Enemy at the Gates

by William Craig

  PRISON CAMPS AND CANNIBALISM

  From interviews with Germans listed in preceding chapter and with Felice Bracci and Cristoforo Capone. Also Bracci’s diary; Reginato’s Twelve Years of Prison in the USSR; Don Guido Tuna’s Seven Rubles to the Chaplain; and a report by Guiseppe Aleandri on the treatment accorded the Axis POWs in Russia.

  After Twelve Years

  In September 1955, Konrad Adenauer, Chancellor of the new West German government, flew to Moscow to meet the leaders of the USSR. During their discussions, Adenauer broached a sensitive topic:

  “…Let me start with the question of the release of those Germans who are still imprisoned within the area or sphere of influence of the Soviet Union, or who are otherwise prevented from leaving this area. It is on purpose that I put this problem at the beginning, as this is a question that leaves no German family unconcerned. I wish with all my heart that you do understand in which spirit I want to treat this problem. For me only the human point is at stake. The thought is unbearable that—more than ten years after the end of the war—there are still men who are separated from their families, homeland, and their normal, peaceful work-men who were involved—in whatever way—in the maelstrom of war. You must not find any provocation in my saying: It is out of the question to establish ‘normal’ relations between our states as long as this question is unsolved. It is normalization itself of which I am talking. Let us make a clean break with a matter which is a daily source of remembrance of sorrowful and separating past.”

  Mr. Bulganin answered:

  “The Federal Chancellor, Mr. Adenauer, raised as first question that of the prisoners of war. In our opinion there is a definite misunderstanding. There are no German prisoners of war at all in the Soviet Union. All German prisoners of war were released and repatriated. In the Soviet Union there are only war criminals of the former Hitler armies—criminals that were convicted by a Soviet court for especially grave crimes against the Soviet people, against peace and against humanity. In fact, 9,626 men have been retained up to September 1. (Some 2,000 actually fought at Stalingrad.) But these are men who must be kept in prison as criminals, according to the most humane standards and rules. They are men who have lost the human countenance; they are men guilty of atrocity, of arson, of murder committed against women, children and old people. They were duly sentenced by a Soviet court and cannot be regarded as prisoners of war.

  “The Soviet people cannot forget the capital crimes committed by these criminal elements, as, for instance, the shooting of 70,000 men in Kiev on the Babi Yar. We cannot forget these million people who were killed, gassed and burned to death. Can anyone ever forget the tons of hair that were cut off (and stapled) from women who were tortured to death. Those present on our side have witnessed all that happened in Maidanek. In the Maidanek and Auschwitz camps more than five and a half million people, all innocent, were murdered. The Ukrainian people will never forget those innocent people murdered in Kharkov, where thousands were shot or gassed. I could name the concentration camps in Smolensk, Krasnodar, Stavropol, Lov, Poltava, Novgorod, Orel, Rovno, Kaunas, Riga—and many others—where hundreds of thousands of Soviet citizens were tortured to death by the Hitler fascists. We cannot forget those innocent people, murdered, gassed and buried alive; we cannot forget the scorched towns and villages, the killed women, juveniles and children. And those 9,626 men I mentioned are criminals who committed these monstrous crimes…”

  Adenauer was quick to respond:

  “Then, Mr. Prime Minister, you talked about the prisoners of war. May I be permitted to draw your attention to the fact that in my yesterday’s statements the words ‘prisoners of war’ were not at all mentioned. I avoided this expression on purpose. If you closely examine my statements, you will find that I rather spoke of ‘persons who were retained.’ You talked of ‘war criminals’ and of sentences passed by Soviet courts. We have similar facts also in our relation to the U.S.A., Great Britain and France. But these states came to understand that the sentences passed by the courts of these countries in the first postwar period were not free from emotions, from the atmosphere of that specific time…

  “Much evil was done.

  “This much is true: German troops invaded Russia. And this much is true: Much evil was done. But this is true, too: Russian armies invaded Germany—in defense, I admit without hesitation—and many horrible things also happened in Germany during the war. I think, if we enter into a new period of our relations—and this we want seriously—we should not take too close a look into the past, for then we only start putting up obstacles.” Premier Nikita Khrushchev vehemently attacked Adenauer’s position: “Mr. Chancellor, you said at the end of your declaration that the Soviet troops, when they crossed the Soviet borders and penetrated deeper into your country, also committed crimes; I refuse this categorically, as this was not the case and the German party cannot submit any evidence as to this (author’s note—here Khrushchev ignored the truth). The Soviet troops drove away the others from this country and persecuted them, as they did not surrender. If we had left these troops alone, they could have prepared for another invasion. We could not stop halfway, but had to destroy the enemy who dared to raise his weapons against us. That is why the Soviet soldiers fulfilled their holy duty toward their homeland by continuing this war and sacrificing their lives. Are these horrors? If any troops had invaded Germany and Germany had defended herself and destroyed the enemy— would you call that horrors? It would be Germany’s holy duty. For these reasons, I am of the opinion that an insulting remark has been made as to the Soviet troops. And this forced me to make such a statement.”

  On September 14, Adenauer held a press conference in Moscow:

  “…The Soviet Government—Mr. Bulganin and Mr. Khrushchev—expressly declared during the negotiations that the Soviet Union has no longer any German prisoners of war, but only 9,626 convicted war criminals—as they put it.

  “All of them will leave the Soviet Union in the near future. They will partly be amnestied and released; as far as the Soviet Union believes that really serious crimes were committed they will be extradited to Germany to be treated according to the laws of our land. I think this will ease a lot of grief—not only of those nearly 10,000 people here in the Soviet Union but also of the numerous relatives in our home country. Now I may also inform you that Prime Minister Bulganin said to me—and he authorized me to tell you this—that the entire action will be under way even before we have arrived in Bonn…”

  In this manner, the last of the Stalingrad prisoners began their final journey home from Soviet prison camps.

  Index

  Abganerovo, 33, 38, 42, 45, 48, 74

  Abrusovka, 276

  Acktuba, 307

  Adam, Col. Wilhelm, 367-368, 372, 376-377, 396, 434

  Ademeit, Lt. Gottfried, 51

  Adenauer, Konrad, 435-437

  A Farewell to Arms (Hemingway), 15

  Africa, see North Africa

  Air Corps, German Eighth, 193

  aircraft: bomber, 32, 40, 42, 44, 58, 60, 70, 91, 93, 134, 245; British, 88; German lost at Stalingrad, 303, 339; fighter, 346; reconnaissance, 53, 167; Russian, 136-137, 139, 162, 233; transport, 237, 297, 299, 351, 355, 399. See also He-111; Ju-52; Ju-88; Stuka

  Air Fleet, German Fourth, 131

  Air Force, Soviet Eighth, 54

  airlift: German, 193, 199, 206-207, 213, 216, 217, 221-222, 229, 233, 237, 246, 247, 254, 302-303, 330, 336, 345; Russian, 162

  air raids: Allied, 153; German, 32, 33, 57-60, 65-67. See also air strikes

  air-raid shelters, 59, 60, 365

  air strikes, tactical: German, 93; Russian, 77, 130-131

  Akimovski, 114, 184, 189, 190

  Aksai River, 213, 234, 243, 293

  Albania, 15

  Algeria, Allied landings in, 153

  Alt, Capt., 341

  Alter, Wilhelm, 115-116, 360, 405

  ambushes: German, 40, 43, 264, 320; Russian, 44, 133

  ammunition, German:
brought into Stalingrad, 125-126; rationing of, 224; stockpiles, 164, 274; supplies exhausted, 240, 339, 355

  amputations, 223, 305, 313

  Anderson, Lale, 295

  antiaircraft guns: German, 64; Soviet, 57-58, 233, 303

  anti-Communism, 42, 78, 321

  anti-Semitism, 10-11, 336, 398

  antitank defenses, 9, 38, 45, 86; ditches, xv, 33, 54, 60. See also artillery,

  air raids: Allied, 153; German, 32, 33, antitank

  Antonescu, Marshal Ion, 213

  Anzio, landing at, 401

  artillery: antitank, 49, 137, 188, 194, 224, 240; German, 73, 79, 94, 101, 123, 125, 133, 335; Russian, 36, 39, 46, 104, 112, 151, 171-172, 306, 315; surrendered to Germans, 75. See also mortars

  Asia, Russian expansion into, 29

  Astrakhan, 3, 67

  atrocities: German, 43, 143, 321, 436; Russian, 282, 321, 362

  Austria, 151; troops, 224, 226, 334

  autopsy, 318-319

  Azov, Sea of, 3, 179, 203

  Babi Yar, 436

  Baburkin, 286, 304, 353

  Badanov, Gen., 301, 302

  Baden-Baden, 401

  Bad Gotesburg, 396

  Baku, 78

  Balkan States, 13

  Banco Nazionale del Lavore, 397

  Barmantsak, Lake, 187

  Barrikady Gun Factory, 36, 99, 123, 125, 135, 155, 156, 162, 208, 261, 270, 399, 400; battle for, 137, 138-142, 144, 150, 151, 186, 225-226, 242

  Batov, Gen., 368

  Batum, 78

  Batyuk, Col. Nikolai, 103, 120, 127, 168, 396

  Beaulieu, Col., 372

  Beer Hall Putsch, 153

  Behr, Capt. Winrich, 175, 176, 182, 185, 186, 299, 335-336, 340, 344-345, 356, 382, 396, 405

