Civilian life in occupied Soviet Union in photos & documents

[Svetlana Karlin]

Part of my book project is research on average civilian experiences in the occupied Soviet Union. I'm aware that there is a thread 'Daily Life in Occupied Russia', which discusses German policies in the occupied lands, but it is not my objective.

My goal is to reconstruct daily life through the eyes of a regular citizen: period housing and scenery, making a living, procuring food, taking care of children and family, dealing with German troops, obeying (or sabotaging) German laws and orders, etc. Holocaust and war crimes pertain if the events took place in public view or affected the general public (e.g. ghetto life, not visible to most people, doesn't apply, but teams of forced Jewish laborers cleaning city streets are relevant).

I've downloaded quite a number of photos and images of period documents, and would like to share them with other forum members. I would greatly appreciate photos, documents and stories from you all. My main interest is Northern Ukraine (Kiev-Chernigov area) and Prypyat Marshes region, but my collection covers much more than that. Your help in identifying the locations/dates/events would be very appreciated!

Now, for the starters, the first months of the Barbarossa campaign.

Source: http://news.webshots.com/album/550026933KLJnOl

German troops entering a collective/state farm (judging by the style of the gate). From the look of the landscape I'd place it in the South, most likely Ukraine.

EnteringKolhoz.jpg

Judging by the warm welcome shown on the picture below, could it be Western Ukraine?

Welcome.jpg

This photo taken in Chernigov, Ukraine, is dated June 29, 1941 according to this source: http://imereli.livejournal.com/10651.html
However, Chernigov was occupied by German forces only on September 9, 1941. Any thoughts on the actual location and date of this photo?

Vstrecha29june1941.jpg

[Larrister]

Hello Linkar,

I have a huge collection of photos depicting the peoples, their lives and living conditions in the occupied territories especially Russia.

Will share some of them here if that is OK.

Larry

[Svetlana Karlin]

Hello Linkar,

I have a huge collection of photos depicting the peoples, their lives and living conditions in the occupied territories especially Russia.

Will share some of them here if that is OK.

Larry

Larry,

It would be great to see your photos!

Thanks,

Linkar

[Svetlana Karlin]

A few Bundesarchiv photos on the early days of the occupation.

Soldiers and civilian refugees, dated June 1941

CivilianRefugees1.jpg

Local women listening to a Leutnant. Dated June-July 1941. On Wikimedia Commons the photo description says "Russland-Mitte", which makes Belorussia the most likely location. Note the facial expressions. I wonder what language they were conversing in!

GermanSoldierwithRussianWomen1.jpg

Locals with Wehrmacht soldiers. Judging by the house wall with the plaster fallen off, it's definitely in the South, most likely Ukraine. Dated June-July 1941.

LocalswithSoldiers.jpg

[Larrister]

Here are a few photos from a Sanitatskompanie 20 album. San. 20 was part of the 20 Infantry Division and these photos while not taken in the southern part of Russia show life under occupation. Most of the album's photos were taken in the Wolchow region.

First shows boy walking past soldier who is collecting water in a ruined village.

Larry

[Larrister]

People watch on as 20 Inf. Division enters their village.

[Larrister]

People leave their village, walking past column. By the amount of people leaving were they possibly evicted?

[Larrister]

San. 20 soldiers watch on as refugees walk past.

[Larrister]

San. 20 truck parked between two buildings.

[Larrister]

Old man on bench.

[Larrister]

Villagers listen to band outside San. 20 lazarett.

[Larrister]

Bearded soldier with old man.

[Larrister]

Women purchasing milk.

More to follow.

[Svetlana Karlin]

Larry,

What a great set of photos! Knowing which army unit it was certainly helps to re-create the overall picture. By the way, the houses in the second photo are typical examples for Northern Russia.

People leave their village, walking past column. By the amount of people leaving were they possibly evicted?

Here is a Russian personal account which complements your set of pictures and explains the columns of residents leaving the village: http://maltus1.narod.ru/1941voina.htm Here is my translation:

We lived in my mother’s home village, Chazheshno, not far from Volkhov-1. Germans advanced to our village. Our house was the best one. My mother’s brothers, who were serving at the front, had built it. Germans evicted all village residents and billeted officers and soldiers in their houses. Our house was used as communications HQs. The villagers, mostly old people and women with children, moved into a large bunker which had been dug out by Soviet soldiers. We lived in the bunker until December 1941.
Germans ordered the able-bodied women to work for them. The women washed laundry, cleaned houses where Germans lived and the kitchens. The food for soldiers and officers was prepared by Germans themselves. They gave leftovers, including potato peelings, to the women, who had to feed the sick, children and old relatives. In the dugout dwellings people divided everything equally, helping each other out.
There was no light, and no candles in the dugout bunker. At dark, we lit up kindling, sticking it in jars or bottles – whatever we had at hand. We boiled tea on small kerosene or primus stoves (I don’t remember exactly). We boiled whole buckets of water because we needed to wash the old people and children to prevent lice. We had no soap. Women tried to steal soap from Germans, but had no luck.
My mother, who was 27 years old, washed laundry for Germans. They threw away bloodied bandages, which she picked up, secretly carried out together with the laundry and washed in the river Volkhov.
One day my mother stumbled across a wounded young Russian sailor in the shrubbery on the river bank. He moaned in pain and asked for help. My mother waited for the dark and dragged the sailor up the river shore to the bunker. Everyone took care of the young man, using the bandages washed by the women. The children were told not to tell anyone. There were no medicines, and the wounded man was getting worse. The bloody bandages were thrown into the river to make sure the Germans wouldn’t find them.
The sailor told my mother, “Dusya, if I survive, I will definitely find you after the war.” Somehow, the Germans found out about the wounded man (apparently someone reported about him). They hauled him out, tied to a tree and shot him in front of everyone.

The part about washing bandages makes me wonder if the woman, Dusya, worked for that San. 20 Lazarett.

[Larrister]

Hi Linkar

Thanks for the Russian personal account of villagers being turned out of their houses.
The photos I posted as you have pointed out most likely show forced evacuations.

Here's two from a Flak Rgt. 11 album which tie in with the theme of my other photos.
Photos taken in or near the village of Desna which is in the Bryansk Oblast, Russia.

Caption loosely translates as civilians being moved for their own safety. A Russian mother and children have only had time to throw on coats before being led away by a German soldier. Was this used as an excuse to remove villagers from their homes so that German troops could occupy them?

Larry