Kev in Deva

This picture shows the wide open plains to the right of the monument from the rear, just after you emerge out from the Mures River valley. Good Tank country, but very scarse cover for the infantry. The fighting from here towards ARAD was articularly savage, involving units of the SS, once ARAD fell the road to Budapest was open. Sadly as with nearly all Romanian roadsides litter is a major problem Kevin in Deva.

Hungarian. Kevin in Deva

Romanian. Kevin in Deva

German. Kevin in Deva

Risking life and limb, I crossed the very busy road to get a picture of the sign located in a lay-by, first in English. I kid you not, the traffic along here is horrendous, why they never put a sign on both sides of the motorway is beyond me. Kevin in Deva.

Another front view to help with the perspective of the design. Kevin in Deva

Silently, guarding the place where so many gave up thier lives. May they all Rest In Peace. Kevin in Deva

Side profile of the monument. The piece immediately behind the soldier represents the wings of victory. The large piece to the rear represents the flames / desire in the hearts of the soldiers to win. Kevin in Deva

The right-hand side of the soldier. Kevin in Deva

Left side view of the soldier, showing the characteristic shape of the "Dutch Helmet" worn by the WW2 Romanians. The helmets were supplied by the Germans from captured Dutch stocks after Holland was over-run. Kevin in Deva.

This sign signifys that its a National Monument and gives some details of the designer, etc.. etc.. Kevin in Deva

HEROS OF THE DETACHMENT PAULIS. THE TITLE OF THE MONUMENT. Sadly the date in bronze has been vandalised

FIRST PANEL: (LEFT-HAND NAMES) SECOND PANEL (RIGHT-HAND NAMES) CAPITAN FATU IOAN SUB-LCT CISMARU GHEORGE. / SUB-LCT POPESCU DARIUS. SERG-MAJ. BICHA ERNST. / SERG-MAJ. CALIN TANASE. ELEV-SERG, ATANASIU CONSTANTIN. / ELEV-SERG. UNGELESCU CONSTANTIN. ? BABALAU ALEXANBRU. / ? MACHENICI DUMITRU. ? BADONIU CONSTANTIN. / ? MILITARU NICOLAE. ? BALAN BALAN. / ? MOTEA PETRE. ? BALESCU PAUN. / ? MOTREANU IOAN. ? BLAGA TOMA. / ? PLOPSOREANU APOSTOL. ? BOBEI IOAN. / ? POPESCU EMIL. ? CASOTA GRIGORE. / ? PREDICA MARIN. ? CONDA PETRE. / ? RACIU ILIE. ? CODREANU VASILE. / ? RADUCANU PETRE. ? COMANESCU CONSTANTIN. / ? SELA CONSTANTIN. ? DASCALU IOAN. / ? SINITIEANU EMIL. ? DOBRITOIU IOAN. / ? SPARLEANU LEON. ? DUMITRESCU IOAN. / ? STAMATIOU GHEROGE. ? ECOVESCU IOAN. / ? STANESCU IOAN. ? FOTA MIRCEA. / ? STOIAN ALEXANDRU. ? GHEORGE DUMITRU. / ? STROIE AURICA. ? IOVI TIBERIU. / ? SUCIA ALEXANDRU. ? IUGA IULIA. / ? SERB NICOLAE. ? JIANU SCARLAT. / ? SOSI IOAN. ? LERA SLOBODAN. / ? WEICHERT CORNELIU. 13 - 25 SEPT. 1944. Please Note: ELEV-SERG is the Romanian abbreviation for Sergeant-Student. Kevin in Deva

Under the statue, are listed the names of the Officer Cadet Class, who helped to block the advance of the Hungarian Forces at this spot in 1944. Kevin in Deva.

The centre piece is a representation of a WW2 Romanian soldier. Kevin in Deva

Hallo Gentlemen in June 2001, I was traveling from Bavaria, Germany, to vist Deva, Hunedoara County, Western Romania. Shortly after leaving ARAD a main town situated close to the Romanian-Hungarian border, I spotted a large monument in the distance through the front window of the bus, snatching up my camera, I snapped the following picture of this impresive looking monument. I always wondered what it was for, but when you are a bus passenger you are a captive, no chance to jump out and investigate I always said If I ever got the chance to go by car to ARAD I would get the driver to stop and let me look at the monument more closely well finally on the 26th of April 2007 I got the chance Close up photos to be added. Kevin in Deva.

