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German War Cemetery Bad Bodendorf

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DAVID NEWMAN te MILTON KEYNES, UK 07-12-2005 20:44:17: My wife and I are "cemetery veterans" in that our driving holidays in Europe often take us, intentionally or otherwise, to areas with an interesting military history. Cemeteries, sadly, are part and parcel of a visit to these sites.

We discovered Bad Bodendorf cemetery by accident as we were returning from a day on the Rhine to our hotel in Adenau. What struck us was how sad it seemed, in a low-key way. German military cemeteries have a completely different atmosphere to Allied sites, being more understated and introspective. Just the colour of the stone used looks more grim on a cloudy day. What was evident was that these people (not distinguished by rank or service) had died in significant numbers in a short space of time. I had learned a little about the poor conditions in the temporary POW enclosures but the absence of any military description of the deceased made me doubt if these were military personnel. A visit to this web site has cleared up my uncertainty - many thanks.

We were both pleased to have visited this cemetery, if only because we felt that we had visited somewhere "special", where we shared time with people who had obviously died together on specific days - but without explanation. It seems ironic to realise that German servicemen could have died after having, sometimes, chosen to have been captured by the Western Allies for the expected better treatment than that "offered" by the Red Army.

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