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Feldpost: The War Letters of Friedrich Reiner Niemann
'Feldpost: The Wartime Letters of Friedrich Reiner Niemann' documents the life and frontline experiences of a German soldier from the 6th Infantry Division from 1941-1945.
Niemann, a well-educated youth from a close-knit family in Cologne, was sent to the Russian Front four times. He wrote his final two letters home from Poland on 12 January 1945 before he disappeared during the Soviet Vistula-Oder Offensive.
In his extensive correspondence, Niemann describes the fighting at Rzhev, Russia, 1942- 1943, and his survival of the destruction of his division during the Soviet summer offensive in 1944. His is a rare view of battles that annihilated entire German divisions and armies.
After the Second World War, the Niemann family preserved Reiner's letters and photographs, and shipped them to New Orleans when Reiner's sister, Liselotte Andersson, had emigrated. Neglected in an attic for over fifty years, the documents surfaced only after Hurricane Katrina flooded the family house. Andersson's daughter-in-law, author Whitney Stewart, discovered the letters in 2012 and contacted Denis Havel to translate them. Together, Havel and Stewart uncovered historical details that enabled them to follow Reiner s trail and tell his story. "
Niemann, a well-educated youth from a close-knit family in Cologne, was sent to the Russian Front four times. He wrote his final two letters home from Poland on 12 January 1945 before he disappeared during the Soviet Vistula-Oder Offensive.
In his extensive correspondence, Niemann describes the fighting at Rzhev, Russia, 1942- 1943, and his survival of the destruction of his division during the Soviet summer offensive in 1944. His is a rare view of battles that annihilated entire German divisions and armies.
After the Second World War, the Niemann family preserved Reiner's letters and photographs, and shipped them to New Orleans when Reiner's sister, Liselotte Andersson, had emigrated. Neglected in an attic for over fifty years, the documents surfaced only after Hurricane Katrina flooded the family house. Andersson's daughter-in-law, author Whitney Stewart, discovered the letters in 2012 and contacted Denis Havel to translate them. Together, Havel and Stewart uncovered historical details that enabled them to follow Reiner s trail and tell his story. "
- GenresWorld War II
240 pages, Hardcover
Published July 15, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 26, 2017
The translated war letters of Reiner Niemann from 1941 - 1945 are printed along with commentary from the translator and editor, Denis Havel, along with an afterword by Whitney Stewart who accidentally stumbled upon the letters in her mother in law's attic; the sister of Reiner. The letters had been stored away for over 50 years. The letters provide a rare view into the life of a German soldier, one who had no apparent involvement and little awareness of the travesties of the Holocaust. This book gave me a small glimpse into what my own grandfather's life would have been like as a soldier in the German Army. Although it was sobering and sad, it also highlighted the closeness of the family and their determination to stay in contact through letters during the catastrophic time they were all enduring.
September 17, 2018
A box of moldy documents that survived Hurricane Katrina discovered in her mother-in-law’s attic turned out to hold unexpected treasure for Whitney Stewart. She had long been curious about the brothers she had heard her mother-in-law describe and had named her son Reiner for one of them. Here were his letters, written in German, in a box labelled Reiner’s Kriegsbriefe (war letters).
I have been interested in reading this account since Whitney began to post on Facebook about her journey to see the places where the letters were set and find a translator. Credit goes to Denis Havel, the translator, and to her as collaborators on a book that became a labor of love. Another book could be written about the twists and turns as she researched and found Reiner’s story, but my purpose in this blog is to review Feldpost and recommend this book that is not to be missed.
The major part of the book contains an abundance of letters Reiner wrote primarily to his parents with a few to siblings and others. A smaller number of letters he received are included. These are translated, not edited, and give a clear picture of the man behind them. Chatty letters include what he had to eat and its quality, how he has built his shelter in the foxhole, and whether he will be promoted to a leadership position. I read, finding it difficult to keep in mind that this was a German soldier who would have been the enemy for my uncles who served in World War II. It became especially hard when his longings to be home with family for Christmas matched those of soldiers I knew.
Along with the letters, there is just enough occasional commentary between about what and where the war was happening at the time the letters were written to give a perspective. Every indication I saw in the letters pointed to a soldier serving his country, not to one who espoused Nazi philosophy.
I highly recommend the book to anyone who has ever wondered what the soldier in the foxhole on the other side could have been thinking. Whitney, in the afterword quotes Reiner in a way that gives meaning to the book for me. “War is the father of all things and the root of all evil.”
I have been interested in reading this account since Whitney began to post on Facebook about her journey to see the places where the letters were set and find a translator. Credit goes to Denis Havel, the translator, and to her as collaborators on a book that became a labor of love. Another book could be written about the twists and turns as she researched and found Reiner’s story, but my purpose in this blog is to review Feldpost and recommend this book that is not to be missed.
The major part of the book contains an abundance of letters Reiner wrote primarily to his parents with a few to siblings and others. A smaller number of letters he received are included. These are translated, not edited, and give a clear picture of the man behind them. Chatty letters include what he had to eat and its quality, how he has built his shelter in the foxhole, and whether he will be promoted to a leadership position. I read, finding it difficult to keep in mind that this was a German soldier who would have been the enemy for my uncles who served in World War II. It became especially hard when his longings to be home with family for Christmas matched those of soldiers I knew.
Along with the letters, there is just enough occasional commentary between about what and where the war was happening at the time the letters were written to give a perspective. Every indication I saw in the letters pointed to a soldier serving his country, not to one who espoused Nazi philosophy.
I highly recommend the book to anyone who has ever wondered what the soldier in the foxhole on the other side could have been thinking. Whitney, in the afterword quotes Reiner in a way that gives meaning to the book for me. “War is the father of all things and the root of all evil.”
December 14, 2023
A nice telling of a German soldier’s life while engaged in the Eastern Front war.
We have many stories of the mighty struggles in this conflict, this one I feel is a little more special given the manner of it’s presentation…
We have many stories of the mighty struggles in this conflict, this one I feel is a little more special given the manner of it’s presentation…
August 6, 2019
Interesting Read
Amazing account of what life was like for a German soldier during WWII on the Eastern front told in actual letters written home.
Amazing account of what life was like for a German soldier during WWII on the Eastern front told in actual letters written home.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews