'My family and I escaped Soviet soldiers after World War Two'
A woman whose family were captured by the Soviet Army just 24 hours after VE Day has written a book about their escape.Ute Smeed, 83, from Bridgwater, grew up in Silesia. It was historically part of Germany but the land was handed to the Polish after the Potsdam Conference in 1945.Aged three, she and her mother Maria Gebauer were made to march towards Russia. Her father, a non-commissioned Luftwaffe officer, was taken to a Soviet labour camp."Few people in England know what happened in mainland Europe after the war ended: the brutality, the disease, and the starvation," she said.
The family were among 12 million ethnic Germans who were forcibly evicted or fled from their homes after World War Two ended.The Potsdam Conference was a meeting between Winston Churchill, Clement Atlee, Harry Truman, and Joseph Stalin to decide the future of postwar Germany.At the meeting, it was decided that Germany's territory was to be reduced by 25% of what it was in 1937, displacing many like Ms Smeed's family.
Forced march
Speaking to Radio Somerset, Ms Smeed said that on VE Day itself, "neither side knew the war was over". The next day, Russian soldiers arrived and "took whatever jewellery and luggage they fancied", before forcing her family to march, she said."The men and women were separated, and we began walking through Austria."The people in the towns and villages we came through couldn't believe what the Russians were doing after the war had ended."They were incensed, they were shouting at the Russians and throwing food to the women. "My mother and I were suddenly grabbed by a couple of Austrians and taken into the crowd. "They took us home, and many days later they helped us to get back to my grandmother in Silesia," she said.
Meanwhile, her father, Alfred Gebauer, who had refused to join the Nazi Party while in the Luftwaffe, was taken to a labour camp in Ukraine.He became very ill after six months, and when he left the labour camp he weighed just 38kg (83lbs).He was released from the camp and sent home, and the family reunited in Świebodzice, Poland.From there, the family sought refuge in Braunschweig, West Germany, and opened a shoe shop using an heirloom necklace as a guarantee for the loan.Ms Smeed's mother had smuggled the necklace into Germany by baking it into a cake to stop it from being stolen.Eleven years after VE Day, Ms Smeed became pen friends with an English teenager, Philip Smeed, which eventually led to love and marriage, and her relocating to Somerset.The couple have three children, and six grandchildren, including Somerset County Cricket player Will Smeed, and German rugby player Henry Smeed.
Ms Smeed said she wanted to write the book, called Silesia, A Homeland Lost – One German Family's Story of War and Survival, for her grandchildren."It was important to me that my grandchildren would know their Silesian as well as English roots, and that our family's story lives on for future generations," she said."This is also my parents' story, their love for each other and for me, and their determination to survive firstly the Nazi regime, then the war and its aftermath."Millions of Germans were forced from their homeland, with little idea of where they were going, and often in freezing temperatures taking only what they could carry."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
21 hours ago
- BBC News
WW2 anniversary marked by poppy display at Bognor Regis pier
Organisers of an event held in Bognor Regis to mark the 80th anniversary of the ending of World War Two have said they have been "overwhelmed" by the public's response.A programme of events are taking place in the town on Saturday, including a parade from the Cenotaph to the pier and a presentation of veteran Boote-Cook, the chair of Armed Forces Day in Bognor Regis, said the 80th anniversary made the day "particularly poignant"."We hold Armed Forces Day every year to celebrate service men and women from the past, present and future. We need our service men and women and always will," she said. Ahead of this year's event, Ms Boote-Cook put the call out for 6,000 poppies to go on display at the said she was taken by surprise when 13,000 handknitted and crocheted poppies were sent in."I was only expecting 4,000 poppies. I had to hire a garage to contain them," Ms Boote-Cook 260 poppies, one to honour each person from the town who died in WW2, also feature in the Boote-Cook said that, weather permitting, the display was remain up until 30 programme of events get under way at 10:00 BST.
