75 years ago: mass execution and end of war in Hanover
It was only a few days until liberation when an appalling war crime took place in Hannover: On April 6, 1945, a group of 154 prisoners were driven through the city to the Seelhorster cemetery, where members of the Gestapo murdered them by mass shootings. The 153 men and a woman were predominantly prisoners of war and civil workers from the Soviet Union and Poland.
Digital commemoration in times of Corona
After the liberation of Hannover on April 10, 1945, the British and Americans ordered the exhumation of these corpses and another 232 forced laborers who were killed, as well as their dignified burial. They were exhumed on May 2, 1945 and buried on the north bank of Lake Maschsee in the heart of the city. 386 people from all over Europe rest in this cemetery of honor.
Since the traditional commemoration of these events cannot take place this year due to the Corona crisis, the municipal culture of remembrance has moved the commemoration to digital in order to deal with the options for action and decision in the past and to encourage a democratic coexistence in the present and future.
In memory of the victims of the shootings and the end of the war 75 years ago, Head of Department of Culture Konstanze Beckedorf pleads in a video message for "a diverse culture of remembrance, for democracy and freedom of expression, but also solidarity and cooperation".
ZeitZentrum Zivilcourage for constructive memory
“After years of repression and the formation of legends, we now find an enlightened picture of the National Socialist injustice in large parts of society. And yet there is no reason for complacency. The racist attack in Halle in particular reminds us of our responsibility,” she says. "The state capital Hannnover is sending a strong signal this year with the opening of the ZeitZentrum Zivilcourage!"
In the extracurricular learning location, visitors should be encouraged to critically examine the options for action and decision in the past and to work for a democratic coexistence in the present and future.
The renowned historian Professor Manfred Grieger also gives an insight into the end of the war in Hannover in his video message. It is a short but impressive excerpt from his lecture on "Zero Hour" and the democratic new beginning in Hannover (In German).
In “So Much the Beginning Has Never Been - The Liberation in April 1945 and its Aftermath” (download a German version here), Prof. Grieger describes the situation of the liberated concentration camp prisoners and forced laborers, but also of the city population and former National Socialists.
The lecture offers a unique insight into a time of change and uncertainty. At the same time, he asks how our society remembers what happened 75 years ago today. The perspective of the end of the Second World War has been subject to a change of meaning several times since then, and with increasing distance, it is all the more important that memorial days such as April 10th do not lose their importance.
You can download the whole German lecture by Prof. Dr. Manfred as a .pdf document here.
This text was written in cooperation with Städtischen Erinnerungskultur of the city capital of Hannover.
