I wished these boys were as forseeing as some of the Generals... The war was already lost at the end of 1942 and everything that followed was a prolonging of the worldwide suffering. And the pictures don't show all the brave boys that didn't make it and died pointless in the last days and weeks of WW2. I suggest the German movie "The Bridge" from 1959. It shows how this turned out for many of these "bunker boys".
Pedro Kantor I’ve been reading Guderian’s Panzer Leader book. Seems like a brilliant General. Also been reading The Unnecessary War by Nixon’s speechwriter. His thesis is that Hitler didn’t want a two-front war.
My dad was a combat medic that was 20 years old crossing Europe from Normandy through the Ardennes and Belgium. He once told me it was alarming to have to treat 15 year old wounded German soldiers. Medics on both sides treated enemy soldiers when they could
That can't have been easy dealing with that on a regular basis, I'm sure it never leaves you. I can only imagine the horrors these medics came upon. And your Dad was such a young man himself. I thank him for his service from across the pond in Ireland. 🇮🇪
Consider this: if you were born in 1923, you were 10 when the NSDAP came to power; you had a rough childhood before The Leader ascended, and now you could look forward to things being better. You were 16 when the war started. "How could these kids be so fanatical?" It was their whole life experience. Another fascinating episode of history Dr. Felton!
That one kid Czech saving wounded soldiers with a horse and cart is pretty nuts. I just imagine mortars and artillery raining down on him, his horse and cart and the wounded men. Gotta give credit, those kids had guts.
Reminds me of the ANZAC legend during the Gallipoli campaign of WW1, the soldier known as Simpson and his donkey, retrieving Aussie wounded under fire.
When I was a kid (studying WWII as a hobby) I used to wish there existed every soldiers story in some massive set of texts. I wanted to know them all. I love that now I have access to so much information.
@@Meeskait1992 Same here! I had no interest in this conflicts but after playing battlefield 1 I got interested in WW1, did a ton of research, got fascinated and started studying ww2
@Nah mate I think it was a bit more complex than you are capable of understanding. Despite the serious losses inflicted on the Red Army and extensive territorial gains, the mission to completely destroy Soviet fighting power and force a capitulation was not achieved. One of the most important reasons for this was poor strategic planning. The Germans had no satisfactory long-term plan for the invasion. They mistakenly assumed that the campaign would be a short one, and that the Soviets would give in after suffering the shock of massive initial defeats. Hitler had assured the High Command that 'We have only to kick in the front door and the whole rotten edifice will come tumbling down'. But Russia was not France. The shock value of the initial Blitzkrieg was dissipated by the vast distances, logistical difficulties and Soviet troop numbers, all of which caused attritional losses of German forces which could not be sustained.
Some 12 year old kids ride bikes in the neighborhood, wondering what it’s like to kiss a girl, fishing by the lake, going to school to learn, having sleep overs with friends watching movies and eating popcorn all night. Other 12 year old kids are in a damp trench, firing a rifle to kill people, watching other kids getting blown into bits and dodging heavy artillery 24/7... 🤔
D0nye WTH? Trenches were used in a extremely common method in the 1940’s World War II so... yeah many German kids were very much so in trenches all along enemy lines across many countries. (?) 🤔
I had a girlfriend whose father was German and who had been conscripted into the Hitler Youth at the very end of the war in Berlin when he was 15. He spent years recovering from the PTSD.
Same thing with my grandpa. He grew up in Hamburg. As a member of the Hitler Youth he had to retrieve and clean up bodies from the massacre of the bombings
What I found really disgusting in that regard, was how many boys from the HJ they were able to recruit for these combat operations, voluntarily or otherwise. They, and the Volkssturm, were nothing but cannon fodder in a futile attempt to win a long lost war.
One of my favorite vignettes from Cornelius Ryan's _The Last Battle_ about the Soviet taking of Berlin is a Hitler Youth boy soldier sent out with a _panzerfaust_ to stop Russian tanks. Exhausted, he falls asleep in bombed-out building, and when he awakens the battle has swept past him in the night. All of his young companions are dead in the streets, but he lives to tell the tale.
@@bundesautobahn7 One of Hitler's two last blunders. By conscripting both the under-aged and the elderly, he helped much to devastate Germany's post-war human resource pool. The second would be his 'scorched earth' order which was aimed at obliterating Germany's infrastructure down to the very last piece. The latter however was skillfully deflected by Speer, if even only partially successful.
@Christian Soehring must have included "even" then 😂😂. I think her grandpa wanted to imply that even those who cant protect themselves, or ppl who're meant to be mercily excluded from wars. Maybe that is more appropriate than enumarating cuz some men cant protect themselves either. But those days I kinda thought men are forced to train in military, hence they are more dedicated to protect than be protected making eldery, children, and women's lives more important than them.😔
As long as you have a soldier with a gun and ammunation, dont you dare give up. every bullet means one red aemrmy soldier less ~ my great grandfather who fought in winter war
My wonderful ex boss, Peter Nickels was a HJ boy in Berlin - captured by the Russians he spent 2 years as DP in a camp and emigrated to Canada where his first job was washing dishes. All his family had been killed in Berlin. Utterly fearless and always jovial, having survived the worst that can happen, he was an inspiration to all of us who worked for him - God bless Peter wherever you are - here or in Valhalla
It's ALWAYS been that way, and always will be. There would be a lot more wars if 19 and 20 year olds ran the world. A lot of old men have already been through wars, and know it's horrors, so most of them don't decide to go to war easily.
@Wesley Winston You speak as if the Allies totally obliterated Germany. But they didn't despite being capable of it. They even allowed Germany to grow back. Were they unfair when they no longer allowed Nazism and sympathy to Hitler to prosper?
@@nandy1256 The Allies handled the post war situation very well (minus the destruction of numerous historically significant sights) but the Germans had no way of knowing that they wouldn't simply grind their love of nation, personal pride and self worth into the dust. They did it to a degree last time, and the second war was oh so much more painful and worse. Whats to stop them from erasing the very nation they love? Your looking back from a foreign perspective, the key is to look at it from their view. For many patriots and nationalist alike, one would tear the countryside apart and die if necessary to prevent such fears from manifesting. And its only common sense that the soviets would only bring bad things.
@@lukewarmfacts5107 Do you mean you are certain there would be less consequences if they acted earlier and that their inability to do this is a failure on their part?
Here's the way I see it, America is not perfect just like any other country, but I'm from America and I love my country, and I certainly don't agree with everything going on in this country right now, but if you were born and raised in America and now you've decided to hate this country, THEN GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE AND GO TO CHINA, THEY'D BE GLAD TO HAVE YOU!!!!!!
War is not a solution. When nazi germans (i repeat Nazi Germans) attack poland it's there fault. When Japan attack on pearl Harbor it's there fault. When USA bombed on japan by nuclear attack, it's also there fault. Every country that participated in the war has something to blame.
Thank you, Mr. Felton, for clearing up the date of the footage. "Downfall" has Hitler greeting the Hitler Youth in late April, 1945, and has one of the youths fighting in the Battle of Berlin, and coming from Berlin itself. It's good you've cleared up this misconception.
