Wolf children
Encyclopedia
Wolf children was the name given to a group of orphaned German children at the end of World War II
in East Prussia
.
When the Red Army
conquered East Prussia
in 1945, thousands of German children were left on their own, because their parents had been killed during bombing raids or during harsh winters without any food or shelter. Older children often tried to keep their siblings together, and survival—searching for food and shelter—became their number-one priority. Many went on food-scrounging trips into neighboring Lithuania
and were adopted by the rural Lithuanian farmers, who often employed them. Most of these children made these trips back and forth many times to get food for their sick mothers or siblings. They were called “wolf children” because of their wolf-like wandering through the forests and along railroad tracks, sometimes catching rides on top or in between railroad cars, jumping off before reaching Soviet control stations. All who assisted the German children to survive had to hide their efforts from the Soviet occupation authorities in Lithuania. Therefore, many German children's names were changed, and only after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990 could they reveal their true identities.
gave orders that fleeing was illegal and punishable ("strenges Fluchtverbot" - flight strictly forbidden). At the last moment flight was allowed. The invasion prompted thousands of men, women, and children to flee; however, many parents were killed, leaving many children orphaned. The children also fled into the surrounding forest and were forced to fend for themselves. Many German children who were not fortunate enough to escape were killed by Allied bombs. Thousands more found themselves abandoned, orphaned, raped or kidnapped.
At the end of World War II
the Soviet Army told the German population, "Wojna kaput- damoi" ("go back home"). They needed people to work for them and to farm for food to feed their troops in the occupied territories. However, most homes had been destroyed by British and Soviet bombardment and the Soviet ground assault on East Prussia.
by trains to Soviet Occupation Zone of Germany (later GDR). On 15 February 1948, the Ministerial Council of the USSR decided to resettle all Germans, declaring them illegal residents in their own homeland. According to Soviet sources, 102,125 persons were resettled in 1947 and 1948. Of those, only 99,481 arrived. (Communist GDR sources attribute this to "perhaps a Soviet calculation error.") In May 1951, another 3,000 East Prussian Umsiedler came to the GDR.
The Soviets eventually put German orphans in orphanages commanded by Soviet military officers but staffed mostly with some of the remaining Germans. In Fall 1947, 4,700 German orphans were officially registered in Kaliningrad. In 1947 The Soviet Union sent trainloads of orphans to the communist GDR; these train rides took four to seven days partly without food or toilet facilities and some children did not survive. In 1948, the children's village of Pinnow, then Kinderdorf Kyritz, was opened.
in August 1945. Historian Ruth Leiserowitz, who lived in Lithuania researched, and published books about the Wolfkinder of East Prussia under her maiden name Ruth Kibelka and her married name.
lasted from 1945-1991. Once the Iron Curtain fell, people could once more travel to research or reclaim their identities as Germans. The story of one survivor can be read in “ABANDONED AND FORGOTTEN: An Orphan Girl's Tale of Survival in World War II by Evelyne Tannehill,” in which Evelyne and her family fell victim to the Russians who invaded her parents' farm by the Baltic Sea in East Prussia. Her family was separated. Only after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 she was able to return back to East Prussia to revisit her childhood homeland.
The German Red Cross
helps to identify and locate family members who lost contact with one another, such as the wolf children, during the turmoil in East Prussia. “It was only the politics of Gorbatschow which allowed the opening of the Russian archives. Since the nineties, about 200,000 additional fates of missing persons have been clarified. More information about the fates of Germans who were taken prisoners and deceased still remain in unopened archives in Eastern and South-eastern Europe.
, stated that an exhibition will be opened in Bad Iburg
which will be named “The Lost History of East Prussia: Wolf Children and Their Fate”.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
.
