The very word "veteran" in Germany has long been a taboo. Soldiers of World War II united in unions of former prisoners of war. Now soldiers of the Bundeswehr call themselves "veterans". However, the word has not caught on yet.
There are unions of veterans in almost all countries. And in Germany, after the defeat of Nazism in 1945, all traditions of honoring and perpetuating the memory of veterans broke off. In the words of Herfried Münkler, professor of political theory at Humboldt University, Germany is a "post-heroic society." If memory is commemorated in Germany, it is not heroes, but victims of the First and Second World Wars. At the same time, the Bundeswehr, within the framework of NATO and UN peacekeeping missions, participates in military operations abroad. Therefore, a discussion began among the military and politicians: who should be considered veterans?
Veterans of the Bundeswehr
After the war, until 1955, in Germany - both in East and West - there was no army at all. Veterans unions were banned. What a glorification of heroism when German soldiers participated in the criminal conquest war? But even in the Bundeswehr founded in 1955 in the years " cold war» There were no veteran traditions. The functions of the army were limited to the defense of their own territory, there were no hostilities.
AT last years the Bundeswehr is involved in operations abroad, for example, in the former Yugoslavia, in Afghanistan. In total, according to estimates, about 300 thousand soldiers and officers completed such service. Until very recently, these operations were not even called "war" or "military operations" directly. It was about "assistance in establishing a peaceful order", humanitarian actions and other euphemisms.
Now decided to call a spade a spade. German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere brought the word "veteran" back into use last September. Speaking in the Bundestag, he said that "if there are veterans in other countries, then in Germany he has the right to talk about" veterans of the Bundeswehr "."
This discussion was unleashed by the soldiers themselves - those who returned from Afghanistan with wounds or mental trauma. In 2010 they founded the "Union of German Veterans". Critics say that the very term "veteran" is discredited by German history and therefore unacceptable.
But who is considered a "veteran"? Everyone who wore the uniform of the Bundeswehr for some time, or only those who served abroad? Or maybe only those who participated in real hostilities? The "Union of German Veterans" has already decided: whoever served abroad is a veteran.
Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière, for his part, is trying to avoid a split on the issue. Many military men believe that military service during the Cold War was also risky, so it would be wrong to assign the status of "veteran" exclusively to those who happened to sniff gunpowder in Afghanistan.
Will there be a Veteran's Day?
For Bundeswehr soldiers who have been in combat, special awards have been established - the Cross of Honor for Courage and the medal For Participation in Hostilities. However, many military officers believe that society does not appreciate their willingness to risk their lives. After all, decisions on participation in operations abroad are made by the Bundestag, that is, elected representatives of the people. Consequently, the soldiers also participate in dangerous operations at the will of the people. So why doesn't society give them the respect they deserve?
Now the possibility of establishing a special "Veteran's Day" is being discussed. This idea is also supported by the influential Union of Bundeswehr Servicemen, which unites about 200,000 active and retired military personnel. But there is also a proposal to honor on this day the work of not only soldiers, but also rescuers, police officers and employees of development aid organizations.
Secretary of Defense de Maizières is also considering establishing a special commissioner for veterans' affairs and, following the American example, special homes for veterans. But there is no increase in benefits for veterans. The Minister of Defense believes that in Germany the social security of active and retired soldiers is already at a fairly high level.
The materials of InoSMI contain only assessments of foreign media and do not reflect the position of the editors of InoSMI.
Publication date: 06/14/2019
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The other day I visited the offspring of the famous noble family Stakhovichi - Mikhail Mikhailovich. Four years ago, he, who had lived all his life in Austria and the United States, returned to his family nest, which during October revolution left his parents - the village of Palna-Mikhailovka, Stanovlyansky district of the Lipetsk region.
I will not hide, despite the conflicting feelings that some facts of his biography evoke, such as, for example, service in the ranks of the German Wehrmacht from 1939 to 1945, it is interesting for me to communicate with this old man.
Not always, however, the tongue turns to call him an old man, because at 88 years old, Mikhail Stakhovich looks great - fit, athletic and, most importantly, in his right mind and memory.
Stakhovich never ceases to amaze. During our last meeting, he stunned me by the fact that he had just returned from a road trip through Europe, having wound ten and a half thousand kilometers on the speedometer of his Renault minivan. I went by car to Austria, visited my daughter in Sweden, rested with my young wife in Croatia, and transited half of Europe. At 88 years old!
To my surprise, he said that it was very convenient for him to travel behind the wheel. “I can drive for 12 hours and never get tired,” Stakhovich says.