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Secret Hampshire: Inside city's largest medieval vault
Behind an inconspicuous pair of doors in a city centre, lies a vault once used for royalty, wine and war-time Vault in Southampton was built in the 12th Century to store the King's wine at a time when the port was at the centre of the wine was largely forgotten about until the 1770s when some builders accidentally knocked through, uncovering the historic Solent's Alex Hopwood ventured underground to learn more about the 800-year-old vault that lies beneath the Hampshire city. Castle Vault is one of about 60 vaults that were built in Southampton between the 12th and 15th part of Southampton Castle, it has outlived the castle castle stayed in royal hands until the early 17th Century, when it was sold by the Crown and "effectively demolished", said Southampton City Council's learning and engagement officer, Andy Skinner. Standing beneath the curved stone ceiling of the vault, Mr Skinner said: "The gateway and windows were likely blocked up, so, for a long time people would have just walked past and not known very much about it."Until the 1770s, when - above us - some builders accidentally chopped through into the vault and they peered in, presumably with a lantern, and saw this amazing space."He added there would have been ornate ribs, "almost like the skeletons of a vault" inside at that time."Within about 50 years, all of that had been taken out." Blast walls Fast forward to World War Two and the vault was used as an air raid shelter. There were approximately 100 underground spaces in Southampton that were converted into shelters, including vaults, cellars and basements. Extra walls, known as blast walls, were built and their remnants can be seen on the ceiling of Castle Vault today."We know that there were chemical toilets," said Mr Skinner. "We know that you entered via a gas-proof curtain and we know that this was designed for accommodating 170 people during the Southampton Blitz. "Difficult to imagine how it must have felt to have been in here while the bombs were falling, particularly in November and December 1940, which is when Southampton was very badly hit." 'Barred windows and gates' In the 12th Century, when the 56ft by 20ft (17m by 6m) vault was created, the city was becoming an important importer of wine from France."One of the forms of tax in those days was that one in every 10 barrels of wine could go to the King - the King's Prize," Mr Skinner explained."This was his vault for storing his wine, which explains why it is so much larger than all of the others in Southampton."Its solid construction, using stone from the Isle of Wight and some from further afield in Conne, France, meant the monarch's valuable wine haul was well-protected."The walls are incredibly thick, thicker than the other vaults in Southampton," said Mr Skinner. "They are, at their widest point, perhaps 10ft (3m)."Barred windows and gates would have made it quite tricky to get into it, padlocked gateways. "We do know that Southampton was raided in the 14th Century by primarily French attackers. We know that they did steal wine, though it appears most of that was on ships. It is unknown whether they made it as far as the King's vault."Today, the vault can be hired for small scale events, such as exhibitions, filming and ghost the council warns: "In order for the vaults to retain their historical integrity for future generations, we have made only minor concessions to modern comforts!" You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
WW2 shooting of black US soldier in Lancashire taught in school
The fatal shooting of a black US soldier when trouble escalated between US troops stationed in Lancashire during World War Two has become a "cornerstone" lesson to local primary school William Crossland was shot dead on 24 June 1943 during racial violence between US troops stationed in Bamber Bridge, story of troops on the same side fighting a gun battle on the street is known as the Battle of Bamber Bridge and is now being taught at Clayton Brook Primary School."It's messages are still relevant today," head teacher Paul Farina said. Trouble had begun when white US military police officers tried to arrest a black soldier, Pte Eugene Nunn, in Ye Olde Hob Inn for wearing the wrong had sided with the soldier and his group, saying they had done nothing wrong, they were welcome in the pub, and they did not approve of racial segregation at the base. Events then escalated into a gun battle on the street and also back at the fight resulted in several injuries on both sides and the death of Pte Crossland. Mr Farina said after learning about the story, he contacted Clinton Smith of Preston Black History Group "and that's where the ball started rolling"."We now teach it to all of our children, it's one of the cornerstones of what we teach at Clayton Brook," he said. Mr Smith said: "I think the world's full of bad news and here's a story about solidarity."The US military had tried to enforce their segregation rules in the UK but he said the stance the people of Bamber Bridge took against it "was remarkable"."Bearing in mind this was a small, northern village and, as far as we can work out, it was a spontaneous act," he said."I didn't like going to school, but now I turn up with a smile on my face and excitement coursing through my veins," he said."What's really rewarding about it is the interaction with the youngsters and the knowledge that they have that's feeding back to me. "The reception I get is the encouragement I use to carry on doing it." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on BBC Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
