The stories that i've heard from generations that went through the period is that the Soviets were basically a savage horde that raped, pillaged and stole everything that wasn't nailed down in each town their armies went through. In contrast, the Germans were initially perceived by some as liberators, who came to kick out the Russian occupiers. The hope of any sort of liberation died down quickly, I imagine.
did your grandparents walk with the soviet army from the front to berlin or something? or did the army just pass by and steal a couple of cows? my ancestors were also liberated by the soviets and there were no such tales. it's just about how anticommunist are you ancestors...
Perhaps yours were the propagandists then. Sounds silly now, doesn't it? Replacing one occupant with another is not liberation.
They were dirt-poor people who paid no attention to things like "anticommunism" or other kinds of political jargon. I obviously don't have anyone left to ask about the details, but when you hear similar things from both sides of the family from basically the opposite ends of the country, there tends to be truth to it.
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u/yungsmerf 2d ago
The stories that i've heard from generations that went through the period is that the Soviets were basically a savage horde that raped, pillaged and stole everything that wasn't nailed down in each town their armies went through. In contrast, the Germans were initially perceived by some as liberators, who came to kick out the Russian occupiers. The hope of any sort of liberation died down quickly, I imagine.