Guest post by Michael Richter
[Michael Richter, a German reader of this blog living near the Sorpe Dam, has written to me about recent work carried out in Germany. This is at the crash site of the 617 Squadron Dams Raid crew of AJ-M, piloted by Flt Lt John Hopgood, near the RAF’s primary target, the Möhne Dam. I noticed that the work has been done by local people from the town of Soest, and I therefore suggested that Michael write an article himself, from the local perspective of the 1943 events. He suggested that he also write about a second memorial nearby, that at Himmelpforten, which concerns a local pastor who, on the night of the bombing, tried to warn the community of the forthcoming disaster. CF.]
Recently I visited the AJ-M crash site. I was pleased to see that there had been some renovation work and the visual impression was much better than in the photos of the route description shown in this blog. There is now a small, paved pedestal and the slab bears an engraved plaque.
Doing some research, I found out that the significant improvement was carried out by construction workers of the city of Soest, but the initiative came from a nearby school. Unfortunately, the employee of the city of Soest could not tell me which school this was. I will keep up my research, but I am thankful for the information given by a very friendly person at the Soest municipality.
Looking at the crash site you get a good feeling how the situation in that very night was, especially if you visited the Möhne Dam before. The distance airline is only a bit more than 4 miles. Given a speed of 230 mph it takes just a minute to get there. Unbelievable that three persons managed to bail out! In addition, between dam and crash site there is a height ridge that had to be crossed.
In some publications I have read that Hopgood had flown his Lancaster into a hill. That does not seem true to me, after crossing the ridge he was flying downhill and the area around the crash site is relatively flat.
If somebody is planning to visit the crash site, some additional information may be helpful. The unpaved road leading to the memorial is named “Frankweg” in 59494 Soest. It should be sufficient for a navigation system to lead you there. Please be aware that there is a “Frankenweg” in Soest as well. Make sure that you choose the correct road!
If you drive a regular car, you should park it shortly after leaving the tarmac road. I have a 4WD car and drove it directly to the monument, but I would not dare to do this with a sportscar! Besides it is only a walk of about 300 yards. The picture shows the surroundings and the proximity to the motorway and the arrow points to the monument.
Driving from the Möhne Dam to the crash site leads along the Möhne river. After 3 miles on the left side is another monument related to the Dam’s Raid – the Himmelpforten monastery memorial. Himmelpforten means “Heaven’s gate”. The monastery was literally washed away by the flood wave caused by the breach of the dam. If somebody is planning a road trip along the Dams Raid sites, it is worth a stop. Central part of the monument are the foundation walls of the monastery´s church. Except for a small wall, the church was destroyed. It is said that the flood wave at this place was 13 yards high. Pastor Joseph Berkenkopf heard the explosions of the upkeep mines and the roar of the wave. To him it was clear that the dam has been breached. Attempting to warn his little community he rushed up the church tower and rang the bells until the flood reached Himmelpforten and he was washed away together with his church. His gravestone is today part of the monument.
Currently, several events are planned to commemorate the eightieth anniversary of the raid which in Germany is always called “The Möhne Catastrophe”. Unfortunately, I cannot report on them because I will not be in Germany at that time.
I am planning to visit the other German crash sites this year. If there is anything interesting to report from there, I will write something about it.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Driving from the Möhne Dam to the crash site leads along the Möhne river. After 3 miles down river on the left side is another monument related to the Dams Raid – the Himmelpforten monastery memorial. Himmelpforten means “Heaven’s gate”. The monastery was literally washed away by the flood wave caused by the breach of the dam. If somebody is planning a road trip along the Dams Raid sites, it is worth a stop. Central part of the monument are the foundation walls of the monastery´s church. Except for a small wall, the church was destroyed. It is said that the flood wave at this place was 13 yards high. Pastor Joseph Berkenkopf heard the explosions of the upkeep mines and the roar of the wave. To him it was clear that the dam had been breached. Attempting to warn his little community he rushed up the church tower and rang the bells until the flood reached Himmelpforten and he was washed away together with his church. His gravestone is today part of the monument.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Currently, several events are planned to commemorate the eightieth anniversary of the raid which in Germany is always called “The Möhne Catastrophe”. Unfortunately, I cannot report on them because I will not be in Germany at that time.
I am planning to visit the other German crash sites this year. If there is anything interesting to report from there, I will write something about it.
Thanks to Michael for this article and the photographs. If you wish to contact him directly, please send an email to me and I will pass it on to him. CF.