1 00:00:15,400 --> 00:00:19,920 In 1941, director Leo de Laforgue makes a film about Berlin... 2 00:00:21,520 --> 00:00:24,200 ..to be called Symphony Of A World Capital. 3 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:32,520 The sun always seems to shine and life is flourishing. 4 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:51,280 There's no mention of the Second World War, 5 00:00:51,280 --> 00:00:54,080 no inkling of concentration camps, 6 00:00:54,080 --> 00:00:58,160 no sign of over 300,000 forced labourers in the city, 7 00:00:58,160 --> 00:01:01,040 not a trace of misery and hunger. 8 00:01:01,040 --> 00:01:02,560 Quite the contrary. 9 00:01:07,920 --> 00:01:11,680 This summer, the Reich is at the height of its power. 10 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:13,560 Half of Europe has surrendered, 11 00:01:13,560 --> 00:01:16,480 and it's basking in the glory of its successes. 12 00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:25,400 But in less than four years, the tide will have turned. 13 00:01:25,400 --> 00:01:28,520 Adolf Hitler will have survived an assassination attempt. 14 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:33,760 Allied troops will be ready to storm the country and take the city. 15 00:01:35,640 --> 00:01:38,520 The wall will return to its source, Berlin. 16 00:01:39,880 --> 00:01:42,200 And there will be little left of the city but diaries 17 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:45,680 and memories, files and pictures, ashes and dust. 18 00:02:12,320 --> 00:02:14,800 TRANSLATION: Sunday, New Year's Eve, 19 00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:16,880 a trip to Grunewald forest with Kurt. 20 00:02:16,880 --> 00:02:20,720 It was a splendid walk, deep snow everywhere. 21 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:22,640 We stopped off for a beer. 22 00:02:22,640 --> 00:02:25,720 We were home by six and celebrated with Schultzes. 23 00:02:32,520 --> 00:02:35,480 It was the end of an eventful year. 24 00:02:35,480 --> 00:02:37,200 What will the next year bring? 25 00:02:37,200 --> 00:02:39,440 We are fearful of 1945. 26 00:03:23,360 --> 00:03:25,760 TRANSLATION: The new year began quietly. 27 00:03:28,640 --> 00:03:31,320 Lieutenant Kutner ordered the whole battalion to listen 28 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:33,680 to the radio transmission of the Fuhrer's speech. 29 00:04:18,840 --> 00:04:21,600 January 2nd. Back to work. 30 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:24,840 Everyone talks about how drunk they were on New Year's Eve. 31 00:04:24,840 --> 00:04:28,600 In the evening, to the UFA cinema on Alexanderplatz with Kurt. 32 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:33,280 We saw Rite Of Sacrifice with Kristina Soderbaum and Carl Raddatz. 33 00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:42,760 It was a wonderful film. 34 00:04:42,760 --> 00:04:45,640 So sad. We were spellbound. 35 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:28,520 January 4th. Air raid alert from quarter to 12 36 00:05:28,520 --> 00:05:30,240 until quarter to one. 37 00:05:30,240 --> 00:05:33,360 It's been quite a smash-up, another heavy attack. 38 00:05:36,240 --> 00:05:41,680 The capital of the Reich was attacked by 40 fast bombers. 39 00:05:41,680 --> 00:05:44,720 They crossed the city in loose formation. 40 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:48,200 12 dead, 23 injured, 1324 homeless. 41 00:06:05,440 --> 00:06:07,960 TRANSLATION: January 9th. 42 00:06:11,960 --> 00:06:13,920 Something terrible has happened. 43 00:06:13,920 --> 00:06:18,040 They've implicated Count Moltke in the Hitler assassination attempt 44 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:20,800 and he will be brought before the People's Court. 45 00:06:20,800 --> 00:06:23,280 And whoever comes before the People's Court - 46 00:06:23,280 --> 00:06:25,800 treason, conspiracy to overthrow the state, 47 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:28,520 the Nazi regime - it couldn't be worse. 48 00:06:38,920 --> 00:06:42,200 TRANSLATION: The setting was a room packed with people. 49 00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:44,080 The proceedings went like this... 50 00:06:44,080 --> 00:06:46,880 Freisler - talented, brilliant and not bright, 51 00:06:46,880 --> 00:06:49,400 and potent in all three respects, 52 00:06:49,400 --> 00:06:53,440 reads my resume. Details are affirmed or things added. 53 00:06:53,440 --> 00:06:55,840 Then come questions about the allegations. 54 00:06:55,840 --> 00:06:59,040 He ignores what doesn't suit him, dismisses important points. 55 00:07:08,800 --> 00:07:10,920 The name Moltke constantly rang out. 56 00:07:10,920 --> 00:07:13,120 It permeated the proceedings 57 00:07:13,120 --> 00:07:15,480 and it was obvious they wanted to have me killed. 