Mark, your videos are spellbinding. My parents both served in WWII, and we of a certain age grew up immersed in the stories. Like others have said, your rounding out of the various engagements is captivating. Your knowledge and attention to detail is second to none. Please keep up the good work!
I knew one, he died some time ago at the age of 87 he tolde me it wasent war anymore at the end. Drunk russians in the evening yelling hurra and storming to there positions and at daytime the allied bomber came. It was nuts how brainwashed he stil was, qnd how proud he was that he signed up for 12 years to become a leutenant in the wehrmacht. He fleed west and got captured and was a pow for a year.
Poor boys. Born the wrong time and the wrong place on the planet. I always felt sorry for the young boys on whatever side of a conflict, but children break my heart.
Germany was going through a serious food crisis in the latter half of the war: most everything was rationed, and bread was being increasingly watered-down with sawdust. Teenagers normally experience a dramatic growth spurt, but on those kind of rations, I imagine many would have remained short for their age.
The Japanese experienced this. The desired height for a Japanese Army conscript during WWII was 5'4"-5'6", IIRC. By 1990, having grown up with many more calories available in their daily diet (including fast food), the average Japanese male of the same age had attained the same height as his US counterpart. The cohort had added 4"-5" -- half a head in height -- in just two generations. In addition, bone-shortening childhood diseases and nutrition-based maladies such as rickets and chronic scurvy -- which had affected some parts of the Japanese population in the '30s and during the War -- had virtually disappeared.
There is a fairly well-known story of a child-soldier who witnessed another child-soldier hanging dead by the neck from a utility pole in Berlin city center, apparently executed by the SS for cowardice, insubordination, or defeatism (believing the war was lost). That is what happens when a "pure blooded German" resists, challenges or ignores the PSYCHOTIC NAZIS, when the PSYCHIATRIC NAZIS have absolute political, social, and cultural POWER.
@@freefall9832 Any nation desperate enough, will send those with too few winters behind to war, this has happened throughout history and is happening currently in the endless conflicts raging here and there. In the US Civil war, South used child soldiers towards the end of the war, when casualties had severly depleted the available manpower When Napoleon lost his army in Russia, he had to raise a new one, of anyone capable of carrying a musket In the great war, too young fellows served in pretty much all armies, often having lied about their ages. The recruiters could sometimes tell that this was definitely not an adult, often they just didnt care. More meat to the grinder Im not saying that what Nazis did was fair or justified, no child belongs to a war. Unfortunately, the world isnt fair or just either.
Another outstanding video. I found that I may have missed some of Mark's videos so I go back on BOTH of Mark's Channels and look at prior videos to make sure I do not miss any of Mark's Videos.
I’d seen that film of the bunker boys for over 40 years and thought like others they fought in the battle of Berlin. It’s fantastic to know the truth about these boys and what happened to a couple of them after the war. This is yet another example of why this is the best you tube channel and Mark’s skill as a researcher are unsurpassed. Thanks Mark
I was fortunate enough to have been friends with Alfons Heck. Heck was a decorated member of the Hitler Youth though I believe his last one on one with Hitler was in the Summer of 1944 when he told me how shocked he was to see Hitler so very old and tired looking compared to when he had seen him just two years earlier. It was very hard for Heck to talk about his younger self as he said the whole time was so surreal that he wasen't sure his younger self survived the war and he evolved a post war personality and became somebody else. It is like looking at a portrait of ones self and not believing that person was actually you and was capable of doing the things one did or having actually lived in such a time.
When the bravery of children is a factor, all is lost. A recruiting party came to my family's farm demanding my ancestor who was 14 at the time. His mother hid him in the cellar. The following campaign season, they came again. She wanted to hide him again but his pride wouldn't allow it. Thankfully he survived.
@Stuart Ahrens Big difference in a young man's mental development from 14 to 16 but he did his duty and repelled the northern invaders. Was your father on a Flak crew?
Fourteen year boys were taught to man the 88mm anti aircraft gun in the latter stages of the war.but, they were deemed too young to watch a war movie at the cinema.
I think they were planning were the defenses and ammunition should be. Don’t think their planning an escape in front of soldiers who are to fight in Berlin. (Just a theory - I have no idea)
@@garypulliam3740 I just think it would be weird to have an escape plan being planned out in front of hitler and many soldiers who needs “support” if they hear leaders planning to escape in front of them they might lose hope or be scared to face the Russians. You have to remember that these children were filled with propaganda for almost 8 years straight. An escape plan would probably be made in a more closed room with more highly commanding officers... (Again I have no idea, I just use my imagination)
@@Popasger Sharp detecting skills. No way in world they would plan escape out in the open, not to mention only 5m away from Der Fuhrer & Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler troops and officers.
My first history prof in college was in the Hitler youth. It was expected of all male youths to join. Then he held out his hands and said, "With these, a pair of pliers, and a crescent wrench I diffused German mine fields".
Yes I still see TV documentaries with ex Hitler youth in them as I did in the 80s. I am struck at time how they still seem memorised and captivated by Hitler ad they gaze past the TV camera into the distance. It's something that we cannot really understand as remote keyboard warriors and couch potatoes...
I have studied WW2 for over fifty years, you do a very good job of bringing it all together in sort order and to the point. Outstanding young man and carry on.
One of these boys was a relative of mine and he died an old man in Florida. He was a great man and a kind man. He was only 15 when he was forced to fight the last battles in Berlin. He was born in Rastenburg, East Prussia.
I remember hearing British historian and war correspondent Max Hastings said the scariest moment he ever had when he was confronted by child soldiers. Contrary to what people might think kids can be dangerous soldiers.
A good book about the boy soldiers on the other side, "The Boys' Crusade," by Paul Fussell, is well worth reading. (It's a thin book, less than 200 pages.)
@@josephpapilson7224 I'm not sure, I haven't heard of malnutrition being a huge problem in the German army. Sure, in the end, food was rare, but that wouldn't have hindered his growth this much. But maybe he has just a baby face :)
@@CK-yv6nw it was actually somewhat about lack of food and lack of meat eating because some people in the army had to survive with as low as 1000 calories while fighting, the stituation was pretty much like in stalingrad, and hübner was anyways a young looking person (thats what he told in a interwiew)
To the family and relatives of these Very Brave Boys, These Soldiers were Extremely Heroic to bring back Wounded Soldiers from areas of heavy fighting. Boy Soldiers, at the time and All brought Great Honour to you.
nwo foe - After Goring had finished tearing a group of Luftwaffe officers off a strip, during the B of B period, he then asked some of them to give him a wish list - one really annoyed him by saying he would like to have a squadron of Spitfires.
@@truthseeker7242 I'm aware of it. Polish pilots flying Spitfires were the Luftwaffe's greatest enemy over the skies of Britain. Goering was a morphine addict since he was shot through the testicles at Hitler's first grab for power with Ludendorff .
