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Former Enemy who turned True Friend Passed Away - German Wehrmach Soldier who fought Russians - Vanity
Watts Funeral Home ^ | 1/6/22 | Family

Posted on 01/06/2022 10:41:15 AM PST by srmanuel

Excuse the Vanity Post, I think some may be interested in a personal friend of mine who passed away recently, whose funeral is tomorrow.

My dear friend Hans Heine, was born in Danzig, Germany in 1928 and was drafted into the Wehrmacht in 1944 and immediately sent to the Eastern Front to fight against the Russians, he has obviously seen the worst of humanity.

In 1958 Hans, his wife and children immigrated to the USA and became citizens, he had a very successful business career and was a true friend, one of his sons joined the USAF and had over a 20 year career.

He would always meet us with a smile, glass of scotch, cigar and the most incredible stories about WW II you can imagine.

Tomorrow we attend his funeral and pay tribute to a great friend.


TOPICS: Government
KEYWORDS: hans; heine; ii; ww
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To: srmanuel

Sorry to hear of the loss of your friend. Would very much like to hear some of his wartime stories. He was a lucky man to have survived on the Eastern Front, and fortunate to have ended his days in America. Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine.


21 posted on 01/06/2022 2:50:56 PM PST by fortes fortuna juvat (Stay to the right and be ready to fight.)
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To: Captain Walker

Anyone interested in reading a very good book on the campaign in Russia (written by a French national serving in the Wehrmacht) should pick up “The Forgotten Soldier” by Guy Sajer.
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I always appreciate book referrals. Thanks for sharing.


22 posted on 01/06/2022 2:53:58 PM PST by fortes fortuna juvat (Stay to the right and be ready to fight.)
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To: srmanuel

Lucky him, he escaped the Nazi hunters.......


23 posted on 01/06/2022 2:57:25 PM PST by Hot Tabasco
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To: Captain Walker

I think the horrors of that campaign between the Germans and Soviets is almost unknown here in the US.
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Myself included, most people are surprised to learn that while American fatalities in Europe during WWII numbered around 500,000, the Russians lost around 13 million people. Not sure of the civilian/military breakdown re that number.


24 posted on 01/06/2022 3:03:33 PM PST by fortes fortuna juvat (Stay to the right and be ready to fight.)
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To: fortes fortuna juvat
Myself included, most people are surprised to learn that while American fatalities in Europe during WWII numbered around 500,000, the Russians lost around 13 million people. Not sure of the civilian/military breakdown re that number.

I read somewhere that at the time of the Normandy Invasion, 85% of the Wehrmacht was fighting on the Eastern Front.

It's not something John Ford would have put into his movies (clearly designed to boost American morale), but Russia bore the overwhelming brunt of the fight against the Axis.

25 posted on 01/06/2022 3:29:09 PM PST by Captain Walker ("The side that has Truth gets Humor as a bonus.")
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To: fortes fortuna juvat

Sorry to hear of the loss of your friend. Would very much like to hear some of his wartime stories. He was a lucky man to have survived on the Eastern Front, and fortunate to have ended his days in America. Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine.
.......................................................

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2IaFaJrmno


26 posted on 01/06/2022 3:55:06 PM PST by fortes fortuna juvat (Stay to the right and be ready to fight.)
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To: fortes fortuna juvat

I’ve seen various numbers. Here’s one I’ve seen more than a few times. The Russians captured millions of German troops. After the war only 50,000 went back to Germany.


27 posted on 01/06/2022 7:47:19 PM PST by Hillarys Gate Cult (n)
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To: Hillarys Gate Cult

I’ve seen various numbers. Here’s one I’ve seen more than a few times. The Russians captured millions of German troops. After the war only 50,000 went back to Germany.
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Enslaved until death in the Gulag!


28 posted on 01/06/2022 9:18:14 PM PST by fortes fortuna juvat (Stay to the right and be ready to fight.)
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To: Hot Tabasco

He was a just a regular low level Wehrmacht Infantry soldier, maybe corporal or private in the US Army, no need for Nazi Hunters to pursue someone like him.


29 posted on 01/07/2022 2:14:55 AM PST by srmanuel (`)
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To: srmanuel

Yes,I can accept that some...perhaps even more than a few...Germans who served in the military did so against their will. If you were a young private,or a young lieutenant,and refused to follow an order to shoot an innocent person *you* were shot...on the spot.