  Beketovka, 67, 80, 149, 151, 171, 187, 241, 378, 390

  Below, Col. Gunter von 100-101, 114-115, 329-330, 367, 396, 405

  Below, Col. Nikolaus von, 100, 229, 335-336, 382, 396

  Berlin, 118, 121, 398, 401, 402; airlift, 394

  Bezditko, Lt. Ivan, 168

  Big Saturn offensive, 229, 301

  Billert, Oberleutnant, 353

  Binder, Karl, 112, 142, 184, 189-190, 220-221, 288-289, 313-314, 333-334, 359-360, 387, 388-389, 396-397, 405

  “Black Crows,” 11

  Black Sea, 78, 147, 301

  Blinov, 183, 185

  blitzkrieg, 4, 76, 90, 118

  Boblingen, 268, 288, 397

  Bock, Gen. Fedor von, 8, 18, 19

  BODO line, 48, 61, 83, 187

  Boguchar, 282

  Bolshe Nabotoff, 184, 189

  Bolshevik Revolution, 29-30, 58-59, 83, 152

  bombing, see air raids; Stuka aircraft

  Boris, Oberleutnant, 339

  Bormann, Martin, 206, 344

  Bracci, Lt. Felice, 15, 262, 275-276, 281, 304-306, 327, 328, 390, 397, 405

  Branco (Italian prisoner), 327

  Brandt, Pvt. Willi, 133

  Breining, Lt. Friedrich, 115, 166, 209, 405

  Brezhnev, Leonid, 404

  bridges, see Don River; Kalach

  British Army, Eighth, 153

  British Expeditionary Force, 4

  Brunnert, Pvt. Ekkehart, 164-165, 239, 268-269, 288, 322-324, 397, 405

  Brunnert, Irene, 288

  Bulganin, Nikolai, 436, 437

  Bund Deutsche Offiziere, 396

  Bundeswehr, 401

  Businovka, 192, 196, 247, 252

  Byelorussia, 106

  cannibalism, xiii, 390-392

  Capone, Dr. Cristoforo, 15-16, 257-258, 259, 276-277, 329, 362, 390, 392-393, 397, 405

  Caspian Sea, 3, 70, 78

  casualties, xiv-xv; in air raids, 65-67; civilian, 61; German, 92, 111, 114, 131, 132, 145, 155, 157, 205, 229, 260, 280, 293, 309, 335, 344, 359; Italian, 259; among prisoners 388, 389, 390; Rumanian, 201-202, 213; Russian, 40, 68, 82, 101, 105, 110, 120, 125, 135, 136, 150, 157, 171, 241, 285, 368

  Catherine the Great, 29

  Caucasus Mountains, 15, 19, 29, 44, 85, 86, 152, 183, 203, 214, 229, 266, 310; German headquarters in, 79; oil fields, objective in German offensive, 24, 78, 118, 119

  cavalry, see horses

  cemeteries, military, 6, 114, 314

  censors, military, 311, 312-313, 361, 386-387

  Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 398

  Changar, Capt. Ignacy, 143-145, 324-325, 387, 397, 405

  Chekhov, Anatoli, 145

  Chemist’s Shop, battle for, 155, 156

  Chemnitz, 225

  Chernova, Tania, 106-107, 122-123, 145-146, 235-236, 386, 397, 405

  Chiang Kai-shek, 83

  Chileko, 33

  China, 83

  Chir, 164, 165, 167, 190, 196, 198

  Chir River, 192, 201

  cholera, 29

  Christiakov, Gen., 183

  Christmas Eve, battlefield observances of, 283, 284, 286-290, 295

  Chuikov, Valentina, 124

  Chuikov, Gen. Vassili Ivanovich, xii, 83-85, 86-88, 159-160, 176, 218, 220, 243, 316; headquarters, 93-94, 99, 124, 126, 136, 150, 167-168, 204, 284, 368, 378-379, 386; intelligence organization, 132; orders given by, 96, 134-135; postwar career, 397-398; reinforcements requested, 136, 151; tactics adopted by 89-91, 234-235

  Chungking, 83

  Churchill, Winston, 48n, 88

  CIA, 398

  Circassians, 78

  Clausius, Col., 354

  clothing supplies, 164, 268, 352

  Codre, Lt. Col., 113, 142

  Cologne, xiii

  Combat Groups, German: Engelke, 139; Fretter-Pico, 346; Hollidt, 228, 346; Hunersdorff, 240, 242-243; Krumpen, 63; Mieth, 346; Stahel, 346

  commandos, Russian, 133, 134, 324, 387, 397

  “Commissar Order,” 10, 12

  Commissar’s House, battle for, 155, 156-157, 225

  Communist party: members, 42, 83; Paulus and, 401; political agitators, 125, 172, 324, 393; Stalingrad Central Committee, 60. See also anti-Communism