When the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
conquered East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
in 1945, thousands of German children were left on their own, because their parents had been killed during bombing raids or during harsh winters without any food or shelter. Older children often tried to keep their siblings together, and survival—searching for food and shelter—became their number-one priority. Many went on food-scrounging trips into neighboring Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
and were adopted by the rural Lithuanian farmers, who often employed them. Most of these children made these trips back and forth many times to get food for their sick mothers or siblings. They were called “wolf children” because of their wolf-like wandering through the forests and along railroad tracks, sometimes catching rides on top or in between railroad cars, jumping off before reaching Soviet control stations. All who assisted the German children to survive had to hide their efforts from the Soviet occupation authorities in Lithuania. Therefore, many German children's names were changed, and only after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990 could they reveal their true identities.
Evacuation impossible
The Nazis had forbidden civilians to evacuate as the Soviet Red Army invaded, because they viewed evacuation as a sign of capitulation As the Red Army got closer, many prepared to evacuate anyway. Until the last minute, NS Governor Erich KochErich Koch
Erich Koch was a Gauleiter of the Nazi Party in East Prussia from 1928 until 1945. Between 1941 and 1945 he was the Chief of Civil Administration of Bezirk Bialystok. During this period, he was also the Reichskommissar in Reichskommissariat Ukraine from 1941 until 1943...
gave orders that fleeing was illegal and punishable ("strenges Fluchtverbot" - flight strictly forbidden). At the last moment flight was allowed. The invasion prompted thousands of men, women, and children to flee; however, many parents were killed, leaving many children orphaned. The children also fled into the surrounding forest and were forced to fend for themselves. Many German children who were not fortunate enough to escape were killed by Allied bombs. Thousands more found themselves abandoned, orphaned, raped or kidnapped.
At the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the Soviet Army told the German population, "Wojna kaput- damoi" ("go back home"). They needed people to work for them and to farm for food to feed their troops in the occupied territories. However, most homes had been destroyed by British and Soviet bombardment and the Soviet ground assault on East Prussia.
Lithuanian Aid
The Lithuanians aided the children of East Prussia commuting to Lithuania to find nourishment and called them vokietukai (little Germans). They adopted in their Lithuanian farms some of the younger ones. Though Lithuanians risked to be sentenced severely by Soviet authorities should it be detected that they sheltered Wolfskinder.Expulsion to GDR
In 1946, the Soviets began emptying Samland of Germans. In October 1947, the Soviets decided to resettle 30,000 Germans from Kaliningrad OblastKaliningrad Oblast
Kaliningrad Oblast is a federal subject of Russia situated on the Baltic coast. It has a population of The oblast forms the westernmost part of the Russian Federation, but it has no land connection to the rest of Russia. Since its creation it has been an exclave of the Russian SFSR and then the...
by trains to Soviet Occupation Zone of Germany (later GDR). On 15 February 1948, the Ministerial Council of the USSR decided to resettle all Germans, declaring them illegal residents in their own homeland. According to Soviet sources, 102,125 persons were resettled in 1947 and 1948. Of those, only 99,481 arrived. (Communist GDR sources attribute this to "perhaps a Soviet calculation error.") In May 1951, another 3,000 East Prussian Umsiedler came to the GDR.
The Soviets eventually put German orphans in orphanages commanded by Soviet military officers but staffed mostly with some of the remaining Germans. In Fall 1947, 4,700 German orphans were officially registered in Kaliningrad. In 1947 The Soviet Union sent trainloads of orphans to the communist GDR; these train rides took four to seven days partly without food or toilet facilities and some children did not survive. In 1948, the children's village of Pinnow, then Kinderdorf Kyritz, was opened.
Historical record
None of these events were reported in the press, and they only became known to the public after 1990, because the official Communist Party line in Russia and Poland was that there were no Germans in these areas. This had been their official position as early as the Potsdam AgreementPotsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement was the Allied plan of tripartite military occupation and reconstruction of Germany—referring to the German Reich with its pre-war 1937 borders including the former eastern territories—and the entire European Theatre of War territory...
in August 1945. Historian Ruth Leiserowitz, who lived in Lithuania researched, and published books about the Wolfkinder of East Prussia under her maiden name Ruth Kibelka and her married name.
