Women Reenactors of WWII: German Civilians . . . Lea

 

Welcome to the very first interview of the Women Reenactors of WWII: German Civilians series. To kick off the series, we have Lea. First off, thank you Lea for participating and thank you for sharing some of your own personal family stories as well. Lea has a unique impression, that of the black market in wartime Germany. Her impression is based off of family history and her own research. 

1) Tell me about yourself! How did you get into doing a WWII German civilian impression and how long have you been doing this impression? 

I am Lea, I am 27 years old, and I currently live in Aachen. I grew up in a small city called Monschau in the German countryside near Belgium. My interest in history started at 12 when my grandma first told me about growing up in the second world war with four brothers. One of them was adopted because his parents died from a bomb attack. 

In 2018 I started with US reenactment and in 2022 I was interested to also start German reenactment and was introduced to the lovely group Die Flakehelferinnen. I got in touch with them and shortly after I joined my first event with them. 

2) What are some benefits of doing WWII German Civilian? 

In my opinion you have a lot of options to portray different social classes. I always prefer the lower class because the region where I grew up was full of self - catering people with farms. You have a lot of different options. I also found everything I needed on eBay or at secondhand stores. When you look for US, German or Russian uniforms you have to pay a lot and research many hours to get the right reenactment kit together. For some uniforms it took me over 2 years and a lot of money. The clothes I wear in my picture cost me, without the shoes, around 50 euro because everything was thrifted. 

I highly recommend if you want to start German reenactment to portray civilian first. The research is still time consuming, but you won't spend tons of money for original or reproduction uniforms first and you may not like the hobby at all after your first event. 

3) What are some challenges of doing German civilian and just portraying the "bad guys" side in general? Do you think playing the "bad guys" comes with an added responsibility or pressure? 

In Germany the topic of the second world war is often hushed up. I mostly travel to Belgium or the Netherlands for reenactment events. I participated in one museum event in southern Germany as a German civilian from 1945 which was held in an open-air space. They always do an amazing job there whether its civilians, the US Army, or returnees from the war. It was always well received by the visitors and a lot of contemporary witnesses came up to us to have a little chat because they recognized the dresses we wore from back then. 

I still think that you have to do a lot of research and keep in mind the times you are portraying but you should do that with any WWII historical representation. 

With German uniform or German civilian clothes, you are definitely watched more than with any other impression. 

It's still a lot of work to take your historical representation to an authentic level. It takes a lot of time to research everything and build up your wardrobe. 

4) Do you have a static display at events? If so, what are your favorite show and tell items? If you don't do a display, what is your favorite item to still bring and show off at events? 

I did a display once about the black market in Germany in 1945. I my display, I exhibited different thins on the table like American cigarettes, coffee, nylon stockings, shoes, and a dress. I then let people guess what the prices would be then and then now in euro. 

I have a relation to it because my grandma went with her brothers to pick some blueberries in the forest, but they found sacks filled with coffee that smugglers threw away because they got caught. My grandma and her brothers filled up their buckets with the coffee, topped it with blueberries and rushed home. Her dad had to hide the coffee under coal because someone saw it and the house was searched. The didn't find anything so her dad went to the next big city which is Aachen where I live now to get shoes for the children. 

5) Do you have any advice to give to new reenactors? What is something you would have liked to have known when you were getting started? 

A good and authentic hairstyle brings your reenactment to a whole new level. It takes a lot of time to figure out what works best for you and your hair. Also, authentic underwear does a lot to perfect the silhouette. Keep makeup simple and don't overdo it. 

6) What is something you have always wanted to do at an event? What is something you would love to see at an event that you have yet to see? 

I would love to see "poorer" German civilian being portrayed. The majority of the Germans at the end of the war didn't have much left. 

7) In your reenacting adventures do you have a fun or interesting story that you would like to share? 

I meet people from all over the world. My best friend does reenactments in Poland, and I met her through the same interest via Instagram. We have been friends now for over 4 years and always visit 2-3 times a year. I meet so many nice people with the same interests. We always share our research and help each other out if we have questions. 

8) Knowledge is power! Can you share some of you favorite resources in building up this impression? 

I highly recommend the book "Glanz und Grauen - Mode im dritten Reich". The museum does a lot of exhibitions and also photographs their exhibition pieces with great detail in their book with explanations. It is in German but can be translated with an app. Fashion magazines from that time are also really helpful same as original pictures from the region you want to portray. 

For YouTube tutorials I recommend Karolina Zebrowska, she does an amazing job! I also highly recommend checking the Korsena website if you have trouble finding the perfect dress. She's a seamstress and sew together with her fiancé. She ships worldwide from Poland.

 

9) How or what was reenacting WWII German civilian line when you started and what do you think is the future of reenacting WWII German civilian. 

If I look back at my first portrayal of an average German woman in 1945 to now, I think I have made some progress. I think it's important that you constantly keep learning and researching and improving yourself. 

Thank you, Lea, for participating and offering some amazing insight into reenacting WWII German civilian and your own insight into the hobby. Thank you and keep up the great work!