Mind-blowingly amazing! One has seen these images over decades wondering who these boys were and what ever happened to them; never having nor expecting an answer. Yet Mark Felton pulls it off again! It somehow feels like closure. Just astounding work, Mr.Felton.
0:52 Dear Mr. Felton... I've been searching for this piece of music for over 20 years, but didn't have any reverences, accept a close combat game that doesn't run on my PC anymore! Thought it was Beethoven, but listen to all his symphonies but couldn't find it 5 seconds on the shazam app was enough. YESSSSSS!!!!! : Anton Bruckner: Symphony No.9 in D minor - 2. Scherzo (Bewegt lebhaft) - Trio (Schnell) - Scherzo da capo Going to listen to this until my ears bleed Thank you so much Love your video's BTW
@Zannekin What really happened? Explain? What did Nazis want really? Because all I'm seeing in this comment is your stupidity and consumption of too much Nazi and right wing propaganda. If you say "do your own research" then you have no argument.
Jonny Jonjon I mean the Iron Cross wasn’t only a Nazi Germany medal, it was just a Germany military medal. There were separate versions of it that were made by the Nazis.
@@toby1061 true on my grandmother's side of the family the men were German Poles and they served in the German Polish legions prior to and during WWI and several had the iron cross or whatever it's name was back then? I've got their photos from back then.
I knew someone who was a young teenager in Berlin during WW2. Like others of his age he was a member of the Hitler Youth. He recounted how during the siege of Berlin a friend left their apartment to take up arms and never returned. Not sure how he managed to avoid serving as part of the citizen’s defence and meeting the same end as his friend. He later immigrated to the US in the early 50s, joined the US army and became a paratrooper. He even guarded Honest John tactical nukes at an US base at one time. An amazing fate for someone who once pledged allegiance to Hitler.
I really appreciate the human element you bring to these types of stories. The lack of bias or spin is refreshing. I can almost forget what awful things were instigated by Hitler and contemplate the emotion he must have been going through. In the end we are all human, it is easy to fall into the trap that such men are anything more or less than one's self. The reality is that we're each capable of great or terrible acts; it is the choices we make which defines the legacy we leave. He could have been a great man and we would have mourned for his failing health. Instead; he chose hate, and infamy was his reward.
I might agree with you about many of the Nazi higher command, but Goebbels was pure evil. He cold bloodedly murdered his 6 young children with poison and then shot his wife and himself.
@@salekopter5152 I'm not good at German but heres a rough translation: "So your name is Peter Kranz. Peter, I wished my generals had your courage". It's referencing the film "Downfall" where Hitler awards a ten year old the iron cross for shooting down like two tanks.
@@henryviii2091 that doesn’t change how I think about it. They had no chance regardless. I’m sure Nazi propaganda gave them a better chance at the time too.
@@giraffeman326 Well, many European countries were forcing 16 year olds (ik, they are a bit older than the ones in the video but still kids) to go to the war and defend either against the Germans or the Soviets, and the Soviets also had children in their armies.
Such stellar work, Mark - well done !! These events MUST be kept alive and told so that the world hopefully will NOT repeat the same errors which lead to untold misery and suffering.
Basically I just click on one of Mark's videos, and instantly hit the thumbs up button, saves me a few seconds as I look for the next one after watching. :)
Mark, I came across your channel a while ago and I must say that I'm blown away by it. Small, rarely thought of pieces of history excellently researched and presented. Keep up the great work!
MARK 🏆 You are the King of WW2 History 👍 Im 50 been interested my whole life, but I've learned more from you in the last month than I've learned in the last 49 year
Mr. Felton: thank you! I so appreciate the hard work you put in to insure accuracy and truthfulness. I am a retiree and can barely afford internet...but will try to send a donation your way for all your work. Again, Thank You!.
This was one of the more interesting episodes. Brief and grainy footage of soldiers flashing by in battle, small wheels in the tragic, all-encompassing, and hungry machine of war are very rarely associated with their actual names. Many's the time where I wondered if a compelling character in the midst of an act of combat survived and who they were. In this small example you demonstrated that all of these unknown actors were people with lives and histories. Thank you, Mark.
12 year olds then: riding a horse cars through enemy fire 2 times to rescue wounded soldiers from the battlefield while putting his own life on a risk 12 year olds now: FORTNITE!!!
What's sad is we allowed Moscow to take Berlin. They encouraged the rape of civilian women while we executed men caught committing rape. Should have listened to General Patton.
It was better to die than to suffer what the soviets would have done to them. They were fighting for their lives at that point. The soviets raped everyone including little boys like the ones shown here
Kaempfen bis zur letzten Patrone, bis zum letzten Mann. Klingt barbarisch, aber es ist ehrenvoll. Sie kaempften fuer Freiheit. Ich habe nur Respekt fuer jeden Mann, Frau und Kind dieser Zeit.
@@Starlesslemon And what did the Nazi soldiers do in the Sowjet Union? Guess what. And nobody cares for this whataboutism anymore. The war is over and we are completely different people who are able to look back at our grandfathers and say: you morons!
Mark, I commend you on your ability to bring these historical videos to the public. Your investigative spirit and attention to detail are on a whole different level. Your videos are fascinating and I appreciate your way of just reporting facts and staying away from politics and opinion. I have learned more history from you than I have ever learned at college. Bravo Mark! As a person who has served in the US Marines, I salute you.
"I wish my generals were as brave as you."
I wished these boys were as forseeing as some of the Generals... The war was already lost at the end of 1942 and everything that followed was a prolonging of the worldwide suffering. And the pictures don't show all the brave boys that didn't make it and died pointless in the last days and weeks of WW2.
I suggest the German movie "The Bridge" from 1959. It shows how this turned out for many of these "bunker boys".
Fegelein! Bringen Sie mir Fegelein!
@@oliverhaake7552 hi. you commented 55 seconds ago and i agree
Pedro Kantor I’ve been reading Guderian’s Panzer Leader book. Seems like a brilliant General.
Also been reading The Unnecessary War by Nixon’s speechwriter. His thesis is that Hitler didn’t want a two-front war.
@@oliverhaake7552 well stated.
"I'll be in Argentina if you need me."
Lol because they all fled there
Did they really?
Beannn Nibbs yea most nazis fled there, so many that certain areas speak German
"With my friend: Juan Domingo Perón"
@@wolfstudios4297 Yes
My dad was a combat medic that was 20 years old crossing Europe from Normandy through the Ardennes and Belgium. He once told me it was alarming to have to treat 15 year old wounded German soldiers. Medics on both sides treated enemy soldiers when they could
That can't have been easy dealing with that on a regular basis, I'm sure it never leaves you. I can only imagine the horrors these medics came upon. And your Dad was such a young man himself. I thank him for his service from across the pond in Ireland. 🇮🇪
White Boy not even worthy of a serious reply...
@White Boy just like in estonia
@@VegasNit I mean the red army really did rape their way through
You realize that ww2 was like 70 years ago??
Consider this: if you were born in 1923, you were 10 when the NSDAP came to power; you had a rough childhood before The Leader ascended, and now you could look forward to things being better. You were 16 when the war started.