58 00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:34,640 The barracks are wedged between the main street 59 00:07:34,640 --> 00:07:37,440 and the subway next to a sports field. 60 00:07:39,160 --> 00:07:42,280 The station is called Baumschulenweg, a working class 61 00:07:42,280 --> 00:07:46,240 district with small factories, handicraft businesses, tenements. 62 00:07:49,000 --> 00:07:51,840 From above, the barracks look completely alike. 63 00:07:51,840 --> 00:07:54,000 Four Berliners passing by the fences. 64 00:07:54,000 --> 00:07:56,880 It's just a compound, and they couldn't care less anyway. 65 00:08:02,440 --> 00:08:04,920 On the large meadow opposite were several barracks 66 00:08:04,920 --> 00:08:07,960 for prisoners of war and forced labourers. 67 00:08:07,960 --> 00:08:11,800 Most of them are Ukrainians and must have been terribly mistreated. 68 00:08:11,800 --> 00:08:14,640 Screams rang out again and again. 69 00:08:14,640 --> 00:08:17,080 People living nearby ignored them. 70 00:08:17,080 --> 00:08:20,240 That is, when the screams of the tortured were heard, 71 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:22,880 they all closed their windows as if on command. 72 00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:41,440 TRANSLATION: Homesickness hits me in waves. 73 00:08:42,680 --> 00:08:44,840 At work I try to suppress the sadness, 74 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:47,840 but when I'm alone it's barely possible. 75 00:08:50,360 --> 00:08:53,240 How many years of my youth have I lost? 76 00:09:08,320 --> 00:09:10,080 We go to the cinema. 77 00:09:51,840 --> 00:09:54,160 After the film, straight to the party offices 78 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:55,760 to pay my member's fee. 79 00:10:03,080 --> 00:10:04,400 January 11th. 80 00:10:07,560 --> 00:10:10,280 The Moltke trial. Before evening falls, 81 00:10:10,280 --> 00:10:12,800 the prosecution requests the death penalty. 82 00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:19,600 We just had thoughts, just Delp, Gerstenmeier and me. 83 00:10:19,600 --> 00:10:22,840 The NS is so afraid of these solitary men's thoughts 84 00:10:22,840 --> 00:10:26,240 that anything infected by them must be eradicated. 85 00:10:26,240 --> 00:10:28,000 If that isn't a compliment. 86 00:10:43,560 --> 00:10:46,640 It was too late to execute us the same day, 87 00:10:46,640 --> 00:10:50,000 so, if it's the Lord's will, I'll stay alive. 88 00:10:51,680 --> 00:10:53,720 You're still alive, my darling. 89 00:10:53,720 --> 00:10:55,560 Now I fight for you again. 90 00:10:55,560 --> 00:10:57,800 This respite might benefit us. 91 00:11:12,320 --> 00:11:14,600 Kurt came to eat with us. 92 00:11:14,600 --> 00:11:16,000 Mother left us alone. 93 00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:19,680 He played the mandolin and I sang along, and then he kissed me 94 00:11:19,680 --> 00:11:21,720 and was very tender with me. 95 00:11:57,480 --> 00:11:59,520 The visits to the front lines in the east 96 00:11:59,520 --> 00:12:02,360 by our Berlin regional commanders went well. 97 00:12:02,360 --> 00:12:05,000 Our troops in East Prussia are in high spirits, 98 00:12:05,000 --> 00:12:08,240 confident they will repel the coming Soviet offensive. 99 00:12:37,200 --> 00:12:39,320 January 16th. For three days now, 100 00:12:39,320 --> 00:12:41,760 there's been a major Bolshevik offensive. 101 00:12:41,760 --> 00:12:44,080 One of our men, Manfred, cries in his bed at night 102 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:46,040 because he's worried about his family. 103 00:12:46,040 --> 00:12:49,080 He's from Konigsberg, where the Russians are advancing. 104 00:12:50,720 --> 00:12:53,720 But the battle lines already reach deep into Silesia. 105 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:56,200 At night when the American and English bombers approach, 106 00:12:56,200 --> 00:12:57,600 we man the guns. 107 00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:23,080 Two days ago, the Volkssturm started enrolling 108 00:13:23,080 --> 00:13:25,120 in civilian jackets and puttees. 109 00:13:25,120 --> 00:13:28,440 Some had never held a gun before. Extras to plug the gaps. 110 00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:49,480 Every day in the darkroom, I see the portraits 111 00:13:49,480 --> 00:13:52,560 of young people who - barely adult - are already dressed 112 00:13:52,560 --> 00:13:54,480 in military uniforms. 113 00:13:54,480 --> 00:13:57,000 Many of them won't live to see the end of the war. 114 00:14:00,400 --> 00:14:02,640 Their uniform will be the only garment worn 115 00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:04,400 in their short adult life. 116 00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:20,120 Kurt picked me up for the last time. 117 00:14:20,120 --> 00:14:22,160 He only took me with him to the station. 