by Heath, Tim
I could not wait to go, to be honest, and I had been looking forward to it for quite some time. It was early summertime of 1941, and after a medical examination, that I passed, I was sent with other girls from the BDM to do six months compulsory service to work in agriculture. I knew that this meant working on a farm, which I did not mind, as it would be in the countryside. The farm we were going to was near the small town of Osna, situated between Frankfurt and Gorzow. We did not have to worry ourselves about air raids, as at that time air raids were still only coming in during the night hours. We would also be much safer out in the countryside away from the city, though we did feel concern for our families. I had always wanted to go and live in the countryside, anywhere away from the industrial Mitte.
There were a few tears as me and my mother said our farewells to each other. Father looked me up and down and held out his hand, his bottom lip beginning to tremble. As I held his hand, he just grabbed hold of me and hugged me and began to cry.
I said to him, ‘Father, please don’t be upset, I will return soon and I will try and write you a letter and let you know how I fare.’
This was the first time he had ever shown any emotion like that. Maybe it had dawned on him that I was now no longer just a little girl, and I had grown up – I am not sure. I then picked up my small suitcase that belonged to my mother and set off to join the other girls ready to embark the train to Osna.
It was not a very long journey, and I think most of the girls were wrapped up in their own thoughts. Some just stared out of the window of the train, while others read books and talked amongst themselves. It was the responsibility of each of us to look after each other and make sure that no one felt sad.
Once the grim views of the city with its big grey buildings and workhouses and tall chimneystacks had disappeared, the mood began to change. The countryside scenery was so beautiful and we knew we were going to be out in it for a long time. When we arrived at our destination, we all disembarked from the train and made our way out of the little station at Osna where we were transported out to the farm some six miles away. It was a beautiful scene, with streams, pools and lots of fields and small woodlands. When we arrived, our RADwf group leader introduced us to the farmer and his wife and the workers who we would be working closely with over the following months.
We were billeted in what looked like an army barracks room. This was a long brick building with a chimney at the one end and a metal corrugated roof. The beds were arranged in two rows along the centre of the billet. The billet was often uncomfortably hot in the summer and freezing in the winter, though we had the little fireplace, which did help a little. In the winter we often fought for the beds nearest the fireplace, so to prevent any infighting, beds were rearranged in a way so everyone was positioned around the fireplace. Before bed, we would put logs onto the fire and these would keep the fire burning all night.
The rules were also given to us and we were reminded of our moral conduct and how we should behave ourselves at all times as ambassadors of the Reich. There were strict regulations about when we would be expected to retire to bed and what time we would rise each morning for breakfast and work. We often started work at around 9.30am to 10.00am in the morning, and finished early, though we often worked longer hours in the summer.
We would be working from Monday to Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon was our own time, as was Sunday, though on Sunday we were all expected to attend church for the morning service. I did not really enjoy going to church but attended just out of courtesy. As it was a farm, the male workers started quite early in the morning too, and were often out working at 6.00am, the work often going on until nearly midnight, though we never worked that late, as the few old men had that task.
We were given a kind of acclimatization period in which to settle in and become acquainted with the rules and regulations, and we were given a set of work clothes, including two regulation dresses, thick socks, boots and an apron.
One of the first things I ever learned, though, was to drive a tractor. I just saw one and thought I want to drive that thing. I did not stop to think what I was letting myself in for. Gerhard, one of the young men who worked on the farm, had the job of reluctantly teaching me how to drive the tractor. He explained that he was surprised by my request, as women did not often want to do such things, as they did not like to get their hands dirty.
I took his remark as an insult and barked, ‘Are you going to show me how to drive the tractor, or are you just going to stand there and criticize me all day long?’
I think he knew he had upset me, and looking a little taken aback by my anger, he began to show me the basics. I think he only did this because he liked me, and I have to admit that I felt attracted to him too.
‘First thing you have to do is sit your arse on the damn thing,’ he said.
He then took this metal bar that was bent in the middle and placed it in the small hole at the front of the tractor engine. He turned the bar a few times and the engine chugged into life and he said, ‘Now do you see?’
Next time, following Gerhard’s instructions, I grabbed the bar in both hands and turned with all my strength as instructed. I turned the bar over a couple of times before it slipped out of my hands with a loud clank as the bar fell to the floor. Gerhard burst out laughing, so not wishing to look a fool, I quickly picked up the bar, put it back into the hole, and said ‘ready’ before turning it over again.
With a splutter, the engine started, and he said, ‘Make sure you take the bar out of that hole and place it in the box behind the seat, and then climb up here.’
I placed the starter back in its box and climbed up beside Gerhard who was busy revving the engine up and smirking.
‘You see that pedal there, that is the accelerator. This makes the tractor go slow or at its maximum speed, which is not very much at all.’
I interrupted him by saying, ‘Alright, alright I know that now.’
