicial Authorities for the Investigation of National Socialist Crimes revealed that the, “…events and persons described … are unknown or unidentifiable.  This, et. al., is due to the fact that both Reinhardtsgrimma and Dippoldiswalde are located in Saxony and thus lay in the Soviet occupation zone or the GDR, for which the central office was not responsible due to the German division until 1989/90.”

As recorded in Shane’s IDPF, the last information about Kirsten – first name unknown – was that as of February, 1948, the former member of the SS was jailed in the town of Dippoldiswalde. 

Beyond that, there is nothing.

Shane’s body was in time returned to the United States.  He was buried at King Solomon Memorial Park, in Clifton, New Jersey (Section Lebanon, Block 66, Grave 43) on April 23, 1950.

Having flown 27 missions, Nathaniel Shane received the Purple Heart, Air Medal, and three Oak Leaf Clusters.  Born on June 6, 1922, in Manhattan, he was married, his wife Beatrice residing at 1231 Boynton Avenue, in the Bronx.  His parents, Harry A. and Sadie Shane, and his brother, Sidney, lived at 810 Hunts Point Avenue, (also) in the Bronx.

While Lt. Shane’s name appeared in a Casualty List published on May 22, 1945, his name – like the names of many American Jewish WW II military casualties – is absent from American Jews in World War II, as attested to by many prior posts at this blog. 

Strangely, while the National WW II Memorial hosts an Honoree page for Lieutenant Shane created by his brother, with the statement, “AIR CORPS PILOT.  HE WAS KILLED ON APRIL 17, 1945 IN A RAID OVER DRESDEN, GERMANY. RECEIVED THE HONORABLE SERVICE LAPEL BUTTON, EUROPEAN-AFRICAN-MIDDLE EASTERN CAMPAIGN MEDAL WITH 1 BRONZE STAR, AND THE WWII VICTORY MEDAL,” (accompanied by the above photo of the Lieutenant), Nathaniel Shane’s name is absent from that website’s National Archives Registry.  (I’ve encountered this discrepancy with other record searches at the National WW II Memorial website.)

Akin to the post about Corporal Jack Bartman, I hope to create a separate post about Nathaniel Shane’s story in the future. 

“…a former municipality in the district of Weisseritzkreis in Saxony in Germany located near Dresden. On 2 January 2008, it merged into the town Glashütte.

This Oogle map image shows Reinhardtsgrimma in relation to Dresden. 

…and, Oogling on in, here’s a map of the town at a larger scale. 

Soviet Union

Red Army
U.S.S.R. (C.C.C.Р.), Red Army [РККА (Рабоче-крестьянская Красная армия)]

Altman, Boris Shlemovich – Guards Senior Sergeant [Альтман, Борис Шлемович – Гвардии Старший Сержант]
385th Guards Heavy Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment
Telephone Operator [Телефонист]
Born 1924; Tetievskiy Raion

Beloshevskiy, David Borisovich – Junior Lieutenant [Белошевский, Давид Борисович – Младший Лейтенант]
6th Guards Tank Corps, 51st Guards Tank Brigade
Tank Commander [Командир Танка]
Born 1922; city of Serdobsk
Memorial Book of Jewish Soldiers Who Died in Battles Against Nazism – 1941-1945 – Volume I – 126

Dekhtyar Iosif Markovich – Lieutenant [Дехтяр, Иосиф Маркович – Лейтенант]
Battery Commander – Self-Propelled Guns [Командир Батареи – Самоходной Установки] – SU-76 [СУ-76]
Armored and Mechanized Troops, 1221st Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment, 1st Belorussian Front
Born 1919, city of Korosten, Zhytomyr Oblast, Ukraine

Gimelfarb / Gimelford, Nikolay Naumovich – Guards Sergeant Major [Гимельфарб / Гимельфорд, Николай Наумович – Гвардии Старшина]
Cannon Commander – Self-Propelled Gun [Командир Орудия – Самоходной Установки] – ISU-122 [ИСУ-122]
367th Guards Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment, 31st Tank Corps
Born 1925; city of Moscow

Greys, Grigoriy Danilovich – Guards Junior Lieutenant [Грейс, Григорий Данилович – Гвардии Младший Лейтенант]
54th Guards Tank Brigade
Tank Commander [Командир Танка]
Born 1911; Kushchenskiy Raion, Rostov Oblast
Memorial Book of Jewish Soldiers Who Died in Battles Against Nazism – 1941-1945 – Volume VIII – 206

Perelman, Lev Solomonovich – Private [Перельман, Лев Соломонович – Красноармеец]
Machine-Gunner [Автоматчик]
240th Rifle Division
Born 1923; city of Nezhin
Memorial Book of Jewish Soldiers Who Died in Battles Against Nazism – 1941-1945 – Volume VIII – 401

Sunik, Abram Shaevich – Junior Lieutenant [Суник, Абрам Шаевич – Младший Лейтенант]
175th Tank Brigade
Tank Commander [Командир Танка]
Born 1921; city of Tashkent
Memorial Book of Jewish Soldiers Who Died in Battles Against Nazism – 1941-1945 – Volume III – pp. 395, 423

Tsimkin / Tsinkin Aleksandr Yakovlevich, Guards Sergeant [Цимкин / Цинкин, Александр Яковлевич – Гвардии Сержант]
Gun Charger (Заряжающий)
51st Guards Tank Brigade
At Ette, Germany
Born 1910; city of Mari, Turkmen SSR

England

“FROST, WITH A GESTURE STAYS THE WAVES THAT DANCE.”

Warrant Officer II Class John Gamble was one of the 37 members of the Jewish Brigade who were killed during the time in which the unit was engaged in combat with German forces.  Biographical information, his portrait, and his story as presented in Jacob Lifshitz’s The Book of the Jewish Brigade: The History of the Jewish Brigade Fighting and Rescuing [in] the Diaspora – the latter transcribed as Hebrew, with English translation – are presented below…  

Gamble, John Allan, WO 2C, 938393, Battery Sergeant-Major
England, Royal Artillery
200th Field Regiment, Palestine Regiment, Jewish Brigade Group
Mrs. Joan Gamble (wife), Kingsbury, Middlesex, England
Mr. and Mrs. Graham and Caroline Susan Gamble (parents)
Born 1918
Forli War Cemetery, Vecchiazzano, Forli, Italy – VI,C,23
We Will Remember Them – A Record of the Jews Who Died in the Armed Forces of the Crown 1939 – 1945, Volume I – 244
The Book of the Jewish Brigade – 249

סרגינט מיגיור גאמבל ג’ון אלאן ז”ל.

Sergeant Major John Allan Gamble of blessed memory.

נפצע ומת מפצעיו ביום 17 באפריל 1945 בתאונת-דרכים באיטליה.

He was injured in a car accident in Italy on April 17, 1945 and died of his injuries.