118 00:14:23,360 --> 00:14:25,600 Who knows when we'll see each other again? 119 00:14:47,320 --> 00:14:49,600 The first refugees arrived from Silesia. 120 00:14:49,600 --> 00:14:51,960 A wagon filled with dead children arrived 121 00:14:51,960 --> 00:14:53,680 at Berlin's Silesian station. 122 00:14:53,680 --> 00:14:56,280 They'd been standing in the cold for 96 hours, 123 00:14:56,280 --> 00:14:59,120 packed in like pickled herrings in a barrel. 124 00:15:02,840 --> 00:15:06,800 Our boss says we have to shift snow, then dig graves for the dead. 125 00:15:08,840 --> 00:15:12,280 The earth is frozen solid to 50 centimetres down. 126 00:15:14,120 --> 00:15:17,240 We dig through ice and snow, then continue down, battering 127 00:15:17,240 --> 00:15:19,720 with hammers and iron wedges. 128 00:15:19,720 --> 00:15:23,120 It was hard for us before. Now it's even worse. 129 00:15:37,720 --> 00:15:40,520 At three, I visited Muller, head of the Gestapo. 130 00:15:40,520 --> 00:15:42,920 He said he couldn't do anything for you as you're a traitor. 131 00:15:45,680 --> 00:15:48,880 I'm fine, my love. I am ready and determined to happily 132 00:15:48,880 --> 00:15:51,880 place my faith in God's will, knowing he only wants the best 133 00:15:51,880 --> 00:15:54,320 for us, including you, my dearest. 134 00:15:55,720 --> 00:15:57,600 Farewell, my sweetheart. 135 00:15:57,600 --> 00:16:00,240 May the Lord bless you and all of us. 136 00:16:03,400 --> 00:16:06,960 Yesterday at noon, they took Count Moltke from his cell. 137 00:16:06,960 --> 00:16:09,040 By four o'clock he'd been executed. 138 00:16:09,040 --> 00:16:10,800 It was all quite sudden. 139 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:30,280 The city is teeming with refugees, 140 00:16:30,280 --> 00:16:32,920 all complaining about these cursed times. 141 00:16:32,920 --> 00:16:34,880 Nobody is mincing their words. 142 00:16:34,880 --> 00:16:39,880 For 24 hours, every person can rage about his hardship, his desperation 143 00:16:39,880 --> 00:16:42,040 and terror without inhibition. 144 00:16:42,040 --> 00:16:44,160 Then Goebbels is back in control. 145 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:37,640 Today is the 12th anniversary of the party's rise to power. 146 00:17:37,640 --> 00:17:39,720 One or two British bombing raids every night. 147 00:17:39,720 --> 00:17:41,560 During the day, 148 00:17:41,560 --> 00:17:43,200 desperate Wehrmacht reports. 149 00:17:43,200 --> 00:17:46,240 The Fuhrer's radio address is a good boost to morale. 150 00:18:12,240 --> 00:18:16,480 SINGING 151 00:19:08,520 --> 00:19:11,640 We went downstairs to Matusack's again. 152 00:19:11,640 --> 00:19:13,720 His wife was also there now. 153 00:19:20,120 --> 00:19:24,040 The Schnapps was flowing until ten o'clock. 154 00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:27,200 Then we listened to the Fuhrer's speech. 155 00:19:27,200 --> 00:19:30,240 Uncle Paul is always drunk. 156 00:19:40,560 --> 00:19:42,640 Stalin is at the gate. 157 00:19:42,640 --> 00:19:45,960 The Russians have crossed the River Oder, advancing on Wriezen 158 00:19:45,960 --> 00:19:47,960 with about 100 tanks. 159 00:19:47,960 --> 00:19:50,840 There is nothing between Berlin and Wriezen, no anti-tank 160 00:19:50,840 --> 00:19:53,720 guns, no barricades, not a single soldier. 161 00:19:53,720 --> 00:19:55,200 People are restless. 162 00:20:04,200 --> 00:20:06,920 My loving wife, you ask what's to be done. 163 00:20:06,920 --> 00:20:10,440 I'm still optimistic on the whole. The more rational voices say 164 00:20:10,440 --> 00:20:15,680 we still have considerable reserves and will still get new weapons. 165 00:20:26,960 --> 00:20:30,760 Berlin can't be considered to be any safer than where you are. 166 00:20:30,760 --> 00:20:33,520 Since there is no adequate means of travel, I think it best 167 00:20:33,520 --> 00:20:36,040 if you stay there. 168 00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:59,400 The four o'clock weather briefing indicated that there would be visual 169 00:20:59,400 --> 00:21:02,280 conditions in the Berlin Magdeburg area. 170 00:21:02,280 --> 00:21:05,760 This was later confirmed by the ten o'clock conference. 171 00:21:05,760 --> 00:21:07,720 In Berlin, the aiming points were 172 00:21:07,720 --> 00:21:09,800 the centre and the heart of the city, 173 00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:13,160 an area bounded by the Lindenstrasse, 174 00:21:13,160 --> 00:21:16,880 the Unter den Linden and the Wilhelmstrasse. 