A very heartwarming documentary. Thank you for sharing the Schnabel's family history. It was very poignant, the journey of remembrance undertaken by the family. Of note for me, I grew up in Orono, Maine within a few miles of where Mr. Charles Norman Shay was born on the Penobscot Native American Reservation. He, and his service to our Nation, are well known to those of us who grew up in Central Maine. My father served during the Second World War, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. I served for 24 years in the United States Navy myself. You remind me of my father Mr. Shay. God Bless you and your comrades. You will always be my heroes.
My father was in the Polish army when the war broke out. He ended up working in Germany on a couple of farms. The farmer on the last one he worked on told him that if he went back to Poland he would not report him, so he went back to Lodz.
This documentary brings tears in my eyes. My father-in-law Lieutenant James Laing, a Canadian battle engineer, landed on Juno beach on D-Day and saw some fierce battles along France, Holland and Germany. My family is also planning to trace the path he took from France all the way to Germany to keep his memory alive and honour him. I'm so thankful for what he did for us and sacrifices he made to give us freedom.
Thank you for this account from a German family remembering their relatives - and thank you for translating it into English on the screen. I am from Britain and the accounts of the French about German prisoners-of-war are very similar. Many people came to consider them as family and were impressed by their work ethic.
So sad and senseless waste of young lives, i am from Norwich England, we have much history of the War too, great to see reconciliation, brought tears to my eyes, great documentary.
This was very good. Hello from America. My great uncle was in a glider and taken prisoner and tried to escape three times. On the third time at the Prisoner of war camp he was shot and a German doctor amputated his legs which saved his life. So sad to see all of the graves of young men who died because of war. War is a horrible result of not being able to solve problems with words. Best regards from the heartland. South Central Indiana. USA. Tim.. ❤
I was once stationed in Germany as a US ARMY officer in the early 90's. Over the past 10 years, I've returned to Germany and Normandy four times. During my 2019 visit for the 75th anniversary of D-Day, I noticed some young German Army soldiers at a cafe. I wondered what they thought about being in France for such an event. I am glad they were there and hope to visit the German cemetery in La Cambe one day. Ich liebe Deutschland. Also, I learned that not far from me in Opelika Alabama, there was a Prisoner Of War camp with Germans in it. Newspaper articles of that time mentioned the prisoners eating better than the local Americans because of rationing for the war.
Good documentary and good to see a German family's perspective. It's interesting that the typical Allied veteran's view of the German people was generally positive (unless they were die- hard Nazi's). I've heard this from veterans myself and it's documented in series like Band of Brothers - many of the vets interviewed commented on how they liked the German people most of all, they felt they were hardworking and trustworthy. Unfortunantly, the conditions that paved the way for the rise of Nazism in Germany, destroyed millions of lives, murdered millions more almost detroyed all the good elements in German society . Lesson here for those of us on the winning side is we should not be too smug that a similar loss of civilization couldn't take place here as we're too smart or too enlightened. Look at what's happeing on the cultural front now. You're not allowed to disagree with insane ideas being pushed by fringe elements. It's unfortunant that the murderous rampages of the nazi machine led the Allies to have no faith at all in any German leadership - even to the point that they would not negotiate with Admiral Canaris when he proposed a conditional surrender to the Allies that could have avoided D-Day altogether. Canaris was sending messages to Allied leadership prior to D-Day requesting a truce and they would stand down the German defenses in France and let the German Wermacht take the country back from the Nazis.He was part of Operation Valkyrie to assassinate Hitler. We'll never know fo sure. I know that sounds far fetched so you might want check it out for yourself.
My father was with the US 29th Division and wounded at St Lo. The "Germans" he opposed were Polish conscripts. Most of his men (he was a 1st Lt) were children of Polish emigrants to America.
Ich habe Charles Norman Shay bei meinem letzten Besuch am 06.06.2019,während einer Gedenkfeier am Croix de Guerre 5th Engineer Special Brigade,begegnen dürfen. Emotionaler Tag für mich.
German POWs were treated very well. Shoah victims could only have dreamt of such treatment. Britain didn’t come off rationing until 1954, whereas huge amounts of money went in to rebuilding Germany and getting it back on its feet. Britain only paid America back last decade.
Thank you to the family who created this wonderful and so moving account of their pilgrimage for their relative. It was heartwarming to hear the friendliness and forgiveness from both sides. What wonderful, beautiful people who represent such goodness. My uncle died in WW2 when his ship, which was carrying ammunition to England, was blown up when another American ship in the convoy rammed into his. The ship sank within minutes with only a handful of survivors. So many sad and heroic stories during war time. Yet it will all keep happening. Such a waste. But thank God for those who carry these stories on so future generations don’t forget these great sacrifices. ❤
These soldiers were blocking the road to the concentration camps. I'm sure they didn't all advocate for them, but they were part of the machine which kept those performing genocide safe, as well as rounding up the odd local Jew, communist, or gypsy.