  concentration camps, German, 436

  counterintelligence, 91-92, 97

  courts martial, 353, 360

  Crete, 210

  Crimea, 20, 215

  Croatians, regiment of, 220

  Crome, Col., 371

  Daniel, Edler von, 13, 366

  Danilov (political agitator), 129

  Danzig, 50

  Dar Goya, 33, 54, 59, 97, 170, 285, 378, 385

  Das. Reich, 161

  defectors: German, 367-368; Rumanian, 185; Russian Army, 165-166, 235, 268, 273; Russian civilian, 398

  de Gaulle, Charles, xv

  Deifel, Cpl. Franz, 167, 226-227, 348-349, 406

  Demyansk, 311

  Denikin, Gen. Anton, 20

  Denisova (militiawoman), 59

  Deriabin, Lt. Pyotr, 103, 104, 120-121, 135, 379-380, 398, 405

  deserters: execution of, 43, 104, 125, 307, 380; German, 336; Russian, xv, 5, 48, 71, 108, 149, 380

  Detrunina, Nina, 66

  Dietzel, Lt. Gerhard, 197

  Dimitrevka, 304, 334

  Dingier, Oberst, 353

  disease, 29, 364-365, 369, 389-390

  dive-bombers, see Stuka aircraft

  Dnieper River, 55

  dogs, 79, 282; used as food, 238-239, 309

  Dolgy Ravine, 104

  “Dom Pavlov (Pavlov’s House),” battle for, 137, 146

  Don-Chir Front, 214

  Don Front, 45, 117, 174, 302

  Don River, 3, 13, 15, 19, 28, 39, 183, 213; crossed by Germans, 48-49, 53, 75, 114, 118; in defense of Stalingrad, 25, 26, 73; German headquarters on, 111; positions on, 193; pontoon bridges over, 47, 55, 159; Russian positions on, 158. See also Kalach

  Donets River, 19, 119

  Donskaya-Tsaritsa River, 257

  Dragan, Lt. Anton Kuzmich, 96, 100, 102, 103, 107-109, 398

  Drebber, Gen., 367-368

  Dresden, xi, 116, 401

  Dumitrescu, Gen., 150

  Dunkirk, evacuation at, 4, 7, 118

&nb
sp; Dylo, Lev, 56

  Dzerhezinsky, Felix, 124

  Dzerhezinsky Tractor Works, 36-37, 53, 68, 127, 234, 285; evacuation of workers, 123-124; German attack on, 134; return of workers, 385, 390

  East Germany, 394, 396, 401, 403

  East Prussia, Nazi headquarters in, 71, 150, 199, 206, 245, 253, 271, 303, 310, 340, 356, 381

  Egypt, 153

  Eden, Anthony, 118

  Eichlepp (aide to Paulus), 299, 345

  Einsatzgruppen, 11, 400

  Eisenhower, Dwight D., 398, 400

  Eismann, Maj., 246-247, 248-249, 253, 273

  El Alamein, 153, 232

  Elininski, 121

  Engineer Training School, Russian, 195

  Englehardt, Karl, 165, 405

  English Channel, proposed Allied invasion

  across, 20, 48n

  entertainment of troops, 307-308

  espionage, Russian, 23-24, 91-92, 158, 229, 398, 402, 422-423. See also intelligence

  factory district, battle for, 110, 111, 123, 126, 130, 134-135, 138-142, 144-146, 150, 151, 155, 163

  famine, see starvation

  Far East Fleet, Soviet, 68, 121

  Fasanotti (Italian prisoner), 327

  Fascism, 14, 15, 88, 305, 306

  Fiebig, Lt. Gen. Martin, 193, 216, 217, 229-230, 237, 280-281, 300, 351

  field hospitals: German, 6, 63-64, 131, 229, 257, 304, 323, 370-371; Russian, 72

  Fillipov, Lt. Col. Grigor, 194-195, 197

  Fillipov, Sacha, 97, 170-171, 285-286, 385

  Finland, Soviet attack on, 42, 83

  food supply: failures, 238-239, 295, 297, 350, 360; German, 164, 184, 197, 220-221, 253, 278, 318, 334, 359-360; for prisoners, 328, 378, 392-393; rations cut, 220, 226, 233, 274, 298; Russian, 38, 124, 168, 171, 220, 265, 307

  France, 20, 213, 329; occupation of, 7, 138, 193, 210, 215

  Frankfurt on the Main, 7, 347, 393-394, 400

  Frankfurt on the Oder, 394

  frostbite, 275, 294, 305, 352, 357, 363

  Frunze Military Academy, 83

  fuel, shortage of, 20, 196, 242, 247, 249, 258-259, 267, 268, 278-279, 297-298

  Furth, 114

  Fusco, Franco, 281, 327

  Gavrilovka, 75

  Gebhardt, Capt., 340-341

  Gehlen, Col. Reinhard, 182