175 00:21:19,960 --> 00:21:23,800 We had to report early to Rosenthaler Platz 176 00:21:23,800 --> 00:21:26,600 to build barricades. We hadn't been working for long. 177 00:21:26,600 --> 00:21:28,360 Everyone was in a good mood, 178 00:21:28,360 --> 00:21:32,200 the lads were singing, but then the air-raid siren sounded. 179 00:21:35,320 --> 00:21:38,160 SIREN WAILS 180 00:21:50,400 --> 00:21:53,280 NEWSREEL: More than 1,000 Flying Fortresses sweep out 181 00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:56,160 from their bases in England to hammer the German capital. 182 00:21:56,160 --> 00:21:59,120 The stern voice of retributive justice comes to Berlin 183 00:21:59,120 --> 00:22:01,040 in the heavy drone of bombers. 184 00:22:01,040 --> 00:22:03,040 From Berlin went the orders 185 00:22:03,040 --> 00:22:06,680 which wreaked havoc in Rotterdam and Warsaw. From Berlin, 186 00:22:06,680 --> 00:22:10,480 also, Germany watched without pity the agony of those millions 187 00:22:10,480 --> 00:22:13,320 of refugees whom war turned into sad armies 188 00:22:13,320 --> 00:22:16,000 of the uprooted and dispossessed. 189 00:22:32,280 --> 00:22:36,680 Today, the wheel has turned full circle. Berliners are undergoing 190 00:22:36,680 --> 00:22:39,320 the ordeal to which they unprotestingly committed 191 00:22:39,320 --> 00:22:41,320 the great cities of Europe. 192 00:22:53,200 --> 00:22:58,160 In 45 minutes, 2,500 tonnes of high explosive and incendiaries rained 193 00:22:58,160 --> 00:23:01,080 down on the government and army administrative offices in the heart 194 00:23:01,080 --> 00:23:02,360 of the city. 195 00:23:30,520 --> 00:23:32,480 The city's in a terrible state. 196 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:35,560 Through smoke, soot and filth, I reached the publishing house. 197 00:23:35,560 --> 00:23:38,760 The rain's pouring down, binding the smoke and soot, which sticks 198 00:23:38,760 --> 00:23:41,000 to our shoes like thick porridge. 199 00:23:43,480 --> 00:23:48,560 Disaster struck our anti-aircraft unit. 200 00:23:48,560 --> 00:23:51,440 A bomb hit the munitions chamber and all 400 rounds 201 00:23:51,440 --> 00:23:53,000 of ammunition exploded. 202 00:23:53,000 --> 00:23:55,200 All of my classmates are dead. 203 00:24:06,400 --> 00:24:09,360 The districts of Kreuzberg, 204 00:24:09,360 --> 00:24:12,400 Mitte, Horst Wessel and Wedding were hit hardest. 205 00:24:12,400 --> 00:24:15,560 1,130 dead, 738 missing, 206 00:24:15,560 --> 00:24:21,000 1,116 wounded, 102,061 made homeless. 207 00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:30,880 Bayerischer Platz underground station is also 208 00:24:30,880 --> 00:24:35,760 affected. More than 100 bodies are under the rubble. 209 00:24:35,760 --> 00:24:38,680 Men, women and children stand crowded together. 210 00:24:38,680 --> 00:24:42,880 They hang their heads in silence. Grave, speechless, solemnly, 211 00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:45,080 they wait for their dead to be dug up. 212 00:25:01,080 --> 00:25:04,200 Your pick sinks into something soft. 213 00:25:04,200 --> 00:25:06,600 You shout, "Here! I've found someone." 214 00:25:06,600 --> 00:25:08,800 A policeman comes running. 215 00:25:08,800 --> 00:25:12,520 Only a German may touch cold German flesh. 216 00:25:12,520 --> 00:25:16,840 They finally get the body out, grab it by the leg and pull it out. 217 00:25:16,840 --> 00:25:19,760 Sometimes the leg comes off. 218 00:25:19,760 --> 00:25:23,480 Some puke. At least they still have something in their stomachs. 219 00:25:29,600 --> 00:25:31,200 NEWSREEL: In this operation, 220 00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:33,480 the Americans lost 19 bombers and five fighters. 221 00:25:33,480 --> 00:25:34,760 As they head for home, 222 00:25:34,760 --> 00:25:39,360 they leave behind them a reminder to Germans that war doesn't pay. 223 00:25:39,360 --> 00:25:42,600 Berlin, they say, is now a city of dreadful night. As an American 224 00:25:42,600 --> 00:25:46,360 airman said after this trip, "When Stalin's boys get to Berlin, 225 00:25:46,360 --> 00:25:48,840 "they'd better bring a Fire Department, because the place 226 00:25:48,840 --> 00:25:50,560 "is really burning now." 227 00:26:18,200 --> 00:26:22,960 The eighth of February. We reached Stalag VII in Luckenwalde 228 00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:27,280 in the early morning. Due to overcrowding, there are no bunks. 229 00:26:27,280 --> 00:26:30,360 Each man has a filthy blanket. 230 00:26:30,360 --> 00:26:33,560 The latrine for hundreds of men is a deep hole. 231 00:26:34,800 --> 00:26:38,760 If the hole is full, Russian prisoners have to go down and clean 232 00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:40,800 it. They are treated horribly. 