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1. Josef Harreiter
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Born in 1921, he grew up poor and was initially a fervent Hitler follower. Harreiter was sent to the Russian front as a tank mechanic and witnessed the massacre of the Jews by the SS in Zhytomir (Ukraine). A world collapses for him then. He becomes a "passive" soldier and is severely wounded before deserting during the offensive in the Ardennes. He survives the feared "starvation camp" in Rennes and returns home on 6 June 1946.
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2. Helmut Heuberger
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He comes from a German Nationalist background and fights for the annexation of Austria by Germany as an "illegal" Hitler follower from 1935 onwards. He is severely wounded in Russia in1943. The information he receives from his cousin, the female Luftwaffe test pilot Hanna Reitsch, proves that Hitler is purposely continuing a war that is already lost for the sake of power. This shatters his idealism and he becomes a leading figure in the Austrian 05 resistance movement.
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3. Stefan Hollenthoner
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As a Christian Socialist member of the regional parliament, his father is critical of Hitler. However, he respects his son's enthusiasm for Hitler as a Hitler Youth member.
Stefan volunteers to go to war and is assigned to serve in the navy. He is then sent to the Black Sea in the F211 landing craft. He survives the dissolution of the Kuban beach head, the evacuation of the Crimean, the "hell" in Sevastapol and the destruction of the Black Sea fleet. He serves in eastern Prussia and close to Berlin after an adventurous flight through Yugoslavia. He narrowly escapes being shot after being captured by the Russians after having saved the life of a Russian sergeant.
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4. Emil Kikinger
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Emil was born in 1928 under very poor circumstances and grows up with his grandfather, who is very critical of the NS regime. He joins the "Schlurfs" and walks the fine line between disobedience and resistance, which is expressed in an own individual song culture. Kikinger escapes being arrested a number of times and joins the navy in 1944. He is sent to the North Sea and experiences the end of the war in Ostfriesland where he is interned. His reports of survival in hopeless situations are examples of a specifically Austrian way of life.
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5. Therese Kobencic
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She grew up close to Braunau, the birthplace of Adolf Hitler. She follows the tumultuous political events before the annexation of Austria with great interest. Therese Kobencic is working as a maid in Vienna as a maid when the war break out. She becomes an assistant at the Luftwaffe in 1943. One of her duties is drawing the progress of enemy flights in mirror-writing at an airbase. The study of WWII becomes a great concern to her and she is successful later as a writer of vernacular fiction.
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6. Maria - Theresia Kohlbeck
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"Politics" is an empty word in Maria Kohlbeck-Kaltenbrunner's dictionary and fear is a word she doesn't know. The fact that she shares her name with SS General Kaltenbrunner proves to be a protective shield for the family, which is critical of the regime. She is responsible for technical drawings at the "Hexengrund" (Witches Ground), which is located at Gotenhafen weapons grounds. She knows air torpedo development details and is then asked to translate the information by the British after being imprisoned.
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7. Erika Nemschitz
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Erika Nemschitz was born in 1932 and her mother was literally "Captain Courageous". With great bravery, her Aryan-born mother who converted to the Jewish faith deals with the Gestapo, authorities and other "fine" citizens. This is especially the case when she has to save her half-Jewish husband from being deported and spare her daughter from persecution. The everyday memories of her childhood and youth have become more present and part of her soul as she gets older, says Erika Nemschitz. |
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8. Erwin Rudolf Mayr
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13 year-old Erwin Rudolf is absolutely thrilled by the German Wehrmacht as a young man and happy that Austria has access to the sea as the Ostmark of the German Reich. He is expelled from the Hitler Youth for behaviour that is offensive to the NS regime. After completing his Labour Service, he is assigned to the 44th Division ("Hoch- und Deutschmeister") on the Italian front and then to the Russian front west of Vienna. He deserts from there shortly before the end of the war. His vision is to encourage tolerance. His message: "It is unacceptable to threaten another's life!"
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9. Fredy Pietsch
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Alfred, a. k. a. Fredy was born in1925. He grew up in humble circumstances and became a "Campaign worker" for Hitler for the price of an apple and a slice of bread with lard spread on it. He is stunned when he sees how a Jew is forced to clean the sidewalk with a toothbrush.
Fredy is assigned to the Warsaw Ghetto during his Labour Service. A severe injury saves him from the hell on the eastern front. He is transferred to the Mountain Rangers in Mittenwald and taken prisoner by the Americans there.
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10. Hatto Georg Scheer
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His parents are already sworn National Socialist when he is born in 1927. Hatto experiences the hopes and disillusionment of being "illegal" and is raced to be a member of the master race. He enjoys his career at the Hitler Youth, the triumph of the annexation and enjoys feeling like tomorrow's victor. He dreams of a life in a smart uniform and volunteers to the Luftwaffe. He is called up in 1944 and wounded shortly thereafter.
Hatto Georg Scheer is the brother of Rauthgundis Süß.
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11. Rautgundis Süß
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She is the daughter of early Nazis and is employed as a courier as a child. Her career at the BDM comes to an end when it becomes known that her mother is not a pure Aryan. She flees from home to a place where nobody is aware of her lineage and completes her training as a kindergarten teacher in Posen, Poland. She takes care of children there that have been taken away from their Polish mothers because their fathers are German soldiers. Her escape from the Russians before the end of the war with 60 children in her care becomes an odyssey.
Rauthgundis Süß is the sister of Hatto Georg Scheer.
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12. Irma Trksak
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She was born in 1917 as the daughter of a Czech Social Democrat and grew up in Vienna. She became one of the first resistance fighters and the "preparation of high treason and undermining of defences" is the reason for solitary confinement in the Roßauerlände Police Prison, which is being used by the Gestapo. She is then transferred to the Ravensbrück concentration camp. She meets the Austrian Social Democrat Rosa Jochmann there who becomes a great role model for her. After being betrayed, Irma Trksak is sent to the Uckermark death camp and is sent westwards in one of the notorious death marches. She manages to flee and survive.
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