And I look at his Russian peers and just marvel. Comparisons are not in our favor. And very few of us live to that age. Moreover, “this age” protected our country from the Nazis, the war for the most part wiped them out.
Once I told his wife Tatyana, who is half his age, about this, and she told me one interesting detail.
When we registered the marriage in Salzburg, during our honeymoon, I got to a meeting of Mikhail's classmates, Tatiana said. - Can you imagine, all his classmates are alive. And they feel great. They danced for so long! At the same time, all the guys from his class, as well as Mikhail, served in the Nazi army. There are those who survived near Stalingrad ...
Frankly, I asked Mikhail Mikhailovich different questions. And uncomfortable for him, it seems to me, including. Somehow I reproached that it was difficult for our country to recover after what the brave soldiers of Adolf Hitler had done here. So I tried to justify the whole disorder of our country. Of course, he agrees with this, but ... He once said, as if by chance, while trying not to offend me: “Berlin was destroyed by Soviet troops almost to the ground. Dresden too. And such a fate befell 60 German cities. The Germans restored everything almost from scratch in 12 years. And then there was only development, and you know what Germany has become ... ".
Mikhail Stakhovich does not try to make excuses for his past, service in the Wehrmacht. It is not his fault that the Revolution of 1917 forced his father, a tsarist diplomat, to stay in Europe, where Mikhail Stakhovich was already born in 1921. And how could he, an 18-year-old boy, an Austrian citizen, know when he volunteered for the Nazi army what the Fuhrer had in mind and what fate he was preparing for his historical homeland. Stakhovich was driven by another interest - the volunteers had the advantage of choosing a place of service and a branch of service. If he had entered the army a little later, on conscription, it is not known how his fate would have turned. However, I will not repeat myself, about this in ...
Austrians aspired to the Third Reich with great desire
This time I asked Mikhail Mikhailovich about what I forgot to ask before: “Have you seen Hitler?”
One single time, - Stakhovich began his story. - It was in 1938, during the Anschluss of Austria by Germany. On March 13, our entire class was brought from Salzburg to Vienna, where the Reich Chancellor was to come. I remember we were led to some kind of bridge under which he had to pass. The people gathered on the streets of Vienna - darkness. All with flowers, flags with a swastika. And at some point, a real hysteria began, my ears were filled with an enthusiastic cry - a car appeared on which Hitler stood to his full height and waved his hand to the crowns that met him. I saw him...
It was the famous, triumphal entry of Adolf Hitler into Vienna, accompanied by the chief Supreme High Command armed forces Germany Wilhelm Keitel. On the same day, the law "On the reunification of Austria with the German Empire" was published, according to which Austria was declared "one of the lands German Empire"and became known as" Ostmark ".
It must be said that the absolute majority of Austrians, and this is confirmed by the witness of those events, Mikhail Stakhovich, accepted the Anschluss with approval. As Stakhovich said, and this is confirmed by history, during the so-called plebiscite on the Anschluss, which took place after the fact, on April 12, 1938, the vast majority of Austrian citizens supported him (official data - 99.75%).
But there were those who opposed the Anschluss and Hitler. There were very few of them, and after the reunification their fate was unenviable. The concentration camp was waiting for them.
The plebiscite was not secret, the Austrians voted by name, and the opponents, as they say, everyone knew by sight. Real repressions began against such people. Two Austrians, persecuted for their convictions, hid in the attic of the Stakhovich house. Mikhail Mikhailovich himself learned about this from his mother only many years later.
Of course, if the police knew about it, the fate of my family could have changed dramatically,” he says now. - I think that we, the Russians, who sheltered the opponents of the annexation of Austria to Germany, would hardly have been able to avoid reprisals.
But, the vast majority of Austrians really wanted to reunite with Germany, - recalls Mikhail Stakhovich. - The Austrians then lived very poorly, there was a terrible unemployment. And nearby was Germany, which had already grown rich, where there was no unemployment and the Germans lived very decently. Austria simply longed for reunification with Germany. It really was.
How can one not believe the old man Stakhovich? These are well known facts. Germans who lost in the First World War, whose national pride was trampled under the conditions Treaty of Versailles and subsequent events, with the advent of Hitler, they perked up great and under him Germany gained unprecedented economic power.
Admittedly, the evil genius of Adolf Aloizovich Shiklgruber did the impossible.
That is why Germany idolized him so much, and the people followed him on all his adventures. The average German did not need to know that the entire economic power of the country rose mainly on loans from American and British banks. And in order to pay off the bills, and at the same time try to win world domination, Hitler plunged the world into the most terrible meat grinder in the history of mankind.