סוללת התותחנים שלו נסעה לחזית ,וג’ון ,שרכב על אופנוע ,שימש כמפקח-התנועה.  מכוניות השיירה העלו גלי אבק גדולים לאורך הדרך ,שסינוורו את העינים והאופנוע שלו התנגש עם מכונית-משא גדולה והוא נפצע קשה בברכיו ובשוקיו ומת מפצעיו .נקבר בבית-הקברות הצבאי (Forli)  בעיר פורלי.

His artillery battery drove to the front, and John, riding a motorcycle, served as traffic inspector.  The convoy cars raised large waves of dust along the road, which dazzled his eyes and his motorcycle collided with a large truck and he was badly injured in his knees and calves and died of his wounds.  He was buried in the military cemetery in the town of Forli.

בן כ”ז במותו  .נוצרי יליד אנגליה  .נתחנד בבית-ספר ברונט שבמאנספילד  .ספורטאי נלהב ,ייצג את בית-ספרו בתחרויות קרירט וכדור רגל והיה חבר פעיל במשד כמה בקלוב חובבי הקריקמ בוודהאוז ;שחייו וצולל מובהק  .עסק לפני התגייסותו בהנהלת-חשבונות  .גשוי  .התגייס לצבא עם פרוץ המלחמה וצורף לחיל התותחנים  .עד שנת 1943 שימש כמדריך בשיעורי-תותחנות בדרום וולס ובאירלנד ,אחר כך נשלח לצפון-אפריקה ושירת במחנה השמיני  .אתר עבר לאיטליה והצמיין באומץ-לב בפעולות בפיזה וזבה על בך באות-ההצטיינות “עלי אשל” ביום 24 באוגוסט 1944  .ושוב הצטיין באומץ-לב זוכה להיוכר בהודעה צבאית ביום 11 בינואר 1945  .כשהחי”ל נכנס לחזית ,צורף אלאן לחיל התותחנים שבחי”ל.

He was 27 years old at the time of his death.  A Christian born in England.  He became an enthusiastic athlete at the Brunt School in Mansfield. He joined the army when the war broke out and joined the artillery.  Until 1943 he served as an artillery instructor in South Wales and Ireland, then was sent to North Africa and served in the camp “Ali Eshel” on August 24, 1944.  And again he excelled in courage.  He was recognized in a military announcement on January 11, 1945.

This phot of Warrant Officer II Class’ Gamble’s matzeva is by FindAGrave researcher bbmir (no longer active), who apparently took images of many tombstones at the Forli War Cemetery.  

____________________

Gordon, Stanley Edward, Lt., 331196
Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment)
Mr. A. Gordon (father), “Aloha”, King__on (?) Lane, Southwick, England
(also) 86 Great Tischfield St., London, England
Becklingen War Cemetery, Borkel, Kreis Becklingen, Germany – 3,B,16
Jewish Chronicle 5/18/45
We Will Remember Them – A Record of the Jews Who Died in the Armed Forces of the Crown 1939 – 1945, Volume I – 96

____________________

“GRIEVOUSLY MOURNED BY LOVING PARENTS, SISTERS, BROTHERS AND RELATIVES.”

Rosen, Michael, Lance Bombardier, 1544792
Royal Artillery, 71st Anti-Tank Regiment
Mr. and Mrs. Morris and Leah Rosen (parents), Sheffield, England
Born 1920
Hanover War Cemetery, Germany – 7,F,12
We Will Remember Them – A Record of the Jews Who Died in the Armed Forces of the Crown 1939 – 1945, Volume I – 148

This image of Lance Bombardier Rosen’s matzeva is by FindAGrave researcher pfo.  Akin to the photo of Warrant Officer II Class Gamble’s tombstone, this image reveals the powerfully simple standardized design of tombstones in Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries, where commemorative inscriptions always appear below the religious symbol engraved in the stone’s center.  

France

Bouaziz, Isaac, at Meknes, Morocco
France (Maroc), Armée de Terre, 16eme GA FTA Alger
From Fez, Morocco
Born 10/21/21
Died of illness (Maladie)

Golberg, Salomon, at Baden-Baden, Germany
France, Armée de Terre, 19eme Bataillon de Chasseurs à Pied
From Paris, France
Born 2/16/24
Died of wounds (Des suites des Blessures)

Perez, Moise, at Kehl [sic], Germany
France (Maroc), 101eme Genie
Born Marrakech, Morocco, 1919
Killed in combat (Tue au combat)

Poland

(Operation Bautzen-Elba, and, Operation Brand-Berlin)

Fajfer, Leon, Pvt. (Germany, Brandenburg, Karlshof (Operation Brand-Berlin))
Polish People’s Army, 7th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Daniel Fajfer (father)
Born 1919
JMCPAWW2 I – 19

Frenkiel, Maksymilian, Pvt. (Germany, Altreetz (Operation Brand Berlin))
Poland, Polish People’s Army, 5th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Baruch Frenkiel (father)
Born Kuchary, Poland, 1918
JMCPAWW2 I – 22

Gondowicz, Henryk, Pvt. (Operation Pomeranian Wall)
Polish People’s Army
JMCPAWW2 I – 25

Grynblat, Jakub, Sergeant Major (Germany, Altreetz (Operation Brand Berlin))
Polish People’s Army, 5th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Chaim Grynblat (father)
Born Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland; 1917
JMCPAWW2 I – 26

Klugman, Oskar, Pvt. (Poland-Germany, Oder River (Operation Brand Berlin))
Polish People’s Army, 2nd Light Artillery Regiment
Mr. Henryk Klugman (father)
Born Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland; 1917
JMCPAWW2 I – 37

Kniazanski, Maks, First Sergeant (Germany, Altwriezen (Operation Brand Berlin))
Polish People’s Army
Born 1925
JMCPAWW2 I – 37

Lampert, Leon, Lance Corporal, 27094 (Rhede, Germany; Canadian Hospital No. 6 at Ootmarsum, Netherlands)
1 Polska Dywizja Pancerna, 10 Pulk Dragonow
Poland, Polish Army West
Born Czernin d. Pieszew, Poland; 2/4/19
Jonkerbos War Cemetery, Gelderland, Netherlands – Plot V, Row A, Grave 3; Initially buried in Cemetery “Kuiperberg”, Ootmarsum, Netherlands
JMCPAWW2 II – 118

Landau, Antoni, Pvt. (Germany, Brandenburg, Neurüdnitz (Operation Brand Berlin))
Polish People’s Army, 6th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Natan Landau (father)
Born Tyczyn, Podkarpackie, Poland, 1905
JMCPAWW2 I – 43

Majner, Tadeusz, Cpl. (Germany, Brandenburg, Bad Freienwalde (Operation Brand Berlin))
Polish People’s Army, 4th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Leon Majner (father)
Born Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland; 1912
JMCPAWW2 I – 47

Nadryczny, Beniamin, Pvt. (Germany, Brandenburg, Bad Freienwalde (Operation Brand Berlin))
Poland, Polish People’s Army, 4th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Shlomo Nadryczny (father)
Born Tulicze (d. Kobryn), Poland, 1920
JMCPAWW2 I – 51

Panas, Wladyslaw, Pvt. (German-Polish border, Niesse (Operation Bautzen Elba))
Polish People’s Army, 37th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Daniel Panas (father)
Born 1908
JMCPAWW2 I – 53