233 00:27:02,040 --> 00:27:04,440 Power was cut for two hours today. I received 234 00:27:04,440 --> 00:27:06,880 the first two letters from Kurt. 235 00:27:06,880 --> 00:27:10,680 Air-raid alarm from 8:45 to half past nine. 236 00:27:12,680 --> 00:27:15,120 We've only just learned that during the daytime 237 00:27:15,120 --> 00:27:18,280 attack last weekend, the president of the People's Court, Dr Freisler, 238 00:27:18,280 --> 00:27:22,000 was killed along with most of his staff. 239 00:27:22,000 --> 00:27:25,160 For a moment, I'm torn between horror and joy. 240 00:27:25,160 --> 00:27:29,440 Freisler, the man who sentenced everyone to death, 241 00:27:29,440 --> 00:27:33,040 he died a month too late and many weeks too early to be made 242 00:27:33,040 --> 00:27:35,400 accountable and face retribution. 243 00:27:48,040 --> 00:27:51,960 My little doll, news from here. The night was clear, 244 00:27:51,960 --> 00:27:55,560 the temperature dropped to zero. Tomorrow morning at ten past seven, 245 00:27:55,560 --> 00:27:57,240 I have to go to the Volkssturm, 246 00:27:57,240 --> 00:27:59,240 probably to build tank barriers again. 247 00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:01,720 I'm still hoping the countermeasures announced will turn 248 00:28:01,720 --> 00:28:04,160 the tide. All the best from your dad. 249 00:28:08,720 --> 00:28:10,160 February 15th. 250 00:28:12,440 --> 00:28:14,480 Today I'm alone in the clinic. 251 00:28:14,480 --> 00:28:18,200 Professor Sauerbruch isn't there, nor is his official deputy. 252 00:28:22,240 --> 00:28:25,120 The order was given to move all patients to the shelter, 253 00:28:25,120 --> 00:28:28,840 or at least to the basement. First, children and private patients, 254 00:28:28,840 --> 00:28:31,080 then the women. 255 00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:37,040 In the bunker, I met a half-Jewish biology professor. 256 00:28:37,040 --> 00:28:40,200 He told me there are Jews hiding in Berlin. 257 00:28:40,200 --> 00:28:43,800 They have been living for months or years in cellars and attics, 258 00:28:43,800 --> 00:28:46,600 looked after by friends and acquaintances. 259 00:28:57,560 --> 00:28:59,680 My love, 260 00:28:59,680 --> 00:29:03,120 we've been apart for two years already. This fear 261 00:29:03,120 --> 00:29:05,120 of being hunted, what for? 262 00:29:05,120 --> 00:29:09,240 All my life, I've lived as a decent human being and now I have to hide 263 00:29:09,240 --> 00:29:12,280 like a criminal, like a murderer, and tormented by my thoughts 264 00:29:12,280 --> 00:29:13,800 about the children. 265 00:29:13,800 --> 00:29:15,600 That's the worst of it. 266 00:29:15,600 --> 00:29:19,360 I am so desperate, because I simply know nothing about them. 267 00:29:19,360 --> 00:29:22,000 If things went badly for Miss Muller, 268 00:29:22,000 --> 00:29:25,560 they're no longer alive, but I had no choice, otherwise I would 269 00:29:25,560 --> 00:29:28,720 have had to face the Gestapo with them. 270 00:29:28,720 --> 00:29:31,840 When children sing songs on the radio, it brings tears 271 00:29:31,840 --> 00:29:33,000 to my eyes. 272 00:29:47,360 --> 00:29:49,800 February 25th. 273 00:29:51,120 --> 00:29:55,040 My confirmation in the Church of Jesus Christ in Dahlem. 274 00:29:58,120 --> 00:30:01,920 Daddy came, we were 14 girls and six boys. 275 00:30:01,920 --> 00:30:06,560 Unfortunately, it didn't take place in the church. It was too cold. 276 00:30:07,840 --> 00:30:10,920 Nevertheless, it was very solemn and no siren interrupted it. 277 00:30:10,920 --> 00:30:14,200 For lunch, we had a good pot roast that Daddy had brought 278 00:30:14,200 --> 00:30:18,200 with him. In the afternoon, visitors and real coffee and cake. 279 00:30:37,920 --> 00:30:39,600 February 26th. 280 00:30:42,480 --> 00:30:45,040 Today was the day we were trained for. 281 00:30:45,040 --> 00:30:47,720 I always wanted to bomb Hitler's Berlin. 282 00:30:48,800 --> 00:30:51,880 The city has the toughest anti-aircraft defences 283 00:30:51,880 --> 00:30:55,840 and more enemy fighters than any other target in Germany, 284 00:30:55,840 --> 00:30:58,680 so it's understandable that the crews let out tormented 285 00:30:58,680 --> 00:31:02,040 groans when they heard about it at the briefing. 286 00:31:24,080 --> 00:31:27,800 After take-off, I felt so alone on my position in the rear 287 00:31:27,800 --> 00:31:32,000 of the plane, in spite of the many planes around us. 288 00:31:32,000 --> 00:31:33,680 So terribly alone 289 00:31:33,680 --> 00:31:37,640 and afraid that this could be my last flight. 290 00:31:37,640 --> 00:31:40,440 I cannot describe the emptiness I felt. 291 00:32:01,200 --> 00:32:03,080 Saw Truxa with Liana at the cinema. 292 00:32:18,880 --> 00:32:22,240 Right at the best part, 293 00:32:22,240 --> 00:32:25,520 the sirens started and we ran to the bunker. 