Hi pluribus Some very beautiful pieces, please show more, front and back please. Kevin in Deva

Tony you do make some valid points. But, why would people want to wear a decoration with a symbol that is recognised as being from one of the most depraved racialy, moraly offensive on the planet.? Surving members of the Eastern peoples chose to wear decorations from service in WW1 either from Imperial Germany or Tsarit Russia and I doubt an eyebrow would have been raised. However, I feel not enough time has passed yet to sooth the old, open wounds, and memories of what was perpetrated upon the people of Europe (inclusing the families of American & Commenwealth soldiers who gave their lives) to free themselves from Fascism. To many people this symbol (The swastika NOT the Iron Cross) is a sign of hatred, more than the Communist symbol. If there was so much hatred against the Soviets, why then did not the "enslaved peoples" of the East rise up en-mass before the disintegration of the C.C.C.P. To my mind just because you have been under the heel of the Soviets, is no excuse to flaunt one of the most hated symbols in the Western World, do they not realise that it will cause an offense to other people. Or, is their idea of Democracy that of "I can do as I like" if so, then they are confusing the word Anarchy with Democracy. Kevin in Deva PS: pluribus I looked at the links, and can make no connection between the people mentioned and those who choose to wear a NAZI decoration with pride today, unless any of them were ex-nazi collaberators with an undying hatred for the soviets.

Well it is a quite obvious relationship, seeing that soldiers of Estonia and Latvia were not awarded Iron Crosses from 1813, 1914, and the swastika on the front might give it away that its a NAZI award, as well as any other NAZI award the veterans are sporting. It would be far better if the Estonians awarded their spldiers a local award, but in most armys when their has been a change to the staus quo get rid of the preceeding awards from foreign countries, (especially when the foreign power is a loser in the war) andreplace them with more acceptable awards. The only people who would want to sport such pieces are supporters of the Nazi and the moronic neo-nazi racists of today. Kevin in Deva.

So are you saying the Estonian people are happy to see their veterans wearing Nazi decorations Kevin in Deva

Its not very polite to go back to an earlier post and fill it with extra information, after a reply has been formulated on the original post : At the end of the day you are not going to find to much sympathy for people who want to wear nazi medals and decorations, especially from the people who suffered under and lost so much because of the lunatic Adolf hitler and his mad schemes to dominate Europe. While we do feel sympathy for any people who have suffered under one regime or another, there was nothing that the west could have done about it, we niether had the resources, or the man-power to take on the soviets. All that is in the past, its documented history, and its time to move on, put it behind you and get on with your lives, crying about what happened in the old days will achieve nothing. Coming from different sides of the Old Iron Curtain as definately shaped our ideas on what is right or wrong. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo pluribus, lets just get a historical facts straight here, Russian veterans at the time of WW2 were allied to the Western Nations and helped to defeat the nazi's, why should they remove anything, most of these men were happy to serve their Motherland, most were ignorant peasants and not graduates of communists schools of indoctrination. The Cold War was not the fault of the West and it was well beyond othe West's power or resourses to try and force the Soviets out of areas of Europe that they had occupied. Most countries that the Soviets occupied and many willing collaborators from within those countries, who were more than happy to see the soviets arrive. Under the Nazi's there was no Democratic rights, Under the Soviets there was no Democratic rights, now, as members of the E. U. you have democratic rights, however under democracy that dosent mean you can allow and upsurge in one mentality or the other, be it neo-faschist, or neo-communist. If the respective governments of the former Communists states wish to enact legislation to ban / remove the symbols of either the Nazi's or Communists, then let them do that. There is however a ban on the public showing of the nazi swastika in quite a few European countries, including Germany, France, Italy, etc... (even here in Romania it has been declared a forbiden symbol) mainly because of the suffering of people from those countries while under the boot of the Germans. As I said on other posts this forum is apolitical, but, why people would want to go back to wearing decorations, won while serving and aiding their past Nazi masters (who were defeated in WW2) and technically, the occupiers of their homeland is beyond me. Kevin in Deva.

Hallo Chris, nice salad bars , military police? that style of crossed pistols is very similar to the MP collar dogs of the US MP's, maybe a US influence?? Kevin in Deva.

Dear pluribus, my comments are made to the wearing of items with the NAZI swastika, these medals were awarded by a Nazi regime to their allies in WW2. The ss were brainwashed political robots who enforced the nazi doctorine on their own people first, then onto the other nations of Europe. I must ask did Estonia and Latvia offer any resistance to the German occupation of their county? or, did they do what they did when the Soviets arrived, stayed quite and said nothing. Coming from a country who lost many people fighting against the nazi's and its allies, I like many in Europe feel an intense dislike to this symbol because of what it represents, to the many victims of nazi tyrany. Because they were allied with the losers of WW2, Estonia and Latvian WW2 veterans could show some sympathy to the victims of the nazi's by wearing versions of the awards that have been de-natzified. Just because your countries have seperated from Communist control, does not mean you rewind the clock back to pre-communist occupation, and carry on like nothing has changed since 1945. Kevin in Deva.

Blood Donation?? WOW! RADIATION CITY does it glow in the Dark Kevin in Deva (take a left at the Vampire) Transylvania.