Thursday, January 20, 2011

The Horses That Inspired

My mother, Owanta, and her Trakehner horse, Dandy 

One night, some 4-5 years ago I woke up at 4am. (4 am is often a portal for me for other worldly things, meditations and visions). For some time before, I had been hearing an insistent voice in both my head and my heart telling me to write a book. I had no idea what I was supposed to write about. I kept asking, "What do you want me to write? Tell me and I try to do it." 

But the voice always went quiet. 

Anyway, that night the same voice told me to get out of bed, go to my computer and research  East Prussia. I followed the guidance and somehow Fetysz Os ended up on my screen. I fell in love with him right away - who wouldn't?  But then, sadly I learned that he had been shot, in cold blood, by the Russians when they invaded East Prussia and arrived in the famous "City of Horses" in Trakehnen.  

I cried to know that his death had taken place simply because he belonged to Germans. As I sat there I realized something else. My grandparents, Walter and Edith von Sanden lived just a few miles away from Trakehnen on their own estate in a place called Guja. My mother Owanta had her own Trakehner horses. A bold and self-possessed woman, she rode everywhere on her favorite horse, Dandy. 

Fetysz Ox - The fantastic Trakehner Stallion 
who caught my eye on the internet.

Well....right then and there, the story line for The Last Daughter of Prussia began to unfold. I thought - okay - I'll write a story about an East Prussian woman who flees her land and saves her beloved Trakehner horses. I had no idea what I was getting into. I once read quote that said "In a weak moment, I decided to write a book." 

Well that was me. 





(c) All content and photos are the private property of the Gottlieb family, unless otherwise stated or linked,  and may not be used without permission.
(c) Privatbesitz Gottlieb Familie


Guja, the 'Little Jewel' of East Prussia


  This is Guja - the home on the estate that my family left behind.  


    Guja, my family's home town in East Prussia, means "little jewel", an appropriate name as the land sparkles with beauty. My grandparents were forced by the atrocities of war and of the Nazis to flee their home one night, running against Nazi threat of execution and Russian invaders. East Prussia is no more, but I use my family photos and memories  to describe life as Manya, the heroine of Prussia's Last Daughter, would have known it.







(c) All content and photos are the private property of the Gottlieb family, unless otherwise stated or linked,  and may not be used without permission.
(c) Privatbesitz Gottlieb Familie

The Trakehner Stallion: Characters From Life

My mother, Owanta, on her horse, Dandy.


    This is my mother Owanta on her horse, Dandy. Both of them have been an inspiration for my book. Aztec, who is the hero Trakehner in my novel, The Last Daughter of Prussia, is black with a mane of polished opals but his character is based on what I learned from my Mom about Dandy. 


    She told me again and again that he was smart, strong, full of heart. A Trakehner had to pass a very difficult compulsory performance test in order to be certified as a pedigree Trakehner. It is this combination of spirit and performance that made these horses heroes during World War II

Here's a link if you're interested and a quote from it:

'The Trakehner is the most important and outstanding of all warmblood breeds, 
renowned for their grace, power, magnificent movement, 
outstanding beauty, great ability to perform, 
they are naturally balanced and free.' 

Click here to read more about the Trakehner.







(c) All content and photos are the private property of the Gottlieb family, unless otherwise stated or linked,  and may not be used without permission.
(c) Privatbesitz Gottlieb Familie

Flight From East Prussia

Photo from exulanten.com

    Before writing The Last Daughter of Prussia, I looked deep into my family's history and the story of East Prussia. As I did, I came across this photograph of people fleeing East Prussia in the bitterest winter of WW2 - January 1945.  I remembered my grandmother telling me that she was one of those refugees who fled west - away from the campaign of rape and violence led by the invading Russian Army

    This picture has always stayed in my mind. 

    The horses, so brave, pulled their people to safety for weeks in the harshest weather. Many starved to death or were shot and injured by falling bombs.They were the true heroes. Trakehners are all heart. What I learned in my research was that many of their owners did not believe they could make it through - the conditions were so terrible- but they did. The horses gave their heart and soul to save lives.



    Another photo of another column. These people were smarter - they left earlier - probably in the autumn of 1944. They defied Hitler's orders prohibiting any one from fleeing. Even then Hitler must have known that the Russians were right at the borders and that their army consisted of many millions of soldiers. 

    So many lives could have been saved if he had initiated the proper methods of evacuation. At that time, ships were still sailing out of the Baltic Sea ports - they could have taken millions to safety. As it turned out most people fled in the middle of the winter by which time the Russians had surrounded almost all the ports cutting off all escape routes.







(c) All content and photos are the private property of the Gottlieb family, unless otherwise stated or linked,  and may not be used without permission.
(c) Privatbesitz Gottlieb Familie