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Stalag VII A: Oral history

Ellis Pierson

A long march to Moosburg

"In late March, early April 1945 I was with a group of American Air Force POWs who were marched from Nuremberg to Moosburg as Allied troops were beginning to surround Nuremberg. The weather was getting warmer and American airplanes were overhead almost every day. By then all able-bodied German soldiers were at some combat post and our guards were old, wounded types, mostly Czech, Rumanian and such, and were losing their belligerance. As we were marched along we would leave the march and trade cigarettes and soap (we didn't have much) for potatoes, onions and sometimes even eggs. Germany was in chaos and there were German refugees on the roads fleeing west. The cities were mostly rubble and the Germans themselves were beginning to starve. It was a terrible time for your beautiful country, but the Nazis would not quit.

Finally at Moosburg we were put in big tents like used in festivals as beer-halls. We were starving and very crowded together but the weather was warm and it was like camping out as compared to being in the camp at Nuremberg.

I travelled to Moosburg in July or August 1987 and wanted to spend a day or two, but I was told all the Gasthauses were closed in July. We drove on to Munich for a visit there. I have seen how beautiful and prosperous everything is today. Hitler was a terrible curse for a whole generation of the western world and I hope we don't let little Hitlers in Serbia do it all again in the name of nationalism."

Top Source:

  • E-mails by Ellis Pierson, USA, to Moosburg Online, February 1999

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