@@Nickel1147 It is completely unrealstic to expect a single ordinary German soldier to surrender to the allies or to defect to the Allies. In both cases he risked his life. Everybody knew that if the attempt failed he would be court-martialled and in many cases shot at the same day. Apart from that, their families at home could have become victims of collective punishment which was used by the Nazis as a deterrent. Indoctrination, blind obedience of Wehrmacht generals and high ranking commanders caused so many lives after the invasion. Maybe you agree with me on this point.
Never before has a country caused such misery on their neighbours. Their action then, from 1933 to 1945. Is evidenced today . Prime examples Ukraine/ Russia and Palastine/ Israel conflicts. I wish our young would read and take notice. The only shining light Germany has emerging from those times is the "Red Rose group." (Sophy Scholl). Otherwise, all Germans at that time were complicit. All this in my bloody lifetime!
When I was attending night school, I arrived home one evening to hear that East and West Germany had been reunited. I felt fear because I heard since WWII how sick and evil the Germans were. I was fearful knowing that they started WWI and WWII and now they would start WWIII. I dldn't sleep that night. A military Colonel lived next door. I asked if he thought Germany would start WWIII now that Germany was united. He was very nice and took the time to assure me that Germany wouldn't start another war. But to this day, I don't trust Germany.
No matter the uniform or the country and ideology, war leaves so may families destroyed, or even never, ever, being realised. All of these from which ever uniform, had a job to do and that was to kill the bloke on the opposite side if the fence. This is a touching story because here we have a family seeking out the family history and reconnecting with the ghosts of the past. The have grieved just as much as those of the Allies have also grieved. Time may have tempered the hostilities, but never the pain and emptiness of those who were lost 80 years ago.
I think that’s the difficult bit, the ‘ideology’. It’s a myth that the ‘ordinary’ soldiers were not Nazis, the Wehrmacht knew full well and supported war crimes and the death camps, without which could not have happened. I agree of course it is painful to lose a loved one whatever they stood for, But I don’t think it’s helpful to say they were just regular people who suffered the same. Though I’m sure there were opposers. Millions of people needn’t have died from any country, combatant, civilians nor Shoah victims had it not been for these people’s ideology. I can’t think of these soldiers without thinking about the fact that so many Jewish families have still not had their stolen property returned to them and generations are still suffering from having come from a destroyed family. I have seen veterans from opposing sides meet in their twilight years and shake hands, that they might have been friends if not for the war. I’ve also seen German soldiers proud of what they did and that doesn’t sit well with me. Did Germans ask their family members about their part and their true feelings. Some say it was the best opportunity for them and they loved their time in the army and that’s disturbing.
@@Nickel1147 There is no need to stir up ill feelings. We are aware of the brutality of war, for all participants. Let us strive to prevent repeating anything of this sort.
@@Nickel1147 So many veterans who fought against each other in the war became best friends after the war. Your opinion about the German soldiers and people fits well with the clichéd Hollywood films.
Very interesting story, thank you for the upload. At 14:40 you can see a Wehrpaß which would have told them which weapons the soldier was trained to use (page 20) and what battles he took part in (page 32 and 33).
My ex father in law was at gold beach and shot in the back whilst lying wounded , he held no hate , his saying was live and let live we all were enemies trying to do our jobs . the german nation are wonderful people
What a lovely family, great documentary, really shows the futility of wat and how normal people are cannon fodder for those in power on both sides. Those poor French citizens. I have been lucky enough to visit many of the Normandy cemeteries, La Cambe has a unique sinister atmosphere.
Very moving program. We forget that the ‘bad guys’ had families just like the ‘good guys’. They fought for their cause just like the Allies did, and many were kids, in their late teens, just like the allies. In fact some younger, the Hitler Youth, were fighting in normandy and further in, as replacement soldiers. Im sure not all Nazis were cruel and vicious. Many were soldiers just doing their jobs. Cannon fodder, like the allies.
@@Nickel1147 USA and France did the same in Vietnam and many other countries in the world ... bear that in mind. My mother was 8 years old in 1944, she lived in Carentan near Utah Beach and Sainte-Mère-Église. She lived through D-DAY. Before D-DAY an old German soldier carried him in his arms saying that he too had children in Germany. Many were young people of 17 or old people of 50.
