Dying SS Troops

[Paul D]

Interestingly the member who started this thread on 21/4/2008 has not been back here since !! Wonder why this was thrown into the open by them for discussion , very odd !!

[shadowwolf]

Paul,

"Interestingly the member who started this thread on 21/4/2008 has not been back here since !! Wonder why this was thrown into the open by them for discussion , very odd !!"

Well spotted

Regards to all, Simon.

[shuggymac1]

I've been talking with large amount of veterans about the event in Chech Republic back in May 45 and many of them have said that the Russian soldiers and officers treated the captured Estonians with much more dignity and compassion than local partisans. Which of course is quite understandable- Russians were the front soldiers and they saw Estonians as POW's, while Chechs were civilians for whom my country mates were only the murderous scum. And as for the torturing- I've never heard that Russians had tortured any Estonian POW's at these days (a few years after the war's end they started to do it, though), nor did they execute them right after the capturing. That's just the sad history of Estonia- first communist Russia occupied us, then nazi Germany liberated us from Stalin and occupied us. The WWII was not our war, but we were taken by it's whirlwinds against our will, fighting side by side with both enemies, hoping that one day our country will be free again. It didn't happen and it's not our grandfathers' fault. And what could be more unfair than to be killed by some third nation, with whom we had nothing to do during the whole war? For me it's undescribebly tragic.

I meant no disrespect to Estonians - their history has been well disserted in the following link. Paul Maitla was one of the few Estonians who received the Knights Cross fighting against the Russians.Such a highly decorated hero was unlikely to have been allowed to live in Russian captivity bearing in mind Estonians fought a brave guerilla war well into the 1950's against Stalin.

http://www.mnemosyne.ee/hc.ee/pdf/co...s_en_1944-.pdf

[wolfslair]

They photographed the actual shooting itself--note the office in mid air falling backwards. I assume Maitla is the last man standing?:

Shot for being a soldier? and after they had surrendered?
What a disgrace.

[blackheart0866]

Shot for being a soldier? and after they had surrendered?
What a disgrace.

But that was OK, you know they were just German soldiers, and they deserved whatever they got.

I'M SO SICK AND TIRED OF HEARING THAT BS STORY WHEN PEOPLE SAY THAT, BUT DON'T SAY THAT ABOUT ANY OTHER SOLDIER FROM AMERICA, BRITTAN, OR THE USSR, AS THOSE WOULD BE FIGHTING WORDS...

And people wonder why so many SS men would fight to the death, because they was hearing stories of other SS men that had surrendered being shot just for wearing the SS insignia on their uniforms, so i would be doing the same thing, if i was in their place.

Brian

[gnadenlose]

Paul Maitla was one of the few Estonians who received the Knights Cross fighting against the Russians.Such a highly decorated hero was unlikely to have been allowed to live in Russian captivity

I see your point and have to agree with it. But at the same time one Estonian Ritterkreutzträger, namely Harald Nugiseks, is still alive and doing as well as an old man can do. He had his long years in Siberia and then lived his life retty much as persona non grata during the Soviet occupation. But the reason why commies didn't execute such person might be that Nugiseks was not the officer (he told that right after being captured both Chechs and Russians wanted to shot him to death, but he always had enaough luck to survive).

[jimpy]

But that was OK, you know they were just German soldiers, and they deserved whatever they got.

I'M SO SICK AND TIRED OF HEARING THAT BS STORY WHEN PEOPLE SAY THAT, BUT DON'T SAY THAT ABOUT ANY OTHER SOLDIER FROM AMERICA, BRITTAN, OR THE USSR, AS THOSE WOULD BE FIGHTING WORDS...

And people wonder why so many SS men would fight to the death, because they was hearing stories of other SS men that had surrendered being shot just for wearing the SS insignia on their uniforms, so i would be doing the same thing, if i was in their place.

Brian

I dont normally get drawn into arguments/discussions like this seems to be developing into, but I will mention three words and dates and leave it at that., whilst awaiting for the incoming flak from other parties.

The words are:
Wormhoudt 1940
Lidice 1942
Malmedy 1944

For those that dont know there WW2 history, Google the locations and see what comes up.

Regards etc

Ian D

AKA: Jimpy

[wolfslair]

I dont normally get drawn into arguments/discussions like this seems to be developing into, but I will mention three words and dates and leave it at that., whilst awaiting for the incoming flak from other parties.

The words are:
Wormhoudt 1940
Lidice 1942
Malmedy 1944

For those that dont know there WW2 history, Google the locations and see what comes up.

Regards etc

Ian D

AKA: Jimpy

We can also add,
Dresden -
Hamburg -
Nurnberg -
All terror bombings that killed tens of thousands of innocent civilians with no military value.
Not to mention scores of German cities where hunreds of thousands of civllians were incinerated by allied firebombings.
But I'm sure we could add to the list.. shooting in cold blood of over 350 invalid SS soldires by the US army in Dachau, starving to death over 1 million German POW's in US custody AFTER THE WAR.
The list is long, long, long my friends....

[Adrian Stevenson]

Thanks Gentlemen, I think this thread has now run it's course.

Cheers, Ade.