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The incredible walk: 800 km back to Altenburg after the war!
Learn about Hans Weimar's 800 km journey on foot after World War II and the challenges faced by refugees and displaced people in Germany.
The incredible walk: 800 km back to Altenburg after the war!
After the end of the Second World War, many people are faced with the challenge of leaving their homeland and finding a new path. A particularly impressive example is the long walk of Hans Weimar, who covered 800 kilometers from Hamburg to Altenburg when he was only 18 years old. Shaped by the chaotic conditions that accompanied the end of the war, he began his journey at a time when the German cities were suffering from the consequences of the fighting and the civilian population was scarred by the war. gea.de reports that Weimar first made its way to Pforzheim before reaching Altenburg.
But what did it mean to be on the run at that time? Reports of the atrocities that civilians had to endure and the depressing situation in the refugee routes give an idea of the inhumanity that many endured. The Red Army invaded East Prussia in the fall of 1944, which not only led to the first attacks on the German population, but also triggered a huge flow of refugees from East Germany. spiegel.de states that millions of people tried to get to the western zones under extreme conditions in the winter of 1944 and 1945. Old, sick people had little chance of survival, while many refugees suffered from the weight of their uncomfortable suitcases.
The escape and its consequences
Like many of the refugees at the time, the people Hans Weimar met along the way experienced both flight and expulsion. It was a chaotic time in which everyday life was completely turned upside down between the flow of refugees and the changing front lines. Many tried to escape on foot, in handcarts or horse-drawn carts, while the only connections in the country had long since been interrupted. planet-wissen.de emphasizes that the living conditions at “zero hour” were catastrophic – water, food and medicine were in short supply, and living space became a rarity.
In addition, deprivation had to be dealt with, as around 12 million refugees and displaced people were looking for a new place where they dared to hope to be able to redesign their everyday lives. Often the first port of call was relatives living in the Allied zones, but there was often mistrust of the new arrivals, who came empty-handed as many personal items had been confiscated during the war. A new beginning was therefore often a vain hope for the displaced person.
The accounts of Hans Weimar and the many other people who had to fight through the devastation of war show how important it is to come to terms with history. They are stories that illustrate human suffering in an incomprehensible time and are reminiscent of similar fates in today's society. Historically, it is a time of upheaval, a chapter that redefined our values and cohesion in crisis situations.