What was done with the German cemetries in USSR

[Dimas]

1942 year Kalinin, after the liberation of the town, young guys taking the woods from German cemetry

[SteveR]

I do not think the Russians had any kind of respect for the German dead. you couldn't blame them either.
SteveR

[Rudolf Karl]

With all due respect SteveR, and I do value your knowledge I think part 2 of your post is rather opinionated. While your opinion is worth as much as any other,
I think the wording in this context was not appropriate. That whole mess left no one blameless. When I first looked at the picture I wondered if my Grandfathers name may have been in that pile. And I agree with the first part of your post and would hold no animosity if his was right there on top. I'm trying to find out were this man went down and have no idea if he was evil or just a pawn forced to do what he was ordered to.

Please take no offense and I don't intend to pursue this any further.

Rudy

[qotd]

Apparentely there is a building near porchov in Russia, as I saw on a doco, porchov was the site of a field hospitals that my German great uncle died in. The building is stack floor to ceiling with German soldiers bones.....wonder if my great uncle is there??

[SteveR]

I understand your sensitivities Roudolf. I also have a younger brother named for a close relative killed by German soldiers in Europe.
I fully emphasize with the Russian population of the over ran Soviet territories. My generation are the children of those that fought the war, therefore my generations feelings will be stronger in relation to later age groups. My grandparents grieved the loss of children in WWII and I felt their loss growing up.
We all collect the leftovers of the conflict for different reasons, mine being that they have always been "War Trophies" taken from a completly vanquished enemy. That is why there are so many German and Japanese military trophies in the United States. We Won a war not declared by us, but by Japan and Germany.
The stuff was quite common in the junk and second hand shops in the 50's, 60's and later. The millions of American men that served overseas literally brought shiploads of stuff back to the US as spoils of war.
I understand your concerns about the where abouts of your grandparent in a country that he and others were sent to conquer and didn't. I am sorry because his children do not know where he is.
SteveR

[Dimas]

This childs did not thought about the respect, they just wanted a bread and heat
Even my mother lost both the father and mother during the occupation of Ukraine in the war time too. All of the German cemetries postwar was wipe out, and in a lot of places where especially made buidings as cinemas etc- that was just a propaganda.

[Frundsberg]

Do not blame Russians, blame Soviets. Soviets had no respect even to their own dead, most of them were buried to mass graves without names. Soviet rule destroied many churches in Russia from the year 1917 when they took power so no wonder they showed no respect to the German wargraves.

When we are talking about WWII in Soviet Union we also have to talk about 1 million ex-soviet citizens in ROA and other millions who were pro-german. And I'm not talking abot Baltics states and the Ukraine - also many russians and belorussians hated soviets and joined German armed forces. So history is not only black and white.

[rusted180]

wow.... this makes me wonder if my great uncle. served in the third reich. i never met him, so i dont know..... but wow! i should ask my german uncle if he knows anything.

[creutz40]

Back to the original question asked.....From what i have read, the russians systematicly obliterated all traces of the german occupation.. to include all german graves.
Sorry if i have offended anyone.
Respectfully, patrick.

[qotd]

I agree, dont blame the russians, blame the soviets....lso to be anal germany didnt declare war on anyone, it was france and england the declared war on germany