General Discussions
This is the place to discuss general issues related to the U-boat war or the war at sea in WWII.
RE: Horst Einbrodt (U-351) passes away
Posted by:
JohnV
()
Date: May 21, 2001 11:45PM
<HTML>I\'ll give you the short version of his escape story:
Horst and his crew scuttled their boat and were taken into Soviet custody at the end of the war. The Reds marched them east for slave labor, giving them no food or water. The only things they could eat were raw roots & cabbages they passed along the side of the road. The only water they got was from ponds and lakes. First, the Reds allowed the horses to drink. Then the Russians would throw grenades into the water to stir up the muck from the bottom then let the Germans drink.
After several months the crew was approaching Siberia, many of the crew having died from hunger and exhaustion. One winter night there was a heavy snow storm. The wind and cold forced the Russian guards to fold up the collars of their greatcoats to protect their ears. Horst and two others took advantage of the guards\' limited visibility to escape the camp. For a couple of weeks they marched during the night and hid in hay stacks during the day.
As they approached the old German border, they were apprehended by some Soviet soldiers who found them sleeping in a barn. The soldiers led them into the woods and forced them to strip naked (Horst didn\'t explain why; perhaps something happened he didn\'t want to discuss...I don\'t know). One of the Russians found an Iron Cross hidden in the pocket of one of the men\'s clothes and immediately shot him. They were going to shoot the other two, but an officer came and stopped them. The officer wrote them a note on a piece of paper and told Horst and his buddy that this pass would allow them to return to Germany. After that, Horst and his friend walked openly in the refugee columns to the West. Once they arrived safely in the Allied sector, someone looked at the note and said that it read: \"Immediately shoot the fascists who are bearing this note\"!!!</HTML>
Horst and his crew scuttled their boat and were taken into Soviet custody at the end of the war. The Reds marched them east for slave labor, giving them no food or water. The only things they could eat were raw roots & cabbages they passed along the side of the road. The only water they got was from ponds and lakes. First, the Reds allowed the horses to drink. Then the Russians would throw grenades into the water to stir up the muck from the bottom then let the Germans drink.
After several months the crew was approaching Siberia, many of the crew having died from hunger and exhaustion. One winter night there was a heavy snow storm. The wind and cold forced the Russian guards to fold up the collars of their greatcoats to protect their ears. Horst and two others took advantage of the guards\' limited visibility to escape the camp. For a couple of weeks they marched during the night and hid in hay stacks during the day.
As they approached the old German border, they were apprehended by some Soviet soldiers who found them sleeping in a barn. The soldiers led them into the woods and forced them to strip naked (Horst didn\'t explain why; perhaps something happened he didn\'t want to discuss...I don\'t know). One of the Russians found an Iron Cross hidden in the pocket of one of the men\'s clothes and immediately shot him. They were going to shoot the other two, but an officer came and stopped them. The officer wrote them a note on a piece of paper and told Horst and his buddy that this pass would allow them to return to Germany. After that, Horst and his friend walked openly in the refugee columns to the West. Once they arrived safely in the Allied sector, someone looked at the note and said that it read: \"Immediately shoot the fascists who are bearing this note\"!!!</HTML>
| Subject | Written By | Posted |
|---|---|---|
Horst Einbrodt (U-351) passes away
|
JohnV | 05/21/2001 03:31AM |
|
RE: Horst Einbrodt (U-351) passes away
|
Ralph | 05/21/2001 07:15PM |
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RE: Horst Einbrodt (U-351) passes away
|
JohnV | 05/21/2001 11:45PM |