It’s hard to reconcile the pride felt about being a German paratrooper, equipment and uniform with being an instrument of such vile plundering, murder , destruction and megalomania. Astonishing.
Ik ben ook op het Duitse kerkhof geweest in normandie, zeer koud ,een soort stoeptegels voor een persoon ,en de grote kruisen voor een groep mensen wat een gedachte en goedkoop in die tijd ,en bij de andere graven zijn wel mooi en goed verzorgd, in eiselstijn zijn ook Duitse graven ,maar wel mooier en meer menselijke stenen de Fransen moge de Duitsers totaal niet ook vandaag de dag niet dat heb zelf o dervonden Duitse mensen werden gewoon uit gescholden en ze zijden jullie zijn nazi's dat zijden de Franse mensen bij de pegasis brug in de winkel waar je cadoos kunt kopen ,ik hoorde het en ik met de Duitse mensen gesproken in het Duits voor mijn heel gewoon ik zelf dicht bij duittsland dus stelt niks voor duits zij waren blij dat met ze sprak heel erg luek gesproken ik ben de winkel in gegaan en heb iets gezegd, en daar waren ze niet blij mee ze waren even stil ,ik dacht als je dat in nederland had gedaan dan had je een verklaring af moeten leggen op het politiebureau, de Fransen zijn erg slim met hun houding ik findt ze erg stom om dit uit te spreken kan verkeerd aflopen
While traveling along the road, it is recorded that Jesus said to a certain man, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Luke 9: 59-60
Hmm the Americans that day paid a heavy price but it was the allies that saved France made up of many nationalities. Most had been fighting for almost 5 years. Europe was destroyed, America was untouched and went in to a boom. So much of what we have today which is not good is a result of that war and I’m still reeling about it.
Not quite sure the point of this. We learnt nothing of the man and they seemingly learnt nothing of an ‘ordinary’ soldier’s part in the Nazi war machine.
Respect to American soldiers ( my uncle died there by a German soldier) My ancestors were from Germany but during the war my relatives being here in America distanced themselves from Germany n immediately became US citizens n leaving Germany behind.
My father had an uncle in Germany during the war that they lost touch with for awhile. His sister had emigrated to the US. In the mid 50's he visited Germany and both sides of the family were reconciled with no ill feelings. We're still in regular contact today.
The Wehrmacht may have lost the war, but it won the battle of postwar memory. Few of its members were ever prosecuted for war crimes. Instead, the German public remembered the army as an honorable institution whose men had behaved decently and avoided any involvement in Nazi atrocities. Politicians, former generals, and ordinary veterans all contributed to this popular narrative, which today has come to be known as the myth of the clean Wehrmacht. Scholars have dismantled the myth over the last several decades. The war the Wehrmacht waged on the Eastern Front, we now know, was more a criminal campaign than a conventional one. Soldiers murdered millions of civilians-including Jews-despoiled the region of economic resources, burned tens of thousands of villages to the ground, and starved millions of POWs. All this was in service to the Nazi regime’s ideological goal of destroying “Jewish Bolshevism” and killing or enslaving the USSR’s “subhuman” inhabitants.
@@dijellicoe3185 To cut a long story short: German scholars dismanteled the myth years ago. Immediately after the war people didn't want to look back, which is a typical human behaviour and called "Verdrängung" in German, "suppression" might be the proper word in English. Few years after the war the cold war came, West-Germany was needed in NATO and the necessary process of coming to terms with the past was postponed again.
Remarkable to put up a memorial for those who had enslaved your country and fought to keep you oppressed. Sort of like putting up a plaque for a serial killer. Odd.
Germany also has war graves of opponents from both world wars. ps: A 17-year-old forcibly recruited is different from a concentration camp commandant. Please learn to differentiate.
@@neinnein9306 it made no mention of them being forced. There are Germans in the commonwealth graves also. Few were made to fight that’s just a myth. Without the ‘ordinary’ soldiers concentration camps would not have been able to operate. The Wehrmacht were complicit even if only tacitly. For this reason I do not differentiate. If the trains did not run. If guards did not guard. If clerics did not do the paperwork. Did not have to be a camp commandant. They were all part of the machine. Not such thing as the ‘clean’ Wehrmacht. We learnt nothing of this soldiers ideology, how he came to be in a country that did not belong to him.
@@neinnein9306 Europe being destroyed, economy in tatters, millions dead, stolen art never returned, lying about culpability/involvement, denying atrocities, asking no questions of family members and turning a blind eye will do that.