He then went on to explain what the other pedals were for, before telling me to get into the driving seat. We quickly swapped places and I grabbed hold of the steering wheel. Gerhard remarked that, on a frosty day, the tractor would be harder to start, as the engine will be very cold. He also said the metal seat would give me a cold arse! So, I must find some old material and make myself a cover.
After instructing me on how to control the tractor, I then began to pull away, a little jerkily at first, but it was a great feeling, and I could not help but whoop with joy as I drove up the lane past the other girls with Gerhard at my side.
The thick black smoke from the tractor’s exhaust blew right into my face, and it was not very pleasant, as on a long drive it actually made your face black, which made Gerhard laugh at me even more. I once nearly crashed the tractor trying to stop it quick enough so as I could jump down to go and hit Gerhard for teasing me, but he ran off as soon as I got down. I shouted ‘bastard’ at him, only after making sure there were wasn’t anyone around. I nearly ran down a chicken shed once.
Over a period of time, I learned how to pull trailers, plough soil and things, and I did many other jobs. It could be unpleasant at times, as if any problems with the engine arose and there was no one around, I would have to fix it myself. Tractor engines were filthy, dirty things, and the grease and oil stained the hands and was difficult to remove.
I also learned how to drive a lorry and would often drive the girls into the small town of Osna to buy things, and to go to watch the latest film news on the war and things. We were aware that our army was on the offensive in Russia and, according to the newsreels we saw, the campaign would soon be over. I did not know much about how wars were fought, and you could probably say that I was ignorant to what was happening in Russia. We were told that we were winning and who was I to question, it was as simple as that. The authorities only told you what they thought you should know and nothing else.
While at Osna, we kept in touch with our families by means of letter writing, and sometimes, if we were lucky, we
could speak to them by telephone. Some of the girls I was working with told me they had fathers and brothers fighting on the Russian front. It was sad that many of them would soon be dead.
Often while out working in the fields on the tractor, I would see our Messerschmitts. I would often pull up and wave my arms at them. One morning, one of them turned around and made a very low pass to my right, the pilot wobbling his wings in some kind of a salute. I could see the pilot’s face with his black leather helmet and his flying goggles. The Messerschmitt roared past and it was a sight that enthralled me, as in all my years I had never seen one up that close before. I watched the Messerschmitt disappear behind the trees before carrying on with my work.
We also used to see Dornier-217 bombers quite regularly; I think many were on training flights from the local Fliegerschule [Luftwaffe Flying School].
Summer soon ended, and the winter that year seemed much worse than those of the past. Maybe it was because we were in the countryside, I’m not sure. I vividly remember having to break the ice that formed over the animal drinking troughs every morning. I had to go around each one and break the ice with a stone so as the animals could drink. We took it in turns to do this, as it was a job every one of us girls hated.
Christmas that year was the best I had so far, and we had spent weeks preparing everything for it. We even had turkey, duck, rabbit and goose for the first time in our lives; these were things our parents could never have provided or afforded to have given us. Back home we were very lucky if we had a few sweets and maybe some fruit, but here we had everything in abundance.
We girls often made gifts for each other, such as corn dolls and small embroidered cloth items. We did get scolded the one time though, when we were caught making perfume from wild flowers. We were told bluntly that perfume was of a contraband nature and should any girl be caught either making it or wearing it in future, there would be trouble. The homemade perfume was then poured away. It was just a little reminder that we were not completely free of our senses or obligations to the Reich.
However hard the authorities tried to keep the young German girls under strict control and supervision, there was always a rebel element within each group who would exploit the slightest opportunity to ‘get up to things’. Though the girls were always heavily chaperoned, either by their group leaders or the owner of the farm where they were employed, there were always one or two who managed to slip through the net, away from the watchful eyes of their prefects and employers to partake in illicit activities such as drinking, smoking and sex. Contrary to popular belief, there were many secret and illicit liaisons taking place amongst the girls of the RADwf, much as there was with the land girls in England at the time. Gabrielle Haefker recalls:
It does make me laugh because people still have the view that we were all like saintly virgins or something and conformed totally. There were quite a few girls who were caught sneaking out of their beds at night to meet up with young men from the farms and nearby villages. There were also many who did not get caught out and managed to get away with it. It was human nature taking over and the authorities could never have hoped to stop it happening.
I know one young girl who sneaked out of her billet most evenings to meet up with a young admirer from a local village. They often went into the woods, as did most courting couples. She confided in me as a friend, and told me everything that she had done with this young man and that she had let him put his hands inside her blouse and feel her breasts while she smoked one of his cigarettes. I was quite shocked by it and listened to her with my eyes wide and a hand over my mouth. She later admitted that she had intercourse with him several times.
When I asked what about if she falls pregnant, she laughed and said, ‘Oh, I don’t think that can happen as he pulls it out of me before it sprinkles.’
She then said that she would go and wash herself out in the stream to make sure there was no semen inside her. I asked her what it was like to have sex with a man and she replied ‘Gut.’ [Good].
