My "Weihnachtsgeschenk" to you!

You don't have to understand the German language to appreciate this video of the "Großer Zapfenstreich" ceremony honoring Angela Merkel. It was the Bundeswehr's formal farewell to Germany's first female chancellor, aired live on German TV. Though an American, I have great respect for Frau Merkel. Her center-right politics don't exactly align with mine, but during her tenure at Germany's helm, she proved herself a formidable and compassionate leader, and arguably the world's most powerful and influential female head of government in recent memory. (I admire the late Queen Elizabeth II for similar reasons, and some might place her just ahead of Frau Merkel in this category.)

The video is rather long, but you might enjoy playing it as "background music" while wrapping gifts (in case you need a break from ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ by Mariah Carey or ‘Last Christmas’ by Wham).

You might especially enjoy it if you like military music, the German language, or "pomp and ceremony." I'll concede that it has little or nothing to do with "World War II... with a German accent," as it is performed by representatives of the Bundeswehr (today's German armed forces) and not the Wehrmacht (Germany's armed forces during the Second World War). 

Consider this my holiday gift to you, my faithful blog followers!

Ende einer Ära - Großer Zapfenstreich für Angela Merkel | ZDF-Spezial

Marching for love and war

 

Have you ever watched a War World II movie and noticed the smartly uniformed German soldiers, marching in flawless unison, intoning a thrilling military song? They may even be “goose-stepping,” their black boots and steel helmets gleaming, with perhaps a stony glint in their eyes? The iconic scene from the film Battle of the Bulge comes to mind, though technically, the soldiers are not so much marching as stomping. You can find a translation of this Wehrmacht march, “Panzerlied” (“Tank Song”) here. Leading his troops in the film is the devilishly handsome, blond-haired and blue-eyed Robert Shaw, who conveys a model, if somewhat stereotypical, Aryan commander.

An even more chilling march is “SS Marschiert in Feindesland,” also known, fittingly, as “The Devil’s Song.” If there were any doubt that this SS march proclaims adherence to Nazism, the lyrics make it crystal clear: “We fight for Germany. We fight for Hitler.”

But must military marches always be so belligerent? Are young men only inspired by love of comrades, country and Führer? As it turns out, soldiers on both sides of the conflict attempted to lift each other’s spirits with reminders of something closer to home and more universal: the girls they left behind.  One such march is “Erika.” Published in 1938, it is primarily associated with Nazi Germany, though the words themselves are as benign as the tune is invigorating. (In German, “Erika” is a common female name, as well as the word for heather.) Similarly amorous lyrics can be heard in the marching song "Im Wald, im grünen Walde" ("Lore Lore Lore"). I can attest to the addictiveness of the catchy melody (it’s been playing in my head all day), and the lyrics – “Beautiful girls are everywhere” – are sure to put a smile on even the most battle-weary soldier’s face. This folk song has been recorded by singers such as Heino and Edith Prock, and is not known exclusively as a soldier’s march.

If you’ve been following this blog, you may have noticed that this is the third out of my last four posts that deal explicitly with music. (The fourth, my most recent post “From Wehrmacht to Bundeswehr – Crosses, Eagles and Flames,” while addressing various military themes, includes a link to the ceremonial march of the Bundeswehr, the “Großer Zapfenstreich.”) The most recent post on my other blog, “Musings and discoveries,” is also related to music, specifically to national anthems. I don’t think this is a coincidence. There is something alluring, even mesmerizing, about music, which has surely inspired me to write about it. For centuries, the whole world over, militaries have taken full advantage of the intoxication of music. It spurs their troops into battle, and soldiers carry on as death and destruction loom.

From Wehrmacht to Bundeswehr – Crosses, Eagles and Flames

An insignia can hold immediate, visceral power. Just think how the swastika instantly evokes bigotry and hatred in general, and more specifically, anti-Semitism and the Nazi regime. Unfortunately, it is still in use today by neo-Nazis. In 1920, Hitler appropriated the ancient symbol, associated for millennia with the eastern religions of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism, for his newly-formed Nazi Party. The emblem has been banned in Germany since 1945, and can only be used there for educational purposes. The swastika has a fascinating history, which you can dive into here.

Other symbols have long been associated with Germany, and with many of its precursor states, including the Holy Roman Empire and Prussia. Teutonic militaries awarded soldiers the Iron Cross (Eisernes Kreuz) for battle-won honors, and it is used today as the emblem of the Bundeswehr. The coat of arms of Germany, the Bundesadler (Federal Eagle), is used on governmental and military standards. According to Wikipedia (which we know is never wrong) it is the oldest national symbol used in Europe.

