Journey into the Past

At first glance, this book appears to be about the wrongful court martial and execution by firing squad of a young U-Boat Commander simply because he removed the picture of Adolf Hitler that hung in the wardroom of his newly commissioned U-Boat. He was turned in by the lowest form of humanity - the political denouncer. His trial, sentencing and execution were carried out so swiftly that there was no chance to save his life. This book is far more than this one event in World War Two. The author remembers his teen years, of making English friends that would play an important part of his life at the end of the war. He talks about war clouds gathering and how all saw the impending disaster. Then, while in the U-Bootwaffe, he discusses many of the Skippers as well as the Flotilla Chiefs and even Großadmiral Karl Dönitz and he goes into great depths with names well known in the history of the U-Bootwaffe. Some facts are shocking. Also shocking is the fact that during World War Two, some 22,000 German military men were executed by military courts! That number represents two full-strength infantry divisions. Another 20,000 were sentenced to death but rather than face a firing squad, they were sent to penal battalions on the Eastern Front or attached to mine and bomb disposal units. Only about 20% of them survived. In comparison, the British executed only 317 and those for serious crimes such as murder. The US only executed one man, Private Eddie Slovak, for desertion. This book is far more than the drumhead court and swift execution of one man. It is a deep look into the German military and indeed, into the German life of the Second World War as seen through the eyes of one who lived it.