"How could these kids be so fanatical?" It was their whole life experience.
Another fascinating episode of history Dr. Felton!
My grandfather was born in 1922 and he fought in a war from 1940 to 1945 .
I'm glad you came up with this.
People who never ever in their life experienced any threat and violence are always so quick to judge from their sofa.
those kids were no not more or less fanatical than those who burned down hiroshima, nagasaki, dresden and raped german women in berlin 1945
@@andrejatodorovic5916 na kojoj strani😝😝😝😂
FANATICAL??😂😂😂 They just knew that j.o.0.s demons were destroying His country and degenrating the world. It's just the power of truth, mor0n
In March of 1945 Hitler could have visited the Eastern and Western fronts in the same day. Then have time to be home for dinner
Yes lol
😂😂
O
every one keeps talking about how oil was the reason germany lost .....no!!!....hitler wanted to have dinner after visiting both fronts
@Stuart Ahrens yo your english sucks....u lost yourself in the end
Breakfast with uncle Adi: Milk, cookies and an Iron cross.
What else a young Aryan could dream off? ;)
Use Bitchute or on
Then a hole in your gut. Thanks adi
Would die for an Iron Cross 🤣
And incase you have to "blitz" out that door to go take on the world .. a few Pervitin of course :)
That one kid Czech saving wounded soldiers with a horse and cart is pretty nuts. I just imagine mortars and artillery raining down on him, his horse and cart and the wounded men. Gotta give credit, those kids had guts.
Could be a movie...
@@edoedo8686 Not made by Hollywood or any German studio for sure.
They fought extremely well on the western front though...fanaticism was high in their ranks as well!
And somewhere there's a teenage girl crying because she's cold
Reminds me of the ANZAC legend during the Gallipoli campaign of WW1, the soldier known as Simpson and his donkey, retrieving Aussie wounded under fire.
When I was a kid (studying WWII as a hobby) I used to wish there existed every soldiers story in some massive set of texts. I wanted to know them all. I love that now I have access to so much information.
i did that too
Well, just the allie soilders right?
Read Citizen Soldier, many first person accounts from Americans and Germans.
I'm studying WWII as a hobby at the moment
@@Meeskait1992 Same here! I had no interest in this conflicts but after playing battlefield 1 I got interested in WW1, did a ton of research, got fascinated and started studying ww2
Immortalized by the film Downfall (Der Untergang).
Der Untergang really is one of the best WW2 films ever made and certainly one of the best out of Germany, except for, arguably, Das Boot.
Peter was his name. Think the SS hangs his dad at the end for hiding and not fighting so he leaves with Trodel.
@@iamfishhead Generation War was also very good imo
@@iamfishhead Also Stalingrad (1993)
@@iamfishhead Das Boot is a truly great film. Well said sir.
What a complete and total waste of young life. These children had no chance of fighting off the Soviet armies.
You miss the point
@Nah mate what are you saying? makes no sense.
@Nah mate still a soviet victory
Nah mate not to mention the lend lease and the allied fronts
@Nah mate I think it was a bit more complex than you are capable of understanding.
Despite the serious losses inflicted on the Red Army and extensive territorial gains, the mission to completely destroy Soviet fighting power and force a capitulation was not achieved.
One of the most important reasons for this was poor strategic planning. The Germans had no satisfactory long-term plan for the invasion. They mistakenly assumed that the campaign would be a short one, and that the Soviets would give in after suffering the shock of massive initial defeats. Hitler had assured the High Command that 'We have only to kick in the front door and the whole rotten edifice will come tumbling down'. But Russia was not France. The shock value of the initial Blitzkrieg was dissipated by the vast distances, logistical difficulties and Soviet troop numbers, all of which caused attritional losses of German forces which could not be sustained.
Some 12 year old kids ride bikes in the neighborhood, wondering what it’s like to kiss a girl, fishing by the lake, going to school to learn, having sleep overs with friends watching movies and eating popcorn all night. Other 12 year old kids are in a damp trench, firing a rifle to kill people, watching other kids getting blown into bits and dodging heavy artillery 24/7... 🤔
Pretty scary to think about huh
Imagine the PTSD from all that...
I mean trenches are barely even being used so no not other kids are doing that
D0nye WTH? Trenches were used in a extremely common method in the 1940’s World War II so... yeah many German kids were very much so in trenches all along enemy lines across many countries.
(?) 🤔
@@thefutureofyesterday8136 well kids in the 1940s didn't watch movies all night and eat popcorn all night
I had a girlfriend whose father was German and who had been conscripted into the Hitler Youth at the very end of the war in Berlin when he was 15. He spent years recovering from the PTSD.
That’s really unfortunately. I don’t want to sound rude but do you have any more details?
He have not been conscripted at 15 he was in HJ since 8 years old as all germans young women and men
Same thing with my grandpa. He grew up in Hamburg. As a member of the Hitler Youth he had to retrieve and clean up bodies from the massacre of the bombings
@@badbotchdown9845 No, there were German children that were able to avoid joining until Germany started loosing.
@@kanegarvey3188 What details do you want weirdo
I'd just like to say thank you Mark
That's it
Welkum heir pisda bukket.
Pozdrav Bosko
Well done again. Had no idea who the boys were or what happened to them.
Michael excuse me what? I’m German but mostly American but enough to get offended by you
Thanks bro, I appreciate
“It's Definitely Not A Good Time To Be A Nazi” - Yorkie
agreed
Malcolm Hoth ?
It never was never be
Omar Mokrane the quote is a reference to a character in the comedy film, jojo rabbit, it’s brilliant and you should definitely check it out.
@@lordwaffle4614 i have sen the trailers it seems funny.
thanks for the suggestion
Honestly one of the saddest aspects of the entire war, those boys should have never seen combat and every one of them that died is a great tragedy.
If it was Donald the Great in Hitler's shoes, would he be capable of allowing this?
They paid for the sins of their fathers.
The sheer desperation and unrelenting Soviets brought the worst out of the times. But at the end of the day, anything to save Germany no?
Cheerio Fujisaki lots of them did see combat and die.
Some saw combat. Most did not, thank God.
The quality of your content and the educational substance is unmatched by anyone else in the RUclips historical space. Great job and thank you!
“Adi & The Bunker Boys” sounds like a hardcore punk band
FYI There is a Dutch punk band called JOHNNY COHEN AND THE NEW AGE NAZIS who have an amusing song called "Hitler was a speed freak"
Tony Slug AnalCunt has a song called “Hitler was a sensitive man”. It’s on the same album as the track “I sent pictures of your son to NAMBLA”.
Stuart Ahrens TF are you on about?
Actually bunker boys are the type that some people of America would elect, because their thinking always stay young
nand nicarrabla dafuq?
i was wondering how to find out if these children survived the war and Dr Felton included details in the video - thanks very much.
Yeah, I had no idea I had already seen an interview with Hübner in World at War.
