Chapter 1 Created as a recreational vessel the Wilhelm Gustloff would be pressed into service as a refugee carrier in early 1945 TERROR IN EAST PRUSSIA DISTRU EN T he Wilhelm Gustloff had not been to sea in several years Its I engines were stiff as the ship eased slowly away from the pier at Gotenhafen now Gdynia Poland Aboard on that bitterly cold night of January 30 1945 were approximately 10 000 people crammed into every nook and cranny of a ship designed to carry only 1 500 passengers The Gustloff had been designed and built for pleasure cruises to calm and sunny Mediterranean Sea isles and Norwegian fjords It was never meant to sail in strong winds and choppy waves The object of
As the Red Army fought its way toward Germany in early 1945 it took revenge against not just the German military but also civilians this voyage on the stormy Baltic was not fun and relaxation either It was basic survival That's why although no one on board was particularly comfortable every one of them felt incredibly fortunate At least they were not among the terrified thousands of refugees still waiting and watching from the dark pier praying another ship would come in time to carry them away before the Soviet Red Army arrived Horrific stories of Russian atrocities against German civilians had been circulating For years Russian and Polish citizens had endured unspeakable treatment from German soldiers Now that German dictator Adolf Hitler's once powerful military was in retreat it was payback time When hate maddened Russian Seeking Revenge soldiers stormed into East The long awaited hour the hour of Prussia the message was clear revenge is at hand We all have personal No German man woman or reasons for revenge my daughter your child should expect any sort of sisters our Mother Russia the devastation of our land kindness or mercy Gruesome Soviet tank Colonel General Pavel reports and pictures from Rybalko to troops upon entering East Prussia in 1944
