[The content of this article is based on authoritative historical data, and there are citations at the end of the article, please be aware.] 】
On April 30, 1945, Hitler and his wife, Eva Braun, died in a bunker in Berlin, and the end of the Nazi world quickly came.
Two days later, while cleaning the ruins of the Reichstab, the Allies discovered a shocking scene: 320 glamorous Nazi women soldiers committed mass suicide, their bodies scattered haphazardly in the dimly lit basement. How did these female soldiers come to such a tragic end? What is the story and motivation behind it?
1. Hitler's strategy for women and the role of women soldiers
As World War II drew to a close, the German Nazi government faced a severe shortage of human resources, especially in the military and executive branches. To fill this gap, the Nazi regime had to adjust its long-standing gender policy and began mass recruitment of women into the military and government institutions in a variety of non-combat roles.
A total of 320 of these women were organized into various auxiliary units, including the Wehrmacht, the SS and the Red Cross. Women in the Air Force Auxiliary Corps are involved in aircraft maintenance records, air raid warning, and aeronautical communications. Naval auxiliaries provide technical support, including searchlight operations, at the naval base.
In the early days of the Nazis in power in 1933, their policy emphasized that women should return to the family, focusing on 'Kinder, Küche, Kirche' (children, kitchen, church). However, as the war demanded, this policy began to change gradually after 1939. On January 13, 1943, Hitler signed the 'Total War Mobilization Order', marking the beginning of women's full participation in the war effort.
Especially after 1943, as the war dragged on, Hitler issued the "Führer Decree", declaring Germany a state of total war, and the role of women became more important. This decree clearly stipulates that all the resources of the state, including men, women and children, must be invested in the war effort.
As a result, women's participation is no longer confined to traditional nursing and administrative functions, and their range of responsibilities has expanded significantly to include participation in military training and technical tasks. In addition to military support roles, many German women also work in military factories.
By 1944, about 50% of workers in the German military industry were women. They played an important role in the production of tanks, aircraft, and ammunition, but they also became indirect targets for Allied bombing.
As the Allies approached Germany, especially the rapid advance of the Soviet forces on the Eastern Front, the pressure on Germany's domestic defenses increased dramatically, and the members of these female auxiliary units faced increasing risks and challenges. By the beginning of 1945, as the Soviet Red Army continued to advance, the situation in Berlin became increasingly dangerous, and the fate of these female auxiliaries became uncertain.
Against this background, the psychological pressure of Nazi officials and military personnel in Berlin reached its peak, and this pressure eventually affected those women who were drafted into the army.
It is important to note that Nazi Germany was not the first or only country to use female auxiliaries. During the First World War, the British had already formed the Women's Royal Air Force (WRAF) and the Women's Royal Navy Force (WRNS). The Soviet Union also made mass use of female military personnel during World War II, including the famous squadron of 'Night Witch' bomber pilots.
This trend reflects the enormous demand for human resources in modern warfare, forcing changes in traditional gender roles.
2. The Soviet invasion of Berlin and the panic of the Nazis
According to propaganda at the time, the Nazi regime played up the brutality of the Soviet army, especially in Nazi propaganda, which portrayed the Soviet army as a force that treated prisoners of war and civilians with extreme cruelty, which affected the psychological state of German soldiers and the population.
In order to slow down the Soviet offensive, the Germans not only deployed a large number of mines and traps around the city, but also created a number of defensive points in the center of the city, which held out resistance until the last moment.
As the Soviets continued to advance, the streets of Berlin became battlefields, and the fighting in the city became extremely fierce. The Soviet soldiers met stubborn resistance during the siege, but their superiority in numbers and equipment soon overwhelmed the German defenses.
In late April, the fate of Nazi Germany was a foregone conclusion as Soviet forces gradually took control of much of Berlin. After entering the city, the Soviets searched for Nazi officials, SS soldiers, and other key wartime personnel. And for ordinary Nazi party members and German soldiers, their treatment varied according to their wartime behavior and surrender.
"During the Battle of Berlin, the Soviets used more than 41,600 artillery pieces and artillery, an average of 295 per square kilometer. This intense artillery fire not only destroyed the city's defenses, but also caused huge casualties among civilians. It is estimated that about 1,000 Berlin civilians were killed every day during the final phase of the campaign.
In fact, the Soviet assault on Berlin was one of the largest urban battles of World War II. More than 2 million Soviet soldiers were involved in the campaign, and they faced about 85,000 German guards.