What I found really disgusting in that regard, was how many boys from the HJ they were able to recruit for these combat operations, voluntarily or otherwise. They, and the Volkssturm, were nothing but cannon fodder in a futile attempt to win a long lost war.
Mark knows a lot that he doesnt let on.
One of my favorite vignettes from Cornelius Ryan's _The Last Battle_ about the Soviet taking of Berlin is a Hitler Youth boy soldier sent out with a _panzerfaust_ to stop Russian tanks. Exhausted, he falls asleep in bombed-out building, and when he awakens the battle has swept past him in the night. All of his young companions are dead in the streets, but he lives to tell the tale.
@@bundesautobahn7 One of Hitler's two last blunders. By conscripting both the under-aged and the elderly, he helped much to devastate Germany's post-war human resource pool. The second would be his 'scorched earth' order which was aimed at obliterating Germany's infrastructure down to the very last piece. The latter however was skillfully deflected by Speer, if even only partially successful.
The longer the war, the younger the soldiers...
The longer the war, the shorter the lives
Also sometimes the older the soldier..
@@Salem-TC true
@HATEMAN you don't say.
Se dice, cuanto más sea tu estupidez de decir psuedo palabras de sabiduría en los comentarios, más tendrás a ridículos igual que tú siguiéndote.
Most underrated channel on RUclips
@General Calvi deserves to get a lot more
Certainly not by those who accessed it.
As my granfather says "War is ugly, it doesn't doesn't care about no one, women, children or the elderly."
@Christian Soehring must have included "even" then 😂😂. I think her grandpa wanted to imply that even those who cant protect themselves, or ppl who're meant to be mercily excluded from wars. Maybe that is more appropriate than enumarating cuz some men cant protect themselves either.
But those days I kinda thought men are forced to train in military, hence they are more dedicated to protect than be protected making eldery, children, and women's lives more important than them.😔
@Space Monkey
If you start a war, do you expect to pay the same amount you took on your enemy if you lost?
As long as you have a soldier with a gun and ammunation, dont you dare give up. every bullet means one red aemrmy soldier less
~ my great grandfather who fought in winter war
Christian Soehring : bruh stfu thyre the ones killing the others
@@nandy1256 Is this supposed to be English?
My wonderful ex boss, Peter Nickels was a HJ boy in Berlin - captured by the Russians he spent 2 years as DP in a camp and emigrated to Canada where his first job was washing dishes. All his family had been killed in Berlin. Utterly fearless and always jovial, having survived the worst that can happen, he was an inspiration to all of us who worked for him - God bless Peter wherever you are - here or in Valhalla
I wish I could hear more post war stories like this one. Greetings from Paraguay.
Stuart Ernst Ahrens ?
@@EdAstor hai nde ndajahechai heta ko'ape la paraguayo
@@EdAstor My grandma was 20+ in 1945. Her husband was executed from the soviets for nothing.
Hello fellow Paterson
"Bunker Boys" ,that's sound like a cool and interesting movie
It sounds more like a gay porn film. LOL
Yo Defitnetly im down on that!
MT2SS That title belongs to the previous “Rump Reich” video.
MT2SS HahA! Knew I would see this comment.
I think they made it and called it JoJo Rabbit
“The Führer demands all to share their last drops of blood in Berlin’s defence; the old, the young, the weak”
- Victor Resnov
@Capitalist it’s a quote from a video game, but quite a true one.
@Capitalist nope, World at War. You were close.
"They stand for Germany, they die for Germany. "
@@Sovietghostdivision building by building, room by room, one rat at a time.
“The mudak in the car is General Amsel, the architect of Stalingrad’s misery”
"Older men declare war, but it's the youth that must fight and die." (Herbert Hoover)
It's ALWAYS been that way, and always will be. There would be a lot more wars if 19 and 20 year olds ran the world. A lot of old men have already been through wars, and know it's horrors, so most of them don't decide to go to war easily.
He was spot on about that
That quote is for cowards. Only a materialist would believe in that garbage.
@@algerianprophet9654 lol, "cowards".
Yes, lets all get stuck in and kill!
@@ffjsb utter rot, you really think age makes people reticent to send others to kill?
He knew at this time that it was a lost cause, but he still sent these young boys to die.
@Wesley Winston You speak as if the Allies totally obliterated Germany. But they didn't despite being capable of it. They even allowed Germany to grow back. Were they unfair when they no longer allowed Nazism and sympathy to Hitler to prosper?
@@nandy1256 The Allies handled the post war situation very well (minus the destruction of numerous historically significant sights) but the Germans had no way of knowing that they wouldn't simply grind their love of nation, personal pride and self worth into the dust. They did it to a degree last time, and the second war was oh so much more painful and worse. Whats to stop them from erasing the very nation they love? Your looking back from a foreign perspective, the key is to look at it from their view. For many patriots and nationalist alike, one would tear the countryside apart and die if necessary to prevent such fears from manifesting.
And its only common sense that the soviets would only bring bad things.
@@lukewarmfacts5107 Do you mean you are certain there would be less consequences if they acted earlier and that their inability to do this is a failure on their part?
Here's the way I see it, America is not perfect just like any other country, but I'm from America and I love my country, and I certainly don't agree with everything going on in this country right now, but if you were born and raised in America and now you've decided to hate this country, THEN GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE AND GO TO CHINA, THEY'D BE GLAD TO HAVE YOU!!!!!!
War is not a solution. When nazi germans (i repeat Nazi Germans) attack poland it's there fault. When Japan attack on pearl Harbor it's there fault. When USA bombed on japan by nuclear attack, it's also there fault. Every country that participated in the war has something to blame.
Mark Felton isn't a historian he is an investigative treasure. A TV series with this man is a must.
Thank you, Mr. Felton, for clearing up the date of the footage. "Downfall" has Hitler greeting the Hitler Youth in late April, 1945, and has one of the youths fighting in the Battle of Berlin, and coming from Berlin itself. It's good you've cleared up this misconception.
Nazis: "You get one wish"
Bunker Boy: "I wish we will win the war"
Nazis: "Uhhh"
@Stuart Ahrens stop
@Stuart Ahrens Germany, Benelux and France. Germany is the sugar daddy of the EU
@Stuart Ahrens I'm German and even I have more humor than you. That war was decades ago.
@Stuart Ahrens damn bro who hurt you? Must have pstd...
Defeatist!! Court Martial!
Mark, your videos are spellbinding. My parents both served in WWII, and we of a certain age grew up immersed in the stories. Like others have said, your rounding out of the various engagements is captivating. Your knowledge and attention to detail is second to none. Please keep up the good work!
im glad some of those kids got to live till old age
If they don't, who will tell us amazing stories?
Is some of the boys still alive in 2020?
@@firemangan2731 Yes, they are pretty old, but some of them are alive.
No..it's a pity..
I knew one, he died some time ago at the age of 87 he tolde me it wasent war anymore at the end. Drunk russians in the evening yelling hurra and storming to there positions and at daytime the allied bomber came. It was nuts how brainwashed he stil was, qnd how proud he was that he signed up for 12 years to become a leutenant in the wehrmacht. He fleed west and got captured and was a pow for a year.
