Wolfgang Jansen

Wolfgang Jansen (\* 18. January 1921; † - - 1945) was a german soldier.

## Life

   Jansen grew up in Mühlhausen. His father was a simple worker, his mother was a servant of a wealthy family. Wolfgang's childhood was not easy. His mother loved him very much, but his father drank and beat the boy often. Wolfgang idolized his two years younger brother. When he was ten, Jansen ran away from home for the first time. He hid in the nearby forest. He could no longer bear his beating father. But after a day he returned home. Primarily, he worried about his little brother. He feared this could now be the new victim of his father. His mother fell around the boy's neck. The father did not seem to be aware of his absence. When Jansen was 13 years old, there was a tragic accident. His little brother playing at a frozen lake broke in and drowned. The loss of the son finally broke his father and he surrendered completely to the alcohol. The mother became seriously ill. Jansen was traumatized. He had to watch the accident without being able to help his brother. The father blamed him for his son's death and life became worse at home than ever. Jansen spun around a lot. He could not understand anything. How could an innocent dear boy, who had done nothing to anyone, simply die like that? In him, the realization matured that it did not matter what you did, whether you behaved good or bad. Death is for everyone and he comes when the time is right. So Jansen tried to explain the death of his brother.

After the Reichsarbeitsdienst, which Jansen greatly enjoyed since he was far away from home, he volunteered for the Wehrmacht. His instructor at the Reichsarbeitsdienst a certain Hartmut Gallinger had advised him to do so. Jansen was obedient, his father had drummed him in with his fight and he was ready to take on even the most difficult tasks.

Training at the Wehrmacht in the spring of 1941 disturbed Jansen only a little. He was neatly honed but that did not matter to him. He had a casual relationship with his comrades. He did not let anyone get too close. That should not change, with one exception.

His instructors recognized a certain degree of willingness to take risks, which was on the whole positive. The training sergeant prophesied that he would either go far or fall at the first opportunity because of his bravado and his carelessness.

Jansen did not care that much. He was thoroughly fatalistic. If something happened then it just happened and you had to accept it. He tasted everything to the last. What did it take an eternal thought to do this and that. So he also took the first fights in the summer of late summer 1942. The advance of Army Group made good progress and Wolfgang saw many comrades die despite the many successes. All this made him dull to an even greater extent. Already here it often happened that Jansen also executed inconvenient commands. The Lieutenant of the 2nd Company was a Nazi through and through and made sure that the commissioner's command was enforced. Jansen was always ready to carry out this order and he had also shot several prisoners in his first months of combat. It was not that he enjoyed it. He simply did not care. What did these people mean to him? Nothing at all. When the Red Army launched a counterattack in the winter of 1942, the 2nd Company was overrun by the Red Army. Three quarters of the company were wiped out. The Russians did not take prisoners. Wolfgang was able to make his way with only a few comrades only with extreme effort to the safe German lines. Wolfgang finally understood that fate does what it wants. And that he should not torture himself with this thought.

In spring 1943, the 2nd Company was brought back to full strength and used at Kursk. After the battle Wolfgang was finally assigned to Audorfs Platoon.

## References

* Verstaubt sind die Gesichter Episode 01 "Angst", 18.09.2017, https://youtu.be/hl6MN9Nmn2U
* Verstaubt sind die Gesichter Episode 02 "Heimat", 30.11.2017, https://youtu.be/EArcmvYS2wk
* Verstaubt sind die Gesichter Episode 03 "Hoffnung", 04.03.2018, https://youtu.be/NCmkMAb-EIk
* Verstaubt sind die Gesichter Episode 04 "Alleine", 22.04.2018, https://youtu.be/6vELi12pT9E