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The Greatest Mass Rape in History
One of this century's greatest crimes, and probably one of the greatest crimes against women in history, was the mass rape of the conquered women of Europe in 1945. The rapists were mainly Red Army soldiers, some of them non-White troops from the Far East and Central Asian Republics of the Soviet Union.
As the Red Army advanced toward her in 1945, the city of Berlin had become a city virtually without men. Out of a civilian population of 2,700,000, 2,000,000 were women.
Former Soviet war correspondent Natalya Gesse recalled: "The Russian soldiers were raping every German female from eight to 80... It was an army of rapists."
The rape victims were not just Germans. Polish women also suffered. So did young Russian, Belorussian and Ukrainian women who had been sent back to Germany by the Wehrmacht for slave labor.
As Author Antony Beevor put it,
"If anything, the events of 1945 reveal how thin the veneer of civilization can be when there is little fear of retribution."
Photos
The National Archives
The Library of Congress
Film Clips: Official and Amateur footage
Vincent Romano Archives
http://www.webalice.it/romanoarchives/
Aduio Clip: BBC4 The Woman's Hour "War Rape"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/womanshou...
Music
Hagia Sophia
Star of the Winds
IRFAN
http://www.myspace.com/irfantheband
Come Tenderness
Lisa Gerrard
http://www.lisagerrard.com/
conceived and produced by
Dale Caruso
to learn more;
Berlin: The Downfall 1945
Antony Beevor
http://www.antonybeevor.com/
Tags:
WWII
German
Soviet
War
Crimes
Rape
Brutality
Horrors
of
War
Added: 25th September 2008
Views: 4221
Rating: 
Posted By: dalecaruso |
 
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If there is a castle that comes close to matching Harlech Castle in historical importance, that castle is surely Chepstow. Chepstow is a Norman castle perched high above the banks of the river Wye in southeast Wales. Construction began at Chepstow in 1067, less than a year after William the Conqueror was crowned King of England. It was his master castle builder in the person of his loyal Norman lord William FitzOsbern. FitzOsbern's fortresses were the vehicles from which the new king consolidated control of his newly conquered lands. Chepstow Castle became the key launching point for expeditions into Wales, expeditions that eventually subdued the rebellious population.
Photos
Char
Terry Winter
becky.bryan
Red Kit
Nigel Feasey
scuba_dooba
Karen McCort
Phillip Parr
Joe Dunckley
Maggie McDonnell
mrabanalc
miss.piccolo
mrssleepy(Rachelle Sadler)
Jon Combe
Martin
Morland Marauder
Karen & J.J. Morton
Roman Solowiej
kfy
Doug Woods
TimS
Simon
Music
The Angels of Venice
dragonfly
Mediaeval Baebes
gaudete
Jeff van Dyck
medieval II
cathedral of doom
Hans Zimmer
strength and honor
Hans Zimmer and Enya
now we are free
conceived and produced by
Dale Caruso
For more information about the Castles and Abbeys of Wales Visit
http://www.castlewales.com/
And for more information about Jeff van Dyck's soundtrack track for the
PC Game Total War and for information about the game itself, visit
www.totalwar.com/
Tags:
Medieval
Castles
Wales
12th
Century
Wye
River
Normans
Added: 27th September 2008
Views: 1711
Rating:
Posted By: dalecaruso |
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One of the most horrifying events during the Second World War was the Katyn Forest massacres which occurred in the spring of 1940. About half the officer corps of Poland was put to death by the Soviet Union's secret police (NKVD). In August 1939 Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union--two ideological enemies--shocked the world by signing a non-aggression pact. As part of the deal, Germany was allowed a free hand to invade Poland from the west on September 1. The Soviets would invade from the east half a month later. The Poles were utterly overwhelmed. The Soviet Red Army met almost no opposition as the Polish Army was told by its government to not confront the Russians. In effect, conquered Poland was divided into two sections: one controlled by Nazi Germany, the other under the heel of the Soviet Union. Polish prisoners in the Soviet Sphere numbered about 30,000. At least 22,000 were executed methodically by gunshots to the back of their heads from close range. Along with most of the Polish officer corps, numerous intellectuals, journalists, doctors, lawyers, and professors were also killed by the NKVD on the special order of Josef Stalin. Their corpses were hastily buried in mass graves in the Katyn Forest. After the Germans attacked the Soviet Union in 1941, they learned about the mas graves. Sensing a propaganda bonanza that would demonize the USSR, they exhumed thousands of corpses. International Red Cross officials and top forensic scientists were called in by the Germans to make a report. They all agreed the massacre was done by the Soviets. Some Allied POWs were also brought in to witness the scene. One American agreed, saying the Russians were undeniably to blame. After reconquering the area, the Soviets blamed the Germans for the massacre. It took until 1990 before the Soviet Union accepted responsibility for the mass extermination of the cream of Poland's officer corps and much of its intellectual community half a century before.
Tags:
Katyn
Forest
massacre
NKVD
Second
World
War
Added: 11th June 2015
Views: 2142
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Posted By: Lava1964 |
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