@@dijellicoe3185 sooo angry. You're sooo angy. You had to write 20 comments about how angry you are. Dude your points are all right! BUT NOT under this Video. Go to some nazi Videos and tell them. This one is a nice one. Leave that family alone please.
The fact that they were people just like ‘us’, makes it more disturbing. That seemingly unremarkable people are capable extraordinary atrocities. They all played a part in the machine. Of course they are normal people. That’s not really the point. They weren’t just doing a job. That’s too easy a get out in my mind. Every one knew. It’s well known now that ordinary citizens were told about what was going on in the media, they were encouraged to give up their Jewish neighbours. They went to auctions and bought up the rounded up Jewish peoples possessions. They took over their business and cuckooed their homes. A lot has remained unreturned. The abuse carried on when survivors tried to take back their apartments. We can’t put this all on one man or even a regime that some how brain washed a nation. All that happened was existing anti semitism was exploited. The fact they were people like you and I make it more important to continue to learn about this, so it never happens again. No German family is ‘clean’ every one has a tie.
@@Nickel1147 indeed. They may have been the most wonderful of human beings to friends and family, been kind and done good things. But when confronted by the most heinous of atrocities they have committed or been a part of fighting for, do we say, they were just normal people like us, scared. I don’t think we should.
@@stephanedaguet915 strange argument, one does not cancel out the other. What’s your point? They can be equally abhorrent behaviour. Nothing to do with this. Why do you think the US were able to become a super power so rapidly and to an extent go unchecked? Think about that….
@@dijellicoe3185 “One does not cancel the other.” I agree with you, that's not my point. Many soldiers involved in this war were not volunteers, that's another point. In France we have an expression "sweep in front of your door"... The bombings of German, Japanese, French and other european cities are, in the eyes of international law and morality, war crimes. Think of Dresden, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and all the Normandy towns in June 1944 (at least 20,000 civilian victims, including members of my family in Saint-Lô). Saint-Lô has since been nicknamed “The capital of ruins” by Samuel Beckett. I live 10 km from Saint-Lô and I see the results of this bombing before my eyes every day. Not everything is black and not everything is white. France committed horrible crimes in Indochina, Africa, Algeria. UK also in its colonies, the USA in Vietnam (My Laï, bombings of Hanoi). It's war and war is always disgusting. Today's generations do not have to be accountable for the past of their predecessors. It's the cynicism of the ruling classes which is the cause of all these misfortunes.
@@stephanedaguet915 we’re not discussing other wars here. The holocaust was not war. They murdered their own people as well as Jews across Europe. I think it’s too simplistic to say they were made to fight. I don’t believe that was a large cohort. The myth of just following orders, doing a job, having no free will, has been debunked by scholars, including Germans.
Everyone’s acting appropriately except for the American School Children. Absolutely disgraceful. As an American Veteran I would NEVER allow my children to act like this. However it’s typical of my people to be too afraid to discipline their children so instead we get this…. I am so sorry we act like this over there.
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👉🏻 Until Memory Separates Us | ARTE.tv Documentary
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A very heartwarming documentary. Thank you for sharing the Schnabel's family history. It was very poignant, the journey of remembrance undertaken by the family. Of note for me, I grew up in Orono, Maine within a few miles of where Mr. Charles Norman Shay was born on the Penobscot Native American Reservation. He, and his service to our Nation, are well known to those of us who grew up in Central Maine. My father served during the Second World War, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. I served for 24 years in the United States Navy myself. You remind me of my father Mr. Shay. God Bless you and your comrades. You will always be my heroes.
My father was in the Polish army when the war broke out. He ended up working in Germany on a couple of farms. The farmer on the last one he worked on told him that if he went back to Poland he would not report him, so he went back to Lodz.
Thanks for sharing!
So one human act of kindness saved your father and by extension, you.
This documentary brings tears in my eyes. My father-in-law Lieutenant James Laing, a Canadian battle engineer, landed on Juno beach on D-Day and saw some fierce battles along France, Holland and Germany. My family is also planning to trace the path he took from France all the way to Germany to keep his memory alive and honour him. I'm so thankful for what he did for us and sacrifices he made to give us freedom.
Thank you for this account from a German family remembering their relatives - and thank you for translating it into English on the screen. I am from Britain and the accounts of the French about German prisoners-of-war are very similar. Many people came to consider them as family and were impressed by their work ethic.
Grüße
Thank you for making this documentary. RIP to all the combatants. And the civilians who died then.
Thank you very much for watching
Very moving! I"m glad a new generation in Germany and France is finding meaning and friendship in sharing what could be painful memories.
So sad and senseless waste of young lives, i am from Norwich England, we have much history of the War too, great to see reconciliation, brought tears to my eyes, great documentary.
Thanks very much for watching, we're glad you enjoyed it!
This was very good. Hello from America.
My great uncle was in a glider and taken prisoner and tried to escape three times. On the third time at the Prisoner of war camp he was shot and a German doctor amputated his legs which saved his life.
So sad to see all of the graves of young men who died because of war. War is a horrible result of not being able to solve problems with words.
Best regards from the heartland.
South Central Indiana. USA.
Tim.. ❤
And yet, it is happening again in Ukraine which Russia has invaded to take land by force and arms. Insane !! 😮
I was once stationed in Germany as a US ARMY officer in the early 90's. Over the past 10 years, I've returned to Germany and Normandy four times. During my 2019 visit for the 75th anniversary of D-Day, I noticed some young German Army soldiers at a cafe. I wondered what they thought about being in France for such an event. I am glad they were there and hope to visit the German cemetery in La Cambe one day. Ich liebe Deutschland. Also, I learned that not far from me in Opelika Alabama, there was a Prisoner Of War camp with Germans in it. Newspaper articles of that time mentioned the prisoners eating better than the local Americans because of rationing for the war.
A very moving and thoughtful documentary. Thank you for bringing this story to our attention.
Good documentary and good to see a German family's perspective. It's interesting that the typical Allied veteran's view of the German people was generally positive (unless they were die- hard Nazi's). I've heard this from veterans myself and it's documented in series like Band of Brothers - many of the vets interviewed commented on how they liked the German people most of all, they felt they were hardworking and trustworthy. Unfortunantly, the conditions that paved the way for the rise of Nazism in Germany, destroyed millions of lives, murdered millions more almost detroyed all the good elements in German society . Lesson here for those of us on the winning side is we should not be too smug that a similar loss of civilization couldn't take place here as we're too smart or too enlightened. Look at what's happeing on the cultural front now. You're not allowed to disagree with insane ideas being pushed by fringe elements. It's unfortunant that the murderous rampages of the nazi machine led the Allies to have no faith at all in any German leadership - even to the point that they would not negotiate with Admiral Canaris when he proposed a conditional surrender to the Allies that could have avoided D-Day altogether. Canaris was sending messages to Allied leadership prior to D-Day requesting a truce and they would stand down the German defenses in France and let the German Wermacht take the country back from the Nazis.He was part of Operation Valkyrie to assassinate Hitler. We'll never know fo sure. I know that sounds far fetched so you might want check it out for yourself.
My father was with the US 29th Division and wounded at St Lo. The "Germans" he opposed were Polish conscripts. Most of his men (he was a 1st Lt) were children of Polish emigrants to America.
I have been in that German cemetery. It is a very sobering experience, as were all of the cemeteries of the Allied soldiers.
losing millions of your citizens in a war that was fought for very bad reasons will sober anybody up.
Beautiful the history of this family searching the path of their relative in the hell of war..only dies the forgotten
How truly wonderful that they honour an uncle whom they never met. So moving. This is how families should be.
Ich habe Charles Norman Shay bei meinem letzten Besuch am 06.06.2019,während einer Gedenkfeier am Croix de Guerre 5th Engineer Special Brigade,begegnen dürfen. Emotionaler Tag für mich.
How lucky you are ! He is truly a brave, patriotic and amazing man. So lucid at a hundred years old. Respect to him.
Beeindruckende Doku.
German POWs were treated very well. Shoah victims could only have dreamt of such treatment. Britain didn’t come off rationing until 1954, whereas huge amounts of money went in to rebuilding Germany and getting it back on its feet. Britain only paid America back last decade.
Very moving.
Thank you to the family who created this wonderful and so moving account of their pilgrimage for their relative. It was heartwarming to hear the friendliness and forgiveness from both sides. What wonderful, beautiful people who represent such goodness.
My uncle died in WW2 when his ship, which was carrying ammunition to England, was blown up when another American ship in the convoy rammed into his. The ship sank within minutes with only a handful of survivors. So many sad and heroic stories during war time. Yet it will all keep happening. Such a waste. But thank God for those who carry these stories on so future generations don’t forget these great sacrifices.
❤
These soldiers were blocking the road to the concentration camps. I'm sure they didn't all advocate for them, but they were part of the machine which kept those performing genocide safe, as well as rounding up the odd local Jew, communist, or gypsy.
