January 30, 1945: the tragedy of the torpedoing of the Wilhelm Gustloff...
... or the cowardly war crime against German civilians fleeing the advancing Red Army
In January 1945, in eastern Germany, a multitude of civilian and military refugees fled the advance of the Soviet armies, who were raping, pillaging and murdering throughout the provinces.
Many of them boarded the liner Wilhelm Gustloff, which set sail from Gotenhafen on the morning of January 30, 1945. Their hope was to reach Hamburg, which was still free of occupation. The official list shows 6,050 people on board: crew, soldiers and refugees. In fact, the number was much higher, exceeding 8,000, or even 10,050!
On the very first night, Russian submarines were spotted. The S13 was commanded by Alexander Marinesko, a hard-to-control man with a penchant for vodka and women. After a few days on patrol, he cables Leningrad: "We've scoured the waters near the Fascist lair, but none of those dogs dared to show themselves". Shortly afterwards, Marinesko spotted the liner. He had four torpedoes armed. Fired at a distance of 700 meters at such a massive target, they offered little escape, and the unarmored ship was immediately pierced.
In less than an hour, the proud liner was sunk. Panic ensued, and the lifeboats were covered in ice at -15°C.
996 survivors were picked up by ships that rushed to the rescue. But almost 10,000 people, including more than 5,000 children, died in the biggest maritime disaster in human history to date, aimed solely at killing as many Germans as possible.
No forgiveness, no forgetting!
https://jeune-nation.com/kultur/hist...elm-gustloff-2