Other girls met up with each other and drank alcohol and smoked cigarettes. Both of those things were considered unladylike by some. I drank alcohol on many occasions and smoked the odd cigarette.
There was this girl named Bertha who was in our group who could roll cigarettes with her fingers. We used to watch amazed as none of us could ever get it right. I asked her how she learned to do it and she replied that her older brother had showed her. Bertha returned home to Hamburg after her RADwf service and we kept in touch for a while until she was killed in an RAF bombing raid. I still cherish her memory now, as she was such a character. It was Bertha who once gave me some snuff to try. She never said where she got it from, but she had quite likely bribed one of the men to give it to her, but I hated it as it made me sneeze and made my eyes water, while Bertha howled with laughter at me. We often used to say that Bertha laughed like a horse, it was one of those funny sounding and infectious laughs.
Olga Kirschener, an eighteen-year-old who went to work the land, reveals a liaison with a young man from the local village that she managed to keep secret:
I will not mention his name here, but it all started with admiring glances, then we got talking and it started from there really. We arranged to meet after dark one evening. I sneaked out unnoticed from the house I was staying in with the other girls, and met him at the gate to the meadow. It was a beautiful moonlit evening and we ran off into the meadow and went into some trees by the lake. We were both a little scared but excited and we took off our clothes and embraced for a few minutes. We lay down and made love there in the trees. We were both so excited that it did not last long, so we shared a cigarette and made love a second time. He began to make a lot of noise and I put my hand over his mouth. Afterwards we walked back through the meadow hand in hand in the moonlight. I left him at the gate and sneaked back into the house. It was always a risk as if we had been caught my parents would have been informed and they would have killed me.
Ursula Sabel also has some memories to share of her service with the RADwf, which began on 1 April 1941.
During the last months of my time at school, word was going around that we girls would soon be called upon to do our compulsory work service with the organization of the RADwf. Some of the girls I knew as friends had already received a letter requiring them to attend a medical examination prior to their initial training period, before being given a work placement. I too received my work training notice and had to have a medical examination where I was passed as fit.
In only a few weeks, I prepared myself, getting everything ready to leave for the training course. The training was basically to prepare us for the kinds of things we would be doing within our work-placement situations. The course was arranged at the end of our school time, and not while we were still attending school on a fulltime basis. I travelled to Westerwald and began my pre-work training on 1 April 1941 at a village near the town.
Our living quarters were situated at the edge of the village, and were a two-storey stone building, with two additional barracks nearby. It was surrounded by trees and flowerbeds, and the flagpole was given the centre place as usual at the camp. Upon arrival, I was shown along with the other girls to the sleeping hall situated in the barracks. My bed was on the lower floor next to a window, and there were twelve to fourteen of us, including a guide or prefect, and she was given complete authority over us all.
The conditions were very good at the camp and we were issued with our work wear. I was very relieved to find that everything I had been issued with fitted me correctly for once! I had to make sure that repairs were made to my work clothing whenever necessary. Fortunately, this was not very often, unlike some of the other girls who had to make constant repairs to their clothing. The issued clothing consisted of a pair of blue cotton dresses with short sleeves, two white aprons, two red head scarves, two pairs of boots, two pairs of thick socks, one brown dress-skirt, two white blouses, one jacket-dress and a hat, and in addition to this we had our own un
derwear.
The total number of staff consisted of around forty-five girls, a camp guide and two leaders. Everything in the camp was self-contained, including washing and cooking facilities.
During the first six weeks, we were given extensive instructions on every possible topic. The topics included realm work service, behaviour on the camp and within the field service, and information on the farming families who we might be working for soon, and of course the geography of the Westerwald region. Lastly, we were given detailed instructions on what we were expected to do most days.
The six-week course and the ban on all camp leave soon passed by, and then the field service began. I was assigned a place with a family that included three children and a grandmother. The agricultural work was good in the sense that I was able to do so much outside in the fresh air. I helped throughout the whole of the hay-harvesting season, which back then was very hard and laborious work. I often had difficulty in keeping up the correct rhythm when turning over the grass; it was a completely unusual physical effort for me back then.
Our day was a relatively short one as we only started work from around 10.00am of the morning. We were required to be back at our camp in good time to complete our other duties such as cleaning and housework, etc.
My second work placement was in Gershasen, and four other girls joined me and we had bought ourselves a bicycle each, and we rode to work together each morning. I had to work in the fields, and the farming families were heavily dependent upon us girls, as more and more of the young men were going off to fight in the war. So it felt good to be helping our country and its people in a meaningful way.
My next order was ‘six weeks indoor service’. This was not so good as it meant performing all manner of menial tasks often within the confines of the camp. The best part of this service was that referred to as the ‘flower service’. Flower service was when you had to go out into the fields and the forest to pick fresh flowers for the vases in the camp. I did not like the housework or working in the kitchens at all [this was known as Waschkueche]. It was while confined to camp doing this house and kitchen work that one of my friends suffered an accident on her bicycle. She had hurt herself so badly that she could no longer do work in the fields.