It seemed to me that in the four years of my acquaintance with Stakhovich, I already know the biography of this living witness of the terrible events of the bygone 20th century quite well. It was stupid to think so. Nobody knows his life better than himself. And apparently there is still a lot of unknown in it. During my recent visit to Stanovoe, Mikhail Mikhailovich again showed his photo archive. Some of the photos I have already seen, and there was an opportunity to retake them. This time, among a pile of photos, one card flashed, which seemed very interesting to me and promised new pages in the history of the life of Mikhail Stakhovich. On it, Mikhail Mikhailovich stands next to American soldiers. He himself, noticing my interest in this photo, explained: “This is me after the war, in the USA, at an American military base. There I taught the Americans lessons in radio communications and encryption ... ".
Hell! It looks like another "series" of the story is brewing. We'll have to "torture" him about the soldiers of the Nazi army, who ended up in the hands of the Americans after the war, and, apparently, brought considerable benefits to their military.
"The main German TV channel ZDF showed the series Our Mothers, Our Fathers" about the Second World War, which outraged people in the countries of Eastern Europe. Poland was accused of anti-Semitism, the peoples of the USSR - of complicity with the Nazis and atrocities on their territory and the lands of Germany. The true victims of World War II are the soldiers of the Wehrmacht defending their homeland, the soldiers who fought against Polish anti-Semitism and Soviet barbarism.
Well, it seems that the EU needs its own version of history, which suits, first of all, the main country of the large European Union - Germany. Satellites like Greece or Cyprus should not be allowed to throw in the face a reminder of a recent bloody past. This threatens the existence of the legitimacy of German domination.
History has long been tried to be used as the wheel of a propaganda machine. It is doubtful that SS marches in the Baltics would be possible without the blessing of the "elder brothers" in the European Union. The Germans themselves cannot yet afford this, but the format of the feature tape seems to have been chosen as optimal for the formation public opinion.
After watching - thanks to the Internet! - you understand that the film aims to achieve several goals: the rehabilitation of the Germans who fought in World War II, the instillation of an inferiority complex in the new EU members, in particular Poland, as well as the portrayal of the victims of fascism - the peoples of the USSR, as a stupid biomass hostile to European civilization.
The latter task is simplified by the fact that during the years of the Cold War the image of the Soviet barbarian was successfully formed in the minds of the layman. Therefore, it is only necessary to throw up another myth in order for the Europeans to clearly see the threat from the East.
What myth? The most accessible, already voiced by European historians more than once: rape German women Soviet soldiers. The figure has been named: over two million German women.
Tens of thousands of children born from Soviet soldiers. To the question of how this could happen, there is a legitimate answer: they were raped. Let's leave for now stories about supposedly raped German women. Where did children come from? More on that below.
Let's get back to the movie. Frames flicker. Soviet soldiers break into a German hospital. Cold-bloodedly, in passing, they finish off the wounded. They grab a nurse and immediately try to rape German soldiers among the dead bodies. Such is the modern reading of history.
In general, a film shot, as it were, through the eyes of German soldiers, those who see the horrors of the war imposed on them, can evoke sympathy. Clever, intelligent Germans are witnessing how Polish partisans are expelled from the detachment, almost to certain death, a refugee who turned out to be a Jew. Ukrainian punishers exterminate people in front of the taken aback Germans. Russian rapists kill and destroy every living thing in their path.
Such a picture appears before the European audience. The Germans are trying with their last strength to protect their homeland, read - European civilization. And of course, these people could not be to blame for starting the war. A certain top of the Wehrmacht is to blame, which the bulk of the German soldiers, according to the authors of the tape, did not support, and the wild Slavic tribes that forced Europe to defend themselves from them.
But are ordinary soldiers so innocent? So were they in opposition to their commanders? Let's take excerpts from the letters of soldiers from the Eastern Front:
“Only a Jew can be a Bolshevik; nothing better for these bloodsuckers if there is no one to stop them. Wherever you spit, there are only Jews around, whether in the city or in the countryside.”
“Some will be interested that there were theaters, operas and so on, there were even large buildings, but only for the rich, and the rich are bloodsuckers and their hangers-on.”
“Everyone who observes this gloomy poverty understands exactly what these Bolshevik animals wanted to bring to us, hardworking, pure and creative Germans. This is God's blessing! How fair that the Fuehrer is called to lead Europe!”
“I see the Fuhrer in front of me. He saved the enslaved and raped humanity, giving them again divine freedom and the blessing of a worthy existence. The true and deepest reason for this war is to restore the natural and godly order. This is a battle against slavery, against Bolshevik madness.”