Perelberg, Izaak, Cpl. (Germany, Brandenburg, Bad Freienwalde (Operation Brand Berlin))
Poland, Polish People’s Army, 1st Howitzer Regiment
Mr. Ben-Zion Perelberg (father)
Gorn Hrubieszow, Lubelskie, Poland; 1922
JMCPAWW2 I – 53

Rajchel, Jozef, Cpl. (Germany, Brandenburg, Neuwustrow (Operation Brand Berlin))
Lithuania, Polish People’s Army, 5th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Izrael Rajchel (father)
Born Braslaw (d. Vilna), Lithuania; 1915
JMCPAWW2 I – 56

Roza, Izrael, WO (Germany, Konigsreetz (Operation Brand Berlin))
Poland, Polish People’s Army, 4th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Icek Roza (father)
Born Lochow (d. Wegrow) [Mazowieckie?], Poland, 1916
JMCPAWW2 I – 59

Rozenbaum, Chaim, Pvt. (Germany, Saxony, Lodenau (Operation Bautzen Elba))
Polish People’s Army, 33rd Infantry Regiment
Mr. Izrael Rozenbaum (father)
Born 1924
JMCPAWW2 I – 58

Szafran, Chil, Pvt. (Germany, Saxony, Lodenau (Operation Bautzen Elba))
Polish People’s Army, 33rd Infantry Regiment
Mr. Mojzesz Szafran (father)
Born 1903
JMCPAWW2 I – 65

Szwarc, Roman, Cpl. (Germany, Klemzow (Operation Brand Berlin))
Poland, Polish People’s Army, 13th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Jozef Szwarc (father)
Born Wygnanka (d. Lublin), Poland, 1916
JMCPAWW2 I – 69

Trostenman, Zelik, Pvt. (Germany, Altreetz (Operation Brand Berlin))
Poland, Polish People’s Army, 5th Infantry Regiment
Mr. Lejb Trostenman (father)
Born Wolomin, Mazowieckie, Poland, 1908
JMCPAWW2 I – 71

Prisoners of War

United States Army

Glassoff, Isadore, Pvt., 31028697, Field Artillery, Purple Heart
6th Armored Division, 212th Field Artillery Battalion, Service Battery
Born in Massachusetts, 9/14/14; Died 2/21/78
Prisoner of War; POW camp (if any…) unknown
Mr. and Mrs. Hyman and Ida Glassoff (parents), Joseph (brother), 143 Cottage St., Everett, Ma.
Casualty List (Liberated POW) 6/21/45
American Jews in World War II – 160

____________________

United States Army Air Force

8th Air Force
78th Fighter Group
82nd Fighter Squadron

While a number of my prior posts have either focused on, profiled, or mentioned in passing Jewish aviators who served as fighter pilots in the WW I United States Army Air Service (like Jacques M. Swaab), United States Army Air Force, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, and Royal Air Force, the 17th of April in 1945 was somewhat unusual in this respect.  That day, two Jewish fighter pilots – assigned to the same Air Force – the England-based 8th Air Force; members of the same Fighter Group – the 78th; members of the same Fighter Squadron – the 82nd; flying the same type of aircraft – the P-51D Mustang; were lost during a bomber escort and strafing mission to the Dresden area.  The Parallels continue.  Both were immediately captured (one was injured) and both survived the war’s closing weeks (well, the war obviously continued in the Pacific Theater!) to eventually return to the United States.

On another, more abstract level, documentation about these two pilots has its own curious parallel:  The Missing Air Crew Reports (MACRs) covering their loss in combat were filed sequentially, and their portraits can be found in the same official Army Air Force Photograph, image 72440AC (A12409).  

Who were they?  Second Lieutenant Alvin Mordecai Rosenberg (MACR 13940) and First Lieutenant Allen Abraham Rosenblum (MACR 13939).  

____________________

Lt. Rosenberg, 0-830084, parachuted from his P-51D 44-72357 (the probably un-nicknamed MX * D) at a point southwest of Adorf and north-northeast of Selb, Germany, due to an engine fire (and possible coolant leak) of unknown origin.  Though nothing is known about his experiences as a POW, he would eventually return to his home state of New York.  Born on January 6, 1924, he was the son of Raphael and Estelle, the family living at 2261 64th Street, in Brooklyn.  He received the Air Medal, three Oak Leaf Clusters, and Purple Heart, though it’s not known if the latter award was specifically granted for the April 17 mission.  His name appeared in the Brooklyn Eagle on July 25, 1941 (yes, 1941, not 1944), and in a War Department Casualty List of May 18, 1945.  And, his name also appears on page 416 of American Jews in World War II.  

Here’s a very high resolution scan of his portrait, from Army Air Force Photo 72440AC (A12409)…

…and, here’s a transcript of the Missing Aircrew Report pertaining to his loss:

S T A T E M E N T

I was flying Surtax Yellow leader when Surtax leader went down on an airdrome to destroy a jet that had just landed.  My wingman couldn’t get his left combat tank off, so I didn’t take my flight down.  Surtax spare, Lt. Rosenberg, was flying #5 in Yellow flight.  He called that something had popped out the right side of his cowling.  He had not been hit by flak.  I told him to open his coolant and oil shutters wide, which he did, and to pick up a heading of 270 degrees, which he failed to do.  He kept steering about 180 degrees and called in about 3 minutes later that he had returned his shutters to automatic because the plane seemed to be OK.  I told him again to steer about 280 or 290 degrees, which he did, and told him to open his shutters again, which he did.  By this time, I was flying fairly close formation with him, so I could observe the right side of his plane.  A thin steady stream of white smoke was coming out of the exhaust stacks, which became increasingly worse after about 4 or 5 minutes.  He said it was going to quit and wanted to know if we were in friendly territory.  I told him to prime like mad, and the smoke stopped temporarily.  I told him to try to keep it going for at least 7 minutes, because we were still in enemy territory.  Every time the smoke started, I would yell at him to prime, and the smoke would stop.  About 3 minutes from the time it got bad, however, the engine quit altogether and flames emanated from around the exhaust stacks.  He immediately released the canopy and bailed successfully.  The plane crashed and exploded, and he landed about 100 yards from a house.  Two people came out to him, and he seemed to be OK, for he stood and waved to us.  Lt. Childs, my element leader, buzzed them a couple of times, so his description of the people with Lt. Rosenberg follows.  Lt. Rosenberg’s exact position is not known, but his approximate position is in the vicinity of Adorf, just south of Plauen.

IVAN H. KEATLEY 0-665815
Captain, Air Corps.

I was flying Surtax Yellow 3.  After Lt. Rosenberg bailed out, I saw him land safely in an open field and saw him met by two German men.  One appeared to have on an olive drab uniform, the other was wearing civilian clothes.  As I passed over, he waved that he was OK.  The second time I passed over he was standing in a small village, which I believe was Adorf.

JOHN C. CHILDS 0-2005853
1st Lt., Air Corps

I certify I have interrogated every pilot in the vicinity of Adorf, where Lt. Rosenberg became MIA, and that all available information is incorporated in the statements above.