Search for Relatives
The Communist Regime and the Iron CurtainIron Curtain
The concept of the Iron Curtain symbolized the ideological fighting and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1989...
lasted from 1945-1991. Once the Iron Curtain fell, people could once more travel to research or reclaim their identities as Germans. The story of one survivor can be read in “ABANDONED AND FORGOTTEN: An Orphan Girl's Tale of Survival in World War II by Evelyne Tannehill,” in which Evelyne and her family fell victim to the Russians who invaded her parents' farm by the Baltic Sea in East Prussia. Her family was separated. Only after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 she was able to return back to East Prussia to revisit her childhood homeland.
The German Red Cross
German Red Cross
The German Red Cross , or the DRK, is the national Red Cross Society in Germany.With over 4.5 million members, it is the third largest Red Cross society in the world. The German Red Cross offers a wide range of services within and outside Germany...
helps to identify and locate family members who lost contact with one another, such as the wolf children, during the turmoil in East Prussia. “It was only the politics of Gorbatschow which allowed the opening of the Russian archives. Since the nineties, about 200,000 additional fates of missing persons have been clarified. More information about the fates of Germans who were taken prisoners and deceased still remain in unopened archives in Eastern and South-eastern Europe.
In Memory
The President of Lithuania, Valdas AdamkusValdas Adamkus
Valdas Adamkus was President of Lithuania from 1998 to 2003 and again from 2004 to 2009.In Lithuania, the President's tenure lasts for five years; Adamkus' first term in office began on February 26, 1998 and ended on February 28, 2003, following his defeat by Rolandas Paksas in the next...
, stated that an exhibition will be opened in Bad Iburg
Bad Iburg
Bad Iburg is a town in the district of Osnabrück, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated in the Teutoburg Forest, 16 km south of Osnabrück....
which will be named “The Lost History of East Prussia: Wolf Children and Their Fate”.
See also
- Evacuation of German civilians during the end of World War II
- Evacuation of East PrussiaEvacuation of East PrussiaThe evacuation of East Prussia refers to the evacuation of the German civilian population and military personnel in East Prussia and the Klaipėda region between 20 January, and March 1945, as part of the evacuation of German civilians towards the end of World War II...
- Feral childFeral childA feral child is a human child who has lived isolated from human contact from a very young age, and has no experience of human care, loving or social behavior, and, crucially, of human language...
Literature
- Tannehill, Evelyne (2007). ABANDONED AND FORGOTTEN: An Orphan Girl's Tale of Survival in World War II. Wheatmark 2007. ISBN 9781587366932
- (de) Ruth Kibelka: Wolfskinder. Grenzgänger an der Memel. (title translated to English: Wolf children - Passing the border at river Memel.) 4. Auflage. Basisdruck, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-86163-064-8
- (de) Ruth Leiserowitz: Von Ostpreußen nach Kyritz – Wolfskinder auf dem Weg nach Brandenburg. (title translated to English: From East Prussia to the city of Kyritz - Wolf children on their way to Brandenburg.) Potsdam 2003, ISBN 3-932502-33-7. Im Internet abrufbar unter Wolfskinder aus Ostpreußen.
- (de) Keine Hilfe für deutsche „Wolfskinder“. (title translated to English: No help for German "wolf children") In: Der SpiegelDer SpiegelDer Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
. Hamburg 2007, Nr. 7, p 21, - (de)
- (de)
External links
- (de) Wolfskinder of Eastprussia, Ruth Leiserowitz aka Ruth Kabelka.
- (de) Wolfskinder Geschichtsverein e.V. (Wolf Children Historical Association)
- (de) Wolfskinder in Ostpreußen (Wolf Children in Eastprussia)
- (de) Verein "Edelweiß-Wolfskinder" (Association of Edelweiss-Wolf Children) in "Das Ostpreußenblatt"