Choices were dictated by geography, birth, nationality, religion, money, family and friends.
After D-Day most Estonians knew the war was drawing to an end, and feared the reprisals of the Red Army and return of the NKVD. Still hoping the Atlantic Charter would guarantee a return to an independent state, Estonians parted promising, “See you in the spring.”
Roughly 80,000 Estonians escaped before the country was again occupied by the Soviet Union in September 1944. It is estimated that between 6-7% (5,000) were lost at sea either due to shelling or weather or subsequent bombings in Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig etc. Given the sinking of the Moeru (2,000), Nordstern (500) and shelling of RO22 (100), the countless boats that sunk due to storms in the Baltic Sea, the estimated number of Estonians who died may be understated.
It is astounding that according to Soviet statistics between 1945 and 1952, almost 21,500 Estonians chose to be repatriated (about 10,000 soldiers and 11,500 civilians). A few Estonians were forced to return to Estonia from Finland following the treaty between the USSR and Finland. Similarly a few Estonians were forced to return from Sweden, the French returned some Estonian medical staff with Vlassov's soldiers and POWs. Some were simply overrun by the Soviet army while trying to escape, some were captured when they tried to make one more trip to rescue those who waited in Estonia, some Estonians were in Czechoslovakia or East Germany or the Soviet zone in Austria at the end of the war and some were “kidnapped” or returned voluntarily from DP camps in the British, American and French zones. Thus based on eyewitness accounts and records from the western allies, the statistics provided by the USSR are questionable, especially given that Sweden recorded 28,369 Estonian refugees, DP Camps housed about 42,000 Estonians, while another 10,000 Estonians lived in Germany outside of the DP camps, DP camps in Austria recorded almost 1,500 Estonians and about 6,000 Estonian soldiers were given to the Soviets in Czechoslovakia in May 1945. (Estonians in Germany included both refugees from September 1944, and several thousand forced labourers assigned to German factories from 1942 onwards) In addition, there were groups of Estonians in Denmark and other countries. Estonian population figures show that the population dropped by almost 25% between 1939 and 1949. (Histordamus.ee / Estonica.org)
Those who escaped Estonia in September 1944 and made it to Sweden were referred to as refugees, but those that ended up in Germany were called DPs. While the integration of Estonians in Sweden into their local workforce, communities and society started in 1944, progressed fairly quickly and resulted in vibrant expat communities in Stockholm and Goteborg. Estonians in Germany did not become DPs until May 1945, the German economy was in shambles, hence Germans did not want to integrate foreigners into German society, relatively few Estonians remained in Germany and it took years before these Estonians were designated as “fit” and became a part of society in their adopted homelands (US, Canada, Australia, UK, etc.).
Although the Allied forces recognized that many people had left their homeland during the war, they assumed that everyone wanted to go home when it was over. So the initial plan and mandate of UNRRA was to assist people in returning to their homeland and to manage transit camps in Germany for displaced people that included: former concentration camp survivors, forced labourers, POWs and people who had fled from the war and the advancing Red army. It is estimated that over 11 million people were displaced by the war and lived in 150 DP camps throughout Europe. Imagine 11 million homeless and trying to survive. Those who had served in the German army were interned in separate facilities. The men in DP camps were inspected for tattoos, as Nazis were not allowed into DP camps. UNRRA officials allowed Soviet officials to visit many of these camps to encourage Estonians to return to their homeland and in some cases Soviets succeeded in convincing camp officials that Baltic citizens were citizens of the Soviet Union and forced repatriation. However, the events of 1941 were enough for most Estonians to ignore Soviet pleas and eventually Estonian representatives convinced American and UK camp officials that they were not Soviet citizens. In reality most Estonians planned to go home, once the Soviets were removed from Estonian territory and firmly believed that after the fall of Germany, the allies would continue eastward. Some Estonian men joined the American army thinking that General George Patton would lead the way in freeing Eastern Europe from the Communists. It was not known by the Estonians that the division of Europe had been decided at Yalta. So their dreams of going home remained dreams.
By 1947, the UNRRA realized that many people from the Baltic and other Eastern European countries were not going home. The UNRRA was replaced by the IRO (International Refugee Organization), who worked to find the remaining 4 million DPs new homelands around the world and reconcile over 20,000 orphans with their families. In 1948, the Berlin Blockade changed western attitudes dramatically and laws in Canada, the US and Australia changed to enable DPs to emigrate. The IRO closed DP camps by 1952.
By the end of 1991, the Soviet Union no longer existed. The Russian army officially left Estonia in 1994. Many, who left in 1944, never saw Estonia or those that stayed behind again. Most Estonians who were born abroad have visited the home of their ancestors. Estonia is part of the European Union and an active member of NATO. It is also a global Cyber Security Center and remains vigilant in protecting itself. It is said that history is written by the victors. We need to share our experiences to the broad global audience. We need to know our history and we need to share the truth. We owe it to those who died and to our children.
This fall there will be an exhibit in Tartu covering the Estonian exodus in September 1944 and I encourage you to discuss your family history around the campfire or dinner table this summer. It is an emotional and poignant event that changed our families and lives forever. Our parents and grandparents were incredibly brave and lucky.
For those that wish to share these family histories, VEMU has a competition that may be of interest to you. For details, please go to www.vemu.ca or call Piret Noorhani at tel: 416-925-9405.
Mari Ann Tammark