ERWIN C. BOETTCHER
Captain, Air Corps
Intelligence Officer

Here’s by the map accompanying the MACR.  Not too precise, but it does the job.  

I’ve been unable to trace information about Lt. Rosenberg further.  

____________________

The day was rather more eventful for Lieutenant Rosenblum.  During a strafing attack against the Kralupy Airdrome, north-northwest of Prague and just east of the Vltava River, where his formation position was that of “Surtax Red Leader”, his left drop tank (which he couldn’t jettison) and propeller struck the ground, even as his Mustang (P-51D 44-72367, the probably un-nicknamed “MX * C”) became the focus of German antiaircraft fire.  After a brief farewell radio message, he attempted to belly-land his plane, but the aircraft tumbled, and – as anti-aircraft fire continued – it cartwheeled, tearing off the right wing.  Though no sign of life was seen by an observing pilot (Lt. Klassen) once the hurtling Mustang stopped moving, Lt. Rosenblum emerged from the wreck quite alive, his only injury a broken arm.  As revealed in an Atlanta Constitution article of October 30, 1945 (see below), he was interned at Stalag 18C, in Markt Pongau, Austria, and like Lt. Rosenberg, in time returned to the United States.  

Serial number 0-678943, he completed 56 missions, and received the Air Medal and two Oak Leaf Clusters, at least based on information in American Jews in World War II, where his name appears on page 89.  Given his injury and total number of missions flown, it seems that he should have received the Purple Heart and eleven Oak Leaf Clusters…  

Lt. Rosenblum’s parents were Nathan (Nuchum) Beryl and Freda (Bain) Rosenblum, of 127 Peachtree Street, in Anderson, South Carolina, while his sister Sarah was married to Sergeant David D. Danneman (himself a POW, as described below), from 771 Washington Street, in Atlanta.  Born in Orangeburg, South Carolina, on April 26, 1923, he passed away on October 12, 1986, and is buried at  Forest Lawn Memorial Cemetery, in Lilburn, Georgia.  Along with American Jews in World War II, his name appeared in an official Casualty List on May 17, 1945, the Southern Israelite on November 2, 1945, and the Atlanta Constitution on March 9, 1945.  This latter article follows below…  

Lt. Allen Rosenblum In Air Convoy to Berlin

Lt. Allen A. Rosenblum, whose sister, Mrs. David Danneman, lives at 771 Washington Street, S.W., was one of 900 fighter pilots convoying 1,000 Eighth Air Force Fortresses in a recent devastating attack on the heart of Berlin.

Flying a P-51 Mustang, Lt. Rosenblum was in the air more than five and a half hours on the Berlin mission.  His group, which went down to strafe an airfield at Luneburg and trains in other parts of western Germany, left 15 Nazi planes burning on the field and damaged 11 others, in addition to several locomotives and oil cars which were destroyed.

____________________

Here’s a very high resolution scan of Lt. Rosenblum’s portrait, from Army Air Force Photo 72440AC (A12409)…

…and, here’s a transcript of the Missing Aircrew Report pertaining to his loss:

STATEMENTS OF EYE–WITNESSES

We were flying in Surtax Red flight, led by Lt. Rosenblum, on a bomber escort to Dresden.  After the target, we flew south into Czechoslovakia and hit the deck to strafe an airdrome north of Prague.  Surtax Red leader tried to drop his tanks, but his left one would not come off.  One the run toward the field, while on the deck, Lt. Schneider called him, but he never did get it off.  As we neared the field, on the deck, flak began to come at us.  I saw it was being concentrated on Red leader.  We were line abreast and I saw Rosenblum’s prop and tank hit the ground before reaching the field as he was hugging the ground to get under the flak.  We believe he also hit his prop again on the field.  He then said, “I’ve got to belly in here, so long fellows.”  We passed him just as he was bellying in and did not get another look at the aircraft. 

EDWIN O. SCHNEIDER  0-713584
1st Lt., Air Corps.

HARRY L. ROE JR 0-830318
2nd Lt., Air Corps.

__________

I was Cargo (83rd Fighter Squadron) Yellow leader on bomber escort In the Dresden area when Nuthouse reported jets in the area.  I took my Section south of target to investigate some Bogies which turned out to be Surtax White and Red flights.  They were positioning themselves to strafe an airdrome, so I circled to observe results.  As Surtax Red Flight went over the drome, I saw one aircraft lagging behind and going very slow, and at that time Surtax Red leader called and said, “I’ve got to belly in here, so long fellows.”  He cleared the west edge of the airfield, but hit something with his left wing just as he bellied in, which spun the aircraft around and tore off his right wing as he cart-wheeled.  From the time he reached the edge of the field until after the aircraft came to a stop, I observed hits on and all around his aircraft from small caliber arms.  The aircraft did not burn, and no one got out as I circled. 

PETER W. KLASSEN 0-708695
1st Lt., Air Corps

I certify that I have interrogated every pilot in the area of Kralupy Airdrome at the time Lt. Rosenblum became MIA.  All available information is Incorporated in the statements of the above. 

ERRIN C. BOETTCHER
Captain, Air Corps
Intelligence Officer.

Here’s by the map accompanying the MACR.  Like that for Lt. Rosenberg, not too detailed, but close enough, considering the conditions (combat conditions, that is!) under which observations were made. 

Given the nearly eight decades that have transpired since the events in question, I thought it would be interesting to identify the actual location and current appearance of the Krapuly Airfield.  This was not difficult, for the website Vrtulníky v Česku (Helicopters in the Czech Republic) has substantial information (at “Kralupy nad Vltavou Kralup“) chronologically arranged, about the airfield’s history from 1913 through 1955, of course in Czech.  This includes the statement;

“16.4.1945 nálet stíhačů od 78th FG a 339th FG, 8th USAAF z Velké Británie.

Jako první byly zničeny čtyři stroje He 177.  Pozoroval jsem vzdušný kolotoč z výšiny nad Minicemi, nad kterými dokončovaly některé stroje otáčky a vracely se zpět ke kralupskému letišti.  V krátké době zůstaly z pýchy německého letectva na zemi jen hořící trosky.  Po osmi průletech spojeneckých stíhačů byl celý prostor letiště zničen.  Proti útočícím Mustangům nezasáhli Němci ani ze země, ani ze vzduchu. Zdroj.

Přímý účastník útoku na kralupské letiště Leutenant J.W. Gokey od 503rd FS, 339th FG, 8th USAAF z Velké Británie vzpomíná: “V oblasti, kam jsem směřoval, jsem spatřil několik letadel 78th FG, útočících na letiště u Kralup.  Zapojili jsme se také krátce do boje.  Plocha byla špatně přístupná a již na ni hořelo 30 nebo 35 transportních Ju 52.  Zaměřili jsme se na vybavení letiště a zničili několik baráků na severu hlavní dráhy. Pro nedostatek paliva jsme prostor brzy opustili.  Ze země nešla žádná palba, ale viděl jsem dva palposty flaku, které pravděpodobně zničila již 78th FG ..”