Unless you’re a history buff or Germanophile like me, you may be perplexed by images of the Bundeswehr marching with flaming torches. Tiki torches were infamously used by anti-Semites and white nationalists in the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017. These improvised torches were reminiscent not only of the Ku Klux Klan, but of Nazis as well. I can well understand the primal reaction to a torch-carrying mob, and the fear it rouses. However, today’s Großer Zapfenstreich ceremony is the highest tribute bestowed on individuals such as the German chancellor, president and defense minister. For those not prejudiced by the misuse/abuse of the spectacle by ignorant Nazi-wannabes, it is a thrilling parade, especially when accompanied by such stirring melodies as Beethoven’s “Yorckscher Marsch,” the "Großen Zapfenstreich Marsch,” or the national anthem of Germany, “Das Deutschlandlied.” (I wrote a post on this blog many years ago discussing the history of the German national anthem. You can also visit my other blog, “Musings and discoveries,” to read my recent post on national anthems, which has links to various anthems, including Germany’s.)

The history of World War II in Germany is a painful one, especially for the victims of Nazism and their descendants. It was arguably the darkest period of the twentieth century, with civilian and military deaths numbering in the tens of millions. I sometimes pause before I relay the title of this blog, “World War II…with a German accent,” knowing that those two concepts put together immediately arouses negative connotations for many people. In fact, when I started this blog in 2009 to promote my romance novel, IN THE ARMS OF THE ENEMY, I included the disclaimer, “The purpose of this blog is historical, not political,” right at the top of the page.

Symbols can be potent, and it may be difficult for many to overcome their initial reactions to crosses, eagles and flames, and to see the meaning behind the emblems. But I advocate that we try, learning as much as we can of the histories and cultures of other nations. I suggest this for our personal edification, and for international goodwill, as well.

Lili Marleen

Propaganda postcard of the German Wehrmacht's postal service in Paris, 1942, with Lili Marleen motif

There were few things that Axis and Allied combatants agreed on during World War II. From their political ideologies to their human rights records to their respective interpretations of “total war,” German fighting men felt little kinship with their American, British or French counterparts, besides perhaps the brotherhood of soldiery.

Remarkably, there was one common thread, one poignant and emotional touchpoint, where the warring sides intersected, nurtured by the universality of music: the song “Lili Marleen.” Popular with Axis and Allied troops alike, the original German lyrics, and their translations into English, French and Italian, struck a chord with military men of various nationalities:

Vor der Kaserne
Vor dem großen Tor
Stand eine Laterne
Und steht sie noch davor
So woll'n wir uns da wieder seh'n
Bei der Laterne wollen wir steh'n
Wie einst Lili Marleen.

Unsere beide Schatten
Sah'n wie einer aus
Daß wir so lieb uns hatten
Das sah man gleich daraus
Und alle Leute soll'n es seh'n
Wenn wir bei der Laterne steh'n
Wie einst Lili Marleen.

Underneath the lantern,
By the barrack gate
Darling I remember
The way you used to wait
T'was there that you whispered tenderly,
That you loved me,
You'd always be,
My Lilli of the Lamplight,
My own Lilli Marlene

Time would come for roll call,
Time for us to part,
Darling I'd caress you
And press you to my heart,
And there 'neath that far-off lantern light,
I'd hold you tight ,
We'd kiss good night,
My Lilli of the Lamplight,
My own Lilli Marlene

The 1915 poem by Hans Leip, an Imperial German Army soldier, was later set to music by Norbert Schultze, and first recorded by Lale Andersen in 1939. The song was translated into English by Norman Baillie-Stewart, a former British army officer and Nazi sympathizer, who assisted the German propaganda machine. Other English-language versions were published, and Andersen recorded the Baillie-Stewart translation in 1942. Entertaining both Axis and Allied troops, Andersen's English recording earned a gold disc with over one million sales. Besides Andersen, the song was recorded by other artists, and in the 1961 film Judgment at Nuremberg, Marlene Dietrich's character translates the song for Spencer Tracy's, telling him that the German lyrics are "much sadder" than the English.

Troops on both sides of the war listened to recordings broadcast by German- and English-language radio stations. Neither German High Command nor the Allied authorities officially sanctioned the song, and top brass in each camp had tried to ban it at one time or another. On the German side, Joseph Goebbels reportedly hated the song, while Erwin Rommel asked that it be played more often. "Lili Marleen" became a sensation, and combatants from warring nations embraced the song as their own.

The forlorn soldier or sailor, far from home, bereft of compassion and tenderness, yearns for many of the same comforts as does his counterpart across no man's land. Just like air and water, food and shelter, all people crave love and affection, regardless of nationality or creed. It is what makes us human, what separates us from automatons. While music purportedly can "soothe the savage breast," it also reminds us of what we have in common, and perhaps has the power to calm the raging hearts of warriors, and inspire our shared humanity.