The political role of prisoners of war in postwar Germany

Type :

Presentation

Pages :

7 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

07/28/2008

Category :

History & geography

Sub category :

Modern history

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Summary :

German prisoners taken by the Soviet's.
POW's in Soviet camps.
POWs as crucial pieces in the SED's propagandist.
End of repatriation of soldiers.
Political role played by German POWs.

Abstract

In the period immediately following its defeat in the Second World war germany was faced with many problems: rebuilding itself after the destruction of the war, re-establishing a political infrastructure, and coming to grips with its Nazi past. Although these were critical issues, perhaps one of the most serious was the matter of the millions of prisoners of war taken by the Soviet army and expellees that were driven out of eastern German territories in the wake of the Soviet push in the spring of 1945. Both of these issues were at the forefront of postwar German society, in particular the question of the POW's. The absence of millions of German men and subsequent reintegration process into the two post-war societies had tremendous political ramifications for both the Federal Republic and the German Democratic Republic. Politically, the former POWs were crucial pieces in the emergence of postwar German politics. In both the East and the West, returning prisoners of war were used to the political advantage of their respective governments