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World War II produced many stories of heroism including Doris Miller during Pearl Harbor, the feat that was D-Day, and the Pacific battles of Coral Sea and Okinawa. Though many of these stories have gained popularity and fame, a few have gone relatively unheard, such as the story of seven Soldiers and a German family.
The year was 1944 in the snow-covered forest of Ardennes in western Germany. Three lost Americans, one severely wounded, were trying to find their way back to American lines. After three days of being cold, hungry and in desperate need of rest, they came across a small cabin in the forest, belonging to Elisabeth Vincken and her 12-year-old son Fritz, who had been bombed out of their former home in Aachen, Germany. Elisabeth’s husband stayed behind to continue work and visited when he could, but as they neared Christmas with no sign of him, Elisabeth postponed their celebration until his return.
When there was a knock at the door, Elisabeth blew out the candles and answered to find the three American soldiers, one lying in the snow injured. Though the Americans were armed, they approached the family with humility and respect, and Elisabeth invited them in.
With the Americans unable to speak German and Elisabeth unable to speak English, they found they were able to communicate in broken French. Seeing their condition, she began to prepare a meal and sent Fritz to get potatoes and their rooster to cook.
During preparation, there was another knock at the door. Fritz, thinking it was more Americans, answered the door but was met with four German soldiers. Knowing harboring the enemy was punishable by death, Elisabeth pushed past Fritz and went outside to greet the German soldiers. The highest ranking of the group, a corporal, wished Elisabeth a merry Christmas and asked if they could go inside as they were also lost and hungry. She welcomed them inside for warmth and to eat until all the food was gone, but warned there were others inside they would not consider friends. The corporal asked if they were Americans, and Elisabeth confirmed.
The corporal stared at her until she said, “Es ist heiligabend und hier wird nicht geschossen,” which translates in English to, “It is a holy night, and there will be no shooting here,” and she told them to leave their weapons outside. Dazed by the event that unfolded in front of them, the Germans reluctantly complied. She then went inside and demanded the same of the Americans, taking their weapons and stacking them next to the others.
Being on opposite sides of the war, there was a sense of distrust between the Germans and Americans, but the warmth and the smell of food eased the tension. One of the Germans even produced a bottle of wine and a loaf of bread. As Elisabeth was cooking, one of the Germans who had been an ex-medical student examined the wounded American and explained in English that the cold had stopped an infection, but he had lost a lot of blood and needed food and rest.
By the time the food was ready, the atmosphere was more relaxed. The German soldiers revealed their age: the corporal 23 and the others only 16. As Elisabeth said grace, she noticed tears in both the Americans’ and Germans’ eyes. The truce lasted all night and into the morning.
As morning came, the Germans looked at the Americans’ map and told them the best way to American lines, also providing them with a compass. Elisabeth handed them their weapons back, and the two parties shook hands. As soon as they were out of sight of each other, the truce was over, but the story would continue.
Sadly, Elisabeth and her husband passed away in the 1960s, but Fritz then moved to Hawaii and opened an European bakery in Honolulu. For years, Fritz tried to locate any of the Germans or Americans without any luck, hoping to find out if the Soldiers survived the war.
President Ronald Reagan heard the story and even referenced it a speech he gave in 1985 in Germany as an example of peace and reconciliation. It wasn’t until the television program “Unsolved Mysteries” broadcast the story in 1995 that Fritz learned of a man living in Fredrick, Maryland, who had been telling the same story for years.
Fritz flew to Maryland in 1996 and met Ralph Blank, one of the American soldiers, who still had the German compass and map. Ralph told Fritz, “Your mother saved my life,” and Fritz said that their reunion became the high point of his. Fritz later found one of the other Americans but sadly was unable to contact any of the Germans. Fritz Vincken passed away on Dec. 2, 2002, almost 58 years after that tiny truce in the forest all those years ago.
Even in the darkness of war, a shining light can still be seen: a light of hope, compassion, and understanding.
| Date Taken: | 12.12.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 12.29.2022 02:12 |
| Story ID: | 436015 |
| Location: | PACIFIC OCEAN |
| Web Views: | 527 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, O Silent Night, by PO2 Lorenzo Fekieta-Martinez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