Poor boys. Born the wrong time and the wrong place on the planet. I always felt sorry for the young boys on whatever side of a conflict, but children break my heart.
Childsoldiers: naah
Bunker Boys: yeah!
Bünkerboiz
@@Chezzers. You know that the ü that you wrote instead of an u change the sound and make this word nonsens? -.-
Keller Kinder
@@stadtbekanntertunichtgut Of course! Makes it even sillier
@@stadtbekanntertunichtgut ????NONSENS- ???>
Willi Hübner looks like he's 10 years old, instead of 16.
Germany was going through a serious food crisis in the latter half of the war: most everything was rationed, and bread was being increasingly watered-down with sawdust. Teenagers normally experience a dramatic growth spurt, but on those kind of rations, I imagine many would have remained short for their age.
Yes but he was 16y then.
Today we eat 10-15× more meat.A 11-12 year old look like a 16 year old 1945 .
he probably lied about his age
The Japanese experienced this. The desired height for a Japanese Army conscript during WWII was 5'4"-5'6", IIRC. By 1990, having grown up with many more calories available in their daily diet (including fast food), the average Japanese male of the same age had attained the same height as his US counterpart. The cohort had added 4"-5" -- half a head in height -- in just two generations. In addition, bone-shortening childhood diseases and nutrition-based maladies such as rickets and chronic scurvy -- which had affected some parts of the Japanese population in the '30s and during the War -- had virtually disappeared.
“They fight like soldiers, they die like children”
There is a fairly well-known story of a child-soldier who witnessed another child-soldier hanging dead by the neck from a utility pole in Berlin city center, apparently executed by the SS for cowardice, insubordination, or defeatism (believing the war was lost). That is what happens when a "pure blooded German" resists, challenges or ignores the PSYCHOTIC NAZIS, when the PSYCHIATRIC NAZIS have absolute political, social, and cultural POWER.
@Zannekin your fastest replied comment ever come
@İSKELET APTİ If America was invaded and losing, we'd have our kids out there, too....
@@freefall9832 Any nation desperate enough, will send those with too few winters behind to war, this has happened throughout history and is happening currently in the endless conflicts raging here and there.
In the US Civil war, South used child soldiers towards the end of the war, when casualties had severly depleted the available manpower
When Napoleon lost his army in Russia, he had to raise a new one, of anyone capable of carrying a musket
In the great war, too young fellows served in pretty much all armies, often having lied about their ages. The recruiters could sometimes tell that this was definitely not an adult, often they just didnt care. More meat to the grinder
Im not saying that what Nazis did was fair or justified, no child belongs to a war. Unfortunately, the world isnt fair or just either.
@@julianmarsh1378 please.
Every parent would send their kid to war
Another outstanding video. I found that I may have missed some of Mark's videos so I go back on BOTH of Mark's Channels and look at prior videos to make sure I do not miss any of Mark's Videos.
I’d seen that film of the bunker boys for over 40 years and thought like others they fought in the battle of Berlin.
It’s fantastic to know the truth about these boys and what happened to a couple of them after the war. This is yet another example of why this is the best you tube channel and Mark’s skill as a researcher are unsurpassed.
Thanks Mark
I was fortunate enough to have been friends with Alfons Heck.
Heck was a decorated member of the Hitler Youth though I believe
his last one on one with Hitler was in the Summer of 1944 when he told
me how shocked he was to see Hitler so very old and tired looking compared to
when he had seen him just two years earlier. It was very hard for Heck to talk about
his younger self as he said the whole time was so surreal that he wasen't sure his younger
self survived the war and he evolved a post war personality and became somebody else.
It is like looking at a portrait of ones self and not believing that person was actually you and was capable of doing the things one did or having actually lived in such a time.
Heck of a story
Thats because hitler was a broken man by 44
I smell cap
@@Philip54622 Should’ve played more golf.
What the heck! Thats so cool!
When the bravery of children is a factor, all is lost. A recruiting party came to my family's farm demanding my ancestor who was 14 at the time. His mother hid him in the cellar. The following campaign season, they came again. She wanted to hide him again but his pride wouldn't allow it. Thankfully he survived.
@Stuart Ahrens Big difference in a young man's mental development from 14 to 16 but he did his duty and repelled the northern invaders. Was your father on a Flak crew?
@Stuart Ahrens Interesting. Mine fought in Virginia. 1864-65.
@Stuart Ahrens Agreed. Next to the KJV, Mien Kamph is the highest selling book to date.
Fourteen year boys were taught to man the 88mm anti aircraft gun in the latter stages of the war.but, they were deemed too young to watch a war movie at the cinema.
Of course everyone in Germany wanted to fight think of the Volkssturm for example
Amazing. Thank you for these documentaries.
This is re-enacted in Downfall..
"I wish my generals were as brave as you."
A compelling movie
@Projekt:Kobra Yes.
Yes, I believe every history enthusiast remembers the scene.
Fegelein!! Fegelein!!!!
8:32 If you look real close, in the background you see three officers planning and discussing their escape from the inferno that Berlin would become.
Sharp
I think they were planning were the defenses and ammunition should be. Don’t think their planning an escape in front of soldiers who are to fight in Berlin. (Just a theory - I have no idea)
@@Popasger Well, many did, so why not these two?
@@garypulliam3740 I just think it would be weird to have an escape plan being planned out in front of hitler and many soldiers who needs “support” if they hear leaders planning to escape in front of them they might lose hope or be scared to face the Russians. You have to remember that these children were filled with propaganda for almost 8 years straight. An escape plan would probably be made in a more closed room with more highly commanding officers... (Again I have no idea, I just use my imagination)
@@Popasger Sharp detecting skills. No way in world they would plan escape out in the open, not to mention only 5m away from Der Fuhrer & Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler troops and officers.
Time tells me it's 2 in the morning. Mark Felton says it's time to learn!
T E A C H E D
My first history prof in college was in the Hitler youth. It was expected of all male youths to join. Then he held out his hands and said, "With these, a pair of pliers, and a crescent wrench I diffused German mine fields".
Oh hooray...🙄
@@Ujuani68 why are you so rude. Defusing mines is very dangerous
I can’t get a kid to work out here in the 1% Hamptons. Never mind Fire a gun to kill for the furor 🤣
@@get-memed I think he meant “oh hooray” as in that’s a very terrible task to do.
@@kanegarvey3188 i'm not so sure about that, they did include a little bit of eye rolling
Stop everything! Another fascinating vignette to give top priority now!
Yes I still see TV documentaries with ex Hitler youth in them as I did in the 80s. I am struck at time how they still seem memorised and captivated by Hitler ad they gaze past the TV camera into the distance. It's something that we cannot really understand as remote keyboard warriors and couch potatoes...
Could you be so kind telling me what a vignette is?
@@bassmits183 a brief evocative description, account, or episode. Pronounced vi'njet Oxford Dictionary
I have studied WW2 for over fifty years, you do a very good job of bringing it all together in sort order and to the point. Outstanding young man and carry on.