This disparity of power exacerbated the fear of wisdom among the Germans. At the same time, this panic was exacerbated by the Nazi propaganda machine, as Joseph Goebbels wrote in his diary: 'The torrent of Asians is pouring into the imperial capital.
3. The final and the decision to commit mass suicide
According to reports in late April 1945, these suicides were usually carried out at night, and many of the bodies were found to have committed suicide after drinking alcohol using cyanide and pistols obtained from army stockpiles. In addition, some reports point out that the choice of suicide was also influenced by Nazi ideology, including the promotion of an 'honorable death'.
Surrounded by Soviet troops, many German officers and soldiers and their affiliates had realized that they had little hope of surviving or escaping from the Soviet forces. This despair spread rapidly in the last few days.
Although the Soviets did impose draconian military measures when they entered Berlin, there was no widespread retaliation against civilians. However, the depiction of Soviet behavior in Nazi propaganda exacerbated the fears of the Germans and their supporters, which partly contributed to the tragedy of mass suicide.
IV. The Handling of the Soviet Army and the Post-War Fate
With the fall of Berlin and the collapse of the Nazi regime, the Soviet Red Army moved quickly to take control of the German capital and its vital facilities. On May 2, 1945, Berlin officially surrendered to Soviet troops. From then on, Soviet troops began a thorough search of the city, looking for remnants of Nazi officers, SS members, and individuals associated with the Nazi regime.
In the following days, the Soviet army and its military police units carried out a large-scale clean-up operation in Berlin. They set up temporary command centers and detention facilities throughout the city to assist in the search and interrogation process. During these operations, a large number of Nazi war criminals were captured, including a number of officers and administrative officers who had performed important duties during the war.
In the central area of Berlin, especially in the underground facilities around the Reichstag, the Soviet army found a large number of documents and supplies, which were left behind by the Nazi regime. In these places, the Soviets also occasionally found the bodies of some Nazi officers and auxiliaries who had committed suicide before the Soviets entered the city.
These findings provided important material evidence for subsequent historical records and war crimes investigations. During the clean-up process, the attitude of the Soviet troops towards the captured Germans varied, depending in part on the individual's role and behavior in the war. Although there are some reports of a degree of retaliatory violence by Soviet forces against civilians in Berlin in the first few days, such acts have not been widespread and persistent.
On the contrary, as the situation stabilized, the Soviet army gradually adopted a more systematic and organized approach to managing the city and handling prisoners of war. In May 1945 and the months that followed, Berlin was partitioned by the Soviet Union and other Allied occupation forces, and the Germans in the Soviet-occupied zone faced strict military control and the reconstruction of their daily lives.
The Soviet authorities set about rebuilding Berlin's infrastructure, and at the same time began to reorganize the political and economic structure of post-war Germany. In the process, many of the laws and institutions of Nazi Germany were abolished and a new administrative system began to be established.
Under Soviet occupation, Berlin gradually began to return to normal, despite difficult living conditions and a shortage of food and basic services. The Soviet military-political apparatus worked to restore order and carried out legal trials of German war criminals. These efforts marked the end of a tyranny and the beginning of a new era in Germany, despite the challenges and difficulties in the process.
5. Reflections on history and the influence of female soldiers
During the post-war liquidation and reconstruction process, the event was documented and widely reported as an example of Nazi atrocities. Through the study of events, historians and researchers have revealed the Nazi exploitation of women's roles and their sacrifices in the war.
The mass suicides of these female soldiers reflect not only the influence of Nazi ideology, but also the desperate behavior of people in the extreme conditions of war. The remembrance and study of these women helps to understand the widespread impact of war on women and their situation under totalitarian regimes.
In addition, the incident sparked a discussion about the memory of the war and historical responsibility, both in Germany and internationally. In Germany, which was rebuilt after the war, how to remember and evaluate the fate of these women soldiers became part of the social and historical dialogue. Such a dialogue is about how to fairly assess history, but also how to avoid similar tragedies in the future.
Ultimately, the mass suicide of 320 female soldiers became a continuing reminder of the cruelty of war and the destructiveness of totalitarianism. The documentation and study of this historical slice has played a key role in educating new generations about the importance of peace and human rights.
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Resources:
GAO Juan. A study on German women's auxiliary forces during World War II[D]. Hunan Normal University, 2017.
ZHAO Kai. "Barbarossa" plans a well-calculated gamble[J]. National Humanities and History, 2022(4):18-25.
From Xiaoqing et al. Hitler's 20 Sticks[M]. 1995