Approximate translation?

On April 16, 1945 raid [by] fighters from the 78th FG and 339th FG, 8th USAAF from Great Britain.

The He 177 aircraft were the first to be destroyed.  In a short time, out of the pride of the German Air Force, only burning debris remained on the ground.  After eight flights by Allied fighters, the entire area of the airport was destroyed.  The Germans did not intervene against the attacking Mustangs either from the ground or from the air.

A direct participant in the attack on Kralupy Airport, Lieutenant J.W. Gokey from the 503rd FS, 339th FG, 8th USAAF from Great Britain recalls: “In the area where I was heading, I saw several 78th FG aircraft attacking the airport near Kralupy.  We also participated briefly.  The area was difficult to access and 30 or 35 Ju-52 transports [had] already burned.  We focused on airport equipment and destroyed several barracks in the north of the main runway.  Two flak outposts were probably destroyed by the 78th FG.”

Interestingly, given that Kralupy nad Vltavou Kralup has no information about an attack against the Kralupy Airfield on April 17 – and I don’t think the 78th Fighter Group would have conducted a strafing attack against the same distant enemy airfield on two consecutive days – I wonder if the above statement about a mission on April 16, actually refers to the 78th’s mission of April 17.  (I think it may!)  In any event, here are three images of an April strafing attack against the Kralupy airfield from the same web page.  (The source of the photos is not listed.)

In the image below, a P-51 is visible banking to the left, in the upper right corner.  

But, what about the airfield’s specific location?  Kralupy nad Vltavou Kralup displays air photos of the area, taken in 1946 and 1953, which show the field in relation to nearby geographic features, as well as the wreckage of Luftwaffe aircraft (I think Siebel 204s) that after the war were dumped in nearby quarries, or, pushed into wooded areas bordering the field.  This photo, taken in 1953, shows the locations of four of these aeronautical junk piles – denoted by red ovals – at the periphery of the field.  

Using this information and these photos in conjunction with the map in MACR 13939, I’ve created the following series of Oogle maps which – as you move “down” this page – reveal, at successively larger scales and therefore in greater detail, contemporary views of the airfield’s location.  In each case, the airfield site is denoted by a red circle.    

First, the airfield in relation to the city of Prague:  A teeny-tiny red circle on this small-scale map.

Oogling on in, the airfield in relation to Veltrusy, and, Karlupy nad Vltavou (“Kralupy on the Vltava River”).  

Oogling even closer…

Here’s a 2021 Landsat view of the area above.  You can see that much of the terrain once occupied by the airfield is now taken up by buildings.  

A map view again, but closer…

…followed by another Landsat image at the same scale as above.  Note that probably more than half of the area once occupied by the airfield is now taken up by industrial development.  

Finally, in this 3-D Oogle image of the airfield site (looking west-northwest) the extent of postwar construction is very clear.  Also noticeable at the lower center right is one of the forested areas that existed back in 1945.  Perhaps some aircraft wrecks – even including the remnants of P-51D 44-72367? – still lie there, deeply buried, awaiting discovery?

____________________

But, what of the two lost Mustangs?  The fate of the P-51s is clearly described in the MACRs:  Lieutenant Rosenberg’s plane crashed and exploded not far from where he landed by parachute, while Lieutenant Rosenblum’s aircraft broke apart when he crash-landed on the airfield.  Given the time-frame of the planes’ losses, there are no Luftgaukommando Reports pertaining to them.  End of that story.    

As for the markings of the two aircraft, information comes from Garry Fry’s Eagles of Duxford, which lists the squadron codes assigned to the planes as MX * C for Lt. Rosenblum’s, and MX * D for Lt. Rosenberg’s.  Though Eagles does not indicate if the planes carried nicknames or nose art, this possibility is not entirely precluded, for – given the fact that the pertinent MACRs don’t even record the P-51’s squadron codes in the first place! – if the planes had been nicknamed, this information may simply have never been preserved.

Regardless, the following two images, from Peter Randall’s Little Friends website, give a very good representation of the presumable appearance of the two fighters: Natural metal finish, red rudders, “swept” black and white checkerboard nose trimmed in red surrounding the front half of the aircraft’s nose, and squadron codes painted in black (or, insignia blue?) trimmed with red. 

First, P-51D 44-63246:  This particular image was, “Taken in Duxford, England by Maj. Atlee G. (Pappy) Manthos while operations officer with the 78th Fighter Group following the end of hostilities in Europe.  The pilot of this 82nd FS P-51D was Lt. John C. Childs of Hot Springs, Arkansas.”

Second, P-51D 44-15745: “Lt. Walter E Bourque.  Detroit, Mi.  82nd Fighter Squadron.  P-51D 44-15745 MX-T.”  This photo also appears as image UPL26433 via the American Air Museum in England.

__________

But then, there’s this…  Lt. Rosenblum, seated in the cockpit of unidentified P-51D Rosey THE Riveter.  Unfortunately (!), specific identification of this plane is impossible, since the plane’s individual aircraft code letter – painted on the aft fuselage – does not appear in the image.  Otherwise, the shade of the Rosey THE Riveter logo and MX squadron code letters – both dark, with lighter outline – appear to be identical.  Interestingly, rather than a K-14 gyroscopic gunsight, the plane is equipped with a (N-9?) reflector gunsight. 

Unfortunately, the source of this image – the very title of the book in which I discovered it – escapes me for the moment (!), but I think the picture appeared in a book about the history of the Jews in the South.  In any event, the image is credited to Raymond and Sandra Lee Rosenblum.  [Update 8/14/21: The image is from the 2002 book A Portion of the People – Three Hundred Years of Southern Jewish Life, and is from the collection of Raymond and Sandra Lee Rosenblum.]  

__________

But, there’s more, and even earlier, to Lt. Rosenblum’s story.  April 17, 1945 was not the only day on which he did not – immediately – return to his base. 

On September 18, 1944, he bellied in east of Brussels in P-47D 43-25300 (“MX * I”, nickname: “B Hope”).  As described by Garry Fry in a letter to Rudy Kenis of De Panne, Belgium, of October 31, 1986,

Dear Rudy,

This P-47 43-25300 was successfully belly-landed on Sept. 18, 44…  The pilot was 1 Lt. Allen A. Rosenblum, 82 F.S., who was not hurt and he returned to England and resumed his duties.  The reason for the crash is that he ran out of gasoline on the way home. 

Photographs of the wreck of MX * I can be viewed here, while a summary of the day’s events, from the 82nd Fighter Squadron History, follows:  

2 October 1944

September 18.  17 Planes on fighter bomber mission of Flak positions in Holland.  In Rotterdam 1530 hrs.  Out Amsterdam 1709 hrs.  Take off 1435 hrs.  Down at 1740 hrs.  Bombing poor to good results on flak positions and barges.  30 Plus trucks in convoy strafed on highway between Brest and Vianen, 18 destroyed and 11 damaged.  Heavy accurate light and heavy flak from Rotterdam and flak barges west of the city.  2 Cat. AC and 1 Cat. A flak damage.  Lt. R.C. Snyder MIA, hit by flak and bellied in SW of Rotterdam and heard to say he was O.K. after landing.  [P-47D 42-75551, MX * M, MACR 9001] Pilots were Capt. May, Lts. Lamb, Bolgert, Coss, Shope, Rosenblum, Mattern, Nelson, Brown, Snyder, Boeckman, Croy, Sharp, Miller, Bosworth, Eggleston, and Keatley. 

