My Father met my Mother in the immediate post-WW2 era in Germany.
He was in the British MP's and she was one of the first six Federal German Policewomen.........three years later I popped along, the only one.
My Father was half English and Half Scots. His Father came from Glasgow in Bonny Scotland during the 1920's to work in the Shipyards in North East England, as so many Irish and Scots did, one reason why my home town had equal numbers of Catholic and Protestant schools. Ironicly enough there were never any religious difficulties during my upbringing.....unlike Northern Ireland at the same time.
My Grandfather was a Master Shipwirght especially on wooden ships and they were still, in the 1920's and 1930's, making wooden Trawlers and what is called Yorkshire Cobles, see image below...........
This is basically a copy of a Viking Longboat with a squared stern, a **** of a sea-boat, well suited to the often turbulent sea off the coast of the UK.
My Scottish Great-grandfather was alive initially when they arrived in NE England - he spoke exactly 12 words of English, his normal tongue being Gaelic.
My Mother's family all came from Prussia, what became East Germany until Unification. My German Grand-parents along with my Aunts and Mum were chased out of their home town due to the Soviet Forces wanting billets. The German population was ill-treated as has been well documented and I make no further comment about that.
Whilst trying to walk their way West, both of my Aunts got shot albeit not too seriously, but both carried the gunshot wounds to their dying days. My Uncle, being 15 at the time and well over 6 foot tall, was put on a POW train to be taken to the East as Slave Labour. Luckily for him he was befriended by a Polish Professor who took a liking to the tall young man.
The Professor, whoever he was, obviously had planned for the fact he might be removed to Russia for being part of the Bourgois Intelligentsia in Poland in that he'd memorised the geography of Eastern Europe. They both jumped the Prison Train somewhere in the Ukraine I believe and then spent the better part of 12-18 MONTHS working their way back to the West.
To my Grandparents great delight, my Uncle was reunited with them nearly 2-2 1/2 years after he'd been taken.
Me? Oh I've travelled and lived all over the place but now happily call Australia (and occasionally New Zealand) home but that's another story!!!
Regards,
BRIAN