294 00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:30,280 After the longest distance we've ever flown, we were right 295 00:32:30,280 --> 00:32:32,240 in the middle of it. 296 00:32:35,560 --> 00:32:39,560 Lurching airplanes. A direct hit sent the one right next to us 297 00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:40,800 up in flames. 298 00:32:40,800 --> 00:32:44,200 I shuddered in anticipation of the steel 299 00:32:44,200 --> 00:32:48,600 that could rip through my body at any second. 300 00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:50,760 Then the bomb bays opened. 301 00:33:21,200 --> 00:33:23,640 A wing of the factory's hit. 302 00:33:23,640 --> 00:33:26,800 Fire breaks out from the incendiary bombs. 303 00:33:26,800 --> 00:33:28,320 As we walk into the shelter, 304 00:33:28,320 --> 00:33:30,920 we have to avoid the burning asphalt. 305 00:33:34,520 --> 00:33:38,120 Alexanderplatz in flames. We have no lights 306 00:33:38,120 --> 00:33:39,800 and no water at home. 307 00:33:45,840 --> 00:33:48,400 After the all-clear, the film continued. 308 00:34:14,920 --> 00:34:18,280 After what felt like hours, we reached the beautiful shores 309 00:34:18,280 --> 00:34:20,240 of England, we had made it. 310 00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:27,000 It was over and I was so glad, I didn't know what to say. 311 00:34:46,880 --> 00:34:49,840 Now the city is dying and can no longer be saved. 312 00:34:49,840 --> 00:34:51,520 Tired, apathetic people. 313 00:34:51,520 --> 00:34:54,720 The doormen at the entrance tells a crying woman, 314 00:34:54,720 --> 00:34:57,920 "Be glad, I tell you, that he's buried in a mass grave. 315 00:34:57,920 --> 00:34:59,720 "At least he's not alone there." 316 00:35:05,000 --> 00:35:08,000 German morale is in freefall, and every 317 00:35:08,000 --> 00:35:11,760 round of bombing reinforces this feeling of depression. 318 00:35:14,480 --> 00:35:17,600 But as critical as the situation may be, it does not in any way 319 00:35:17,600 --> 00:35:19,960 interfere with the normal daily routine. 320 00:35:19,960 --> 00:35:23,440 Police surveillance is being further intensified. 321 00:35:28,400 --> 00:35:32,480 The camp was fenced in with barbed wire, which was electrified. 322 00:35:32,480 --> 00:35:35,720 The guards had dogs and machine guns. 323 00:35:41,720 --> 00:35:44,680 Our strength was waning. We were consumed by work. 324 00:35:46,200 --> 00:35:49,840 One day, the kitchen made soup from dried potato peels. 325 00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:55,360 It was pig swill. 326 00:35:58,920 --> 00:36:00,560 February 28th. 327 00:36:00,560 --> 00:36:03,560 Margot's place has been damaged by bombs again. 328 00:36:03,560 --> 00:36:06,720 Incendiary bombs fell on the doctor's flat, but the fire 329 00:36:06,720 --> 00:36:09,840 was extinguished, only caused minor damage. 330 00:36:09,840 --> 00:36:11,960 He says that's how we'll win the war. 331 00:36:15,720 --> 00:36:18,320 I darn socks in the evening. 332 00:36:27,720 --> 00:36:29,600 March 3rd. 333 00:36:29,600 --> 00:36:32,640 We left Berlin 334 00:36:32,640 --> 00:36:36,440 early in the afternoon. The Fuhrer wanted to see progress on the front 335 00:36:36,440 --> 00:36:38,760 lines for himself to strengthen troop morale 336 00:36:38,760 --> 00:36:40,880 and check ammunition supplies. 337 00:36:58,600 --> 00:37:00,840 The Fuhrer was here. 338 00:37:02,520 --> 00:37:06,280 His visit sharpens our awareness of where we stand, namely to defend 339 00:37:06,280 --> 00:37:10,520 the capital of the Reich. 340 00:37:27,040 --> 00:37:29,480 Basic order for preparations 341 00:37:29,480 --> 00:37:33,520 to defend the capital. Berlin is to be defended to the last man 342 00:37:33,520 --> 00:37:35,680 and to the last bullet. 343 00:37:35,680 --> 00:37:38,840 The struggle must be fought with fanaticism, imagination, 344 00:37:38,840 --> 00:37:41,640 with every means of deception, cunning, deceit, 345 00:37:41,640 --> 00:37:43,360 on and above the ground. 346 00:37:45,040 --> 00:37:48,560 It is necessary that every block, every house, every storey, every 347 00:37:48,560 --> 00:37:50,920 hedgerow is defended to the last. 348 00:38:06,400 --> 00:38:10,320 We build tank traps on Landsberger Allee and in Kniprodestrasse. 349 00:38:10,320 --> 00:38:12,800 We now have daily bazooka firing and rifle training 350 00:38:12,800 --> 00:38:16,000 under SA supervision in Friedrichshain. 351 00:38:16,000 --> 00:38:19,680 Many old men are taking part, from the People's Storm. 352 00:38:21,760 --> 00:38:24,120 The Wehrmacht reports are shocking. 353 00:38:45,040 --> 00:38:49,680 Life is becoming increasingly primitive. 354 00:38:49,680 --> 00:38:52,560 Detergent and soap have to be made to last ever longer. 