Finally and perhaps most importantly, some comments about Allen A. Rosenblum as a “person”, from letters to Rudy Kenis in late 2012 by Allen’s son Michael.   

28 October 2012

Hi, Rudy – I have a picture of my dad in a plane with the MX * I marking, but not certain that was his plane.  I also have a photo of dad in a plane marked “Rosey the Riveter”.  He was shot down twice, but I only have information on his second crash in Poland (see attached).  It is possible that his first crash was in Belgium – he was able to make it back to Allied lines safely.  After his second crash, he was a POW until the end of the war (2-3 weeks) – fortunate.  Please let me know if you find out anything about the Belgium crash.  Dad never spoke much about his war efforts – doing so gave him nightmares for weeks afterwards.  I recently learned some of these details through contacts on the P-47 pilot website.

Many thanks

__________

4 November 2012

Hi, Rudy – Many thanks for the email.  I think Dad’s earlier crash because of low fuel matches what I know of his war efforts.  Here is a picture of Dad in his Rosey the Riveter (MX) aircraft.  [See above.]  Hope this helps.

……….

Forgot to mention that you words about my father are very kind.  He would have been very pleased to have heard them.  Dad almost never spoke about his time in the war.  Doing so would cause him to have nightmares for weeks afterward.  We would have called it PTSD.  It is amazing to me to find that there are efforts of others honoring efforts of pilots like Dad.  Many thanks.

____________________

Lieutenant Rosenblum’s brother-in-law, Sergeant David Daniel Danneman (34261537) served as a togglier in the 547th Bomb Squadron of the 384th Bomb Group.  His plane, B-17F 42-29870 (JD * U, otherwise known as BIG MOOSE)  piloted by 1 Lt. Giles F. Kauffman, was shot down on October 14, 1943.  Its loss is covered in MACR 1038 and Luftgaukommando Report KU 296 (which, being a very early “low numbered” Luftgaukommando Report, is missing from NARA Records Group 242), the entire crew of ten surviving.  

Born on August 1, 1918 in Anderson County, South Carolina, he was the son of Aaron and Jenny (Jacobovitz) Danneman.  His wife Sarah resided at 771 Washington Street in Atlanta, Georgia.    

David Danneman passed away at the young age of 49 on December 25, 1967.  His name appeared in a Casualty List released on June 15, 1945, and on page 87 of American Jews in World War II, where he is recorded as having received the Purple Heart.  His commemorative page at the National World War II Memorial can be found here.  

As mentioned above, on October 30, 1945, The Atlanta Constitution published a lengthy article (by Katherine Barnwell) about the experiences of Lt. Rosenblum and Sergeant Danneman, in the context of a postwar reunion of the two men.  Like many newspaper articles of the era, the account, which includes an excellent photo of the brothers-in-law and Sergeant Danneman’s wife Sarah, is particularly valuable in presenting information unavailable in military records.  A transcript follows:

Brothers-in-Law Meet Here; Held as POW 50 Miles Apart
STORY-BOOK-ENDING

It was a joyous reunion at 771 Washington street yesterday for two Atlanta brothers-in-law who met here for the first time in many months after being prisoners of war – 50 miles apart – in Germany.

It was an equally happy occasion for Mrs. Sarah Danneman, who was present at the meeting between her brother, Lt. Allen A. Rosenblum, and her husband, S/Sgt, David D. Danneman.  Both men served in the Eighth Air Force in England, and both were shot down in missions over Nazi territory.

It was, in fact, a story-book ending for all concerned, as the smiles which all three wore yesterday amply proved.  Danneman received his discharge about a week ago, and Rosenblum expects to become a civilian again around the first of December.

Danneman spent the longer period in a German prison – 19 months, though “it seemed much longer.”  He was sent overseas in April, 1942, and received his training at an RAF school in Kirkham, England.

NOSE GUNNER ON “FORT”

A nose gunner on a Flying Fortress, he was shot down on his third mission, over Schweinfurt, Germany, Oct. 14, 1943.  His plane was hit by antiaircraft flak, and he parachuted 28,000 feet to safety.

“That mission,” Danneman explained proudly, “caused the war to end six months earlier than it would have otherwise.  Although we lost 60 bombers, we destroyed the largest ball bearing factory in Germany.”

Danneman was taken to Krems, Austria, where he was imprisoned at Stalag 17B.  He remained there until April of this year when all prisoners there were forced marched to Braunau, Austria, Hitler’s birthplace.  He was liberated by the Third Army last May 2.

Like other American prisoners in Germany, he received little food except “wormy soup, a few potatoes, and some black bread.”  He himself received only one beating from guards, but he witnessed the torture of hundreds of Jewish prisoners who were “more dead than alive.”

HOMEMADE RADIOS

“We had hundreds of ‘bugs’ (homemade radios) in the camp,” Danneman said.  “We would swap cigarettes sent us by the Red Cross to French workers for radio parts, so that we could keep up with the progress of the war.”

But Danneman did not know that his wife’s husband, Lt. Allen Rosenblum was overseas, much less that he was a prisoner only 50 miles away later in the war.

Rosenblum went overseas in July, 1944, and completed 56 missions before being shot down.  He was attached to the 78th Fighter Group of the Eight Air Force and he was credited with destroying four German planes and damaging two others.

It was in April 1945, when he was strafing an air field in the Sudetenland that his plane was hit by antiaircraft fire.  He made a crash landing in a clump of trees, and suffered head wounds and a broken arm.

Taken prisoner immediately, he was sent to Stalag 18-C in Austria.  Although he was in prison only about three weeks before he was liberated, he lost 30 pounds during that time.

“BETTER OFF THAN MOST”

“But I was better off than most,” he admitted.  “I saw guys by the road so hungry that they were eating leaves from the trees – and grass too.”

Meanwhile, Mrs. Danneman here in Atlanta did mot merely wait idly for the return of her husband and brother.  Besides holding down a full-time job, she worked three nights a week as a nurse’s aid, and most other nights as a USO hostess.  She amassed more than 2,000 hours in USO work.

Both Danneman and Rosenblum were much-decorated for their Army service.  Rosenblum wears the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal, wight eight oak leaf clusters, the Purple Heart, Good Conduct medal, and the presidential unit citation.  Danneman received the Purple Heart last Friday, and the Air Medal and Good Conduct medal are on the way.

“Good conduct was sort of forced on me,” Danneman laughed, “since German guards were watching me for nearly two years.”

