The ‘wolf children’ were orphaned German children after World War II in East Prussia. During the evacuation of East Prussia during World War II numerous German citizens evacuated East Prussia out of fears of the Soviet occupation of East Prussia and the atrocities that might be committed on the Germans. Not only the adults but also the orphaned children evacuated East Prussia in fear of the Russians.
Even after reaching Lithuania, there were no guarantees of security for these children, boys and girls who couldn’t find a home had to survive in the woods. Even those that were able to find a home to stay in didn’t have any guarantee of how long they would be able to stay.
The children who did find a family to stay with for the long run experienced a loss of name, language and identity. Speaking German in these regions was strictly prohibited, even a German name was a danger to the children and the families who were housing them, so the children had to learn Lithuanian quickly and change their given name in order to survive, losing their name and their language. The few memories that these children had – photos, letters, addresses – were taken by the adoptive family and burned in order to prevent the government finding out that they were harboring German children as such activity was strictly prohibited by the Russian government.
Although life was difficult for the ‘wolf children’ in Lithuania, it was worse for those who had stayed behind in East Prussia. Thousands of children were sent to Soviet homes run by the Soviet military and later sent to the Soviet Occupation Zone where they were put in orphanages or adopted by strong communists, these children again experienced a loss of identity being brought up in a Russian communist environment.
The German ‘wolf children’ are often forgotten for the bigger picture and politics of World War II, however, the loss of identity experienced by these children remain forever ingrained in the children’s minds having changed their identity forever.