Memoirs Red and White: Poland, the War, and After by Peter F Dembowski

Author:Peter F Dembowski [Dembowski, Peter F]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Biography & Autobiography, Personal Memoirs, History, Europe, Eastern, Military, World War II, Modern, 20th Century
ISBN: 9780268026202
Google: DE5_rgEACAAJ
Goodreads: 25434512
Publisher: University of Notre Dame Press
Published: 2015-09-30T00:00:00+00:00

FOUR

Liberation and Emigration

In Westertimke there were only a small number of Germans, and we were told to organize our own self-policing groups. We wore white armbands and carried big sticks—symbols of office. In fact, we kept pretty good military discipline while waiting to be liberated. Our camp was not situated directly on the front line, and there was not much fighting nearby. Heavy bombers were no longer flying at night, but there was a lot of strafing by the Allied planes in the daytime. Hardly any vehicle could move on the nearby highway without being attacked by light planes. Many German civilians moved close to the camp to take advantage of the protection offered by the POW SOS signs painted on the roofs of our barracks. Day and night we waited for the British to arrive.

The moment of liberation came as an anticlimax. One night, right after April 20—Hitler’s birthday and thus an official holiday—I was on duty as one of the Polish “armband” people. We were waiting for the Allied army. Our Wachmänner were lined up at the main gate to the camp. We were right behind them, also lined up. Suddenly we heard something. Three British soldiers, who we later learned were from the Welsh Guards, came up to us. The Wachmänner stood at attention, but nothing happened. The leader of the British patrol explained to one of us who understood English that they could not liberate us until the next day, about noon. In the meantime, the Germans would have to be in charge, to protect us from the marauding SS troops that were nearby. I had to hand back the Mauser that one of the German guards had given to me. I became a prisoner again, and we waited.

In the end, the liberation of the camp was staged for the benefit of the film unit accompanying the Welsh Guards. At noon, the same Wachmänner, with the same Mausers and with the same unmilitary-looking personal gear, were lined up at the gate. Many of the prisoners were gathered behind them. First a jeep carrying the film unit arrived, then a tank rolled up and broke the main gate. We all shouted, “Hurrah! Hurrah!,” and some soldiers removed the guns from the hands of the grateful Germans, who were later taken away carrying their little suitcases. A couple of British officers started to talk to our Vertrauensmann. We were told to maintain military discipline and to obey the British liaison officers, who would be appointed shortly. Above all, we were told not leave the camp as long as the military actions continued.

There was universal awareness of the danger of the Wehrwolf, that is, the German underground armed resistance. We from the AK certainly believed that Wehrwolf agents were in the area, but, as we would learn later, they were not. Unlike the Poles, the Germans did not have a tradition of insurrection.

For a few days, life in Westertimke continued normally, except that we had more to eat. There was quite a bit of British (white!) bread.

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