Wounded in Action

United States Army (Ground Forces)

Abramson, Harry, Pvt., 33939323, Purple Heart (Italy, Bologna)
Born 1919
Mrs. Eva Abramson (mother), 707 S. 4th St., Philadelphia, Pa.
The Jewish Exponent 5/18/45
Philadelphia Record 5/10/45
American Jews in World War II – 508

Cooper, Sidney, Sgt., 13077767, Purple Heart (at Ie Shima, Okinawa)
Born Philadelphia, Pa., 1/31/20
Mrs. Anne Cooper (wife); Gail Eileen and Marsha Sharon (daughters), 2500 N. Marston St. / 523 Snyder Ave., Philadelphia, Pa.
Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin and Florence Cooperman (parents), 2711 South 9th St., Philadelphia, Pa.
The Jewish Exponent 6/8/45
Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Record 5/29/45
American Jews in World War II – 516

Kaitz, Aaron A., Pvt., 33815875, Purple Heart (Germany)
Born 1926
Mr. and Mrs. Abraham H. and Anna C. Kaitz (parents), 1316 South Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
Jewish Exponent 5/18/45
Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Record 5/9/45
American Jews in World War II – 530

United States Marine Corps

Polotnick, Harry, Sgt., 810771, Purple Heart
6th Marine Division, 29th Marine Regiment, 3rd Battalion, G Company
Born 10/4/23; Died 3/27/91
Saint Louis, Mo. (next of kin unknown)
American Jews in World War II – 215

Other Incidents…

…United States Army Air Force

Rescued with fellow crew members after ditching in the Pacific…

Greenfogel, Maurice “Mo” (Moshe Bar Mordechay HaCohen), Sgt., 32874753, Passenger
5th Air Force, 2nd Emergency Rescue Squadron
No Missing Air Crew Report, Aircraft C-47B 43-47995, Pilot 1 Lt. Robert L. Rohlfing, 12 crew and passengers – all personnel survived; Rescued 4/18/45 at 2130 by Hospital Ship USS Maetsuycker
Born 10/23/24, Brooklyn, N.Y.; Died 6/4/17
Mr. and Mrs. Max and Gussie Greenfogel (parents), Albert and Evelyn (brother and sister), Brooklyn, N.Y.
American Jews in World War II – Not listed

The pilot of a B-17 Flying Fortress, who witnessed the loss of another B-17…

Rabinowitz, Eugene, 1 Lt., 0-831796 (Bomber Pilot)
8th Air Force, 305th Bomb Group, 366th Bomb Squadron
In MACR 14172, witness to loss of B-17G 43-38085 (“KY * L”, “Towering Titan”), pilot by 2 Lt. Brainerd E. Harris, 8 crew – no survivors
Probably from Brooklyn, N.Y.
Opelika-Auburn News – 9/15/20
American Jews in World War II – Not listed

Soviet Air Force
Military Air Forces – VVS (Военно-воздушные cилы России – ВВС)

Missing during combat mission on April 17 – 18, 1945.  Actual fate unknown.  

Shapiro, Mikhail Solomonovich – Junior Sergeant [Шапиро, Михаил Соломонович – Младший Сержант]
1st Guards Aviation Corps, 16th Guards Bombardment Aviation Regiment (By June of 1945, at Military Post 15539 “V”)
Aerial Gunner – Radio Operator [Воздушный Стрелок-Радист]
Aircraft: Probably… Il-4 [Ил-4]
Born 1926; city of Kiev
Mr. Galina Mikhaylovna (Moiseevna?) Shapiro (mother), Labzik Street, Uichi Building, Block 36, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

References

Dublin, Louis I., and Kohs, Samuel C., American Jews in World War II – The Story of 550,000 Fighters for Freedom, The Dial Press, New York, N.Y., 1947

Freeman, Roger A., The Mighty Eighth – A History of the U.S. 8th Army Air Force, Doubleday and Company, Inc., New York, N.Y., 1970

Freeman, Roger A., Camouflage & Markings – United States Army Air Force, 1937-1945 [“North American P-51 & F-6 Mustang U.S.A.A.F., E.T.O. & M.T.O., 1942-1945”], Ducimus Books Limited, London, England, 1974

Fry, Garry L., Eagles of Duxford: The 78th Fighter Group in World War II, Phalanx Publishers, St. Paul, Mn., 1992

Lifshitz, Jacob (יעקב, ליפשיץ), The Book of the Jewish Brigade: The History of the Jewish Brigade Fighting and Rescuing [in] the Diaspora (Sefer ha-Brigadah ha-Yehudit: ḳorot ha-ḥaṭivah ha-Yehudit ha-loḥemet ṿeha-matsilah et ha–golah ((גולהה קורות החטיבה היהודית הלוחמת והמצילה אתספר הבריגדה היהודית)), Shim’oni (שמעוני), Tel-Aviv, 1950

Maryanovskiy, M.F., Pivovarova, N.A., Sobol, I.S. (editors), Memorial Book of Jewish Soldiers Who Died in Battles Against Nazism – 1941-1945 – Volume I [Surnames beginning with А (A), Б (B), В (V), Г (G), Д (D), Е (E), Ж (Zh), З (Z), И (I)], Union of Jewish War Invalids and Veterans, Moscow, Russian Federation, 1994

Maryanovskiy, M.F., Pivovarova, N.A., Sobol, I.S. (editors), Memorial Book of Jewish Soldiers Who Died in Battles Against Nazism – 1941-1945 – Volume III [Surnames beginning with О (O), П (P), Р (R), С (S)], Union of Jewish War Invalids and Veterans, Moscow, Russian Federation, 1996

Maryanovskiy, M.F., Pivovarova, N.A., Sobol, I.S. (editors), Memorial Book of Jewish Soldiers Who Died in Battles Against Nazism – 1941-1945 – Volume VIII [Surnames beginning with all letters of the alphabet], Union of Jewish War Invalids and Veterans, Moscow, Russian Federation, 2005

Meirtchak, Benjamin, Jewish Military Casualties in the Polish Armies in World War II: I – Jewish Soldiers and Officers of the Polish People’s Army Killed and Missing in Action 1943-1945 [“JMCPAWW2 I”], World Federation of Jewish Fighters Partisans and Camp Inmates: Association of Jewish War Veterans of the Polish Armies in Israel, Tel Aviv, Israel, 1994

Meirtchak, Benjamin, Jewish Military Casualties in the Polish Armies in World War II: II – Jewish Military Casualties in September 1939 Campaign – Jewish Military Casualties in the Polish Armed Forces in Exile Soldiers and Officers of the Polish People’s Army Killed and Missing in Action 1943-1945 [“JMCPAWW2 II”], World Federation of Jewish Fighters Partisans and Camp Inmates: Association of Jewish War Veterans of the Polish Armies in Israel, Tel Aviv, Israel, 1995

Morris, Henry, Edited by Gerald Smith, We Will Remember Them – A Record of the Jews Who Died in the Armed Forces of the Crown 1939 – 1945, Volume I, Brassey’s, United Kingdom, London, 1989

Rosengarten, Theodore and Rosengarten, Dale, A Portion of the People – Three Hundred Years of Southern Jewish Life, University of South Carolina Press, Columbia, S.C., 2002

No Author

Duxford Diary, 1942-1945, W. Heffer & Sons (printer), Cambridge, England, 1945

The Jewish Brigade: Military Awards

The fallen of the Jewish Brigade have been named. 