“I am proud, extremely proud, that I can fight against this Bolshevik monster, again fighting the enemy against whom I fought to annihilation during the difficult years of struggle in Germany. I am proud of the wounds I received in these battles, and I am proud of my new wounds and the medal that I now wear.”
“Our successes so far have been great, and we will not stop until we destroy the roots and branches of this infection, which will be a boon for European culture and humanity.”
“I am proud to belong to the German nation and to be in the ranks of our great army. Say hello to everyone at home. I am far away. Tell them that Germany is the most beautiful, cultured country in the entire world. Anyone should be happy to be a German and serve a Fuehrer like Adolf Hitler."
“For what it's worth, it's great that the Fuhrer saw the danger in time. The battle had to take place. Germany, what would happen to you if this stupid animal horde came to our native land? We all took an oath of allegiance to Adolf Hitler, and we must fulfill it for our own good, wherever we are.”
“Courage is courage inspired by spirituality. The stubbornness with which the Bolsheviks defended themselves in their pillboxes in Sevastopol is akin to some kind of animal instinct, and it would be a deep mistake to consider it the result of Bolshevik convictions or education. The Russians have always been like this and, most likely, always will remain so.
As you can see, there is not a word of remorse. Around the Jewish Bolsheviks, who need to be destroyed. True, there is sincere amazement that there are theaters and large buildings here. And even the valor of warriors for them is bestial, inhuman. There is no reason not to trust these testimonies. It was written by those whom today they are trying to present as victims of the Second World War.
And yet, what about the raped German women? Surely this question will arise in the attentive reader. War is war, but were there mass rapes and bastards? Perhaps you should also look at the evidence.
The famous director Grigory Chukhrai recalled the entry of troops into Romania: “Under the influence of Russian vodka, they relaxed and admitted that they were hiding their daughter in the attic.” Soviet officers were indignant: “Who do you take us for? We are not fascists! “The hosts were ashamed, and soon a lean girl named Mariyka appeared at the table, who greedily began to eat. Then, having got used to it, she began to flirt and even ask us questions... By the end of dinner, everyone was in a friendly mood and drank to “borotshaz” (friendship). Mariyka understood this toast too straightforwardly. When we went to bed, she appeared in my room in one undershirt. I am like Soviet officer I immediately realized that a provocation was being prepared. “They expect that I will be tempted by the charms of Mariyka, and they will raise a fuss. But I will not succumb to provocation,” I thought. Yes, and the charms of Mariyka did not appeal to me - I showed her the door.
The next morning, the hostess, putting food on the table, rattled the dishes. "Nervous. The provocation failed!“ I thought. I shared this thought with our Hungarian translator. He laughed.
This is not a provocation! You were shown a friendly disposition, but you neglected it. Now you are not considered a person in this house. You need to move to another apartment!
Why did they hide their daughter in the attic?
They were afraid of violence. We have accepted that a girl, before entering into marriage, with the approval of her parents, can experience intimacy with many men. We are told: they don’t buy a cat in a tied bag ... "
And here is the story of the mortar man N.A. Orlov, who was, to put it mildly, surprised by the behavior of German women in 1945. “Regarding violence against German women. It seems to me that some, when talking about such a phenomenon, “exaggerate” a little. I have a different kind of example. We went to some german city settled in houses. A "frau", about 45 years old, appears and asks for "herr commandant". They brought her to Marchenko. She declares that she is responsible for the quarter, and has gathered 20 German women for sexual (!!!) service to Russian soldiers. Marchenko German understood, and to the political officer Dolgoborodov, who was standing next to me, I translated the meaning of what the German woman said. The reaction of our officers was angry and obscene. The German woman was driven away, along with her "detachment" ready for service. In general, German obedience stunned us. They expected guerrilla warfare and sabotage from the Germans. But for this nation, order - "Ordnung" - is above all. If you are a winner, then they are “on their hind legs”, moreover, consciously and not under duress. That's the psychology...
Herr Commissar,” Frau Friedrich told me benevolently (I wore a leather jacket). We understand that soldiers have small needs. They are ready,” continued Frau Friedrich, “to give them a few younger women for ... I did not continue the conversation with Frau Friedrich.”
The front-line poet Boris Slutsky recalled: “It was not ethics at all that served as restraining motives, but the fear of getting infected, the fear of publicity, of pregnancy” ... “universal depravity covered and hid the special female depravity, made her invisible and shameless.”