Fifty or fifteen?
@@belgianfabian2216 fifty
@@kennysherrill6542 That's so much, cheers to you my friend.
Such bravery shown by these kids, almost unimaginable.
Unimaginable in an adult let alone a child.
@@deanpd3402 what?
@@cerealeater803 he was saying the bravery the adults had was already very brave but the kids were even braver
@@Digitaaliklosetti they’ve not been brainwashed in the same way ...
@@megaduck7965 No, they've been brainwashed in a different way.
I'm glad to see this channel still growing. Good stuff.
1:40am... Going to bed after a long day and getting readyto do it all again... oh Mark released a new video huh? Guess bed can wait
You have your priorities right!
4:00 am where I am :)
I was thinking about the same thing. It's 1:20am here in Northern California.
Haha
Still catching up to old Mark Felton (Leonidas squadron) and this gift drops.
German kamikazi :)))))) am i right?
That 16 year old boy Wilhelm Hübner, winning the iron cross dosent look very teenage like, more like 12 or 13
I thought the same thing.
back in them days that was normal, these days everyone grows up too quick and 16 year olds look 21
@MARKO bearly..
@MARKO He looks about 10 at most.
@@oliviarichardson9325 its just genetics. If anything 16 year olds look younger now. Compared to the 80s/90s. They look like 12 year olds
One of these boys was a relative of mine and he died an old man in Florida. He was a great man and a kind man. He was only 15 when he was forced to fight the last battles in Berlin. He was born in Rastenburg, East Prussia.
The amount of research that goes into these videos is incredible.
One of the only channel that reports storys about ww2 unbiased
I remember hearing British historian and war correspondent Max Hastings said the scariest moment he ever had when he was confronted by child soldiers. Contrary to what people might think kids can be dangerous soldiers.
What the hell are you going on about Stuart? Are you drunk?
@Stuart Ahrens stfu
"youths" can indeed be quite dangerous -- no self-restraint
@@reallyhappenings5597 absolutely. Just like venomous baby snakes are more dangerous then adults. They inject every last bit of venom.
@@reallyhappenings5597 Not to mention will seem unassuming and all that, they'll make you hesitate
Mr. Felton, I very much enjoy watching your RUclips videos about WWII. Thanks for sharing them with us
And then there is me,
Who gets scared by a flying cockroach
😹 😹 👌🏿
@Jimbo my mom doesnt
At least i think so....
@Rita L america of course
dinosaurus exists here
same here man
@@alexparakan i mean drugs makes me go ye- nah i am just kiddin
A good book about the boy soldiers on the other side, "The Boys' Crusade," by Paul Fussell, is well worth reading. (It's a thin book, less than 200 pages.)
great recommendation!
Will look for it!
7:30
He seems much younger than 16
@@josephpapilson7224 I'm not sure, I haven't heard of malnutrition being a huge problem in the German army. Sure, in the end, food was rare, but that wouldn't have hindered his growth this much.
But maybe he has just a baby face :)
@@CK-yv6nw it was actually somewhat about lack of food and lack of meat eating because some people in the army had to survive with as low as 1000 calories while fighting, the stituation was pretty much like in stalingrad, and hübner was anyways a young looking person (thats what he told in a interwiew)
Well back then food didn’t have grow boost hormones,so they were growing normally unlike now.
mocashi lol u bigmad boomer
He is 12
To the family and relatives
of these Very Brave Boys,
These Soldiers were
Extremely Heroic to bring back
Wounded Soldiers from
areas of heavy fighting.
Boy Soldiers,
at the time and All brought
Great Honour to you.
I'm going through these awesome stories faster than Mr. Felton can produce them.
But damn am I entertained.
when Hitler asked the boys what they wished from him at the end, what if one of them answered "a flight to Zurich"?
nwo foe - After Goring had finished tearing a group of Luftwaffe officers off a strip, during the B of B period, he then asked some of them to give him a wish list - one really annoyed him by saying he would like to have a squadron of Spitfires.
@@truthseeker7242 I'm aware of it. Polish pilots flying Spitfires were the Luftwaffe's greatest enemy over the skies of Britain. Goering was a morphine addict since he was shot through the testicles at Hitler's first grab for power with Ludendorff .
Maybe he got the flight but then ordered another fighter plane to shoot it down and use this for propaganda
@@truthseeker7242 That fighter pilot was Adolph Galland, 705 combat missions, 104 planes shot down. The guy was fearless.
Annex Switzerland and send him to Zürich, lol
Mind-blowingly amazing! One has seen these images over decades wondering who these boys were and what ever happened to them; never having nor expecting an answer. Yet Mark Felton pulls it off again! It somehow feels like closure. Just astounding work, Mr.Felton.
Not only did you get their names but you knew who's who. You are the best researcher ever. And we get to watch for free. Thank you.
0:52
Dear Mr. Felton...
I've been searching for this piece of music for over 20 years, but didn't have any reverences, accept a close combat game that doesn't run on my PC anymore!
Thought it was Beethoven, but listen to all his symphonies but couldn't find it
5 seconds on the shazam app was enough. YESSSSSS!!!!! :
Anton Bruckner: Symphony No.9 in D minor - 2. Scherzo (Bewegt lebhaft) - Trio (Schnell) - Scherzo da capo
Going to listen to this until my ears bleed
Thank you so much
Love your video's BTW
I’m thinking it’s a standard RUclips option for creators. I’ve seen a few other channels use this same music.
Ask on Reddit!
These films should be colorized and shown in 4000 HD.
Watch world war 2 colourized on Netflix
They do such a good job at making it HD and Coloured
Feels like your actually there
@@markybarky8661 I think I’ll have to look at that thanks.
At the end of each War it's always the old and the young who suffer the most
Heart Breaking, huh?
You're a fantastic narrator....great videos...learning so much.
Tragedy and senseless misery without end ... Every living person owes it to himself to learn about the two world wars
Leftist ideology is to blame plus stupid voters who choose such rascals like socialists.
g. d. Blame Churchill
@Zannekin So true.
@Zannekin What really happened? Explain? What did Nazis want really? Because all I'm seeing in this comment is your stupidity and consumption of too much Nazi and right wing propaganda. If you say "do your own research" then you have no argument.
@Wesley Winston Congratulations, you fell for Neo-Nazi propaganda.
Mark I always learn something I didn't know when I watch one of your productions. You always seem to tie up loose ends when possible, very well done.
This is probably one of the best presented and most professional channel on youtube. Keep up the great work
If only a last survivor could make a video to tell every single details of what he has seen. What an incredible destiny they had.
10:00 maybe he threw away the iron cross to avoid being blamed and persecuted as yet another nazi
But then purchased another?! 🤣
@@jonnysupreme yes, after things settled down. You can also purchase one right now, for "historical" reasons... my father did.
Perhaps he was bitter that he was not with his father when he died.
Jonny Jonjon I mean the Iron Cross wasn’t only a Nazi Germany medal, it was just a Germany military medal. There were separate versions of it that were made by the Nazis.