@@Nickel1147 It is completely unrealstic to expect a single ordinary German soldier to surrender to the allies or to defect to the Allies. In both cases he risked his life. Everybody knew that if the attempt failed he would be court-martialled and in many cases shot at the same day. Apart from that, their families at home could have become victims of collective punishment which was used by the Nazis as a deterrent. Indoctrination, blind obedience of Wehrmacht generals and high ranking commanders caused so many lives after the invasion. Maybe you agree with me on this point.
Never before has a country caused such misery on their neighbours. Their action then, from 1933 to 1945. Is evidenced today . Prime examples Ukraine/ Russia and Palastine/ Israel conflicts. I wish our young would read and take notice. The only shining light Germany has emerging from those times is the "Red Rose group." (Sophy Scholl). Otherwise, all Germans at that time were complicit. All this in my bloody lifetime!
Thank you for sharing the German familys side .
Vielen Danke
When I was attending night school, I arrived home one evening to hear that East and West Germany had been reunited. I felt fear because I heard since WWII how sick and evil the Germans were. I was fearful knowing that they started WWI and WWII and now they would start WWIII. I dldn't sleep that night. A military Colonel lived next door. I asked if he thought Germany would start WWIII now that Germany was united. He was very nice and took the time to assure me that Germany wouldn't start another war. But to this day, I don't trust Germany.
No matter the uniform or the country and ideology, war leaves so may families destroyed, or even never, ever, being realised. All of these from which ever uniform, had a job to do and that was to kill the bloke on the opposite side if the fence. This is a touching story because here we have a family seeking out the family history and reconnecting with the ghosts of the past. The have grieved just as much as those of the Allies have also grieved. Time may have tempered the hostilities, but never the pain and emptiness of those who were lost 80 years ago.
I think that’s the difficult bit, the ‘ideology’. It’s a myth that the ‘ordinary’ soldiers were not Nazis, the Wehrmacht knew full well and supported war crimes and the death camps, without which could not have happened. I agree of course it is painful to lose a loved one whatever they stood for, But I don’t think it’s helpful to say they were just regular people who suffered the same. Though I’m sure there were opposers. Millions of people needn’t have died from any country, combatant, civilians nor Shoah victims had it not been for these people’s ideology. I can’t think of these soldiers without thinking about the fact that so many Jewish families have still not had their stolen property returned to them and generations are still suffering from having come from a destroyed family. I have seen veterans from opposing sides meet in their twilight years and shake hands, that they might have been friends if not for the war. I’ve also seen German soldiers proud of what they did and that doesn’t sit well with me. Did Germans ask their family members about their part and their true feelings. Some say it was the best opportunity for them and they loved their time in the army and that’s disturbing.
So sad sonfew visit the german cemetery. All those young lives cut down on all sides
Those young German soldiers were also following orders. They thought they were fighting for their country too.
R.I.P all those who fell
The horror and the unimaginable sacrifices went both ways, but the healing is now there for the asking. That is the lesson.
How come he was here?....Very good question.
Germany has come a long way. Remember most of those soldiers were just young men and fighting for their country as well. Good documentary!
Thanks for watching!
@@Nickel1147 There is no need to stir up ill feelings. We are aware of the brutality of war, for all participants. Let us strive to prevent repeating anything of this sort.
They didn't have a choice not to fight in a fascist dictatorship. Even speaking out against the war in conversation led to the death penalty
@@neilcrowesongs9768 It doesn't make sense to reply to him because he knows it anyway better...
@@Nickel1147 So many veterans who fought against each other in the war became best friends after the war. Your opinion about the German soldiers and people fits well with the clichéd Hollywood films.
respect to all sides and less we forget.
Very interesting story, thank you for the upload. At 14:40 you can see a Wehrpaß which would have told them which weapons the soldier was trained to use (page 20) and what battles he took part in (page 32 and 33).
My ex father in law was at gold beach and shot in the back whilst lying wounded , he held no hate , his saying was live and let live we all were enemies trying to do our jobs . the german nation are wonderful people
respect to all the soldiers, and may the families never forget. war is final for many who never get the chance to live a long life.
What a lovely family, great documentary, really shows the futility of wat and how normal people are cannon fodder for those in power on both sides. Those poor French citizens. I have been lucky enough to visit many of the Normandy cemeteries, La Cambe has a unique sinister atmosphere.
Disgusting how memorials are now labelled "The D Day "Experience". - very disrespectful, very superficial, degrading. It is not "entertainment" .
La Cambe. The heroes.
THere is no victory in death for any family
Putin you should listen to these people!
🥺
Thank you for a fascinating look from the "other" side. At the end of the day we are all the same.
