|
ARNOLD'S WAR: 25 DECEMBER 2017 PREAMBLE
Tough going ... life on the Eastern Front during World War II The World — and especially Europe — was at a crossroads in mid-1939, a crossroads that were to prove “the war to end all wars” one of the most mistaken pledges of all time. My late father, Arnold Rozentals, then an enterprising 17-year-old living on Latvia’s Baltic Coast not far from Ventspils, was also at a crossroads — a young man about to embark on an education that saved him from almost certain death in northern Europe during World War II and eventually propelled him to a new life in Australia. It isn’t a Boys’ Own story of VC-winning gallantry, but it is a story of how ordinary people survived the maelstrom ... a great human story, and, in many parts, a great adventure story. — John Rozentals
|
This is a story from the other side of the world, and really has nothing at all to do with Molong and the surrounding district, though some of you may have come across Arnold during his many years at Orange's Email plant, where he rose from being a highly regarded tradesman to a valued member of senior management. I'm publishing his story simply because it is a great yarn that's worth reading. I've published the story before in my other website Oz Baby Boomers (http://ozbabyboomers.com.au/) and started publishing it again in the early days of Molong Online. But I reckon Molong Online has enough fresh readers to make the exercise a worthwhile one again. EPISODE 1 — A golden summer shadowed by the clouds of war (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/ EPISODE 2 — The pleasures of Baltic life ... and some uninvited Russian guests (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/ EPISODE 3 — An end to the carefree life as the Soviets bare their teeth (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/ EPISODE 4 — A very cold winter ... and a night of terror in the marshalling yard (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/ EPISODE 5 — Jani Day festivities ... and four days of freedom (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/ EPISODE 6 — The Swastika flies over Latvia … and Stalin becomes a mate of the West (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-6/arnold-episode-6.html) EPISODE 7 — New lodgings … and a new job … and the shadow of conscription (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-7/arnold-episode-7.html) EPISODE 8 — A move to Riga … and urgent action to avoid becoming canon fodder on the Eastern Front (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-8/arnold-episode-8.html) EPISODE 9 — Identifying the enemy … and much closer attention from the Nazis (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-9/arnold-episode-9.html) EPISODE 10 — A dangerous time … and perhaps a last chance to see parents, other relatives and friends (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-10/arnold-episode10-.html) EPISODE 11 — The war is near an end … but will the end arrive quickly enough? (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-11/arnold-episode11.html) EPISODE 12 — It’s goodbye Latvia, hello Poland … as Roosevelt, Churchill and new friend Uncle Joe divide the spoils (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-12/arnold-episode12.html) EPISODE 13 — A few weeks of isolated idleness in camp … then an opportunity of a new career as a ‘funker’ (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war EPISODE 14 — Anyway, swapping a blanket for bread seemed a good idea at the time … and then there was the Polish housemaid to deal with. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-14/arnold-episode14.html) EPISODE 15 | It’s goodbye to the safe life … and my life probably saved by a trip to Czechoslovakia. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-15/arnold-episode15.html) EPISODE 16 | Living it up in Czechoslovakia as the Bolsheviks’ iron curtain draws. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-16/arnold-episode16.html) EPISODE 17 | Hunger and confusion rule as we near the Eastern Front … and having no voice is hardly a help. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-17/arnold-episode17.html) EPISODE 18 | A very crowded escape to rejoin my old battalion … but what a depressing ‘homecoming'. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-18/arnold-episode18.html) EPISODE 19 | Constantly looking for food … and a narrow escape from the Russian Army. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-19/arnold-episode19.html) EPISODE 20 | Preparing for a do-or-die battle. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-20/arnold-episode20.html) EPISODE 21 | One of the worst nights of my life … and crawling through fields of mutilated bodies (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-21/arnold-episode21.html) EPISODE 22 | The certain prospect of defeat brings out the worst in the Nazis … and our dash for the West (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-22/arnold-episode22.html) EPISODE 23 | Rising damp and a good case of the shits … but we’re in American hands and the war is over (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-23/arnold-episode23.html) EPISODE 24 | Medicine and a dry bed help … but the spectre of the Bolsheviks remains (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-24/arnold-episode24.html) EPISODE 25 | In English hands now … but the dysentry and hunger pains remain (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-25/arnold-episode25.html) EPISODE 26 | Fallingbostel POW Camp … the days drag on like worn-out people … they are all alike and grey (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-26/arnold-episode26.html) EPISODE 27: Internal discipline normally fine … but hunger makes men to some strange things … and a reunion with Latvian officers. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-27/arnold-episode27.html) EPISODE 28: The hunger pangs recede and we’re free to go as we please … if we had anywhere to go. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-28/arnold-episode28.html) EPISODE 29: An unwanted boxing match; the world at peace; and a slow awakening to Stalin’s ways. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-29/arnold-episode29.html) EPISODE 30:Life gradually returns to normal … and a very welcome blast from the past. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-30/arnold-episode30.html) EPISODE 31: The end of the war for Arnold, but first a final look at the politics of World War 2 and its aftermath. (http://molong.com.au/arnolds_war/episode-31/arnold-episode31.html)
|