(So have the wounded.)

More names of fallen soldiers will appear in future posts – covering men of the Palestine Regiment who died on active service prior to the Brigade’s establishment in September of 1944, and, Brigade members who died after the war’s end on May 8 (or May 9, if you prefer) 1945. 

However, this post presents names of Brigade soldiers in another context:  Men who received military awards, but who were not casualties.  As you can see from the records below – primarily derived from an article in The Palestine Post of June 10, 1946, Volume II of Henry Morris’ We Will Remember Them (1994), and to a minor extent The Jewish Chronicle – the majority of these awards are in the category of Mentioned in Despatches (Mid), and secondarily, the Military Medal (MM).  Other awards include the Africa Star, British Empire Medal (BEM), Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM), and Military Cross (MC).  Unfortunately, none of the above-mentioned references actually included the citations for these awards, which I assume would be available (where, I don’t know) at The National Archives.  

And so, the names…

Abeles, L., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Appell, E., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Appell, H., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Bachar, M., Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Bagadi, K., Sapper, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Bauro, H.H., Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Ben Artzi / Ben Azri, Ephraim, Major, 239824, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46; We Will Remember Them II – 57

Berman, H., Lt.  282466, Mentioned in Despatches
5/23/46 Gazette; Palestine Post 6/10/46; We Will Remember Them II – 58

Casper, Bernard Moses, Captain (Senior Chaplain), Mentioned in Despatches
11/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 61

Cornfeld / Cornfield, M., Major, Mentioned in Despatches
5/23/46 Gazette; Palestine Post 6/10/46; We Will Remember Them II – 63

Dab, Jacob, Pvt., Military Medal
Tel Aviv, Israel
Jewish Chronicle 11/6/42; We Will Remember Them II – 64

David, M., Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Doppelt, C., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Epstein, M., Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Eshell, Y.A., Lance Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Even, I., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Feldman, A., Sgt., Royal Engineers, Mentioned in Despatches
6/1/44 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 66

Fichman, Leib, Pvt., British Empire Medal
1/31/46 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 66

Flaker, N., Sapper, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Frank, B., Sgt., Mentioned in Despatches
7/19/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 67

Friedberg, Julius, Captain, Mentioned in Despatches
5/23/46 Gazette; Palestine Post 6/10/46; We Will Remember Them II – 67

Friedenthal, Jonathan, Lt., Military Cross
12/12/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 068

Fruchter, I., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Gelber, I., WO 1C, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Goldfarb, _____, CSMA, Royal Engineers, Mentioned in Despatches
1/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 70

Goldsmith, Uri, Pvt., Bren-Gunner, Military Medal
Born 1922
From Bat Galim, Israel
Palestine Post 7/13/45

Grossman, H. (or, “R. Grossman”), Private or Lieutenant, Mentioned in Despatches
5/23/46 Gazette; Palestine Post 6/10/46; We Will Remember Them II – 71

Gurari, G.M., WO 2C, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Haddad, N., L/Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Hanuch, A., Staff Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Hausman, Fritz Sigmund, L/Cpl., Royal Army Service Corps, Distinguished Conduct Medal
Jewish Chronicle 9/8/44; We Will Remember Them II – 79

Hecht, M., Sapper, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Jacobi, S., Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Jellishevitz, A., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Jerushalami, Aharon, C/Sgt., Royal Engineers, Military Medal
Sokolow St., Tel Aviv, Israel
3/1/45 Gazette; Jewish Chronicle 4/27/45; We Will Remember Them II – 82

Jordon, F., Pvt., Distinguished Conduct Medal
Jewish Chronicle 5/14/43; We Will Remember Them II – 82

Kamenkowitz, Z.M., L/Cpl., Royal Engineers, Mentioned in Despatches
Jewish Chronicle 3/1/45; We Will Remember Them II – 83

Kantoruwicz, _____, Pvt., Royal Army Medical Corps, Mentioned in Despatches
11/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 83

Kathein, R., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Katz, Arieh, Sgt., British Empire Medal
Kfar Joshua, Israel
Jewish Chronicle 2/12/42, 12/18/42; We Will Remember Them II – 83

Keleterar, R., Gunner, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Kirshner Smalback, M., Pvt., Royal Army Service Corps, Mentioned in Despatches
11/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 84

Kohen, Bernhard, Sgt., Military Medal
11/13/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 85

Kohen, Daniel, Pvt., Military Medal
12/13/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 85

Kopel, P., WO 2C, Royal Army Service Corps, Mentioned in Despatches
11/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 85

Kopewicz, C., Private, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Kubrik, A., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Leiser, A., Private, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Levitt, I., Driver, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Levy, S., Sgt., Mentioned in Despatches
11/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 88

Levy, W., Gunner, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Licht, Jehoshua, Capt., Africa Star
Born 1907
The Jewish Chronicle 8/25/44

Mandel, M., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Millewitz, Y., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Murkis, _____, Private, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Negrine, Samuel, Sgt., Military Medal
12/31/41 Times; We Will Remember Them II – 95

Platzko, Karel, Lt., Mentioned in Despatches
5/23/46 Gazette; Palestine Post 6/10/46; We Will Remember Them II – 96

Polishuk, T., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Pollack, Joseph, Pvt., Distinguished Conduct Medal
11/9/44 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 96

Provisor, Erwin
Vienna, Austria
Aufbau 9/7/45

Rabinovitch, Israel, Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
Jewish Chronicle 6/22/45; We Will Remember Them II – 96

Riesenfeld, F., Company Quartermaster Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Rooz, Itzchok, Lt., Royal Engineers, British Empire Medal
6/14/45 Honors List; We Will Remember Them II – 97

Schugarensky / Schugurensky, Abraham, Major, Mentioned in Despatches 5/23/46
Palestine Post 6/10/46; We Will Remember Them II – 100

Sharony, M., L/Sgt., Mentioned in Despatches
11/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 101

Shopono, G., Lance Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Silberbusch, Jacob, Sgt., Military Medal
5/10/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 102

Silberman, L., Sgt., Mentioned in Despatches
7/19/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 102

Silberman, S., Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
5/30/44 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 102

Spegel, N., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Sugar, M., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Teplicki, A., Cpl., Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Uhlman, F., Signalman, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Uziella, A., Lance Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Wajsblatt, I., WO 2C, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Werner, O., WO 2C, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Yofe, D., Driver, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Zadik, M.G., Lance Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Zeidman, A., Pvt., Mentioned in Despatches
11/29/45 Gazette; We Will Remember Them II – 107

Zilzerbaum, A., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

Ziorn, J., Sergeant, Mentioned in Despatches
Palestine Post 6/10/46

____________________

Reference

“We Will Remember Them II” – Morris, Henry, Edited by Hilary Halter, We Will Remember Them – A Record of the Jews Who Died in the Armed Forces of the Crown 1939 – 1945 – An Addendum, AJEX, London, England, 1994