@@toby1061 true on my grandmother's side of the family the men were German Poles and they served in the German Polish legions prior to and during WWI and several had the iron cross or whatever it's name was back then? I've got their photos from back then.
I knew someone who was a young teenager in Berlin during WW2. Like others of his age he was a member of the Hitler Youth. He recounted how during the siege of Berlin a friend left their apartment to take up arms and never returned. Not sure how he managed to avoid serving as part of the citizen’s defence and meeting the same end as his friend. He later immigrated to the US in the early 50s, joined the US army and became a paratrooper. He even guarded Honest John tactical nukes at an US base at one time. An amazing fate for someone who once pledged allegiance to Hitler.
I don’t believe a word of this
I really appreciate the human element you bring to these types of stories. The lack of bias or spin is refreshing. I can almost forget what awful things were instigated by Hitler and contemplate the emotion he must have been going through. In the end we are all human, it is easy to fall into the trap that such men are anything more or less than one's self. The reality is that we're each capable of great or terrible acts; it is the choices we make which defines the legacy we leave. He could have been a great man and we would have mourned for his failing health. Instead; he chose hate, and infamy was his reward.
I might agree with you about many of the Nazi higher command, but Goebbels was pure evil. He cold bloodedly murdered his 6 young children with poison and then shot his wife and himself.
That was awesome Mark I've seen that footage 1000 times and was ALWAYS curious about the stories behind it
Another excellent content like always before lunch..
It was a sad time for the world. But what ever side you were on bravery is bravery. Those boys deserved more.
For the White world
"Sein Name ist Peter Kranz"
"So...Peter heißt du... Ich wollte meine Generale hätten deinen Mut'
Kuch kuch.
I don’t speak german
@@salekopter5152 congratulations
@JZ's Best Friend ich esse eine wasser
@@salekopter5152 I'm not good at German but heres a rough translation:
"So your name is Peter Kranz. Peter, I wished my generals had your courage". It's referencing the film "Downfall" where Hitler awards a ten year old the iron cross for shooting down like two tanks.
I can’t express in words how bad I feel for those poor children. They had no chance at surviving against the Soviet, and died for nothing.
They weren't forced tho, they signed up for it.
@@henryviii2091 that doesn’t change how I think about it. They had no chance regardless. I’m sure Nazi propaganda gave them a better chance at the time too.
@@giraffeman326 Well, many European countries were forcing 16 year olds (ik, they are a bit older than the ones in the video but still kids) to go to the war and defend either against the Germans or the Soviets, and the Soviets also had children in their armies.
@@henryviii2091 I know. It was a terrible time to be growing up when your country is demanding more people to take action.
@@henryviii2091 the kids who diden wanne go where hangt as a exemple for the the rest if u say no u die anyway's so what u gonne do
Such stellar work, Mark - well done !! These events MUST be kept alive and told so that the world hopefully will NOT repeat the same errors which lead to untold misery and suffering.
Basically I just click on one of Mark's videos, and instantly hit the thumbs up button, saves me a few seconds as I look for the next one after watching. :)
I stopped what I was doing when I saw Mark Felton uploaded!
Great video man, thanks for making it
My two older uncles were in their late teens and served in the Hitler Youth. My father was the youngest (born in '31) and did not.
Respect to them.
@@wingtip76 for what exactly
Nothing to be proud of
Sooooo...your family were nazis?
Lucas Kucza you'd be too in those times, don't say otherwise
Mark, I came across your channel a while ago and I must say that I'm blown away by it. Small, rarely thought of pieces of history excellently researched and presented. Keep up the great work!
yet another vid from Mark Felton I thumb up before really watching it... still not disappointed at the end... thanks for sharing!
MARK 🏆 You are the King of WW2 History 👍 Im 50 been interested my whole life, but I've learned more from you in the last month than I've learned in the last 49 year
another great vid mark interesting to hear about the boy's lives afterward
16 then would be 91 now.
@@garyg7647 yeh amazing huh
Mr. Felton: thank you! I so appreciate the hard work you put in to insure accuracy and truthfulness. I am a retiree and can barely afford internet...but will try to send a donation your way for all your work. Again, Thank You!.
This was one of the more interesting episodes. Brief and grainy footage of soldiers flashing by in battle, small wheels in the tragic, all-encompassing, and hungry machine of war are very rarely associated with their actual names. Many's the time where I wondered if a compelling character in the midst of an act of combat survived and who they were. In this small example you demonstrated that all of these unknown actors were people with lives and histories. Thank you, Mark.
12 year olds then: riding a horse cars through enemy fire 2 times to rescue wounded soldiers from the battlefield while putting his own life on a risk
12 year olds now: FORTNITE!!!
card*
Fxze | Edits Your comment makes no sense
Sad but true
Ben Schreyer didnt say it was bad
@@lugenlord6721 its sad for you that kids dont have to experience the horrors of war?
Its just sad, war was utterly lost. hurling young lads into a war like that.
What's sad is we allowed Moscow to take Berlin. They encouraged the rape of civilian women while we executed men caught committing rape. Should have listened to General Patton.
It was better to die than to suffer what the soviets would have done to them.
They were fighting for their lives at that point. The soviets raped everyone including little boys like the ones shown here
Kaempfen bis zur letzten Patrone, bis zum letzten Mann. Klingt barbarisch, aber es ist ehrenvoll. Sie kaempften fuer Freiheit. Ich habe nur Respekt fuer jeden Mann, Frau und Kind dieser Zeit.
@@Starlesslemon And what did the Nazi soldiers do in the Sowjet Union? Guess what. And nobody cares for this whataboutism anymore. The war is over and we are completely different people who are able to look back at our grandfathers and say: you morons!
@@elfenbeinturm-media maybe you do, but I don't lmao.
Dr Felton, it's amazing how you find such detailed info regarding history. Very interesting! Thanks.
Dear Dr Felton, can you please tell me what is the source of the music you used in this video? Keep up the excellent content, thank you.
I can't believe it.. Just a week ago i thought about these boys, and what happend to them. And there you go Mark Felton reads my mind!
Poor boys, what a tortured life they must have had. At least we can look back on their bravery with respect.
In an other comment somewhere here, there is mention that post-war biographies are available for some of the boys.
Can you just stop and learn your history the boys wanted to idiot soviets did it too and you treat them like heroes
@@Philip54622 The irony, right?
@@henryviii2091 what do you mean
@@Philip54622 That they keep demonising the Germans but forget all the bad stuff the other did
Mark, I commend you on your ability to bring these historical videos to the public. Your investigative spirit and attention to detail are on a whole different level. Your videos are fascinating and I appreciate your way of just reporting facts and staying away from politics and opinion. I have learned more history from you than I have ever learned at college. Bravo Mark! As a person who has served in the US Marines, I salute you.
Thank you very much for the best information explaining the famous film footage I have ever seen. All of your programs are excellent!!
Hi there? Hope you're good & staying safe?
It's 3:30AM here, and this notification is a gift from God.
@Adriana's Dog South America