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“A few German prisoners returned to Foucarville after the war,” says Anne Broilliard, “but I didn’t know them. They sometimes came with their descendants. That\u2019s how, little by little, we got in touch with them, but it was a long way from there to them deciding to donate what they had\u2014it was complicated for them.”<\/p>\n\n
Yet, after many discussions, some families finally make up their minds. \u201cFor them, it was the only way to ensure the legacy would live on and that their father would be honored,\u201d says Anne Broilliard. \u201cThe descendants are glad that people are interested in their parents and that they aren\u2019t being labeled as Nazis.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
A seashell collected at Utah Beach in 1945 that had been brought back from Germany<\/h3>\n\n
About 100,000 German prisoners passed through the Foucarville camp. They included soldiers, high-ranking officers, and 17,000 young people under the age of 18. The youngest was only 12 years old. <\/p>\n\n
Hans-Dieter N\u00fcdling was 16 years old when he was drafted into the FLAK, the German anti-aircraft defense force. Two years later, in 1945, he arrived as a prisoner at CCPWE19. During the day, he helped build the Utah Beach Memorial, which can still be seen today in the dunes along the beach, a few kilometers from the camp. <\/p>\n\n
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\n“We could smell the sea and see the water of the bay as a silvery streak on the horizon. Despite the physical labor that quickly burned through our 900 daily calories, I felt as though these missions were excursions into the freedom of an unknown coastal landscape\u2014rugged yet magnificent.” <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n