Letter to Anne Doward from Pastor M Fiedler

Letter to Anne Doward from Pastor M Fiedler

Handwritten translation of original Germany reporting her request for information about the shooting down and death of her father. Writes that crew were buried on 6 December 1943 is St Anne's (?) Cemetery. They were shot down by a night fighter on 3 December. Mentions location of crash and German documentation. Her father was one of unknowns recorded and was subject to later reburial. Includes German burial records.

1994-09-20

Handwritten translation and printed document

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EFiedlerMDowardA940920

Approximate translation

20.9.94

[underlined] Evangelical Parish of Trebbin [/underlined]

Dear Mrs. Doward,

By a roundabout route your request came to us. We understand that you wish to learn something about the shooting-down & death of your father. Our records reveal the following Entry in the burial register of Trebbin (see enclosed).

On the 6th December 1943 8 bomber soldiers (5 Anglo-Americans and 3 Canadians) were buried at St. Anne’s (?) cemetery behind the rearmost chapel. They were shot down on a bombing raid to Berlin by a German night-fighter on the 3rd December and crashed in flames on the new clubhouse of the Rifle Club (behind Ludwig’s Meadow).

The list of personnel is in the hands of the Magistrate
High Command of the German Army,
Army Records Office for War-Related
Persons & Prisoners.
Dept IU 2 Saalfeld
No. 471/7.11 1617/44

Dalton, Brown, Park, Groves, Lewis, Moad and 2 unknown.

So your father must be one of the 2 unknowns. In the cemetery register of the parish there are also entries (see enclosed) but the names have been crossed through at a later date and someone has added the following:- “Sent back home”.

Consequently your father was buried in Trebbin but at some point was taken away again. Home, in this case must mean England. Certainly there are places in your Country which undertook such re-burials and could give you information in this respect.

Kind regards from Trebbin

M. Fiedler, Pastor.

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[original letter in German]

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[burial register extract]

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[burial register extract]