Vasilij Andreevič Terpak | »Dem Deutschen versetzen wir heftige Schläge« | self-evidence | German Empire | April 1, 1945 | voi_00055
Rights held by: Vasilij Andreevič Terpak | Licensed under: gemeinfrei | Provided by: Archive of the Romani Jag Newspaper (Uzhhorod/Ukraine)
45 г.
Письмо от сына.
Здравствуй мама!
Во первых строках своего письма я Вам сообщаю, что я пока жив и здоров, чего и вам желаю. Найлучших успехов в Вашей дальнейшей жизни. Писать о себе мне много нечего. Нахожусь я на фронте, немца бьем крепко. Спешим на Берлин. Дорогая мама, я вас прошу нейти никуда с дому […].
Sei gegrüßt, Mama!
In den ersten Zeilen meines Briefes teile ich Euch mit, dass ich noch am Leben und gesund bin, was ich auch Euch wünsche. Alles Gute für Euer weiteres Leben. Über mich selbst habe ich nicht viel zu schreiben. Ich befinde mich an der Front, dem Deutschen versetzen wir heftige Schläge. Wir eilen auf Berlin zu. Teure Mama, ich bitte Euch, das Haus nicht zu verlassen […].
1945
Son’s letter.
Dear Mama!
In the first lines of my letter I want to tell you that I’m still alive and healthy and wish you the same. I wish you all the best for the rest of your life. There’s not all that much to write about myself. I’m at the front, we’re dealing the Germans severe blows. We’re hurrying towards Berlin. Dearest mama, please don’t leave the house […].
1945
E čhavesko lil.
Drago daje!
Majanglunes kadale lilesa kamav te phenav Tuke kaj sem dživdo thaj sasto, so mangav vi Tuke. Kamav Tuke sa majlačhes ando tiro trajo. Naj so majbut te hramosarav Tuke vaš mande. Me sem po fronti thaj zurale daba das e Nemcos. Amen sigaras karing o Berlin. Prekuč dajorije, rugiv Tu, ma ikljov andar o kheravri. […].
Rights held by: Vasilij Andreevič Terpak | Licensed under: gemeinfrei | Provided by: Archive of the Romani Jag Newspaper (Uzhhorod/Ukraine)
Hungarian Rom fights as volunteer in the Red Army
Vasilij Tyrpak (1926–45) was a Hungarian Rom from Transcarpathia, which until 1939 belonged to Czechoslovakia and today is part of Ukraine. In the early stages of the war he supported the anti-fascist partisans. When the Red Army conquered Transcarpathia in 1944, he joined as a volunteer. The letter to his mother reveals pride in the military successes gained by the Soviet troops against the German army and the expectation of imminent victory. At the same time, the nineteen-year-old soldier is worried about his mother, who was living in constant danger back in Carpathia.
Vasilij Tyrpak did not live to see the end of the war. In April 1945 he was declared missing in action. It is possible that he died in the Battle of the Seelow Heights, fought from 16 to 19 April 1945. The remains of missing German and Soviet soldiers are still being found and recovered today at the site of the battlefield, close to the Brandenburg town of Seelow.
As the document here shows, in the original the last sentence continues, but the final line at the bottom is missing. The only writing on the back of the letter was the address.
