East Prussian refugees swarmed the ship
Desperately seeking to stay alive.
The boat filled quickly with soldiers' wives
And babes with knuckels between their lips
On an icy night in '45.
Fleeing the Russians' relentless drive
The ship steamed west at a rapid clip
Desperately seeking to stay alive.
Beneath the Baltic, the sub took dives
Aborting the steamer's fateful trip
On an icy night in '45.
Scrambling for lifeboats, many did strive
Thousands jumped as she started to tip
Desperately seeking to stay alive.
Under the corpses, the last to survive
Was a baby blue from winter's grip
On an icy night in '45
Desperately seeking to stay alive.
Linda Jonasson, March 2, 2008.
Dedicated to the 9,000 East Prussian refugees who lost their lives on the night of January 30, 1945 when the Wilhelm Gustloff was torpedoed and sunk. The voyage was part of Operation Hannibal, the evacuation of almost 1 million civilians from Germany's eastern provinces after the advance of the Red Army. For further information, read The Cruelest Night by Christopher Dobson, John Miller and Ronald Payne.
Photo of Wilhelm Gustloff courtesy www.wilhelmgustloff.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment