Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Starving German Children 1945-47




The Saarbruecken Cecilien School greets the Irish donors.


I came across this colourful handmade book on a recent visit to the residence of the German ambassador here in Dublin. The author is unknown but it is known to be the work of German school Children from Saarbruecken and dates from 1946. The heartfelt letters are in gratitude to the Irish people who delivered food parcels to the starving German children. Postwar Germany was  a country in chaos with food shortages. It was also an unsafe place for children as so much dangerous war equipment was lying around.  Approximately 800 German children also arrived in Ireland at this time about whom I wrote in Fadó Fadó More Tales of Lesser- Known Irish History



The child writing the above letter describes how  everything was lacking after the war. They were faint from hunger and weak at the knees. Then the Irish donation came at the right time.




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