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Hitler Youth - POW

Heroes Remember

Hitler Youth - POW

Transcript
My biggest enjoyment was at Falaise Gap. We went there, I think, one Sunday. They got a bunch of us to go and... Oh, there was, we took thousands of German prisoners there, and we were there to, like, just to be, walk along, alongside of them to take them back to the cages, like, you know. And my biggest enjoyment was this little... We gave them ten minute break, like, and this little German Hitler Youth guy was there, and he was just snarling at me, you know, and I was getting mad just looking at him, you know, because we'd give him this break, and he was sitting there. And when, when it was time to go, like, we had, you know, we had a bunch of Germans and had carriers and then a bunch of Germans... I, I don't know how many, hundreds or thousands we had at that time. So, I told him, I said, "Come on. Get up." And he just snarled, so I reached down and grabbed him by the collar and give him a yanking and kind of pulled him by me, and I hit him a kick in the ass, and his bundle fell open. And the, and the mud was about a foot deep like you know, like. Everybody was walking there and the machinery and, oh, they’d been fighting there for about, you know, eight, ten, nine days. So, that, that was right full of photographs, and then I wouldn't let him pick any up, but of course they were all in the mud anyway. And, now, he must have had a thousand of them in there, because the bundle was about this big in the, in the little army blanket. And then he started to cry, then.
Description

Mr. Loranger talks about an encounter with a Hitler Youth, POW.

Paul Loranger

Mr. Loranger was born in Seseninika, Ontario in 1927. His family later moved to Englehart, Ontario, where his father was employed with the Canadian National Railway, and they were able to ride out the depression in relative comfort. Mr. Loranger joined the army at age 16, became disillusioned when denied entry into the paratroopers, quit, and then re-enlisted. Once in England, however, he joined the Calgary Highlanders, and was quickly sent to France. There, he was involved in driving out remnants of the German Army. He was recalled to England when his age was discovered, and eventually sent home to Canada. He worked for the CNR until his retirement. Mr. Loranger now resides in Harriston, Ontario.

Meta Data
Medium:
Video
Owner:
Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:
1:52
Person Interviewed:
Paul Loranger
War, Conflict or Mission:
Second World War
Location/Theatre:
France
Battle/Campaign:
Normandy
Branch:
Army
Units/Ship:
Calgary Highlanders, 5th Brigade
Rank:
Private
Occupation:
Infantry

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