355 00:38:52,560 --> 00:38:56,880 Items for personal hygiene are a luxury. Sewing material and bits 356 00:38:56,880 --> 00:39:00,080 and pieces are all the clothes ration card allows for. 357 00:39:00,080 --> 00:39:03,120 The less cultured people of the East may still feel comfortable 358 00:39:03,120 --> 00:39:06,200 under these circumstances, but civilised Europeans 359 00:39:06,200 --> 00:39:07,760 suffer and degenerate. 360 00:39:19,240 --> 00:39:23,360 We visited Father. As soon as we were there, sirens sounded. 361 00:39:23,360 --> 00:39:26,280 We stayed in an overground bunker. 362 00:39:26,280 --> 00:39:30,080 I thought I'd long since overcome my fear, but today I trembled, afraid 363 00:39:30,080 --> 00:39:32,800 for my life. A terrible bang. 364 00:39:32,800 --> 00:39:36,200 The bunker sways, the lights go out, people screaming. 365 00:39:36,200 --> 00:39:38,600 The attack lasted two hours. 366 00:39:44,800 --> 00:39:47,400 We saw the tremendous glow of fire on Prenzlauer Berg. 367 00:39:47,400 --> 00:39:52,240 Opposite, house number 15 was hit and collapsed. 368 00:40:07,200 --> 00:40:10,280 Half Berlin was in flames and in ruins. 369 00:40:10,280 --> 00:40:13,080 It's enough to drive you insane when you walk the streets. 370 00:40:13,080 --> 00:40:16,400 Our Berlin, the Berlin I loved so much. 371 00:40:17,480 --> 00:40:20,600 Even though it disgusts me that its inhabitants allowed us 372 00:40:20,600 --> 00:40:25,800 to be excluded from their community just because we're Jews, 373 00:40:25,800 --> 00:40:27,480 I still love my hometown. 374 00:40:37,080 --> 00:40:39,320 March 20th. 375 00:40:40,640 --> 00:40:42,880 We face the toughest challenge in our history, 376 00:40:42,880 --> 00:40:46,280 Battalion chief Kuckner told us this morning. 377 00:40:46,280 --> 00:40:49,720 We are to stand firm with religious fanaticism. 378 00:40:52,720 --> 00:40:56,080 At the shop at 9am, had to walk home, went for a walk 379 00:40:56,080 --> 00:41:00,120 with Kuzi in the evening and fetched water. 380 00:41:00,120 --> 00:41:03,760 Got a wonderful letter from Kurt, read some of the most beautiful 381 00:41:03,760 --> 00:41:05,680 parts to Kuzi. 382 00:41:07,560 --> 00:41:09,920 Went to the cinema with Margot. 383 00:41:11,600 --> 00:41:14,040 ORCHESTRAL PIANO MUSIC PLAYS 384 00:41:16,880 --> 00:41:19,400 Saw Soloist Anna Alt. 385 00:41:57,160 --> 00:42:01,280 Some comrades no longer know where their relatives are. 386 00:42:01,280 --> 00:42:04,120 East Prussia, Silesia. Without a home, 387 00:42:04,120 --> 00:42:06,280 the war becomes pointless. 388 00:42:06,280 --> 00:42:08,800 I can't imagine that Berlin would be lost. 389 00:42:15,320 --> 00:42:18,480 Today, it is they who are deprived of their last possessions 390 00:42:18,480 --> 00:42:22,600 and their homes, whose relatives face an uncertain fate in endless 391 00:42:22,600 --> 00:42:25,520 treks and refugee trains. 392 00:42:25,520 --> 00:42:28,440 I well know what it means to live in permanent uncertainty 393 00:42:28,440 --> 00:42:30,800 about your nearest and dearest and all the people close 394 00:42:30,800 --> 00:42:34,280 to you in need and misery and hunger and agony without hearing 395 00:42:34,280 --> 00:42:35,760 anything from them. 396 00:42:37,440 --> 00:42:43,480 I, we, we Jews, we have long lived through this. 397 00:42:43,480 --> 00:42:46,320 Am I now supposed to feel pity for them? 398 00:42:52,160 --> 00:42:55,160 63rd Transport was scheduled to Sachsenhausen 399 00:42:55,160 --> 00:42:58,560 and Ravensbruck. Destination - Theresienstadt. 400 00:42:58,560 --> 00:43:04,440 Date of departure - March 27th, 1945. For the evacuation of Jews 401 00:43:04,440 --> 00:43:07,640 from the territory of the Reich to the Theresienstadt ghetto, 402 00:43:07,640 --> 00:43:10,720 the following regulations apply. 403 00:43:10,720 --> 00:43:14,800 Transportation is to take place in single carriages on a regular 404 00:43:14,800 --> 00:43:19,960 train servicing the Theresienstadt route. Each person is to take 50 405 00:43:19,960 --> 00:43:22,440 Reichsmark, a complete set of clothing, 406 00:43:22,440 --> 00:43:24,400 bedsheet and blanket, eating 407 00:43:24,400 --> 00:43:29,000 utensils, plate or pot with spoon, rations for eight days. 408 00:43:31,240 --> 00:43:35,560 Prohibited items are stock certificates, currencies, savings 409 00:43:35,560 --> 00:43:40,000 account documents, etc, animals or ration cards. 410 00:43:40,000 --> 00:43:43,520 Before departure, the carriages are to be searched for weapons, 411 00:43:43,520 --> 00:43:49,320 ammunition, explosives, poison, currencies, jewellery, etc. 412 00:43:49,320 --> 00:43:52,520 Without exception, all assets are to be confiscated. 413 00:44:17,840 --> 00:44:21,640 Easter Sunday. We slept in very late, reading during the day 414 00:44:21,640 --> 00:44:25,080 and telling each other scary stories in the evening. We did some 415 00:44:25,080 --> 00:44:27,120 exercises and then we went to bed. 416 00:44:28,720 --> 00:44:30,720 SIRENS WAIL 417 00:44:31,680 --> 00:44:33,600 I'm sick of war. 418 00:44:33,600 --> 00:44:35,640 Every night, fast bombers attack Berlin. 