And it was not at all the fear of syphilis that was the reason for the rather chaste behavior Soviet troops. Sergeant Alexander Rodin left notes after visiting a brothel, which happened after the end of the war. “... After leaving, a disgusting, shameful feeling of lies and falsehood arose, a picture of a woman’s obvious, frank pretense did not go out of my head ... on principles like “don’t give a kiss without love, but also with most of our soldiers with whom I had to talk ... Around the same days I had to talk with one beautiful Magyar woman (she knew Russian from somewhere). To her question, did I like it in Budapest, I replied that I liked it, only brothels are embarrassing. “But why?” the girl asked. Because it is unnatural, wild, - I explained: - a woman takes money and after that, immediately begins to “love!” The girl thought for a while, then nodded in agreement and said: “You are right: it is ugly to take money in advance.” ..”
The difference in the mentality of Europeans and Soviet soldiers, as we see, is striking. So talking about mass rape, probably, should not be. If there were cases, then they were either isolated, out of the ordinary, or they were quite free relations, which the Germans themselves allowed. Hence the offspring.
But this is all, in fact, has no crucial. How irrelevant are the objections of the Poles to the television series. Who, after all, in Europe took into account the opinion of the Polish public. Not searches historical truth were guided by the creators of the film claiming, according to the European press, the main cinematic event of the year in Germany. Ideological stamps do not require thoughtful artistic solutions. Europe has not changed.
William Shearer once wrote that he had two liberal friends in Germany in the thirties. They both became rabid Nazis. So, is history repeating itself?"
Alexander Rzheshevsky. April 2013
There are unions of veterans in almost all countries. And in Germany, after the defeat of Nazism in 1945, all traditions of honoring and perpetuating the memory of veterans broke off. In the words of Herfried Münkler, professor of political theory at Humboldt University, Germany is a "post-heroic society." If memory is commemorated in Germany, it is not heroes, but victims of the First and Second World Wars. At the same time, the Bundeswehr, within the framework of NATO and UN peacekeeping missions, participates in military operations abroad. Therefore, a discussion began among the military and politicians: who should be considered veterans?
Veterans of the Bundeswehr
After the war, until 1955, in Germany - both in East and West - there was no army at all. Veterans unions were banned. What is the glorification of heroism when the German soldiers participated in the criminal war of conquest? But even in the Bundeswehr, founded in 1955, no veteran traditions emerged during the Cold War. The functions of the army were limited to the defense of their own territory, there were no hostilities.
context
In recent years, the Bundeswehr has been involved in operations abroad, for example, in the former Yugoslavia, in Afghanistan. In total, according to estimates, about 300 thousand soldiers and officers completed such service. Until very recently, these operations were not even called "war" or "military operations" directly. It was about "assistance in establishing a peaceful order", humanitarian actions and other euphemisms.
Now decided to call a spade a spade. German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere (ThomasdeMaiziere) in September last year returned to use the word "veteran". Speaking in the Bundestag, he said that "if there are veterans in other countries, then in Germany he has the right to talk about" veterans of the Bundeswehr ".
This discussion was unleashed by the soldiers themselves - those who returned from Afghanistan with wounds or mental trauma. In 2010 they founded the "Union of German Veterans". Critics say that the very term "veteran" has been discredited by German history and is therefore unacceptable.
But who is considered a "veteran"? Everyone who wore the uniform of the Bundeswehr for some time, or only those who served abroad? Or maybe only those who participated in real hostilities? The "Union of German Veterans" has already decided: whoever served abroad is a veteran.
Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière, for his part, is trying to avoid a split on the issue. Many military men believe that military service during the Cold War was also risky, so it would be wrong to assign the status of "veteran" exclusively to those who had a chance to sniff gunpowder in Afghanistan.
Will there be a Veteran's Day?
For soldiers of the Bundeswehr who have been in combat, special awards have been established - the Cross of Honor for Courage and the medal For participation in hostilities." However, many military officers believe that society does not appreciate their willingness to risk their lives highly enough. After all, decisions on participation in operations abroad, the Bundestag, that is, the elected representatives of the people, takes over. Consequently, the soldiers also participate in dangerous operations at the will of the people. So why doesn't society give them the respect they deserve?
Now the possibility of establishing a special "Veteran's Day" is being discussed. This idea is also supported by the influential Union of Bundeswehr Servicemen, which unites about 200,000 active and retired military personnel. But there is also a proposal to honor on this day the work of not only soldiers, but also rescuers, police officers and employees of development aid organizations.
Secretary of Defense de Maizières is also considering establishing a special commissioner for veterans' affairs and, following the American example, special homes for veterans. But there is no increase in benefits for veterans. The Minister of Defense believes that in Germany the social security of active and retired soldiers is already at a fairly high level.