“Here in this forest there are ghosts, ghosts of people whom I knew, ghosts of men who were killed. They didn’t have the privilege of going home; I did. Maybe in coming back I am paying a debt to them. The memories – the ghosts – are still there. They are there in the ‘Dragon Teeth,’ the bunkers and fox holes in the deep woods. They are there in the artifacts – and bodies – still being brought out of the forest. And those who come back forty years thereafter might know some of them by name.” ~ Captain Commanding G Company,Paul Boesch, 121st Inf, 8th US Inf. Division
Today was a day full of realization and insight. We spent most of our time with German veterans, touring the battlegrounds of the Hurtegen Forest and visiting the German defensive structures known as the Siegfried Line. Through these experiences, we all gained a new awareness of the German perception of the war.
The day started with a bus ride to Vossenack, Germany, where the German veterans were waiting for us at a hotel. There was a considerable amount of apprehension, and we had to remind one of our more vocal veterans to abstain from using words like “Kraut” or “Jerry” to refer to the men we were about to meet! In we trooped, up the steps, around the corner, and there they stood: 3 surprisingly ordinary-looking men. The tension quickly melted away as our veterans warmly shook their hands and sat down side-by-side to watch a slide-show on the Battle of the Hurtegen Forest.
When the slide show ended, we hopped on the bus and headed to our first stop: the Siegfried Line. It was made up mainly of “Dragon’s Teeth,” concrete pyramids standing 5 feet high and placed along the western front to stop tanks from advancing into Germany. It was an emotional time as we stood on a beautiful hillside that had once been covered with hundreds of dead soldiers, killed trying to capture the bunker at the top of the ridge. Henry, one of the German veterans, fought back tears and found it difficult to join our group for pictures and discussion. Timothy explained that this kind of reaction is common among German veterans because they have few avenues for closure. Our eagerness to walk with them, get their autographs, and learn their stories was probably a rare experience for these men.
The reason for their lack of closure became increasingly evident as we visited a German WWII cemetery. The walls and monuments were carved from dark rock. Each tomb held two men, and the grave markers were laid flat on the ground. Even Walter Model, a 4-star general known for often opposing Hitler and defending his men’s honor, was buried with another man, and his grave was unadorned. As Klaus, one of the English-speaking, German veterans and our tour guide for the day, said, “The Germans just want to forget this part of their history.”
America is not exempt from this “selective memory.” The Battle of the Hurtegen Forest has been overshadowed by the Battle of the Bulge. But for twelve college students, walking under the tall, dark, fir trees of Hurtegenwald, this forgotten battle became a heavy reality. The snow muffled the sound of our footsteps as we walked past dozens of trenches, foxholes and even a lonely bombed-out bunker. These were all reminders that this silent forest was not always so peaceful and serene.
The day wasn’t entirely full of solemn reflection though. As we looked down one of the many steep hill-sides, Mandy suddenly leapt to her feet, exclaiming that she had seen a bear in the valley below. We all quickly crowded to the side of the bus, pressing our faces to the glass to get a better look. Indeed there was a large, black shape at the bottom of the hill! But why was it eating grass? And standing in a fenced-in pasture? Did it have a mane? Indeed, upon closer inspection, we realized that Mandy’s bear was actually a Shetland pony. :-) Oh well! Ray, one of our oldest veterans, remains convinced that we did see, not one, but three bears in the hills of Germany.
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