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child soldiers who were decorated by Hitler with Iron
Crosses (2nd class) for bravery. The recording of the ceremony was widely circulated by Nazi propaganda. A photograph of Zech being inspected by Hitler was captured by Büro Laux, a German Foreign Ministry photo agency, and later – via Pressens
197:. During the attack, Zech saw a number of German soldiers injured by mortar fire, and decided to use his father's farm cart to retrieve them. He made two trips, bringing a dozen wounded to his family home.
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At the subsequent banquet Zech stated that he volunteered to remain in service, unaware that his hometown was already captured and his father was killed in action, after he was pressed into the
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190:, as was mandatory under Nazi rule. In early 1945, Goldenau (as Zlattnik was re-named under the Nazis from 1936-1945) was under attack by advancing elements of the
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According to Zech, a German general appeared at the family farm several days later and asked the parents to send the boy to
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278:, Peter Kranz is based on Zech, a member of the Hitler Youth during the last stages of the war.
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The Axmann
Conspiracy: A Nazi Plan for a Fourth Reich and How the U.S. Army Defeated It
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347:"Associated Press releases in-depth review of its coverage of Nazi Germany"
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Groenewoud, André (April 2006). "Was macht eigentlich ... Alfred Czech?".
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Newsreel of the ceremony at which Zech received the Iron Cross
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in order to receive leave to emigrate. In 1964, he settled in
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D-Day in
Numbers: The Facts Behind Operation Overlord
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208:. His father agreed and Zech joined several other
152:(12 October 1932 – 13 June 2011), was a German
579:Recipients of the Iron Cross (1939), 2nd class
274:In the German epic historical war drama film
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321:. Michael O'Mara Books. pp. 138–139.
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569:People from the Province of Upper Silesia
502:. Harvard University Press. p. 223.
469:Selby, Scott Andrew (4 September 2012).
437:"Downfall: The story of a Nazi boy hero"
584:German prisoners of war in World War II
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266:Zech was married and had ten children.
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288:12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerjugend
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434:Paterson, Tony (April 25, 2005).
604:Polish emigrants to West Germany
226:. Zech was sent to the front in
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450:from the original on 2009-11-08
574:Child soldiers in World War II
164:Early life and military career
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246:As an adult, Zech joined the
402:"Czech, Alfred "Hitler boy""
248:Polish United Workers' Party
123:Polish United Workers' Party
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213:Bild – distributed to the
184:) and was enrolled in the
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589:People from Opole County
315:Field, Jacob F. (2014).
160:at the age of 12 years.
496:Kater, Michael (2009).
204:, for an audience with
176:(present-day Złotniki,
90:North Rhine-Westphalia
254:where he worked as a
158:Iron Cross, 2nd Class
138:Iron Cross, 2nd Class
599:Volkssturm personnel
594:Hitler Youth members
16:German child soldier
187:Deutsches Jungvolk
406:ww2gravestone.com
382:Aachen-gedenkt.de
178:Opole Voivodeship
168:Zech was born in
156:who received the
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378:"ALFRED Czech"
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150:Alfred Czech
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104:Alfred Czech
80:(2011-06-13)
78:13 June 2011
35:Zech in 1945
564:2011 deaths
559:1932 births
475:. Penguin.
230:(presently
228:Freudenthal
146:Alfred Zech
86:Hückelhoven
23:Alfred Zech
553:Categories
411:2023-11-22
387:2023-11-22
299:References
242:Later life
223:Volkssturm
47:1932-10-12
448:Archived
282:See also
276:Downfall
236:captured
210:Jungvolk
195:Red Army
170:Zlattnik
65:(now in
55:Zlattnik
454:May 29,
362:June 9,
256:laborer
94:Germany
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202:Berlin
192:Soviet
182:Poland
129:Awards
67:Poland
526:Stern
504:ISBN
477:ISBN
456:2018
364:2018
323:ISBN
75:Died
41:Born
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
