The Impact of War Experiences in Europe

This publication focuses on the impact of war experiences on non-German nationals serving in the Nazi German armed forces and labour organisations. This new research sheds light on the individuals and their biographies, exploring the tense situations in which they found themselves.. It was not just the individuals who were called up to the Reichsarbeitsdienst (RAD), the Kriegshilfsdienst (KHD) and the Wehrmacht who were affected; families and communities at home also had to cope with and respond to the conscription of their sons, husbands and fathers. In some occupied regions cases, the families of deserters and men who went into hiding were resettled and saw their properties confiscated.In this context, adopting an actor-centred approach by focusing on ego-documents to observe individual experiences is key to understanding the diversity and heterogeneity of the war experiences of these men and women.