Very moving program. We forget that the ‘bad guys’ had families just like the ‘good guys’. They fought for their cause just like the Allies did, and many were kids, in their late teens, just like the allies. In fact some younger, the Hitler Youth, were fighting in normandy and further in, as replacement soldiers. Im sure not all Nazis were cruel and vicious. Many were soldiers just doing their jobs. Cannon fodder, like the allies.
Great story. We must never forget World War. This must us motivate to build a common peaceful European future.
We, family of combat veteran's,could use more stories from our old enemies,,, Vietnam, and ww 1,2,,cool stuff
It as not the people who caused this disaster. It was Politician’s. German people never voted for war, but that said they did little to stop it.
Twenty minutes in, the family have met with several French people and have yet to apologise.
@@Nickel1147 I am sorry that I did all that 24 years before I was born.
@@doomhippie6673 Exactly, there is absolutely no need to apologize! I mean, why should I apologize for something where I have nothing to do with?
@@Nickel1147 They still don't need to apologize!
@@Nickel1147 USA and France did the same in Vietnam and many other countries in the world ... bear that in mind.
My mother was 8 years old in 1944, she lived in Carentan near Utah Beach and Sainte-Mère-Église. She lived through D-DAY. Before D-DAY an old German soldier carried him in his arms saying that he too had children in Germany.
Many were young people of 17 or old people of 50.
It’s hard to reconcile the pride felt about being a German paratrooper, equipment and uniform with being an instrument of such vile plundering, murder , destruction and megalomania. Astonishing.
Ik ben ook op het Duitse kerkhof geweest in normandie, zeer koud ,een soort stoeptegels voor een persoon ,en de grote kruisen voor een groep mensen wat een gedachte en goedkoop in die tijd ,en bij de andere graven zijn wel mooi en goed verzorgd, in eiselstijn zijn ook Duitse graven ,maar wel mooier en meer menselijke stenen de Fransen moge de Duitsers totaal niet ook vandaag de dag niet dat heb zelf o dervonden Duitse mensen werden gewoon uit gescholden en ze zijden jullie zijn nazi's dat zijden de Franse mensen bij de pegasis brug in de winkel waar je cadoos kunt kopen ,ik hoorde het en ik met de Duitse mensen gesproken in het Duits voor mijn heel gewoon ik zelf dicht bij duittsland dus stelt niks voor duits zij waren blij dat met ze sprak heel erg luek gesproken ik ben de winkel in gegaan en heb iets gezegd, en daar waren ze niet blij mee ze waren even stil ,ik dacht als je dat in nederland had gedaan dan had je een verklaring af moeten leggen op het politiebureau, de Fransen zijn erg slim met hun houding ik findt ze erg stom om dit uit te spreken kan verkeerd aflopen
While traveling along the road, it is recorded that Jesus said to a certain man,
“Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Luke 9: 59-60
Plusskat!
❤
Why weren't they freed to go home?!
Hmm the Americans that day paid a heavy price but it was the allies that saved France made up of many nationalities. Most had been fighting for almost 5 years. Europe was destroyed, America was untouched and went in to a boom. So much of what we have today which is not good is a result of that war and I’m still reeling about it.
Not quite sure the point of this. We learnt nothing of the man and they seemingly learnt nothing of an ‘ordinary’ soldier’s part in the Nazi war machine.
When visiting Normandy and seeing German uniforms but particularly Nazi insignia I felt sick and anger.
Respect to the German Soldiers!
Respect to American soldiers ( my uncle died there by a German soldier) My ancestors were from Germany but during the war my relatives being here in America distanced themselves from Germany n immediately became US citizens n leaving Germany behind.
Of course also respect to all who died in D-Day.
My father had an uncle in Germany during the war that they lost touch with for awhile. His sister had emigrated to the US. In the mid 50's he visited Germany and both sides of the family were reconciled with no ill feelings. We're still in regular contact today.
The Wehrmacht may have lost the war, but it won the battle of postwar memory. Few of its members were ever prosecuted for war crimes. Instead, the German public remembered the army as an honorable institution whose men had behaved decently and avoided any involvement in Nazi atrocities. Politicians, former generals, and ordinary veterans all contributed to this popular narrative, which today has come to be known as the myth of the clean Wehrmacht.
Scholars have dismantled the myth over the last several decades. The war the Wehrmacht waged on the Eastern Front, we now know, was more a criminal campaign than a conventional one. Soldiers murdered millions of civilians-including Jews-despoiled the region of economic resources, burned tens of thousands of villages to the ground, and starved millions of POWs. All this was in service to the Nazi regime’s ideological goal of destroying “Jewish Bolshevism” and killing or enslaving the USSR’s “subhuman” inhabitants.