419 00:44:35,640 --> 00:44:37,640 We are always tired and weary. 420 00:44:40,560 --> 00:44:43,320 And those miracle weapons, where are they? 421 00:45:03,760 --> 00:45:05,640 Once again, a hostile attack 422 00:45:05,640 --> 00:45:09,800 on the capital by Mosquito aircraft. One has already got so used to them 423 00:45:09,800 --> 00:45:12,640 that they've become part of the daily routine. 424 00:45:12,640 --> 00:45:16,040 If they don't come, the Berliners feel something's missing. 425 00:45:41,120 --> 00:45:42,640 My comrade, Udo, 426 00:45:42,640 --> 00:45:46,960 received a letter from the Pankow NSDAP branch. His mother 427 00:45:46,960 --> 00:45:50,840 and little sister, Elke, burned to death in the north of Berlin. 428 00:45:50,840 --> 00:45:52,560 He has no-one now. 429 00:45:52,560 --> 00:45:55,680 He stood still for a long time, then suddenly jumped on a stool, 430 00:45:55,680 --> 00:45:58,800 tore the large portrait of the Fuhrer from the wall, spat 431 00:45:58,800 --> 00:46:01,920 on it and stamped on Hitler's head. 432 00:46:01,920 --> 00:46:06,200 When the on-duty sergeant came, he locked Udo in a cell. 433 00:46:12,680 --> 00:46:15,000 April 12th. The Russians and Americans 434 00:46:15,000 --> 00:46:17,400 have advanced across the borders of the Reich. 435 00:46:17,400 --> 00:46:20,280 The situation has markedly deteriorated. 436 00:46:22,920 --> 00:46:24,840 In the office, we only do the most 437 00:46:24,840 --> 00:46:29,520 urgent work. We are burning most of our files in case Berlin falls. 438 00:47:11,320 --> 00:47:13,160 My dearest love, 439 00:47:13,160 --> 00:47:15,640 the day before yesterday was your birthday. 440 00:47:15,640 --> 00:47:18,120 Will there ever be another one we spend together? 441 00:47:18,120 --> 00:47:19,920 I don't believe it any more. 442 00:47:19,920 --> 00:47:24,120 And the children. Yesterday Weimar was taken by the Allies. 443 00:47:24,120 --> 00:47:27,200 How will I ever find a trace of them if things have gone wrong? 444 00:47:27,200 --> 00:47:29,280 I will listen to American radio today to hear 445 00:47:29,280 --> 00:47:31,160 what happened in Weimar. 446 00:47:31,160 --> 00:47:35,480 BIG BEN CHIMES 447 00:47:46,840 --> 00:47:48,760 This is London calling. 448 00:47:52,360 --> 00:47:54,480 RICHARD DIMBLEBY: I have just returned 449 00:47:54,480 --> 00:47:56,560 from the Belsen concentration camp. 450 00:47:56,560 --> 00:47:59,920 I find it hard to describe adequately the horrible things 451 00:47:59,920 --> 00:48:04,200 that I've seen and heard, but here, unadorned, are the facts. 452 00:48:05,960 --> 00:48:09,920 There are 40,000 men, women and children in the camp, 453 00:48:09,920 --> 00:48:12,400 thousands of them Jews. 454 00:48:12,400 --> 00:48:16,800 In the last few months alone, 30,000 prisoners have been killed 455 00:48:16,800 --> 00:48:18,440 off or allowed to die. 456 00:48:20,360 --> 00:48:24,560 Dead bodies, some of them in decay, lay strewn about the road 457 00:48:24,560 --> 00:48:26,640 and along the rutted tracks. 458 00:48:28,960 --> 00:48:31,680 Inside the huts, it was even worse. 459 00:48:31,680 --> 00:48:35,720 I have seen many terrible sights in the last five years, but nothing, 460 00:48:35,720 --> 00:48:40,920 nothing approaching the dreadful interior of this hut at Belsen. 461 00:48:40,920 --> 00:48:44,280 I picked my way over corpse after corpse in the gloom 462 00:48:44,280 --> 00:48:48,480 until I heard one voice that rose above the gentle, undulating 463 00:48:48,480 --> 00:48:51,120 moaning. I found a girl. 464 00:48:51,120 --> 00:48:53,160 She was a living skeleton. 465 00:48:53,160 --> 00:48:57,120 She was stretching out her stick of an arm and gasping something. 466 00:48:57,120 --> 00:49:01,840 It was, "English, English, medicine, medicine." 467 00:49:04,280 --> 00:49:06,200 Got my STEN gun. 468 00:49:56,000 --> 00:49:57,680 RICHARD DIMBELBY: The SS guards, 469 00:49:57,680 --> 00:50:00,680 who shot several of the prisoners after we'd arrived in the camp 470 00:50:00,680 --> 00:50:03,440 when they thought no-one was looking, are now gathering 471 00:50:03,440 --> 00:50:06,720 up all the bodies and carting them away for burial. 472 00:50:12,280 --> 00:50:16,080 May I add to this story only the assurance that those officers 473 00:50:16,080 --> 00:50:20,320 and men who've seen these things have gone back to the Second Army, 474 00:50:20,320 --> 00:50:24,440 moved to an anger such as I have never seen in them before. 475 00:50:41,800 --> 00:50:47,640 A lot of time has passed since we started marching through Germany. 476 00:50:47,640 --> 00:50:51,760 The Baltic Sea comes to mind, where we drowned the Fritzes. 477 00:50:51,760 --> 00:50:54,200 Now victory is in our grasp.