30 posted on 01/07/2022 7:57:51 AM PST by Gay State Conservative (Covid Is All About Mail In Balloting)
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To: fortes fortuna juvat

Hitler vs Stalin is a war which all decent people would wish that *both* sides could lose.But sadly only one did.


31 posted on 01/07/2022 8:01:43 AM PST by Gay State Conservative (Covid Is All About Mail In Balloting)
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To: Gay State Conservative

Hitler vs Stalin is a war which all decent people would wish that *both* sides could lose.But sadly only one did.
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Excellent point!


32 posted on 01/07/2022 8:32:56 AM PST by fortes fortuna juvat (Stay to the right and be ready to fight.)
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To: Gay State Conservative

At the funeral today his two sons related the of their father losing his older brother being killed on the Eastern Front by stepping on a land mine


33 posted on 01/07/2022 9:57:08 AM PST by srmanuel (`)
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To: Captain Walker
I just finished reading The Forgotten Soldier. One small thing has bothered me about it though. The birthdate for Sajer is listed as January 13, 1927. Then, it is written that he joined the Wehrmacht in 1942, at age 16. This is not possible because of simple math. He would not have turned 16 until January 13, 1943. Have you come across an explanation for this discrepancy?

Otherwise, this is a fascinating book, and it is among many accounts of war which should be read in high schools.

34 posted on 02/01/2022 9:46:30 PM PST by Enterprise
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To: oh8eleven
I just finished reading The Forgotten Soldier. One small thing has bothered me about it though. The birthdate for Sajer is listed as January 13, 1927. Then, it is written that he joined the Wehrmacht in 1942, at age 16. This is not possible because of simple math. He would not have turned 16 until January 13, 1943. Have you come across an explanation for this discrepancy?

Otherwise, this is a fascinating book, and it is among many accounts of war which should be read in high schools.

35 posted on 02/01/2022 9:50:39 PM PST by Enterprise
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To: Enterprise
Incredible book. But there are some who question Sajer's facts - Fact or Fiction
36 posted on 02/02/2022 7:24:50 AM PST by oh8eleven (RVN '67-'68)
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To: Enterprise
It's been 20+ years since I've read this book and if you caught the DOB in the book itself, you've got a pretty sharp eye; this is the first time I am hearing of this.

The site that oh8eleven links to states that Sajer was 16 when he volunteered to join the Wehrmacht in July of 1942; no DOB is provided in that article. (The article is discussing a debate about the veracity of Sajer's work.)

I couldn't take a side on this if I wanted to; this is the first time I am hearing that the book has been called into question.

Interestingly, Sajer died just a couple of days before his birthday last month.

actualitte.com

("Sajer" was his mother's maiden name which he adopted for use during his military service, as his mother was German and it fit better with the names of the Germans he served with; his family name was "Mouminoux".)

37 posted on 02/02/2022 2:52:32 PM PST by Captain Walker ("If you think tough men are dangerous, wait until you see what weak men are capable of."- J Peterson)
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To: Captain Walker; oh8eleven

ping


38 posted on 02/02/2022 2:53:04 PM PST by Captain Walker ("If you think tough men are dangerous, wait until you see what weak men are capable of."- J Peterson)
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To: Captain Walker
I couldn't help notice that! Just 2 days before his 95th birthday! I am not disparaging the author or his book. But the discrepancy between his DOB and his age when he was drafted into the Wehrmacht caught my eye.

Guy Mouminoux (13 January 1927 – 11 January 2022), known by the pseudonym Guy Sajer, was a French writer and cartoonist who is best known as the author of the Second World War memoir Le Soldat Oublié (1965, translated as The Forgotten Soldier), which recounts his experience serving in the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front from 1942 to 1945, in the elite Großdeutschland Division.

"The author states that he was an inhabitant of Alsace drafted into the German Wehrmacht at age 16, in 1942"

39 posted on 02/02/2022 8:38:45 PM PST by Enterprise
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To: Captain Walker
Sajer died just a couple of days before his birthday last month

Thanks for the ping and Sajer's obit.
As much as I was aware of him I had no idea he was still alive.
40 posted on 02/03/2022 10:28:10 AM PST by oh8eleven (RVN '67-'68)
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