@@dijellicoe3185 To cut a long story short: German scholars dismanteled the myth years ago. Immediately after the war people didn't want to look back, which is a typical human behaviour and called "Verdrängung" in German, "suppression" might be the proper word in English. Few years after the war the cold war came, West-Germany was needed in NATO and the necessary process of coming to terms with the past was postponed again.
Remarkable to put up a memorial for those who had enslaved your country and fought to keep you oppressed. Sort of like putting up a plaque for a serial killer. Odd.
Germany also has war graves of opponents from both world wars.
ps: A 17-year-old forcibly recruited is different from a concentration camp commandant. Please learn to differentiate.
@@neinnein9306 it made no mention of them being forced. There are Germans in the commonwealth graves also. Few were made to fight that’s just a myth. Without the ‘ordinary’ soldiers concentration camps would not have been able to operate. The Wehrmacht were complicit even if only tacitly. For this reason I do not differentiate. If the trains did not run. If guards did not guard. If clerics did not do the paperwork. Did not have to be a camp commandant. They were all part of the machine. Not such thing as the ‘clean’ Wehrmacht. We learnt nothing of this soldiers ideology, how he came to be in a country that did not belong to him.
Such angry dudes here.
@@neinnein9306 Europe being destroyed, economy in tatters, millions dead, stolen art never returned, lying about culpability/involvement, denying atrocities, asking no questions of family members and turning a blind eye will do that.
@@dijellicoe3185 sooo angry. You're sooo angy. You had to write 20 comments about how angry you are. Dude your points are all right! BUT NOT under this Video. Go to some nazi Videos and tell them. This one is a nice one. Leave that family alone please.
The fact that they were people just like ‘us’, makes it more disturbing. That seemingly unremarkable people are capable extraordinary atrocities. They all played a part in the machine. Of course they are normal people. That’s not really the point. They weren’t just doing a job. That’s too easy a get out in my mind. Every one knew. It’s well known now that ordinary citizens were told about what was going on in the media, they were encouraged to give up their Jewish neighbours. They went to auctions and bought up the rounded up Jewish peoples possessions. They took over their business and cuckooed their homes. A lot has remained unreturned. The abuse carried on when survivors tried to take back their apartments. We can’t put this all on one man or even a regime that some how brain washed a nation. All that happened was existing anti semitism was exploited. The fact they were people like you and I make it more important to continue to learn about this, so it never happens again. No German family is ‘clean’ every one has a tie.
@@Nickel1147 indeed. They may have been the most wonderful of human beings to friends and family, been kind and done good things. But when confronted by the most heinous of atrocities they have committed or been a part of fighting for, do we say, they were just normal people like us, scared. I don’t think we should.
What did the french and american do in Vietnam and in many other countries in the world ?
Bear it in mind ...
@@stephanedaguet915 strange argument, one does not cancel out the other. What’s your point? They can be equally abhorrent behaviour. Nothing to do with this. Why do you think the US were able to become a super power so rapidly and to an extent go unchecked? Think about that….
@@dijellicoe3185
“One does not cancel the other.” I agree with you, that's not my point.
Many soldiers involved in this war were not volunteers, that's another point.
In France we have an expression "sweep in front of your door"...
The bombings of German, Japanese, French and other european cities are, in the eyes of international law and morality, war crimes.
Think of Dresden, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and all the Normandy towns in June 1944 (at least 20,000 civilian victims, including members of my family in Saint-Lô). Saint-Lô has since been nicknamed “The capital of ruins” by Samuel Beckett. I live 10 km from Saint-Lô and I see the results of this bombing before my eyes every day.
Not everything is black and not everything is white.
France committed horrible crimes in Indochina, Africa, Algeria. UK also in its colonies, the USA in Vietnam (My Laï, bombings of Hanoi).
It's war and war is always disgusting.
Today's generations do not have to be accountable for the past of their predecessors.
It's the cynicism of the ruling classes which is the cause of all these misfortunes.
@@stephanedaguet915 we’re not discussing other wars here. The holocaust was not war. They murdered their own people as well as Jews across Europe. I think it’s too simplistic to say they were made to fight. I don’t believe that was a large cohort. The myth of just following orders, doing a job, having no free will, has been debunked by scholars, including Germans.
🙈🙈👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎👎
Everyone’s acting appropriately except for the American School Children. Absolutely disgraceful. As an American Veteran I would NEVER allow my children to act like this. However it’s typical of my people to be too afraid to discipline their children so instead we get this…. I am so sorry we act like this over there.